Chapter 7

{{ Coryn's POV ☀️ }}
"Please don’t do this."
"Give me one good reason," Coryn retorted. She had a boy caught against a tree with her sword against his throat. He looked to be around the same height and build as herself, probably a year or two older, but clearly, the age gap hadn’t given him much of an advantage.
The boy’s eyes were wide and he opened his mouth a few seconds before he actually started talking, “We could be allies. I can fight and you know the survival rate for two is much better than one.”
He did make a good point, but could she honestly trust this random kid with her life? “Well, I can fight too. Besides, what good would an ally be if he can’t even tell when someone is sneaking up on him? That’s two strikes, you’ve got one more, better make it good.”
The boy said nothing and just stared at Coryn. She realized too late that the boy was waiting to catch her off guard as his foot struck the side of her calf. It didn’t hurt but the distraction gave him enough time to roll away and pop back up, crouched into a fighting stance.
She’d admit that he had taken her off guard but did he really think he was good enough to take her down when she had a weapon and he had nothing but his fists? Maybe he was good enough. If that was the case, having him on her side could be both a pro and a con. If he was truly that skilled at combat, she would be no match for him and he could kill her whenever he wanted. On the flip side, his skills could be applied to the defense of them both, maybe even allowing them both a few hours of sleep every now and again.
With a little chuckle, Coryn lowered her sword and stuck out her hand, “Your third reason was pretty convincing. I’d appreciate an alliance, but just know that if you do anything even slightly suspicious I’ll slice your head off in your sleep.”
The boy stiffened before slowly straightening and taking her hand, “Xander Rächer. Thanks for not slicing my head off.”
“Coryn Anderson. I wouldn't thank me yet,” she let go of his hand and glanced toward the valley glowing with firelight. She couldn’t help the laugh that slipped out, “You were waiting for them to go to sleep so you could steal a weapon, weren’t you.”
It came out more of a statement than a question and Xander nodded, clearly a little embarrassed. She glanced at the group of people below them again, then back at the boy. He might be able to take her on but not the whole group. There were at least five of them, maybe more, and there was no telling what their abilities were. She had to admit though, he needed a weapon if he was going to do any real damage to anyone or anything that attacked them and the stack of crates seemed like the quickest option.
“There’s no telling how many people had the same idea as you. I’m sure there will be at least three people running down there in the next couple of minutes and I wouldn’t want to be one of them. I think we should wait till morning then find you a weapon,” Coryn paused for a moment then asked, “If you actually had a choice, what weapon would you want?”
Xander smirked, “A long sword, ironically.”
That was one word for it.
Before she could take the initiative, Xander spoke, “If we’re going to wait till morning, we need to move away from the clearing. Can you climb trees?”
She gave him a curt nod and they both set off into the woods. Coryn kept her sword at the ready as she examined the person walking in front of her. Either he was extremely stupid or extremely trusting because without any protests he strode carefree in front of a girl with a blade. It was definitely the former.
When they reached a cluster of trees that seemed reasonably sturdy with more knots and low branches Xander stopped. Without a word, Coryn started to haul herself up the closest tree, sword still gripped in one hand, making quick work of the tree’s long trunk until she heard the scrape of boots on wood beneath her. She peeked below her to find Xander beginning the ascent up the same tree she was climbing.
“What exactly do you think you’re doing? There’s no way you’re staying in the same tree as me. We may be allies but that doesn’t mean I trust you,” she waited for his response, looking down at the boy.
He made a slightly irritated face but jumped down to the ground. With surprising silence, he began to scale a tree a couple of yards away and she finished the rest of her climb up to a particularly thick branch. Nestling herself in the most comfortable position allowed, her sword lying across her lap, Coryn closed her eyes and welcomed the darkness.

{{ K.C.'s POV 🌀 }}
Katrina White couldn’t sleep. She had been tossing and turning for the past hour and no matter what she did she couldn’t seem to sleep. She lifted her head to glance at the glowing fire and the boy who was sitting by it, keeping watch.
As silent as she could, she slipped on the standard green jacket that they were all issued and slid to her feet. A little walk couldn’t hurt. Besides, there was a long knife stuck in her boot in case someone tried to jump her. She walked backward, making sure Andrew didn’t turn and catch her leaving, then turned around and broke into a spirit. She slowed when she reached the incline that led to the thick woods but didn’t come to a complete stop.
As she entered the trees surrounding the valley, she began to feel like someone was watching her. She came to an abrupt stop when she heard a stick snap and spun to face the direction of the noise. Suddenly a stroll through the pitch-black forest with only a knife for protection against god knew what didn’t sound like a good idea. She turned towards the light of the valley and an arm wrapped around her neck.