Chapter Text
Several survivors sat by a campfire. Each chattered among themselves, most talking to the people nearby them. Becca sat behind her brother Gavin, her back to a fence. Her brother talked to two other men who he seemed incredibly close with. Although he never outright said it, Becca knew at least one of them was his boyfriend. Gavin seemed closer to Parker at first, but now the three of them were inseparable outside of rounds. She never really talked much to either Parker or Ryder, maybe once or twice when reviving them, but to be fair, she didn’t talk to many people in the Mist.
As she silently sat, not interacting with anyone, a voice spoke above her. “Uhh, guys?”
The crowd went quiet as all of them turned to see Kelvin. His expression was dark with visible concern. “You might want to come see this…”
All of them exchanged glances with each other before following wherever the tracker was leading them.
Becca’s heart thumped loudly in her chest. Kelvin usually didn’t take anything seriously, even when it should have been. So, seeing that expression on his face was stuck to her mind like glue.
Something is wrong, isn’t it?
“Hey, are you okay?” A voice spoke, snapping Becca out of her thoughts. Glancing at the voice, it was Gavin.
“Yeah.” She sighed. “This worried me, that’s all.”
“Look, Kelvin is far from the most serious person here. It’s probably just something unimportant, that’s all.”
Becca stopped in her tracks. “Did you see his expression?” Gavin blinked, obviously not understanding what the hell she was trying to say. “His expression is what I’m worried about. He isn’t ever serious, and he looked genuinely concerned.”
“Maybe it’s just a lead-in to a prank,” Gavin suggested.
“Doubtful.” She muttered under her breath. She knew her brother was just trying to comfort her, but nothing was comforting about it. It felt dismissive, although she had a feeling that wasn’t his intention, but she didn’t want to continue the conversation. Instead, she quickly speed-walked toward the group again.
For the rest of the walk, she kept her head down, staring at her shoes. Was this seriously all in her head? Was Kelvin really “just pranking them?” It didn’t make sense, especially because he had an awful poker face.
Suddenly, the survivors in front of her stopped walking. She almost crashed into them, but was barely able to make herself stop. Her blue eyes looked toward the right to see what this was all about, and her fears were correct. Something was wrong.
There was a tiny rip in one of the rocks. Mist seeped out of the grassy terrain from the crack, even though there was no visible mist.
“Did anything change, Sanjana?” Kelvin asked his coworker.
Sanjana shook her head. “No. Nothing changed, but I haven’t figured out what caused it either.”
“What does this rip even mean…?” Makoto eyed the rip, her eyes round with fear, and a nervous expression plastered on her face.
“I have no idea. Believe me, I’d love to know.”
“Is it dangerous?” Another person in the crowd asked. Becca didn’t see who it was, though.
The interrogator shrugged. “All we know is this rip wasn’t here at least a few rounds ago. Now, it is. I asked Kel to bring you all here, just to tell you that if you notice anything weird, tell us both. We know more about the Mist than all of you.”
Everyone nodded, some murmuring in agreement.
The two dismissed the group, letting all of them continue with their night. While walking back, it was almost completely silent. No one knew what to say. It wasn’t many side conversations, at least ones Becca could hear, only the occasional concerned whisper to the person next to them. Some went back to the campfire, while others went to their cabins. Becca chose the latter. She didn’t really have the energy to talk to anyone after that.
Settling down into her bed, Becca stared at her ceiling, frowning. Something isn’t right. I just know it. She sighed, turning over to her side as she closed her eyes, slowly drifting off to sleep.
“Becs, can you read me a story?” The sounds of Gavin when he was young shot her awake. As soon as her eyes opened, there were more sounds: Gavin’s voice, her parents’, and even Helen’s. It might’ve been another trick from Unforgotten, but other noises were usually heard in-game, like the whoosh of a knife and Ghost emerging from a blood pool. Usually, the misty creature didn’t mimic those noises. All of these overlapped, completely deafening Becca. Suddenly, the ground began shaking, as if an earthquake was happening. To the best of her abilities, she stumbled out of her cabin.
As soon as she stepped out, she saw Sanjana’s hand, gesturing to the left, yelling something Becca couldn’t hear.
She approached Sanjana. “What’s happening?”
“The rip opened wider. As soon as it did, all of this started.”
“Then what do we do?”
“The Mist is somehow collapsing.” She answered with her eyebrows pressed together in each with confusion. Even someone studying the Mist could barely understand how it worked, let alone what was happening. “I don’t know what will happen if we stay, but the rip should still be wide enough to go through. You need to run, though.”
Becca nodded, sprinting. Truthfully, she had no idea where she was going. It was by some rocks, but most of the walk, she kept her gaze at her feet, a stupid decision in hindsight, but she didn’t know that at the time.
Everywhere she turned led to no avail. Frustration churned in her stomach as her hair pricked with anxiety. What was even happening? She had been stuck with her for over three decades at this point, Gavin’s age proved that, and possibly more. Yet, she never experienced anything like this.
Turning a corner, Becca saw someone in the distance, someone she recognized. The man’s head whipped around, seemingly anxiously trying to find someone. “Gavin?” Becca called out.
Gavin turned to his sister. “Becca?” Immediately, both of them ran, hugging each other.
After a few moments, Becca pulled back. Gavin followed. “Do you know where the rip is?”
“Yeah, but I don’t know where Parker is, and I need to find him before I go through it.”
“And you were just going to assume I already escaped?” She teased him lightheartedly.
The cop frowned. “That’s not what I meant.”
She chuckled. “I know, don’t worry.” Gavin didn’t reply or smile. It wasn’t the right time to tease her younger brother. There was an uncomfortable silence between them for a few moments, until another collection of voices from the Mist overlapped with each other, followed by another shake. This time more violent than the last. “We need to go. We can find Parker on the way.”
Gavin nodded. He knew she was right, but that anxiety wouldn’t leave until they found him.
Both of them sprinted with Gavin leading the way. Occasionally, the ground shook again, and each grew more violent than the last.
In the distance, Becca could see the rip. As she approached it, it was big enough for someone to go through, like Sanjana said, but it seemed to be sewing itself shut and doing it fast. Glancing around, she noticed someone in the corner of her eye. She turned her head, and her eyes widened as she saw Parker. The bartender looked lost, like she had been a few minutes prior.
“Becca, are you okay?” She heard Gavin ask, but she didn’t turn to him.
“I’m fine. Go inside the rip.” But Gavin hesitated. “Go.” She repeated. He still didn’t move. “I will be right behind you. I promise.” That finally made her brother sigh and walk through. Instead of following right back to him, she bolted toward the bartender. “Becca? What the hell are you doing?!” He yelled through the rip. Becca ignored his protests and kept running. “There’s not enough time!”
Gavin’s yells only boosted her adrenaline. As soon as she was close enough to hear, she yelled. “Parker!” The man turned to her. “I know where the rip is! Take my hand!” The bartender blinked a few times, seemingly stunned, but reached out his hand. As soon as their hands clasped together, both of them sprinted, to the best of their abilities, with Becca leading this time. However, the shakes, the noise, everything was growing more violent and more frequent. Each stumble, each time they tried desperately to get air, felt like it would be the end. She noticed in the corner of her eye some movement from Parker, but there was no time to check behind her. The rip was close enough to see, but still in the distance.
“Grab my hand.” Parker wheezed.
Becca’s head whipped behind her. “What?”
“Just trust me.”
Becca blinked with confusion, but grabbed his hand.
Parker took a shot of his drink, and immediately after, it felt like they were ten times faster for a brief amount of time. Becca once saw the bartender take a shot during a chase. The Banshee’s claws raised toward him, but he dashed out of their way, with speed she hadn’t seen prior. As the effect dwindled, both of them slowed down. The rip was only a few feet away, yet both of them were exhausted.
We need to keep going for Gavin. Determination surged through her body, as another boost of adrenaline boosted her stamina. That boost finally was enough to bring them to the rip. However, the rip was smaller than it was before. It looked like only one of them could fit through, especially considering Parker’s size compared to hers.
Parker froze, unsure what to do, but Becca knew. Impulsively, she used all of her strength to shove Parker through the rip before it was too small for either of them to escape. As soon as Parker phased through to the other side, the rip was only a little sliver. Right before the rip was sewn completely shut, Becca smiled at her brother, who looked terrified. All she did was mouth “I love you,” then a blinding white light blinded her vision, as well as her brother’s.
Becca lived through the Mist for over three decades. What was another decade more? Sure, it might be completely different than before, possibly resulting in her death, if the Mist was truly breaking that is. However, Parker was relatively new, and someone she knew her brother cared deeply about, most likely boyfriends. That’s all that mattered to Becca in the end. She could protect her brother and someone he cherished.
cherished.