The survivors collapsed near the fire, shaking. No one spoke for a long while. Finally, Patrick broke the silence.
"They're not going to stop. Not until we find out what caused this eclipse."
"Caused?" Marla echoed bitterly. "You think this has a reason? This is the end of the world."
"Maybe," Patrick said. He looked around at his friends, their faces lit by dying firelight. Evelyn clutching his sleeve. Leo scowling but steady. Maya breathing hard, blood on her crowbar. Yonah scribbling furiously. Carlos watching the horizon with haunted eyes.
"Or maybe," Patrick continued, "it's something we can end."
The others stared at him. Hope flickered, fragile but real.
In the endless dark, it was the only light they had left.
