Saris crumpled to the ground moments after killing a seemingly non-hostile man who I had been considering making a new ally for our small team. He looked awful and I wondered what he had been through.

I stood there with my mouth open, not sure what to do or what to say. Anne snapped me out of it. "Xander! We can't leave him like that!"

Shaking my head, I said, "Can you heal him?"

Anne frowned, "Not yet. Help me move him inside. We'll find some stuff to patch him up."

There was no time to argue. It would just waste time I wasn't sure Saris had and being out in the open with him down made me nervous. We struggled to get him inside without bothering his injuries and set him down near the far edge of the gas station's store area where he could lie in peace. After setting him down, Anne pointed to the blood on my shirt, Saris' blood. Again, I asked her if she could heal him but she explained that she didn't know if his dislocated shoulder would heal right.

"We're going to have to fix it before we heal him. But I don't know how to do that."

I shook my head in agreement, I didn't know either. Saris would know, but if we managed to wake him up, would he be conscious enough to instruct us how to fix it? Maybe it would be better to stabilize him first. "Let's find some stuff to bandage him up. The least we could do is stop the bleeding, or at least contain it."

We gathered all the medical supplies we could find. I didn't know how badly Saris was injured, so we had to take off his shirt and check all over for injuries. His back had a nasty gash and his left arm was cut deep. His shoulders looked the worst to me. I didn't know how bad a dislocated shoulder was, but his other shoulder contained a large, bloody hole and I could see the white of his bone inside. The first time we bandaged it up, it bled through a few minutes later. We ended up having to cover it up several times with multiple wraps of the medical fabric and even then, it still left a bloodstain on the outside. Even his legs were damaged. One was mostly just bruised while the other had a nasty cut but it was nothing compared to the rest of him. By the time we were finally done, parts of him looked more like a mummy than a person. Neither of us had much medical training, so this was the best we could do until we could get his shoulder back in place.

Saris seemed more dead than alive and we tried to wake him several times but had no luck. His breathing, and the fact that he hadn't disappeared, were the only signs that he was still alive. Eventually, we gave up trying to force him awake. So instead, we waited.

We took turns sleeping and keeping a watch over everything. During the watch, we'd primarily keep an eye on the outside, in case enemies approached, but we'd be sure to peek on Saris every so often in case there was a change to his condition. We had plenty of food and drinks at the gas station, so we were in a decent spot to wait. When night fell, we decided to replace Saris' bandages.

"We're not going to have enough to do this again," Anne said, checking our supply.

I grunted, "Hopefully, he'll wake up before we need to."

During Anne's shift to keep an eye outside, I slumped down near Saris. I couldn't sleep, so I took out my phone. I first messaged Tommy and Michael that we had found Saris and I told them how bad he was. While I waited for a message, I noticed my sister had texted me:

Hey. So, I thought you might like to know that Paramore's recording a new album with us. I know you like them for some reason, so I got Haley's autograph. Think of it as a little incentive to win and come home.

My eyes widened and my mouth dropped, in shock. This was awesome! Sometimes it really paid to have a sister work as an intern at a famous recording studio. I texted her back:

OMG! That's amazing! You are awesome! And what do you mean 'for some reason'?

I danced while I sat for a few minutes, then Sidra got back to me:

I know I am. And you do realize that I'm not a big fan, right? One of us has to have some musical taste.

I replied:

Yeah, you're right. Too bad it's not you. Maybe we should switch jobs.

Just as I sent it, she sent another text:

What's going on over on your end?

I explained the situation and that we found Saris and I asked her if she knew how to put his shoulder back together. She didn't.

Sorry bro. I know nothing about that kind of stuff. Saris is that assassin guy, right? Maybe he'll know. You'll just have to wait till he wakes up. Sorry, but I've got an early day tomorrow and it's already late. Keep in touch and stay safe. Good luck.

The rest of the night was uneventful. My friends must have been asleep since I didn't receive any texts from them. I was able to get a little shut-eye and Anne woke me up when it was my turn to take watch. Sitting near the entrance to the store, I wondered what Saris had been through. He was really beat up. I was relieved that he was alive, especially after seeing him attacked by four people just outside the town. I was sure that even he couldn't have survived that, especially after noticing Zack sneaking around there too. I wondered if Saris took them all out and Zack was no longer a threat in this cycle. Then I thought about Demi and hoped that she was alright. What would I have done if it had been her instead of Saris that had shown up? What would I do if I saw her as hurt as he was?

I had spent most of my night thinking about Demi, hoping that she was safe and unharmed and wishing that I would find her soon. Saris' condition had shaken me and it only made me that more worried about her. I was relieved when morning finally came, ready to put the night and its stressful thoughts behind me. I went to check on my teammates. Saris was still asleep. His new bandages didn't look quite as bad as the last set, although his left shoulder was still bleeding through. Anne was laying nearby and I nudged her awake.

She groaned, "Awe. What time is it?"

I looked at my Pokemon watch, "Six."

She turned over, "Too early." Then she looked up at me, "You look tired too. Oh, fine. Get a quick nap in. I'll stay up."

Anne got up and browsed the store for food. Settling on a bag of chocolate-covered doughnuts, she sat near the door but kept out of sight so no one would see her through the glass. I went into an empty aisle and closed my eyes, ready for sleep to take me.

Not long after I had fallen asleep, Anne woke me up. "Xander! He's awake!"

Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I went to see him. He looked like he felt a bit better, but he was nowhere near back to normal. We talked a bit before he gave me instructions on how to fix his shoulder and I cringed a lot during the process. Finally, it literally popped back into place and I nearly fainted from the sound and how it felt in my hands. Then Anne got to healing the rest of him.

I took a deep breath and grabbed a chicken sandwich, handing it to Saris as I sat down in front of him, "Why did you kill that man yesterday?"

"The one you were talking to?" I nodded. "I know him. He lures would-be allies to a location that he sets up prior, only to torture them."

"That sounds stupid, why would he do that?"

Saris sighed, "There are some people here who know they don't have a chance at winning. So instead, they go around doing whatever they want. Some people go crazy here but that man may have been insane when he showed up; I'm sure it's only gotten worse for him. His weapon is a tranquilizer dart. His ability is to keep you alive. Not heal you, just keep you alive. He dissects you to see if he can figure out how your ability works. I don't know if he's ever figured anyone's out or not, it's not like he advertises it. But if he's killed, then the power goes away and you'll die too because he just keeps you open. It's not a good way to go."

"How come you didn't warn me about someone like that before?"

Saris smirked, the pain clearly fading from Anne's healing, "It's not really something I think about a lot. I thought it was more important to train you to survive, not who to avoid. Otherwise, you'd be second-guessing everyone who wanted you as an ally. You need to trust your team. It just so happens that sometimes, your team isn't trustworthy."

"There. How's that?" Anne asked, allowing her hands to drop and stop glowing.

Saris stood, moving his arms and legs in stretches. Then he summoned his sword and swiped at the air a few times. "Great! I feel back to normal." He turned to both of us, "I can't thank you enough. I wasn't sure how I was going to keep going."

"Lucky you ran into us," I said.

"Lucky you had me around," Anne corrected.

Saris smiled, "Where are we headed?"

"Are you good to go?" I asked. "We don't have to rush it."

"Good as new. And I'm eager to get moving."

"We're looking for May. She's got hair that's dyed blue. Seen her around?" Anne asked.

"No, sorry. Last cycle was the only time I've seen someone like that in this game."

Anne slumped, "Well, we're heading to the school to see if she's there. And what do you mean 'game'?"

"Don't worry about it," I said before Saris could explain his reasons for calling it a game. I had heard it before and started calling it a game myself, but I didn't think everyone would share his opinions.

Saris nodded, "Do you have a backup plan if she's not there?"

"Not really," Anne sighed

"Could try the graveyard."

"We were going to head there, but then we got this lead," I said.

"Yeah, but we aren't anywhere near the graveyard. It's on the north side of the police map we found and this place is west or north or something...I dunno." Anne complained.

"The map's border isn't far from here. We could head further south and find the graveyard when we pop in on the other side," Saris suggested.

"That could work," I said, yawning. "We can check out the school, then head southeast. If May's not in the graveyard, we can come up with a new plan and at least get some solid sleep."

Anne nodded, "Alright. Let's try it out."

We grabbed some food to take with us and I begged Saris not to store it in his blood-stained pockets, to which he agreed. That left me as the person with food stuffed away in their pants. It felt weird, like my pockets were full of soft playdough and I kept imagining the food bursting open and a bunch of yuck spewing out. I decided that, from now on, either Saris could handle the food, or I'd press my luck trying to find a place to eat. That or just store less squishy foods in my pockets, like apples.

Anne took the lead, allowing Saris and me to catch up on what we had been up to so far in this cycle. He had left his shirt behind since it was still wet with his blood. I envied his physique. It's not like I was fat or anything, but I didn't have the abs that Saris had. He looked like he could take me out with one punch, or just by flexing near me. He told me about all of the hardships he had been through during this cycle and I wish I could have met Allison. He also told me that Zack was trying to make amends. I wondered if that were true.

"By the way," Saris said, "Good work on beating him. Not that I didn't think you had talent, but I didn't expect you to beat Zack."

"I had a lot of help, but thanks," I said, smiling. "What do you think? About Zack, I mean. Do you think he's really trying to make things right? Or is this another elaborate trick?"

"Well...It's hard to say," Saris confessed. "I know him pretty well and I'd like to give him the benefit of the doubt, but I can't shake a feeling."

"One of your famous 'feelings'," I noted, smirking. He didn't smile back, too lost in thought. "Well, walk me through it."

Saris was silent for a long moment. Then said, "He's smart." He glanced my way. "Really smart. Not just about fighting but about being able to get in the minds of the other people here. He kind of knows how people think. It makes me nervous that he is planning something. I guess I'm torn between what I want to believe and what I know about him. For example, have you heard of, or seen, this fire character that he mentioned?"

I shook my head, "No. So, I guess that means Zack is lying, right?"

"Not necessarily. You haven't run into many people, right? Maybe that's because they're all gathered together somewhere. If Zack is telling the truth, he might be working another angle." Saris sighed, "I just don't know what to make of it yet."

"Hakuna Matata."

Saris gave me a strange look. "What?"

"Hakuna Matata," I repeated.

He paused for a second and almost stopped walking, then said, "Are you having a stroke?"

This time, I paused. "It's from the Lion King." When that didn't get a reaction, I continued, "The Disney movie."

"Is it in English?"

"Yes! It's like....one of the most popular animated films ever! There was even a remake of it not long ago! How do you not know about this?"

"Well, as an assassin, I didn't have much free time so I don't actually know a whole lot of pop culture. Especially kids movies."

"That sucks!" I said, "When we get out of here, we need to find each other and do movie nights."

"Ha," Saris laughed, "You're optimistic. One win and you're on top of the world, huh?"

I felt my face get hot, "Well...I mean...alright."

"I didn't mean to burst your bubble. It's good to think about life beyond here, just remember that you aren't home yet." I nodded. After a few more steps he asked, "So, what does hakuna manana mean?"

"It's Hakuna Matata and," I broke out into song, "It means no worries! For the rest of your days!" I was as bad as I expected to be and Anne laughed.

"Pick a key!" She teased.

Saris stared at me with raised eyebrows, "Alright." My face got hot again. Then, urgently, he said, "Hold up."

We stopped. Since Saris had joined our team, the chills were back, but he had clearly seen something and a pit in my stomach opened, thinking it might be the giant and the blue-haired not-May. We could see the school and had almost made it; it was occupied. A team of four huddled together in the parking lot, looking in all directions. One of them saw us and shouted, pointing directly at me. All four turned to us, weapons drawn and we did the same.

The one that had pointed us out was a tall, pudgy man wearing overalls and carrying a large hammer with several spikes on the face. When I say 'large', I mean it was basically the size of a longsword. It was impressive to me that he could just hold the thing. He apparently had a thing for bandanas because he wore several of them. One on his head, one of each arm, just above the elbow, and he even had some in his pockets that stuck out. Standing slightly more forward than the rest of his team, he gave the impression that he was the leader.

Saris was on the move before I had even evaluated the other three members of their team. I forgot how fast he was. Before he reached them, he hurled his blade at the two on the right. One of them dodged but the other was too stunned to move and was impaled by the blade, then he vanished. Saris resummoned his sword to his hand and he dodged three attacks with ease, slicing the man who had dodged his original throw and finishing him by decapitation.

I hadn't just sat back and watched, but Saris was hard to keep up with and quick to kill anyone who didn't react fast enough to his movements. When I finally caught up, the two remaining men were using their powers. Saris cut down one of them just as lightning crackled down the man's arm. The leader had crouched down to the pavement. When he touched the ground with his hands, his skin morphed to match it, turning a deep shade of black and appeared stony, like hard cement. When I had charged, I went in to strike but it was like trying to cut the road. Tubby was pushed back several steps due to a loss of balance but otherwise, seemed unharmed.

I wasn't sure what to do, but Saris didn't miss a beat. A light bubble came from the remaining opponent and flew into Saris. He dashed around, feigning an attack, then jumped and slammed his blade down on the man. The armoured skin gave an uncomfortable crunch, like a pop can being crushed, and I saw it give way as the blade bit down into the man's shoulder and into his chest. He gave a quick shout of pain but vanished soon after.

"Didn't want to save one for me?" I asked sarcastically.

Saris shrugged, "I'll let you have the next one."

Anne came up and stared, open-mouthed at Saris, "What was that?! I've never seen anyone fight like that."

"Yeah, he does that," I stated.

Saris looked at the school. "I don't think anyone else is here. We can look around if you want but it's more likely that these four were the only ones at the school."

"What makes you say that?" I asked.

"They weren't on edge until we showed up. They probably scouted the place already. Otherwise, they would have been more cautious before we arrived."

I saw Anne's expression darken. She was disappointed that we hadn't found May yet and it looked like it might take a while longer. Anne seemed to notice me looking at her and I expected that she didn't want Saris to notice that she was looking glum too so I quickly jerked my head away, but for some reason, my eyes stayed on Anne. She forced a smile and said, "To the graveyard?" We nodded and were off, heading southeast as Saris had suggested. Hopefully, we would find the graveyard soon and with a little luck, May would be there too.