Ms. Wickerbottom had said to wait for the sun to come back. Webber went out of the camp just before sunrise anyways.
Wilson couldn't have gone far, right?
He set off, barely a spring in his step.
If Wilson's hypothesis was correct, the night monster would attack him after around… 20 seconds.
There should be less than that to sunrise.
Still, he had a torch at hand, just in case.
Within the Constant, if you were caught without a light and couldn't make one in the time it took for the night monster to attack, you were as good as dead.
At the very least, it was possible to revive someone via the use of an amulet, a touchstone or a telltale heart, but it came with a cost.
The cost of a telltale heart outweighed the benefits. You could revive someone on the fly if you had the materials and the required amount of blood.
Touchstones were a little trickier. Mr. Wilson had said there were only two that he knew of, and they could only be used once. A strike of lightning indicated when someone had used one of their two touchstone uses. Strangely enough, there'd be some sort of stuff called Nightmare Fuel along with them -- Ms. Wickerbottom reckoned that it might be leftover residue from the revival process.
Amulets were costly -- when a ghost haunted them, they'd immediately break and could no longer be used. It wasn't worth the red gem.
Webber brought a heart with them, just in case.
The sun rose, and they put their torch away with a low chitter.
They still hadn't found anything.
Webber just sighed, then perked up as the surroundings brightened.
He could see footprints.
They were small enough to not be one of the giants' footprints, but large enough to not be human.
Maybe he should tell the others, a part of him said. Stay back and stay safe.
The other part -- perhaps the spider half of his mind -- disagreed. If someone was dying out here, then help might not arrive in time.
Webber pressed on.
Maybe he'd find Mr. Wilson around here.
-o0O0o-
AUTHOR NOTES: Dad Wilson? Dad Wilson.