Ivan's body went tense.
'It's starting,' he thought. 'The test is getting harder. I need to gather more students. I need to act fast.'
But he had a problem right in front of him. A very big problem.
Marcus.
Ivan looked in the direction the firework had come from. "We need to see what's there," he said, already turning to go.
A hand grabbed the collar of his shirt and yanked him back.
"Where do you think you're going, princess?" Marcus growled.
"We need to rescue them," Ivan said, trying to pull away. "Whoever that is."
"Who's 'we'?" Marcus shot back. "Do you think I'm in shape to fight another beast right now? My arm is torn up. My friends are exhausted." He pointed at Ivan. "And do you think you can take on a beast by yourself? I don't think so."
Ivan went quiet. He hated it, but Marcus had a point. Plus, he was outnumbered.
He took a step back. "Fine," he said. "But once you recover..."
"Princess, stop telling me what to do," Marcus cut him off, his voice dangerously low. "I'm already thinking hard about whether I should kick you out of this camp or let you stay. So shut up and go away."
Ivan took a few more steps back. He couldn't fight Marcus. It would be the dumbest thing he could do in his new life. He was trapped.
He just went and sat down by the entrance to the cave, feeling defeated.
A few moments later, Romana walked over to him. Lucinda followed close behind her.
"You can't force an opinion on Marcus, Ivan," Romana said quietly. "We are his friends, and even we can't do that."
"But other students are being eliminated," Ivan argued. "If we don't team up, how are we supposed to fight that thing?" He pointed at the dead beast.
"I understand that," Romana said with a sigh. "But logic doesn't always work on Marcus."
Lucinda added, "You're lucky he didn't beat you up already. You know how he is."
Ivan sighed and fell silent. They went away, leaving him alone with his thoughts. He felt suffocated. His camp, his safe spot, had been invaded. Should he leave? But that was risky. Staying with Marcus was also risky. They hated each other.
'Why?' he thought, holding his head in his hands. 'Why can't I think of a single plan that actually works?'
Then, a shadow fell over him. It was Orion.
"We need to talk," Orion said. His voice was serious.
"Sure," Ivan said, looking up. "What is it?"
"Listen, man... you're my friend and everything... but..." Orion hesitated. "I think you should quit. Use your firework and ask them to take you to a doctor."
"Huh?" Ivan was confused. "What are you talking about, Orion?"
"I'm being serious," Orion said, his face full of concern. "You're freaking out. You want to do all these things that don't make sense. You wanted to poison Marcus with tobacco... and you know, we owe him. He saved us."
"He also invaded our camp," Ivan muttered.
Orion just shook his head. "Listen, man... unless you come back to your right mental state, I can't work with you."
Ivan felt a bitter taste in his mouth. It wasn't exactly the same as his first life, but it was close enough. They were having an argument. They were splitting up. Again.
He looked at his friend's worried face. He felt tired.
"You know what... you're right," Ivan said, his voice flat. "I'm sorry, Orion. You have the right to follow Marcus. He has the numbers and he's an effective leader."
Orion nodded slowly, looking a little relieved but also sad. He looked back at Marcus, who was already giving orders.
"David! Thomas! Go back to our old camp and bring our stuff here!" Marcus yelled. "If you find anything stolen, we're going to beat every student in this forest!"
Orion walked over to him. "I can go with them," he said.
Marcus clapped him on the back. "Good. Go."
And just like that, Ivan was alone.
He sat by the cave entrance, watching Romana and Lucinda start to cut up the beast for cooking.
Marcus looked at him, then walked over.
"Princess, if you're going to stay here in my camp, you have to work. Like everyone else."
"Your camp!?" Ivan said, looking up at him.
"Yes, my camp," Marcus said with a smirk. "I'm not just your guest here. I'm camping here now. If you want to stay, you have to work."
"I won't stay here," Ivan said, his voice quiet but firm. "I'll pack up and go."
Romana's head snapped up from her work. "What? Weren't you looking for an alliance? What about what you showed me?"
"You guys can handle it, right?" Ivan said, not looking at her.
"I told your ass to just play along until I could talk to him!" she said, frustrated.
"Talk to me about what?" Marcus asked, looking at Romana.
But Ivan answered for her. "There's a big beast in this forest. Bigger than this one. We saw its claw marks on a tree."
Marcus didn't look scared. "And you want to gather the whole student body to fight it?"
"Well, that was the plan," Ivan said.
"Was?"
"Yes," Ivan said, finally looking Marcus in the eye. "Now that I look at it, I won't stay with an asshole like you. Orion chose to stay. I choose to leave."
Marcus's face darkened. He grabbed Ivan by the neck and slammed him against the rock wall. "Who are you calling an asshole?"
Ivan just stared back, silent. After a tense moment, Marcus let him go with a shove.
"You're free to stay," Marcus growled. "But if you decide to leave, you are not welcome back. Understood?"
"Yes," Ivan said.
Marcus turned and walked away.
Without another word, Ivan went to his tent. He started packing his things. His backpack, his emergency firework, his share of the food.
Romana rushed over. "Are you dumb? Why did you do that?"
"I chose to, Romana," Ivan said, not looking at her. "I won't be under his command. If we aren't equals, there's no reason for me to be here."
He grabbed his stuff and walked away from the camp, away from the cave. He walked into the forest alone.
He knew he was being stubborn. He knew he was being stupid. But fuck it.
He walked deeper into the woods until he found a good spot to camp, near some berry trees. He set up his small tent. He started picking some berries, his hands moving automatically. It was still morning, but he didn't feel like doing anything.
He sat down inside his tent. The forest was quiet. He was completely alone.
Then he felt it. A single, hot tear rolled down his cheek.
'Will I ever be able to change anything?' he thought, a wave of despair washing over him. 'Why can't I make them listen? Why can't I make a single good decision?'
He threw himself down on his sleeping bag. And for the first time since he came back, he cried.