The sun was starting to set, and the atmosphere was beginning to turn a dim shade of navy, which worried Silas. He hoped that Saya would keep her word and bring back plenty of food, but of course, just as he could easily find shelter and never tell her, she could easily find food and run off with it herself. The problem was that if Saya decided to do that, there was nothing that Silas could do to stop her. He realized that a little too late and cursed himself for it.
As he trekked to the oasis, abundant worries rebounded constantly in his head, every situation becoming darker with each time he imagined it.
"Hi!" Saya's voice suddenly sounded, only a few feet away from where Silas was standing. He jumped, raising his fists to his face in a pathetic-looking defensive position.
"Aw, did I scare you? Sorry. Anyway, here's the food. I always keep my promises."
Around Saya's shoulder was a dead animal, fur and all. It was as long as Silas' arm. It was a feral – a racawn. Historically, humans had experimented with racoon DNA, cutting and splicing DNA of gestating racoon offspring in order to produce racoons with new traits. Thus, racawns were made. However, they became fiercely territorial and were often viewed as pests. They were kept out of cities, left to reproduce in the wild. Now, racawns were one of the most abundant species of ferals out in the Badlands, where Saya and Silas stood now.
In one hand, Saya held a makeshift slingshot and a bunch of apples under the crook of her elbow. She held several more in her other arm. It was definitely enough to feed the two for a few days. Saya had indeed kept her promise and paid in full. Silas couldn't help but feel a great sense of relief.
"Anyway, you find a good place to stay yet?"
"Yes, actually. It's almost perfect. Up ahead there's a really lush area around a waterfall. There's fresh water for bathing and drinking, as well as tons of shade. It shouldn't be hard to make that a base of some sorts."
"Good, good! So you did decide to tell me about it after all," Saya said, giving Silas an irritatingly sly smile. "I was wondering if you'd tell me about it. I'm happy you trust me enough to share it with me, even if I already knew about it in the first place. Baby steps, M. I'll break down those walls, just you wait."
Silas groaned inwardly. He was tired of these games. He felt completely helpless, useless and foolish. Saya was running circles around him and she didn't even know what was going on. It was devastating for his ego.
"So, let's go see this oasis!"
Silas helped Saya by carrying the pelt and an armful of apples, to which she said, "Oh, you're such a gentleman!" much to Silas' chagrin. After a few minutes of walking, Silas' arms were already starting to get tired. Saya bounded along the trail, totally unfazed. She showed no signs of fatigue.
Suddenly, a figure jumped out from behind a tree, so quick Silas couldn't tell what it was until it stopped.
Another girl, even shorter than Saya, stood in front of the duo. Both Silas and Saya recoiled. The girl looked young, perhaps a year younger than them. She wore a dark grey vest and a black t-shirt, with tan shorts that revealed her slender thighs. On her left thigh was a number printed in bold ink – like a tattoo. It read "Last Stand - No. 2 Macy Marianette". Her hair was curly and a golden orange that glistened like a newly-washed peach. Her side bangs were tied with several yellow hair bands. Her appearance radiated like a gentle autumn afternoon. She had a small, shy, but curious smile plastered on her petite face. Silas noticed with a start that her eyes were red, the same shade as Saya's.
"Hey, hey!" she said. "I'm Macy. Could you be the missing members of our group?"
"Group?" Saya asked.
"Yeah. If you would be so kind as to allow me to check, I'll see if I can find your mark. If it's not there, you guys are free to go on. You guys aren't taking some sort of excursion, aren't you?"
"Oh, no," Saya smiled. "We actually woke up with-"
Silas slapped a hand over her mouth quickly before she could give away any valuable information. But it looked like Macy had already understood what Saya was about to say. She jumped and put her hands together in anticipation.
"That's exactly what we're looking for! Now, I know it may be a bit much to ask, but you see this here?" Macy pointed to the tattoo on her thigh. "We're looking for people who have the same kind of code on their thighs. You mind if I take a peek at yours?"
Silas rolled up his pants, not exactly sure what to think at the moment. Saya did so as well. Macy's eyes widened as she looked at Silas' leg. Looking down, Silas realized that he had the tattoo as well. He hadn't even noticed. It read "Last Stand – No. 4 Silas Sylvannister".
"Silas, huh? Slick," Saya said, raising her eyebrows mischievously.
Macy looked at Saya's thigh, which was considerably thicker than Silas'. Silas noticed a faint blush, which wasn't there when she was inspecting him. Saya's tattoo read "Last Stand – No. 3 Saya Brookes".
"Perfect. Rekka, I've found the missing two numbers!" Macy hollered at some unseen individual. Another figure came out of the trees, this time, walking calmly out from their hiding position instead of dashing like Macy. Each movement of theirs was measured, and as the figure came into light Silas realized it was a young woman.
She was dressed in a fancy suit – a mix between a dress and a business suit, with some wizard robe flair to it. It was crimson red, just like her eyes. Her hair was jet black with a red undertone and her skin was darker than Macy's or Saya's. She was tall, a few inches taller than Silas. She wore pointed boots that couldn't have come cheap. Based on her clothes and the way that she carried herself Silas could already tell she had been born wealthy. Unlike Macy's gentle charm, Rekka exuded an intense and strict air. She had the makings of a fine leader. She stalked towards Silas and Saya like a predatory cat, extending both of her hands in stiff, brisk motions.
"Greetings. I'm Rekka Amiri, and this is Macy Marianette. We're No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. You two are No. 3 and 4. There are others at the oasis up ahead. Since you're one of us, you should come with us and get to know them. Since none of us have memories of past experiences, it's vital we convene and form a plan to figure out what we're all doing here."
"There's eight of us in total, including you guys. We all have this weird tattoo thing on our thighs, and none of us can remember anything, so we should probably all meet up and work together to figure out what's going on," Macy echoed.
While the two newcomers smiled at Silas and Saya, Silas noticed a change in the atmosphere. He looked to Saya and saw that while she was smiling, her eyes weren't as bright and relaxed as they had been before. She looked visibly shaken. She leaned over and whispered something so faint it was barely audible. Her mouth barely moved, and Silas almost thought he imagined it.
"I wasn't able to detect either of them. They were completely hidden from my senses."