The sun had gone and hid beyond the horizon, leaving behind the darkness to descend upon the island. Team three settled deep in the forest, their horses tied together behind a few bushes as they surrounded the campfire. Floch was not paying much attention to the conversation. He had nothing worth sharing with the group, which was a strange feeling considering that occasions like these were his social spotlight. Then again, what his young adult brain considered worthy topics differed from theirs.

"What?! No way!" Tom cried out loud incredulously. The girls looked on with disgust.

"Yeah! Hahaha! I convinced Reiner we- ." Gordon laughed. Hannah turned green in the face. Floch chose that moment to cut him off mentally. Preferring to focus on everything else around him, He idly played around with a lighter he stole from one of the instructors.

His eyes darted towards Ymir, finding her equally uninterested in the topic being discussed. They briefly shared a look before she averted her eyes elsewhere. He noticed she's been eyeing him a great deal the last few hours, he was dying to know what went on in that head, he wasn't particularly in favor of asking her for a piece of mind though.

A rustling in the background caught his attention.

"Ahh!" Ruth Yelped, frightened by the sudden noise.

"Shush." He discarded the map and unsheathed his ODM blade, Someone behind was already moving with their ODM gear, but he didn't check who.

"What was that?" Hannah questioned in alarm. Franz patted her shoulder and stood up then moved closer to the source of the disturbance.

Floch and Gordon flanked his sides as they inched closer to the bushes, with a few nods they pounced on the threat, discovering the small figure of a scurrying rabbit.

Floch sighed before he sheathed the sword and returned to the campfire with the other two boys. It didn't slip his mind that Ruth looked incredibly pale. He scowled at her, his pent-up frustrations finally coming to a boiling point.

"Why would you even join the damned military if you haven't got the heart for it." He complained, surprising himself as a result, not realizing he spoke that sentence out loud. Everyone around him was taken off guard by the sudden outburst. 'Screw it, might as well say it now.' He thought.

"Huh?" She let out, her lips quivering.

"You barely pass selection, every physical exercise leaves you on the ground within an inch of your life, and are one tree branch snap away from suffering a heart attack. Just why are you even here if not to fill the stomach of a titan?" He harshly spoke in a calm factual tone.

Her breath hitched as tears built up, but Floch would not relent. She needed to hear this, to understand before it was too late. The way she was going now, it was very much like lamb to the slaughter. And everyone around her from the commanders to her fellow cadets enabled it, well, he would do no such thing.

"Come on, Floch, that's a bit much." Hannah chastised from the side.

"She needs to hear this. She's a liability to everyone including herself, if this carries on she'll end up as Shadis always says." He chided, The thin barrier that kept Ruth from crumbling broke as tears silently streamed down her cheeks, the thick silence that took hold was broken by her hiccuped sobs.

"Look what you've done!" Hannah angrily shouted at him, He looked unfazed staring down at the whimpering Ruth. Gordon walked up to him and clutched him by the collar, Sparks flew between their eyes as they glared at each other.

"You enjoy making girls cry or what?" Gordon asked with evident irritation.

"Hey! No fighting, chill out!" Franz Called out as he rushed between the two boys.

"Better to cry than to be eaten is it not?" Floch began, Gordon hesitated for a second. The redhead took hold of his arm and twisted it around, Gordon winced in pain as he suddenly found his arm forced behind his back, Floch shoved him away and the taller boy barely kept his balance as he turned to face him in anger.

"Just what the hell's gone wrong with you? I can barely recognize you anymore." Gordon spat, rubbing his sore wrist. Floch looked at him indifferently, before turning to see the troubled look on Sandra's face.

Floch inwardly seethed at his words, though he reminded himself that they none of them knew any better. The needed to think, they were child soldiers for a reason. Their world was withering away wall by wall, as their enemies crept up on them like vultures readying to strike. None could afford to slack off when the titans and warriors were an active threat to their existence, if they could only understand that fact.

"When we signed up for this, you think we were just out to sit by campfires and have a good time? Have you forgotten what awaits us once we finish training?" Floch questioned, his features darkening in a silent rage.

The silence grew thick at his question.

Gordon felt breathless, shrinking under those intense amber eyes.

The boy snapped out of it and grit his teeth. "So what? We're just supposed to wallow in misery day in and day out?-" He was going to continue but Floch cut him off fiercely.

"I implied nothing of the sort, I'm asking her to take matter seriously. Otherwise quit while you're we're sent out there, titans won't care about hurt feelings, they'll chew you to bits and spit you out!"

Most took notice of his choice of words, Gordon and Sandra especially were taken back by his newly discovered desire to venture outside the walls. The auburn-haired boy immediately saw their faces twist with worry and discomfort at the thought.

"O-out there?... You're joining the survey corps?" Sandra faltered with a shaky breath.

"I am."

The crackling of the fire and the resounding forest life became more pronounced as silence took hold. They looked as if he had crushed a puppy in front of them, distrubed by his revelation. He expected something like this, morale was at an all time low after the walls were breached, the majority of cadets who couldn't make the top ten favored the garrison heavily. It was no different for the one hundred and fourth.

"It's getting late. I will take the first shift, goodnight." He spoke. There was no more to be heard from them as they all began preparing for sleep, Hannah and Franz moved to comfort the sniffling Ruth.

Gordon didn't look finished, but Sandra took hold of his arm and shook her head at him. He sighed and allowed himself to be dragged away. Floch used his ODM gear to reach an elevated position, he perched on a thick tree branch high up and began to watch over the camp.

He wasn't sorry, as long as the message got across. He wasn't bothered by their reactions, they were kids, emotional and irrational. Once they're older and more mature they'll understand him, or maybe not but when they're inevitably caught in the clutches of a titan, they'll know he was right. Floch didn't want it to reach that point though.

"Remember that thing I said about pots and kettles? Well, that was quite the scene you made, riveting stuff." Ymir spoke next to him.

Floch's heart missed a beat as he turned to the origin of the voice, blankly staring at her sitting next to him on the thick tree branch. He raised an eyebrow in astonishment, how in the hell did she get there without a single sound? Did she climb up? He couldn't hear any indication of ODM gear use.

"I've been up here since before you lost your shit down there if you're wondering." She answered his inner question. Ahh, so that's what the sound from before was.

"Didn't see you on the way up." He spoke softly. "So, what is it you want?"

"Me? not much, just trying to cure the boredom, and you delivered!" She smirked, god did he hate her smug attitude. "Also would have been really awkward to just sit here in silence." She shrugged.

"I'm glad you found some form of entertainment in all of that, I'm taking this shift though so head back down to bed with the others." He replied dryly.

"I'm comfortable up here, thanks. Though I have to say, Didn't expect you of all people to be such a bleeding heart." She teased. He felt a vein pop in his forehead.

"What the hell are you saying?" He asked her with furrowed brows.

"Yelling at princess like that, for her own good and all. You're trying to do a good thing, it's all you've been doing this entire day." She pointed out. He could somewhat agree with that.

"What's it matter to you?" Curiosity inclining him to find out more.

"Oh, you know, gossip and stuff. Words travel, everyone's eyes are on you whether you know it or not. How could they not be? Floch Forster. The sole cadet that can keep up with that monster Ackermann. You've got some reputation. very commendable." She informed him. There was a mocking tone in the way she praised him.

"I'm honored, though I'm surprised you pay attention to anything other than Lenz." He jabbed, she snorted at that.

"I pay enough attention, my vision isn't restricted by some shitty bowlcut." She sneered, dangling her feet back and forth as she observed the cadets below having a chat of their own from the comfort of their sleeping bags.

"Quite a lot to be fair, this place is a bore. People like you and Krista spice things up for me." She added.

"So that's all you're here for then? To have a fun time at our expense?" Floch leaned into the tree, she glanced at him from the corner of her eye and brought up her knees to her chin.

"For the most part, yes. Not everyone here's passionate about killing titans like you and Yeager." Floch could respect that, He could.

"Shockingly, you and I can both agree on one thing for certain. Those that can't pull their weight should be left in the dust." She continued. Floch felt his anger bubble at her words, with barely concealed contempt on his face.

"You're delusional, I already told you we're different."

"Then what is it that you believe brick-head? Enlighten us less than worthy folks!" She made a grand gesture with her arms, letting her legs drop down as she leaned back on her arms. His features softened and he found himself looking up at the sky somberly.

"Exterminate everything that threatens us and to protect this kingdom and it's people, accept all risks that come with such a task."

"Oh, brother please! ahahaha!" She laughed in his face, clutching her sides. It took her some time to recover as Floch eyed her with slight annoyance.

"That was a good laugh. Really? Another one of you assholes?!" She said, wiping a tear from her eye.

"I'm not sure I follow."

She shot him an amused look. "Oh please, you're just another Eren. Exterminate this, protect that, fight the titans! Spare me from all that crap! Though, I wonder which one of you rubbed off on the other? You two have to be the only ones dumb enough to even think about joining the scouts." She chuckled.

"We have our dreams, we're driven by our ambitions to work hard towards them and achieve our goals. What do you have? Are you truly any better when you're selfishly putting yourself ahead of the people you joined to serve? How long can you continue like that when this world grows smaller wall by wall? What purpose do you have then? When you squander the only chance you had left to fight and watch the people around you die?" He asked.

"I didn't join to serve anybody. What I have is my freedom to choose what I want to live for, when that time comes I'll deal with my own consequences. Besides, fight or not we're all fucked anyway. Hardly matters." She hissed in objection.

Floch closed his eyes and rubbed his temples then looked back down at the other cadets somberly.

"They're nothing but a bunch of naive kids, they don't know it yet but they're in for a rude awakening. They have no idea what they signed up for, majority don't even know what titans look like outside of drawings. They slice a piece of wood in an empty forest and think they have it all figured out. Should they just lay down and die? They're all 'fucked" as you said aren't they? If we'll all die then why not go out with a little dignity and pride? Why not give it our all? What good will withering away in the military police or garrison do when the collosal titan knocks down another wall?" Floch reasoned, Ymir listened to him with pensiveness.

"It is never pointless to stand up against such an overwhelming enemy, because no matter the odds things can still take a turn for the better. It's still worth fighting for in the end is it not? This life we live, these people aroud us and the land we call our home? Should it all not be protected no matter the cost?" He added.

"Damn, motivational speaker too. You're just the gift that keeps on giving." Ymir whistled. Floch didn't exactly care if she mulled over his words or not, it felt good to let all of that off his chest.

"Laugh it up all you want, but it doesn't change the simple fact."

"And what's that?"

They both stared at each other, the moonlight illuminating his features. Ymir hadn't felt this rigid since turning back from being a mindless titan, frozen by the intense gaze of those amber eyes. A fire bright as the sun cackled in them, his hardened gaze reflecting a concrete resolve and determination. For a brief moment Ymir felt compelled by them. He uttered the next words as if they were the absolute truth.

"Humanity within the walls will prevail."


"There was one thing I wished for with all of my heart. If i'm ever given a second chance in life, I want to live for only myself. That is my sincere wish." -Ymir 825 AD, seconds before being condemned to mindlessly roam Paradis for eternity.


It was early in the afternoon the next day when the cadets reached their destination, the journey from the forest and through the mountains was excruciatingly awkward for most of them but not Floch. He didn't care much for what happened last night, he already moved on from it, he couldn't say the same for the rest. Talking was kept to a minimum and they only ever exchanged words with him when he needed to give them orders.

The walk through the mountains proved rather difficult, at times they had to step down from their horses and traverse on foot due to how risky some of the roads were. Floch didn't think it was worth changing paths as long as they could be trusted to maneuver around the cliffs carefully. There were some shady areas and close calls here and there but they managed to pull through. Which now led them to the summit where they met the other unit of their team.

"Yooo!" Nack tierce shouted at them from below, his unit was the second to arrive at the destination.

"Nack! What's up you guys! What took you so long!" Gordon shouted at the approaching cadets of the second unit.

"Please! These mountains are a drag!" Mylius complained loudly.

"This dumbass almost fell down a cliff on the way here." A cadet Floch didn't know commented.

"That's terrible, glad you're okay!" Sandra replied with genuine concern.

"Thanks, so where's the item?" Mylius asked the primary unit, automatically turning to Floch.

Floch gestured at a shack behind them just at the top of some steps. "Over there." He replied.

"Much obliged." Nack thanked.

The units took some time to sit together and relax before they headed back to the camp, they sat by the shack and exchanged stories and supplies. It helped ease the tensions from yesterday's incident, he shared a small talk with Mylius about team management and a few tips about the use of ODM gear. Floch was forthcoming with his answers, helping in needed areas. If his advice could help save a life in the future then he was more than happy to oblige these questions. Most of the cadets found themselves leaning in to listen, intrigued by his level of knowledge.

An hour later, the teams separated and made their respective journeys back to camp. Floch realized too late that they could have just gone back the way they came from instead of switching routes with the other unit, but he didn't mull over the thought too much. Once again they dismounted their horses to carefully navigate the cliffside road. Moving through the narrower parts of the ravine one after the other. Most had protested against having to burden themselves with the heavy ODM gear but Floch knew better than to move around without proper safety.

"Crap!" He heard Hannah hiss from behind, he snapped back to check on her as did everyone else.

"I'm fine. Thought I felt the ground move for a second there." She reassured. She took another step forward, and without warning, parts of the earth from underneath her crumbled under her weight. Hannah found herself plunging into the river alongside her unfortunate horse.

"Hannah!" Franz shouted from the front.

Fortunately, she was able to act quickly and deployed her ODM gear, she hung from the cliffside as everyone worriedly glanced down at her. Floch and Franz helped pull her back up with haste.

"Are you okay?!" Franz asked her frantically, the girl looked shaken but otherwise fine.

"Y-Yeah, that was close." She sighed in relief, she looked down at the running water down below and frowned.

"The Horse-" She groaned.

Floch's ears perked up, picking up on a peculiar sound from above. His eyes followed the line to inspect where Hannah's hook had latched on to, He gaped in horror after noticing the hook had stuck to the underbelly of a portruding cliff which began to visibly crumble like a cookie. Her line detached without warning and Floch found himself pushing the two cadets out of the way as a giant rock came tumbling towards them.

"MOVE!" He yelled shoving the two away, The debris managed to knock Floch off balance as he found himself free falling to the river below, to his horror it managed to make his ODM gear malfunction. Before he could plunge deeper into certain death he felt the arms of a guardian angel wrap around him as he was swung to safety, only to discover that his savior had been Ymir.

"So much big talk yesterday, now look at you." She smirked at him.

"Thanks." He simply answered.

"WATCH OUT!" Gordon's voice boomed throughout the ravine.

The two cadets looked up to see more debris headed their way. Ymir couldn't do anything with the extra weight slowing her down as the rocks connected with them. A pained cry died in his throat as he did his best to suppress it, his left arm had been directly hit. To their misfortune, her hook line was broken amid the confusion and the two of them fell into the water below.

The rest of the cadets could do nothing but watch on in fright as they disappeared into the water with a splash. A cold dreadful aura washed over them, and Sandra and Gordon's world came crashing down on them. Their childhood friend died before their eyes, and they could do nothing but watch. Sandra's cries echoed the ravine, but it changed nothing.


"I don't care about your reasons or your secrets! No matter what happens, I'm on your side!" - Historia reiss 850 AD, being held by the jaws titan alongside the armored and Collosal while speeding away from Paradis.


Floch's head emerged from the water as he gasped for air, Ymir swam alongside him. The duo made it out of the water and crawled onto land before collapsing on the grass, only Floch looked winded whereas Ymir was perfectly fine. He survived without much harm thanks to her tanking the damage from the plunge, had he not known beforehand about her titan-shifting status it would have slipped his mind how calm and unscathed she was.

"Still alive huh?"

"Sorry to disappoint." He hissed unevenly.

Floch pushed himself up with a wince, he made a conscious effort to not put a strain on his broken arm. His head snapped from left to right in an attempt to make sense of their surroundings. Eventually, his eyes recognized a few landmarks and he frowned in response, additionally he seemed to have lost his ODM gear.

"The river took us closer to our previous camp, that's bad. The others are at least one hour away, maybe more."

Ymir stood up to her feet, she moved toward a tree and leaned against it. She looked deep in thought for a moment before she opened her eyes and directly stared into him.

"Got anything to alert them to our location?" She asked.

He felt himself slowly freezing from the chill, his entire body shook from the cold. Floch unfastened his ODM belt and used it as a sling to support his broken left arm. Ymir watched him impassively, vigilantly guarding their surrounding area for any threats that loomed in the forest. He searched his pockets but came back empty-handed, sighing at their misfortune.

"I lost my flare gun." He announced much to her discontent.

"Tsk. Wonderful." She scowled, inspecting his wounded arm.

Floch followed her line of sight and closed his eyes in thought, before sending her a knowing look.

"I won't be a burden, don't worry."

"You said it."

"We need to dry up first and foremost. I'll gather some firewood before we freeze our asses to death. We'll burn a bunch stuff to get a smoke up in there to signal for the others. You look around for any food source. If you have it in you, get some fish from the nearby river. The sooner we're warm both inside and outside the better." He commanded as he rose to his feet.

Both of them stilled at the sounds of the howling in the distance, Eyes narrowing with apprehension at the imminent threat that circled them.

"And what do we do about that? Oh, great leader!?" She inquired sarcastically.

"We fight."

The bushes rustled from behind them, and both of them turned to face the noise. Ymir's breath hitched, a pack of wolves was beginning to circle them, she slowly backed away until she stood side by side with Floch. She carefully pulled out her ODM sword while handing Floch a hiltless blade which he wrapped a cloth around. There were six of them and two of the cadets, while he knew she would be fine, Floch didn't favor his odds. He felt at a great disadvantage, knowing full well Ymir would rather have him be mauled to death than transform and save them both.

"You've got to be kidding me! Already?!" She breathed incredulously.

Floch steadied himself and mentally prepared to hold off the beasts, he didn't think they'd get to them so soon. They looked ravenous and more aggressive than the ordinary, the only good news was that they weren't as massive as most of the other wolves scattered around the wilderness of the island.

"Those that can't pull their weight should be left in the dust."

His eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets, last night's conversation surfacing at the front of his mind. Worried eyes glanced off to his right and found the girl face's had darkened with contemplation. He felt his heartbeats quicken, was she considering leaving him behind to be eaten by these beasts? Floch swallowed, sweat beginning to build upon his forehead. He didn't trust this girl at all, for all he knew she could push him into certain death to flee out of here.

"Got anything?" She spoke, breaking him out of his trance.

"Working on it."

He glanced down at her ODM, a thought came to mind.

"Work faster." She hissed between grit teeth.

"Does your ODM still work?"

"If it did, I wouldn't be standing here right now, dumbass." She bitterly answered.

"Is that why I'm not being left for dead." He concluded.

"Shut up. You said fight, right? We're going to now!" She hissed back at him.

"I have a plan." She looked surprised, releasing a short breath of joyous relief. Floch slowly reached for the lighter inside of his jacket and motioned for Ymir to unscrew her gas canisters, the girl smirked after understanding where he was going with this.

The wolves began growling and baring their canines, they were boodthirsty and the two cadets would suffice. The predators began nearing them, Floch took the canister off of Ymir as he got into a stance. He held the lighter with his broken arm, then motioned for Ymir to start backing away.

"On my mark unscrew your canister and throw it at them."

"You got it."

Without warning the wolves growled then broke into a sprint at them, taking them both off guard.

"SHIT! DO IT NOW!"

Ymir unscrewed her canister with haste and threw hers first before taking the other of the hands of the struggling Floch, they ran away as he fidget with the lit lighter and threw it towards the hissing gas. Moments later a chain reaction occurred as the two gas canisters lit up in proximity. Engulfing the clearing in a blue blazing inferno as they ran, Unfortunately, Only three of them were caught in the flames as the rest rushed the cadets.

"DAMMIT! STILL?" Ymir shouted in disbelief as she readied herself. Having fully expected them to run away from the fire. Floch found himself unable to help or answer as he suddenly fell to the ground from the tackling beast.

He barely held it at bay with the back of his sword, it growled and barked at him as it attempted to chew his head off. Drool made its way onto his face and jacket as he desperately fought off his attacker, worst of all the smell was terrible enough to knock him out. Floch mustered all of his energy and kicked the giant wolf off his body then adjusted himself, it pounced on him once more bearing its teeth, however, this time, he lodged his sword deep into the back of its throat with all of his strength.

It released a pained cry as it fell to the ground kicking and whimpering, he pulled the sword and watched it thrash on the floor. Crimson leaking from the mouth and snout, the wolf released a snoring sound as blood pooled inside its throat. He stabbed it again through the neck rendering it lifeless. He looked around to find Ymir on her knees next to the bodies of two other wolves. The boy limped his way toward his teammate. Her back was facing him, she was covered in blood from head to toe, blood that may or may not have belonged to her. Floch's mind raced as images of scouts laying dead on a field outside Shiganshina flashed through his mind, he snapped away from his trance and focused his attention on the drenched titan-shifter.

"Come on we need to move! More of them could be coming ba-" Floch paused. His eyes expanded with surprise, as he patted her shoulder. He looked down at her forearm, a sizeable chunk of it was missing and steaming. Ymir didn't move from her spot, She looked mortified. Her eyes were wide as saucers, gazing at the healing wound.

"Ymir." He breathed.

"We need to g-"

The other canister exploded in the distance, sending a scorching shockwave throughout the forest, he was taken off guard by it.

The next few moments occurred in a flash as she looked back up at him, panic and terror greeted him. She took advantage and moved with desperation, pouncing on him to snuff his lights out. They both rolled on the ground, he made forlorn attempts at shielding himself from the onslaught she subjected him to, her grunts growing louder and feral with each strike as she bloodied his face. She clutched his arm and squeezed it with an iron grip, Floch let out an anguished yelp as pain shot from his broken appendage. He kicked her in the abdomen and bought himself a few precious seconds of breathing room before the girl tackled him once more, they rolled in the dirt and fell into the shallow river water below. It was perfectly deep enough to be buried in. Floch struggled immensely at holding her back, slowly succumbing to the pain and fatigue as the girl overwhelmed him.

she wrapped her claws around his neck and pressed hard, plunging him into the watery grave. Floch fought with futility for every last breath of air, swallowing liquid in the process. His goals and ambitions for the future slowly became distant dreams as he came face to face with the reality of the situation. Ymir weighed tons straddling him, her face maddened with fear. She was determined to take him from this world, to take away his second chance at life, he clung to it desperately, hopelessly flailing his only good arm at her which she bit in retaliation causing him to scream out in pain underwater.

His vision was dotted with white as he finally ran out of air, his heart powerfully pounded in his ears, and he was terrified. Floch made one last effort, one last attempt to save himself. Frantically searching for anything his hands could find below the water, stumbling upon a decently shaped rock. With every last ounce of strength left in him, the boy bashed her head with it repeatedly until she let go of him, Floch emerged from the waters in a pitiful condition. He willed himself towards the stunned girl and bashed her another time in the head, knocking her out cold. She went limp face-first into the water.

His breath was labored and uneven, he weighed a thousand kilograms. Barely able to drag himself out of the water alongside the unconscious Ymir. Both washed up on the river bank, still gasping for air. He pressed forward with a fiery blaze raging in his chest while running on nothing but fumes and willpower. Pull, drag, pull, drag, he repeated to himself as he crawled on the ground lugging the girl in tow. He unbuckled the rest of the belts that covered his legs and tightly bound the girl with them then broke into a violent coughing fit, prompting him to lean against a tree in exhaustion.

He spat blood off to the side, sweating and panting as if he had finished the world's deadliest marathon. He had to make sure she went nowhere, fearing she'd leave his sight and devour him. That proved difficult. His body was ordinary, it ached, and it cried for help. His ears were clogged with the water still, and his eyes throbbed from the pain. He teetered the line between consciousness and the dark, once a proud soldier now turned into a humbled vessel of bruised flesh.

He made one last-ditch effort to remain awake but his body failed him.

He succumbed to the abyss.


The horses raced down the mountains with an air of uncertainty. They wandered like headless chickens, searching every direction under the sun's dying light. Sandra, Gordon, Tom, and Ruth followed along the river. In desperate search of something down below. A sign of life, a call for help, a hint of brown and a glaring white, or simply a fresh corpse.

"This is pointless! We'll never find them like this! Let's head back and wait for help to come!" Tom called out. Gordon's intense glare struck him like boiling oil. He flinched away and felt himself shrink under his gaze.

"Then you should have gone with Franz and Hannah when you had the chance. We're not going anywhere until we find Floch." The taller boy hissed.

"And Ymir..." Ruth awkwardly added from the sidelines.

"And Ymir." He repeated.

"They could be anywhere! Nothing guarantees we find them before we run out of supplies! Even if the other two get Mylieus's unit to help us!" Tom argued.

"You can have mine." Sandra spoke. "Please, Help us find them." She begged. His breath caught in his throat as he looked back at her. It was his first time hearing someone so desperate for something. How could he deny such a miserable-looking girl? It felt foul. He frowned before giving in to her plea.

"Dammit." He muttered under his breath. "Alright, but you better not get us into too much trouble." He grumbled. Sandra gave him a tender smile before turning back to the path ahead.

"Thank you." She told him.

A faint explosion resounded from afar in the dense forest, alerting the group of cadets. They came to a halt as they tried to pinpoint where it came from. Gordon was the first to notice a cloud of smoke beginning to rise into the air.

"Over there! it could be them!" He shouted in a voice dripping with hope, pointing at the horizon.

"Are you hearing yourself? There's no way they could have survived that fall!" Tom chimed in incredulously.

Sandra and Gordon ignored him as they raced down the mountain. Ruth and Tom were left staring at each other awkwardly before they hurried after them. It would be an hour and a half later that the cadets reached the source of the explosion, they left the horses behind and cautiously entered the clearing. Ruth's nose scrunched in disgust at the smell of ash and blood. The corpses of wolves littered the smoldering earth.

"What the hell happened here?" Tom wondered out loud. He kept moving forward to investigate, leaving the other three to look around the charred surroundings.

"L- look here, isn't this a piece of a gas canister?" Ruth pointed out. Gordon kneeled to inspect the metal and hummed.

"The explosion took out most of these wolves." He confirmed. Sandra's eyes lit up momentarily.

"That means...They're alive! Nobody else should be around this area!" She laughed. Gordon nodded at her with a half-smile.

"Yeah, looks like something Floch could come up with. The only thing left is to find them." He replied.

"Hey! Come look at this!" Tom called out. Their heads jerked in his direction as they quickly joined him.

"What did you find-" Gordon paused. He followed Tom's line of sight and found the half-eaten carcass of Hannah's horse washed up on the river bank.

"That explains the wolves, I guess." The hesitant boy commented.

"Where in the hell are they." Gordon groaned.

"All the supplies that were tied to it are gone." Sandra noted.

Ruth's blood-curdling scream startled the cadets. She fell to the ground with a thud and frantically crawled away until she bumped her back into Gordon. Her hands shook as she pointed. They jerked their heads in that direction. Sandra's blood froze, feeling bile rise at the back of her throat at the sight of what looked to be a severed leg lying in a pool of blood.


Annnnd done, how'd you like it? hope it was alright, thanks for reading! Anyway, goodbye and never forget that Floch is always right!

Edited on (insert your favorite time here), changed stuff i didn't like.