Chapter 2: The woods

                                    

                                          

     As I stepped out of the tent, I was greeted by the sight of trees all around. Huge trees blocked my view in every direction. There were about three possible routes I could take, but I had no idea where I was or what I might find. Regardless, I still had to choose a path. I have never been the type to wing it, but in this particular situation, it seemed like the only choice. As I started to walk, I heard footsteps coming in my direction. I had just managed to recover my strength, and my movements were still too sluggish to run or do anything. I just grabbed my sharp piece of glass and prepared for the worst.
      It turned out to be Emilia. She had just returned with another person. After seeing me tightly gripping the sharp piece of glass, both stopped.
 "Hey, Ten," the man said, addressing me. "Dude, chill out. We were just getting something to eat," he said once more, noticing the piece of glass in my hand.
"The fuck is Ten? And why is she talking to me all calm and relaxed now?"
 "Ten?" I repeated, yet again, confused by what he had just said.
 "Your neck tattoo, it's your number, right?" Emilia said as she watched me relax and put away the glass in my back pocket. "I have one too, see?"
     In the same fluid motion, she approached me, pulling her hair to the side. As she tilted her head, I could see she had a black mark just like mine. Her mark resembled a small V. Thinking back to what she said...
 "If she called me Ten, that must mean the X on my neck is the Roman numeral for ten. Which means she has the Roman numeral for five on hers."
 "So, does that make you a five?" I said sarcastically, pretending to make sense of what was going on.
 "Hahaha, no man, I'm definitely a ten, an eight at worst..."
     Her poor attempt at a joke was quickly dismissed by my lack of understanding. Still, it was ballsy of her to attempt it nevertheless, which was commendable. I had two total strangers in front of me, and I knew nothing else other than that Emilia might know something about these marks or tattoos on our necks, why we have them, and that she is somewhat of a failed comedian. 
 "My kind of girl."
     Aside from that, there was another guy who had yet to introduce himself. Seriously, he hadn't said a word since they both showed up. Most of the time, he was just looking around, kind of alert. He looked at me probably twice but dismissed me quickly. Maybe I didn't seem like a threat to him. He had long black hair tied up in a bun like a ponytail. He refused to change his serious look as he continued admiring our surroundings. I also noticed he was carrying a knife in his side pocket, aside from another one in his ankle.
 "Geez, Trent. Try to relax a little. We're safe here," Emilia said, putting her hand around Trent's shoulder, all easygoing, trying to help him relax. "He always gets like this," Emilia said, looking at me.
 "You haven't even known me for that long, what are you talking about?" the ponytail guy replied, annoyed.
"Ah, he talks."
     Seeing as he was finally willing to speak, it seemed like a good idea to get to know more about what was going on. I had to see if they knew anything I could make sense of.
 "So, where are we?" I asked, looking at both of them.
     Emilia sat down. "Well, to be completely honest, my friend, I have no clue. Mr. Stiff Guy here and I met each other a few hours ago and decided to rest where we are right now."
 "Wait, you guys have only known each other for a few hours? Then how did you meet?" I asked.
 "Hahaha, funny story actually."