Stranded

Five

Eric froze, his body tense, the weight of the gun in his hand an unsteady reassurance. The glowing eyes remained fixed on him, motionless but unnervingly present. His heart thundered in his chest, drowning out the rhythmic crash of the waves behind him.

He stepped back instinctively, his heel sinking into the soft sand. He raised the gun, trying to steady his trembling hand. “Who’s there?” he called, his voice breaking on the last syllable.

The eyes blinked once, their glow flickering, before vanishing altogether. For a moment, there was only the sound of rustling leaves. Then came a low, guttural growl, deep and resonant, reverberating through the humid air.

Eric’s grip tightened on the gun. Every survival instinct screamed at him to retreat, but he stood rooted to the spot. He glanced back toward the firelight, now a faint, distant glow, where Adora sat hunched in the shelter. Her silhouette was barely visible, but he knew she was watching, waiting.

“Eric!” she hissed, her voice sharp and panicked. “Get back here!”

The growl grew louder and closer, and suddenly, the underbrush exploded with motion. A blur of dark fur hurtled toward him, its speed unnaturally fast. Eric stumbled backwards, raising the gun instinctively. He squeezed the trigger, the deafening c***k of the shot splitting the night.

The creature halted abruptly, retreating into the shadows. For a breathless moment, silence reigned, broken only by Eric’s ragged breathing. He could feel the adrenaline coursing through his veins, his entire body trembling with the effort to stay upright.

“Eric!” Adora’s voice again, more insistent this time.

He forced himself to move, his legs unsteady as he stumbled back toward the fire. He didn’t dare look back, but the prickling sensation at the back of his neck told him the creature was still watching.

When he reached the safety of the firelight, Adora was on her feet, the makeshift spear clutched in her hands. Her wide eyes darted between him and the jungle, searching for whatever had chased him.

“What was it?” she demanded, her voice trembling.

Eric shook his head, trying to catch his breath. “I—I don’t know. Something big. An animal.”

“An animal?” Adora’s voice rose in pitch. “You mean there’s something out there that could kill us?”

“Calm down,” Eric said, though his voice lacked conviction. “It might’ve been a wild boar or something. It ran off when I fired.”

Adora didn’t look convinced. She clutched the spear tighter, her knuckles white. “What if it comes back? What if there’s more of them?”

“We’ll keep the fire going,” Eric said, forcing a steadiness into his tone that he didn’t feel. “Animals don’t like fire. It’ll keep us safe.”

He sat down heavily near the fire, the gun still clutched in his hand. His mind raced with questions. The creature’s glowing eyes and unnatural speed weren’t like anything he’d ever encountered. And that growl—it sounded far too intense for any ordinary animal.

Adora paced, glancing toward the jungle with every step. “This just keeps getting worse,” she muttered. “First the crash, then the gun, and now this. What’s next, Eric? Huh? What’s next?”

Eric didn’t answer. He stared into the fire, the flickering flames casting long shadows across the sand.

The night dragged on, each minute stretching endlessly. Eric and Adora took turns keeping watch, the gun resting on the sand between them. The fire burned low, and Eric added more driftwood to keep it alive, though the shadows beyond the light seemed to creep closer with every passing hour.

When dawn finally broke, the pale light of morning offered little comfort. Eric felt the weight of exhaustion settling over him, but he pushed it aside. They couldn’t afford to rest.

“We need to figure out what that thing was,” Adora said as she gathered her jacket around her. Her voice was firm, but her face betrayed her fear.

“We don’t need to figure anything out,” Eric replied, his tone curt. “We just need to survive. Stay close to the fire, keep the gun ready, and hope it doesn’t come back.”

Adora frowned. “That’s not a plan. That’s—”

“It’s the best we’ve got,” Eric snapped, cutting her off. He stood and brushed the sand from his pants. “Look, I get it. You’re scared. So am I. But right now, we don’t have the luxury of overthinking this.”

Adora glared at him, her lips pressed into a thin line, but she didn’t argue.

As the morning stretched on, they worked in silence, trying to forget what happened the night before. Eric reinforced the shelter, adding extra layers of palm fronds to block out the wind. Adora gathered coconuts and arranged them in neat rows near the fire, her movements methodical and tense.

Every rustle of leaves or snap of a branch made them freeze, their eyes darting toward the jungle. The creature from the night before remained an unspoken presence, a shadow that loomed over every moment.

By midday, the tension had become unbearable. Adora dropped a coconut she’d been holding and turned to Eric, her eyes blazing.

“We can’t just sit here waiting to die,” she said. “We need to do something.”

“What do you suggest?” Eric asked, his voice heavy with frustration. “Marching into the jungle to hunt down whatever’s out there?”

“No,” she shot back. “But maybe we can figure out why it’s here. Animals don’t just attack for no reason. Maybe it’s protecting something—a den, food, I don’t know.”

Eric stared at her, the firelight reflecting in his eyes. “And what happens when we find it? What then?”

Adora faltered, her anger draining as quickly as it had flared. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “But we can’t just do nothing.”

Eric sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Alright,” he said finally. “We’ll check the area around the beach. Just the outskirts. But we stick together, and we stay close to the fire.”

Adora nodded, her jaw set with determination.

As they prepared to venture into the jungle, Eric felt the weight of the gun against his hip, a cold reminder of the danger that awaited them. He glanced at Adora, who was clutching her makeshift spear like a lifeline.

“Ready?” he asked.

“Ready,” she replied, though the tremor in her voice betrayed her fear.

With one last glance at the fire, they stepped into the shadows, their footsteps swallowed by the dense underbrush.