Zuno's gaze dropped from the sky and fixed ahead. The jungle swallowed the moonlight, leaving only thin strands of silver filtering through the canopy. Every shadow felt deeper than it should be.
They moved in a staggered column now, tighter, cleaner. No wasted motion. No careless noise. Each step was placed, each breath controlled. The memory of the earlier attack still lingered in their muscles.
No one wanted a repeat.
They kept off the path, cutting through the brush alongside it. The ground was uneven, roots twisting beneath the mud, but it was better than being exposed. Zuno's eyes swept from left to right, then forward again, repeating the motion over and over. He wasn't thinking about it anymore. His body just did it.
Training.
After a few miles, Derrick raised a hand. The squad slowed, then stopped.
"Short rest," he muttered.
Claire and Sarah didn't hesitate. They dropped near a tree, backs against the trunk, rifles still in hand but lowered. Their breathing was heavier than before. The pace had been catching up to them.
Zuno and Derrick stayed standing.
Zuno shifted his shoulders once, rolling them back to ease the strain of his rifle. It didn't help much.
"How much longer?" he asked quietly.
"Couple miles. Maybe less," Derrick replied, leaning against a tree. Even he looked worn now. Sweat clung to his temples, his breathing just slightly off rhythm.
Zuno studied him for a second.
"You should've rested earlier."
"I'm fine."
"You don't look fine."
Derrick didn't answer.
Zuno exhaled through his nose, then jerked his head toward Claire and Sarah.
"Go sit. I'll take watch."
Derrick scoffed.
"My life's safer standing than leaving it to you."
Zuno smirked faintly and raised his rifle, pointing it lazily in Derrick's direction.
"I wasn't asking."
Derrick stared at him for a moment, then raised his hands in mock surrender before sliding down the tree and sitting.
"That's not how you talk to your squad leader."
"Squad lead, my ass."
Zuno crouched slightly, shifting his weight before reaching into his pack. He pulled out a wrapped ration, tore it open, and bit into one of the crackers.
It tasted like dust.
He chewed anyway.
"These things are terrible," he muttered.
Derrick let out a quiet breath through his nose.
"You expected better?"
Zuno shrugged and took another bite.
For a moment, it was quiet again. Just the sound of chewing, distant insects, and the slow rustle of leaves shifting in the night air.
Then Zuno froze.
His chewing stopped.
His eyes narrowed.
"…Yo."
Derrick didn't move at first.
"You got binoculars?" Zuno whispered.
Now Derrick looked up.
"What for?"
"Just… take a look."
Zuno lowered himself further, nearly crouching into the ground as he stared into the distance. Derrick followed his line of sight, then reached into his bag and pulled out the binoculars.
He adjusted them quickly and brought them up to his eyes.
Silence.
A few seconds passed.
"I don't see—"
He stopped.
"…Wait."
His posture shifted instantly.
"What the hell…?"
Zuno's grip tightened on his rifle.
"What?"
Derrick slowly lowered the binoculars, his expression tightening. He turned toward Claire and Sarah and tossed a small rock in their direction. They looked up immediately.
He held his hand out, palm down.
Stay quiet.
They froze.
Derrick grabbed his radio.
"It's Squad Zeta. Did you send anyone else out here? Over."
Static.
Zuno watched his face as he listened. Whatever answer came through, it wasn't good.
Derrick's jaw clenched slightly before he shut the radio off and tucked it away.
He raised the binoculars again.
"…I can't see it clearly," he muttered, voice low, controlled. "But it looks like a person."
Zuno moved immediately, dropping prone beside him and aiming his rifle toward the same direction.
"A person?" he whispered sharply. "Out here?"
Derrick didn't answer right away. He tracked the figure slowly, adjusting the binoculars.
"It's moving like one," he said. "No irregular movement. No distortion."
Zuno squinted, trying to make it out with his own eyes, but the darkness swallowed detail.
"You sure it's not one of them?" he asked.
"I'm sure enough," Derrick replied. "It's wearing something… not uniform. Doesn't look military."
Zuno's stomach tightened.
"Civilian?"
"Looks like it."
That didn't make sense.
Nothing about that made sense.
Zuno steadied his breathing, his finger resting near the trigger.
"What the hell is a civilian doing out here?" he muttered.
No one answered.
Behind them, Claire and Sarah had risen slightly, staying low but alert now, their attention locked on the same direction.
The figure moved again.
Slow.
Unsteady.
Not hunting.
Not stalking.
Walking.
Zuno adjusted his aim, tracking it.
"Could be bait," he said.
"Yeah," Derrick replied quietly. "Could be."
They both knew what that meant.
A trap.
Something that looked human… but wasn't.
Zuno swallowed, his grip tightening.
"Orders?"
Derrick lowered the binoculars slightly but didn't take his eyes off the figure.
"…We don't shoot unless we have to," he said. "We observe first."
Zuno didn't like that.
At all.
But he didn't argue.
The figure stumbled slightly.
That was new.
Zuno's eyes narrowed further.
"…You see that?"
"Yeah."
It stopped for a second.
Then kept moving.
Slow.
Dragging one leg just slightly behind the other.
Injured.
Or pretending to be.
The silence around them deepened. Even the insects seemed quieter now.
Zuno adjusted his position, pressing himself lower into the ground.
"If it gets closer?" he asked.
Derrick's voice stayed calm.
"Then we decide."
Zuno exhaled slowly.
The distance between them and the figure began to close.
Not fast.
But enough.
Each step it took made the air feel tighter.
He could feel his heartbeat in his throat now.
Closer.
Closer.
Then—
The figure stepped into a thin strip of moonlight.
Just enough to see.
Zuno's breath caught.
"…That's definitely a person."
Even from this distance, the shape was clear now.
Human.
No distortion.
No unnatural movement.
Clothing torn. Hanging loose.
Head slightly lowered.
Zuno's mind raced.
How?
How did they survive out here alone?
Why were they here?
And why now?
Derrick slowly lowered the binoculars.
"…We move closer," he said.
Zuno turned his head sharply.
"What?"
"Carefully," Derrick added. "Weapons ready."
Zuno hesitated.
Every instinct screamed against it.
But if it really was a civilian…
He exhaled.
"…Alright."
Derrick gave a small signal with his hand.
Claire and Sarah moved in silently, falling into position behind them.
The formation tightened again.
But this time—
They weren't just moving through the jungle.
They were walking toward something unknown.
And none of them knew if it was human… or something pretending to be.
Zuno's gaze dropped from the sky and fixed ahead. The jungle swallowed the moonlight, leaving only thin strands of silver filtering through the canopy. Every shadow felt deeper than it should be.
They moved in a staggered column now, tighter, cleaner. No wasted motion. No careless noise. Each step was placed, each breath controlled. The memory of the earlier attack still lingered in their muscles.
No one wanted a repeat.
They kept off the path, cutting through the brush alongside it. The ground was uneven, roots twisting beneath the mud, but it was better than being exposed. Zuno's eyes swept from left to right, then forward again, repeating the motion over and over. He wasn't thinking about it anymore. His body just did it.
Training.
After a few miles, Derrick raised a hand. The squad slowed, then stopped.
"Short rest," he muttered.
Claire and Sarah didn't hesitate. They dropped near a tree, backs against the trunk, rifles still in hand but lowered. Their breathing was heavier than before. The pace had been catching up to them.
Zuno and Derrick stayed standing.
Zuno shifted his shoulders once, rolling them back to ease the strain of his rifle. It didn't help much.
"How much longer?" he asked quietly.
"Couple miles. Maybe less," Derrick replied, leaning against a tree. Even he looked worn now. Sweat clung to his temples, his breathing just slightly off rhythm.
Zuno studied him for a second.
"You should've rested earlier."
"I'm fine."
"You don't look fine."
Derrick didn't answer.
Zuno exhaled through his nose, then jerked his head toward Claire and Sarah.
"Go sit. I'll take watch."
Derrick scoffed.
"My life's safer standing than leaving it to you."
Zuno smirked faintly and raised his rifle, pointing it lazily in Derrick's direction.
"I wasn't asking."
Derrick stared at him for a moment, then raised his hands in mock surrender before sliding down the tree and sitting.
"That's not how you talk to your squad leader."
"Squad lead, my ass."
Zuno crouched slightly, shifting his weight before reaching into his pack. He pulled out a wrapped ration, tore it open, and bit into one of the crackers.
It tasted like dust.
He chewed anyway.
"These things are terrible," he muttered.
Derrick let out a quiet breath through his nose.
"You expected better?"
Zuno shrugged and took another bite.
For a moment, it was quiet again. Just the sound of chewing, distant insects, and the slow rustle of leaves shifting in the night air.
Then Zuno froze.
His chewing stopped.
His eyes narrowed.
"…Yo."
Derrick didn't move at first.
"You got binoculars?" Zuno whispered.
Now Derrick looked up.
"What for?"
"Just… take a look."
Zuno lowered himself further, nearly crouching into the ground as he stared into the distance. Derrick followed his line of sight, then reached into his bag and pulled out the binoculars.
He adjusted them quickly and brought them up to his eyes.
Silence.
A few seconds passed.
"I don't see—"
He stopped.
"…Wait."
His posture shifted instantly.
"What the hell…?"
Zuno's grip tightened on his rifle.
"What?"
Derrick slowly lowered the binoculars, his expression tightening. He turned toward Claire and Sarah and tossed a small rock in their direction. They looked up immediately.
He held his hand out, palm down.
Stay quiet.
They froze.
Derrick grabbed his radio.
"It's Squad Zeta. Did you send anyone else out here? Over."
Static.
Zuno watched his face as he listened. Whatever answer came through, it wasn't good.
Derrick's jaw clenched slightly before he shut the radio off and tucked it away.
He raised the binoculars again.
"…I can't see it clearly," he muttered, voice low, controlled. "But it looks like a person."
Zuno moved immediately, dropping prone beside him and aiming his rifle toward the same direction.
"A person?" he whispered sharply. "Out here?"
Derrick didn't answer right away. He tracked the figure slowly, adjusting the binoculars.
"It's moving like one," he said. "No irregular movement. No distortion."
Zuno squinted, trying to make it out with his own eyes, but the darkness swallowed detail.
"You sure it's not one of them?" he asked.
"I'm sure enough," Derrick replied. "It's wearing something… not uniform. Doesn't look military."
Zuno's stomach tightened.
"Civilian?"
"Looks like it."
That didn't make sense.
Nothing about that made sense.
Zuno steadied his breathing, his finger resting near the trigger.
"What the hell is a civilian doing out here?" he muttered.
No one answered.
Behind them, Claire and Sarah had risen slightly, staying low but alert now, their attention locked on the same direction.
The figure moved again.
Slow.
Unsteady.
Not hunting.
Not stalking.
Walking.
Zuno adjusted his aim, tracking it.
"Could be bait," he said.
"Yeah," Derrick replied quietly. "Could be."
They both knew what that meant.
A trap.
Something that looked human… but wasn't.
Zuno swallowed, his grip tightening.
"Orders?"
Derrick lowered the binoculars slightly but didn't take his eyes off the figure.
"…We don't shoot unless we have to," he said. "We observe first."
Zuno didn't like that.
At all.
But he didn't argue.
The figure stumbled slightly.
That was new.
Zuno's eyes narrowed further.
"…You see that?"
"Yeah."
It stopped for a second.
Then kept moving.
Slow.
Dragging one leg just slightly behind the other.
Injured.
Or pretending to be.
The silence around them deepened. Even the insects seemed quieter now.
Zuno adjusted his position, pressing himself lower into the ground.
"If it gets closer?" he asked.
Derrick's voice stayed calm.
"Then we decide."
Zuno exhaled slowly.
The distance between them and the figure began to close.
Not fast.
But enough.
Each step it took made the air feel tighter.
He could feel his heartbeat in his throat now.
Closer.
Closer.
Then—
The figure stepped into a thin strip of moonlight.
Just enough to see.
Zuno's breath caught.
"…That's definitely a person."
Even from this distance, the shape was clear now.
Human.
No distortion.
No unnatural movement.
Clothing torn. Hanging loose.
Head slightly lowered.
Zuno's mind raced.
How?
How did they survive out here alone?
Why were they here?
And why now?
Derrick slowly lowered the binoculars.
"…We move closer," he said.
Zuno turned his head sharply.
"What?"
"Carefully," Derrick added. "Weapons ready."
Zuno hesitated.
Every instinct screamed against it.
But if it really was a civilian…
He exhaled.
"…Alright."
Derrick gave a small signal with his hand.
Claire and Sarah moved in silently, falling into position behind them.
The formation tightened again.
But this time—
They weren't just moving through the jungle.
They were walking toward something unknown.
And none of them knew if it was human… or something pretending to be.