US (Formerly The After Effect - Book 2)

25 - S T R A N D E D

Turned out, Mason and Jared both lost their guns. Jared's was somewhere in the river, and Mason left his on the rock with the others. Luckily, Jared had a spare blade in his pants pocket, which I was able to use to shred a piece of wood. I pressed the blade into the branch repetitively and gathered a small batch of shavings. The small little pieces turned into a tiny fire soon enough. I was actually proud of myself when the flames rose up.

Brink sounded anxious when he responded to me with an answer I didn't want to hear. He mentioned they were a few hours away at best, and that to save these guys, I needed to do all I could to keep them dry and warm. "You, too," he'd said. "Please." He was sincere in our exchange, and I know he is worried about me. My mom must really be freaking out.

I've since cleared an area on the ground for sleeping as the guys hugged each other. I had to dig a little to avoid snow, but it wasn't a big deal and didn't take long. Jared and Mason are now huddled as close to the orange flames as possible without getting burned. Most of their stuttering has ceased now, but mine hasn't.

The boys haven't spoken much, I figure to conserve energy. Either that, or they're too nervous about the future or pissed about the past to discuss what occurred. I'm glad I don't need sleep, because tonight, I'll be on fire duty. And shit I can't feel my legs.

"You know...it's funny how people show their true colors," Mason says after a while, his voice even again.

I can only gather that he's referring to Travis, but I still feel propelled to ask, "What do you mean?"

He doesn't meet my eyes when he speaks; his are locked on the crackling fire. "Travis was like...I won't say a god to me, because that's ridiculous, but he was like a hero—an idol, that's the word. When we were training together and the whole thing with Caleb Jenner happened, I was right there. Do you know who Caleb is?" he wonders, and glances up at me.

I nod. "He told me about him."

"Well, I was one of the first people who saw them when they arrived at camp after the fire. Travis told me everything and I couldn't help but feel respect for him. He taught me what it meant to be a soldier." His eyes fall. "But he was just going to let Jared die."

My lips press hard together, unsure of how to respond. "You saved him."

Jared bobs his head up and down. "Yeah, man. I owe you—"

"You saved him. You saved both of us," Mason cuts him off, speaking to me.

At first, I'm silent, but I then gather up my thoughts and present a reasonable argument which puts the spotlight back on Mason where it belongs. "Did I help? Yes. But it was you who had the courage to jump first. You risked your life. I risked...nothing really."

"Well, thank you," Mason continues. "It meant a lot when I saw you coming. I honestly thought we were both goners."

I shrugged. "It was n-nothing."

"How did you do it, anyway? I swear I saw you doing something with your hands. Maybe I was imagining things...I don't know, I'm fucking cold."

I offer a clarification, and go for the truth. After all, they'll soon meet the other Five, so they'll find out one way or another about us. "No, you aren't crazy...I moved the water. Okay, that sounds crazy, but I have a...special ability." How do I make myself sound sane? "I can move things."

"You're like a superhero?" he jokes.

I roll my eyes. "No. But I am superhuman."

Mason frowns, not sure if he should believe me or think I'm messing around. "What?"