Chapter 23 Chapter 23 Once

I don't know how high I fell from, I just heard a dull plop, and I fell to the ground.For five full minutes I couldn't breathe under the force of the impact, and for a while I couldn't do anything but lie still, bewildered.The sand was on my face, the tiny grains of sand on my eyelashes and lips.But I didn't notice. Emma.I was still out of breath, but still struggled to stand up.I turned around in a circle, looking for her.But I know she's gone. The gale died down to a breeze, and the darkness dissipated.The fire not far away was clearly visible, and dark gray clouds rolled over my head.Emma was nowhere to be seen.

"Emma!" I called Emma's name over and over again, only to yell into the empty air. "Heather? Heather, what's going on?" It's Dodge.I saw his silhouette against the flames.I watched him take one step, two steps, three steps.He walked away from the flames and into the darkness. don't want!I run.I don't want him to leave the safety of the campfire.He stopped when he saw me rushing towards him. "Dodge!" Without even trying to stop myself, I threw myself into his arms.He was a little staggered by me, but he still held the two of us steady, and unconsciously grabbed my arm with his hand. "Dodge, it's true!"

"What?" He looked down at me, frowning in bewilderment. "What's real? Heather, where's Emma?" "Don't you see? Don't you feel the wind?" He didn't answer my question, just shook me slightly.He lowered his body, was level with me, and looked deeply into my eyes. "Heather, where's Emma?" I coughed twice and choked up. "She disappeared!" "Disappear? What do you mean? Heather, stop talking nonsense!" He shook me again and became agitated.His actions didn't calm me down, it just made my tears flow faster.I began to howl, panting, and muttering under my breath.My hands clutched at his chest, looking pitifully for solace.I wanted him to hug me, but he put distance between us.I know what he wants: an explanation.But I can't speak.

But I still tried to speak, but I could only choke and spit out intermittent gibberish. "Emma disappeared, she disappeared. The thing... the thing she said, was real. I saw it. It swooped down, it... it... took her. I tried to stop it, but it's too powerful." Dodge just stared at me dumbfounded. I looked down to the beach and it was so quiet at the moment.I could see the tiny glow of a discarded torch, where the wood we found was also there.The sinister vibe is gone.Panic, urgency, fear, all disappeared.Only the beach.Average beach. I turned to look at Dodge. "Didn't you see it?" I asked again, and now, I had calmed down a little.The fire was shining on me, and Dodge was beside me, and the whole thing seemed grotesque again.But I saw it and felt it.Moreover, Emma disappeared.

"I don't see anything," Dodge said, looking very distressed. "I saw the two of you walking past, and then I saw you running back quickly. Then, it was dark all around, and I thought the flashlight was out of power. I waited for a long time, but you still didn't come back. Then I I heard you calling." "What about the wind?" I asked. "What wind?" At this time, the wind is calm, and the breeze can't even blow the broken hair on my shoulders. "The hurricane three minutes ago?" I insisted. The beach is small.How could it be possible that Dodge couldn't feel what happened a hundred meters away?

"Heather, there is no strong wind." Dodge said affirmatively, "Where did Emma go?" I have already told him.I said it twice. "She disappeared. It took her." I said, "Dodge, that thing just came out of nowhere and took her. Just like she said when Darren disappeared. It's true!" I yelled When I uttered the last few words, I saw disbelief written on his face. "Okay." He said helplessly raising his hand, expressing surrender, "Okay." However, he still didn't believe me.He was probably just worried that I was going to scream and cry again.Furious, I turned sharply and started pacing around the campfire.I stroked my hair, feeling the whirlwind messing with my hair.I feel like I don't care about looks anymore at this point, but suddenly I feel awkward.I glanced at Dodge, took a rubber band out of my pocket, and pulled my hair into a messy bun.Then, I started pacing again.

What should we do now?This beach is not safe.That thing could make a comeback at any moment.How much protection does a dying pile of fire offer against a monster that can make waves, suck people up, and vanish? But if you leave... Leaving means entering the darkness. I am firmly against this option.The unknown lurks there.We couldn't see anything by then, and I lost my flashlight.I imagined this: We groped our way to the parking lot, up the hill, wandering aimlessly in the dark.Waiting for help.Waiting for the dawn.Wait for the monsters to strike.I couldn't help but shuddered. We must stay here.

I turned to look at Dodge.He stood there with his arms folded, looking at me.I couldn't read the expression on his face.After a while, I realized that it was because the light of the fire had weakened and the fire was getting smaller and smaller.I look to the left where the firewood is.Not a single one left. "I'm sorry I didn't bring the firewood back," I said hoarsely. "I found it. I had the firewood in my arms, but—" "Never mind the firewood," said Dodge quickly. "But the fire..." I pointed to the flame that was about to go out at this moment.

Dodge looked at the dot of light from the flashlight. "Where did you drop your flashlight?" he asked. "Is that there?" "You can't get it," I said, directly answering the question I knew he was going to say next, "No. We've got to stay here, by the campfire, and not go anywhere." After all, the flame is still burning at this time... Dodge fidgeted, still glancing at the spot of light, not noticing that the smoldering ashes were now nothing but a reddish-black mixture. "It's not safe there," I said, "Dodge!" I waited for him to look at me, "It's dangerous out there."

Now it's just the two of us, and we have no reason to be apart.And I'd rather die than go there again. He still didn't believe me, and turned sideways, with one foot stretched out in front of him, as if he was considering whether to run away. "You think I'm making up a story?" I whispered.These words caught his attention. "No." He said immediately, "No, it's just... Heather, if there is really something there, how do you know it's afraid of fire?" I have no idea.But somehow, I can feel it.It just feels safer here anyway.At least we can see it when it comes.

"Please, don't leave me," I whispered, "Please." I sat down on the chair and made it very clear: I was not going anywhere, and I still looked at him with pleading eyes.He looked distressed, and looked again at the flashlight, which was now blinking, as if it was calling to him.Following, he looked back at me.I maintained a calm expression, bit my lower lip tightly to prevent it from trembling, and blinked violently to stop more tears from flowing down my cheeks, pleading with my eyes. "Heather..." "We can burn our clothes," I said, "and our sleeping bags. And our tents—" I'm never going to camp again in my life anyway, "just... just stay here." Dodge took a step towards me with a worried look on his face.He glanced back, the flashlight flickered a few times, as if sending an emergency signal, and then went out.The entire beach was shrouded in thick darkness, and it was no longer possible to see where those logs were.Going to collect firewood is no longer a one-minute task.It's so dark around here, it's impossible to do it.Is this change good for me? Dodge sighed, and I held my breath.I watched as he limped to the fire, placing both hands over the last flame.The firelight was too dim, his face was almost covered in darkness, but his hands were bright red from the light. "Don't burn sleeping bags," he whispered. "They're made of fireproof material." I had temporarily won, and I couldn't help grinning at him, and he smiled back, only a little frustrated. "Let's burn the clothes first," he said. It felt bad throwing other people's clothes into the glowing embers, but we did it anyway and promised to buy them new ones.I also joked that before burning Emma's clothes, it's better to see what brand they are before she asks us to pay her for designer items.Pretend they're okay, pretend they're going to come back, it'll make you feel better. The flame was so small that we had to pour lighter fluid in to set the clothes on fire.Clothes burn quickly when ignited.Dodge had to keep pouring lighter fluid to keep the flame alive.I don't know how much is left in the bottle, but every time he tipped the bottle toward the flames, the oil spilled out. "Would you like to hear something interesting?" he asked, and the oil sparked more flames, temporarily illuminating his face. "What?" I asked, and smiled, kind of echoing his tense, awkward smile.At this moment, I can't imagine anything else interesting. "I was hoping to come out for my birthday this time—" I laughed out loud, and he had to stop, "What's wrong?" "I forgot that today is your birthday." I said, "I even brought you a present." he laughed. "Isn't your gift wonderful?" "It's a book," I said, "a textbook about fossils." I smiled gloomily. "I think we can burn it and keep it in my bag." "Don't burn it," he said softly.A silence followed.I looked at the smoking flames and then at Dodge.He was looking at me, looking a little strange. "What were you hoping for?" I asked, hoping to cover up the embarrassment I felt. To my surprise, he was shy. "I was hoping, maybe with a starry sky, and a bright firelight—" he laughed, "or drinking, I hope, maybe me and you..." He didn't finish. I looked at him in amazement. "Perhaps not," he murmured, a little embarrassed. I tried to put on another expression, but my expression froze in that ugly look, and Dodge completely misunderstood my reaction. "It's a pity to be disturbed by that monster." I finally got my vocal cords back to function, but I couldn't express the light-hearted joke I wanted to express. "Otherwise it must be very good." More than beautiful.Sure to be an unforgettable experience. He looked at me and smiled at me.I also smiled at him.At this moment, happiness is melting the ice stuck in my chest, I don't know if I will go to hell because of it. "Give me your hand." Dodge held out his right hand, palm up, and when I put my hand in his, he pulled us both up from our seats.The sand was rough and we swayed a bit, and I wasn't sure if Dodge lost his balance or my center of gravity was off.But it doesn't matter, he gently wrapped his arms around my waist, and suddenly, I can only focus on this one thing. "I should have done that long ago," Dodge told me, and then, before I could think of an answer, he kissed me.He pressed his hot lips to mine, put his hands around my waist first, then moved up my arms, and finally cupped my face. He is kissing me. His lips are soft, and his tongue is exploring in my mouth.Everywhere is so hot.The air around me seemed to shimmer with the heat. My reason is loudly reminding me that this should not be the case, after all, our friends are gone.Something evil lurks in the darkness.Yet I need Dodge's kisses as much as I need breath. The pressure is too much.The atmosphere is too tense.I need to do something to relieve this stress.We all do. After a long time, Dodge finally backed away, still gently holding my face with both hands, and said something.I saw his mouth move but couldn't hear his words. "What?" I asked.Following that, I realized he probably couldn't hear me either.Because, it's windy. got windy. "Dodge! Here it comes!" I glanced down at the campfire.Now, the flames were weak again, and the flames could not escape the very shallow fire pit we dug. "Hurry up, you have to burn the fire!" Dodge reacted slowly.He blinked and looked sad, and it wasn't until I noticed that his face was sallow and his eye sockets sunken.It seemed like he had a fever again, which I didn't notice until now.Lack of sleep, lack of food, stress; his body was heating up again. He let go of me, took two slow steps, and leaned over to look at the pile of things we found in the tent that could be used for the fire.Not much left, just a few rolled up socks. "That's all," he said, throwing the socks into the fire.At first, the sock didn't burn.Noticing that the wind was getting stronger, I poured some lighter fluid in the center of the flame.This worked a little bit.I looked up at Dodge and could only vaguely see his face and the lips I had kissed a moment earlier. But I'm not allowed to think about it carefully, because behind Dodge, something is falling from the sky, faster than a swooping crow.It was a black shadow, half hidden behind a cloud of camouflage.It's that monster.I opened my eyes wide in horror, but the strong wind blew and made my eyes hurt.How fast is it?A hundred miles per hour?two hundred?So close that I couldn't even see it moving. It's too fast for us to escape. Dodge opened his mouth when he saw my expression, but he didn't have time to ask any questions.Just like that, I watched as the huge claws gripped his shoulders tightly.I saw pain, shock and fear on his face. "Don't, don't, don't!" I couldn't lose Dodge.I stretched out my arms and wrapped them tightly around his neck.He clamped my waist with his hands and dug his fingers into my buttocks, which made me feel unbearable pain.Something was scratching and pulling at my face and hair, but I turned my head away and hid behind Dodge's shoulder.I put my arms around Dodge and grabbed his T-shirt.I will never let go. I don't want to lose him like I lost Emma. We were all being pulled into the air and I felt the pressure of the upward lift.I kicked my feet, hoping to reach the ground, but there was nothing under my feet.The only thing holding me up is the air, and the dodge I'm desperately holding on to.My arms around his neck were so hard that he must have been suffocating. "Heather!" he yelled in my ear. I can't answer him.I had to give all my attention to hold on to him.I was so heavy, gravity seemed to be a million times stronger, trying to drag me back to the ground.Every foot we went up made it harder for me to keep going. But I will never let go. As the thought crossed my mind, the ghost grabbed my hair and pulled back hard enough to break my neck.I can't control it anymore.My survival instincts kicked in, my brain took over and my fingers let go one by one. I fell hard to the ground, still fighting the instinct to hit Dodge again.It was only too late, and my hands were empty. I fall to the ground.I had to crouch under the momentum, and I held my head up in a cat-like position, watching as Dodge's kicking legs rose higher and higher.The monster pulled him and flew towards the sea, getting farther and farther away from me. don't want.no no no! what should I do?I looked around frantically.Every second that passed, Dodge moved away from me.I was alone, and fear built up in my chest. "What do you want?" I yelled to the sky. What does it want?what might it want?Sacrifice?Quench its hunger with our lives?Offerings to evil spirits? sacrifice.Don't I have one?sacrifice.Scolding myself for being stupid, I put my hand into my pocket.My hands were shaking badly, and it took a lot of effort to get out what I wanted to take. "Here you are!" I yelled, waving the brooch. "Here you are! Do you want this? Come and get it! Come and get it!" It worked.The monster roared, and Dodge's body fell down.Instead of landing on the relatively soft sand near my feet, he hit nearby rocks with a series of eerie crunches.He lay there motionless, half submerged in the sea. No time to run over to see how he was doing.My heroic feat paid off: I managed to save Dodge.At the same time, I also pushed myself to the forefront. I stepped back, and my eyes were fixed on the monster that swooped towards me.The brooch is still held in my hand, slightly raised, clearly visible.I hide it in my back.I'm also not sure what to do.I don't know how to destroy the brooch, or if doing so will help.The only thing I can think of is getting rid of it. I took a deep breath in panic, turned around, and ran wildly.I ran across the glowing embers, thinking that any minute the thing's claws might grab my back and yank me into the air.The whistling of the wind in my ears indicated that the monster was behind.I looked into the darkness, hoping to find a weapon, or an escape route.But I couldn't find either. The wind is getting stronger and stronger.The back of my neck felt like a pinprick, as if I could feel danger there.Terrified and unable to think clearly, I did the only thing I could: I gathered all my strength and threw the brooch.You can't see your fingers anywhere, the darkness is more suffocating than ever, but the brooch seems to radiate light.I watched it arc and plummet to the ground.I didn't throw it very far at all, not even into the sea.As a result, the disc spun through the air for several weeks, passed through the semicircular entrance, and flew into Dodge's tent.It fell between the sleeping bags and I couldn't see it anymore. Now how to do?The brooch is still here, too close.But it's so far away that I can't get it back.If I go into the tent, I can't get out.After all, the monster is close at hand.I stared helplessly ahead, hoping desperately that the brooch would magically appear by itself, fly away, and lure the monster away. My eyes were fixed on the front, and my feet kept running.I didn't see the hole, it was the hole I dug with my own feet while I sat by the fire and waited.My ankle twisted violently, my leg bent, and with a plop, I fell onto the sand. My heart stopped beating.I took a quick breath, shrugged my shoulders, and closed my eyes.waiting. There was a sharp whistling sound, and the ghost came closer, so close that it seemed to hiss right in my left ear.But the sound passed me by.A black shadow covered all the light in this world, but after an instant, the shadow moved away.Run to the tent.Run to the brooch. I didn't stop to be curious.I grabbed the chair and stood up hastily.Dodge's soft woolen smock, still draped over the arm of the chair, slipped into my hand.I looked first at it, then at the fire.I see lighter fluid and put it aside.tick.tick.tick.A plan formed in my mind. With a flick of my arm, I threw the smock into the fire, just grabbing the smock by the sleeve.The fire was dying out now, but I grabbed the lighter fluid and poured it out.It ended up spraying on the sand, my clothes, my hands, but enough liquid got on the smoldering embers that the smock caught on in no time. "Great!" I turned around and rushed to the tent.The wind got stronger, and the flying sand blown up by the wind hit my face, and I couldn't see anything.I pulled the clothes on fire and continued to run forward.I unzipped the tent door in one go and poured the remaining lighter fluid on the roof. I don't know if the monster is inside or not.I can't see it, and I can't hear it.But the brooch was in there, and I had to take that to mean the monster was nearby.I swung my smock up and swung the burning end over the side of the tent. As soon as the flaming clothes touched the shiny tent fabric, the flames burst into flames.The flames were blinding, engulfing the entire tent, and the flames shot straight into the sky like a dozen wriggling poisonous snakes.Now, in addition to the howling of the flames, there was a hiss of pain.The hiss intensified, turned into a growl, turned into a screech.The shouts reached their peak, followed like waves, deafening.This is the sound that will only be made when you are about to die. It's that monster. very good.go to hell.Just what I want. I stepped back, away from the cry, away from the heat that burned my skin.I stepped back one meter, another meter, and the cry gradually became smaller.But the heat hasn't abated.On the contrary, it strengthened.My face was hot, but the source of the heat was lower, spreading across my belly.There is a fire burning.The fire was intense.parefull. I'm on fire.I had just sprayed some lighter fluid on my smock, and now the flames engulfed my clothing.Just now, the fire in the tent was so bright that I didn't notice the little fire on my body, but now I did.I screamed, jumped in place, and slapped the flames with my hands.The flames came back and I had to slap my charred clothes again and again.Every second that passed, I could feel the heat scorching my flesh.A disgusting smell rose, the smell of burning plastic from nylon clothing, and a smell that was very similar to food, the two mixed together.it's me.Feeling nauseous, I slapped my stomach harder with my bare hands. I finally achieved victory.My tattered clothes were hanging on me, smoking, and the T-shirt inside could be seen through the burn hole. The T-shirt was also blackened, but I ignored it.All my attention is on my hand.Or, that thing should have been my hand.I lifted it up and looked over by the light of the still burning tent.Only the skeleton remained of that hand.Skin and muscle had burned away, leaving only tendons and bloody bones.I tried to bend my fingers, but my arm was shaking with pain.I can't feel anything.Only pain.Burning pain, hot.The pain ran through my entire arm and went straight to the center of my brain, where it was beating like a siren.My eyes were bright, and the edges were black.Then, my whole body stopped functioning.