Lost

Chapter 16

The jungle was immense, stretching out before me. It tried to grab me, pull me down into its deathly green tangles. All I wanted to do was be home. But where was home? What was home? All I wanted was someone to hold me and tell me I was okay. But everyone here was in the same predicament. We could all die. We could all waste away on this stupid lost island. All I wanted was to feel safe. Was that too much to ask? All I wanted was for everything to go back to normal. But what was normal? What if normal doesn't exist? What if soon my normal would become this crazy island? What if my normal became being chased by these monsters? What if my normal became being terrified? Starving?

What if my normal became being...

Lost?

I pushed on, my breath burning in my throat. The sounds of my panicked friends, the sounds of the deadly monsters, the sounds of the living jungle, all faded away and I found myself lost in the rush of my heartbeat. There was no slowing down. No stopping. My mind was empty, completely blank. Rational thoughts were replaced by blind terror. All I could feel were my burning legs and my ragged breaths. Then something snapped me out of it.

A scream.

It was Irene.

"Irene!" I called, my rough voice surprising me.

The beast was gaining on her, it's claws snagging her ankle, pulling her down. Suddenly, I was running back, my eyes widening as the monster opened its huge mouth, saliva dripping out in strings. Time slowed. The beast was was lunging forward, going in for the kill.

I screamed a garbled mix of no and don't.

The monster's huge ink black, ape-like body rippled with muscles as it reached for Irene who was crumpled on the ground. It's eyeless face was full of lust and hunger.

Time didn't just slow, it stopped. My mind was frozen with terror as the beast's mouth was a mere inch away from Irene's small, vulnerable, exposed waist. She would snap like a twig the moment those jaws closed over her. And for a moment, my brain raced through all my memories of her.

She was the first person I had ever met on this Lost Island. Her inquisitive brown eyes had met my sad dark blue ones and it was friendship at first sight. Sure, she was hyper, downright annoying sometimes, and she acted a lot like a puppy. But she saw the light and excitement in everyday things. She cheered me up when I was at my worst. She was impulsive, never failing to make trouble. She was adventurous, always asking how and why, her dark hair always bouncing along behind her. She was always at my side. And if I lost her, I was afraid I would break. I would shatter. It would all be over. I wondered if I would cry then. I wondered if tears would finally fall. If relief would come. Or was I too far gone?

Thwack!

A stick hit the monster's head and it reared up, it's yellowed claws pawing the air. Irene pulled herself out of danger.

Suddenly I felt like a quickly deflating balloon. All the energy left me and I sank to my knees, relief hitting my like a wave. I turned to see that Rachel had thrown the stick. So she had guts after all! Bradley scooped up Irene and I saw her bloody, twisted and swollen ankle where the beast had grabbed her. Alex grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet and we were running again. The jungle swept passed us in never ending torrents, bright and green and full of life, but also danger. Sweat beaded on my brow and stuck my shirt to my back. The air was hot and hard to breath. It felt as if everything was fighting against us, trying to get us killed. I risked a glance behind me, only to see Bradley lagging behind, Irene still in his arms. The beasts were gaining. Three of them.

Wait. That didn't make sense. Reed had killed one of them before with his pistol. So either the entire island was crawling with them...or they were invincible.

"I have an idea!" Shouted Alex, her raw voice barely heard above the monster's roars.

"Is it a good idea?" Shouted Kate, her running form barely seen between the trees.

"I have an idea!" Alex repeated, her hand still on my arm in a vise-like grip.

Suddenly, she grabbed a hanging vine, pulling me up as well. I clung to it, praying it wouldn't snap under our weight. Alex pushed off with both feet against a tree and we swung.

"Wait!" I screamed.

We were swinging straight towards the monsters. I was sure we would hit them. I was sure we would be caught in their deadly claws and be mauled. I squeezed my eyes shut and braced myself for impact. But that impact never came. We swung right over the beasts and tumbled to the ground behind them. Then were were up and running again, rushing back the way we came. Still running full tilt, I fished the map out from under my shirt and tried to read it. It was upside down. Alex was still gripping my arm and I let her drag me along while I tried to make sense of the old faded map. But I couldn't even tell where we were on it, much less how to get to where we needed to go.

"Where...to?" Alex panted.

I could hear my friends swinging over the beasts, their yelps of surprise plainly ringing out over the monster's guttural roars. With any luck, this method would buy us some time.

"I-I'm not sure." A stitch was growing in my side and I was sure my legs would give out soon.

For all I knew, we could be running in the opposite direction of the...whatever it was that we needed to find. I stared at the map, the lines blurring together. A key? We needed to find a key.

"Keep...going straight," I gasped, "we're on an island. We'll get to the beach eventually if we keep going straight. Then I can get my bearings."

Why was I suddenly the navigator? I was by far the worst one for the job. I could barely find my way from the camp to the pond. But I knew my plan would work. After all, an island only goes so far before it ends with a beach. We'd find sand soon. And then, at least I told myself this, we could figure out where we were supposed to go. There was only one teensy, tinsy problem. The monsters were still after us.