So google docs' spellchecker sucks for me and I might have missed some typos. Enjoy.

Book 1: Ch 8

We’ve been backtracking for about half an hour ever since we’ve left camp, but despite that, we’ve been having considerable progress following the track the bear had left behind. The track was just as obvious as one could make it, big swathes of forest undergrowth all flattened as the bear plowed through in pursuit of the dude. His name is Sydell, only Sydell, he doesn’t have a last name.

We were definitely going to the deeper parts of the forest, moss covered rocks litter everywhere, old trees with gnarly branches blocked our path forcing us crawl over and under them, and the constant uphill hike were having tells me that we are going someplace normal people doesn’t go. Sydell tries talking whenever he can and I was always there to listen in on his bad English.

From what I could gather from his very broken and limited English, he was a hunter that also acts as a gatherer of what it think are herbs that are probably found only in the forests. He was armed with a longbow with no arrows. He said he lost them when he was running away and only managed to get ahead of the bear, which could sprint in speeds a lot faster than any man, by jumping over fallen logs, purposely going through bramble bushes, and climbing over trees. Confirming it all by looking at the tracks left by the bear, I was impressed. Having to survive a bear attack tells a lot about a person’s capabilities.

We came upon a huge cliff face that reached about a hundred feet up, it was all covered with healthy green moss, which means that a source of water is nearby. We then followed its length, Sydell looking at every nook there is in the rock looking for something, whispering ‘Cyril’ every time. Which I then realized was a name.

Just as Sydell put his head in one of the cracks I pressed the send on the radio to contact Ron. “Ron, the guy’s looking for someone name Cyril. I repeat looking for someone name Cyril.” I said.

“Roger that, I got eyes on. It’s all clear so far.” Came the reply.

I took a casual glance at the forest around us but of course couldn’t find Ron. One thing is for certain though, is that he have a clear view of the immediate area around us and is very capable of taking out any threats that arise. Overwatch. Thank god for guardian angels.

Just then, Sydell went in one of the cracks. My heart started racing as this would be the best time go get ambushed. A hail of fire come would just come out of nowhere and hit me while he is in perfect cover, I then crouched beside a pretty big rock but no bullets whizzed by and no hostile fire came. I immediately followed by standing outside the crack and pointed my rifle inside, turning on the light attached at the end and illuminating the dark space inside.

I could see his back, fiddling with something, and I hovered my finger above the trigger. I then heard a whimper coming from someone else in the space. Sydell, then dragged the person in question and came up with a kid. The kid was dirty and sickly, and he screamed in pain just as Sydell pulled him out of the crack and into the light. His right leg hung limp and at an unnatural angle. It was then I realized that this kid must’ve somehow broken his leg in the wrong place and in the wrong time forcing Sydell to use himself as bait to lure away the bear and safe his life.

I’m not going to compliment the guy for doing that since it’s so risky that it borders to being stupid. I shrugged, the world is full of stupid people and that’s what makes it so interesting.

I gently laid my hand on Sydell’s shoulder, he looked up at me and I nodded for him to step aside. I took a knee as I examined the kid’s broken leg and I could see that the kid had his shin broken, just about two inches below the knee. I then cut his pants open and I could see the bone sticking out, and sharpened bit of pale yellow amidst the sea of red. Man, this is going to suck a lot for the kid.

I pulled out a handkerchief off my pocket and folded it so it would be thick enough to be a gag and gave put into the kid’s mouth. He looked at me with the same eyes as Sydell which then I realized that he was his brother. The kid soon understood and bit on the handkerchief hard, breathing faster and faster as I slowly probed around the break for any complications. There was none, and I slowly but firmly pushed the bone back inside, this caused the kid to scream bloody murder and struggle under his brother’s firm grip.

The bone popped back in and the three of us finally breathed a sigh of relief. I then picked up a pair of strong branches laying around and measured it against his other leg then into the other, wrapping up the leg into the branch in both the ankle and the knee making a splint. It looked to be as good as I could make it and I patted the kid the thigh for a job well done. He’s a tough kid, I gotta give him that.

Sydell then reached into one of his pouches and took out a bunch of herbs, he then crumpled it up and handed it over to the kid to chew. The kid took it and by the scrunched up look on his face, it must’ve tasted like ass but the kid still kept chewing on. Of course I could give him some pain relievers from my kit but I thought otherwise. The kid is cool with it so why bother.

I stood up then reached for my radio “Sydell’s got a kid stashed up with a broken leg. I patched him up the best I can, I seems that it was never a trap. We’ll need a stretcher to move the kid, which leaves you to be the guard.” I said while dusting off my pants.

“Roger that.” Ron responded.

By then I was feeling the initial stages of sleep deprivation. I felt tired, sluggish, but we still had something important to do. We need to get this kid somewhere safe, and preferably clean as infection would kill him just as dead as a bear or a bullet.

I looked around forest for anything i could use to make a stretcher and found a pair of saplings. I approached them and found them within preferable thickness. I then pulled out my fixed blade survival knife and started whacking. Both fell soon enough and I dragged it towards the two. Sydell looked at it and up at me, it took him a while but he figured it out soon enough that he immediately whittled the saplings down to a pair of favorable sized poles.

A length of vine would serve as the bed of the stretcher and Sydell and I weaved them to the poles making a really rough looking but functional one.

That done, we were about to lift the kid to the litter when we a rustle of bushes alerted us to a presence, it was Ron, looking nonchalantly at both the kid and Sydell’s surprised look. “You guys ready?” he asked, lifting his rifle to his shoulder and scanning the forest.

I looked at the kid and he nodded, “Yeah, were ready. Sydell, you point the way.” I said.

Sydell nodded and pointed at a direction going to the edge of the forest. Ron followed it and lead the way. We then followed with the stretcher with me leading it.

The going was tough and slow, the forest floor doing everything it can to make the travel a bit harder for any of us. I could feel sweat trickle down my back along with my arms burning, Sydell says that were close but he was saying that for a while now and I think well need to have some rest soon. Ron offered to swap places with me but I, of course, refused, as it would be best that we would have someone fresh and ready to fight when the need arose than have two exhausted men. At least that’s my reasoning that I'm slowly starting to regret.

“Were here” some voice said and I felt enormous relief on those pair of words. Looking up, I realize that it was Ron who said it who stood by a well worn path snaking around trees and up to a hill where a hut was built. At a distance, it looked old and worn out. But in a closer inspection, it was not, the foundations were made of solid stone dug into the earth with thick pillars to support the walls that are all made of sturdy wood.

Ron then approached the wooden door of the hut and took off the crossbar locking it down, he then slowly opened it and went inside. We stood there outside holding the burden in our hands until Ron came outside after a little while “Its clear” he declared. Sydell and I then brought he kid inside and placed him in the cot. That done, Sydell went outside and came back with an armload of firewood then immediately went to work on the central fire. With nothing to do, I looked around the hut, the light coming in from the door afforded just enough light for me to see cloves of herbs hanging off strings. Their distinct smell adding to the natural smell of the hut.

Sydell has now erected a pyramid of wood and is working on making the starting fire by striking two pieces of rocks together, each couple of strikes only affording a meager amount of spark hitting the bundle of tinder he placed. If this goes on, it will take a while to have us a fire.

Seeing the guy’s struggle, I looked at Ron and he looked at me. He raised a questioning eyebrow and I jerked my head towards Sydell. Ron shrugged and poked his shoulder with his finger, making him pause and look up. Ron took a knee then pulled out a disposable lighter. He held it up for Sydell to see and pressed the button thus making a fire holding it in his hand. I could just see the surprise on his face as if it was his first time seeing a fire, as Ron took the bundle of tinder and lit it. He then tossed it into the rest of the firewood making it a lot bigger.

Sydell looked at the lighter with awe to which Ron handed it to him. He took it carefully in his hands and looked back, as if asking if he could keep it. Ron nodded. “Many, many thanks, along many others.” Sydell said and he smiled, doing a bow before carefully putting the lighter on one of his pouches. He looks to be a really good kid, its just that his circumstances in life forced him to look at life in the ass.

After seeing the exchange happen, I looked at the Cyril’s leg, it looks good. No infections and no excessive swelling, with proper care, he'd be able to recover fully in month’s time. He’s going to need a leg cast to which we don't have a plaster of Paris. But we could use powdered lime and make it harden but where are we going to get that? The other problem would be that he'd be very limited by those months and judging by the look of this place, both men rely on each other for their daily living. Those would be very difficult months.

I looked at Cyril and he looked to be in deep sleep, i guess we have the herb to thank for that and its another good thing that this world had their own medicinal plants down pat. Catching Ron’s attention, i gestured for a word outside.

We got outside and I realized the sun had just reached its height and its right about time for lunch. My stomach rumbled but what’s more important is that my body is already starting to complain from all the fatigue that I could just about use sleep more than a meal right now.

“You're thinking that wed stay here for a while” Ron stated.

He was right, I was about to say the same thing. I guess that's what being friends for a long time would do. “Yup, got any other ideas? At least that way, we got a way to know more about this place, and maybe even have a chance to live among them.”

“What about the guy’s we killed, their friends could track us down, maybe this kid could be one of their relatives.”

I scoffed, “track us through at least fifty miles of dirt road and forest? They could try, but I could bet that they would have lost the desire to keep pursuing us after the first twenty miles. There's also the fact that our tracks would get cold, or be erased completely. Were not in earth anymore bro, at least in the twenty first century, we wont have predators in the sky tracking our locations. All the enemy have to track us are the tried and true old methods, and we sure as hell know those aren't all that reliable, as to the last question, do they look like they have someone else other than themselves?”

Ron smiled, “Don't worry bro, I'm in the same page as you. I'm just asking questions to have another view at the same problem. Besides, I think we could really use some new friends right about now. We have to have to stop killing everyone we meet after some time right? So why not start now?”

I nodded, “I think Nick would be glad of the decision since he wont be forced to abandon his car anymore. He'll have to store it someplace but at least hell know that it'll still be there when hell get back.”

“One question though, do you think we can trust the two? They could try and take our shit from us.”

I gave another nod, it was a legitimate concern. The fact that we only have the three of us carrying this amount of gear with us would mean that anyone who knows their value would be tempted to try and take it. It's like being surrounded by hungry dogs all covered with barbecue sauce. You couldn't know if the dog coming closer to you would want a pat or a chunk from you until the do.“I trust them.” I said.

Hearing that, Ron grunted and looked around, slowly taking in everything that is in this place. “Well, I do hope you're right.”

AN: Don't forget to share your thoughts, ideas, and criticisms. Do recommend the story to others if you think it deserves it.