The expansion had given them a temporary sanctuary, but a new reality manifested. Beyond the initial hundred trees, there was no more.
The massive, charcoal-grey trunks didn't appear again at the perimeter, leaving their cleared area looking like a central gathering of towering woods. That spoke volumes about how finite their food and water supplies truly were.
"We now have a problem," Ricky said, his eyes scanning the edge of the sanctuary. "The orchard stops here. Shall we expand further and see if there are more trees deeper in, or is this all we get?"
"After the monsters stop coming, I'll venture deep into the fog and look," John said. In his exhaustion, the words slipped out with a heavy sense of certainty, as if he were privy to a deadline the others couldn't see.
"I don't believe they'll keep coming endlessly. I expect a larger number to hit us at the last wave, perhaps a thousand monsters in one go, and then we'll finally have time to rest."
