Many hours passed. Maybe even days. Who knows.
In here, time had stopped meaning anything. No sunrise, no clock, no pulse from the world beyond these gray walls.
I tried counting my breaths to pass the time.
—One. —Two. —Three.
Didn't help though. Who would have thought?
Sarah, the camp's leader — sent teams of two to scavenge whatever little the maze had to offer every few hours. Most of the supplies came from old corpses scattered throughout the labyrinth.
Coincidentally, the three mimics volunteered for every trip. Maybe because they were faster… or maybe because they didn't need rest the same way we did.
Still, the thought wouldn't leave me.
'They're not killing other survivors and stealing from them… right?'
The image of Charles chewing on a corpse's eyeball clawed its way back into my mind. Nausea followed.
'No matter. I had more important things to worry about than overthinking.'
I stepped across the small ring of grass surrounding the lone tree at the camp's center. A few hours ago, Josh had shown me a map Sarah carved into the bark — corridors explored, paths leading here, dead ends.
'I'm half certain the mimics know more routes than we do' I thought.
'But Charles claims otherwise… and the other two barely speak to me. Probably for the better.'
"Quite impressive, isn't it?"
Charles's voice slipped in behind me, carrying that same unsettling smile I'd grown almost used to — like a bad smell you stop noticing after a while.
"It is," I muttered flatly. I wasn't in the mood for conversation.
"I wonder how long she's been stuck in here," he said, tilting his head. "Poor thing looks so closed off."
"Let's respect her boundaries, Charles."
I sighed, hoping he'd take the hint.
Then came a sudden, bone-crushing scream from somewhere deep in the corridors. It lasted barely a second before being swallowed by silence.
I froze. Every muscle tensed.
Charles tilted his head again, his expression unchanged. "That came from the southern hall," he said softly. "Want to check it out, partner?"
It had to be a trap. Sarah had warned me about this in our conversation earlier.
"They're not just mimics," she'd said. "They move like a hive — perfect coordination without a word between them."
The other two mimics were still out scavenging. If that scream was connected to them, this could be bait, and Charles was the lure.
'Why, though?'
'They're supposed to be friendly for now. They want to escape too and they wouldn't need to set traps to get rid of us.'
The realization sank in like ice water.
'This thing,— Charles is outsmarting us again.'
"No thanks, Charles," I finally said, forcing my voice steady. "Whatever's happening out there, we've already sent two people to check it out. Sending more isn't worth the risk."
His smile didn't falter. "If you say so, partner."
But his eyes stayed fixed on me — watching. Waiting.
Not wanting to speak further with that thing, I went to look for Josh, leaving Charles alone at the tree — the map — unaware of how severe that small action might turn out to be.
I found Josh near the makeshift tents, sitting opposite Sarah. She looked tense and shut off as always. The starved boy looked just as tired and messy as I remembered.
"Sarah. Josh."
I sat down beside them.
"What are you doing?"
"We're running low on water," Sarah said. "Two small bottles left between us."
"The mimics let us have all of it, at least," Josh added quickly. "Didn't expect them to be that kind."
'They eat but don't drink? Are there animals that don't need water? Maybe I shouldn't apply logic to… whatever those things really are.'
I exhaled tiredly. "Don't be so naive, Josh. If anything, they don't drink because they don't need hydration."
"Yuwon's right," Sarah said coldly. "Those things killed most of our friends. Don't forget that because of a few kind gestures."
'She can barely hide her hatred for them… I wonder how long she's really been trapped here.'
Before I could ask, multiple footsteps echoed from the corridor.
—One. —Two. —Three. —Four…?
'Was my hearing fooling me?'
I stood quickly, Josh and Sarah following suit.
"Miss, the scavenge team is back!"
Charles's voice carried that uncanny cheer.
The two mimics behind him were panting, pretending to be out of breath — but not a drop of sweat clung to them.
"They said they gathered food, water, and cloth," Charles continued. "But they had to leave it behind to escape a mimic."
'Bullshit. He knows we know. But starting a fight would get us killed. We have no choice but to swallow their lies.'
"I see. That's unfortunate," Sarah said calmly, masking her frustration. "I see you managed to find another survivor?"
Charles stepped aside. My blood turned to ice.
I bit down hard on my lip — hard enough to taste iron — hoping the pain would drown the nausea rising in my throat.
In front of me stood a person. Or something pretending to be one.
Blonde hair. Brown sweater. Black jeans.
I recognized them.
It was an exact copy of the corpse Charles had eaten the eye from — the same one whose eye he'd given me.
Then the realization struck.
'There are only mimics of the dead. Never of the living.
If all they have to do is kill to multiply, why bother working with us at all? They're faster, stronger, tireless— they don't need us.'
Charles glanced at me, face blank, smile unwavering — but his eyes looked curious. Almost as if he was waiting for me to understand. Waiting for me to figure their scheme out.
'They never teamed up with us. They've been hunting — using these "scavenge trips" to kill survivors and lure more mimics here.'
Cold sweat crawled down my neck. The world tilted. Sarah and Charles kept talking, their voices fading to static as my thoughts screamed.
'This camp isn't safe. It never was. We built our own cage — and now they're closing the door.'
I forced my shaking legs to stay still. No one could know I'd figured it out.
'Damn it. We have to leave. Josh, Sarah, and I — today, the sooner the better.'
Later that day, I tried to pull Sarah aside, but with four mimics now in the camp, every move I made felt watched. Supervised.
'Damn it! Even a normal conversation might seem suspicious. I can't take that risk.'
I buried my face in my hands, wishing I could disappear.
Then a thought appeared — a sliver of hope.
'We'll go on a scavenge trip together. That's when I'll tell them. It's the only way — the only chance left.'