The moment I saw Spencer and Levi unconscious on the ground, I stopped.
"…What the hell happened here?"
They were both a mess. Spencer's jacket was burned at the edges, half torn. Levi's Vibe Armor had a long crack running through it. Their faces were swollen and bruised. The ground around them was broken, and a few bullet casings were still rolling around.
I crouched down next to them. "You idiots really fought each other?"
They didn't answer. Just silence. I took a breath and lifted them. Spencer on my left shoulder, Levi on the right.
They were heavy. But it wasn't just that. The whole walk felt heavier because I knew it didn't have to happen.
"I should've brought him back," I said. "I should've never let him go."
The forest was quiet except for my steps and the wind in the trees.
"Jacob was my responsibility. I let him go. Y'all did all this for nothing" I shook my head. It felt worse the more I thought about it. I looked down. My grip on Spencer's leg got tighter.
"And if Spencer and Levi ended up like this…"
I looked ahead.
"…what did Lyra and Goldie do to each other?"
***
"This is so stupid."
I kicked another vine out of my way and dragged Ralph's unconscious body through the underbrush, sweat dripping down my temple.
"I swear to God, if I see one more bug, I'm going back home and pretending I never knew any of you."
He groaned a little as I accidentally bumped his head against a rock.
"Oh hush," I hissed. "You were the one throwing punches like it was your part-time job."
I paused to wipe my face.
"Like, I'm all for the whole 'we gotta save our friends' thing, but no one said anything about playing hide-and-seek in the Amazon Rainforest."
I looked down at Ralph again.
"And you. You're lucky I didn't hit you. Just knocked you out easy. You're welcome, by the way."
Another few steps, then—
"Wait. Is that…?"
I pushed through the final bush and stumbled into the clearing
***
Javi came out from the other side of the clearing right on time. Breath ragged. Dirt smeared all over. Blood stains soaking his clothes. And damn, he was carrying two unconscious bodies like it was nothing.
Michelle wasn't far behind, looking just as wrecked—scratches on her arms, leaves tangled in her hair, dragging Ralph by the wrist like a tired parent.
Then both of them froze. Their eyes locked on the middle of the clearing.
Lyra and Goldie. They were unconscious, bleeding. Collapsed next to each other in the dirt, bodies twisted in pain. Their energy was drained. The grass under them scorched and broken like a battlefield.
No one said a word. Just pure silence.
Then, almost at the same time:
"WHAT THE FUCK?"