310 Another Red

Unlike the rest, he did not go over to have a closer look at the red bands around Vy's wrist. He had seen it before so he did not feel the need to see it again. It was always the same, the Reds are more affected than the rest. 

They eventually go insane. 

Seeing the sudden attention she was getting made Vy feel uncomfortable. However, these people did not seem to mean her any harm. That thought made her feel a little better. 

"What do these red bands mean?" Vy asked.

El scratched the back of her head, "Well… it varies person to person. All we know is that you likely had powers and they are being sealed by these red bands,"

"Sealed?"

"Yeah, sealed. Locked away, so that you can't use them to escape out of here."

There was still a lot she was uncertain about, and El could tell that Vy was confused. This reminded her of herself when she first ended up in the Jungle. Unlike Vy however, she and a few others woke up together at the same time. 

The first few nights were horrible, as they tried to survive out in the Jungle. Needless to say, the Jungle was crawling with creatures that want nothing more than to kill and eat the survivors. 

El led Vy further into their gated settlement. The place had been built long before El came along. Some say it was built by the first people who were thrown into the Jungle.

"What happens to those people?" Vy asked as she listened to El explain. 

"They died. Through various means," she replied casually, "Some were killed by the spider beasts, some died from starvation, others-"

Vy stopped El, "Did you say spider beasts?"

El nodded, "There's a couple of known nests in the Jungle, but there always seems to be new ones here and there. You'll understand eventually when you hunt with us,"

There were things El felt were normal, after all, she had been here for a long time. Yet all of this was brand new to Vy, so it would take her some time to understand. El brought Vy to the training grounds. 

"I know it's your first day here, but we need to access your skills to see what you'll be good with. Everyone plays a role here," El led her to a table. 

Different weapons were laid out on the table. But noticeably they were all melee weapons, primarily swords, daggers, knives and small throwing knives. There were no signs of any long-ranged weapons like bows and arrows. 

Vy traced her hand over the weapons, she was drawn to the long sharpened dagger and sword. 

"So we spar?" She asked. 

El nodded as she unsheathed her sword and readied herself. Vy picked up the dagger and felt its weight in her hand. Something about it felt right. She stepped away from the table and positioned herself. 

Vy sparred with El for a while. When El finally ended the session, both of them were panting, gasping for air. 

"You're… you're good. Definitely hunting material," El praised as she gasped for air. 

"You're not that bad yourself," Vy replied as she sat down on the ground. 

Beats of sweat trickled down her face. As she looked at the red bands on her wrists, she wondered what powers she had before. Vy subconsciously touched her right wrist. She felt as if something used to be on her wrist. 

No matter how much she tried to recall, nothing came to her. El offered Vy a hand to help her off the ground. Vy took the offer gladly and got back up to her feet. 

"You can keep that on you for now," El said to her, referencing the dagger, "Follow me, I'll show you where you can wash up and the sleeping quarters."

Just then, both of them heard a hunger growl from Vy's stomach. El laughed and Vy followed suit. 

"I'll also show that monster you have in your stomach where to get some food."

For the rest of the day, El spent her time helping Vy get used to the village. It was a small space made up of a few tents, a training ground and a few open areas where they kept items for storage. 

El explained the many intricacies of the Jungle as best as she could. She knew she was overwhelming the newcomer but it was necessary. They might be forgiving in the village, but the Jungle is not. 

Vy looked on at the rest of the people in the village, doing their own thing as they talked amongst themselves. El noticed Vy looking and watching the others. She knew what was going through her mind with that look. 

"We've all seen people come and go. So most of them aren't so warm to new people, especially since we lost someone recently."

El further explained that there seemed to be a cap on the number of people who could be in the jungle at any given point in time. When that cap is reached, there would not be anyone new added in. 

That is, until someone dies. 

Vy appeared just two days after they lost Tayla in the Jungle. She had sacrificed herself to let the others escape from the spider beasts. They could not even bury Tayla, her corpse was torn apart by the savage beasts. 

"Is there no way out of here?" Vy asked. 

If they were placed in here, there must be a way in and out. In the Jungle, there must be a high enough vantage point for them to see out into the open. From there, they could figure out just how much ground there was. 

"We've been searching for that ever since we've been thrown in here. But we've been unsuccessful."

"That's not entirely true and you know it El," a male voice cut into the conversation from behind. 

It was the bearded man from earlier. He sat down next to El and Vy to join in the conversation. Under the warm crackling glow of the fire pit, Vy could see that this man was at least twenty years older than her. 

It was evident from the wrinkles across his face. He had a muscular build, a receding hairline and a scar across his right cheek.

"If we found where the Rabbit is, then we've got a chance," he declared.