Salvation [Until Dawn]

❄️ Chapter 10 ❄️

Gwendolyn found herself hanging between life and death. She looked down at the abyss beneath her, leading all the way down to the deep, dark crevice. She looked up at the distance greyness of the snowstorm brewing above her, compared to her fate below, it looked much brighter there.

"Oh... Jesus... Shit!" Emily screamed loudly, hanging from her death by the stronghold that Gwendolyn had on her hand. "OH SHIT! GWENDOLYN, YOU BETTER NOT LET ME GO!"

"Listen, this cord isn't going to hold us up for long," Gwendolyn said, referring to the cord she was holding onto stop them from plummeting to their deaths. "And you're heavy, so do as I say,"

"HOW THE HELL ARE YOU STILL CALM?" Emily shouted, and Gwendolyn sighed. "Don't you try something strange – I'm telling you; I won't ever forgive you!"

"If I didn't remain calm, we would've been dead," Gwendolyn responded. "Now, I'm going to swing us over to that ladder. Grab it and get onto that ledge beneath it,"

Before Emily could complain about her plan, Gwendolyn began to swing them back and forth until Emily reached out and grabbed the ladder with her free hand. Then, the blonde let go of her and she hurriedly hung onto the ladder's rung. Gwendolyn went swinging back, feeling the cord weaken up.

"Hurry up and get down before I die," Gwendolyn told her, trying to remain calm as ever. She watched as Emily hurriedly made her way through the ladder like a monkey bar.

Once she was above the ledge below, Emily jumped down and landed a bit awkwardly. But Gwendolyn was just relieved that she landed still alive, and went on to save her own life. Swinging the cord back and forth once again, the blonde reached out and grabbed onto the ladder as well.

And just as Gwendolyn grabbed onto the rung, the cord in her other hand snapped – and the ladder seemed to have worn down from Emily's earlier attempt. Gwendolyn almost dropped down below –

"Fuck," Gwendolyn cursed as she grabbed the ledge right before she fell further. "Oh... fuck," She pushed herself onto the ledge and crawled over to see they were on the edge of a mine shaft.

Above them, the broken tower croaked and groaned, and Gwendolyn got out of the way. However, Emily wasn't as lucky as a rock fell down and hit her right on the shin. Immediately, Gwendolyn seized Emily from the shoulders and snatched her back as the tower broken down, falling down the crevice in a shower of metal and wood. The two girls stared in stunned silence as the ledge broke.

"Fuck," Gwendolyn broke their silence, and shook her head as she turned away from it. "There goes everything..." She took off her beanie and threw her sleet blonde hair up into a ponytail.

"Gwendolyn," Emily said as she stood up, rubbing her shin, and the blonde glanced at her. "You're... really something – how did you learn these survival skills and crap?"

"I don't want last year to repeat," Gwendolyn responded in a low voice as she looked away, and Emily stared at her, wondering if she was suffering through regret, remorse and survivor's guilt.

"What are you doing with that?" Emily asked as the younger female wrapped her beanie on a stick, dipping it in an oil can and using a lighter to set it on fire. "Wasn't that an expensive beanie?"

"What's more expensive than a life right now?" Gwendolyn muttered. "Come on, let's get going – we should meet with Matt and Jessica somehow and get back to the lodge as quickly as possible,"

Before Emily could start off with her complaining again, Gwendolyn started her way down the mine shaft, forcing the older female to rush to keep up with her. The two of them were silent as they made their way through the mine caverns, looking for a way out when they heard a noise.