Chapter 138 Strange island I

Chapter 138: Chapter 138 Strange island I

In a hazy state, Kai rolled across the ground. For a moment, he expected to feel water—cold, endless water. After all, the last thing he remembered was being swept away by the gigantic wave in the middle of the sea. But that wasn’t what he felt. The surface beneath him was dry. Dry and rough.

Kai frowned. That alone was strange. He had been fighting for his life in the middle of the ocean, so how the hell had he ended up on dry land?

He slowly moved his hand across the ground. Sand. His eyebrows rose. "Wait..."

Kai finally snapped his eyes open. He immediately pushed himself upright. His clothes were wet, but the ground beneath him was completely dry. He looked around. Nothing but sand stretched around him. Beyond the sand was a massive shoreline. And beyond that—an island.

Kai’s mouth fell open. "Am I back home?!" He jumped to his feet. "Luna!" His voice echoed across the shore. "We’re back!" He turned around excitedly. "Guys!"

Nothing.

Kai’s smile disappeared. He looked left. Nothing. Right. Nothing.

"Luna?" Still no answer. He frowned. "Where the hell are you guys?"

He started walking along the shoreline, searching for any sign of his companions. Then he noticed something sticking out of the sand. A foot.

Kai froze. "What the fuck?" He stared at it. For a second, he genuinely thought someone had been buried alive. Then the foot moved. Kai nearly screamed. "AH—!"

The sand suddenly shifted. A hand emerged. Then a head. Adrian crawled out of the hole, covered in sand from head to toe.

Kai stared at him. "The fuck?!" He dramatically placed a hand against his chest. "How did you find your way inside there, my heart?!"

Adrian coughed. "Don’t ask me." He stood up and began brushing sand from his clothes. He shook his head. Sand flew everywhere. He rubbed his hair. More sand fell out. Then he reached toward his ear. "Why is there sand in my ear?"

Kai stared at him.

Adrian looked around. His expression changed. He finally noticed what Kai had already seen. They were standing on dry land.

"A dry land..." Adrian looked toward the ocean. "Finally." He exhaled. "I never thought we’d find one." He continued trying to remove the sand stuck inside his hair while Kai stood there watching him.

Adrian eventually noticed Kai’s expression. He stopped shaking his head. "What’s with the look?"

Kai didn’t answer.

Adrian frowned. "We’re safe." He looked around. "At least we’re away from the mouths of those monsters." His body shivered as the memories returned—the battle, the sea giant, the snake, the tentacles, the endless water. They had barely survived.

But something suddenly made Adrian’s expression change. "Luna..." He looked around. "Fuck." His voice became nervous. "Where is she?"

Kai’s expression immediately darkened.

"And wasn’t she injured?" Adrian looked at him.

Kai turned toward the ocean. "Why do you think I’ve been worried?" He sighed. "I don’t even know this place." He pointed toward the island. "It doesn’t look familiar." Then he looked toward the ocean. "Our island is familiar to me. I know its surroundings." He paused. "By now, we should have found the others."

Adrian nodded. "You’re right."

The two of them walked toward the shoreline. They looked across the water. Nothing. Just an enormous stretch of ocean. No amphibious vehicle. No Luna. No Rowan. No Ethan. Nothing.

The surface of the water was strangely dark—almost black. It looked deeper than normal. The sight alone made Adrian uncomfortable. He began biting his fingernail. "Do you think they’ll be okay?"

Kai didn’t answer immediately.

Adrian continued pacing. "I’m worried."

Kai facepalmed. His fingers ran through his hair, tangling it even more. "I can’t say for sure." He lowered his hand. "But Ethan is with them." Kai looked toward the endless ocean. "And Luna is tough." He swallowed. "That’s what I’m praying for right now." He looked down. "Because I can’t handle it if something happens to her."

Adrian suddenly spoke. "Do you like Luna?"

Kai slowly turned. "What?"

Adrian looked at him innocently. "Wouldn’t you be happy if she died?"

Kai’s expression immediately changed. "What the hell?"

Adrian continued. "I mean, your freedom would be—"

"Don’t ever say that again." Kai’s voice was suddenly sharp.

Adrian froze.

"That’s not funny." Kai stepped closer. "Did I ever say I was in prison?"

"No."

"Then why would you say something like that?" Kai’s irritation was obvious. "Why would I be happy that Luna is dead?"

Adrian lowered his head. "I’m sorry."

Kai stared at him.

Adrian sighed. "I didn’t mean it like that." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I was trying to process something."

Kai remained silent.

Adrian looked toward the ocean. "I was wondering if I was the only one who wanted to stay with her forever." His voice became quieter. "I don’t want to leave." He swallowed. "And I’m beginning to love being by her side."

Kai’s expression softened slightly. He groaned. "That would have been a much better way to say it." He shook his head. "The way you said it made it sound like you were glad she disappeared." Kai looked toward the ocean again. "I can’t stand that thought." He pointed at Adrian. "So don’t put something like that into my head again."

Adrian nodded. "Okay."

Kai returned his attention to the island. Something about it was bothering him. The ocean had swallowed so much land. Their city. Their surroundings. Entire sections of the world had disappeared beneath the water. So how had this island remained untouched? It didn’t make sense.

"Maybe we should look deeper." Kai pointed toward the island. "They could be here."

Adrian followed his gaze. The island was enormous. It was filled with strange trees and unusual hills. Some of the hills were shaped in ways that almost looked unnatural. One formation in particular caught Kai’s attention. He stared, then blinked.

"Is that..."

Adrian looked. "What?"

Kai pointed. "That hill."

Adrian squinted.

Kai tilted his head. "It looks like a woman lying down."

Adrian stared for another second. "The hips..."

Kai nodded. "And the boobs." He scratched his head. "That is definitely weird."

Adrian looked around. "Everything here is weird."

They cautiously began moving deeper into the island. Kai walked behind Adrian. Every few seconds, he glanced over his shoulder. The silence was bothering him.

After a while, he frowned. "Shouldn’t you just make a portal?"

Adrian stopped. "What?"

"A portal." Kai pointed ahead. "Can’t you open one and get us out of here?"

Adrian blinked. "Without finding Luna and the others?" He looked at Kai. "I thought we were going inside to see if we could find them."

Kai paused, then nodded. "Right." He had almost forgotten their purpose. "We need to find them first."

They continued. But the deeper they went, the stranger the island became.

At first, there were only trees. Then they noticed something between the branches. Metal.

Adrian stopped.

Kai moved closer. It was part of an aircraft. A large piece of a plane had crashed into the forest. They continued walking. Another piece appeared. Then another. A helicopter propeller was lodged near the edge of a tree.

Adrian stared at it. His expression became uncomfortable. "This isn’t ordinary."

Kai didn’t respond.

Adrian looked around. "We’ve already passed several places with what look like human casualties." He lowered his voice. "Shouldn’t that be a sign that this place is a bad omen?"

Kai looked around. The forest was eerily silent. No birds. No insects. No wind. Nothing. It was almost too quiet. Kai’s eyes narrowed. He didn’t like it. Not at all.

Then he stopped. "Adrian."

Adrian turned. "What?"

Kai pointed.

Adrian followed his finger. His face went pale.

A group of skeletons hung from the base of a tree. They were arranged strangely—almost deliberately.

The two men stumbled backward. Adrian nearly fell onto his butt. "What the hell..."

Kai swallowed. "You’re right." He looked around. "A forest shouldn’t be this silent." He took a step backward. "We might have entered the wrong place."

Adrian immediately straightened. "No." He tried to sound brave. "We’ve survived worse."

Kai looked at him. "You don’t believe that."

"No." Adrian swallowed. "I don’t."

They both stood still. Then Adrian took another cautious step. A tiny sound came from beneath his foot.

Click.

Both men froze.

Kai’s eyes widened. "Adrian..."

A rope suddenly shot upward. It wrapped around Adrian’s leg. "What the—!" The rope yanked, and Adrian was lifted into the air. "AAAHHH!" He was dragged toward the top of the tree. "Kai!"

Kai immediately reached for him. But another rope shot from the ground and wrapped around Kai’s body. "Shit!"

The trap activated. Kai was violently pulled upward. Within seconds, both men were hanging from the trees.

Adrian struggled. "Kai!"

"I’m trying!" Kai twisted his body. His hands glowed. Ice began forming. Then—nothing.

Kai froze. His power wasn’t responding. "What?" He tried again. Nothing. "No, no, no..." He squeezed his fists. "Ice!" Nothing happened.

Adrian tried to open a portal. His palms glowed faintly. Then the light disappeared. "No!" He tried again. Nothing.

Kai stared at him. "Seriously?"

Adrian groaned. "Sometimes I feel like our powers have a mind of their own." He struggled against the rope. "Why do they keep disappointing us at the worst possible times?"

Kai looked around. His expression became serious. Something moved through the forest. Both men stopped talking. A shadow passed between the trees. Slowly. Silently.

Kai’s eyes widened. "Did you see that?"

Adrian didn’t answer immediately. He stared into the darkness. Then nodded. "Yeah."

Neither of them moved.

The shadow disappeared. Kai’s heart began pounding. "Where did it go?"

Adrian swallowed. "I don’t know."

They watched the forest. Nothing. For a moment, they thought perhaps they had imagined it. Then—Whoosh!

Short arrows suddenly shot from somewhere in the darkness. "Fuck!"

One struck Kai’s arm. Another pierced Adrian. "AH!" They both screamed.

Kai tried to pull the arrow out. But his vision suddenly blurred. His body became heavy.

Adrian’s eyes widened. "Poison..."

Kai’s head dropped. "No..." His eyelids became heavier. He fought to stay awake. "We can’t..." His voice faded.

Adrian struggled against the rope. "Kai!"

Kai could barely hea

r him anymore. The forest spun around him. The trees blurred. The shadows merged together. His body stopped fighting. ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Adrian’s eyes slowly closed. And within seconds, both men fell into a deep, unnatural slumber.