Ice Cold - Part One: The Dark Zone

Chapter Twenty

Nearly a mile had been traversed since Alex reached the bottom of the hill. He had no idea where he was headed, but stayed as straight as he could and hoped he would come across a water source soon, otherwise he was not sure how much longer he could last.

Of course, Alex would be lying if he said that he was not enjoying the scenery while he was stuck out here. He hardly ever traveled outside of his home in North Elba, New York, and this was certainly a sight he had never seen before. The woods were quiet and peaceful, and the views from the mountaintops were absolutely beautiful. Still, Alex never forgot how important it was that he found his way out of the mountains sooner than later. He could only imagine how much everyone back home must have been losing their minds worrying about him. Then again, Alex was not so sure. His time alone out here in the wilderness made him look back at the life he had lived so far. Though he was still quite young and had much of his life ahead of him, Alex admitted to himself that he was not exactly proud of his life. He thought particularly of his sister, Nickole. They had been such good friends as young children, and she always looked up to him more than anyone. Now he was starting to realize how much he was starting to ignore her; his only sister. When she looked at him every morning, Alex hardly acknowledged her. He was beginning to understand how she felt toward him, like she was losing him, and it made him feel like he was losing his own grip on the world.

As he was deep in thought, he was suddenly brought back to reality by something. Alex paused. He held his breath and listened intently. It took his ears a moment to adjust to the silence of the woods, but soon enough, Alex could make out the faint sound of flowing water. From the sound of it, it might have been a small creek or stream, like a tributary to a larger body of water, and it couldn't be far away.

"Thank God," Alex muttered under his breath as he licked his lips. Though he could not find the energy to run for it right now, he continued heading straight for the sound of the water. It was farther away than it seemed at first, but after about ten minutes of lumbering through the woods, Alex finally came to the source.

It was indeed a small creek and it was running further down the mountainside. Alex knelt by the edge of it and dipped his hand into the water. To his surprise, the water was freezing cold. Alex shuddered as it almost chilled him to the bone. However, looking past this, Alex was more than thankful to find it. He cupped his hands, lifted a small amount of water from the creek, and drank what he could before the rest of it fell through his fingers.

Alex gasped in relief at the refreshing sensation. He collected another handful of water and splashed it onto his face. The light shock of it allowed him to forget about his exhaustion for the moment. Alex eased himself onto his back alongside the creek and allowed his hand to float gently in the water. He just wanted to lie here for a bit, close his eyes, and breathe. Then he could return to the situation at hand and figure out his next move.

The approaching sound of footsteps did not register in his mind until it was too late. "Hey, you!"

Alex nearly jumped out of his skin. He gasped in panic and threw his hands upward. Catching his breath, Alex looked back the way he came. Someone was approaching from out of the trees. It appeared to be a man in his early or mid-twenties. He was very poorly dressed, as if he had been wearing the same clothes for months and his hair was ragged and unkempt. The most disturbing element of his person was what he held in his right hand: a large sword made of stone. He stopped, however, as soon as he seemed to get a good look at Alex, narrowing his eyes at him.

"You're not one of them," he said after a brief moment's pause. Alex was still taken aback, staring with wide eyes at his blade. "Who are you?" the man continued to ask. Alex was too shocked to say anything, or to even pull himself to his feet. He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.