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  The night lasted about half of forever. The gentle splash of waves on the shore threatened to put Felix to sleep, even upright. He walked small circles around Koale. He mumbled to Liz as he went, monologuing on the great injustices of the universe. And yet, despite the mind numbing boredom and his Herculean effort to stay awake and active, Felix couldn't help but feel a tightness between his shoulder blades. Something was out there, he was sure. It may be keeping its distance for now, but it was watching.

  When the first rays of light crawled across the rocky shore, Felix almost cheered. Felix sat down as they ate a morning ration together. With expanded visibility, they could see they weren't too far off their mark. Or, at least, they could see something large glinting in the sunlight down the coast. With nothing else to go on, they gathered themselves and strode on.

  As they drew closer, the glint revealed itself to indeed be their downed escape pod. A weight Felix hadn't known he had been carrying fell off his shoulders. With the chaos of their escape, he wasn't sure they'd be able to find the pod again. Still, their pace slowed the closer they got to the pod. Felix's shoulders tensed and his palms sweat. They hadn't exactly been safe since that day, but neither had they been in so clear danger.

  Felix hadn't had a good chance to look at the pod after he had fled outside. Looking at it now, the landing was more severe than he remembered. The whole thing was dented and scorched. Where the rock had pierced the bottom, the floor crumpled in on itself. The hatch still lay open on the beach where Felix had left it. Most alarming was the lack of the snuffle lizard that Felix had trapped, and the bones that laid in its place.

  They had long since pulled out spear and shield, holding them at the ready. They slowly circled the pod. Just inside the hatch laida snuffle lizard. It watched them as they circled, but did not approach. Without speaking, Felix and Koale backed tracked to discuss their options.

  "There's only one," said Koale. "I think we can take it if we both attack together."

  "Is there only one? You were out last time, but when I trapped the first one, it howled and brought more. Even if there is just one here now, we may only have a limited time before we had a repeat of that day."

  Koale hefted his spear. "With these, it shouldn't take long at all."

  Felix shook his head. "I saw the claws of one of those things tearing metal. Slowly, but it did."

  "Metal weakened by the drop and crash."

  "Which might make me feel better if we didn't have a few boards held together by bits of rope."

  "Do you have a better plan?"

  "No. If we are going to do this though, I think we ought to stay out of sight as long as possible. It may hear or smell us anyway, but no sense making it easier than we have to, right? We can rush the last bit and get it inside the pod. Maybe if it howls in there, the call will be muffled."

  "Our plan is to sneak up on a creature that is already aware of our presence, bum rush it and hope for the best?"

  "Yup."

  Koale sighed. "Okay, lead the way."

  They slunk along the waterline until they reached the pod. They stopped before they turned the corner to the hatch. Shields were readied in front of them, and spears held up high. With a look and a nod, they signaled readiness.

  Felix flew around the corner. The snuffle lizard was upright and waiting for them. Felix smashed his shield into its face. He saw Koale's spear flash down. He also saw movement in the back of the pod.

  "There's more!" he called as he stabbed his spear down.

  A swipe of the lizard's claws tore Felix's shield away from him. Koale gripped his spear with both hands and brought it down on the back of the lizard's neck. Too stupid to know it was dead, the thing thrashed wildly. A glancing blow caught the back of Koale's leg, and sent him sprawling with a spray of blood.

  With a roar, the second snuffle lizard emerged, leaping out of the shadows and onto the downed Koale. Felix ran to his friend as the world slowed down. The lizard was straining for Koale's throat. His shield arm was pinned under the lizard. His free forearm was under the creature's jaw, trying to force it away. Koale was losing ground.

  Felix rammed his spear into the side of the lizard. The force of his sprint behind the blow sunk the spearhead deep into the creature's side. It yowled again, but otherwise ignored Felix. It pressed down on Koale, It's teeth grazing his neck.

  Desperate, Felix withdrew his weapon and thrust under the neck of the lizard. Using his spear as a lever, he pressed up, throwing his enemy off balance. Koale pulled his knife out of his inventory and stabbed the thing in the throat repeatedly.

  The creature resumed its attack, but weakened by blood loss, it hadn't the force to press Koale again. Its eyes glazed over and it slumped atop Koale.

  Felix pushed the carcass off his companion, and helped him to a seated position. Felix dug through his back, avoiding the alarmed Liz inside. He grabbed out the medkit and tossed it to Koale. "We don't know if more are coming. Can you handle your leg on your own while I start searching?"

  Koale grunted and was already opening the kit. "Go. Grab what you can. If there's something you can't haul, toss it out and we'll see what I can carry once this is done."

  Before he ducked inside the pod, Felix took a moment to listen. He didn't hear anything. He didn't hear anything, but that may just be a matter of time. Inside the pod was a mess. Not only was everything strewn about from the wreck still, but the snuffle lizards had clearly been nesting here as well. Claw marks gouged the interior. Bones and foliage covered the floor. There was even a literal nest, complete with eggs. Felix took those and popped them into his bag. Food was food.

  As far as consumables from the pod itself, it was a case of good news and bad news. It seemed that Felix had left some food and water behind in that first mad dash. Unfortunately, the snuffle lizards had eaten or otherwise fouled everything that had been left behind. He did find another medkit. It was dented and had clearly seen better days, but he put it in his bag. It seemed like tempting fate to do otherwise.

  He didn't see anything else of worth, and so pulled out his knife. He walked over to the corpse of the first lizard. The meat would spoil before they got back, but they could take the hides and bones. The experience was a near repeat of the giant cave gecko. As he dragged the knife over the corpse, the hide split just ahead of the blade. It fell off the corpse as he pulled the knife to the ankle of one leg. He didn't know why it did that, but he was appreciative. He sure couldn't manage that neat a job on his own.

  He swung the knife around and meat fell off the corpse in chunks. Soon, the bones were bare. He put those and the hide in his inventory.

  "Fascinating."

  Felix jumped and looked up to see Koale, freshly bandaged, leaning over him and the corpse.

  "You were right," Koale said, "That is absolutely fascinating."

  "How's the leg?" Felix asked as he stood.

  "I've had better days, but it'll do. Anything good in here?" Koale's eyes roved the wreckage, even as he talked.

  Felix shook his head. "Food and water are no good. There was a medkit, and I took that, plus a few eggs. Nothing else I could find."

  "Ahh, looks like you missed the prize." Koale limped over to a section of bulkhead that used to have a console fastened to it. He put his shoulder into the console remains and shoved. With a groan, the machinery toppled over. Koale turned to the now exposed section, and was soon elbow deep in wiring. He emerged with a bright orange box. It had a large light on top and a collapsed antenna.

  "Beacon," said Koale. "Now, they'll be able to find us, even away from the pod. I'll take the hides and bones, and you take this? It's not light, and it doesn't work with the inventory."

  They took a few moments to sort through their inventories and for Felix to rearrange the pack, so neither egg nor tiny lizard got squished. Koale reached in and extended the antenna out the opening of the bag and turned it on. Felix put the pack on and sagged under the weight.

  "This is not going to be a
fun hike," he said as he adjusted the pack as best he could. Despite his complaints, he felt pretty good. The trip had felt like not just a waste of time, but an unnecessary risk until Koale had recovered the beacon. With that, perhaps their stay might not be as permanent as he feared.

  ***

  "Welcome back dear viewers. I am, as always, your host Daviron here on GBK. Wasn't that exciting? I'm sure some of you lost your bets when neither one died, but fret not. There's always more to come on Survival World."

  Daviron gave the camera an exaggerated wink. "And as a reminder, those two will be with us a long time to come. Our patented Survival World tech intercepted their beacon signal as soon as it activated. Can't have word of our game getting out, now can we? And while we are on the subject, do you love Survival World? Can't get enough of it? Donate now to the Tech for Tots drive and be entered into a raffle for a behind the scenes look at the Survival World production center. Meet the minds that drive the project and partake in fun, Survival World themed activities, all while helping out the little ones."

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  The battle and looting seemed like it took all day. The fear that more snuffle lizards may arrive at any moment didn't help. All told, it was still early morning when they finished.

  They set off in the approximate direction of the river. Their pace was more sedate than when they had set out from their shelter the previous day. The adrenaline draining out of their systems let the exhaustion from their efforts weigh down. As tired as he felt, Felix still hummed as he went along.

  Though he hadn't wanted to admit it out loud, he knew that leaving the pod had meant the likelihood of rescue dropped significantly. With the beacon, they had a chance. Once they got it mounted at the shelter, it would be their best chance since they had ejected from The Raven.

  "What do you think about on top of the wall?" he asked. "The beacon, I mean. I'd like it in the cave better, but I don't want to muffle the signal."

  "I'm not sure how much difference a few feet between the ground and the top of the wall will make when we are trying to get a signal into space."

  "But it won't hurt anything?"

  "I don't see why it would."

  "Then it's going on top of the wall," said Felix.

  They discussed their plans on the hike back. A table and chairs, or a proper bed? Was researching large stones worth the effort of gathering them for future constructions? How were they going to get their hands on metal? By the time they had found their way to the river once more, their plans had sprawled. Full kitchenette, furniture with padding, bronze tools, and nails holding their furniture together instead of ropes. The world was their oyster.

  Their packs were heavy, but they decided to stock up on more water. A little more water would give them a few days before the next trip. As they scanned the banks, Felix noticed a potential pounce gator mound. He pointed it out to Koale.

  Without a word, Felix set down his pack. They crept towards the mound from what should be behind the gator. They both settled into position, their spears poised ready above the ground. Together, the spears flashed down.

  The stone spearhead thrust through the coarse, rocky sand. Then it hit resistance. A roar filled the air. The spear jerked in his hands, nearly tearing free. The mound shifted beneath him. He redoubled his grip and plunged the spear down once more. Another jerk, and a crack. Sand flew into the air as the pounce gator leapt into the water. Half of Felix's spear protruded from its back.

  Sand and a handful of blood droplets were all that was left of the pounce gator. Felix turned his spear around to look at the damage. His hands shook from the sudden violence, and he gave up. He sighed, "I just cannot keep one of these things intact."

  "At least you kept a hold of yours," said Koale, as he walked over to where his had flown.

  "Is this a win? I think it counts as a win."

  "Well, it isn't here to dispute the claim, now is it?"

  Victory water collected, the two trudged on. Light was fading, and the travel got more difficult. They emerged from the jungle about the time the journey had turned into more of a stumble than a hike. They didn't even bother trying to find the nook, but set their loads down by the cliff wall. Felix took the first watch, giving Koale time to sleep, and his leg to heal. He was limping by the end of the day, and Felix worried that the journey made it worse.

  If not for Liz, Felix wasn't sure he'd have been able to stay awake. After two days hike, he was just too exhausted to stand up all shift like he had last time, but without some activity, he'd have fallen asleep. His head dipped dangerously a few times and he might have nodded off. When he couldn't stay awake any longer, he woke Koale. He was out before his companion was fully upright.

  Felix woke to the sun in his face. He sat up alarmed that Koale had not woken up. His companion sat beside him.

  "You looked like you needed the sleep," said Koale. "Plus I didn't want to walk yet and didn't feel any particular hurry."

  Felix took a few deep breaths to settle himself. He ran his hands over his face. "Great, thanks."

  Half a ration later, they were on their way back to the shelter. "First priority after we unload," said Felix, "We have to check the snares. I'll even settle for some cobbs over that stuff."

  "You have to admit, it was decent roasted. It was considerably better than our first attempt with the cave gecko."

  "I'll grant you that, but there isn't much that isn't better than that first go."

  A few hours later, they neared their shelter. As the walls came into sight, it looked wrong. It was too far away to point a finger on why, but it was not right. Without a word, they sped up. Felix's stomach turned as they approached. The wood walls they had spent so long working on were snapped. Something had broke into their shelter. Something big. Logs hung at haphazard angles, hanging out over the approach. The net still clung to the cliff face and draped over the remains of the wall like a sad flag.

  Felix waved for Koale to stay put and moved to the tree line. He crouched and slunk closer until he was in front of the shelter. It was dark inside, but not as dark as it should have been. There were strange glowing patches on the walls of the cave. He didn't see anything inside, but he hadn't when they first encountered the cave either. Felix moved back to Koale. They retreated further away from the cave.

  "I think something else lives there now. There's some sort of glowing substance all over the walls. The walls are battered in. I hate to say it, but this isn’t our home anymore."

  Koale sat down. "I need a minute to think, and we can use a break, regardless."

  Felix got off his feet. "Run it by me."

  "Well, we know what we are doing to some extent now. We have water, but no real food. We can pick up the snares that are still out there, probably which will help. I'm not sure I can start a first without the shorted sensor, though. And it'll take a few days to build up the research to start rebuilding."

  Felix grunted. "Oh, is that all?"

  "We need to go into the cave."

  "I am sure you could see the damage to the walls from where you were at. We have one and a half spears. I'm not sure a dozen spearmen could take down whatever did that."

  "We don't need to kill it. I hope we don't even see it. I think if we take the leaves on the research desk, we can use the research. I think that's what the scroll line means. We really should have tested it before, but if I'm right, we might scrape by okay."

  "And if you are wrong?"

  "Then we're in the same place we are now."

  Felix frowned. "I don't like the risk. We can make a go of it without this."

  "How about this, I'll get the research. You stay outside and play lookout. Safer for both of us."

  Felix caught the words of disagreement before they left his mouth. Koale would not fold on this, and the longer they debated, the more chance the home invader would return.

  Felix posted right outside what used to be the door while Koale continued on. Felix had his half spear out. He shou
ld have asked Koale for his. Having something out made him more secure at least.

  Liz sprinted from one of Felix's shoulders to the other. His palms were sweating.

  "Hey, you almost done in there? Liz is acting up and I really don't want to be here."

  "Almost done here," said Koale.

  The sounds of wildlife were quieting down around them. Liz burrowed in Felix's collar. "What's the hold-up?" he said. "The leaves are right there."

  "I'm trying to get a sample of this goo for researching later. It won't come off."

  Felix heard rustling in the foliage. "Forget the goo and let's go."

  "I've almost got it. I've got a stick to pry some off with."

  The sounds of footsteps were clear. "Drop the stick! Run now!"

  Out of the jungle walked teeth. Rows upon rows of teeth crowding a massive mouth. When Felix could drag his gaze from the maw, he saw the gray scales covering the rest of the beast. It stood on four squat legs.. The colossal monstrosity was taller than Felix and must have weighed half a ton in pure muscle. Two beady, black eyes stared down at him. The monster roared. It was the same deafening roar that Felix had heard just a few nights before.

  Felix dropped his spear and ran.

  Before he knew it, he was in the jungle. All he saw in his mind's eye were those teeth. Saliva glistening and hanging off the enormous fangs.. With an effort he stopped himself. He had to go back. He couldn't leave Koale. But there was nothing he could do. Wasn't one living better than none? No. He had to help his friend.

  Felix turned around and ran back to the cave. His heart hammered in his chest. When he arrived at the cave, he saw the monster standing in the entryway.

  Felix's stomach dropped, and he will himself to hope. Maybe Koale was still inside. Felix could lure the thing away, and Koale could slip out.

  "Koale!"

  The thing turned to regard him. It had a shallow, bloody cut between its eyes. In its jaws, Koale hung limp. It growled and shook its massive head. Koale's torso hit the cave wall with a wet smack.