My sleep is dreamless, a deep, black void that swallows me whole. When I wake up, it's with a start, my heart pounding in my chest. The room is dimly lit, the only light coming from a single glow panel in the corner. Hestia is gone, so it must be daylight outside, and I'm alone. At least until I hear the sound of footsteps approaching.
I sit up, my body stiff and sore, and see Arden walking towards me. He's holding a cup of something steaming, the aroma of it familiar and comforting.
"Morning, Sarah." He greets me, offering the cup. "Coffee."
I take it gratefully, wrapping my hands around the warm mug. "Thanks." I take a sip, the taste of it strong, bitter. It's not the best coffee I've ever had, but it's better than nothing. "Where's Hestia?"
"With Anna. They're in the kitchen, making breakfast." He sits down on the cot next to me, his expression serious. "How are you feeling?"
"Better." I answer honestly. "My head's clear. Still a bit sore, but... I'm alright."
He nods, satisfied. "Good. We need you at your best. There's a lot to do."
I raise an eyebrow. "Like what?"
"We have to prepare." He draws in a breath. "We don't know when the tide will come in, but we need to be prepared when it does, because... it's sudden, it's deadly, and there's... something I didn't include in my explanation of this place when we came back." His jaw clenches, and I can see a flicker of pain in his eyes. "When the tide comes in... it's not just water."
I frown, confused. "What do you mean?"
He hesitates, as if searching for the right words. "Those creatures. The ones that I've warned people to stay away from the shore to avoid, those... They come with the tide. But they don't just wait in the water. They spill out, and they... they hunt."
I feel a chill run down my spine, the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. "Hunt? What do you mean?"
"They go after anything that moves. They... they're drawn to sound, to movement. And they're fast, Sarah. Faster than anything I've ever seen. We need to make sure that the hatches are sealed before the water fills the lower floors, not after." He takes a deep breath, his gaze steady on mine. "Because once they're in the building, there's no time to close the doors. And those things... they're relentless."
I swallow hard, the gravity of his words sinking in. This is worse than I imagined, worse than I was prepared for. He'd said this place was better than the caves, so I thought-...
"Once we know the schedule, it's easy." He says, shaking his head. "Once every 45 days, the tide swells. If we lock it on day fourty-four, we're fine. There's nothing to worry about. But right now... we don't know. We don't know when the tide will come."
I nod, trying to process the information. "So... what do we do?"
"We prepare. We make sure all the hatches are sealed that we don't need to use. We spend as little time downstairs as possible. We watch for signs of the swell." He stands up, his expression determined. "And we stay vigilant. This is a temporary reprieve, Sarah. It's not a permanent solution."
"I know." I say, my voice quiet. "I'm not expecting it to be."
He looks at me for a long moment, then nods. "Good." He gestures towards the door. "Come on. Let's get some food in you. Then we can start planning."
I follow him out of the sleeping area, my mind racing. The threat of the tide, of the creatures that come with it, it's a new challenge, a new obstacle in our path. But it's just that. An obstacle. And I've faced worse.
"Arden, there you are!" Anna calls out as she makes her way over to us. "I was thinking, we should have a christening party." She says, with a bright smile. "After all, we're in a new place. We should celebrate it."
"A party?" I blink, taken aback. After everything we've been through, after all the loss, the thought of celebrating anything feels... wrong. Disrespectful.
Arden, though, seems to consider it. "Hm... I don't think we have enough supplies..."
"Oh pish. It doesn't need to be lavish." She waves her hand. "What we need is morale. A sign to everyone here that the danger is passed and we can start living again."
"It hasn't." I say.
"It never had, Sarah." She shakes her head, gaze fixing on me. "But the people here need to believe that sometimes it has." She glances at Arden. "Think about it. We'll put a plan together."
I don't agree, but I don't argue either. I just watch her walk away, her steps light, determined. I can see her point, but I can't shake the feeling that she's wrong. That celebrating now, when we're still in danger, when so many of us have died... it feels like a betrayal.
I glance at Arden, waiting for his reaction. He's quiet, thoughtful, his gaze following Anna.
"She's not wrong." He says finally, his voice low. "We need something to lift our spirits. To give us hope."
I frown, crossing my arms over my chest. "What do we celebrate? Moving from the caves to a place that's going to try to kill us once a month?" I stare up at him, fingers digging into my arms. "That not all of us are dead yet? That we can try and fail one more-"
"Yes." He turns his gaze to me, his expression firm. "We celebrate that we're still alive. That we're still fighting. That's what matters right now, Sarah. Not getting home. Not striking back. Finding enough hope to live long enough to try." He watches me for a moment, and he shakes his head. "If you want to make decisions for these people, sometimes you have to let go of the future, or you lose the present before you get there."
My mouth snaps shut, and I stare up at him.
I'm. Not trying to make decisions for anyone. I'm not the leader. He is. But then - that means... obviously, it's not my call.
"Fine. But I'm not interested in partying." I hiss, voice low.
I expect... I don't know. Coldness. Anger. I know I'm overstepping, that I'm just a kid trying to impose my will on these people who barely even know me, that I have no right to even say, when Arden's the one who's keeping us alive.
Instead, he just touches my shoulder and smiles. "Me either, kid." Then he walks past me, "But sometimes you do things you don't like, for other people."
I stare after him as he walks away, my chest tight with... I don't know what. Anger? Frustration? Or is it... the dawning realization that he's right?
I hate it. Whatever it is, I hate it.