They kept running without a break. Their bodies couldn’t take it anymore. The muscles in their legs had gone stiff, almost numb. The strain was pressing down on their ligaments — any more running and it felt like they might snap.Suddenly, Orin came to a stop. Bending over, hands on his knees, he gasped, “I can’t go any further.” He was panting heavily. Seeing him stop, Jack and Lily halted as well, collapsing onto the ground. For a while, no one spoke. The only sound was their ragged breathing.“I can’t take another step,” Lily finally broke the silence.“Me neither,” Orin agreed. Jack stayed quiet, though his legs were just as drained. It dawned on them that they had ventured deep into the jungle. The trees here were denser, their canopies so thick that barely any sunlight reached the forest floor. The ground was damp, and everything around them felt moist. It rained here almost year-round, making the humidity sky-high. The air felt heavy, with over eighty percent humidity, making t

A monstrous creature hurled Luke into the air. He landed on a seat beside the window, crying out in pain. Moments later, he saw them running away. He felt a surge of happiness, knowing he was saving his friends at the cost of his own life—what could be more gratifying?One of the monsters grabbed Luke by the throat, cutting off his air. He gasped for breath, struggling and flailing to break free, but couldn't escape that powerful grip. Deprived of oxygen, his head began to spin. A few more moments like this, and he would be dead. Ceasing his futile thrashing, he groped around, hoping to find something to strike the monster with. His hand touched a sharp metal rod. He grabbed it and thrust it into the monster's eye. The creature roared so loudly that Luke's eardrums felt like they might burst. The monster released him, and Luke gulped in air. At that moment, another monster attacked, sending him flying. He found himself in the engine room. Quickly regaining his composure, he slammed th

Jack plopped down at the base of a tree. Following his lead, the other two also sat. They hadn't eaten anything for the past two days, and searching for Lily had left them exhausted. No one spoke for a while. Finally, Orin broke the silence."Where else should we look? We've scoured the entire area."Luke wanted to say, "Maybe Lily is no more," but he couldn't bring himself to utter the words. He couldn't believe it himself.Jack sat quietly. He firmly believed that nothing had happened to Lily. They would find her. But that was just his conviction; only Allah knows what will actually happen.Nocturnal creatures had awakened. Their calls filled the night jungle. The incessant chirping of crickets was almost deafening. An unknown bird wailed continuously in a mournful tone. Packs of jackals announced their presence with howls. But amid all these sounds, one noise alarmed them. It came from nearby—a sound they recognized well. A leopard's call. That meant a leopard was close. They knew

Frozen Darkness. Nothing can be seen. After a while, Lily sat on the floor inside the hole. She could not understand where she was now. Her body felt extremely weak. There was a sharp pain at the back of her head. When she touched it, she realized that spot was swollen.Slowly, everything came back to Lily. She realized that she was still lying in that same hole. But how long she had been there, she couldn't guess. She also couldn't figure out whether it was day or night."Well, did they leave?" she asked herself. If they had left her here, what would happen to her? She would starve to death, trapped in this darkness. The thought made Lily stop. She had to get out of this hole, but how? Her body was so weak that she could barely stand up from sitting. How would she escape from here with such a frail body?Lily sat silently for a while. She noticed something strange—there were no mosquitoes in this hole. Where there should have been a mosquito haven, there were none. Not just mosquitoe

After searching for quite a while, Luke couldn't find anything except four bird eggs. Finally, feeling frustrated, he sat down on a tree stump. But then, he quickly realized that sitting still wouldn't do. He had been out for quite a while. If he took any longer, they would start to worry. So, sitting there was no use. It would be better to head back to the camp. Surely, Jack must have found something. But what if, just like him, Jack didn't find anything? The thought made Luke pause. Then what would they do with these four eggs? They would have to go hungry.A bunch of such thoughts kept swirling in Luke’s mind. At that moment, he noticed a bush rustling nearby. He knew that bushes don’t move on their own. Someone was disturbing it. So there must be something inside. But what was it? A dangerous, fierce animal? Luke didn’t want to think further. He quickly moved behind a tree for cover, keeping his ears alert for any sound, ready to hear the slightest noise. He kept his gaze fixed on