23_Sheena

A rustling sound came from behind me, startlingly close. My heart skipped a beat. In a panic, I turned around to find Sheena sitting on the ground.

"Are you okay?"

"Sorry," she said with a serious face, getting back on her feet.

"What happened?"

We were supposed to have split up in opposite directions.

"I just happened to come across this place while walking."

Sheena said, looking around.

"Really?"

That seemed impossible. We had split up to go in completely opposite directions. Why would she come all the way back to my location? It was undeniably suspicious, and Sheena must have known I'd think so. Yet, she didn't offer any explanation.

"That can't be."

I began to back away slowly, focusing all my nerves on the next words that would come out of her mouth. Depending on her answer...

But then,

"Well, yeah. Thinking about it now,It was an all too obvious lie."

Sheena casually admitted.

"What?"

Her easy acknowledgment left me feeling somewhat deflated.

Sheena was her usual self, unbothered.

Moreover...

"Dr. Tony asked me to. He said to drop you off there," she said, directing her gaze towards the sprawling collective below.

Sheena openly stated her purpose, leaving my mind racing to catch up. The words took a moment to sink in, and when they did, the disparity between her current demeanor and her actions only added to my confusion.

Then it happened.

A dull scraping noise resonated from behind. Instinctively sensing danger, I turned around. Vibrations from the ground reached me as trees from the "Forest of The End," part of the collective, started climbing up the "Tree of Gluttony" we were on. Their bodies were covered in the "Tree of Life" from the forest. The tree's surface was laden with sharp protrusions, scraping off the tree's exterior as it crawled. Its speed was unnaturally fast, closing in on us quickly.

Thud.

Amidst the dull noise, I heard footsteps. This was bad. My instincts screamed a warning.

In a panic, I turned back around to see Sheena standing before me...I braced myself for being pushed down. But, then swiftly passing by.

...What?

Sheena threw a bottle at the approaching tree. As the bottle shattered, the seedling inside began to wrap around the adversary, growing rapidly.

Almost immediately, the trees was immobilized and fell to the ground.

And then,

"I'm such an idiot. I should've just left it alone... Acted on reflex."

She murmured to herself.

Confusion deepened within me.

".... you were trying to fuse me with the collective but ended up saving me by mistake?"

I couldn't help but ask.

"Yes. I'm clumsy"

She answered matter-of-factly.

After that brief exchange,

"Well, I'll go ahead. Come if you feel like it."

She proposed as if it was the most natural thing in the world and started walking away without looking back, not even checking if I was following. Her pace was her own.

Lost for words, I found myself involuntarily following her.