The Him

Chapter 7: Ghastly Eggshells

We snuck through the woods. Then we saw smoke and light and ran towards it.
"Hexiy camp," Mae whispers. I put a finger to my lips and she nods. We hid behind some bushes and I eyed Commander Retreo's tent.
"We have to sneak in there," I say pointing it out for Mae. Just when we're about to walk out two people stop and talk in front of the bushes.
"Have you seen Asher? He must've been infected, we gotta go find him!" A voice said, I recognized it as Mila's. Oh no. Mae looked at me with confusion.
"You- you lied to me," she whispered. I shook my head.
"No I-I-I didn't mean," I stutter. Mae frowns at me and looks forward.
"AHSHER! THAT TRAIDOR, I SAW HIM GO TO OTHDOAN AND LEAVE ELIXIRS THAT BELONGED TO US OUTSIDE THEIR DOORSTEP!" Yelled the Commander, I think. My cheeks turn red.
"So that's where the hazel came from," Mae whispered hitting me softly on the shoulder. When the people were gone we snuck into the Commander's tent and I picked up a glass jar filled with eggshells. Just as we were about to leave Mila walked in.
"Asher? Is that you? Wait . . . are you s-stealing?" She asked, shocked. She steps back once.
"No . . . well . . . Mila, please we need to leave safely, my friend . . . he is infected," I say panicking. Mila's hands shake and she pulls out the alarm beeper.

"No," Mae whispered. But it was too late, Mila clicked it. A loud beeping sound filled the whole camp and I heard yelling.
"OVER HERE!!" Mila yelled. Mae and I broke out of the back of the tent and ran through the forest with the eggshells. Risco almost fell of my shoulder, twice. A flashlight was not that far behind us. All of a sudden, we got pulled into a hollow tree, and whoever pulled us in slammed the door.
We heard murmuring outside. I slipped the eggshells in my bag. "What's happening-AHHHH!" Mae yelled as she disappeared from view.
"Mae!" I yelled. I found the door and kept hitting it back and forth to get it open. Soon enough, I smashed it open and raised my gun out. Retreo was there, holding Mae by the neck with a knife pointing by her neck.
"Give us back the eggshells or she is dead," Retreo sneered.
Mae looked at me with open eyes and trying to shake her head.
"You're choking her! Stop!" I yelled.
"Lower your gun, Asher." I turned around and saw Mila and my old crew behind her, "or else, your girlfriend is gone."
"She's not my girlfriend," I whispered and lowered my gun, facing Retreo.
"Give me the eggshells," Retreo yelled.
"Fine! Just stop choking her!" I said getting out the eggshells from my bag, "Here, now release her!" I threw the eggshells on the ground.
"Good, but remember this moment so you don't forget to not mess around with Hexiy." Retreo set Mae down and stabbed her in the stomach.
"MAE!!!!!!!!!!" I screamed catching her as she tumbled to the ground.
I heard Mila and the crew gasp behind me. Retreo's eyes were glazed over with anger. Risco leaped forward and latched onto Retreo's arm. My old group just stood there watching as I bent down beside Mae to help her. I only looked back when Risco squealed in terror.
He had been stabbed in the jaw. All of a sudden I heard a gunfire and Retreo fell to the floor. I spun around to see Mila with her gun up. She would be kicked out of Hexiy for that. I grabbed Risco and cradled him beside Mae. I couldn't help it, the tears spilled out faster than I could control. Risco groaned and he slowly put his bloody paw on Mae's head and closed his eyes. Mae gasped in air.
"W-what happened?" She asked hoarsely. I explained the whole thing while tears still dropped from my cheeks. Hexiy left us. Risco was still lying down, eyes closed. Then it occurred to me. Risco gave his life to Mae! I picked up him and hugged him to my chest. He weakly opened his eyes.
"Goodbye Ash," He whispered.
"No," I whisper. His body goes limp but he opens his paw and he has a handful of ghastly eggshells, but the Hexiy, they took the rest away. Risco must've grabbed some before Hexity took the rest. Mae rushed over and tried all of her bring-back-to-life techniques, but none worked. I hand her the eggshells and I tell her I need some alone time.
I sit on a log in the forest holding Risco. I cry into his fur and it feels like hours that I sit there, until a fawn walks up to me and nuzzles my hand. I look up. The fawn nudges me and I get up.
I hang onto her back and she nudges my feet to stand properly. She is leading me somewhere. She walks into the forest and I follow hesitantly. She stops and a tree stump and she kicks it. Tufts of Risco's fur fly out. And suddenly I know what she's saying!