Restless Night and Survival

Earlier that day, after Aston and Kayla left Ripley's group behind, they found themselves lost in the woods.

"Ripley, what should we do? We lost sight of those commoners," Frank asked as they looked around the forest, unable to locate them. Around them, all they could see were giant trees, bushes, and the occasional bug. Around them, they heard many strange creatures calling in the distance.

To the side of them was a slope that led down into a ravine. Below were many rocks and bushes. If someone slipped and fell down the hill, one would likely not survive.

"We should find a place to stay, the sun is setting, and we should not stay out in the open," Ripley said as he was getting ready to climb up a tree. He saw Kayla do it earlier, so maybe he could figure out where they went.

However, at that moment, a scream was heard behind him. As Ripley turned around, he only saw a noble dragged into the bushes before going silent. Then a noblewomen who screamed in fear suddenly went quiet and gurgling sounds were heard. Ripley turned to see her holding her neck as blood gushed out, splattering on his face.

Jack pulled out his sword and yelled at Frank, "Protect the young master, something is here, and it is too fast for us to see. He stood in the center of the clearing looking around to see if he could capture the enemy's movements. However, as he was pacing in a circle, he tripped slightly on a rock, and his sword was met clang, and sparks flew. At that moment of collision, Jack saw something.

"It's a person! An assassin most likely sent here to kill the young master!" However, Jack's luck did not keep up, and the next thing he knew, his world spun, and he collapsed dead. His head was facing the wrong way. The assassin had broke his neck.

Frank stood in front of Ripley and pushed him behind him. "Young master, stand behind me. Your father would never forgive us if we allowed you to die." Frank said as he held his sword in front of him.

"You mean Father sent you to protect me during the exam? I thought Father sent me here to die?" Ripley asked as they slowly backed up from the clearing.

"Do you really think your father wishes you dead? He sent us here to help you pass the exam. All your father wants is for you to do something good with your life, learn how to put aside your pride, and ask for help when you are lost." Frank said as he suddenly stopped moving and stared straight ahead.

Lucsius appeared before them, "I am not here to kill some random "noble. "What is so noble about you? You're so weak you can't even see my attacks, and you're shaking in your shoes as we speak. Your dead friend got lucky and tripped at the last second; otherwise, you would have never known what was attacking you." Lucsius said as he spun his dagger around in his hands.

"I have a much more important target. You guys are just part of my appetizer," Lucsius licked his lips, and his eyes flickered in excitement. Ripley was staring at the monster in human skin in front of him, and he swore he saw his eyes look like a serpent's for a second, but when he looked again, they seemed normal.

"Alright, time for you to join the afterlife with your friends!" Lucsius said as he began to run towards them before vanishing.

At the moment Lucsius began to run, Frank pushed Ripley backward. Frank had been slowly moving towards the slope leading to a ravine this whole time.

"I'm sorry, Ripley," Frank said as Ripley fell backward into the ravine and rolled down the slope before landing and hitting his head on a rock. Blood pooled next to his head.

Lucsius, who was watching, looked down at Ripley, then appeared behind Frank and stabbed him in the heart. "All that talk about protecting him, and you killed him yourself? What is up with that?" Lucsius asked as he pulled his dagger out.

"Better by my hands than the hands of a stranger," Frank said as he coughed up blood and dropped dead to the ground.

"Humans sure are weird and weak." Lucsius then spent a moment talking to himself before he licked the blood of his dagger in satisfaction. As he prepared to leave, a voice called out behind him.

"Amitabha"

A while later, as the sun was setting, Ripley awoke; his head hurt like hell, and he was covered in his blood. "Ahh," he said as he held his head which was still bleeding somewhat. "Why did Frank push me down here? Was all that a lie?"

As Ripley climbed back up the slope to the clearing, he found the dead body of Frank. "No, he saved me. If he hadn't risked me dying in the fall, that demon would surely have killed me. Luckily his gamble paid off, and I survived."

As Ripley stood there, he heard the bushes move, and his heart stopped. As he peered into the dense bushes, he suddenly heard the rustling and movement again. Even knowing it was pointless, he pulled out his dagger. The demon boy was back again. He clenched his dagger tightly, and his knuckles turned white.

Suddenly, a group of Compys emerged from the underbrush, their sharp, serrated teeth gleaming in the light of the setting sun. The Compys were small, about the size of chickens, but their demeanor was anything but harmless.

Their scales shimmer in shades of green and brown, and their sharp, agile movements make them seem almost like a swarm of insects as they move toward their target. Their eyes fixed hungrily on the nearby dead bodies. They darted forward with lightning-fast movements to begin tearing at the bodies.

Ripley sighed in relief and then got mad as he tried to kick the little chicken-sized dinosaurs away from Frank and Jack's bodies. Although he had not known them long, they had been good to him and even saved his life. It was the least he could do to protect their bodies for their family.

However, despite his efforts, there were too many of them, and many more came out from the underbrush. As he kicked once more, one of them bit him in the leg and got a taste of his blood. With a call that sounded like a duck but more high-pitched. The small horde of Compys turned to look at Ripley with their beady little eyes. The one that bit him licked its lips and squeaked once more.

Suddenly the swarm of Compys started to chase after Ripley and nipped at his legs. Hoping for him to fall down. Ripley was not very brave in the first place. He took off running when he realized these little fiends could hurt him.

Not long after, Ripley saw Aston and Kayla in a tree in the distance and ran toward them.

"Ripley?" Aston looked down at the blood-covered Noble.

"Aston, Kayla, you have to help me. An assassin is here in the exam, and he is after someone, but I am not sure who. He killed everyone in my group and is out there right now hunting.

"An assassin?" Kayla pondered a moment before thinking of someone. "What did he look like?"

After Ripley described the boy to them, they stood there in contemplation. "I knew that there was something wrong with him," Kayla said as she looked around the giant forest.

"I wonder who he is after?" Aston asked as he, too, looked into the darkening forest.

"Can you guys help me up the tree?" Ripley asked as he panted at the base of the tree. "I am hurt pretty bad, and I need to rest," Ripley said as he raised his hand.

After helping Ripley climb up the tree, which was about 400 feet tall, Aston ripped the sleeves off his long sleeve shirt and used them to bandage Ripley's Head. The trio were not at the top of the tree but were about 80 feet up, resting on a large branch.

"Thanks for helping me, Aston, Kayla. I am sorry for being rude to you guys before," Ripley said as he rubbed his head in embarrassment. All that talk about nobles, and he ended up needing a commoner's help. Maybe his dad was right.

"You're welcome. Glad to help," Aston said as they sat there. Aston didn't think much of it. Truthfully Ripley hadn't done much to him other than the occasional remark. That was not enough to make Aston not help him when his life was in danger.

"So, can you tell us more about what happened?" Kayla asked as she walked over and checked Ripley's bandages.

After telling them everything that had happened before he was knocked out, Aston and Kayla were surprised. From Ripley's description, this boy was extremely fast and strong. With the weird eyes and the rest of the information, it took Kayla only a short time to come up with an idea. "Most likely, a being from another race managed to somehow sneak in as a participant in order to complete their assassination. I am unsure how they could fool all the bio scanners, but they did. Some alien races have significant strength. We need to be cautious," Kayla tightened the grip on her bow.

The group spent little sleep. The anxiety and fear of the unknown kept them on edge throughout the night. As the sun rose in the distance, alarms could be heard from the base in the distance.

"They must have figured out something was wrong. More than likely, they will send people to capture the assassin." Aston said as he stood up and looked into the distance. At that moment, Aston heard a voice coming from below.

"I finally found you! Do you know how long I have been looking for you?" Lucsius said as he appeared below the tree. "As soon as I kill you, I can finally return to my master." Lucsius then kicked the tree with great force, and Aston, Kayla, and Ripley fell off.

As they were about to fall, Aston looked around to see if there was a way to break their fall. Behind the tree, there was a pond. Aston grabbed Kayla and Ripley and kicked off the tree to push them further away from the tree. Kayla and Ripley only saw the tree quickly moving away from them, wind rushing past them, and the next thing they knew, splash! They found themselves submerged underwater.