Homebound

With his one hand Albert dug a shallow hole in the red dirt, dropping in the seed that is quite likely his last chance of leaving this god forsaken world. He watched as two thin wrinkled hands reached from across from him and began spreading the small mounds of dirt over the hole and looked up at the withered old man across from him as he pulled out a leather pouch and began to pour water on to the small dry patch.

“Based on the Climate I’d say we will be waiting upwards of 60 years”, said the old man still pouring water

“This isn’t home,'' Albert replied, “Things like climate, location, species mean nothing here. for all we know it could take 200 years. In the time I’ve spent here, tales of those who last saw a tree say that the ecosystem was so nurturing that when a tree died a new one would grow almost instantly in its place. And as more were destroyed it took longer and longer for the forests to replenish. Assuming it's true that a tree grows here regardless of condition, we could be here for thousands of years. indefinitely maybe. Since you managed to find a way in who knows there may be more out there somewhere that can help this one grow.”

This made the old man grumble.

“You may be older now Jer but I can still teach you a few things,” Albert said with a grin.

Albert looked at the old man. For the first time since Jeremy found him in the hellscape he took a good look at him. He was old. Of Course Albert knew this but, looking at him now he realized that he had to be about double his 35 years. His son was now old enough to be his father, maybe even grandfather.

“Have I been here that long”

The old man looked up at Albert. Their eyes met shortly before his gaze turned to Alberts left side. Toward his arm that extended only slightly past his elbow. Dark red gashes leading into his stump wrapped with old stained rags. He knew in this place where time almost stood still even the smallest of wounds took months or years to heal.

Albert, still taking in the view of the old man, noticed his gaze. He knew that look. He remembered when Jeremy was around 6, He loved to run around the house pretending to be Woody the Woodsman, a flying ax wielding character who went around saving animals in a fictional forest and facing off against his nemesis Bearwolf-man. One day he tripped and fell onto our unfortunate resting orange tabby, snapping one of his hind legs. Until his leg healed Jeremy wouldn't go near him. When Sunny came around he would just stare at his cast and avoid looking at him in the eye when would squat right in front of him looking for a snack or a petting.

Despite the 70 years he had aged since Jeremy last saw him He was the same kid.

“How is it that I didn't age but you are still the same. This arm,” Albert raised his arm, “this is not your fault”

Jeremy didn't give Albert a single glance. It had been some time since they met up in Playgor where Jeremy helped him escape the pits. The ultimate fate for those unfortunate enough to find themselves in The Hellscape. Before now they had no problem communicating but now Albert sensed a shift. They had finally found time to rest, time to look at eachother where there is no goal to chase. Even in the sadness Albert felt, seeing his once youthful and energetic son now more than twice his age and on his last leg, he couldn’t help but feel a relief. It felt like he was running a marathon and finally he could see the finish line coming in the distance.

“I led you here… I was saved… while I got old you suffered,” Jeremy started rubbing his hands on his knees before placing them on the ground to turn away. “Everyone you knew is dead: your wife, mom, dad, brother, sister, uncle, bestfriend, neighbor, favorite actor. Everyone”

Listening to Jeremy’s words reality started sinking in. Jeremy was not that little kid anymore and Albert has long felt that he was no longer the man he was back on earth. It has been ages since he had any hopes of leaving this place and making it home. But, he couldn’t bring himself to tell this to his guilt ridden son. That the man he called his father died long ago and the man he sees before him now is little less than a monster. He shuddered at the thought of what Jeremy would have witnessed if he had not found him when he did.

“You said we should turn back, but I wanted to be like Woody… more than anything I wanted to be more like you,” Jeremy sniffled as he rotated so that his back is facing Albert, “Every day you would go to work in the park and come home and tell stories about the people you met, the animals you saw, the people you rescued… You were better than Woody, you were real. You worked in the enchanted forest and for once I had a chance to experience it, Not just sitting in the car as you ran to make an errand. On that camping trip I wanted to meet cool people, see cool animals, I wanted an adventure as cool as you had everyday.”

Jeremy paused as he collected himself and more calmly he continued.

“When we went into the forest that day and saw that red tree I thought it was beautiful. The light shone down on it like a spot light and sparkled off the silver leaves like glitter. When you said that you had never seen it before I thought ‘This is my chance. I can be a part of your next adventure and when we get back we could both tell mom about our discovery’. So when you said stay back I didn't listen. I ran toward the tree ready for whatever may happen, but I never expected what did. Looking back now it was like it…”

“Was calling to you?” Albert Interjected. “To be honest when I saw the tree it felt like home. It felt like It was time for me to get off work and get home to you and your mother. I wanted to get to that tree as fast as possible but seeing you run toward it snapped me out of that feeling cause you were my home and your mother was waiting for us back at the camp…”

“You pulled me back right as I was at the tree. It wasn’t until I saw those awful hands… That… That warm feeling vanished completely; there was nothing left but fear. For years they appeared in my nightmares five no, ten.. ten of those.. those arms pulling you in all different hands. some looked like claws, one looked like the hand of a child but the worse was the one around your neck I’ll never forget it. The pinky was cut down two parts, the nails were all long and it looked as if someone had taken a bite out of the palms. I remembered just staring at it as I tried to pull you out. Then after most of you had been sucked in the color of the tree changed. The red slowly darkend, all of the leaves fell, and the light widened until the Forest looked normal and all that was left of you was a forearm…”

There was a silence for some time till only sniffles from Jeremy and whispers from the wind could be heard. Then a loud gurgling scream rang out from across the desert behind Albert. Jeremy jumped at the sound. Turning to look he spotted a tall slender figure walking toward them dragging a sword in one hand. The other hand, even from a distance, slightly blurred, Jeremy recognized. It had haunted his nightmares for 60 years. The pinky was cut down two parts, the nails were all long and it looked as if someone had taken a bite out of the palms. Jeremy had finally seen his boogey man.

His jaw dropped. Jeremy was petrified as he watched as the figure approached. Slowly he became bigger and bigger and easier to make out. His skin was a dark brownish gray color he couldn’t tell if it was painted or his natural skin. His long shirtless torso was scared with bite marks all over with a large chunk missing from his rib. His mouth hung open with a seemingly dislocated jaw and just like Albert his right eye was covered.

The man's screams became clearer when Jeremy was able to notice a pattern. Till it was finally clear, “Al… err..” Albert he was calling. This man with the hands that clasped his fathers neck dragging him into this world all those years ago had come to find him now. Jeremy looked over at Albert and the man he saw was not the “Woody the woodsman”-est figure from his childhood. Something had switched within him. What Jeremy did not know was that he and his father had the same boogeyman. However, Alberts nightmares contained more than just an arm and he had once conquered his demon, or so he thought.

Albert’s eyes were lifeless. He stared at the ground as he rhythmically pounded the ground. His breathing rate increased until finally he grabbed the sword on his side, stood and screamed with the same high pitched gargle that the approaching figure had also done. Jeremy retreated at the sight. He watched as Albert stabbed the ground with his sword, ripped off his shirt, retrieved the sword from the dirt and with another scream he sprinted out toward the figure.

Their screams synchronized leading up to clunk from the two swords clashing. The size difference was staggering. Albert was no small man roughly 5’11 but this man had to be 3 feet taller. Though he was slow, with the reach of his arm and, by extension, the sword. It made it difficult for Albert to get close for an attack. The man used only one hand to wave his sword seemingly not to attack but to defend and as he did he moved forward toward Albert when ever close reaching for him with his other hand. Albert seemingly knew this. He was too fast for the man dodging and running circles around him for mounting his attacks.

Albert ran behind the man and stabbed him in his back. As the man yelled in pain Albert ran up his back, wrapped his arms around his neck and began to bite him. He did more than just bite. He ripped a chunk of flesh off the man and began digesting it. Jeremy was stunned. His father was eating a man alive.

The man shook and screamed trying to shake Albert away but he did not loosen at all. He continued to take chunks out of the man's neck until finally the man fell to his knees, dropping his sword and reaching at his back trying to remove his attacker. Eventually he fell backward, plunging the sword into his body. Albert released him in time to roll out from under him and immediately lounged at the man again taking a bite out of his chest until there was a heart size whole here he reached his hand in and ripped his heart out, held it in the air, let out a scream and proceeded to eat it. Despite the absence of his heart the man’s body continued to twitch.

After finishing his ‘meal’ Albert walked over to the man's sword. And proceeded to cut off his limbs with each you could hear a small muffled scream coming from the man progressively getting smaller and smaller with each limb. With the final swing of the sword Albert severed the man's head from his body and kicked it away. He stood over the body for a few minutes before picking up one of the arms and returning to Jeremy.

Jeremy cowared at the return of his father. His was covered in dark red, nearly black, blood. Head to toe. He threw the arm before Jeremy and pointed at it and Jeremy while yelling in a language he had Jeremy hand never heard before until eventually he stopped, walked over to where he had been sitting prior to the appearance of the figure and and the blood of him with his shirt.

After that Jeremy and Albert just sat. Without talking, without facing each other they sat for a long time. Because the world they were in did not require them to eat, drink or sleep they sat in silence for years, undisturbed as they waited for the tree to mature. both seemingly unwilling to break the long silence in fear of the discussion of what Jeremy had witnessed his father do and the side of him Albert never wanted to show his son. Finally Albert broke the silence.