The night after the attack had been filled with tension and silence. The group had barely slept, knowing danger still lingered beyond the trees. But they had to keep moving, healing, and figuring out how the hunters had found them so quickly.
At dawn, Alex did a perimeter check. That's when he saw him.
A body lay on the ground, barely breathing, slumped near a failed trap. His clothes were torn, and a cracked hunter's mask hung from his neck.
Alex approached cautiously, weapon raised. But the young man didn't resist. His eyes weren't those of a killer—they were filled with fear.
"Who are you?" Alex demanded.
The boy coughed weakly. "My name is Noah… I don't want to fight. I'm not like them."
Alex hesitated. Something in Noah's voice felt real. He tied him up, brought him back to camp, and called Elena and Ethan.
"We need to talk," Alex said. "This guy says he wants to help us."
Noah looked to be in his early twenties, with tired eyes and a shaky voice. He told them he had been forced to join the hunters after his family was murdered. If he didn't obey, he'd be next. But he had never wanted to kill.
"They're planning something big," Noah said seriously. "That wasn't just a random attack. They're testing you. The leaders… they want to wipe out all organized survivors."
The group was shaken.
"Why should we believe you?" Ethan asked coldly.
"I can prove it," Noah said. "I can lead you to their base, show you their paths, weapons, weaknesses."
Elena studied him in silence. There was something in him… something broken, but human.
"We need allies," she said finally. "And he knows things that could save us."
Alex wasn't entirely convinced, but agreed to keep him under constant watch.
In the days that followed, Noah was closely watched. He helped with chores, shared intel, and even assisted in healing wounds from the last attack. Some began to trust him—others, not so much.
Despite everything, he grew closer to one of the rescued teens, Lina, a girl full of spirit and compassion. She was one of the few who didn't look at him with fear or hatred. Though still fragile, their connection began to bloom.
But tension remained. No one forgot he had once been a hunter.
One night, as everyone slept, Noah sat alone by the fire. Elena approached him quietly.
"Why did you really come back?"
Noah stared into the flames.
"Because I don't want to be one of the monsters anymore."
Unbeknownst to them, in the trees beyond the camp, someone was watching.
A hunter.
And he had heard everything.