325 What Is Out There?

As they whispered amongst themselves, Vy realised a few key details. Firstly, they were not aware of how big the Jungle was. Just like the other groups of survivors she had encountered, they were not aware of each other's existence. 

They also did not seem to have any knowledge of the other weapons in existence. Vy had chosen not to reveal the existence of the explosives either. She did however explain that she had been following the wall surrounding the Jungle which led her to them. 

"Did you find any exits on the Wall?" Boss asked. 

Vy bit her lip. Her hesitance to reveal the information did not sit well with the children. She knew she had to share some information. 

"Yes and no. I found potential locations that could be destroyed to become an exit."

"Destroyed?" Boss looked at her with disbelief. 

"With enough firepower, they would be able to-"

"Boss! She has the same red bands as that you have around her wrists!" Jos exclaimed from the side. 

Maribelle nudged him on his arm as she whispered, "Don't interrupt, Jos!"

Realising his sudden outburst, Jos was apologetic, "Oops, sorry Boss! My bad."

If he had not mentioned it, Boss would not have noticed it either. Out of all the children in his base, only he and two others had the red bands around their wrists. He had never managed to figure out what it meant. 

"Do you know what the red bands are for?" Boss asked Vyrena. 

Vyrena shook her head, "Someone told me it locks certain abilities. But I am not certain."

She further explained that she had met others with the same red bands around their wrists. All of them wondered if there was a way to remove them. 

"There might be if we're able to get beyond the wall." Vy said with determination, "Anyways, as I was saying earlier. With enough firepower, I am certain we would be able to break through the wall."

"But what's out there?" One of the other children asked. 

Vy shook her head, "No one knows for certain."

"What if it's safer in here?"

"Yeah, what if we were placed here for our own safety?"

The children started going off on their own tangent amongst themselves. 

"How can we possibly be kept here for our own safety?! We're constantly being threatened by the spider beasts and other wild creatures."

"Yeah! How many had we lost in the early days to hunger? If it was not for Boss-"

Someone approached the tent, Vy could sense it. 

"Bean! I heard you were back…" a teenage girl walked through the doors of the tent. 

Her hair was tied into two twin braids. Vy turned to look at Boss, his face was beet red. Vy's face lit up. 

"So your name is Bean?" Vy laughed. 

The twin braid girl was baffled by everyone's expressions. When she turned to see Vy, she was surprised.

"You must be Tizzie. My name is Vyrena. Nice to meet you." Vy introduced herself. 

Tizzie took a seat at the table. She was briefed about what they had discussed without her. 

"Other survivors? Are they the same as you, Vyrena?" Tizzie asked. 

"Not exactly. Some of them aren't even human. But if you meant in terms of age, there are some who are much older than me," she explained. 

Vy continued with her proposal of a plan to get all the survivors to meet so that they could discuss an escape plan together. 

"I object," Boss said with his arms crossed. 

"Why?" Vy asked out of curiosity. 

"If what you said is true, none of them would ever take us seriously. They would just see us as a bunch of kids.�� Boss protested. 

Boss waited for Vy to shut him down. But she did not. 

"That could be a potential concern. I never considered that."

After putting some thought into it, Vy came up with a solution. She would be the negotiator and the middleman between the different groups. After all, she intended on going to each place to convince people to escape together. 

"Then what do we need to do?" Boss asked. 

"Once I finish making my rounds, I will return here and tell you when and where we are to meet. But in order for the rest to trust me, I am also going to need a favour from you."

Boss leaned back in his chair, there was always a catch. 

"What do you need?"

"I need one of your weapons. For proof that there are indeed other survivors out there. A lot of people seem to think they are the only ones around."

"That's all?" Boss asked. 

All Vy wanted was one weapon and not more? He had half expected her to request for a box full of it to bring with her. 

"That's all. I can't carry any more than that anyway." Vy replied. 

Boss nodded, there was no harm in giving her one weapon, so he agreed to it immediately. But he had conditions of his own. 

"You must never reveal our location to anyone."

"Of course, I do not intend on revealing the location of the other bases either."

"Good. Does anyone else have any more questions for Vyrena?" Boss asked the rest of the children at the table. 

"I have one," Tizzie's hand shot up. 

"What happens if you don't make it back? What if the rest don't agree with your plan, will everything change then? And how do you intend on bringing the wall down? Based on what you've mentioned, none of our weapons are powerful enough to bring it down."

Vy was not surprised by Tizzie's questions. There were all legitimate worries she also had. 

"If I am not back here in seven days, count me as dead. If anyone does not agree to it, it would make no difference to my plan. Even if no one else turns up, I will carry on as planned."

Vy did not want to reveal the existence of the explosives, at least not yet. The safest way was to keep quiet about it until the time came. 

"As for your last question, you will have to trust me on this one. I have a plan for that," 

"And we can't know of it?" Tizzie asked. 

"The fewer people know about it, the more likely it is to succeed. So I would prefer not to share it right now."

"But how can we trust you if you're keeping secrets from us?"

Vy laughed, "I am quite certain you're not telling me everything you know either. So let's just say, we all have secrets we wish to keep and let them remain like that for now."

Tizzie turned to Boss and signalled to him. She did not trust Vy on this, she was too secretive about it. However, a chance to get beyond the confines of the Jungle and the wall was something all of them had hoped for. 

Vy understood that it was difficult for them to trust her on this, but the same could be said from her point of view. 

"If it makes you feel better, you can always have someone to tail me. Although, do not misinterpret any of my actions." Vy replied. 

Tizzie was not buying it and Boss was still undecided. Hence, they decided to think over Vy's proposal before agreeing to it. 

"That's fine, you have all the time to think about it while I go and make my rounds to the camps of survivors. When I return, you can give me your decision."

"You're leaving already?" Boss asked.

He had half expected Vy to stay for at least a day. 

"There's no need for me to stay. So I might as well get an early start."

"You don't have to wait for my decision. I've made up my mind. We will be ready."

"There is no rush, Boss. You can ta-"

Boss shook his head. 

"Like you said, we all have secrets. We also need to learn how to trust. Maribelle, bring Vy one of the shooter weapons we have and a small supply of pellets."