Isolation

Chapter 14

"There's a tree that goes over the river," Gino said.

They looked at where he was pointing. It wasn't the tallest tree around them, and a couple of branches were stretching across the gap like arms linking together.

"That's pretty tall," Addison said. "Wouldn't it just be easier going across the water?"

"We don't know how many alligators are in the water," Mark said. "We can't risk it. If one of those even grabs and arm or leg, we're for sure dead. They roll and drown their prey. Good call, Gino. We're going up. Blaez, stay."

The tree wasn't hard to climb up. The branches were thick enough to hold a person's weight, and there was a lot of them. Mark was glad no one was afraid of heights. He had climbed trees before in simulations. They weren't so bad. This felt about the same way except for the smells. The bark smelled like pine, and the leaves looked like flat needles.

"This is going pretty high, guys," Austin said. "Are we sure it's safe to cross?"

"Well, the higher you go, the weaker the branches get," Addison said, "and we're nowhere near the top, so I think we'll be okay."

"Just don't grab any branches that have brown needles," Mark said. "Those are brittle and break easy. Watch."

He grabbed one and pulled on it. It broke where he had grabbed it. It didn't fall and only caught on a healthy limb.

"Good to know," he said. "Speaking of break, couldn't we have just cut some trees down and made a bridge?"

"Maybe," Mark said, "but we don't have the tools."

"You have Wolfbane," Addison said.

"It's a sword, not an axe," he said. "It would have taken all day to cut down enough trees to make a bridge with."

Mark reached the top of the tree. He bounced on the branches wrapping around like a vine braiding the truck of a tree. The branches formed a thin bridge with the tops of the trees on the other side. The bouncing shook the tree, and Austin hugged the trunk like a child would hold a teddy bear. He squeezed his eyes shut.

"Oh, ooh," he whined. "I hate this. I really hate this."

"It looks safe to cross," Mark said.

Austin heard a loud buzz and opened his eyes. A large beetle the size of his fist landed on the same trunk he was holding. It was a shiny black with what looked like a rhino's horn. He smirked a little bit. The pictures he saw didn't do it justice. It was pretty cool to see one.

It opened its shell and buzzed its wings, making Austin shout and lose his grip. He teetered over the branch and started falling.

"Austin!" Mark shouted.

He grabbed a branch with his hand and looked down at the ground. He was able to grab with his other hand and pull himself up. He hugged the trunk again, tighter this time.

"I should have just swum across," he said.

"Baby," Addison muttered and continued climbing.

They made it to the top. Mark was already on the other side.

"It'll hold," he said. "Crawl on your knees. It makes it easier to balance."

Gino went first. He looked down at the river and gulped. Hitting the water wouldn't kill them, but the alligators would. He moved along slowly, taking each movement with careful consideration. They stayed about ten feet apart. The branches were sturdy and held them without bowing or snapping. Austin looked at the alligators gathering on the shore below.