The Mountain

Chapter 3

James and I made a plan to meet in the middle. We would leave the sectioned areas in the morning and hopefully get to a small patch of trees marked on the map before nightfall. It is only about five miles away from the sections and James expressed we would have plenty of time during the day to get there. Although, the way I've mapped it also adds a couple more miles because I've avoided very steep areas and bad terrain marked on the map. I tell him to be careful on the way there and we said goodnight. My sleep is very light and I wake up multiple times. My dreams are filled with voices and slightly blurred faces. The voices tell me to be careful and to trust myself. I'm still tired when morning comes I'm eager to get going.

The air is warm and there is a cool breeze which is nice once I get moving. I pack up my bag differently today, making sure the things I might need will be in reach. The gun and map stay in my back pocket and I use the clip on the water bottle to hang it on the side of the pack. I have mapped my route so that I'll run into the twice. From what I've seen, getting water won't be too much of a problem as the river winds all across the mountain. If I plan out the route correctly, I'll be able to pass the river multiple times. I hook the radio onto the packs strap using the rope to tie it on with a knot easy enough to quickly undo it, just in case James radios me for some reason.

I set off pretty early, eager to meet James and unlock the first puzzle. Hopefully the box holds answers to what is going on, that's the only thing that keeps my feet moving.

I have a granola bar for breakfast and scope out edible plants and berries around me as I walk. Yesterday's encounter didn't let me take a look around and I'm not willing to go back and try again with the corpse sitting next to the river. Luckily, I find a few bushes of wild raspberries and strawberries. Although, I do have to shoo the birds away and pick from what is left. I won't use my gun to hunt just yet, the loud gunshots might alert whatever else is out here.

I have to walk two miles to reach the end of my sectioned area. The mountain started forming about a half mile in and my legs are starting to ache from the uphill climb and the rocky terrain. I mapped the easiest route I could find based on the maps markings but the lack of a trail to walk on causes me to slow down and walk carefully. I figure I will make it to the meeting point in about five hours.

As I walk, I experience what I believe is my first flashback.

I run around the small dark bedroom of a house giggling and squealing as an older boy grabs me and drags me backwards towards him and another boy about the same age. Just before I see the faces of the two, a white flash brings me back to the mountain. I stop mid step, trying to recenter myself.

I have to take a break just before I reach the end of my section. I don't want to stop once I get outside of it until I meet James. I have no idea what is out there and it will be best to keep moving. The sun has started to beat down on the mountain and the breeze has tapered off, raising the temperature quite a bit. There are a few clouds in the sky though, signaling that rain may come later. I drink water but leave enough so I can reach the river before running empty. I try some of the berries I found earlier to discover that they do indeed have the strong, sweet flavor.

After packing everything up and setting off again, I feel more refreshed and ready to see what the other side of the line might hold. Maybe there's nothing there that's different from the sections, but maybe the challenges are harder and survival might be a struggle. My determination makes my feet move faster and before I know it, I've crossed into the unmarked part of the mountain. My personal bubble has been popped and I'm here with what I can assume as ten other people. Only time will tell.

.   .   .

Three hours later, when I expected to be at the meeting point seeing James, I found myself curled into a ball with a giant boulder as my only shelter against the harsh rain. The storm came earlier than I expected and I only had minutes to find somewhere to stop before it came down. I radioed James and told him that I might be a little bit later than I expected but if I wait here any longer, I won't arrive by nightfall. I have to suck it up and face the storm. Flashes of lightning and claps of thunder make me nervous about walking up a mountain.

I pull the jacket tight around me and tie the hood in place over my head with the small strings. I leave the radio in the pack so water doesn't destroy it and cover the pack with the tarp. It'll help keep it as dry as possible.

I walk and jog the few miles to the meeting point, hoping that I can get out of the rain quickly or it will just stop soon. The wind propels me forward and I'm grateful it's not pushing against me. The conditions make the originally rocky and hard ground very slippery and wet. Water runs down the mountain in little streams. My boots make their attempt to keep my feet dry but the water finds it's way through them. The running water and slippery rocks cause me to fall multiple times, covering my jacket and pants with mud. More than once, I almost give up until I realize the spot that I'm at doesn't provide cover. I have to keep going to the trees or at least the first large rock I see. The mountain luckily isn't just straight up, it has spots that dip down and go flat, too. Those are the spots that make me go faster, it's hard to run uphill so I use those spots to make up for lost time.

By the time I see the trees, I'm soaking wet, tired, angry, and hungry. But the small spark of determination still lives inside of me. I use that to make the home stretch to the trees. When I get there, I set my pack down and roll out my aching shoulders. I plop down next to the bag and radio James.

"I've made it to the patch. Where are you?" I ask.

"It's about time," he answers after a moment. Luckily I can hear the humor in his voice that says he joking. Either wise this conversation wouldn't have ended well. "I'm about fifty feet in. You'll see my set up."

"Don't be rude," I tell him, picking up my bag and continuing through the trees. "The storm is brutal and at first  I didn't even think to keep going."

"Me too," he responds.

I leave it at that, we can keep the conversation going on ten seconds when I reach him. My stomach flutters, the thought of meeting,  or even just seeing, another human excites me. I walk until I see a tarp stretched out and hung up between four trees, like a hammock. It keeps whatever is underneath it dry and I can see a small fire burning. I spot a figure stand up outside of the tarp.

James.