Someone was awake and making quite a bit of noise. Alex's eyes opened and scowl of confusion came over his face as he squinted up at the sky. It was still dark, the moon was high in the sky as it provided light to all the night animals hunting in the woods.
Alex shifted slightly--and then winced in pain. His neck was stiff and aching; he should have used Eagle's stolen quilt, even his backpack would have made a better pillow then the hard ground. Giving up on looking in the direction the shuffling sounds were coming from, Alex spoke.
"Eagle? S'that you?" The constantly hungry man seemed the only likely choice. Who else would willingly be up at this hour?
There was no answer, in fact, all sound seemed to stop. Then, with a loud burst of noise something started running and Alex sat up not minding his hurting neck. He sat up just in time to see a hairy animal running through the trees, the moonlight making its fur shine and showing the large backpack it dragged behind. At the same time, K Unit was waking up, alarm and anger a common emotion on their faces.
"What the hell?" Wolf exclaimed as he looked after the quickly disappearing animal. The noise was soon the only thing that told them it was still running with a backpack full of jangling supplies.
"Where's the blasted torch?" Fox growled while searching the two remaining bags. Eagle was suddenly very quiet. Everyone noticed and turned toward him with suspicious expressions.
"Eagle…" Wolf said slowly with a groan as he noticed the embarrassed grin coming upon his friends face.
"Well…I kind of broke it," he said with a shrug.
Fox and Wolf both groaned, but Alex turned to dig out of his emergency candles he had stolen. It only took a moment to find the white wax candle and a moment more to find the matches.
With the sound of someone striking a match, a light flickered into existence.
Wolf glanced at Alex in surprise as he carefully held the lit candle in his left hand, "Good thinking Cub," he said and Alex found himself feeling pleased with the praise.
Standing up, Alex walked to where two cans lay on the ground. The backpack had lain here when they went to bed, but now only a few items had not been dragged off by the animal.
"That was most of our food supply it took," Snake said in concern as he looked at the broken ferns and disturbed earth that led to their backpack.
"Should we go after it?" Fox asked Wolf. "We have a gun, but I'm not sure what kind of animal it was, I didn't get a good look."
"It was large and hairy," Alex supplied, and they looked at him. Shrugging, Alex wished he had not spoken but continued with the explanation. "It woke me up, but I thought it was just Eagle."
Fox was amused, and he showed it with crinkled eyes.
"Why me?" Eagle said in bemusement.
"Who else would be up at midnight digging through the food supplies bag."
"Ah," Eagle said with a sheepish nod.
"Wish you would have at least looked before going back to bed, you could gave made it run off--without our food!" Wolf was clearly irritated, but Alex turned his glare on him. His fast movement made hot wax spill over his fingers, and even though Wolf saw Alex's wince, he just looked faintly amused.
"Weren't you listening?" Alex said to Wolf as he slowly transferred the candle to his other hand and tried to shake off the dried wax from his fingers without spilling some on his right hand. "I saw the animal, and I scared it away, I did not go back to sleep. The bag straps must have been wrapped around the animal's neck, or maybe it dragged it off on purpose. He could have easily smelt that it was food in the bag."
"We need to decide if we're going after it or not," Fox said impatiently. Snake nodded and then saw Alex trying to get the stubborn wax off and frowned.
He took the candle away and made Alex sit, "Your foot can get infected, I need to change the bandage again and I'm going to run out of them quickly if you keep getting it dirty!"
Snake was not pleased and Alex gave him an apologetic look as Snake took off the dirty sock. The bandage underneath was mostly clean, but the edges were browned. Snake examined it with one hand and a little distance away Eagle lit the other candle. It was still late, but none of them seemed at ease with the idea of going back to bed.
"We should have had someone keep watch," Fox muttered with a sigh as he looked mournfully at the two cans that had survived. Alex noted that they were something he had taken from the cabin and any remaining guilt he felt from stealing vanished. They were going to be hungry soon, and the remaining food would help tide them over before they were forced to eat grass….
That horrifying thought must have shown on his face, for Snake held up he candle and peered at him. "What is it Cub?"
"I don't want to eat grass," Alex told him confidentially.
Snake only smiled and nodded toward Fox before speaking. "Fox has experience and training in wilderness survival, you will not be reduced to eating grass--yes, the food will probably suck, but you won't starve."
Alex had not known this, and it was slightly comforting to realize Fox had been trained for survival. Alex himself had not been signed up for any survival classes, his schedule had been decided without his consent by Mrs. Jones.
He wished now that he had suggested a training course in survival…and what about that shelf in his own living room dedicated to Ian's survival books, and the other literature dedicated to teaching people how to live off the land.
That subject had never interested him…until now when he was hungry. He might have picked them up one time or another, flipped through the camouflaged painted books as he curled up in a comfy armchair.
None of the information had stuck except for a few charts on how to make braces for broken limbs. Except for the nasty blister that still hurt like hell, he was not injured, and certainly not enough for those charts to be of any use. "There," Snake said as he sat back on his heels.
Alex looked down at his foot, wiggled his toes then at Snake who was looking for a place to set the candle. "I guess you didn't think to steal a candle holder, eh?" he asked with a chuckle.
Alex shook his head almost mournfully and Snake stuck the candle into the soft earth next to the nearby stream.
"It's really early," Fox said looking at the darkened sky. "I'd say it's three, maybe four."
"Where'd the moon go?" Eagle asked as he stared up at the empty clouds.
Wolf snorted, "They're called clouds, Eagle."
His condescending voice made Eagle frown and throw a clod of earth at his shoulder. Wolf ducked with a smug grin--then the clod hit a tree and bits of dirt landed in his hair.
"I'm not tired anymore," Snake said and leaned against a tree, his weary slump seemed to be contrary to his words. "We should have hung the stuff up in a tree--how many times did we have that pounded into our head and yet we still forgot it?"
Sitting next to the light haired man, Wolf gave a soft snort of grim amusement. "I bet if everything had gone according to plan, we would have done everything right."
"Like what?" Eagle asked.
"Taken proper baths where you heat the water first to get rid of any pesticides and wipe off with flannels--"
"Bathing in the stream was a lot better," Fox interrupted, "I've been forced to wash off with a wet flannel, and I can tell you, you feel so itchy afterward."
"I'm talking about doing stuff by the book," Wolf said in annoyance.
"You want to go by the book? The one who pushes innocents into trip wires that activate stun grenades--which really hurt by the way," Alex grumbled.
"You did what?" Snake was all innocent shock, and it surprised Alex to find that he apparently was not aware of what Wolf had done.
"You weren't in on it?" Alex asked, eyebrows creased.
"No!" Snake exclaimed, his eyes wide when he turned to Alex. "I wasn't against you being in the unit like Wolf was, he never even told me what he did."
"I had wondered what you were doing," Fox said to Wolf with a disapproving look in his eyes. "You're usually the first one out of the killing house."
"You had to go and mention it, didn't you brat?" Wolf hunched over and ignored Alex, who was beaming at him complacently.
"No one answered my question earlier, so I'm just going to assume we're not going after our food, right?" Wolf nodded firmly at Fox's question.
"It's a waste of time," he said, "I don't want to go too far off the trail, the animal can have the food. Fox will feed us, won't you?"
"Yeah, you'll soon develop a taste for dandelion roots."
"Ugh! I'm going after the animal," Alex said decisively and Snake laughed and pulled him back to a sitting position when he tried to stand.
"No you're not, I won't have you ruining any more bandages, you can walk when we decide to leave and that won't be for a few more hours."
……………………………….....
Even with the jokes and constant laughter, Alex worried they would not find food. Looking around as the sun highlighted the endless amount of ferns, he searched for dandelions. There were none to be found, so he turned to Snake who was helping him walk through the woods without using his injured foot.
"What if we can't find anything to eat? All I see are these damned ferns!"
Snake shrugged, "We could hunt I guess, now our situation is more…desperate. I don't think anybody would come against us for hunting when we have nothing left to eat except two cans of fruit. We can hunt for hares…I saw a snake, and I guess we could eat this if we came across them, but I've heard they're nasty."
"Tastes like chicken," Eagle called back to them.
Snake didn't agree, "Everything tastes like chicken to Eagle, he burnt his tongue to the point where now everything tastes the same," he said in mock woe.
"I did not," Eagle argued
"Go along with it birdbrain," Fox teased, "'tis better then moping."
"Oh, God," Wolf muttered in a stage whisper, "we're giving each other nicknames! Nature is affecting us!"
"Why would you think that Wolfman?" Alex said innocently. Snake chuckled and Wolf turned in a slow circle.
"What did you just call me?"
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Alex gushed. "Did I say Wolfman, I meant Wolfy!"
"I might as well call you 'Little Red Riding Hood'," Wolf retorted, a smirk turning into a leer as Alex's eyes widened.
"Is there a perveryed joke in that statement?" he asked finally.
Fox rolled his eyes as he took out his canteen and drank long and slow. They had been walking for three hours, having left remarkably early, it was only eight in the morning.
"So that's the way you want to play, eh?" Wolf said and rolled up his sleeves. Alex grinned, not fazed at all.
"What'cha going to do? Eat me?"
"….I'm not sure, when I know I'll tell you. And trust me, it'll be scary," he muttered and turned away ignoring the muttered, "wuss," that Alex said to his back.
They stopped for water up the stream where it widened and then split into two streams, one small, the other large. Alex split off from them to release his bladder with a whispered excuse to Snake. His shoe rubbed against his foot, and a mass of thorns a mile back had torn into his legs.
Several scratches were irritated, blood was speckled on his legs and bug bites were scabbed and itching. Resisting the urge to scratch, Alex found a tree far enough away from the others so that they wouldn't walk over to him, but close enough so he could not get lost. After doing his business, he started to carefully limp back…when a hand covered his mouth.
His scream was muffled, coming out in a strangled cry that would never reach K Unit's ears. There was a sickly sweet smell that filled his nose and Alex struggled to escape the strong hold. Trying not to breath to heavily, Alex beat his feet down trying to stamp on the man's feet, or at least make enough noise so the others would become aware of his situation.
There was a piercing pain in his side, Alex gasped and breathed in the fumes in deep, startled breaths.
Someone was cursing and a hand flittered over his side where the pain was worst. Spots filled his vision, then the scene in front of him, the green and browns started to blur. Alex tried once more to call for help through the thick tissue of his mouth.
Then he went limp and was dragged away from the only people that could help him.
…………………………….................
"How long does it take to piss?" Wolf asked in exasperation as he glared off in the area where Alex had headed off. Behind the anger, there was worry.
"Maybe he tripped, I told him not to put to much pressure on that foot," Snake said and stood wiping his hands on his paints. "We'd better go look for him."
"Wait--" Wolf held him back and a smile came over his face. "I know what this is, he's trying to get us again!"
"Us? If anyone, he would try to bait you, what've I ever done to Cub except heal him?" Snake said.
"Fine, he's trying to bait me," Wolf agreed, "so lets turn the tables…we'll leave him here."
There was a silence, then Eagle laughed. "I'm wearing off on you, Wolfman," he said.
"That's so…immature. What happened to wanting to be back at camp soon, eh?"
Kicking a rock with the toe of his boot in an act of sullenness, Wolf agreed they should go look for Alex in a mumble. "Don't blame me if we come across him doing his business--just remember, I voted to head on out without him."
Fox grinned and traded looks with the others. Wolf studied the ground around the trees, looking for both sign of animals and more traps as they search for Cub.
"God," Eagle muttered when they had still yet to find a trace of their youngest unit member. "He must really like his privacy."
Wolf had stopped walking a few feet back. Noticing this, Snake turned and watched him curiously. Questioning words were on the edge of his tongue but when Wolf knelt, and reached out a hand to the earth near him, Snake decided against it.
Now Fox had noticed their silence, "What is it, Wolf?"
"I…I'm not sure," Wolf said, uncertainty obvious in his tone. "It looks like something was attacked here, there's signs of a struggle, and recently, the soil is still moist where it was upturned."
He turned to look at Fox. Seeing his expression, Eagle felt a tingle of fear, and beside him Fox's hands clenched into fists.
"Cub?" he called, and turned away from them, his heart sinking to his stomach. The situation was suddenly much more serious than any of them could have imagined.
"Cub!" Fox yelled again, this time his voice more urgent.
"Fox," Wolf said, trying to placate his friend, "we don't know…he might be back at the creek waiting for us--"
"No, something's wrong," Fox said, refusing to calm down. "Cub!" They spread out, the enigmatic situation making them bad-tempered and apprehensive.
Snake took action avoiding Fox as he headed toward Wolf to whisper in his ear, "I found this," he showed Wolf a boot, smaller then their own. "It smells like the ointment I put on Cub's injured foot," he finished grimly.
Wolf closed his eyes as he tried to gather his wits, if it was an animal, Cub was probably already dead…but they had to look. "Don't show Fox just yet," he ordered, "you'll just worry him more, now show me where you found that."Snake led him deeper into the forest, further away from the creek, under hanging ivy and to an area where bushes with questionable berries were thriving. "I found it here, caught on a root," Snake said and pointed at the base of one bush.
Wolf knelt on the ground, peering at the bush and ground around it. "Cub was dragged through here--"
"--by an animal?" Eagle interrupted. Wolf glanced up at him in unhappy surprise as he came into their view.
"I thought so…now though," Wolf pressed his lips together in thought and looked over the marks again. The dark, and dirty pants ruffled as Wolf shuffled forward, his fingers trailing over more marks in the ground. "He was dragged, but his shoes were the only things touching the ground."
Understanding filled Snake's eyes immediately, having taken the same tracking class as the others, he noticed the signs that separated animal tracking and human.
"Someone had him by his underarms, that's why the marks are so deep, his heels were dragging the ground," Snake squatted and followed the two lines to a spot where the stopped. "Wolf, the lines end here," he stated, his voice questioning.
"Cub was probably picked up," Wolf said. His words were easy, but his eyes were troubled. With the obvious signs gone, it would be harder to track Cub and his kidnapper.
"Thrown over the man's shoulder--I would have done that first, not dragged him a little ways…you leave to much evidence," Wolf looked sideways and caught both Eagle's and Snake's eyes.
"You think this man is an amateur?" Eagle asked, and at that moment Fox came into the clearing to join them. There was a flannel in one hand that he held away from his body, and on his face was a serious expression.
Looking up, Wolf noticed Fox and stood. "Smell this, and tell me what you think," Fox ordered and thrust the flannel at their leader. Taking it, Wolf cast a curious look at Fox and took a deep sniff--and with a gasp, he threw the flannel away where it hit a nearby tree.
"God, Fox!" Wolf snapped as he wiped his face. "A warning would have been nice."
"What is it?" Eagle asked, not enjoying being left out. Stalking over, he picked up the cast aside flannel.
"Don't sniff it Eagle," Fox warned, hard-faced. "It's got chloroform all over it, I found it back there."
"Well, now we know Cub came to be unconscious," Snake said as he ran a hand through his hair in agitation. "I hope it wasn't left over his mouth too long, that chemical can cause serious harm."
While Snake worried over Alex's health, Wolf and Fox tried to decide how they would go about the situation.
"This guy is not going to get far carrying Alex, and as the day goes on, he's going to get hot. It's early now, but near noon he'll be sweating bullets," Eagle said and Wolf nodded.
"Snake, Eagle, go back and get the equipment, we're going to start tracking this bastard." Wolf turned and started into the woods, ferns dying under his heavy footsteps.
"I wouldn't want to be the guy who took Cub," Eagle said, his words not said in amusement but in honesty.
"No, you wouldn't," Fox agreed and headed off after Wolf, his fists clenched and ready for a fight.
Authors Note: Uh oh, trouble finds Alex pretty fast doesn't it? Hope he's all right…of course, every fanfic writer needs to kill off their favorite characters at least once, (smirk). Will K Unit find Alex in time? Soon, in a chapter or two, Yassen makes an appearance…but what part will he play?
Teaser for the next chapter will be on my Yahoo! Group soon, the November newsletter is up, and I'm currently doing NaNoWriMo! Is anyone else doing it this year?
You can check out what my first original story will be about on my NaNoWriMo page, link is in my profile as long with a poll to vite for a title of an Alex/Yassen nonslash story.