THE DECISION IS made. The cave is alive with the buzz of activity, a flurry of movement and hurried voices. At a minimum, this trip will take about a week, longer if we can't fit the thirty or so people left on the transport at a reasonable clip. I don't want to risk anyone being left behind here, though. Splitting us up more, on either end, is just asking for a chance to get ambushed, picked off, and to lose people. So the only way to get around that is to do this right the first time. No matter the cost.
The question is - do we bring the supplies first or second...? If it's first, we can scout out the place we're going while not endangering the people. If it's second, then it means that the people will be moved first. If the movement alerts the aliens somehow, if they're just about to show up on the horizon and my earlier assessment of them is wrong, then moving the people is the most important.
Of course, losing our supplies would be catastrophic, but losing our people would be worse. So the decision is made.
We move the people first.
Arden has assumed command of the situation, his voice ringing out over the noise, directing people, giving orders. It's strange to see him like this, so different from the quiet, contemplative man I've come to know. He's a natural leader, I guess, when he allows himself to be. He's just been beaten down by the weight of our crushing reality so often that he's rarely able to show it.
Hestia is still by my side, her hand clutching mine, but she doesn't look scared. Just overwhelmed. It's a lot of noise and movement, and it's been some time since this cave has been so active.
"Alright, everyone. Let's get moving." Arden's voice is firm, no room for argument. "We've got a long road ahead of us, and we can't afford any delays."
There's a murmur of agreement, a ripple of movement. People start picking up their few belongings, their meager supplies, forming a line to move out of the cave. Hestia and I join the line, our hands still linked. I can feel her trembling a little, her small body tense with nervous energy.
"It's going to be okay," I whisper to her, squeezing her hand reassuringly.
She looks up at me, her eyes wide and trusting. She doesn't smile, but she nods, her grip on my hand tightening just a little. I know she's scared, she has to be, but she's also brave. Braver than she should have to be. Braver than most of us.
I wish I could do more for her, give her something more than just empty words and a hand to hold. But this is all I have to offer right now. I just hope it's enough.
As we move out of the cave, into the harsh, blinding light of the day, I squint against the sun, my eyes adjusting slowly. There's no avoiding travel in the day. Trying to take breaks would only double the time we're traveling. If it is possible they can track this thing's movement, it's best to give them as little time as possible to do it in. We're leaving just before dusk begins mostly because it's when we're ready, but leaving at night might save us at least a little water.
As it is, the only way to bring enough water for us to safely make it traveling so long in the heat while also keeping everyone on the transport is for each of us to carry a backpack filled with our own water containers. The random non-food supplies we'd collected from the supply depot, it seems, are already useful. I'm not exactly happy with the idea of how we're forced to carry our water supply in order to make this work... but we're making this work.
Arden, Alistair, and a few of the others are already at the transport, helping people onto it, organizing everyone. It's a tight, ridiculous fit. It's clear people aren't meant to be transported like this, but there's nothing we can do.
"Hold on to the person in front of you," Arden is instructing the people as we approach. "Do not reach for your water without alerting me. For those of you in the back, have someone next to you reach for your water. Do not risk yourself. If you fall off, at a minimum you'll be heavily injured." He glances back to those of us walking toward the transport. "Everyone, on. Quickly."
I help Hestia onto the transport, her small body fitting into a space near the front. A woman I don't recognize is the one who gently holds Hestia's shoulders from behind.
Arden nods to me. "You too, get on."
I hesitate, glancing at him. "You don't need anything...?"
He smiles and shakes his head. "We need to get out of here as soon as possible, and I know Hestia will kick up a fuss if she's holding anyone else."
Hestia, bless her, sticks her tongue out at Arden. He just chuckles and turns to move further down the transport to make sure the others are situated. I climb up onto the transport, finding a place in front of Hestia. I can feel her small hands clinging to the back of my shirt, her forehead pressed against my back. It's a comforting, grounding sensation.
Alistair steps up in front of me.
I arch a brow, looking up at him. "You're not driving...?"
"Don't know where the hell we're going." He shrugs, and nods to Arden, who's helping a frail older woman on the transport. "I told him how to drive the thing." Then he gestures to himself. "And he told me to get on, so... Here I am."
Well, I guess if there's someone I have to hold onto for three days, it's better to be someone I know. "Would have preferred you were Anna."
"Sorry to disappoint," he says, voice dry, "I'll try to be more like her."
"Can you cook?"
"Absolutely not." He says, shaking his head. "But I can make fun of Arden, and I think that's what you're going to need for the next three days."
"Everyone hold on to the person in front of them," Arden's voice cuts through our conversation. "We're moving."
Alistair hums. "You're not carrying a gun this time, right?" He asks, quiet enough to be just between the two of us.
"Shut up," I grumble, reaching around and grabbing his belt in my hands. "I'm not going to shoot you."
He stiffens immediately, and my gaze immediately snaps to our surroundings. The transport hasn't left yet, but if he's already seen something coming, Arden needs to know. "What is it?"
"Are you. Really going to hold me there?" He asks, voice a strange pitch.
I blink, looking at him, and then my hands. My fingers are looped around his belt at the waistband of his pants. I quickly let go, letting them awkwardly hover in the air between us before I realize I do have to hold on somewhere. His shirt is the best option. "...Sorry."
"No. It's fine." He clears his throat, as he reaches down to shift where my hands are on his chest. "Just. Caught me a little off guard."
The transport lurches forward and Alistair stumbles a half step, before urgently grabbing whoever it is in front of him.
My hands immediately grab his shirt, even as Hestia yelps behind me. I look behind me and see that the woman who had been behind her is standing with her feet spread wide, holding onto Hestia's shoulders, keeping her firmly in place.
My gaze turns back to Alistair, who has already righted himself, and who I'm now gripping far too tightly. "We're good." He says, more to Arden than to me, but it's clear that we're now moving.
We're off.