They had a clear meeting place. The group that Britney and Dexter had assembled for one clear purpose: finding Cindy Keagan.

Claire and Samson pulled up in the latter's pick up truck. The meeting spot was at a gap in the fence by a heavily wooded area that was violently torn open... from the other side. The pick up truck came to a stop, and Claire raised an eyebrow as she looked at it. For an instant, Claire remembered all the rumors of people going past this fence, and never coming back out. Or other dumbasses going into the forest, and seeing a monster or something. Everyone used to think they had a bad trip, and started seeing shit.

Now Claire's starting to think differently.

Claire got out of the passenger side, and looked around. She didn't know much about this hiking crap, so she tried to dress appropriately with what little resources that she had on hand. Heavy black work boots, thick black jeans, a grey long sleeved shirt, and a black jean jacket. She probably only needed the boots, but it's probably going to be cold out, and she sure as hell didn't know when they were getting back, so she was prepared for anything.

Her eyes drifted to Samson, who chose to wear a heavy green jacket, with gloves, heavy jeans, and thick work boots that were old and worn. Sammy was a farmer boy, so he did a lot of work. It did wonders for that bod of his... Oh, she had to keep her mind on track. While Samson was grabbing his bag out the back, Claire looked around, before she wondered if they were the first people here. Brit told everyone to meet here at ten o'clock sharp... so it looked like everyone was either going to be reasonably late.

... Then her eyes landed on Britney, who was leaning up against a tree, applying lipstick while looking into a pocket mirror. The girl looked very prepared for this trip. So prepared that it made Claire feel a little bad. She had on a red heavy coat, an enormous backpack, work boots, sunglasses, and.... still was applying make-up. Claire rolled her eyes at the display as she walked up with a hand on her hip.

"Brit, is this a search party?" Claire said, and Britney stopped as she glanced at her friend. The irish teen put a hand on her hip as she half-smiled, before poking at her friend's vainity some more, "Or a beauty pageant?"

Britney rolled her eyes, before she got in a little quip of her own, "I only want to look good for you." She sarcastically said with a wink.

Claire laughed, before she said, "Where's the rest of our group? We goin' it alone?"

"They should be here any minute now..." Britney trailed off, before stating. "... I hope."

---

The Levine Household >>> Mount Ever Reaching (Fence Line)

---

The next day, Madeline imediately got out of her bed as soon as she woke up, and started to stuff her hunting backpack with things she and the others would need for hiking. She never really got to hike up the mountain, as her brother intended to stay on the ground while they hunted, so this would be fun, hopefully. Once she got dressed, Maddie threw on her backpack and grabbed two hunting rifles, in case things went wrong, and headed out.

"I'll be back in a bit!" she said to her brother, as she went out the door.

The walk to the mountain seemed to take a while, as most people were still asleep or at work at that time of day. Yet it always felt nice to walk alone. That is, till her run in with Scott ruined the mood. Now Madeline couldnt help but look behind her shoulder once a while, in case the beast tries to kill her again. But she'll be ready.

Once three of the others were in her view, Maddie picked up the pace to them. She could be seen wearing a heavy camo jacket with a gray long sleeved shirt, a matching camo baseball cap, leather gloves, her hunting backpack, and lace up boots. So safe to say, she looked ready.

"Heya...Guess I'm early, haha." She said, waving hello. Maddie grabed one of the rifles fron her back and checked the number of ammo she had left in the gun.

"Oh yeah! I grabbed a spare rifle in case anyone else needed a weapon." Madeline added, pointing to the second gun on her back.

---

---

Compass. Check

Flashlight with extra batteries. Check

Household first-aid med pack. Check

Toilet paper, towel, and extra clothing. Check

A knife and fire tools. Check

Three days worth of foods and 3 bottles of water. Check

Standing in the kitchen, Lee constantly checking his stuff that he should bring before leaving his grandfather’s house to go hiking with Samson and others. The trip would be about a day or so, Samson said in his message. And Lee had agreed to join, after asking for permission from his grandfather and finishing the next week theory in grammar. The journey would be about trying to find someone, a friend of someone, Lee believes so. But just to avoid missing the whole context, Lee takes out his phones and scroll down to find the text that Samson sends him yesterday.

From: SAMSON (the African American guy that inviting me to the lumber mill before the killer incident happen)
You want to join us in finding Cindy Keagan? She is the cousin of Britney. Are you in?

---

Lee nodded before placing his backpack on the porch and going up on the second floor. The stairs creating these noise as Lee stepped on it, signaling its undeniably weak state. There is no need for Lee to say to his grandfather as his grandfather would not care anyway. But from Chinese, there is a thing that called as “rank" in the family. And the duty of the children is to obey and caring for the older. And Lee is just doing his duty.

Opening the door and letting the elder smell to go away for a moment, Lee walk in to see his grandfather. Lee's grandfather, as Lee believed, is called as Yieu Wu. And he used to be a carpenter. But apart from that, Lee knew nothing about him. Yieu Wu is a small man, quite dark for an Asian. And the most notable traits of him would probably be his long and white eyebrows that touched his chin. Other characteristics probably are uncontrolled shaking, red bloated eyes, and breath that is so light people would mistakenly him as dead. But even in his sleep, his cracked lips still constantly open and close, making it seems as he tries to convey something special but unable to. His Adam's apple constantly moves up and down on that small and thin neck, trying its best to not kill him with his spit. Besides him is a bucket of spits, urine, and excrete mixed together. Their smells were horrible, almost toxic to the nose and a nightmare to seen in the first place. Just to think that Lee was almost puked directly into that bucket when he first sees was horrible enough. Thanks to his blessing from his dear mother, Lee actually live through the whole process and grow a high tolerance toward these things. Afterall, he is the one that cleaning that bucket.

Replace the already filthy bucket with a new one; Lee takes the thing down to the floor before spending his half an hour to scrub and sterilized the whole thing twice. After cleaning the thing and put it nearby his grandfather, Lee slowly takes out his grandfather clothes to clean his body with a wet piece of cloth, forcing him to eat as he wakes up, gives him pills, and calling the neighbor so they could give an eye on him. Before his grandfather could fall into another slumber, Lee bowed to him. The smell of the wooden floor with unclear smell comes straight to his nose, but Lee could not care as he said loudly to his grandfather. The native tongues, an ancient language that started somewhere outside of the US, echoed in the wooden house of the two. And suddenly, the pressure coming out from the man above Lee, like a father about to yell the son. His right eyebrows raised, right pinkies move a little bit as if he allowed Lee to talk. A voice coming from the crackling lips, merely a word “Shi" to show his approval.

“爷爷，我已经买了药，准备了食物。你只需要加热食物。我也曾要求邻居盯着你，所以不要担心，如果有什么事情发生的话。谢谢，让我留在这里。所以我希望你能让我和我的朋友出去玩一两天。当然，如果发生什么事，我会承担全部责任。
” (Grandpa, I had bought the medicines and prepared the food. You just need heating the food up. I had also asked the neighbor to keep their eyes on you, so don't worry if anything happens. Thank you, for keeping me here. So I hope you would allow me to go out with my friend for a day or two. Of course, I will take all the responsibility if anything happens.)

Another “Shi" came out from the man. And there was nothing. No sound being created as Lee left the room. No sound can be heard when he stepped on the old staircase. No sound. Just like the silence that the house used to be before Lee came. Nothing. No love. Just respect from the lower to the higher.

---

It took Lee awhile before he reaches the fence lines, seeing Samson and those that Lee did not know waiting for other. There were too many people it seems, Lee thinks to himself as he pulled the black cap down to cover half of his face from others. It is going to be fine, Lee thinks as he slowly approached the group. He hoped.

---

---

---

An average day... Tossing and turning in bed with little motive for however long it took for Callie to find a shred of motivation to rise. She spent her minutes thinking back on Britney's mission. In fact, it had eaten up quite a bit of her sleep before she had awoken as well. It was all just strange. She could put it in a more extreme matter, but housed within the eldritch oddities of little Farmer Hill was a strange simplicity. It really collapsed away any urgency that any normal person might have felt in the scenario. As much as Callie wanted things to be normal, there was too much left unanswered for her to just get up and go home. Hell, perhaps the the pseudonatural nature of Farmer Hill was the only thing that kept her present. It wasn't like there was much for her here aside from that strange allure. Callie would never be able to put such a drive into words, though. She would try, however.

Hiking... That, Callie had done. Camping? Backpacking? Mountain climbing? Those were a different story. Luckily enough, she really didn't overthink the scenario. In fact, she vaguely thought of it at all. So when it came to packing for such a venture, Callie didn't appear as ready as some of her colleagues might later reveal to be. A jacket covered her frame donned in jeans and a plain shirt. Her true preparations lied in the bag swiftly strewn over her shoulder after an array of notepads and pens were shoved into it. Was she ready to travel? At least by her terms, at least. Callie didn't ever foresee herself having to cut through shrubbery with a machete or gut a fish with a pocket knife. Even if she did come to those scenarios fully equipped to deal with them she was unsure whether she would actually even try to accomplish such feats. She wasn't a survivalist. She was a writer. In her mind, she had every tool she needed for the job. Well... Either that or she simply didn't think to bring anything useful...

Even as she packed— even as she walked down the road accompanied only by the whispers of the wind, Callie had meditated on her reason for agreeing to joining a search party. Ordinarily, she would know she was never cut out for a job like this, doubly so with a massive monster guy running around, but it was that damned allure that kept her compliant. It was as if she was caught in the flow and had no choice but to follow the lead of the rest of the sudden superheroes. It was likely that she was in her own unique situation as well, considering half of these kids she was meant to travel with probably already knew each other. Callie was the odd one out— the new kid in Farmer Hill. All the questions and thoughts swarmed her head. For a good portion of the walk, she didn't even realize she was walking, too lost in her own thoughts. It wasn't until Callie came within sight of the fence line that she found herself snapping back into her head.

Not many folks were gathered when Callie had arrived, but considering she only really recognized Britney, it was going to be an odd scenario. She approached as quietly as she had strolled all the way there. Momentarily, her eyes flicked in between the present company. It was quite the sight between a Britney's survivalist look and another girl toting around a rifle. Perhaps this was a bad idea. There was a stutter in Callie's step as she took the sight in. She was never one to turn away from fear easily, though. She soon stepped to the group. While Callie spoke no words, she offered a plain wave towards Britney before taking up a position pacing along the fence line where her pondering continued. Perhaps she could try observing some of them... Perhaps she could try to see what was ahead.

---

---

*BZZRRRRRRTTTTT*

"Good morning once again people of Farmer's Hill! For those just joining us we're looking at relatively clear skies and an open road, that said if you are just joining us you're gonna want to phone in to your boss because it's ten pm and you're gonna be late! late! la-"

Peter's hand clumsily shot from under the covers as he tried to turn off his alarm clock, his precise movements only serving to knock it clean off his bedside table along with several unopened books on musical theory. He let out a drawn out groan.

"Now for all you outdoors types; well, you can expect standard September weather with temperatures dropping tonight at around-"

Forced to leave his mess of pillows and a half covered duvet Peter finally silenced the offending machine with a less than gentle slam of his fist onto the off button. He sat down with his back resting against his bed and sighed as he rubbed his arm across his eyes. He'd really tried to get on schedule to be ready for today but things had not been going so well in that department,

Regardless there was no time like the present as Peter pulled out some clean clothes from his wardrobe and picked up his bag which he'd had the foresight to pack last night, not that it took much work, Peter was poor and not prone to adventure trips or search parties. The grand total of his inventory added up to a small flask of water, a bottle of his medication. a wool hat and a single pencil. Properly outfitted and his bag slung across his shoulder, Peter gave his frazzled self a once over in his bathroom before leaving the dormitory and out into the open street.

This was why he'd set the clock for a later start.

Gripping tightly on the strap of his bag and standing still for what felt like an eternity Peter in his mind began plotting the route towards the mountain range. Then he ran.

Though everything seemed to be passing by in a blur Pete was able to make out the vague shape of stores and people as they darted right past his field of vision, before the quaint town gave way to the forest, then the torn open fence before finally coming across the ragtag group on the hunt for Cindy Keagen.

Though he reached the spot in what felt like a minute Peter still had trouble stopping from such speeds, transitioning to little hops with his feet before scrambling to hold on to a branch for a complete stop Peter got a good look at his abstraction, winding down from a vibrant blue glow into a more relaxed and neutral state. The frenzy haired teen then approached the rest of the new age breakfast club, catching his breath as he waved them down.

"Sorry I'm late" he said, cursing his choice of converse shoes on the dirt path "My alarm never went off."

He arrived just as Madeline offered a weapon to the rest, to which Peter shook his head in response, he was hardly experienced with firearms and frankly didn't really see the point. He'd been filled in on what Scott was now and if they did run into him it was probably a safe bet that, just like in movies, bullets wouldn't do much against him. Peter looked around and noted the absence of Dex which also probably meant the absence of Ryu

"We seem to be missing a few" he said to no one in particular.

"... C'mon, Kim," Jordan said in a tired tone, "We've been at it for hours, how do we even know she has a power?"

"Britney said anyone with a mark has one!" Kimberly said as she pulled her bangs aside to reveal her sigil. "... Just because we haven't found mine, doesn't mean we can't find hers."

"I did think it would be easier than this," Rien chimed in, tapping the laptop they had in front of them thoughtfully. "I've tried everything I could think of with a computer and my tablet."

They did have another idea, but it wasn't one they particularly liked. Well, whatever, may as well just go with it even though they'd avoided it up until now. "Maybe I could try drawing something on paper."

Maybe that was it. Kimberly thought that maybe that had something to do with it. Maybe it was just a computer that was incompatible with her ability. Fortunately, Kimberly had paper on hand in her purse... in the form of a sticky note. Handed it to Rien, before she said, "... This should be paper enough."

"Thanks," Rien took it and grabbed a pencil nearby. They just did a quick sketch of a circle, very little detail to it beyond a little bit of shading. They then held it out in front of them to glare at it. "Now what? Think I should try throw it at someone as a weapon?"

"Yes," Kimberly flatly replied. "Make a paper airplane!"

Jordan rolled her eyes, and yawned as she boredly said, "... We're gonna have so much fun when it's your turn to figure out your magic power or whatever."

"Hmm," Rien brought the paper closer to their face. As tempting as it was to just throw it they doubted that would work. Narrowing their eyes they poked at the circle on a whim.

And their finger went into the drawing. "What the fuck?"

Kimberly chipperly walked over, and tried to do the same thing, before her finger just stopped. "What the fuck indeed."

"Okay, this a start," Jordan replied, "Try... uh... swirling your finger around in it."

"Suuure," Rien moved their finger about a bit, finding it hit something solid near the lines of her drawing. "Maybe I can like pull it out or something? There certainly seems to be something in there."

"Try it!"

Rien just nodded, concentrating hard as they tried to grab whatever was in the drawing. It was a bit slippy and a circle wasn't the easiest thing to get a hold of, but somehow they managed to. This meant they pulled a sphere out of the paper - small and very simple.

"Well, I guess that explains what my power is."

"Oooooooooooooooooooh!" Kimberly said with intrigue as she pulled out another sticky note, and placed it on the table. "Do it again!" She said, nearly child-like.

"But try something like an apple! Or a cake! Or a shotgun!"

Jordan rolled her eyes at Kimberly... and thought of what Rien's power could be. It was definitely pulling things out of what they drew, but what were the limits? She couldn't think too hard about it... she loudly yawned as she covered her mouth and sat down.

"Hey, Jordan, why are you tired?" Kimberly asked, "Thought you went to bed extra early yesterday."

"I did... I... I couldn't sleep." Jordan replied.

"Why?"

"Well... this is something I wanted to bring up," Jordan trailed off as she sat down, and leaned on her hand. "Question; did anyone have any weird dreams last night?"

"I don't think so," Rien responded with a thoughtful hum, though they were mostly concentrating on sketching out a more detailed apple on the second sticky note. "But, like, I didn't sleep that long last night so I don't think I had time for any weird dreams honestly."

"Was it bad?"

"... It was..." Jordan trailed off, "... Like an omen, like a sign death is coming."

"Oh," Rien stopped their drawing to give Jordan their full attention. "Well that... certainly doesn't sound good?" Understatement. "Hopefully it was just a normal nightmare or something, though I doubt that."

"I'm... not sure." Jordan awkwardly said.

"Well, what exactly was the dream?" Kimberly asked.

"Well... it went a little like this..."

---

In an instant, when Jordan slipped into the sweet release of rest - driven by the hope that things would be better by the next day. That it would be less strange.

Then... she slipped into a dream? She just rubbed her eyes, and looked around. She saw nothing but darkness. Where ever she went, all she saw was the same sight. It was an endless void. Eventually, Jordan stopped trying to move, before she tried to wake herself up. "One, two, three... wake up..." She said.

"... Jordan Nichols," Jordan heard a very deep voice behind her, and she looked over her shoulder to see two bright red eyes, and a vague animal shape in the darkness. Jordan shuddered as a paw seemingly stepped out of the darkness and revealed the rest of the beast... It had the shape of a giant wolf that was the size of an elephant. Bright red piercing eyes, that was seemingly made out of a black mist - in fact, that same black mist accompanied the wolf where ever it stepped. Sometimes... Jordan swore the mist took the shape of skulls. It slowly marched over to Jordan, and she shuddered as she took steps back.

"... You have a debt to the light that must be repaid."

Now that the wolf was looming over her, Jordan was shuddering in fear, instinctively taking steps back. She sighed, as she repeated to herself, "It's just a dream, it's just a dream, it's just a dream..."

"This is no mere dream, Jordan Nichols, this is a warning," The wolf spoke again as it picked up the pace. "Two years ago, in the same event that took the life of Madison Brown, you were designated to die..."

Jordan tried to put distance between herself and the dog, but it quickly walked to her side, and turned it's head to look back at Jordan.

"... yet you live.... why is that?" It asked.

"I... don't know... who... what are you?" Jordan said as she took more steps backwards, nearly tripping on nothing.

"Now that you are Awakened, you can properly comprehend me... and comprehend the threat I pose..." The dog spat out, "I am an agent of death, maintaining the balance between life and death... you may refer to me..." The wolf turned towards her and stood straight up.

"As the Hound."

"Okay, Houndie..." Jordan said, "What do you want with me?"

""You cheated death, so now I am here to collect.... and return you to the source of all life..."

"... and h-how... w-what... I - what..." Jordan stopped for a moment as the Hound quickly doubled in size. Taking the size and girth of a two story house.

"I've simply come to offer you the choice... go now and peacefully." The Hound took a step, before shrinking, ending up the same size as Jordan - they were face level. It's red eyes pierced it's soul. "Or the hunt shall begin."

"... and if I r-refuse?" Jordan asked.

"Then I'll have to drag you back to it by force..." The Hound said, taking a step for every step backwards that Jordan took, "The light is very generous... and it has given you the gift of life, thought, and more... and yet, it can take as quickly as it gives..."

At this point, Jordan realized that backpedalling like a fool wasn't getting shit done. Jordan quickly whipped around, and broke off into a sprint. She couldn't run as fast as she used to with that leg, but she sure as hell was going to try. The Hound got further and further away, in this seemingly endless void, and she smiled....

... Then the Hound suddenly appeared right in front of her, the size of a football stadium this time. Jordan came to a stop, and screamed.

"... You cannot run from the cold embrace of death, Jordan Nichols. Nothing can. The second we are born, we all have a price to pay... and it's calling home. Now, that you have rejected my offer to come willingly; the hunt begins. Tell the other Awakened; where ever I appear... death follows. And I cannot stop, I will not stop, until I claim a life."

The Hound opened it's jaws wide, and swallowed Jordan whole....

---

"... Then I woke up... not a scratch on me..."

Kimberly thought about it for a minute... ever since what happened at the mill, she realized that there was a lot more going on in this dingy old town than she thought. That last dream was what, more or less, brought together the group last night. Could this dream mean something else? It sounds like this dog knows something... or could it just be Jordan's subconscious fears? It could just be Jordan's mind tormenting her over the guilt she feels. That could be it, plus the various stresses adding a supernatural element to it.

That was when Kim came to a verdict.

"Well..." Kimberly trailed off, "I read somewhere that dreams are born from the inner-psyche, y'know, they're subconscious."

That caught Jordan's attention, and Kimberly continued, "I don't think it's anymore than a nightmare... right guys?"

At that moment, Kimberly's phone began to buzz, and she answered it without a second thought.

"Hi," a deep voice spoke, with a thick Austrian accent.

"... Hi." Kimberly meekly replied.

"This is Detective John Kimble," the voice continued with that same deep rumble, "Now I'm going to ask you a few questions, okay?"

Kimberly facepalmed.

"Who is your daddy and what does he do?" The soundboard echoed, distorted by the speakerphone which produced it.

"... Be serious, Nathan," Kimberly answered, somewhat annoyed by Nathan. "Are you coming to the trek, or not?"

"Well it's not exactly like I've got anything better to do, huh?" he remarked, before finally answering her question, "Yeah, I'm gonna head off in a few."

"Good, me Jordan, and a friend are also about to head there," Kimberly said, as she gazed at the group.

"Where are you at right now, anyway?"

"Grand Ridge."

"Oh shit, you got a dorm there?"

"Yeah, it's pretty nice," Kimberly bragged, "I got all sorts of decor-" A sharp look from Jordan reminded her to stay on track.

"... But, currently, we're at that friend's dorm."

"Yeah sure. You walking it or..."

"Nah, I have a car!" Kimberly said as she jingled her keys in the phone.

"Dick." Nate grumbled back.

"Where are we going again?" Rien put in, having gone back to the drawing and stopped paying attention. They were pretty sure Kim and Jordan had told them - but also, they couldn't remember. "You probably said but my memory is like a goldfish."

"On a hiking trip!" Kimberly energetically hopped to her feet, facing Rien. Forgetting that she was on the phone for a second.

"Technically, we're hiking and looking for someone" Jordan chimed in. "But, yeah, I consider this a... group exercise."

"Meet us at Grand Ridge, and I'll give you a ride straight to the meeting point," Kimberly said.

"Oh, right, yeah. That rings a bell," Rien gave a slight nod. Why had they agreed to this, though? They had no hiking things. "Sounds good to me, I can get ready pretty quickly... after I draw myself some hiking gear."

"Go ahead," Jordan said, "Two of us still have plenty of preparing to do." She nodded towards Kimberly.

"Haha sure," Rien nodded, though they first got up to grab a bag and shove some possibly useful things. Then they rummaged in a drawer, finding an old sketchbook right at the bottom. "You know I'm serious about the drawing thing, right?"

Jordan got up, and faced Rien, before saying, "I'm serious, too, right now."

"We should probably get ready fast," Kimberly said, "It's almost time to meet up!"

"Well, I can probably draw in the car," Rien glanced away from Jordan and over at Kimberly, trying not to look too excited about this whole ability thing. "Don't want to keep anyone else waiting! I'm ready otherwise."

Kimberly smiled, "Then let's go!"

---

In no time, the vehicle pulled up to the meeting spot. Kimberly parked her vehicle by the road, concealed by bushes. So in case any pesky police officers come by, they won't notice the conspicuously parked vehicle. Kimberly was the first to come out of the vehicle, wearing boots, leggings, and a purple padded vest. Hauling around a backpack over the shoulder, and a camera in the other hand, Kimberly was quite excited to get some shots past the forbidden areas of the forest. Their photography professor would be most impressed. Jordan, on the other hand, was wearing the thickest jeans she had, the heaviest boots she had, and the warmest jacket. Because she knew it was cold in this forest... but otherwise, she followed after Kimberly, with the threat of the "Hound" looming over her shoulder.

Nate emerged wearing his usual garb of a shirt, hoodie and yet another pair of dark-shaded cargo pants, grey by the looks of things. In his defence, the shirt was a thermal and he'd had the sense to wear his boots, but otherwise it looked like he hadn't brought anything else with him.

Rien came out last behind the other three, having thrown on the thickest jacket they had and a pair of hiking boots. Other than it it was just their normal clothes and a back pack filled with very little, aside from the sketch pad. She was munching on an apple that she'd pulled out of the stick note (weirdly coloured but tasted alright) and followed after them all to join the group.

They walked up to the meeting spot, lead by Kimberly, and she was the first to catch sight of the group. Despite her reservations, she was ready to give this her all. She smiled, raising her hand up into the air and said,

"We're here everybody!"

---

---

Mount Ever Reaching – Fence Line

---

Honestly, Caelea didn’t know why she was doing this. Well, she sort of knew why – she’d been roped into it by Claire. While Caelea had to admit it was nice to be dragged into something for once (that wasn’t some shit party Hagan invited her to), she really hadn’t thought this through until she was half way on her walk there.

This was searching for Britney’s cousin. That meant Britney would be there. The last time Caelea had seen Britney… well it really hadn’t gone well. Caelea was more than happy to punch her again if she wasn’t honest. But her main plan was to just avoid the stuck up girl as much as possible. If the group was reasonably sized that she could be easy enough. If not? Well Caelea was pretty good at ignoring everyone around her.

Honestly there was another reason she wanted to avoid conflict. Since this little trip wasn’t exactly going to be safe Caelea had come armed with a hunting knife she’d nicked off her father ages ago. She didn’t really want to get arrested for murder (and she knew who would win in an actual fight between them). She’d also brought along her swiss army knife and a punch of other hopefully useful things in her backpack (food, water, compasses and the like).

They arrived a bit late, but not much, and just joined the group without saying anything. They offered a wave to Claire but didn’t particularly recognised anyone else. They figured it was just better to keep their mouth shut for just now. For good measure they stuck one headphone in – it would be useful to drown out the words of a certain person she didn’t get on with.

Convincing Miriam to assist hadn't exactly been a difficult thing to do. Which was a pleasant surprise.

Dexter considered himself to have a silver tongue. No one else agreed on this sentiment, but he saw himself that way and that's what mattered. Once time had unfrozen and Dexter called the '1,2,3 Go Wildcats' and the group dispersed, he had be-lined for the waitress. He had heard that the newcomer was well versed in hiking and if anything she would serve well as a way to avoid poison ivy and an extra pair of eyes. She had agreed with few questions asked, and her slight southern drawl had been more comforting than he had anticipated. Call it stereotypical, but he had the sense that she knew what she was doing.

When she rolled up to his house in an old beaten Ford Bronco with a hunting rifle and a Remington shotgun, he was a liiiiiittle bit less at ease.

"Are you sure this isn't il-"

"Only need to be eighteen to purchase a rifle or shotgun. Montana is an open carry state."

And that had been the end of that.

The ride up and to the mountain had been quiet. Miriam's car smelt like coffee and the thought reminded Dexter to buy a new car air freshener because he was almost certain Ryu brought weed into his Masda at some point in the near-past. The early morning's sun beams happened to catch Miriam in a pleasing way- drawing his attention. She was very... attentive when she drove, no radio, no conversation. It was almost as if she was trying to burn a hole in the windshield. Dexter dragged his eyes away from her and peered into the back of the Bronco. He couldnt help but marvel at how prepared she was- were those...

"Are those flares?" Dexter questioned, submitting to his own curiosity.

Miriam tore her gaze away from the road for a moment, allowing herself to relax as the tension was broken. "Uh, yeah, just in case we're up shit creek with no paddle. I have a satellite locator too."

Dexter didn't immediately respond. He couldn't help but notice that she also had what couldn't be any less than fifteen water bottles.

"Why all the water bottles?"

Miriam smirked and adjusted her ball cap. "Looks like I just preemptively saved your life."

"What do you mean?"

"A lot of people either dont bring water and pass out and dehydration and die from exposure if they're not lucky enough to be found. Sometimes people bring enough to get far enough to the point where they're fucked completely. Everyone gets two bottles. One for there, one for back."

Dexter turned back around in her seat. Damn. This girl knew her shit.

"Oh, uh, it's just up here." he directed, which Miriam followed, pulling up just behind a pick up truck. Miriam reached for the door handle, but Dexter stopped her.

"What?"

"Do you know about what's been happened in this town recently?"

Miriam opened her mouth to speak, but decided against it, opting to simply nod.

"There's a lot of rumors about this area. Scary shit, but after the things that have been happening, I'm starting to believe them." Dexter explained, sitting back in his seat. "I dont expect you to understand but... keep that shotgun really, really close. And keep someone in your sight at all times."

"I can handle myself, Dexter."

Dexter winced. "I know, I know, I-"

"You don't get to tell me what to do here man. I'm the-"

Miriam's words were cut off as Dexter's hand began glowing brightly against her sleeve. It was hot, as if it had a lot of energy, like a heat lamp. But it didn't hurt.

"What the fuck."

"I'll tell you more about it later just... trust me."

Miriam nodded. Dexter let go of her shirt.

Both slid out of the car, Dexter taking point to greet the group. "Hey everyone, I brought Miriam along. She's... she's good at hunting and hiking. I figured she could help."

The amount of people that were showing up put a smile on Britney's face. Almost everyone she asked, and... when her eyes fell on Caelea for a moment, that smile went flat as she briefly gave her a neutral look. Turning away before she caught the girl's attention.

... Oddity attracts us like a moth to a flame.

When Dexter came up with another person, Britney smiled. It was that barista-chick from the Sucre, and she looked fully equipped. Like this sure as hell wasn't her first rodeo. That made that smile return to her face. He was giving it his all, and committing everything he could to finding her cousin. Even if this trip through the woods was fruitless, she doubt he would give up on her that easily.

"Thank you... both of you," Britney said. "We need to get moving soon as possible-"

That was when a rusty, beat-up, red 1996 Ford Ranger pulled up, and came to a stop. Some people immediately recognized the vehicle, while others had to take a second. Britney, on the other hand, was a bit confused... even more confused when Hagan Rosefey hopped out of the vehicle with a giant green gym bag slung over his shoulder, and dressed heavily as the rest of them.

"Hagan? Who told Hagan about this?" Britney asked.

Britney was confused, but Claire knew all too well who it was, and knew that she was just going have to step up and take accountability for this. If they get pissy at her, then oh well.

"You all are gonna hate me for this..." Claire said, trailing off, "... But, I recruited Hagan for our little journey."

"... Why?" Britney chimed in.

"Because... he said that he had the same exact dream as the rest of us," Claire was quick to defend her actions almost as if she had practiced it beforehand. "And, Hagan can help us... we just gotta say the right things to him."

Hagan walked up, heaving his gym bag over his shoulder, and had a flat look on his face. He looked around, "So, this is our little club, eh? I'm the only person who's not an X-Men, right?"

Britney remained silent, but Claire spoke up in her place, "Far as I know, yeah."

"Hmph... I wonder if I could take back all the shit I gave everyone... heh..." Hagan said as she ran a hand through his hair, a smile on his face as if he was joking. He walked past Dex, while casually saying, "Don't blow me up, Dex."

Britney shook her head... she didn't like Hagan being here, but at least that knucklehead could be tempered. It was Caelea who worried Britney. Either way, Britney knew that she could, with the help of her Abstraction, restrain the girl should she get out of control. That said, they needed to get a move on. Every second they waste here, was another second they could use to find Cindy.

She hopped off the tree, and asked everyone, "Alright is everyone here? Nobody got anymore friends?" She asked, and everyone either said no, or shook their head, "Good! Because, let's go."

Britney gestured everyone towards the opening in the fence, and the group quickly moved in the proximity of the mountain. Miriam was the one that lead the group, given her experience in hiking. It was a fun little trip, full of all sorts of sights and sounds that Kimberly were taking advantage of with her camera. It annoyed Britney slightly, but maybe that camera would come in handy.

---

After around two hours of hiking, and coming up on squat, they ran into a place. A strange place. It was a large, two story, cabin resort kind of place. With a sign that said "Everwoods Resort" that the group passed as they walked up on the pathway. What was weird was that this place seemed to be complete... and somewhat recent. It had plants slowly creeping in, but it didn't overtake the building, which aroused Britney's suspicions even further.

For a moment, Britney stopped, and closed her eyes. She felt the plant life that existed within the building, and knelt down. She was attempting to sense the auras of those within the building, but there wasn't anything. Or there weren't plants touching them. Either way, it seemed clear to her. She turned around, and said to the group,

"Alright, let's take a break here for a minute..." Britney trailed off for the briefest instance, before she added on. "But, for anyone who can't rest... who would like to come with me inside and do a little exploring?"

"Exploring." Nate said, with air quotes, "Because why not celebrate a near death experience by giving whatever crazy shit is out there the chance to explore our chest cavities?"

Britney rolled her eyes at Nathan's comment, "I mean, they're also out here, but whatever floats your boat." She gestured at the wide open woods that they were all exposed to.

Kimberly looked up at the cabin resort, and wondered how this place was so recent. From the looks of it, it was ready for use. Which was weird because nobody was even allowed beyond the fence. They always said that the mountain range was dangerous, too dangerous to even go past it. The past few days, Kimberly got a new perspective of what "dangerous" meant. Still, she fidgeted with that camera in her hands."I'll stay out here." She knew it was dangerous in there, and she kind of more interested in taking some shots with her camera.

On the other hand, Jordan shook her head, and said, "I'll stay out here. I need to rest." She looked down at her bad leg, and sat down on the fence.

Samson quickly threw a thumb in the direction of Jordan, and said, "I'll just keep watch." He put his hand up, and created a white flame, "Make sure nothin' goes in after ya'll."

"Good, hun," Claire crossed her arms as she looked up at the cabin. While Claire was pretty apprehensive about going inside (because there was a fifty-fifty chance of actually finding a clue) if Britney had a gut feeling about it, then Claire was going to go along with it... yet, she still had a gut feeling that Brit knew a bit more than she was letting on. "I'm going to head in."

"And you best believe I'll go in, too!" Hagan loudly said as he crossed his arms, and earned a groan from Claire.

Behind Hagan, Peter frowned, he suppressed an inflammatory remark and leaned against a notice board in front of the cabin. "Chances are I'm the fastest." he said "So if's trouble's brewing out here I can warn you all quicker." he shrugged.

Caelea frowned from where she stood at the edge of the group - she was pretty torn. She didn't want to sit around and do nothing, but she didn't want to be in an even smaller group with Britney. Eventually she made up her mind, and muttered, "I'm going in."

"I'll be staying out here," Rien shrugged, sitting down near Jordan and pulling out their sketchpad. "Something about that place doesn't quite appeal to me."

"What is it, R?" Claire teasingly put a hand on her hip, "Afraid of ghosts?"

"Something like that," Rien laughed, not at all put out by the teasing.

Nate had kept his silence. Normally? Instincts learned from running through the RPD and Wood Side Apartments from the confines of his room would've given him second thoughts, never mind actually going into a place like this - but he was curious. And it wasn't like he was alone, right?

"Fine. Fuck it. I'll go in." he almost exclaimed. On top of it all, he was probably the only one of them that had a direct exit route, no matter what.

"I'll stay out here." Lee said as he wiped the crumbs of uncooked instant ramen noodle that are still on his face. But he felt no reason to say that there are just too many yin in that house. After all, who here would believe in Taoism apart from Lee himself?

"I doubt I'd be safe out here when Scott could be planning his revenge, so yeah, I'm going in." Madeline blatently said, walking up to the cabin resort. "Besides, we could find something useful. Like a better weapon."

"Says the girl who's slinging a rifle around," Claire incredulously (and teasingly).

"Hey, I only shoot animals, not monsters that have only been in video games till now."

"Hmph, right sugar," Claire said.

"Just be careful in there," Samson said as he crossed his arms.

"Right." Maddie nodded.

"And try not to shoot us," Nate added, silently lamenting that he'd not 'borrowed' a pistol out of Quent's collection. Then again... that probably wouldn't have gone well. Assuming he didn't notice something was missing, Nate had only been shooting a couple of times. His aim was probably garbage compared to hers.

Callie didn't speak up much at all during the conversation, but her intentions were clear as she remained behind, following up any quizzical gaze with a simple shake of her head. As much as she wanted to go explore the random resort in the middle of the woods, that didn't seem like something someone who survives a horror movie would do. Either way, she had other plans that would take precedence, especially if the giant monster boy was still lurking around trying to murder people, and those plans involved not being one of the people he murdered.

With the group Britney needed, she lead the team to the cabin, and walked up to the porch. Was the door open? She thought to herself, but even if she wasn't, they could easily break it and get in. Britney put her hand on the knob... and slowly turned it until it opened. She pushed the door open, and the first thing they experienced was the dusty, still, air of a building that hadn't had a window opened in a long time. It was followed by a faint wretched smell as if something was rotting in here somewhere. Britney coughed a little bit as she tried to fan the air and dust away. She stepped inside first, being the brave leader of this expedition, it was expected of her. She reached into her bag, and, fortunately, she had brought something that'd be useful: a flashlight. She flicked it on, and shined the light around... before resting on a particular point.

Besides the dust, the cabin was relatively clean... and that made the dried blood stain on the nice hardwood floor all the more apparent. It trailed further off into the distance and out of sight behind a corner... and that made Britney so worried. Curiosity made her want to investigate, but her gut made her want to do the opposite. Her face scrunched up as she considered it. Before ultimately going with it, "I'd like to investigate that..." She trailed off as she slowly walked forward.

"Let's hope it's just a dead rabbit or something..." Claire groaned as she followed behind Britney, "... and not kiddy Reese's latest victim."

"Let's hope it's 'Kiddy Reese'," Hagan said, and gestured towards his bag. "I got something for him in here."

Nate snorted at that, "A vibrator?" In retrospective it probably wasn't the smartest comment, but what could Hagan do that Reese hadn't already tried and failed at?

"Yeah, one the size of a baseball bat," Hagan said, before he grinned, and said, "I took it from your mom - told me she didn't need it anymore."

"Really?" he paused for a moment, as if stung - and there was a shred of truth to it, but fuck that, "I guess she must've thought it was the only thing you'd feel up there."

Before Hagan could get another comment in, Claire had grabbed his arm and yanked him towards her. Active use of her abstraction was the only way a girl like Claire could move a mountain like Hagan. It was the only way she could get them to shut up, lest she wanted to hear this back and forth go on forever.

Britney ignored their comments as she proceeded deeper into the confines of the cabin. Their footsteps made it impossible to sneak up on anything, and she was hoping that whatever was in here would be scared off. Though, she noticed something about the floor. Despite the building being new... it felt a bit... unstable. Like something had damaged it previously. She didn't know what exactly it was, but it felt damaged. And that was a sentiment shared by not just her, but Claire, too.

"... Don't think we should all be standing on this." Claire noted.

"Ain't it a little late for..." Hagan trailed off briefly, as he felt the floor crack underneath his feet. Everyone stopped in shock as they all felt the cracks underneath their feet, tell-tale sign the floor was about to collapse underneath their combined weight.

"Ffffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuc-" Claire said as she immediately broke off into a sprint, only to feel the floor collapse underneath her feet along with the rest of the hallway. She felt the floor escape her feet as she descended downwards. Hagan also screamed as he fell to the ground. Britney attempted to avoid falling down, by creating a series of vines out of her hands, but yet, she couldn't find something to latch onto. Only thing she could do was slow down her descent.

Claire's descent and impact of the ground was completely and utterly negated by her abstraction activating. A blue aura surrounded her back, and she hit the ground without a mark on her. Almost as if she hadn't fell... everyone else didn't have such an advantage.

".... Ow, fuck!" Hagan said as he landed on his side, and loudly groaned as he pushed himself to his hands and knees. Good thing I can take a hit. Hagan thought to himself.

Nate didn't count himself so hardy, but landing flat on his ass proved yet again to be better than landing on something important. At least this time he hadn't sunken into the floor.

Britney made it out with a few bruises, but was able to stand up. Okay, that was weird. Britney thought to herself, but she had to ask, "Is everyone alright?" Before she noticed that rotting smell had gotten a lot stronger.

"Nope," groaned Nate, who lurched forward and awkwardly pressed a palm into the ground to stand up again, "My ass is dead."

"I'm fine," Caelea muttered as she pushed herself up. She'd managed to land relatively safely with little injuries.

"So much for a 'resort'" Madeline groaned, looking over the collapsed floor. "But yeah, I'm alright." She reassured Britney, trying to climb back up from where she fell.

"There's no point in trying to get back up there," Britney said, "The floor is unstable - you'll end up falling again... at best."

She willed the plants that were attached to her hands to fade away. She could easily have created a way back up there, but she didn't want to risk it. She looked around... all she saw was concrete, and piping - along with other machinery. It was obvious that this was the basement. So, there should be stairs back to the ground floor. Though, there was that rotting smell that she couldn't ignore. She hoped that it was a dead animal, as Claire had implied earlier.

"Alright, I think we have a better chance at finding stairs... unless you all want to risk trying to get back up with my abstraction..."

Taking heed to what Britney said, Madeline instead dropped down to see that the cabin had a basement. "We should be careful going back up though." She added to what Britney had said. "If anything, I suggest walking back upstairs one person at a time."

"Yeah..." Britney trailed off, as she brushed off the dust... as if it really mattered since she wasn't "dressed to impress" so to speak. She shined her flashlight through the darkness, and then gestured the group to follow along. Thankfully, nobody was stupid enough to suggest that they split up to cover more ground. They walked through the halls as quietly as they could... Britney knew there could be anything in here, and she'd rather they find it - than the other way around. Though, there were some disconcerting sights in here. The first thing that they inevitably came across was the blood splatter on the walls and floors. Britney felt that was a bit... concerning, but there was nothing Britney could do besides carry on. Then as they kept going on through the building, they came across pieces of broken glass, scattered all over the floor.

It was green, and some of the glass pieces were stained with blood, almost as if they had been used to pierce some poor bastard's flesh. It didn't mean much to the rest of the group, but Britney knelt down, and picked up a shard. Staring at it with wide-eyed shock. Yet, she kept her composure as she dropped the piece of glass, and kept moving on. Trying to play it off like she was just inspecting it.

Moving on, she kept walking through the halls until she saw a large metal door with a stairs sign next to it. It was like a stroke of luck! Britney walked over to the door, and without a second thought, she pulled the door handle....
.
... and the door was forced open as something came falling.

Everyone jolted, as the initial surprise wore off, only to reveal that it was a dead body. A sick disgusting rotting smell immediately filled those noses, as various gasps and signs of surprise came from the group. Britney was frozen in shock, and it briefly wore off enough for Britney to take steps back until the wall was the only thing stopping her. She made a loud gasp, as she covered her mouth. She couldn't take her eyes off the dead body despite desperately wanting to turn away. It didn't take too much examination to tell that it was a woman around Britney's own age. Caucasian, with matted hair... but it was hard to scan the other features because she was covered in distracting maggots, and green glass shards protruding out of her body... that made Britney even more frightened.

"Holy shit," Claire's demeanor broke upon seeing the horribly mangled dead body. The massacre at the mill was nothing compared to this, she loudly panted as she took steps backwards. Trying to compose herself, but the mere sight of it made Claire sick to her stomach. It seemed that Hagan had a far weaker stomach than hers, because he was off to the side, profusely vomiting. That nearly pushed her over the edge. She just turned away while she tried to refocus her attention on everything.

The hell was up with this place? As calm as Caelea looked on the outside, cause showing anything but anger wasn't really her thing, she was freaking to fuck inside. A dead body? Not something she can say she ever wanted to see. She really wanted to run honestly. But instead she carefully picked her way around the people in front of her, wrinkling her nose as she crouched down near the body. It was disgusting, yes, but someone had to take a good look at it. "Does anyone recognie them?"

"Nope, never seen them." Madeline said, holding her nose from the rotten smell of the corpse. "Anyone else?"

A disgusted exclamation slipped loose from Nate as he drew sight across the body, "What the fuck?!" He almost felt nauseous by the odor itself, let alone getting jumped by a corpse entering the later stages of decomposition. It was sure as shit different from seeing the fresh bodies at the party, instilling a greater sense of dread in his gut. What caught his attention, though, were the shards embedded in the body, "Tell me that shit isn't fucking normal. Like worse than finding your missing classmate dead by the train tracks."

"At this rate? It might as well be." Madeline answered, shrugging.

"I'm..." Britney said, probably the most composed of everyone here. It was difficult, masking that she had an idea of what the glass was. Maybe she could disguise it with shock. "... I have no idea who this is. But, you shouldn't be touching dead bodies, hun."

That was when Britney noticed bugs crawling on her foot. She looked down, and realized that, despite all the shock and chaos, they had been ignoring their surroundings... a bit mistake. They could have prepared a bit better for this. Miriam.. the girl that Dexter had brought along, probably took this a bit harder than the rest of them. To the point where she had Awakened... which is what Britney immediately gleaned from the glowing sigils down her arms in the shape of an anthill tunnel. But,. that wasn't what caught Britney's eye... it was the floating insects that were a lightblue color. Almost ghost-like. A massive swarm had formed around Miriam, and that was certainly cause for alarm.

".... Oooooooooooh, shit!" Hagan said... before all hell broke loose when Miriam loudly screamed, and the swarm pushed outwards. Claire had the bright idea of running, while Britney tried running and covering herself in vines for protection. Nate, ever an insectophobe, swat away at them with his arms until it seemed that they were passing through him like ghosts. "Fuckfuckfuck!"

Yet, it didn't seem like they were attacking... only going past everyone.

"Like hell is this normal," Caelea backed away from the body, and the swarm.

"Screw normal!" Nate rasped, his face contorted with disgust, "We need to call a fucking cop or a fuckin' exterminator, or - or something!"

---

Back outside, the group mostly took position up on the porch, with Jordan standing off to the side, sitting down on the far end of the porch with a cigarette in hand. She took a drag of it, and quickly blew it out of her mouth and shook her head. She was hoping that Kimberly and the others were okay in there. While this group of misfits stood outside, either because the place gave them the creeps, or they just needed a bit of a rest. Jordan felt a bit cold, and that was visible in the way that she shivered. She was hoping this cigarette would keep her warm, but it wasn't getting jackshit done. Part of her wanted to go inside, but she didn't want to get all that dust in her lungs... which was ironic since that was probably safer than tobacco.

Meanwhile, Samson was practicing... the embrace of the mountain coursed through his body. He theatrically opened his hand, and created a white flame in his hand. He noticed that, weirdly, it felt less like a fire, and something more... ethereal. Samson couldn't explain it. But, sometimes, it was like a fire. He wondered how he could make it like a fire, and burn anytime he wanted it to. He created the flame, and made it a bit more intense... until he felt that heat.

Peter remained still against the notice board, save for his fingers which had been tapping against his arm the moment the group ventured inside cabin straight out of something like Scooby Doo. To be frank he didn't want to be out here for the simple fact that nothing was happening. He didn't really know anyone here and his mind was much too preoccupied on what the other group might find, Pete had yet to get a real handle on his "powers" and chances were he wouldn't be much help in a more confined space but that didn't make watch patrol any more monotonous. He looked over at Samson, watching the flames dance on his palms and recalled the night all of this insanity begun. He couldn't take it anymore.

Peter left his refuge and walked over to Samson, looking at his flames for a few more seconds before speaking. "What is it you can do then?" He asked interested "Shoot fireballs and the like?" He knew some of what the others could do but from the way they described it their powers weren't always straightforward and from the way Samson was practicing he didn't strike Peter as a Human Torch or a Firestorm.

"Honestly," Samson replied as he decreased the flames before it could uncomfortably affect Peter. "I'm not entirely sure myself... one second, it does nothing, but another, it's setting that bastard Reese on fire."

Callie once again appeared to ignore any idle conversation. As soon as the brave bunch left the crew waiting outside, Callie moved towards the treeline. Of course, she stopped at the forest's edge, not getting too far from the group. She made sure to keep Jordan and the others in sight, but most of the time, her eyes were focused on other things. To her nearby cohorts, it may have seemed as if the girl was just casually wandering along the edge of the trees, unconsciously flicking her gaze around the woods that surrounded the group. Her ambling path continued as time went on, exploring more and more of the environment around her. She was up to something, and it undoubtedly involved a bit of experimentation.

Within her mind, Callie was as intensely focused as she could be without letting her guard down. After all, she was the closest target for any evil monsters to pop out of the woods and devour on the spot. The thought made her shiver a bit, but still she pressed on. The wandering of Callie's eyes was precise, as if she attempted to take in every detail that surrounded her— both deeper into the woods and around the resort. She was finally starting to understand all the superpower nonsense, but to her, it really seemed like she got the short end of the stick. She needed to do some more exploring, and this would be just the applicable practice.

Kimberly was also off out in the field in front of the resort, with her camera. Her attention was seemingly on the mountain in particular. She never got a view of the mountain this up close before, and was awe-struck by the view. Her photography class was gonna be so jealous! Or they're going to beat the tar out of her for sneaking out into the mountain range! She caught sight of Callie, and was almost tempted to strike up a conversation - maybe something about how they were both enjoying the forest - but she seemed more concerned with doing her own thing. Something about it felt... deliberate. Like Callie was practicing her abstraction, or whatever. Yet, Kimberly had no idea about her own Abstraction.

Jordan, who was largely withdrawn was their conversation in order to enjoy her cigarette. They could talk about their abstraction all they want to, but all Jordan could do was shake her head. They had the flashy stuff that could stop things like Scott in their tracks, and all she could do was... stop things literally. Probably an ability far more useful than theirs in some situations, given that she could save people. They couldn't. Then it occurred to her the unintentionally genius in staying outside; if something were to go wrong, she could stop time and buy them even more time to get a warning out, and maybe even get out of here. Who knows? Maybe they'll avoid danger altogether with her abstraction. That was all Jordan wanted. To avoid it.

With one more drag, Jordan pondered for a moment; how were the others in there? She hoped that they were okay. There was a strange feeling about this place, a fear that was creeping up her gut. She felt that otherworldly feeling creep up on her even stronger, and stronger. She could feel it pulling at her... until she looked forward and saw the air distorting in front of her. It was such a strange sight, especially as the orange light appeared following it. A orb of orange light formed... and yet, it didn't cast any light on the environment around it. If anything, it made it darker.

"... What in the world?" Jordan asked as she dropped her cigarette.

The orb floated there as everyone wondered what it was... she could make out a vague black shape beneath all the light.... but she still couldn't wrap her head around what the fuck it was. It was constantly changing, and... she just couldn't get a good idea of what was underneath the orange light.

Kimberly almost dropped her camera in sight of the strange abnormality... but kept her camera primed on it in a strange fascination. It was something that... she didn't know what went through her head, but she hit the button to take a picture of it. Standing there in awe, she flicked through her camera's database to see what it looked like... only to see a visible black mark in the camera where the light should be. Almost as if the image was burned.

"Hey, um..." Samson was at a loss for words. "... We need to let the others know." He put a hand on Peter's shoulder.

Peter stared in nervous awe at the floating ball, bopping up and down slightly as if adrift on water. He felt Samson's hand on his shoulder and nodded slightly after a moment. "Yeah..." he said simply. Then without warning Peter darted sideways into the cabin.

"Wait, Pete-" Samson tried to stop Peter, but it was too late. An unearthly sound came from the orb as a bright orange light appeared and shined itself where Peter went. Both Samson and Jordan jolted as the orb moved forward. Seemingly following after Peter, but they could see the orange light swaying towards them, almost like a flashlight.

Callie was momentarily distracted it seemed, not noticing the eldritch anomaly that had decided to ruin everyone's day until a moment after the commotion had begun. She was held in her tracks, merely observing as the group before her watched it. She was about to head over and explore it with them, but her step was halted once again when she saw the pair of guys dart off. "Shit..." Caught solo again... Callie wasted not a second more rushing towards the house, though her path was indirect as to not immediately intersect or chase after the freak of nature that was a floating orb. With any luck, she would hold back and it would go after them. Then again, being out there alone wasn't something she was fond of.

That same unholy sound pierced through the air yet again, as the floating orange orb intensified for a moment. Almost as if it was some kind of flame. A spike erupted from the orange light, and it gave everyone looking at it a headache. It constantly shifted shapes, that people could vaguely make out. While still retaining that sharp look, it went clean through Callie's thigh. Jordan loudly screamed, "... Callie!" Before time suddenly came to a stop. A massive pulse came from Jordan that extended fairly far - since they were in the graces of the mountain - that engulfed everything in an inverted color light. Time had completely stopped within the field. The being of orange light was stopped too... unfortunately trapping Callie on the spear. Jordan said, "... Shit!"

Callie didn't halt with time and nor did her reaction to the searing pain that wracked her form as she was skewered by the eldritch orb's spike. She had not a second to react to its swift strike, and with a pained cry out, the girl dropped on her working leg. She braced the ground with a palm, but halted there. Between the striking pangs of pain that shot towards her brain, Callie could barely focus on her own thoughts, but she did know what was occurring around her. For the moment, she wasn't immediately in danger. Jordan bit her fingertips, as she watched Callie suffer.

"Uh, what do we do?" Rien stared at the light with an open mouth. "Maybe we can move it?"

"Pull her off it!" Jordan commanded, near shouting. "It won't last forever!"

“On it.”

Lee said to the black girl as he runs toward the wounded girl. And unlike last time, where he run off like a chicken and getting haunted by the eyes, Lee chooses to risk his life right now. But does he think it worth risking his life? Of course not. He had not live long enough to make his mother proud. Hell, Lee would like to choose again if he can. But nevertheless, something moved him to save the lady that is very likely to get himself killed in the process. Honesty, Lee would like to think clear before head straight to her. Sadly, time does not let Lee take his moment to search for his stupid answer. If anything, it rushed Lee as the orb begin to recover its action. And near the orb lies the wounded girl, who seems to be bleeding to her death if being honest. Darted to Callie's location, Lee placed his arm under her armpits and begins to lift her body up. She is much lighter than how he expected. So Lee lifts Callie's body even higher to the point only her ankles are the body part that are touching the ground and begin to drag her out. But even so, Lee does not feel relaxed as his eyes could not move an inch from the glowing orb. One strike from it and Lee and Callie here would be on the scoreboard and counting numbers. The only thing that Lee could hope for is the orb attacking Samson and the others as Lee pulled Callie out.

Samson went over to help, because the faster they got Callie away from this thing, the better. Once Callie was dragged off it, Samson reached and looked at her gaping wound that was spilling blood all over the place. Samson glanced up at the thing, and the weird effect that it had on reality. It won't be held like this for long, so Samson grabbed Callie and tried to pull her away even further. He was no doctor, but he knew that if they didn't handle Callie's wound now, Callie was good as dead. Especially since they're hours away from the doctor. He put his hand up to gesture for Lee to stop, then materialized a bit of flames in his hands, "We don't have time for this." Due to his heightened emotions, the flames were red-hot... but they were a yellow color. "This is going to hurt, a lot, Callie."

He pressed the hand against the gaping hole with little warning, and braced for her screaming.

"Dude, what the what?"

Lee held back Samson's arm flaming hand as the African American teenager about to press his palm on Carlie's open wound. What could he possibly think, Lee wondered to himself as he pulled out a first aid pack from his backpack. But there ain't time to spend crying and questioning others as the whatever glowing thingy is right behind them, so Lee went straight up on trying to do what he remembers when getting a cut. Just pour hydrogen peroxide or rubbing alcohol over the wound over the wound until it is clean. And then just applied the pressure and more bandages until the wound stop bleeding. The last rule, don't remove the bandage. Lee knew he may have missed something, but that is all he could do with this limited amount of time. Haphazardly putting the first aid into his backpack, Lee then lifted the wounded girl up by placing her right hand over his shoulder. Despair and fear beginning to grow in Lee's small heart as the monster before him beginning to move. And so, Lee beginning t.

"A little help here."

And that is all Lee could say before getting to move Carlie toward the resort's gate. The further they are from that thing, the safer Lee and the injured girl.

"Lee, we don't have time-"

In the meantime, Kimberly slowly moved over to her friend, Jordan. In hopes that they could slip away - because she didn't have a clue what this thing was, but it was obviously hostile! Kimberly was briefly reminded of creatures from Lovecraft's tales... a creature beyond description, and renders humanity hopelessly outmatched. Her eyes narrowed, as Jordan's abstraction gave her a bit of hope that wasn't the case. Yet, she could notice movements coming from it. Small, yet noticeable ones. By the time that Kimberly made it to the cabin, she was a bit relieved that she at least had a place to hide somewhere. Jordan looked scared out of her mind as she stared at the orb, her sigil glowing brightly on her back through her clothing.

She was praying that it lasted long as it possibly could. She could also notice the small movements, but they were getting a bit more intense. Before a sudden wave of orange light broke out, and "shattered" the stopped time. Nearly giving Jordan a heart attack since it could break free of her stopped time. It's spear that impaled Callie continued it's course and dug deep into the ground... Her jaw dropped as she took a few steps back, and the only thing she encountered was the wall. The appendage retracted, as the being of orange light moved towards Samson, Lee, and Callie.

"Holy shit!" Kimberly said as she covered her mouth. "Run!"

The orb materialized several strange appendages that seemed somewhat similar to that of a spider's leg. It was freakish, as several limbs had grown off other limbs. There were several dozen of these thick limbs coming out of the orb, and when one scraped the ground, it created an effect where reality was burned away. Leaving a large gap in the ground that was clean. As if it was cut by a precision tool.

"Lee, get her out of here!" Samson said as he materialized large flames in his hands. The orb was threatening them, and was obviously poised to attack; Samson wasn't going to stand here and do nothing. He swiped his left hand upwards in a scythe motion, then the right. Both movements were followed by a wave of fires that collided with the orb... and had zero lasting effect on the abnormality. He grit his teeth as one of the scythes came downwards and he tried to jump backwards... only to get sliced by the blade. His arm was cut wide open, and he loudly shouted as blood splattered in the air. He grabbed the open wound, and seethed in pain.

"Samson!" Jordan shouted, before feeling Kimberly pull at her arm.

"Jordan, we gotta go!" While Jordan didn't like it, it was becoming more and more apparent that she had to leave now. Jordan and Kimberly went inside the building as the orb was making that hellish sound again, vibrating.

Samson tried to crawl off, but the amount of blood he was losing, and the pain, was making that extremely difficult. The orb's strange tendrils were just floating there, even though it could had just killed him here and there. Samson thought that was strange, but he wasn't in the right of mind to worry about the details. He was just trying to crawl away, looking back in hopes that he could avoid the inevitable death that he felt was coming...

... Then the orb made a sound louder and more violent than before. Then it seemingly collapsed in on itself... disappearing in thin air. Samson's jaw was still wide open in shock because he was still in disbelief. His heart was still racing, and his breath was so fast that it felt like he was panting.

Kimberly poked her head through the door, before asking, "... Is it safe?" Then when she realized that the orb was gone, she sighed in relief, before she panted again. She ran over to him, and then reached into her bag and pulled out a first Aid kit... that she had no idea how to even use. God damn it, she knew she should have taken that first Aid class while she had the chance! Still, Kimberly opened it up, and tried to do her best.

"If we don't help you now, we're going to..." Kimberly paused mid sentence when she noticed Jordan tapping on her shoulder.

"Guys..." Jordan weakly said as she pointed towards the cabin... which brought the group's attention to a hellish buzzing sound as a horde of spectral insects came flying out of the place, interjected with the sound of Nate's profane exclamations. The group could only look on in awe, as one weird thing happened after another.

"... What the fuck is going on in there?" Kimberly asked.