Death Games

Chapter 5 : Jungle of Peril 4

After spending the night in a cave during heavy rain, Jane and Edward woke up due to the beam of sunlight coming in. Edward's calf wound had dried up due to the wound medicine given by Jane last night. They planned to go look for Stacy and Gia, who were currently whereabouts unknown.

"Are you sure you're okay now?"

"Yes, I'm feeling better," Edward replied.

Edward stood up, feeling the stiffness of his muscles and the coldness of the cave stones under his feet. Jane grabbed her backpack and took out the compass and map they had used before. Edward, although still in pain, tried to walk and was determined to find Stacy and Gia.

"I hope we can find them before dark." Jane looked around.

"I hope so. What do you think was in the cave?"

"Clues or something else. It looked like a map."

Edward nodded, "I thought so too. Maybe it's a trail left by people before us. Maybe we can find out through that map."

"Yes, but the first thing we have to do is find Stacy and Gia."

They walked through the dense forest, following instincts they hoped would lead them to their friends. The sky turned cloudy again, and they heard the sounds of birds and other animals, making the atmosphere even more tense. They stopped occasionally, listening, hoping to hear Stacy or Gia's voice.

Jane stopped in her tracks.

"What's up?"

"Did you hear something?"

Edward fell silent and focused on his hearing. Right! There was a rumbling sound not far from where they stood.

"Yes. Right there." Edward pointed southeast.

They immediately ran towards the sound, hoping to find Stacy and Gia. However, what they found was not their friends, but a roaring large waterfall. They both fell silent, staring at the waterfall with a sense of awe and fear.

"There's no other way. We have to cross it."

"Right!" Edward immediately took out a rope from his bag.

"Oh, you've a rope?"

"Yeah. How about you?"

"No, I don't have it."

"It's okay, we can use it together."

Edward tied the rope to a tree root and made a small scratch in it.

"Ladies first!"

Jane grabbed the rope and began to descend the cliff edge.

"Edward, the rope is too short!" Jane shouted from below.

Edward thought for a moment, "Can you swim?"

"What?!"

"CAN YOU SWIM?!"

"Yes, I can!"

"Swing yourself into the water and make sure your body doesn't hit the rocks!"

Jane followed Edward's advice and dropped herself into the water. She immediately swam to the riverbank.

Edward looked at the base of the rope he had tied to the tree root. The root was almost broken, Edward had to get down quickly before it completely broke. He grabbed the rope and began to descend the cliff. Just as he was in the middle of the rope, the root broke!

"Ahhh!"

"Edward!" Jane screamed in panic.

With reflex, Edward held onto the roots hanging on the cliff edge while still holding the broken rope. The distance to the river was still quite high, but he also couldn't hold on to those roots.

"I am okay."

Edward used both his feet to lean on the cliff wall and prepared to jump.

"One... two..." Edward aimed for the right place to dive, "THREE!"

Edward free-fell into the water and a loud splash was heard. Jane waited anxiously.

"Edward, are you okay?"

One second. Two seconds. Three seconds.

"Edward!!"

Edward surfaced from the river. Jane breathed a sigh of relief. While still carrying the rope, he swam to the shore.

"Oh, God! Are you fine?"

"Yeah, I am good. I intentionally scratched the root so I could pull the rope back. I'm sure, we will need it later."

Jane sat next to Edward, while Edward lay down.

Elsewhere, Gia ran fast while crying, leaving the place where she and Stacy had spent the night. Her clothes were wet, her feet were injured, and her pants were torn from the sharp grass she had run through. Fear and the desire to save her life outweighed the pain in her feet. Just as she stopped to catch her breath, she heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Panicked, Gia quickly hid. She covered her mouth while crying.

The cloudy weather made the dense forest somewhat dark. Gia felt her heart pounding faster. The sound of footsteps was getting closer, echoing among the trees. She groped the ground around her, looking for a safe hiding place. Her eyes were teary, but she knew she had to stay calm.

Gia found a large rock hidden behind the bushes. Carefully, she crawled towards the rock and hid behind it. She held her mouth with her hand, trying to hold back her crying. She hoped that the sound of footsteps would not approach her.

Time seemed to pass very slowly. Gia tried not to move, afraid that any sound coming from her would betray her presence. She hoped that the person approaching would just go away, leaving her in a gripping loneliness.

However, the sound of footsteps was getting closer. Gia felt her breath panting, and fear creeping inside her. She didn't know what would happen next, but she had to stay strong and fight to survive.

The sound of footsteps had disappeared. Gia took a breath and tried to calm herself. She stood up and looked around, making sure whoever it was that had just passed had gone. Gia realized that she couldn't just stay in that place. Gia immediately left her hiding place and started running again with a pounding heart.

CRASH!

"Awww!"

"Ouch!"

Just then, she saw Jane sitting on the ground and Edward. Gia had accidentally bumped into Jane.

"Gia?" Jane said, panting.

Gia quickly approached Jane and hugged her while sobbing. Edward was shocked when he saw Gia's torn arm.

"Gia, what happened to you?!" Edward asked worriedly.

Suddenly they heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Gia's heart pounded. Jane and Edward looked at each other with questions.

"We have to hide!" Gia said, running to the bushes behind the tree.

Edward and Jane, still confused, quickly followed Gia.

The sound of footsteps was getting closer as they tried to hide. Gia hoped the bushes could protect them. Jane really wanted to ask, but she still held back her intention. They held their breath, afraid that any sound coming from them would make whatever or whoever it was find their presence.

The sound of footsteps stopped not far from them. Edward could feel Gia's body shaking next to him. Edward put his left hand on Gia's back to calm her. Not long after, the sound of footsteps returned, and walked away from them.

Gia started to sob. Jane and Edward tried to calm her.

"What happened? Where's Stacy?" Edward asked.

Gia told them about what happened last night when they were dozing off while warming themselves near the bonfire. Suddenly, an arrow shot quickly toward them and stuck in the tree behind Stacy. Their instincts made Gia and Stacy immediately wake up and be alert to their surroundings.

Not long after that, two more arrows shot again, but this time hit the bonfire in front of them. The sound of approaching footsteps made Stacy and Gia feel the threat coming. Without hesitation, they ran as fast as they could, trying to save themselves.

They ran in the darkness. But Gia managed to see the silhouette of the person hunting them from the bonfire light. He was a man in a black robe and a scary mask.

"After that, we ran and got separated. He wants to kill us!" Gia cried bitterly.

"Do you know who he is?" Edward asked.

Gia shook her head, "I don't know. I think he's the same person who killed Tony."

"Who killed Tony? I thought the distance from where Tony died and here is quite far," Edward speculated.

"Or maybe ... there's more than one," Jane said.

Instantly, they got goosebumps. If what Jane said was true, then they had to get out of this place immediately.

"We have to find Stacy right away! We have to go back to the last place you were together," Jane suggested.

Edward nodded, but Gia held his hand, "No, please! I'm scared to meet him. I don’t wanna die." Gia pleaded while crying.

"Hey, hey, hey! No one's gonna die." Edward tried to calm Gia.

Gia cried in fear and felt guilty about Stacy's situation. She was afraid Stacy had been captured by the people threatening them. Jane gently comforted Gia, saying it wasn't her fault. Edward urged them to immediately look for Stacy.

Just then, in the distance, they heard the scream of a woman asking for help.

"Gia!" they said in unison.

Gia, Jane, and Edward without hesitation ran towards the sound. Their adrenaline peaked. They charged through the trees and bushes, following the sound of the screams that were getting closer. Jane's heart pounded, especially Gia's, they were afraid of what they might find there. Gia tried to call Stacy, hoping she would hear her.

When they arrived at the place where the scream came from, Gia covered her mouth in disbelief!

"Stacy!!!"