My eyes all but popped out of my skull. So much had happened in such a small amount of time. A huge branch snapped off of a tree and nearly crushed a complete stranger who just leaped in front of me to avoid getting crushed by it.  I was torn between getting up and running away and attempting to make conversation. My mother had warned me to stay away from everyone and avoid all contact with all people. I just had to get past The Trinity Peaks and through to the next obstacles. What those obstacles would be, I still had no idea.

"Uh ahem, hello there", declared the blue-eyed boy.

I had never seen this person before, not to my memory at least. I did not know what was the best course of action for me from here. I thought that I should just leave and walk away but for some reason I stayed.

I stared back at him. For the first time I noticed what he looked like. Aside from his deep blue eyes, he had dark brown hair which I am almost certain had seen better days. He was tall judging by the length of his legs and wore the strangest black shoes I had ever seen. But by far, the most striking thing about him, was his Glow. It was a vibrant purple shade and was absolutely breath taking. I felt a twinge of envy while staring at it. What I would give to also have a Glow and be embarking on an exciting new quest to uncover my destiny.

"Would you like to a picture? Just careful not to drool on that too", he said with a smirk.

I realised I had been staring at him. But not for the reasons he thought.

"Do not be coy. I was looking at your Glow", I snapped back at him.

"Sure thing Love, whatever helps you sleep at night", he quipped.

His smirk was wiped of off his face and replaced with a look of agony. He had been trying to stand up but fell to the floor writhing in pain as soon as he had put pressure on his left foot. He stared at it and went to try and massage it. I winced in advance, knowing full well what would come next.

sure enough, a scream of pain escaped his mouth. I knew he would give away my position almost instantly and i knew better than to let myself be surrounded by concerned citizens of the Forest Sector. I leapt to my feet and quickly cupped his mouth with my hand, muffling his scream.

"Shhhhhhh!", I pleaded. "Let me take a look at your foot, I know how to help," I reassured him.

He started to protest, but quickly stopped in response to the glare I gave him which I am sure was not friendly.

"I am going to get my first-aid kit. Please promise me that you will not scream anymore. In fact, just do not say anything", I said quickly.

He nodded his head vigorously. I slowly lifted my hand away from his mouth, making sure that he stuck to his promise before retreating back to my duffel bag. i grabbed it and brought it to where he was sitting. I pulled out the first aid kit i had found earlier and opened it to have it on standby. I pulled his right pant leg up to his knee and gingerly examined his foot. It was swollen but not too badly. I hoped it was nothing more than a sprain. I took the fact that he could feel pain into consideration.

Anura once told me that if I ever felt numbness or a tingling sensation, then my bone would have mostly likely been broken. Still, i had to make certain.

"I am going to gently press down on these areas. Will you tell me where it hurts the most?", i asked quietly.

He nodded his head slowly and shut his eyes. I smiled. From acting so tough just a second ago to now wincing in pain, i almost felt bad for him. I was helping him, but I had to remember that anyone could be a threat to my safety at this point.

i gently pressed down on his ankle bone, if I remembered correctly, i think it was called a Malleolus. It was the on the outer side of his ankle. I looked up at him to see his facial expression, his eyes were wide as he stared down at me working on his ankle.

"How badly does it hurt?", i asked gently.

"It is not too bad there", he replied sheepishly.

"How about here?", i asked whilst pressing down on the softer parts of his outer ankle.

"Yes yes yes, that is definitely the spot", he said through gritted teeth.

I breathed a sigh of relief. It was just a sprain. I reached for a roll of bandages when i paused. Why did I care whether he had s sprain or not? He was not m responsibility. As if on cue, the memory of Hope falling from the swing set crept back into my mind. My parents had been incredible that day. I always hoped to be even half as incredible as they were. I knew for a fact that they would have helped this boy, regardless of the situation they were in.

"Everything okay?", he asked concernedly.

"Yeah everything is okay", I replied whilst removing the packaging of the bandage.

"You just have a sprain. I am going to bandage it. You should be fine in a couple days. Just be sure to keep it elevated", I continued whilst wrapping the bandage around his leg.

"Is it too tight?", I questioned.

"No. It

I quickly grabbed a stray log and propped his foot up on it. I grabbed my canteen, which was still unusually cold and poured a few drops of water onto his ankle. I quickly repacked my first-aid kit into the bag.

"Thank you for your help", he said almost inaudibly.

"It is no problem at all", I replied instantly.

I reached for my canteen, concerned that I had used up too much water. I needed to find a source of water. Fast.

"Hey... I do not know your name", the boy called, whisking me out of my thoughts.

"I do not know yours either", I replied swiftly attempting to divert the attention away from me.

"My name is Emory", he replied.

"Emory", I repeated.

"What is yours?", he asked again.

I opened my mouth to reply, when I felt a horrible burning sensation in my pocket. The pocket where i had out the map. Wincing, i quickly pulled it out and unrolled it. What I saw next was enough to send me into a panic.

My bright red spot that indicated my position on the map was very quickly getting surrounded by numbers. Numbers that appeared out of nowhere, ranging from one to fifty. My breathing got heavier. This could only mean one thing.

Someone was coming.