The Forest

Gene’s body collapsed against the twisted tree trunk. Hands resting on top of his knees, he stared at the ground, panting for air.

“How much longer?” Brooke removed her backpack and tossed it on a bed of leaves.

“How the hell are we supposed to know? This was your idea!”

My eyes squinted through the thick fog as I listened to them argue. My ears struggled to make out sounds in the distance. “Enough! We’re lost. Regardless of who’s fault it is, we need to get out of here.”

We ventured down a dark path. Trees hovered over us like shadows stalking our souls. The crunching leaves underneath our feet intermingled with the howl of the wind as it swept through the forest.

Brooke stumbled, crashing against my back. The sound of laughter crept toward us as Gene placed his hand over his mouth.

“Keep quiet.”

“Wait, who made you the leader?” Gene placed his hands on his hips.

I moved toward him, grabbing him up by his shirt collar. “You can’t read a map. Your girlfriend can’t follow handwritten instructions. The better question is, why am I out here with you two idiots.” I released my grip, turned around, and continued down the path.

They followed behind me like lost sheep. Every few steps a grunt or mumble escaped one of their lips. A wall of silence fell between the three of us as we struggled to find our way back to the road.

The forest opened. The fog lifted. A house, nestled deep within the blackness, came into view. My feet hesitated to move any further as Brooke and Gene walked past me. Their pace quickened. The closer they moved toward the house, the further my soul drifted away. 

My eyes widened as a branch snapped behind me. My head turned. My body shifted as my foot pivoted. Within the mist it stood.

His arms by his side, his hands opened. Long fingers with sharp nails, the hairless creature walked toward me.

I stepped backward before turning and sprinting toward the house. I bolted through the front door, slamming into Brooke.

“Hey, watch it!”

The crashing of the door against the frame forced Gene to run into the room.

“What’s wrong?”

“Something’s out there.”

“Oh, don’t be ridiculous,” Brooke said. “We’ve been out here all this time and haven’t seen anyone.”

“I didn’t say someone. I said something.” I walked to the window, pulled back the curtain, and peeked through the glass. Nothing was there. My body leaned up against the wall.

“She’s losing it,” Brooke whispered to Gene. They glanced at me and left the room. 

I ventured through the lower part of the house while Gene and Brooke made their way upstairs. A lone door rested against the far end of the hall. The floor creaked as I pushed open the door

and entered the room.

A wooden desk rested in the middle, surrounded by a couple of bookshelves. My eyes perused the binders and notebooks neatly stacked at the edge of the table. I sat in the chair and opened one of the folders.

Sketches of creatures made up the first few pages. Flipping through, I stopped when I saw it–the creature from the woods. My body pressed against the desk, I studied the figure. His black eyes. His claws. His teeth.

Gene and Brooke trampled down the steps, the sound vibrating against the walls as the old house creaked with the wisp of the wind. They made their way through the door as thunder cracked open the sky. Blackness surrounded us.

“Great!” Brooke shuffled around in her backpack. She slammed her hand against her flashlight. No light. She slammed it again, harder than before. A bright light reflected off the walls as she moved it around the room.

I motioned for her to bring the light over to the notebook.

“What the hell is that?”

“That’s what I saw outside.”

“This again.”

“Look, you two ran off like scared chickens. I’m the one who had enough sense to look around first.”

“Okay, let’s say you’re right.”

“Gene!”

“Now, let’s be fair. We didn’t see it. So, let’s say she’s right. What would you like us to do?”

I rolled my eyes and continued flipping through the pages as the lights came back on. Another sketch appeared. “Wait, these are different.”

“Who cares? He’s an artist.”

“What?”

Brooke pointed to the plaque on the wall. “Dane Pine. He was awarded the best graphic designer for his depictions of aliens.”

“Aliens?” I looked back down at the book. “These aren’t aliens.”

“Have you ever seen one?” Brooke walked over and leaned against the desk. “What if we’ve been wrong all these years? What if they look more like us?”

I thumbed through the rest of the notebook while the two idiots I called friends argued about whether or not we were actually aliens. Landing on a page of text, I ran my fingers down the page, blocking out the unnecessary banter coming from the other side of the room.

“In the deep forest rests a beast unlike any other. His claws are long and teeth are sharp. My eyes fell upon one on the twelfth of October in the year of 2017.”

I flipped the page and continued, “My desire to walk in the cool air came about as a need to shake off the bitterness of my failing marriage. The trees coccooned my soul, providing shelter from the storms hovering over me. It was at that point that I found solitude in the forest. I’d venture nightly to the same spot but on that fatal day, my eyes met the night creature. I’ve been haunted ever since.”

“That’s it?”

“No.” I slammed the book shut and got up from the chair. “He thinks there’s more than one.” I walked out the room and made my way to the front door.

Gene scurried into the room and placed his hand on the door. “What are you doing?”

“Getting out of here.”

“Are you kidding me? We’re not going out there with that thing.”

“Oh, so now you believe me. Look if the two of you want to die here, be my guest. But my taking my ass home.” I pulled open the door. Silence swallowed me as I walked down the concrete steps

and onto the gravel.

The door slammed behind me. Their footsteps beat against the night sky as they shuffled toward me.

“What’s the plan?”

“Survive.”

“Oh, that’s original.”

My nostrils flared as my eyes landed on Brooke. She twisted her lips and turned her head as Gene cleared his throat.

We walked for hours, traipsing through the wood. I folded my arms across my body, trying to provide some warmth as the chill of the forest stalked us.

“Guys, stop!” Brooke turned her head and looked in my direction. “Do you hear that?”

I nodded and looked over my shoulder. Gene’s body trembled as sweat poured down his forehead. Trying to get his attention, his eyes remained fixated on the ground. I grabbed him by the hand and sprinted through the forest, pulling him along as Brooke ran ahead.

A howl echoed throughout the forest as snapping tree branches crashed to the ground. My eyes

remained on the path ahead as my legs pumped, jumping over rocks and branches, trying to remain on my feet.

Gene’s fingers slipped from my hands. My pace slowed as I turned to face him. Two of them appeared, one on each side of him. Grabbing hold of his arms, they pulled him in opposite directions.

His screams pounded against my ears. Brooke ran toward him. I grabbed her arm and pulled her toward me. Struggling to break free, she stopped fighting as a third creature appeared behind him.

His fist punched through Gene’s back. Blood shot out of his mouth. His body jerked as the creatures thrusted his fist through his chest. Gene’s body collapsed.

My eyes widened as they tore into his flesh. Brooke’s screams forced me back into reality. I grabbed her hand and pulled her through the forest.

We kept a steady pace for awhile, but tired, collapsing in a ditch. Crawling toward an opening, underneath a few fallen trees, we huddled in the cold. Howling souls surrounded us. Our bodies trembled, fighting to hold on to the last bit of warmth we could find.

“What do you have in your backpack?”

Brooke unzipped her bag and pulled out the contents. A couple of flashlights and a pocket knife fell out.

“Stay here,” I said as I picked up the pocket knife.

I crawled my way back to the clearing, collecting thick branches. Dragging them back through the ditch, I began sharpening the edges with the knife.

“You don’t seriously expect us to fight these things?”

“If we want to make it out of here, we’ll have to.”

Tears streamed down Brooke’s cheeks. “Gene.”

“Listen to me. I know you’re pregnant.”

Her eyes widened as she glanced at me. “How?”

“Last Saturday, we went for fish and you threw up all over the waiter.”

“Oh, I forgot all about that.”

I offered a smile. “You were going to tell him on this trip?”

She nodded her head and wiped the tears from her face.

“I won’t let anything happen to you, alright? You have to trust me.” I continued to sharpen the branches and placed them inside Brooke’s backpack.

“What now?”

“We need to get out of here.” 

We left the ditch and made our way to the path. Our feet tread lightly as we walked through the forest. A sense of calm fell over us as the fog lifted and chill dissipated enough for our bodies to adjust.

My hand gripped the branch as the sound of crunching gravel and leaves crept up behind me. “Don’t turn around. Keep walking.” The sound moved closer. A snarl echoed behind us. The warmth of its breath moved closer to my neck.

My foot pivoted as my body turned. My arm swung. The creature raised his arm, fanning his claws toward my face. I stepped backward, gripped the branch, and thrust it into his chest.

His body crashed to the ground as a wail leapt from his mouth. I leaned over top of the branch and pushed it further inside. His arms collapsed to the ground.

Brooke ran over. We both stared at the creature, studying it, trying to figure out what it was. Large, almond-shaped, black eyes accented a flat nose. I knelt down and pushed its lips back. His monstrous teeth were razor sharp.

“It’s not an alien.”

I chuckled as my body straightened. “No, it’s not.” I pulled the branch out of its chest. “We need to keep moving.”

We ventured further down the path. About a half-hour in, Brooke stopped and stared at the road.

“I know where we are.” She pointed to a small opening, “down there.”

We sprinted down the road. A smile spread across my face as the dirt path led us to the main

road. 

Brooke turned around and threw her arms around me. “We’re going to be okay.”

“Yes we are.”

Howls split the forest in half. My body turned to face the woods. Fear penetrated my body as the realization that the others may have found the one I killed. I backed away from the woods as a car

approached.

Brooke flagged down the driver. She stopped and offered us a ride into town.

Getting into the car, I wondered how we were going to explain this. No one would believe us. I’m not even sure I believe what I saw. But Gene was gone and we needed answers.

Brooke grabbed hold of my hand as the car started up. We survived the night, but peering deep into the forest, I knew this was only the beginning.