Author's Note: Nothing ever goes according to my plans, but that's the way of life which is even more obvious with the state of the world right now. This chapter was a lot longer, but I ended cutting it in half to give you guys something to hold y'all over until the next update. I think most of you all will be looking forward to the next chapter. Simply because Riddick isn't in the shadows anymore.

Chapter 8
On The Same Page

Fry and I walked side by side as we headed around the corner. The suns' light was stronger on this side of the outpost, hitting our eyes directly. I squinted through it and heard Fry winched, pulling the scarf up to shade her eyes. She gasped, standing transfixed by whatever caught her attention.

"Look!" she exclaimed, grasping my arm and pointing excitedly at something with her other hand.

I raised my arm up to shade my eyes and spotted the skiff perched on the runway like a shiny metal insect. "Huh, well, what do you know? Maybe we can save ourselves and get the hell outta here," I mumbled, walking towards it. "It beats waiting for help to reach us."

"Want me to call the others?" she asked, taking a hit from the respirator.

"Not yet," I answered, approaching the skiff. "We gotta see if it even works before we bring everyone's hopes up."

Fry made a noise of agreement and followed me inside the abandoned space skiff. She went straight to the cockpit, looking over the console and other essentials. I checked the rest of the skiff's condition. The working parts seemed to be in order, but time had eroded some of the grav-belts and exposed gears.

The skiff was basic but hopefully functional enough to get us off the planet and to the shipping lanes. From there we'll be able to hail another ship to take us to civilization. I went back outside, brushing some of the dust off of the engines ports. They're in decent state, but require a good cleaning or else we'll end up blowing ourselves up if they're clogged up. The hull was still intact, but the wings were a bit dented and wind-torn. I don't think that will be much of a problem, though. It's all fixable, unless Fry found something else I missed.

My hand trailed the side of the skiff to the rear. The metal most likely scorching hot, but I don't feel it. Despite its current state, the skiff would've been in a much better condition when the outpost was populated. So, if the people were in such a hurry to leave, why wouldn't they take the skiff? It would've taken a long time for a rescue ship to reach them. Did something stop them from getting on? Or was there something wrong with the skiff? I hoped not, but we won't know for sure until we actually start it up.

I frowned, giving the landing gear a light kick. Fry walked down the ramp, joining me as I check the rest of the skiff's exterior for damages. I felt someone coming closer to us, but ignored them and looked at Fry.

"No juice," she reported. "Looks like it's been laid up for years. But we might be able to adapt-"

"Shut up!" Johns snapped from behind us.

Angrily, Fry turned around to the other side of the ramp and saw Johns facing away from her. His head was cocked, as if listening. He turned and shrugged. "Sorry. Thought I heard something."

Fry stepped closer. "Like what?"

"Like my pistola."

For a long moment we all stood listening. There was nothing but the soft wisp of wind and dusty sand blowing around.

"Maybe one of us should head back?" I suggested, using my glaive to point back to where we came from. "To check in with the others and to let them know what we found."

Johns grimaced at my words, shaking his head. "Not alone. Riddick is still out there."

"We'll need to go back anyway," Fry pipped up. "I'm going to need tools to fix the skiff up. And I can't check if it really works without power cells either."

Johns huffed, ignoring us as he trotted back towards Imam's group. I turned to Fry once he had gone ten feet. "I'm going," I stated, throwing a glare at Johns' back. "I gotta check on Owens."

"Now?" she asked, surprised.

"The sooner the better. I found some medical supplies and pain relievers for him," I said, patting the bag on my hip. "If it'll make you worry less I'll run the whole way there to avoid any trouble."

"I'll go with you," she said, securing the headscarf better.

"Okay. I'll head off now, and you'll let the others know before catching up with me," I said, lifting the glaive up. "I also got this. So I'll be fine."

"Alright," she said, easing up on her concern.

I nodded, giving her a quick wave over my shoulder as I headed off in a jog. I checked to make sure I was truly alone and out of her sight before increasing my speed. With nothing holding me back, my jogging turned into full-out running. I ignored the chirping of my wristband that monitor my radiation levels, because no one was around to be endangered of it.

When I arrived at the crash site, I slowed down, pretending to catch my breath and the chirping from my wristband stopped. I used that time to sense where everyone was at. There were six bodies, and one of them was the dangerous convict. Two of them were right next to each other, probably Jack and Shazza. Owens was exactly where I left him at and Paris was up on top of the ship. Riddick was hovering close by, watching the group and maybe waiting for an opportunity. I thought he'd be long gone by now, but he's still around. He probably realized his best chance at survival, and getting off the planet is through us.

I could sense Zeke at the grave site. I moved closer to it, noticing a sled that Zeke probably used to cart the deceased. Oddly enough, there was a puddle of fresh blood dripping off the side of it and his respirator was hanging from the handlebar.

"Zeke?" I called out in a worried tone.

When I didn't get a response I walked over to his location. I lifted the sun tarp up and peeked inside. An unfamiliar dead man was laying in it, body still fresh because blood was still dripping out from him. Zeke was crouching over some kind of opening at the bottom of the grave, possibly a tunnel.

"Zeke," I said softly, while hopping down.

He jumped away from the mouth of the tunnel. His hand scrambling for the pistol, but he relaxed once he saw it was me. "Bloody hell!" he hissed, dropping his hand. "Don't do that."

"Sorry. You didn't respond the first time I called out to you," I said, while pointing to the new body. "So, what did I miss? He looks very fresh."

"It ain't your fault," he grimaced, looking at the dead body. "It was an accident. We all thought he was Riddick. Didn't think anyone else could've survive the crash."

I nodded and turned to the hole. "And this?"

"I just found it," he said, peering into the dark entrance. "Might be a burrow. Large one at that."

Zeke pulled out the pistol tucked in his belt, aiming it in the direction of the hole. With his other hand he unhooked his handlight and poked it into the burrow. He never had time to turn it on. Something whipped through from the dark and slashed his leg. As Zeke fell, howling in pain, his pistol blasted a defensive arc. It missed. Another slash cut his wrist, and the pistol fell from his nerveless fingers.

I lunged forward, grabbing him before he could hit the ground. While pulling him back up, something had him by the ankles and yanked us forward. I dug my heels into the ground, using my weight and abnormal strength to prevent us from falling head first into the hole. Zeke clinged to me, struggling desperately to get his leg free from whatever was gripping him tight. He kicked randomly in the air in hopes of prying its gripped lose.

Quickly, with one hand I clutched onto his belt and forcefully pulled him back. It startled whatever was keeping him captive. Without a moment of hesitation, I swung my glaive with as much power as I could safely muster. I didn't miss because an unsettling high-pitched screech erupted from the dark. I nearly fell back, but with one arm still holding onto Zeke I immediately haul him all the way out. I tugged on the glaive to swing again, but the creature kept a firm hold of it, trying to pull me into the burrow instead.

Sunlight suddenly flooded the entire grave site, blinding us all. Someone had pulled away the sun tarp. At the unexpected brightness, the creature let go of it, screeching horribly. I pulled, and my glaive fell to the ground with a nasty wet squelch. I dragged Zeke further away from the hole.

It was all silent for a moment, but a loud scream erupted from somewhere above us. I was too busy staring into the dark tunnel to see who it was. I wanted to make sure the creature was truly gone, before redirecting my attention to something else. I sense nothing, but us humans and I relaxed.

"Holy fuck..." I breathed, carefully heaving Zeke onto my back. I climbed out of the grave. Shazza instantly appeared at my side, breathing heavily as she helped me to move him onto the sled. In the distance I could make out yelling and fighting, but I continued to focus on Zeke. He had stopped moving, but I was relieved to see he was still breathing. The sunlight made it apparent that his pants were shredded and soaked in blood.

There was no time for me to move him into a cleaner environment. I had to stop the bleeding before he could die from it. I ripped off the sleeves from his shirt to wrap it tightly around his bleeding wrist. The wounds on his legs were deeper, almost to the bone. The bleeding was also more severe that it needed a tourniquet to stop it.

Jack showed up next to Shazza out of breath. He must have seen what happened because in his arms were the supplies that I used to treat Owens. I sighed in relief, thanking him and had him place them onto the sun tarp. I took the longer pieces of rag and tied them above the wounds. The bleeding didn't stop, but the tourniquet should help to slow it down a bit.

"I need you to apply pressure here," I ordered, guiding Shazza's hands to press down onto the wound. "Keep at it and if blood seeps through, keep placing a fresh cloth on top until it stops."

I placed my index and middle fingers on Zeke's neck, checking on his pulse. It was weak but steady. Zeke's skin was also pale, cool and clammy.

"I'll need your help too, Jack. Dig out the suture kit, bandages and the alcohol from the bag on my hip. Gloves too, but only pass those to me when I'm done prepping."

He did as I ordered. I worked on disinfecting the suture tools and my hands with the alcohol. I let them dry completely before motioning Jack to give me the latex gloves. I moved on to Zeke's wrist, pleased to see that it had stopped bleeding. I started on it by getting it properly cleaned and dressed. The cut wasn't as deep or as bad as I thought. The attack had missed the artery.

With the bandage securely on his wrist, I continued on to see the injuries on his legs. Shazza maintained pressure on both of the wounds and kept replacing the cloth with a fresh one when blood seeped through. I was pleased to see that the bleeding slowed down on his right leg. I could start patching him up.

"Shazza," I called out, eyeing her perturbed face. Her watery eyes met mine, and she gave a firm nod in reply.

"Okay, this is what we're gonna do. You'll need to slowly move your hand away from his right leg, but keep the pressure up on the other leg," I said, moving on to his other side.

"Is there anything you need me to do?" Jack asked, staying close by while being careful to not get in the way.

"No," I said, as my hand hovered above Shazza's hand as she eased her hold on Zeke's right leg.

I lifted the cloth and began by cleaning the wound and the area around it with the antiseptic wipes. I carefully line the edges up of the wound and kept them flat as I pushed the curved needle through and out with the needle holder. From that point on I was completely focused on the task. When I was done I covered up the wound with clean bandages.

"It's not bleeding as much as before," Shazza said, worried. "But it hasn't stopped."

I looked over at her as I disinfected my gloves and the tools again. Shazza didn't look at me. She just kept staring at her hands as she continued to apply pressure to Zeke's wound. Her hands and nearly all of the cloths she used were soaked in red.

"That's not good," I said, frowning. "That leg must've taken the blunt of the attack then."

I got into position and removed the dirty cloths. I started on the deepest wound, carefully cleaning it before patching it up. I also cleaned the smaller cuts before patching up them up, using a tiny bit of the surgiseal spray. His left leg required a bit more help than his right, but eventually I got it all done and wrapped up.

I leaned back with a deep sighed when I was finished. Shazza was still in the same position, watching Zeke with a blank stare while the blood slowly dried on her hands. I called her name a few times, but she didn't respond. Jack placed his hand lightly on her arm and she snapped out of her thoughts.

"You did good," I said, catching her attention. "While he's resting go take a breather, clean up and all that."

She opened her mouth to disagree, but I cut her off before she could say anything. "I'm sure. We've done all we could for him now. Go. Jack and I won't leave his side."

Shazza languidly got up and slowly walked pass Johns. He was dragging an unconscious Riddick to the ship's entrance with the help of Fry and a reluctant Paris. They paused to stare at her silent form as she disappeared into the ship before continuing with their task.

I disinfected the tools and gloves again before storing them away into my bag. With Jack's help we carefully supported Zeke's legs on the sled's lower bars, so that they're above the level of his heart. I also removed the tourniquet on his right leg, but kept it on his left leg for a little bit longer.

"Will he be okay?" Jack asked, throwing a concerned look at him.

I stopped, putting a hand on his shoulder to reassure him. "We did our best to help him with what we have. This could've been so much worst, but we got to him in time. The only thing we can do right now is just wait and hope things will turn out okay," I said, giving his shoulder a gentle squeeze.

I turned to the grave site, eyeing the blood spatter opening of the burrow. I jumped down, quickly grabbing Johns' pistol and my glaive. The blade was covered in blue blood, and the staff part had dark marks on it. I was relieved to see that it wasn't obvious enough for anyone to pick up that it was my hand prints.

I slipped the pistol into my belt and Jack reached out to hold the glaive for me. "Why is it covered in blue stuff?" he questioned, as I hauled myself up and out of the grave.

"It's the creatures' blood," I said, taking it back.

"Creature? I thought it was Riddick," he said, looking over to the ship in confusion. "I didn't see what happened exactly, but everyone else was convinced he attacked you guys."

"No, definitely not," I said, pointing to the hole. "Zeke found a large burrow and we must've disturbed it enough to attract the inhabitant's attention."

"Guess this planet isn't as dead as I thought," he said, squinting at the hole.

"Just because the environment is harsh, especially for us humans doesn't means it's impossible for something to survive in it," I said, while cleaning the blood off the glaive with one of the dirty cloths. "We came across a graveyard of skeletons belonging to some very large animals. It doesn't look like they died off naturally, no, what killed them is most likely the very same thing that attacked Zeke."

"Really!?" Jack exclaimed with wide eyes. "How do you know for sure?"

"I could be wrong, but everything seems to be pointing to it," I said, studying the glaive.

Removing the blue blood from the weapon revealed indents of what could be either teeth or claws marks. The staff part of it would've snapped in half if the creature wasn't taken by surprise. I pulled the tooth still in my pocket out and compared it to the markings. They matched, only difference was the size of the marks. I don't think we were dealing with a fully grown adult.

I held out the tooth for Jack. "Here, be careful with it 'cause it's still sharp."

He plucked it out from my hand, studying the tooth. "It's bigger than my fingers."

"Definitely not be a baby tooth," I commented, moving away from the grave. "I figured you would like it. You could make a necklace out of it or something."

"Neat," he said, shoving the tooth into his pocket. "So, what are we gonna do now?"

I looked back to the ship and at Zeke. "Riddick isn't the only threat around. The others need to know that before they do something stupid."

I pulled the tarp from the ground, tugging it up and using the glaive to keep it in place. It'll provide Zeke with a bit of shade from the suns.

"We got water now and a way off this planet," I said, crouching over Zeke's body as I checked him over again. The bleeding on his left leg had finally stopped. I carefully removed the tight cloth around his leg. Hopefully, he'll wake up sooner than later. He'll need to drink plenty of water, take a pain reliever and iron supplements to help with his recovery.

"How?" Jack asked, eyeing the burrow's opening for any signs of the creature.

"There's an abandoned outpost up ahead. The water unit still works and Imam's group stayed behind to collect it. We also found a skiff, but it needs a bit of fixing up before we can take off on it," I said crossing my arms and looking back to the ship.

I wanted to talk to the others, but I don't feel comfortable leaving Jack alone, especially so close to where we were attacked. No matter how smart and easy going Jack appears to be he's still a kid. But it also won't do him any good if we coddle him or treat his thoughts and worries as though they're insignificant or with derision. When I was his age, I absolutely hated it when adults treated me like a nuisance or with condescension.

I watched Paris exited out of the ship, looking in my direction and back to his little look-out atop of the ship. I snorted, knowing very well he would rather go back to pretending that none of this is happening while sipping on expensive liquor.

Jack waved at him and he reluctantly headed in our direction. The others need to know what really happened, and we need to figure out our next move. We're not safe here. The smart thing to do would be to move everyone out of here and into the outpost. It's got everything we need from water to sturdy solid walls without any large holes in them and a way off the planet. We'll also be able to defend ourselves much easier if we get attack, or at least I would like to think so.

"All is well?" he asked hesitantly, looking quickly between Zeke, Jack and I.

I nodded, crossing my arms. "For now. How about the others?"

"They're securing Mr. Riddick for interrogation," he replied, dabbing his brow with a handkerchief. "There's a bit of confusion as to what happened."

"It wasn't him," I said, firmly. "Zeke and I were investigating the opening of a burrow when we got attacked by its inhabitant. I suspect Riddick was using the opportunity as a distraction."

"For what?" Jack inquired with a curious head tilt.

"There are two possible reasons I can think of. It could be to retrieve Zeke's respirator," I answered, pointing to it. It was still hanging on the handle of the sled. "We're adjusting better to the environment because of these devices. Riddick might've wanted one for himself and could've been in the process of stealing Zeke's when he was caught. If not, maybe he intended to finish Zeke and I off if the creature didn't. All so that there would be fewer of us in his way."

Paris frowned, his eyes lingering on the bloody trail from the grave to the sled. "He was free. Why bother with that or any of us?"

I give him a skeptical stare before pointing out the obvious for him. "He's still a wanted man. He'd want to get as far away as possible, but in this situation he can't. This planet isn't exactly that habitable or a hub central. He's force to stay close to us because it'll increase he chances of survival. But more importantly, there's an opportunity for him to escape to actual freedom."

I paused for a few seconds to let it sink in for Paris before continuing. "Because one way or another he's gonna get off this planet, by any means necessary. So the real question is what will the rescue crew find when they get here? Us or just him?"

"But we have a ship now, don't we?" Jack asked, confused. "We don't have to wait for rescue to come if we can rescue ourselves."

"We do?" Paris interrupted with a relieved expression on his face.

"Yes, we do," I said, crossing my arms and shifting my weight to my other leg. "We found a skiff at the abandon outpost, but that comes with its own problems too."

Catching Jack's perplexed expression I elaborated, "From a glance it looks fine, but we won't know if it truly works until we turn it on. Hopefully, we'll have all the means to fix it. But let's ignore that for the moment because we're going off topic. The point is we don't know if Riddick is capable of fixing up the skiff himself or if he even knows how to pilot it. If he doesn't he might've been waiting around for us to do all the work and than hijack it once we were done. If he can't fly it, then he might've taken Fry as a hostage and force her to pilot it. But who knows what could've happened with Riddick still on the loose."

"Huh, okay. So, he's not your typical thug that likes to stabby-stab everything and everyone," Jack commented. There was a curious note of what sounds like intrigue in his voice.

I raised my eyebrow at him, wondering what kind of upbringing this kid has had to be this nonchalant and curious when it comes to criminals. I was going to ask, but Paris caught my attention.

"What should we do now?" he asked, tucking his handkerchief away.

I sighed, looking back towards the ship. "We've got to make sure everyone is on the same page before we make any decisions."

Jack perked up, seeing something in the distance behind us. We turned to see Imam's group approaching us. They were carrying a jugs of water with them. Their smiles and chattering came to halt when they saw us our faces. Imam's calm demeanor morphed into surprise when he noticed Zeke's bloody and unconscious form on the sled.

"What has happened?"

I leaned over, checking on Zeke's pulse again which prompted Paris to explain the situation to Imam. By now, his breathing had eased slightly, and his pulse steady. His face is still ashy, and a light sheen of sweat has formed on his brow. I straighten up and took a step forward, drawing their attention back to me. I titled my head up at the ship.

"I haven't check on Owens yet. Can one of you watch Zeke? If he wakes up, make sure to give him plenty of water and these," I said, digging into my bag to pull out a tablet of pain reliever and iron supplement. "Two of each."

"Of course," Imam replied, grabbing the pills and motioning for Suleiman to keep an eye on Zeke. He placed down one of the water jugs he was carrying next to Zeke. "Does Owens require some water as well?"

I nodded, and Hassan carefully gave me the water jug he was carrying. "Make sure everyone stays away from there," I added to Imam, gesturing to the grave site and giving a pointed look at the youngest ones in the group.

Their voices faded as I made my way into the ship and went straight to the Nav Bay. Owens was sitting upright and leaning heavily against a console with unfocused eyes. I was surprised to see him awake, let alone sitting up.

"Owens," I called lightly, making sure to stay within his eyesight as I moved closer to him. "You should not be sitting up yet."

He jerked, shifting his gaze onto me. I sat down in front of him, placing the jug of water under the console and pulling my bag off. His bandage had some spotting of red, but it doesn't like he reopened his wound from the front. I don't know about the back. Either way I'll still have to change it and check it for any infection.

"I heard gunshots," he murmured, looking a bit more alert. "What's going on? Where's everyone? How long have I been asleep?"

I ignored his questions and instead asked my own. "Do you remember me?"

He looked confused for a moment, but nodded. His movement slow and clumsy as he tried to sit up straight. Pain still etched on his sweaty pale face.

"Tasha?" he answered, hesitant.

"Yes," I confirmed, pulling out the medical supplies, my water bottle and the pills.

I carefully poured a little bit of the alcohol onto my hands, coating them in the liquid and waving them in the air to dry faster. If Owens wasn't watching me, I would've attempted to kill the bacteria with my radiation and heat.

"How's the pain, on a scale of one to ten?" I asked, checking his wound. "One to three means mild pain; four to seven is considered moderate pain; eight and above is severe pain."

He closed his eyes, teeth clenched. "I don't know. Seven? Eight? It's hard to tell because everything hurts and hasn't stopped since I've woken up. It might be getting worse actually."

"Sounds like the first dosage is wearing off," I said, frowning. I didn't think that much time had passed, but it's not like I've been keeping track of it. I doubt the gunshots is what actually woke him up. No one can go to sleep while in pain or even stay asleep if pain begins to creep up on them. "It makes sense as these should've lasted for about four to six hours, depending on your metabolism. If you're feeling that much pain you'll need to take another pill."

I opened my water bottle, immediately lifting it to his mouth. Once he swallowed enough of the liquid I popped the pain pill into his mouth and the iron supplement next when he was done. I let him finish the entire water bottle and refilled it with water from the jug. I put it back into my bag when he didn't want it anymore.

"The gunshots?" he asked, hissing in pain. "Or did I imagine that?"

I tried to be careful when pulling the bandages away from his wound. I paused for a few seconds wondering if I should lie. He's got enough to worry about, but I wouldn't appreciate it if someone did that to me if I was in his position. I would want to be aware of everything that's going on, especially if I was in such a vulnerable state.

"The gunshots definitely spooked everyone," I started, gentle dabbing at the wound with the wipes. "Good, you didn't tear anything by sitting up and so far no infection either."

I discard the used wipes and put a little bit of the surgiseal spray on the wound. I let it dry a bit before wrapping a clean bandage over it. "But they were just warning shots and panic misfiring," I continued, putting away the rest of the medical supplies.

I leave out that a random passenger was killed, because it's an unnecessary detail at this point. I went on to explain about the outpost, the skiff and the planet not being as dead as everyone thought. I also managed to get him to eat some of Paris' smoked oysters and a nutrient tablet. I wish I could offer him more because his body will need high-protein foods to help heal, but we'll have to make do with what we have.

"Wha-what's the plan?" he asked, his eyes growing heavy and his head drifting slightly downward.

"You should be resting," I advised, moving behind him. There was no resistance as I gently eased him back onto the floor. "That should be your priority."

He opened his mouth to say something, but I quickly cut him off. "We don't have a plan yet, but we all know now that it's not exactly safe here. Our best bet is the outpost. It's got water, the skiff, and solid walls. Until it's time to move, close your eyes and rest."

It didn't take long for sleep to claim him. I sat back, picking up some of the nutrient tablets from the pile of food and the second can of smoked oysters for Zeke. He'll need the high protein too. I headed to the exit, catching sight of Shazza entering the ship from the other side, through a large tear in the hull.

"How is he?" she asked, glancing behind me.

"He's good," I answered, with a relieved smile on my face. "He's doing better than I expected. I got him to drink plenty of water, to eat something and to take some pills too. Speaking of which I got these for Zeke."

I pulled out the can of oysters and nutrient tablets from my bag. "I left Zeke with Paris and Imam's group. They bought back jugs of water and I bought one here for Owens since I needed to check on him anyway."

She nodded, looking out to the exit. "It wasn't Riddick, was it?"

"No, it wasn't him," I said softly.

"I wasn't sure what to think," she sighed, shoulders lowering as she leaned against the wall. "I heard the gunshot and I came out running. I pulled the tarp away and the first thing I saw was Zeke with all that blood and him standing so close."

She frowned, looking at her hand as she balled it into a fist before releasing it. "In our line of work accidents do happen and sometimes they can get real bad. I've never experience anything like this."

"I had my share of work-related accidents," I said, empathizing. "It's always worse when it's someone you know and care about."

She nodded, brow furrowed in thought. "But that was no accident. What the hell did that to Zeke?"

"What do you know already?" I asked, curious.

"You guys found an abandoned outpost," she replied with a faint smile, "and a skiff."

"Yeah, while there I checked out the infirmary. It was a mess, but I picked out what was still good and usable. I figured after that I better head back and check on Owens. Before I did that Zeke told me what happened with the unexpected survivor. He was taking care of the body when he found a hole that leads into a large burrow," I said, tapping my finger against the can of smoked oysters. "That's when it attacked."

"You saw it?"

"No, it was too dark. When you pulled the tarp away it haul ass right out of there. I don't think it would've stopped until it dragged one of us away. So thanks for that."

Shazza grimaced at hearing that it could've been so much worst. "Why?"

"It could've been protecting it territory?" I shrugged. "But I think it was hungry."

"No, why did it stop attacking?" she clarified. "It had the upper hand, so why stop because of a little bit of light?"

"That's true," I hummed in thought as I turned to look at the exit. Predators instinctively know not to relentlessly attack prey that fights back, especially just as viciously as them, unless they're starving. The creature was frighteningly tenacious; their attack fuel by desperation to get to us. So why did it just stop? It lives on a planet with three suns. I get being caught off guard after being in the dark for a while, but it should've adjusted quickly and continued on. Instead, it screamed and instantly vanished. "It might share the same characteristic with nocturnal animals."

Shazza lifted a skeptical brow, but didn't interrupt as I explain my answered. "These creatures probably adapted to live underground in the darkness to survive in this environment better. They may even have a bit of photosensitive to the light if they stay entirely underground. It would explain why we haven't seen any up here. Or they probably only come out when it's the coolest part of the day. It's not like we've been here long enough to know exactly what's considered the coolest part of the day. Or even know what a day really is on this planet."

Shazza sighed, "Okay, but these are just speculations. Either we're safe as long as we stay out of dark tunnels and holes, or we're not because it's only a matter of time that they come out. What do we actually know?"

"Nothing substantial," I said, biting my lip. "I'm guessing what attacked Zeke wasn't a fully grown adult. It was still large, though. But I don't want to know how big they can actually get."

"How do you know that if you didn't see it?"

"Back in the skeleton yard, I studied the bones. They were all of the same elephant-like species, but one of them wasn't. That skeleton's claw and teeth matches the marks on the other skeletons. One of them even had a tooth still stuck in it. I hand it over to Jack as a souvenir if you want to see it for yourself. I compared the tooth to the marks on my glaive and it also matches. So I'm pretty sure about that."

"I'll take your word for it," Shazza said, pushing away from the wall. "Thanks again for helping Zeke and keeping your head."

I nodded and stretched out my arm to her, holding the can of smoked oysters and a nutrient tablet. "Take this. I want to check in with Fry and Johns to see what we're gonna do next."

"Not stay here," she said in an obvious tone.

"Ditto," I replied, "But I just want to make sure that everyone is on the same page."