Chapter Text
For a few hours, everything seemed to be going relatively well. Aside from the occasional scorpion skittering by in the sand, some of which tried to be aggressive, the caves had actually been treating them quite well. They had seen some red cylinders—later identified as dynamite—during their travels, though they were fortunate enough to not have to deal with any of it up close.
While everyone was content with their morning, they spared no time for conversation. Unless it was to call-out something or to request aid, nobody said a word. Even with the rest they’d gotten the night before, it was abundantly clear they were still tired of being there. While the shade did provide solace from direct sunlight, it was fleeting and it did nothing to make the heat more bearable.
Jade’s headache hadn’t improved much, though at the same time, it hadn’t gotten worse either. While they were grateful that it decided to spare them from the worst of it, they would’ve been more appreciative if it was gone entirely. Regardless, they likely weren’t going to be fully relieved of it until they made it somewhere where the environment was less brutal.
Following the thought of making it somewhere, a question popped into their mind: When were the caves going to end? They’d been climbing for quite some time and there was no clear indicator they were reaching the end. Any time they thought they were making progress, they were either met with a dead-end or just more caves.
The only indication of their progress was to peer over the edge and look back down into the desert, though that had been completely shrouded by fog some time ago. Fog in a desert didn’t exactly make sense to them, but climbing a mountain with varying climates taught them to just embrace the unexpected.
Jade’s thoughts were disrupted when they collided with Jamie. Fortunately, neither of them fell down, but Jamie was irritated nonetheless. When Jamie saw that Jade was utterly confused, they just laughed if off and swiftly moved on from it.
Jamie pointed up towards the sky. “Check it out! There’s a cloud. Haven’t seen one of those since we got here.”
Jade soon spotted the cloud that Jamie was pointing out. From what they could see, it was light gray with darker tones, wispy and long. It seemed like an odd cloud, but clouds did come in all sorts of shapes, colors and sizes, so perhaps they were looking into it too much.
Riley hummed. “Is it really a cloud? It’s strange that we’d only see one this far into our travels in the desert.”
“Duh! It’s a desert, what did you think would happen? Cloudy days like back in the city?”
“I mean…” Riley sighed. “I suppose you do have a point, but it’s still just strange…”
Riley raised a valid point, which made Jade question whether or not it was a cloud. It was entirely a possibility that a stray cloud could be passing through, but… it was strange.
They suddenly picked up on a waft of smoke. It was a rather suffocating smell and an ugly reminder of what ended their happy little family. They hated that it reminded them of that every time they smelled it, but if nothing else, it at least meant they were getting close to another campsite. To that extent, they’d welcome it.
At the same time, their head randomly throbbed in pain. It wasn’t unbearably so, but it was enough to break their focus on the smoke. They instinctively rubbed their head where it hurt even though they knew it’d do nothing. Thankfully, it faded quickly, allowing them to once again focus on what was in front of them.
They were really starting to wonder how they even got a headache in the first place. They didn’t really know the causes of a headache, but it must’ve had something to do with the fact they’ve not been getting adequate food or drink, or that they’ve been running around in a literal desert. Regardless, it was a nuisance to deal with.
Jamie sniffed the air twice. “Wait, that kinda smells like smoke! I think we’re gettin’ close!” They almost immediately started excitedly fidgeting. They also understood what the smoke meant.
Riley seemed confused. “Smo—” They too sniffed the air. “Holy sh—uh, yeah, you’re right!”
Luna sniffed the air too but seemed disheartened. Had they not picked up on the smoke like everyone else? Their sadness ended up fading quickly though because everyone else’s excitement rubbed off on them.
Riley cleared their throat. “Listen, I know spotting this smoke is something to be excited about, but… we still need to be careful. While we are getting close, we don’t know how we’re getting up there yet, so… let’s just continue to take it nice and slow, alright?”
Jade silently nodded in agreement, while both Jamie and Luna visibly deflated. Even though Jade wasn’t the one to make that statement, they still felt bad to an extent. Those two just wanted to leave, so they had the right to be excited. At the same time though, Riley was correct. Rushing and being reckless now would only hurt them.
Jamie let out a deep sigh. “You got any ideas on where to go then?”
Riley shook their head. “Figured that was your thing.”
“Well, excuse me for asking.” Jamie then crossed their arms, turned away from Riley and grumbled something under their breath.
Riley seemed to regret making that comment, but Jamie didn’t give them an opportunity to reconcile if they truly felt bad.
Jade’s eyes soon landed on a path that seemed to wrap around to the outside. They weren’t entirely sure if it led anywhere, or if it was even safe, but… maybe it’d give them a lead. It was better than wandering around aimlessly if nothing else.
“Whatcha lookin’ at, Jade?” Jamie tilted their head.
Jade stared at the path for a while longer before pointing towards it. “Looks like a path. Not sure if it leads anywhere and it’s in direct sunlight, so…” They shrugged. “Seems sketchy, but we could check it out and see if it leads anywhere.”
“It’s something at least. Beats wandering around until we find something.”
Riley sighed. “I really don’t think we should go that way.”
Jade’s eyebrows furrowed. “Who said anything about going that way? I just suggested checking it out.”
Their headache once again flared up. Now really wasn’t a good time now that they were starting to get irritable. They did their best to keep their composure though. They really didn’t want their ragtag troop to start fracturing now of all times.
Riley struggled to come up with a response. Jade sighed. “I’d like to check it out. I’ll come back if I find something or if things get sketchy. Promise.”
Riley’s gaze narrowed. “Fine, but you’re not going alone and you need to come right back as soon as you find something, or if something goes wrong, got it?”
Jade nodded. “Got it.” They then glanced over at Jamie. Without even saying anything, Jamie seemed to understand and joined them by their side.
“Well, then I suppose Luna and I will snoop around in the area here. The way up from here isn’t really clear, but I’d prefer to stay in the shade than go out there.” Riley shrugged. “Regardless, any way up is better than lingering here.”
”Sounds good. Jamie and I should probably get going. The sooner we check this out, the sooner we can get back inside.”
“Finally! I’m itching to do some actual exploring!” Jamie groaned.
Riley seemed entertained by Jamie’s sentiment and chuckled. “Alright, well, I’ll leave you two to it then.” Luna sneakily slipped their hand into Riley’s. The two of them smiled at each other. “I guess it’s time for us to head out too. Meet up back here?”
Jade glanced over at Jamie, who simply nodded. “Sure, sounds good. See you soon and good luck.”
“Thanks, you too.”
Once Riley and Luna departed to explore other parts of the caves, so too did Jade and Jamie to explore the outside path. They were both really curious to see what was out there.
The two of them stopped once they approached the line that separated them from the brutal sun.
Once they took a step over it, they’d be dealing with much more intense heat and being in direct contact with the sun. Neither of those things sounded particularly exciting, especially considering their headache, but they’ve come too far to back out now. If nothing else, they had Jamie there to help them if the worst happened, but they really hoped it wouldn’t come to that.
“We’re not even outside yet and it already feels hotter here. This sucks!” Jamie whined.
Jamie was correct. It was noticeably warmer where they stood as opposed to being deeper in the caves. It didn’t really come as a surprise since it was basic knowledge they picked up both from their science class and from experience, but they still empathized with Jamie all the same.
On the topic of class, they were suddenly reminded of… well, everything else they have gone without in the past few days. They were really starting to miss—
Jamie gently pat Jade on the back. “Yeah, I’m ready to get out of here too. Let’s just… uh, focus on this for now, okay?”
Jade sighed wistfully. “Right. Sorry. Let’s go.” They then motioned for Jamie to continue, which they did with no objections.
They were quickly met by a blast of both heat and light. Fortunately, their hat did have some effect in lessening both of those, but they were still caught off-guard nonetheless. Unfortunately, in spite of their hat, their headache didn’t seem appreciate the change.
The pain wasn’t unbearable by any means, but it was probably the worst they’ve felt since it started. Their head started throbbing immediately. They subconsciously groaned and rubbed their head in response, earning a glare from Jamie.
They were quickly regretting suggesting to investigate the path, but again… it was too late to back out now.
They shook their head and continued forward, but stopped once they noticed Jamie was looking up at something. They decided to look where Jamie was looking and spotted what appeared to be a pickaxe sticking out of the wall. Maybe they could use that to their advantage?
They then looked back down at Jamie, who was already staring at Jade with this look on their face: the kind of look that said “let’s check this out!”
Jade shook their head. “No, Jamie. We need to go back to Riley and Luna before we go up.”
That wasn’t really the entire reason, but they didn’t want to concern Jamie with their headache. Was it really lying if they “accidentally” forgot some details?
“And what if this ends up leading nowhere? We’d be wasting everyone’s time, not just ours, by checking it later instead of now.”
Jade sighed. “Fine, but come back down whether you find anything or not so we can report back to the others, okay?”
“You’re not coming up?”
“You think that pickaxe can hold the weight of both of us?” They figured that wouldn’t be enough, so they came up with another excuse to cover up their headache. “And, uh, I want to stay down here… just in case.” Great job, Jade!
Jamie’s gaze narrowed. “Uh… okay, sure.” Just as they began to climb, they muttered something under their breath. “Weirdo…”
Jade watched Jamie intently as they scaled up the wall. They seemed to be doing it so effortlessly, as if it was second nature to them. In a way, Jade envied them for having that much stamina to climb like that.
Their headache once again throbbed, making sure they didn’t forget about it. They instinctively winced at the pain but couldn’t brush it off like they did last time.
Jamie dropped down in front of them with concern painted on their face. It seemed like Jade’s luck had run out with dodging confrontation on this.
“Seriously, what’s wrong with you?”
“It’s noth—”
“Liar.”
Jade blinked in confusion. “…Huh?” What Jamie said hadn’t quite registered in their mind yet.
“You’re lying.”
Now it did. Ouch.
“I’m sorry,” Jade weakly muttered.
“I don’t want an apology, I want an explanation.” Jamie’s scowl eased up when they noticed Jade shrinking in on themselves. “Actually… just save it for when we’re back in the shade. I saw enough up there.”
Jamie marched back towards the caves while Jade dragged themselves along.
Both the pain and the guilt from being called a liar weighed heavily on them. Jamie wasn’t wrong for it, but that didn’t make it feel any better to hear. They’d spent a few years trying their best to be honest with Jamie, and a headache is when they start being dishonest? A headache?
They soon reached the cave and were greeted by Riley and Luna, who were waiting close-by. The two of them tried to approach Jamie and Jade to figure out what was going on, but Jamie put out a hand to stop them. They then pointed towards a wall and Jade slinked over to it and sat down without question.
Jamie glanced over at Luna and waved to them. “Hey, uh… Luna? Could you… maybe figure out what’s up with them? I dunno if I can.”
Luna quickly jumped into action and nearly collided into Jade as a result. They barely skidded to stop just in front of them and dropped to their knees. Much to Jade’s displeasure, Luna examined their face and other visible skin for any signs of… anything, really. At a minimum, they did take care not to be too invasive.
Luna frowned. “I… I d-don’t see anything…” Their voice started to crack. “I don’t k-know. I’m s-sorry.”
As much as they didn’t want to, Jade mustered the energy to speak. “Head hurts, that’s all…” They then tried to bring a hand up to give Luna a pat on the arm, but they slipped just out of reach.
Riley hummed. “Must be pretty bad if it’s got you like this… You sure it’s just a headache?”
“I think so?”
Riley rubbed the bridge of their nose. “Damn it… We’ve really gotta find some food or water or something.”
Luna lit up as if they suddenly got an idea. “Oh! W-What about…” They haphazardly tossed their backpack on the ground and dug out the spare coconut from the oasis. They cracked it open and shoved it into Jade’s hands. “T-There! It won’t h-help immediately, but… m-maybe you’ll feel better w-with some food and s-something to drink…?”
Jade stared at the coconut. “What about—”
“We’re fine. You need it more than us,” Jamie said, their voice laced with irritation.
“Okay…”
Jade then dug into the coconut without further hesitation. They quickly gulped down the water and scarfed down the meat. It had no immediate effect, but it’d at least put their hunger and thirst at bay for now.
Jamie flopped down beside Jade and leaned up against the same wall. “So, what’d you two find?”
Luna and Riley sat down in front of the siblings. They then stared at each other until Riley volunteered to speak up. “Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“Yeah. Just…” Riley sighed. “More dead-ends…” Luna frowned.
“Well… Jade and I found some pickaxe in the wall out there. I climbed up there and only scouted out the immediate area before… well…” They pointed at Jade. “Anyways, it seems like it could be a quicker way up.”
“What about Jade?”
Jamie raised an eyebrow. “Sorry?”
“What do we do about Jade? They’re not really in any condition to climb.”
“You carried them before, didn’t you? Maybe carry them and I’ll carry their backpack again?”
Riley hummed. “We could do that.”
“I mean, if it’s really a headache… climbing in the sun isn’t gonna help them.” Luna hummed in agreement.
Jade turned their head to meet Jamie’s eyes. “Aren’t you… mad?”
“Meh. Holding grudges isn’t healthy. I’m just concerned about you now.”
Jade smiled softly. “I… thanks, Jamie.”
“Sure, whatever.” They re-focused on Riley. “So… how’s that sound, Riley?”
“Sounds good to me.”
Jamie rose and scooped up Jade’s backpack following Riley’s approval. “Cool. Let’s get going then. The sooner we get out of here, the sooner Jade can start recovering.”
Riley too stood up and then turned around and crouched in front of Jade.
“What are you…?”
“Offering you a piggyback ride.”
“Oh. Okay.”
With Luna’s assistance, Jade was able to stand up and approach Riley. After they draped their arms over Riley’s shoulders, Riley grabbed the back of their legs and lifted up.
To be able to properly lean up against Riley, they took off their hat and just tossed it to the ground. Luna picked it up though and placed it atop their own head. How cute.
Once Jade was secure, Riley started moving. When they made it outside, they instinctively buried their face completely in Riley’s coat to shield themselves from the sun. With the newfound darkness, their headache dulled. They decided to remain there to revel in the comfort.
“Ready to go up, Jade?”
“Huh…?” They pulled away just long enough to see Jamie beckoning to them from above. They didn’t remain there for long though since their head started hurting again. “Oh, sure.”
“Okay. Hold on tight.”
Jade did as they were told and tightened their grip on Riley. At the same time, fatigue crept in. They were probably tired after everything, but it felt wrong to sleep again so soon.
Their fatigue didn’t give them a choice though. The edges of their vision began to blur. They had no choice but to accept it as their eyes slowly closed and their senses slowly slipped away from them. There was just one thing that stuck in their mind as they slipped into unconsciousness though.
They couldn’t help but feel they’ve let Jamie down.