Chapter 11
I had survived this encounter with death. Now I was able to finally say goodbye to my friend Kevin. I sat in the woods and cried over the losses. I blamed myself for the useless deaths of Kevin and the caved dwellers. If it hadn't been for me they would still be alive. I should have been the one to die. I didn't know if I could even go back to the cave and face the survivors of the attack.
I started walking back to the resting spot and I looked at the destroyed remains of the bodies. I couldn't just leave them there in the open so I said a prayer for them. The same prayer that they would say when they left the cave to die on their own. Then I dragged the bodies back into the woods. Where the dinosaurs could consume them and they could then be turned into fertilizer for the flowers. I walked back to the caves with a heavy heart.
I was expecting a lot of crying and evil looks when I returned but it was the opposite. There was a lot of smiles and cheering when I returned. I couldn't help but drop to the floor and cry. The cave dwellers picked me up and comforted me they told me that I was a hero. I sure didn't feel like a hero.
“It's my fault they are dead, I put all of you in danger. How can I be a hero?”
“ You survived” one of the cave dwellers told me.
Jessica, and John welcomed me back with tears in their eyes I could tell that they were saddened by the loss of Kevin and the others but they didn't blame me.
Later that night we held a ceremony for the lives lost that day. They died bravely and were honored as heroes as well. That night I couldn't sleep. I was haunted by the fact that that we had lost so many in one day. I tossed and turned seeing images if the Allosaurus ripping poor Kevin in half and the blood dripping from it's teeth. I needed something to distract me from the horrors that haunted my mind.
I arose from my bed of rock and walked to the mouth of the cave and looked outside to the three mooned sky. I stood there for hours counting the stars. The view of stars on this planet was much clearer than it had been on Earth. There were no city lights to cancel out the star light.
The moons appeared so close that you could see the craters on them and mountains on the surface. I sure missed Earth. There were just some things on this planet that I had been taking for granted the whole time I've been here. The new friends I had made were among those things. Tomorrow would be different I would let them know how much they mean to me. For now I would stair off into they sky and let them sleep. It has been a long and painful day for everyone.