They moved as a broken procession.
Students walked in clusters of twos and threes, never alone. Some whispered prayers under their breath. Others wiped tears with shaking hands. A few—those clinging to reason—scanned the forest constantly, desperate for patterns, exits, meaning.
The Wild Forest swallowed sound.
"Why is it so dark?" a trembling girl asked.
Malik adjusted his glasses, eyes never stopping their movement.
"These trees," he said calmly, "they're massive. The shortest is nearly thirty feet tall. Their canopies overlap, blocking direct sunlight. It creates a perpetual low-light environment."
Hunter snapped his head around.
"Oh, shut up," he growled. "Use that big brain of yours to find Bam Bam instead of giving lectures."
Malik stiffened but said nothing.
The tension thickened.
Sienna stayed close—too close—to Camila and Naledi, her fingers curling into Camila's sleeve whenever the forest groaned or branches cracked.
Eli noticed.
He walked up beside them, voice light but careful.
"Hey. We'll get through this. Just… stay alert, yeah?"
Sienna nodded, but her gaze drifted to Camila instinctively.
Naledi caught it.
"You don't need to worry about me," Naledi said softly, eyes lifting to meet Eli's. "I'm not the one you should be watching."
Eli followed her gaze—then understood.
____
Ji Ace remained glued to Fletcher's side, her voice low, urgent.
"You said her voice was familiar," she pressed. "Verena. Why?"
Fletcher swallowed.
"I don't know her," he said honestly. "But when I was a kid… my parents and I were in an accident. A car tried to run us off the road."
Ace's steps slowed.
"I don't remember faces," Fletcher continued. "Just headlights. Screeching tires. And a voice yelling… calm. Almost pleased."
Ji Ace's fingers tightened around her blade.
"That's not coincidence," she whispered.
---
Hours passed.
No footprints.
No trail.
No sign of Bam Bam.
Eventually, exhaustion forced them to stop beneath a colossal tree—its trunk wide enough to swallow a car, its branches vanishing into darkness.
Camila pressed her thighs together, face tightening.
"I… need a minute," she muttered.
"You're not going alone," Darren said immediately.
"I'll go," Sienna blurted—too fast.
Camila blinked, then nodded.
They slipped between the trees, just far enough to be unseen.
----
Sienna stopped suddenly.
"Camila… wait."
Camila turned. "What's wrong?"
Sienna's hands trembled.
"I've wanted to say this for a long time. I just—" She laughed weakly. "I was scared. And now… I don't know if we're even getting out of here."
Camila frowned, confused. "Sienna—"
"I love you," Sienna said. "Not as a friend. I never have."
The forest seemed to hold its breath.
Camila stared at her—then softened.
"Oh," she whispered. "Sienna…"
Tears welled. They hugged—tight, desperate. Fear, relief, longing colliding all at once. Lips brushed. Then kissed—soft at first, trembling, grounding...Sienna goes further to unbutton Camila's shirt as she caresses her body, being ontop of Camila she leans in for a passionate kiss as they both locked thighs.
For a moment, the forest disappeared.
Then—
Something wet touched Sienna's back.
She froze.
"…Camila," she whispered slowly. "Don't move."
Her hand lifted.
Came back red.
They both looked up.
---
Bam Bam hung above them.
Twisted.
Lifeless.
Displayed.
His mouth had been cut into a grotesque permanent scream. His eyes… gone. Not torn—taken.
Carved deep into his chest, jagged and deliberate, were the words:
"SILENCE IS SURVIVAL"
Sienna screamed.
Camila screamed with her.
The sound ripped through the forest.
Students ran.
Fletcher reached the girls first—then stopped dead.
Briony collapsed into him, sobbing.
Ji Ace stared upward, shaking violently.
Hunter staggered back, face drained of all color.
"No… no, no—"
Darren clenched his fists.
Above them, the trees creaked.
And somewhere deep within the Wild Forest—
Something listened.
---
No one screamed at first.
They just stared.
Bam Bam's body swayed slightly above them, turning with the breeze like something unfinished. Like the forest hadn't decided what to do with him yet.
Briony was the first to make a sound.
A strangled sob tore from her chest as her knees buckled.
Fletcher barely caught her before she hit the ground.
"Oh—no—no—no," she kept repeating, fingers clawing into his jacket. "This isn't real. This isn't real."
Fletcher's jaw locked. He didn't speak. He couldn't. His eyes stayed fixed upward, glassy, hollow—his mind refusing to accept what it was seeing.
Ji Ace stepped forward slowly.
Too slowly.
Her eyes traced every detail—the wounds, the carving, the deliberate cruelty—and something inside her snapped.
"I warned you," she whispered.
Her voice shook, sharp and thin. "I warned all of you."
Naledi turned away, gagging violently, one hand clamped over her mouth.
"This is—this is ritualistic," Malik said, voice barely holding together. "The message, the placement—this wasn't rage. This was—"
"SHUT UP!" Hunter roared.
Everyone flinched.
Hunter staggered forward, fists shaking, eyes bloodshot.
"You think this is a lesson? You think this is some sick puzzle?" He shoved Malik hard in the chest. "That was my guy!"
Darren stepped between them instantly.
"That's enough!"
Hunter moved without warning.
His fist slammed into Darren's jaw with a sharp crack, snapping Darren's head sideways. Gasps tore through the group as Darren stumbled back, barely catching himself before hitting the tree.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Eli shouted.
Hunter's eyes were wild. Red. Broken.
"You don't get to lead," he snarled. "You weren't there when he died."
Darren wiped blood from the corner of his mouth and straightened slowly.
"You think hitting me brings him back?"
That did it.
Hunter lunged again, tackling Darren into the dirt. Fists flew—messy, furious, fueled by grief rather than skill. Darren blocked one punch, drove his shoulder into Hunter's ribs, and rolled them both across the forest floor.
"Stop it!" Camila screamed.
Hunter landed a punch to Darren's cheek. Darren responded with a hard elbow that knocked the air from Hunter's lungs. They separated for a second—both breathing hard, faces marked, eyes burning.
"This is your fault!" Hunter yelled. "You said stay together!"
"And I still mean it!" Darren shot back. "Or we all die out here!"
Hunter hesitated—just for a heartbeat.
Eli stepped in then, grabbing Hunter from behind.
"That's enough. You're not helping."
Darren stayed where he was, chest rising and falling, gaze locked on Hunter.
"We can tear each other apart," Darren said quietly, "or we survive."
Camila stood frozen, face pale, arms wrapped around herself.
Her earlier confidence was gone—ripped away, replaced by something small and terrified.
"They… watched us," she whispered. "Whoever did this—they were watching."
Sienna clung to her, shaking violently.
"I felt it," she murmured. "The blood—it was still warm…"
Eli swallowed hard, eyes darting to the trees.
"Then they're close," he said. "Or they were."