𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞 (Sleepy Bois Inc) /Discontinued/

-4-

Wilbur
--

The campfire flames flickered in the dark, illuminating Tommy's face across from me. The orange and yellow hues cracked and popped as the sun set down behind the tall trees, casting long shadows behind us as we waited for our friends to come back from the woods. Other than the fire, it was silent in our camp. So quiet you could hear a pin drop, which was unusual when the boy you were sitting with was Tommy. He held his head in his hands gently, and I studied his face. There was a small hint of fear tinting his eyes, and I felt sympathy for him. If only there was a way to go back and tell him it would only get worse from here.

"Hey-" I started, but stopped after not being able to find any words to continue that half-assed attempt at conversation.

There were a few more moments of awkward silence, both of us desperately trying to find words when Tommy muttered with a quivering voice, "Are they coming back, Will?" I just stared at him, not being able to provide a, however, because it was honestly hard to tell with those two. They were always eager to run straight into the lion's den.

Sighing, I tried to reassure him that it was most likely going to be alright. "Tommy-" I sighed, hanging my head in exasperation, but was quickly cut off by the shaking of bushes near Phil's tent. Both Tommy and my heads spun ninety degrees towards the sound, jumping up to our feet simultaneously. I heard a familiar grunt as Techno pushed his way through the bushes, dragging something limp behind him. No- Someone.

I ran over to the men as Techno continued to drag Phil by his armpits backward further into the camp, leaving an ominous trail of scarlett as we went. I feared for the worst as I ran to fetch the first aid kit, leaving Tommy to help Techno. I emerged from my tent a few moments later with the kit to be met by a sobbing Tommy, who looked frantically from person to person as we all crowded around Phil lying on the ground. "Is he gonna be alright?!" Tommy half-shouted over the chaos, receiving no answer from any of us. The bottom of Phil's once green jacket was stained with a deep scarlett substance that was sticky to the touch. Blood, and lots of it. Phil winced as Techno half dropped, half set his upper half down on the grass.

"What happened?" I whispered to Techno, who was staring unblinkingly into the woods. He just looked at me with a familiar look of rage and shook his head slowly, it was almost as his gaze radiated heat- and it burned even the coldest places in my chest.

Phil stirred on the ground, trying to grab hold of my khaki coat- The same one I'd had since I was sixteen- and I winced at the thought that it would now be covered in my friend's blood. "W-Will-" He stuttered, clearly in pain, but I hushed him. It was important I had my full concentration to try and locate the source of bleeding. He also needed to save his strength as much as possible. I zipped off his jacket all the way and lifted up his shirt just enough to look for external damage, being careful not to cause anymore as I did so. 

My body let out a shiver- not from the cold- when I saw exactly what had caused his pain. There was a deep gash across his lower abdomen which seemed to be made from someone very skilled with sharp, high-quality swords. There wasn't many people who fit that profile around these parts, so it was very easy to form an idea of who may've commited that heinous deed. Looking harder at the wound, it seemed there would be little I could do to stop the bleeding, and even if I could, there was still a very high risk of infection. I sighed, the pain of what was sure to come weighed heavy on my shoulders. C'mon Will, there must be something you can do! I screamed internally, trying to keep hold of the last bit of life he had inside of him.

I pulled Phil's shirt back down over the nasty wound, and pulled him into a gentle hug, loosing all hope as I let the warm tears fall down my chin onto his shoulder. Techno got the hint, and very carefully tried to explain to Tommy there was nothing left to be done. Grabbing ahold of the boy's arm lightly, Techno tried to remove him from the scene. "NO!" Tommy fought. He obviously understood the premises of death already, asidd from the fact he was still fairly young. "I'm not leaving! I'm staying here with Phil!" He cried, pulling so hard away from Techno that the only choice was to let him go. Tommy fell to the ground with a grunt, quickly hopping back up and looking over at Phil and I. It was hard to make out his words over the choked sobs, but we all got the idea. Techno got tired of trying to keep Tommy away, so he kneeled on the soft grass next to Phil.

His condition was worsening by the second- "I-I love you guys..." Phil muttered, the colors of his face turning paler as the life was mercilessly sucked out of his body, along with the stream of blood coming from his abdomen. I turned to Techno, who was still staring sadly at his friend on the ground. I didn't dare look at Tommy, I knew he was a mess just by the sniffles from behind me.

"That bastard has a hell of a ride ahead of him, you mark my words," Techno growled through clenched teeth, no doubt he was reffering to the person who made that sickly cut. It was almost common knowledge at this point to anyone who'd ever known us; You mess with Techno, you get pain- You mess with his friends, you get death. The fiery rage deep in Techno's eyes almost outshined the campfire still crackling a few meters away. If Phil was in a better state, it might've been smart to move him over and warm him up with the flames, but it was unreasonable to even try to complete such a task at that time. The wave of emotions coming off of everyone all at once was sickening, sadness, pain, and a burning rage all bundled up into one dysfunctional gift.

Tommy crouched beside me, wrapping his arms around Phil as the dying man pulled us all into a group hug. The last group hug we'd ever share together. It was crushing to think that this last day was the last full day we'd ever spend with Phil- We'd never see his smile, hear his gentle words, or even seen that little silhouette of his sturdy frame against the sky ever again.

There was a simultaneous deep breath from us four all at once, but when it was let out, my stomach sank at the thought that only three of us would ever breathe like that again.