Lost

August 16th- 9:17pm

That evening as the sun was setting and the temperature dropping considerably to the point you would get frostbite if you stayed outside for more than two minutes, the seven of us lay sprawled out on dusty blankets across the dirty floor. I was sure everyone was (not so peacefully) sleeping, but anything close to rest had abandoned me the second I agreed to move on without Fun Ghoul, one of the only people I had left. Everyone thought Art Breaker had had a brilliant brainwave, but...

My mind flashed with images of my old life and family, light years away now, either wiped out entirely by attacks or brainwashed and transformed into the enemy.*

My mother had been a nurse, and had taught me everything I know about treating almost any kind of sickness or injury we could possibly encounter here.

My father did not have a particular skill, but he had always been at Kobra Kid's side when he was self teaching and training for a war. It was, in the long run, the main reason the seven of us in the gang had come together in the first place, although myself, Kobra Kid and Fun Ghoul had started out together.

We each had a skill, a talent of sorts. Mine was my First Aid, Kobra's his weaponry. Venom Noise had almost superhuman hearing, and could detect an enemy long before it was in our sight or vice versa.*

Art Breaker had so much frightening determination when it came to foraging, that she could find us water in the most impossible places if we were desperate enough for it.

Jet Star was a faultless builder, able to construct shelter or weapons from almost anything on hand.

Lucid Nightmare was the youngest at just sixteen, while the rest of us were twenty-two or older, and she didn't yet have any particular combat skills, but somehow she was a psychological genius, and could make any situation better, often just by walking into the room. She simply had a presence. Believe it or not, her skill was one of the most important here, even more important than my medical abilities. With nothing but miles of sand around you, constantly fearing for other lives if not your own, it was far too easy to crack.

And then of course, Fun Ghoul. He was the smallest of us all except for petit, teenage Lucid, but brutally strong both emotionally and physically.

We all fitted together like a jigsaw and operated like a well oiled machine. Splitting up tomorrow would make everything twice as tough, especially with fresh memories of my family plaguing my mental state, but as we always did, we'd cope.

It must have been at least an hour before Fun Ghoul's hand reached for mine in the darkness. He was awake, and he knew I was. I let out a heavy breath and tugged his hand so he'd move closer and speak. He did move closer, right to my chest, but it was a while before I heard his voice penetrate the excruciating silence.

"This could be our last night together." he whispered tentatively. There it was, the one sentence I desperately hoped would remain unvocalized. In an attempt to quell my own dull ache of fear as well as his, I squeezed his fingers, intending to be reassuring but coming across more violent than anything. I know it hurt because he instinctively tugged his hand away, but I kept it firmly in my grasp.

"Don't say that." I answered harshly, despite knowing that he'd only said out loud what both - maybe all - of us were thinking. "We always do this. We split, gather what we can and return within two or three days. Unharmed, usually."

There was a pause before Fun Ghoul uttered, "But we never go without each other." He was right, of course, but I countered him with what Art Breaker had told us earlier, what she and the others firmly believed.

"Exactly, they won't expect it. They'll leave us alone." My voice was wavering, I didn't believe a word that was coming out of my mouth, and neither did he.

"We both know that's not true!" he snapped in a harsh whisper, this time succeeding in yanking his hand away, breaking the only contact and warmth between us. "We're sitting targets if we travel apart, can't you see that? Don't tell me you're really so stupid as to believe otherwise!"

That one stung, deep down to my very core it stung. He really couldn't see what I was trying to do, he just thought I was stupid and clueless. "Of course I'm not!"

"Then why are we doing this?! Why?!"

"To protect the others! We travel apart, they'll target us so much so that they'll forget the others even exist!" I shouted, then winced, partially hoping I hadn't woken anyone - I hadn't - and partially because I'd raised my voice considerably to Fun Ghoul. We had reached breaking point. At this point, Better Living Industries were succeeding. I couldn't let that happen for the sake of the country, not just the gang, so I turned my back to Fun Ghoul altogether, to tell him I would not talk about this anymore.*

Crickets chirped as late night fell, nightmares plagued my sleep, and soon the dreaded morning was approaching