A thunderous crack radiated outward, and he recoiled, dazed. On the cold ground, he strived to raise his head. It felt like he had been smacked by a baseball bat. Sitting upright, he struggled to keep his body from slumping to the ground; his muscles felt numb, and his head, foggy.

  He gave himself a few moments to regain his composure. As the fogginess cleared, he turned to his left and right. Nothing but trees and darkness. He was in… a forest? How did he get here? Where was he supposed to be again? The memory evaded him. He’d pursue it later. What was more important was finding out where he was. As the last remnants of wooziness dissipated, he rose to his feet. It seemed the numbness in his muscles had worn off, too.

  The next mystery was his clothes, or rather, lack of. He was completely naked. But that wasn’t all. There were also marks all over his body. Thin, red, branch-like marks that extended to the end of every limb. How peculiar. How had he gotten these? Again, this was something to address later. For now, he needed to get his bearings and find shelter. Wrapped in a coat, he would have been in a tough spot, but in his naked state, hypothermia was a real possibility.

  Looking around, there were no signs of anything in the darkness except for trees in every direction. No river or path to follow. No indication of which direction he should head. So he did the only thing he could. He chose a direction at random and just started walking.

  It didn’t take long for his feet to start hurting—only a few minutes. Without shoes, the forest floor gave him grief. Between rocks and tree bark, he was finding walking rather unpleasant. But this discomfort paled in comparison to the dropping temperature and his rapidly rising anxiety. How on earth did he end up here? How was he going to escape? And what animals might be roaming the forest at night? Lots of predators are nocturnal, making right now their most active period. To make matters worse, they’re equipped with superior vision, so they could see him, but he couldn’t see them. It was an unsettling thought.

  What he really needed was shelter. A place where he could escape the bitter wind and hide until the safety of day. But where was shelter out here? A cave was ideal, but there was nothing but trees all around him, so he tucked his hands under his armpits for warmth and plowed on.

  A twig snapped in the distance, dead ahead, and he stopped in his tracks mid-stride. Holding his breath, he listened for any other signs of activity. All he could hear was his heart working overtime, pumping blood around his body. Willing him to run. The forest was hauntingly quiet except for the wind, but there was no mistaking it. Something had made that noise. Something was out there.

  He stayed still for what seemed like forever, too scared to move, but after a considerable period with no further sounds, he concluded that it was likely a small animal or something. Probably nothing to worry about. But being the cautious man he is, he decided that retreating away from the mysterious sound was the best course of action.

  He slowly backed away, careful not to make a sound, one step, two steps, three steps, crunch. He looked down to see a broken stick underfoot. A crunch ahead answered in kind. His head flicked up as his blood grew cold. There was something there. He started backing away quicker now, but never took his eyes off the darkness ahead. A louder crunch emanated from within. No small rodent was breaking a stick of that size. This spurred him to abandon stealth and get the hell out of there.

  He spun on his heels and began to sprint back the way he came. A fast clicking sound emerged from the darkness, followed by galloping footsteps. What the hell was that?! It sounded more like an alien than an animal! Whatever it was, it was fast, but he dared not look back for fear of slowing down.

  Rising to top speed, he flew through the dense forest, narrowly missing tree after tree. They were packed rather close together, and, being as dark as it was, he barely had time to evade each tree as he raced towards them. Yet slowing down wasn’t an option. If anything, the footsteps had gotten closer.

  Trying to find a new gear, he barrelled forward, the chill of the wind stinging his face, but just as he seemed to be opening up a little distance between himself and his pursuer, he collided with a tree. Dodging left instead of right, his right shoulder smashed into the tree with his full rampaging weight behind it. It knocked the wind right out of him, and he spun a full 360 degrees before hitting the floor. Frantic, he turned to face his pursuer.

  At first, there was nothing but the empty forest, but from the darkness emerged a creature that only belonged in nightmares. It bore coarse black fur, six legs, four eyes, and razor-sharp mandibles. It was slow in its approach, craning its neck from side to side as it clicked its mandibles maniacally. He scurried backward in horror, but this only seemed to egg the creature on. While it was no more than three feet in height, its nine feet or so of length more than made up for that. Desperate, he began feeling around in a blind panic for something to use as a weapon. His hand contracted around a medium-sized rock, and he jumped to his feet, withdrawing the rock behind him in a ready position to strike.

  “No closer!” he screamed. This did little to deter the creature, which stopped for but a moment to study the rock before continuing its advance. “Uh-uh! No closer!” he boomed, before hurling the rock full force and scrambling to find a much smaller rock to take its place in his hand. The rock struck the creature's head and bounced off. Its mandibles clacked in response. He’d clearly pissed it off. But not enough to dispel its plans.

  Readying for the fight of his life, he gripped the rock as firm as possible, planning to strike the creature over the head with all of his might, but just as the creature was about to get into range, a shrill scream permeated the forest. The creature hesitated, second-guessing its attack.

  Another shrill scream followed, and it turned tail and ran. Yet the relief was short-lived. If a creature like that could be scared by a scream, he certainly didn’t want to meet whatever was making the sound. So he made himself scarce, taking off running once more, readjusting his course away from both the mandible monster and the shrill screams.

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  What the hell was that thing? That was like no animal he’d ever seen. Something seemed off about this forest. He needed to get out, or at the very least away from this area that was growing active. Hurtling through the trees, another shrill scream echoed from in front throughout the forest, causing him to stop in his tracks. He once again redirected his course, but shortly another scream followed, and then another, and another. It seemed they were all around him in every direction; there was nowhere to go.

  With adrenaline coursing through his veins, his body willed him to continue running, irrespective of what might be up ahead. Besides, if these creatures were trying to surround him, staying put was the worst possible move. As terrifying as it was, running blindly headfirst towards the creature was his best chance. Better one than a whole horde.

  The bloodcurdling screams continued all around him, and he half expected something to leap out of the darkness at any moment. He caught his first glimpse of the creature to his left as he raced through the forest. He couldn’t make it out all that well, but what he could tell was that it was fast—almost as fast as him, and it had four legs. Before long, he could make out at least three creatures racing through the forest on either side.

  There was no doubt in his mind that if they caught up, that would be his end, so outrunning them was his only option. But his body grew tired from all the running, and he wondered how long he could keep this up. In a desperate appeal for help, he screamed into the depths of the forest.

  “Help me, please! Help! They’re going to get me! I’m going to die!” As expected, his cries for aid were left unanswered, and the shrill screams of the creatures continued to fill his ears, which seemed to have become even more horrifying in response to his plea. He was on his own here, and running was only delaying the inevitable. If he couldn’t run, he needed somewhere to hide, or perhaps just a spot to better his odds. Somewhere he could defend. A means to catch his breath.

  He could always try climbing a tree, but could he do that? He’d never climbed a tree before, and he’d be lying if he said he felt up to the task. But his legs grew heavy, and the decision was taken out of his hands: it was his only option. Selecting a tree up ahead, he took his foot off the gas and readied for the climb, but just as he touched the tree, a voice called out,

  “Follow my voice! I can lead you to safety.” For a brief moment, he found himself paralyzed in astonishment, but he quickly snapped out of it and took off full speed in the direction of the voice. This was a one-in-a-million lifeline, and he wasn’t going to waste it.

  “I’m here! Please help me! They’re everywhere!” he cried, scanning the oncoming darkness for any sign of his savior.

  “Just keep running!” the voice responded. “It’s not far!” Knowing a haven was just up ahead reinvigorated his body, and he climbed back up to max speed, hurtling through the forest. Yet the shrill screams remained close, and they seemed to have grown in number. There seemed to be at least twelve, but with all the echoing, he couldn’t be sure.

  “Right here!” the voice called. “Just a few hundred yards!” As if his pursuers could sense the impending salvation, they chased with renewed determination. It wasn’t only screams now. It was footsteps, and they were growing closer. But he couldn’t look. He just had to trust he was fast enough.

  Thankfully, the forest seemed to open up somewhat; the spacing of trees growing wider. Up ahead, he could make out some kind of structure in the darkness.

  “This way!” the voice commanded. And a small light flickered in the distance. The end stretch. He could see his sanctuary, and he’d be damned if he’d let these creatures tear him apart so close to safety. So with his endurance waning, he poured everything he could into his legs. Every last ounce of strength. He just had to reach that light, and all would be well. But the shrill screams seemed to converge on him now, reluctant to allow their meal to escape.

  “That’s it! Almost there!” the voice encouraged. The structure was more visible now. It was a ginormous wall that stretched for hundreds of yards, and in the middle was an opening, a gate of some kind, with two figures and a torchlight.

  “They’re right behind me!” he cried, trying to warn his rescuers that he might not make it. They parted on either side of the gate, giving him a clear line to enter. They had better be quick closing that gate, or whatever it is that was chasing him would be in there with them. A few steps away from the entrance, he frantically dove into the safety of the structure, and the two men hastily forced the door closed, but they weren’t quite quick enough.

  One of the creatures dove in too, and it was on him in a flash. Its thin arms pinned his body to the ground, and its head sprang forward, attempting to get a mouthful with its rows of endless teeth. He instinctively turned his head to the side, narrowly missing the attack, and its head withdrew, screaming and readying for another attempt. He brought up his hands to act as a barrier, not confident he could avoid another strike, but before it had a chance, a sword penetrated its chest, causing blood to ooze from the wound. The creature slumped forward and was no more.

  The sword wielder lifted the now dead creature off of him and angrily kicked it free of his weapon.

  “Damn abomination,” he spat. Giving the creature a further kick on the ground, probably to check it was really dead. Thomas remained where he lay, gasping for air and trying to come to terms with just how close to death he’d come. A second later, and he’d be dead.

  “Are you okay?” the other man responded. “What were you doing out in the forest at night?” Thomas rose to his knees to greet his saviors.

  “I’m not sure. I don’t know how I got here.”

  “Did you hit your head?” the sword wielder asked, leaving the side of the deceased creature.

  “Umm, maybe. I’m not really sure,” he responded, massaging his temples.

  “Well, no matter. We can get to the bottom of it tomorrow. It’s late, we’ll set you up for the night,” the swordsman said. The pair turned and motioned for him to follow.

  “That’s very kind of you,” he said. “I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t saved me.” He stopped beside the dead creature to get a better look. It was even more horrifying than the first beast he encountered. Short black fur, pointed ears, four thin muscular limbs, razor-sharp claws, and crimson eyes that seemed to glow amidst the darkness. A second creature of nightmares.

  One, he might chalk up to his paranoia, but two, that was something else. That was a pattern. And it was staring right back at him. No trick of the darkness. No way for his imagination to run wild. It was simple, cold, hard reality. “What on earth is this thing?” he asked, lingering beside its body. The two men stopped in their tracks and turned to one another. The first man brought up the torchlight to illuminate his view.

  “What did you say your name wa—” The pair took a step back. “Human!” the torchbearer screamed.

  “Human!” the other asserted. Lights began flickering on all around, and for the first time, Thomas got a good look at his saviors; they, too, it seemed, were monsters.