Page 15

15

Olivia

It's been hours since Kroaicho left, and the silence in the cave is deafening. I sit in my little corner, arms wrapped around my knees, trying to suppress the growing unease gnawing at the edges of my mind. I took another long drink, but it didn’t do much for my hunger. The mushrooms pulse faintly beside me, their soft glow casting ghostly shadows against the walls, but even their calming presence is starting to lose its charm.

I doubt they are edible, dammit, no matter what Kroaicho says.

At first, I tried sleeping. That lasted all of ten minutes. My mind wouldn't shut up, images of home, of my mom, and, disturbingly, of Kroaicho flickering behind my eyelids. Then I tried talking to myself. That went even worse. Something about hearing my own voice echoing in this creepy cave made me feel like I was one step away from losing my grip on reality altogether.

I shake my head.

This is ridiculous. I am not going to go insane here. I refuse to. The bugs couldn’t break me and neither will this damn cave , I chide myself.

I've been stuck in here for days now, kidnapped by a weird, glow-in-the-dark handsy alien, and, on top of that, my body is changing in ways I can't even begin to comprehend. First the spiky growths on my ears, and now… what?

I glance down at my arms, holding them closer to the mushroom light. At first glance, everything seems normal. I mean, as normal as it can be when you're stranded on an alien planet with a giant glowing captor. But then I notice it—a shimmer. A faint, silvery glint across my skin, like someone dusted me with microscopic glitter. I hold my breath and bring my arms even closer to the glow of the mushrooms, twisting them back and forth in the eerie blue light.

"Great," I mutter, biting back the rising frustration. "Just great. First the ears, and now this. What's next, wings?"

I resist the urge to scratch at the strange sensation prickling beneath the surface of my skin. It's like the texture has changed—softer, but not in a good way. More… alien. A shiver runs down my spine as I stare at the silvery glimmer on my arms.

Either I'm turning into some freak of nature, or I've contracted alien cancer. Probably both, I decide.

I huff, tossing the thought aside. I'll wait for Kroaicho to come back, whenever that may be, and I'll demand—no, beg—it to take me somewhere else. I can't stay in this cave much longer. I refuse to sit here and let my body morph into something unrecognizable.

But as more time passes, and the familiar rhythm of the cave's dripping water returns, my patience wears thin. Every moment that Kroaicho stays away, I grow more restless, more convinced that sitting here is a waste of time. I glance toward the cave entrance, my mind buzzing.

Screw this. I need to get out of here. If Kroaicho won't help, I'll figure it out myself.

I push myself up onto my feet, swaying slightly from sitting too long. The cave stretches ahead, dark and oppressive, but now's as good a time as any to make my escape. I let out a quiet groan, massaging my temples.

Last time didn’t go very well, but…

Before I leave, I consider grabbing some of the bioluminescent mushrooms to light my way, but the memory of the last time I tried to handle them comes flooding back—more specifically how quickly I lost them the last time things went to shit. Yeah, not going through that again.

Instead, I glance over to Kroaicho's pile of “treasures”. He once called freedom a type of treasure, but clearly doesn’t value it for me. Not enough to let me go.

I’m just another addition to the pile.

“Treasures,” I scoff. “More like a hoarder's nest of random shiny junk.”

There has to be something useful in there, right?

I rifle through the pile, tossing aside strange objects—polished stones, oddly shaped bones, bits of metal that look like they might have once been part of some ancient machinery. Then, my hand closes around something smooth and cold—a roll of rough twine. I hold it up to the faint light, my brow furrowing. Where the hell did Kroaicho find twine? On an alien planet?

Shaking off the question, I tie a bundle of mushrooms together using the twine, making sure the stems are tightly secured. The soft glow from the mushrooms gives me just enough light to navigate without attracting too much attention. Satisfied with my makeshift lantern, I sling the bundle over my shoulder and make for the cave's exit.

This time, I take a different route, one Kroaicho hasn't shown me. If I can avoid running into the big beast, all the better. The path ahead is narrow, the air thick with the scent of damp soil and moss. My footsteps echo as I venture deeper into the labyrinth of caves, each turn feeling like a step further away from my already fragile sanity.

Time stretches on, the silence punctuated only by the sound of my own breathing and the faint, otherworldly hum of the glowing fungi scattered across the walls. I walk for what feels like hours, every twist and turn looking more unfamiliar than the last.

That's when I hear it—a soft rustling sound, like something scraping against the stone. My heart skips a beat, and I freeze, holding my breath. The sound grows louder, and more distinct. It's coming from behind me.

I whip around, the glow from the mushrooms casting long shadows across the cave floor. For a moment, there's nothing. Then, from the darkness, a shape emerges—a creature, hunched and grotesque, skittering toward me on spindly legs. Its body is a sickly blend of insect and reptile, its carapace glistening with an oily sheen in the dim light. Multi-jointed limbs click against the stone as it moves, mandibles snapping in rhythmic intervals, while beady black eyes focus intently on me.

"Shit."

The creature lets out a high-pitched chitter, its segmented body undulating as it moves closer. Panic surges through me, but I force myself to stay calm. I've faced worse things in these caves. I can handle this.

Without thinking, I grab a nearby rock and hurl it at the creature. It clatters off its hard shell harmlessly, but the creature pauses, hissing in frustration. I take the opportunity to dash past it, skirting around its side as it lunges in my direction.

My heart races as I dart down another tunnel, the creature hot on my heels. I glance over my shoulder, my pulse hammering in my ears. Think, Olivia, think.

Ahead, I spot a narrow crevice in the cave wall—just wide enough for me to squeeze through but too tight for the creature. Without hesitation, I dive toward it, scraping my arms and legs against the rough stone as I force my way through.

The creature slams into the crevice behind me, its mandibles clacking furiously as it tries to reach me. I wince as I feel its sharp claws swipe at my back, narrowly missing. With one final heave, I pull myself through the other side, tumbling onto the cave floor in a heap.

But before I can even catch my breath, I feel a sharp, searing pain shoot up my leg. I cry out, twisting around just in time to see one of the creature's barbed stingers embedded in my calf.

"Fuck!" I scream, yanking the stinger out, but it's too late. A burning sensation spreads from the wound, and I feel my muscles start to stiffen.

I scramble to my feet, adrenaline surging through my veins as I stumble away from the crevice. Behind me, the creature lets out another chittering screech, but it can't follow. At least I've managed to trap it. But the sting… my leg throbs with a fiery intensity, and I can feel the venom working its way through my system, making me lightheaded.

No, no, no, not now.

I force myself to keep moving, limping through the tunnel as fast as I can. The cave seems to spin around me, my vision blurring at the edges. I clutch the wall for support, my breath coming in shallow gasps.

After a few more agonizing steps, I collapse against the stone, my head swimming. I try to steady my breathing, but the venom makes it hard to focus. My limbs feel heavy, and sluggish, like I'm sinking into quicksand.

I can't stay here. I push myself up, my legs trembling beneath me. I've come too far to give up now. But as I take another step forward, the realization hits me like a punch to the gut.

I'm lost. Again.

Panic rises in my chest, but I bite it back, refusing to let it take hold. I look around frantically, trying to get my bearings, but everything looks the same—dark, damp, and endless. The tunnels stretch on in every direction, twisting and turning with no rhyme or reason.

Which way did I come from?

I can't remember. My mind is a fog of pain and confusion, and I don't know which way is up anymore.

Then I hear it—a soft, distant chittering sound. My blood runs cold.

It's not the same as before. This sound is fainter, more distant, but unmistakable. There are more of them.

"Fuck," I whisper, my voice trembling.

I stagger forward, my heart pounding in my chest as the chittering grows louder and closer. The creatures are coming, and I don't have the strength to run.

I don’t see the dark figure on the floor of the cave before I trip over it. After a painful crash to the ground, I have to swallow down the screech of terror that wants to rise when I see the gaping, green glowing maw.

Then I realize it’s dead, large scores across its black hide. There’s something even worse in this cave than the stinging bugs that are after me.

This is bad. This is really bad.

With my last bit of strength, I clutch the bundle of glowing mushrooms tighter, their soft light flickering as if mocking my futile attempt at escape.

Just as my legs give out beneath me, and I collapse against the wall, I hear something else—a different sound, deeper, more familiar.

Footsteps. Hurried, familiar.

That god awful chittering again.

I grab a nearby rock and lash out blindly, making contact with something solid.

Warm fluid splashes across my face and a vindictive scream bubbles past my lips as I repeat the motion again and again, screaming myself hoarse.

The feeling of life fluid splashing over my face is more cathartic than I care to admit. Too bad it doesn't stop me from keeling over after what feels like the thirtieth strike.

I can't feel my limbs.

Fuck…