Suddenly, my mind flashes to one thing: The Reaper. Why didn't I realize that it was already night?! Casey looks behind him, his face serious.
"Run! Run to shelter!" he shouted as he took off.
I run after Blair, trying to keep up. Now, the growl is a roar. The Reaper is right behind us.
After a lot of running, I pause, out of breath. Then, my eyes widened. Everyone was gone. I somehow got separated from them.
Suddenly, I feel something pounce on my back, throwing me on the ground. Pain shoots up my back like fireworks, but that's nothing compared to what I'm feeling when I look into the Reaper's face.
I have enough strength to push it off into the trees. It gets tangled in vines, and lets out a loud screech. I don't waste any time, and run.
I push tree branches out of my way, looking desperately for any signs of Casey and the others. I don't look where I'm running when I trip on a rock, and almost fly off a cliff. I grab the ledge, trying to hang on for dear life.
I don't know what is worse: falling off a cliff, or getting eaten by the Reaper. But as I tried to pull myself up, the curtain of tree branches separating the forest and the cliff began to rustle.
My heart seems to stop in my chest. The Reaper got out, already?! But, when the curtain parts, it's not the Reaper. It was Leon.
Immediately, he runs over and grabs my hand, helping me up. Before I catch my breath, he forces me up and into the forest. He grabs my hand and runs, and I can't do anything except stumble alongside him.
The Reaper's roar gets louder and louder. When it's right on top of us, Leon pushes me into what looked like a house, and locks the door as soon as he gets in. I peek out the window, looking at the Reaper streak past. We were safe.
…
After the Reaper's roars finally go out, that's when I finally slumped against the wall, wheezing. Leon leaned against the door, out of breath.
"Next time," he said to me, almost shouting, "don't separate yourself from the group! I almost killed myself by trying to get you!"
I finally got up. For a minute, I forgot how to speak. Then, I said, "Thanks. If you weren't there, I would've been toast."
"Yeah, you would've." Leon replied before looking away with a glare on his face.
Suddenly with a start, I remember. Casey. Blair. Kiana.
"Where are the others?" I asked urgently.
"That's what we're about to find out." Leon replied as he got off the door.
"'That's what we're about to find out'?! Seriously?!" I yelled, "What if the Reaper got them? What if they're-"
"They're not dead. Stop worrying." Leon said as he rolled his eyes.
"How do you know?!"
"Because I've been keeping in contact with them."
"How?"
Then, Leon pulled something out of his pocket. It was a small black box. It looked like a mini radio with its antenna.
"What's that?" I couldn't help but ask.
"It's a walkie-talkie," Leon explained, "It allows us to keep in touch with each other in case we get separated."
I was about to ask more, but Leon pressed a button, and talked into it.
"Casey, this is Leon. Nova's with me. Where are you, Blair, and Kiana? Over." he said into it.
I stared in fascination as it responded. "We're a few miles from the Amala Lake. Where are you guys? Over." Casey's voice said through it.
"We're right by the Amala Lake. In one of the lake houses. Over." Leon replied.
"Good. Stay there. We're coming to you guys. Over."
"Ok. Stay safe. The Reaper left, but it's still out there. Over and out."
After Leon said that, the walkie-talkie went quiet. He turned to me. "They're not far from here. I guess all we can do is wait."
As he sat down, I could see him wince. I sat next to him. "Are you okay? I saw you wince."
Leon sighed. "I'm fine."
"No, you're not. Show me." I said in the same voice I would use on Naomi when she was hiding an injury.
Before he said anything, I pulled his pant leg up. A cut was forming around his ankle.
"How'd you know?" he asked.
"I have a little sister. I lost count of how many times she hurt herself, and tried to hide it from me." I replied.
I looked around, and grabbed a clean, white strip of cloth.
"You don't have to do this. I'm fine." he said dismissively.
"Seems like 'I'm fine' is your favorite word. You need to stop refusing people's help when you need it. That gets you nowhere." I said as I got up. "I'm looking for a first aid kit. Stay here."
As I walked away, I heard Leon reply, "You're obviously not going to find one here."
A few minutes later, I emerged with one. "You were saying?"
Leon sighed as I sat back down. He was quiet as I treated and wrapped his ankle.
"Done." I finally said, "How does it feel?"
Leon stood up. "It's fine."
After seeing my face, he said, "Alright, it's ok."
"Better." I said as I packed away the first aid kit.
After a moment of silence, Leon said, "I admit. When you're not being a sassy know-it-all, you're not bad."
I looked at him, smirking. "Thanks. I guess you're not bad either when you're not being a grumpy toddler."
For a minute, I swear I heard him chuckle.
…
A few minutes later, Casey, Blair, and Kiana finally arrived. Casey was glad we were alive, and smiled at us. Blair, meanwhile, hugged me, and punched Leon.
"WHY DIDN'T YOU STICK WITH US, YOU NUMBSKULL?!!" Blair shouted.
"Excuse you?! I was saving Nova!" he replied.
"We would've come with you, if you told us! Don't run off again!"
Then, Blair hugged Leon as tight as she could, while Leon mouthed, "She's crazy!"
"So, how are you guys? Any injuries?" Casey asked.
"Leon sprained his ankle, but I treated it with a first aid kit I found here. What about you?" I replied.
That's when I noticed a cut on Blair's right arm.
"What happened to her arm?!" I asked.
"We encountered the Reaper when we were running. Blair wrestled it, and got that. But, she pushed it back, and gave us a lot of time to escape." Casey explained.
"Does it hurt?" I asked Blair.
Blair scoffed. "Of course not. I've gotten way worse than this."
After she talked, Blair winced. "Although, I would appreciate it if someone wraps it up."
After I wrapped up Blair's arm, I asked, "So, what now?"
Casey shrugged. "We certainly can't go out now, since the Reapers are hunting. I guess we have to stock up, and leave in the morning."
Blair and Leon nodded. I, however, was distracted by something else. "Reapers? Isn't there only 1?"
Casey shook his head. "No. In this region, there's a total of 5."
"5?! Then, how come Xera told people there was 1."
"They either didn't know or lied. Probably the latter. You should know by now that the only thing the Xera council did was lie. They make you believe that Xera is the only town around, and that sacrifices make their town flourish. Everything out of their mouths is a lie." Blair explained.
"That's why I hate them." Leon growled.
I sighed. They were right. The Xera council could set the world on fire, and call it rain. What made it worse that people believed their lies, and that just made things worse for everyone. I finally decided that the best thing about being a sacrifice was never going back to that wretched town.
Casey started to speak again, interrupting my thoughts. "Alright. We better get some sleep. I'll take a first lookout. Nova, do you want to join me or sleep with the others?
The next words out of my mouth surprise even me. "I guess I'll join you. I can't sleep anyway."