In the end of the world…you don't lose people because you hate them, you lose them because you can't carry them anymore.
"Move." That was not a command anymore but a survival pressure and the group walked leaving the water ground behind them by necessity not choice. The deal had been simple to work for water following their rules or to keep moving east under watch or die where they stood. Jasper chose to move and moving forward broke them. They've barely gone a mile and someone fell behind. His name was Caleb who was in his mind-30s. He was strong before all this, and even reliable but now he barely held together, his breathing was off, too shallow and too fast. His steps dragged quite enough to notice and enough to matter.
Jasper searched the edges when he saw Caleb slipping off one.
"Pick it up." Jasper said lowly
Caleb tried as he straightened slightly and pushed forward but his body did not respond the same way it used to anymore, something within him was breaking already. As the armed watchers noticed, nothing escaped them, one of them muttered something to the leader as they exchanged glances and the glance said it all. Everyone saw Caleb fall behind and no one said anything because they already knew what time meant.
As Caleb stumbled hard, he barely catched himself, his hand shook as it pushed off the ground, dust stuck to his skin and his breath cracked.
"I'm fine…" he muttered slowly and gently
But no one believed him.
"We need to keep moving," one of the armed men said coldly.
"He's slowing the line."
"He just needs a minute," Stacy stepped in immediately.
"You don't have a minute." the man cutted in without a single emotion.
"None of you do."
"He's one of us!" Someone snapped.
"Then carry him," the armed man replied instantly
Silent stretched in again because the option was worse than it sounded. Carrying someone meant slowing everyone down and slowing down meant vulnerability and Vulnerability meant death. Everyone knew it. As Jasper stepped toward Caleb with his eyes locked in him.
"Look at me."
Caleb barely did.
"Can you keep moving?"
Caleb hesitated for a while and the hesitation said everything.
"…I'll try," he said.
They were all strained as they marched on, each step felt heavier every single second because they dragged something behind them which was more emotional. All of a sudden Caleb collapsed fully, he hitted the ground really hard and did not get right back up.
"Get up!" Someone shouted but there was no response
"CALEB!" still nothing
Jasper dropped beside him and checked his pulse but he was barely alive and could not move again. The armed leader stepped closer without hesitation.
"Leave him." He said
The words landed like a gunshot and the group reacted instantly.
"No."
"We're not doing that." Jasper said
Voices rose again in anger, desperation and refusal. Stacy looked at him because he knew that whatever he said next…defined everything. The Armed Leader spoke again.
"If you carry him, you fall behind."
"You fall behind, you die."
"Or we make it simple."
His hand shifted slightly toward his weapon
"We end the problem here."
Their choice was brutal, to carry Caleb and risk all or to leave him, whether to leave him and lose one or to let them kill him. Jasper turned to face the leader with his eyes cold and different now.
"No one dies here." He said quietly.
"That's not how this works." The leader smirked slightly.
Jasper stepped closer than before, dangerously closer now.
"Then maybe it's time to change."
As tension spiked instantly, weapons shifted slightly, the group all braced themselves because that moment was now a step away from violence.
The armed leader studied Jasper carefully longer than expected and then he raised a hand to stop his men from attacking.
"You're willing to risk everyone…for once man?
Jasper hesitated
"Yes." Jasper answered.
The answer was immediate and unshaken.
As the wind howls and the standoff tightens…one dangerous truth settled into the moment; Jasper didn't just choose to save Caleb…He just challenged the rules of this new world.