It wasn't until late the next morning that Kai woke. She opened the tent hatch only to close it again in shock. "Gandal... Gandal wake up. It found us. Wake up!" She shook him violently keeping an eye on the hatch.

'Huh... What?' Gandal said, unzipping his bed, yawning before dropping back to his pillow.

"It found us. Wake up you oaf!" As she shook him again, a black tentacle crawled through the hatch. She grabbed a sword fro behind her and took it out of it's scabbard. She kicked Gandal lightly as the tentacle tried to grab onto his leg. She cut it. "I told you to get up."

He was sleeping when it had arrived-- a giant black mass clawing its way through the village and into the tent of the unlucky inhabitants... Then he heard the screaming, that all too familiar sound signifing the end of life, and jumped to his feet, pulling out a metal pole. Upon swinging it at the dark monster, the top detached and whipped it, leaving behind a few long gashes.

Kai had heard something in the distance but she didn't care. She was a little preoccupied with the Shadow trying to take Gandal away from her. She slashed and cut away at anything that went into the tent. "We have to get out of here!"

He just kept on slashing and slashing, before realizing that it would probably more efficient to drag it away and finish it off in the forest. He swung the pole towards the thickest part of the beast, and the string that connected the detachable tip and the rest of the weapon wrapped itself multiple times around the beast. He then pulled backwards, but then the beast was upon him.
Instinctually, he dropped down, into the shadows, just leaving the beast struggling in the string.

Gandal sprung ot his feet, digging into a long pocket and revealing a slim pistol, five bullets... he thought, loading the gun and jamming it back in his pocket. He stood beside Kai, 'if we escaped, we wouldn't be in this situation.' He smiled, winked, and then ran out off the tent, a tentacle slapping at his back. Gandal spliced open his attacker, running into a thick fog.

"Hey! Don't leave me behind!" she called and ran after him. She slashed at anything that moved. When she reached the forest on the outskirts of the camp, she looked back. Tears filled her eyes as she watched everyone die. One fell down her cheek and she let it, too shocked to move. "I'm so sorry," she whispered to them all.

Gandal took her arm, 'we must go!' He shook her, hoping she would look away from the murder. He didn't want things to end up like this. He hated murder, he especially hated witnessing it. Gandal lowered his tone of voice, facing Kai, 'we need to go.'

Kai hung her head and nodded. Tears streamed down her face as she let Gandal lead her away. She wasn't attached to everyone but she was friends with most. She didn't want to leave them, but she had to. They stopped running ten minutes later. When they had, Kai sat on the ground and began to sob. "Why?"

'It was destined to happen, Kai.' Gandal sat with her, 'one way or another, it would have happened.' He smiled solemnly, taking out a small cloth, wiping away the tears that drenched her face.

"It was my turn Gandal. It was supposed to be my watch this morning. But I slept." She sniffed. "Thank you for the cloth." She put her head in her hands. "Why did it happen on my watch?"

'Calm...' He said soothily, wrapping a hand around Kai. He rested his head on her shoulder.

She brought her head onto his chest and cried. She hadn't cried since she was six years old, when she watched her family die. That was the reason she became a hunter. To hunt and protect. But she failed both. When she finally calmed down, she didn't move away. "What are we going to do now?" she asked him softly.

'We survive.' Gandal said, 'Maybe we could find some people, start up our own village?' He felt sad too but he had to stay strong, especially for Kai, he hated seeing her like this.

"There will be no-one left. It leaves no survivors. You forget, we barely escaped with our lives. Why would it leave other's. It only wants us." She let another tear drip down her face. "We can try."

'There was one person.' Gandal said, 'he looked like a good fighter, he may of got out alive, just as we did.' He lifted the cloth to her face and wiped down her tears, sighing at the distraught she was in.

"Then we shall find him. Later. Stay here the night." She pulled away from him and looked him in the eye. "Thank you."

"No problem Kai." He smiled before digging his face into the sofa arm.

No problem indeed, she thought. The only problem they had was a giant shadow chasing after them and wanting their guts for gatters. But other than that, no problem. She layed back and shut her eyes. She had forgotten how tired crying could make a person. She fell into a deep sleep quickly. She needed to rest.

The first signs of dawn stretched in, like a painting coming to life stroke by stroke. Gandal let his eyes open, it wasn't exactly dawn, the sky was still dark and he suspected a storm incoming. He sighed before trudging over to Kai and touching her arm several times.

He finally emerged from the shadows, as his wounds had finally managed to heal. Or stopped bleeding. After hours of him pressing against them. He looks around, only to be confronted my mass destruction. And the absence of the beast.

Kai woke to gandal touching her. "What is it?" she asked, opening her eyes like a butterfly. The sky was begining to see light so she sat up.

"We should go back; look for survivors." He suggested as cold bit at his neck.

"Alright... Let me wake up first," she said. She stood and walked over to a stream and began to drink the clean, flowing water. She splashed some one her face and stood.