《Lost in the Echo》Chapter Six: INTO THE WOODS
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After a few hours, Jason and Co. Left the campsite and headed towards the forest. Aarav and Co. gathered supplies for their journey and started preparing for their journey. He had to keep in mind that he would be leading a group of civilians and not soldiers. He guided some men how to defend themselves and how to avoid getting into trouble.
He had trouble teaching the Korean guys. He looked towards Asahi for some help. To this, Asahi shrugged and said, "I'm Japanese". He familiarises himself with them and found that these guys were celebrities, K Pop idols to be exact. Hwang Ahjussi was their manager. Well, he is not obliged to manage this idol group anymore. Tallest and prettiest one was Suho. Weird to say pretty for a guy, but truthfully he was beautiful than even Cindy. Others were Jun, Minyoung and Jin.
"Guys, we will depart from here early in the morning. We will follow the partner system. Two or three people will partner. Remember to take note of those who are injured. I will be taking the front. Aadil and Asahi will be at the back. Women and children will be in the middle of the group. Carry your food and blankets. Don't leave the group to gather food or water. In any case, don't get separated. You all must have noticed that here days and nights are very long, at least 40 hours. We will leave at dawn and try to cover as much distance as possible and find a suitable place for shelter for the long nights."
Aarav gave a long speech to the group. Informing the rest on how they will proceed. Aarav knew of the uncertainty of their journey. He planned to follow along the banks of the river as the most civilization are formed on the banks of the river. He wasn't sure his hypothesis will work. Last time when they scouted, their vantage was restricted to the point where mountains started. He had another option which he can't even dare was the sea route. He can descend the cliff, and with a raft, he could go to the other side of the island. This plan could work if it were only him. He can not risk leaving the group for scouting the other side of the island. And unfortunately, most guys who he could trust to send, don't know how to swim. He was flabbergasted to know this.
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The night was uneventful. They were 0 people remaining. five of them were injured including Kiara. Others who were injured perished one by one. Kiara was the only one who couldn't walk. Rest could, but they were extremely famished from blood loss. They all put their tent together to sleep and take turns for keeping a night watch.
Early in the morning, they went on the journey as scheduled. They went ahead, getting deeper into the jungle following the riverside. On the way, there were strange-looking animals. They looked harmless. As long as none of the attacks they would be fine. Probably.
They had already walked for hours but the mountains looked farther and farther. The whole group was tired. Aarav was carrying Kiara on his back. She might be lightweight but it had been hours they had been walking. She could feel his heavy breathing.
"We should stop here for a bit", Kiara proposed.
" Later, this place doesn't look good for resting", Aarav disagreed. They were around marshy land. He too knew that everyone needed rest, but these jungles were cruel.
"Scrrrreeeeeechhh"
Kiara turned her head around and squinted to see the sky.
"Scrrrreeeeeechhh"
"Did you hear that", Kiara asked Aarav.
" Hear what?", As soon as Aarav said this he heard a loud screeching sound. The kind of sound he doesn't want to hear. His face went pale as he remembered the huge condor he saw previously. He turned his head around. That bird was flying at an unimaginable speed towards them.
"Everyone. Hide. now", he knew his command was useless. As far as he knows these birds have terrific eyesight. And there were birds not one or two. He hid behind a tree as he yelled.
Few birds descended. On top of each bird sat a man clad in strange clothes. Yes, people were riding these birds.
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Everyone who saw this couldn't believe their eyes. Riding birds and flying on top of them was unheard of at least in real life.
"Okoy Abo jaygah re bolo kana ko. Saab huyu Aa. Che men yam Dada"
"Ooooh, Adi chehra kudi ko mena kowa, mintang barya mah bahu huyu geya"
Few men who were riding the birds started howling and speaking in a language the group could not understand.
The one who got down his mount, raise his hands and all the men became silent.
"Okoy kana pe. Nowa do Sanka atu kana. Che lagi pe hein kana. Lay pe", the man who seemed to be the leader spoke while looking at Aarav.
Aarav had a bewildered expression. He knew he was being interrogated, but he could not understand a word he said.
Kiara, on the other hand, was bewildered for another reason. She could understand everything as it was her native language.
Kiara responded before Aarav could open his mouth.
"Johar"
The leader looked at her with a surprised look and responded, "Johar. Aam do aabo hod kanam. Nel ma bang nelo aam, Aado diku hod ko sala node chekayeyam"
The leader was asking them why they have trespassed their territory and who they were. Kiara responded with a simple hello to show that they were natives and gain ground for negotiations.
However, that leader could see that they were foreigners and she doesn't look much like a native. She explained her situation, why they were there. She said that they would leave their territory as soon as they get help from the authorities. Kiara knew and felt that these natives were hostile towards foreigners and protective of their territories. In their situation, she could hope for not being mistaken for invaders.
The natives believed her words as they had seen their crashed plane near the coast. Seeing around 0 people with women and children, and a few injured people, he extended his hands for help. He told her that his Sanka village was behind the mountains, in a valley. He offered her that they could carry them and take them to the village where they can get help. However, Kiara rejected this offer as she had heard some derogatory remarks earlier. She cannot blindly trust them. Instead, she asked for the directions. The leader of the natives smirked at her cautiousness and got closer to her. He extended his hands towards her, his hands started glowing golden and this golden rays came and surrounded her.
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