"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, shame on the both of us."
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They walked on grassy plains.
Dall, Crimson, Sadi, Ichifuyu.
Contrary to when they were on the streets, they needn't keep too quiet here. Letting their clothes rustle, their footsteps a little audible.
As long as they didn't give any other unnecessary noise, such as screaming or anything extreme, they wouldn't get swarmed by the infected. Not here.
Why was that? It was anyone's guess.
The group–Crimson and the other scouts had multiple guesses, with two being the most prominent.
One recommendation by the three, Ichifuyu, Ash, and Sadi themselves. They suggested it was far too disconnected to the streets for there to be any infected in it.
What's more, there were far too many "natural" noises here for the infected to chase anything. As the creatures didn't use their eyes, an infected stumbling here would be jumping at its own shadow. The cover noises were just too good.
The second, from the whole group's agreement; the place was some kind of ward from the infected. Meaning, someone—something was keeping them away. Though the group didn't know who or what is causing it, something was up.
It was a unanimous agreement, partly because they wished for something to happen, and partly because of all the times they used this path, they didn't get swarmed. While it seemed like a good idea to set camp here knowing all those facts, it was quite the reverse. Camping here, or staying at a prolonged time would have your death assured.
It happened enough times that they even had statistics about it.
Investigations? Multiple ones.
"I still think this is worth investigating," Sadi said. Seeming to speak to himself.
"No," Crimson replied, firm and frank.
"You've seen how others ended up. Brutalized to the point of not being able to be recognized." Crimson said with bitterness. All of them were equally affected by those cases.
Sadi more so, as he was one of the two survivors of the camping incident.
"Yeah. Whoever is here, they don't want any of us staying for long." Ichifuyu mediated, unsure of what to say.
They knew there were people in control of this area, they just found out in the worst way possible.
Dall was otherwise silent, not knowing what to say. What would you say to someone who saw his own people disappear one by one?
This wasn't a horror movie, as reality would always be far more terrifying than a movie.
"I guess I just want closure about the whole thing. You know she does too."
Sadi spoke with a melancholic feel. They knew who she was. Her being another survivor and all.
The girl was a kind of VIP in and out of the shelter, her needs and wants were a priority compared to the usual survivor. Unlike a real-life princess though, she used her head and her influence to help keep the shelter up.
"Liz would die to get closure, I know," Crimson spoke with hardened resolve. "But we have too many things to take care of. We can help solve her parents' murders when we can assure our survival."
The group fell silent with that.
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Monsters beyond Animals.
That's what they named the incident.
