by Bryan Young
Dallas rolled his eyes and walked back to the wrecked campsite, grabbing various smaller items. As Tye watched, his ears picked up something. He stood up straight and told Dallas to stop messing with the stuff on the ground and be silent. Dallas asked him why and was hushed again. Tye spoke in a whisper, motioning for Dallas to walk towards him.
“Dallas, don’t freak out. Come towards me very, very slowly.” Dallas looked around and nodded, proceeding to step carefully over to Tye’s side. Once he was right next to him, Tye continued, “I hear four very distinct noises. Three of them are really close and one is a bit further away.”
“And?”
Tye scanned the surrounding woods, completely taken aback by how dense the forest around them was.
“The three close to us sound really big. Can you transform?”
“No,” Dallas replied.
“Dude. Dallas. Dude.”
“I’m gonna rip my shoes and jersey if I do! I’m not walking around here with no shoes!” he whispered back angrily.
“Dallas, my guy. This is not something we should be debating right now. We are in a really bad situation, and it’d help if we had some of your giant thing powers to help.”
Without warning, a massive animal the size of an African bull elephant stepped forward out of the surrounding woods. Its skin was constantly changing color to blend in with the forest behind it before it eventually settled into a light blue. It had powerful legs resembling those of a rhinoceros, and its head had two sets of stacked horizontal tusks that spread out a couple of feet on each side. It shook its head violently, signaling for the two boys to get out of its territory.
Tye kept his eyes on the beast and said to Dallas confidently, “Ok. This isn’t awful. If this charges we can take it. But to be sure, just transform and—” He looked over to see that Dallas had already bolted into the woods. “Dallas, you dick!” Tye shouted into the wilderness as the creature flashed a litany of bright colors, let a loud trumpet, dipped its head, and charged him.
Tye held his ground and grabbed the giant’s tusks as they made contact. It pushed him back through the woods, slamming him through trees and destroying the underbrush. Gritting his teeth, he dug his feet deep into the dirt and pushed against the giant, stopping it almost instantly.
Just as soon as he had tamed the one beast, Tye saw a second run past him, presumably chasing Dallas who only had a modest head start. Tye took off like a rocket towards the second giant, shooting for the gap between its hind legs. Hovering in the air under its fat underbelly, he slowed down to keep pace with it. He fanned out his arms to grab as much surface area as possible and lifted it into the air, much to the giant’s consternation. It protested by shaking its head violently and changing colors in a symphony of destructive rage. Cursing Dallas’s cowardice, Tye turned around and dropped the giant off roughly two miles away before speeding back off towards Dallas only to see a third beast on his tail.
Tye dove at the creature and blasted beams of energy between the two, blowing up the space in front of it and causing it to come to a confused stop. Tye landed forcefully in front of the creature, his hands charged with energy, ready to fight. The standoff lasted only a few moments before the creature decided that the fight wasn’t worth it and took off in the opposite direction.
Tye sighed in relief and flew ahead towards where they had originally come from and waited for Dallas to come out of the woods. After a few minutes, Dallas broke through the tree line and met Tye’s disappointed face. He brushed himself off and nodded at Tye as he walked casually towards him.
“Bruh!” Tye called out. “What the hell was that?!”
“I didn't want to rip my jersey or my shoes, dude! I knew you wouldn’t let those things hurt me, so it’s fine. Good work, team,” he said, patting Tye on the back and starting towards the river.
Tye shook his head in frustration as Dallas walked away. But as he looked on, a small part of him chuckled at the ridiculousness of the situation, realizing that even though it had been dumb for Dallas to worry more about his clothes than his own safety, he was right. Dallas did need shoes if he was going to be trekking through the woods constantly and Tye was able to handle the situation without Dallas being transformed. He called out for Dallas to wait up and jogged over to him.
They both arrived to see Ashley’s net was full of fish. She looked up at them smiling. “Anyone hungry?” The three proceeded to an open area and set up a campfire, and Ashley lit it with a bolt of energy. They each found branches to use as skewers and held their fish over them, waiting for it to cook.
As they waited, Ashley stared at Dallas, prompting a confused stare back. “What?” he asked.
Ashley shook her head and said, “It’s nothing. It’s just... Is that your high-school jersey? Because if it is, that’s really lame.”
“I TOLD YOU!” Tye shouted.
“Whatever. I take pride in my team,” Dallas said defending himself. “Plus, one day, I’m gonna trade this thing in for a college jersey and if all goes well health-wise, the big leagues.”
“You playing in Canada?” Tye asked mockingly.
“I’m playing in Dallas,” Dallas rebutted.
“I’m sure that Dallas has some decent rec-league teams!” Ashley mocked. “You can play with all the fat dads that banked on going pro instead of having real-life plans!”
“You’ll see!” Dallas retorted. “Just watch. I’m gonna be everywhere, making millions, hanging with supermodels, and winning championships! You’ll be wishing you supported me!” He was about to take a bite of his fish when he noticed that it had disappeared from his stick. He looked around to see if he had dropped it and was surprised when he couldn’t find it anywhere.
“Everything cool?” Tye asked. “You didn’t lose one of your trophies, did you?”
Dallas shook his head and reached for another piece of fish and waited until it was roasted, only to realize that it had disappeared from his stick again. He looked at Tye and Ashley, who were both happily enjoying their fish.
Once more, he grabbed a fish from the net, roasted it over the fire, and waited before slowly taking it towards his mouth. It disappeared again. “What the hell!” he shouted. “Why can’t I eat my fish?”
“What are you talking about, dude?” Tye asked.
“Watch this!” Dallas said. “Just keep your eye on the fish.
Dallas repeated the process with Ashley and Tye watching carefully, only to once again have his fish vanish.
Tye stood up and scanned the area. “Dallas,” he started. “There’s definitely someone stealing your food.”
“Someone? As in a person?” Dallas asked.
“Yup,” Tye said flatly.
“There’s another human here?” Ashley asked.
“Yup,” Tye repeated. “Do it again.”
“But we’ve only got like three fishes left!” Dallas whined.
“Then you’ll get the last two,” Tye said. “But if you want to have even one fish, trust me.”
“Fine,” Dallas groaned. He put the fish on the branch, waited for it to roast, and brought it to his mouth. Just as the savory food was about to make contact with his tongue, Tye jumped forward in a flash and tackled an unknown person to the ground. Dallas and Ashley rushed over to see Tye holding down a skinny teenage boy with straight black hair, a red short-sleeved shirt, a straw hat, and a pair of jean shorts.
“Gotcha! You were almost too fast for me to see!” Tye said triumphantly as he held him down.
“Almost? Hmm. That’s impressive on your part! I didn’t think I needed to run faster. I kinda banked on you guys not being able to see me at a speed faster than sound,” the mysterious boy replied.
“Why are you stealing our food?” Tye asked.
“I mean... Why would a buffalo take an antelope’s watering hole? Because it’s thirsty and there’s no crocodiles there! Plus... Those fish smelled really good! I dunno who made this whole dome thing, but they brought some really tasty animals with them! I swear I
don’t mean any harm.”
Curious, Tye released his grip on the boy and helped him up. “How long have you known we were here? If you wanted food, you could’ve just told us that you, well, existed?”
“True,” the boy shrugged. “But uh...” He then leaned into Tye and whispered in his ear, “Between you and me, that guy looks like a huge dick and that girl is really hot. So as a trio, you guys are a little unapproachable.”
Tye stepped back and thought for a second before conceding, “You know, Dallas is a huge dick and Ash is pretty hot. So, under any other circumstance, I probably wouldn’t approach either first either. So I don’t blame you, lil homie.” He then shrugged and asked, “So, what’s your name?”
“I’m Kato!” he said. “I run track and field at my high school, so some people call me K-K-K-Kato on the track and field. I don’t really get it though.” He then started mumbling to himself, “Kato on the track and field. Kato on the field...? No. Kato on the track sounds more correct. But why Kato? And what is he doing on a track?” Looking up, he realized he was getting sidetracked by his own thoughts. He ran over to Dallas and Ashley to shake their hands before returning to Tye. “So!” he started. “What is our plan?”
“Our?” Dallas shouted. “You stole my food, asswipe! There is no ‘our’!”
Tye turned to Dallas and said, “Dallas, chill.” motioning for him to calm down. “While we haven’t formally invited you to join us, I think we could probably use a speedy guy like you, so welcome aboard. The plan really is simple. Find a way out of here.”
Kato raised an eyebrow and replied, “That sounds more like a goal than a plan, to be honest. Plus, you guys are trying to get out by hanging out in the middle of the forest? Seems like you’re a little confused on what ‘out’ means.”
Tye shrugged. “Well, in that case, we don’t have a plan yet. We’re kinda playing it by ear. But there was a patch not too far from here where someone was apparently strong enough to completely uproot huge trees straight from the ground and throw them around like they’re nothing.”
“OH!” Kato yelled excitedly. “Was there a crater in the middle with the trees all miraculously still there in the clearing?!”
“Yeah...” Tye replied. “You know the spot?”
At this point, a large smile formed on Kato’s face and he brimmed with energy. “Know the spot?! I know three!”
“Three?” Ashley stepped forward. “That’s a little concerning. Whatever is doing this is... strong. But the fact that it’s apparently easy enough for it to do it repeatedly is a bit concerning, right?”
Tye nodded his head in agreement. “That’s a good point. Which is why it should be a priority that we find this thi—” Tye stopped mid-sentence, listening.
“What?” Dallas asked.
“I hear roots snapping,” Tye said quietly. “Not too far away. Literally straight down for about half a mile.”
“How do you know what roots snapping sounds like?” Dallas followed up.
“Experience!” Tye yelled as he bolted forward with Ashley shrugging and flying behind him. Kato followed them, screaming, “Yay! Adventure!” Dallas yelled out to them that he couldn’t keep up as a human, but elected to run in the same direction anyway. They were all eager to find out what awaited them.
Chapter 10: A Force Beyond Nature
Tye broke through the tree-line to see more trees strewn about and the familiar crater at the center of the carnage. He looked around to see if he could find the person or thing responsible, but to his disappointment, he saw nothing. He slumped and cursed, turning around to be surprised by Kato. “AH!” Tye yelled, jumping back. “Where the hell did you come from?”
“I think the real question is, where the hell were YOU?!” Kato said, pointing a finger. “I beat you here by like...” he looked down to inspect a fake wrist watch, “forever? I was never good with numbers, but I’m pretty sure it’s been at least that much.”
“Uh... Sure? So did you happen to see anything when you got here?” Tye asked.
“Of course! It was A-MAZ-ING! Trees were flying around, the ground cratered in on itself, the earth shook beneath my feet! Honestly? It was like a show at Disney. Really sucks that you missed it because I don’t think I’ll ever see anything like it again! At least until it happens again.”
“Okay, that’s good! But what was causing all that chaos?!” Tye asked.
Kato stroked his chin, deep in thought, “Hmm, nobody that I recall. It was almost like everything kind of happened on its own. Maybe less like Disney and more like... a force of nature?”
Tye stepped back to think just as Ashley ran up to the two boys and stopped to marvel at the carnage. “Whoa!”
“Yeah,” Tye commented. “Kato was saying how he saw the whole thing. Called it ‘a force of nature.’ The strangest thing is, there was no one behind it.”
“So, no one is responsible then? Maybe it’s just like a weird weather phenomenon here? Like a mini tornado or something?” Ashley thought out loud.
“A mini tornado? One powerful enough to do this kind of damage but weak enough to leave everything else completely untouched?” Tye questioned. “I’m not an expert or anything but I don’t think that’s how natural disasters work.”
“Then what would explain all this damage if nobody was here? For all we know things like that exist here.” Ashley countered.
“Who cares?” Kato said casually. “All I know is that it was cool, and you guys missed out because you’re too slow to enjoy the cool things in life.” As he turned around to walk back to where they’d come from, he screamed and ran back towards Tye.
“What?” Tye asked as Kato stumbled next to him.
Kato shouted, pointing ahead.
“What?” Tye asked again, looking in the direction that Kato was pointing. He squinted and noticed a deformed head poking out from between two trees
“It looks like a person? But it’s... off?” Ashley said.
“Yeah,” Tye agreed. “I dunno if...” Just as he was about to finish his sentence, Dallas came rushing through the tree-line, shouting.
“GUYS!” he yelled as he sprinted towards them. “WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE. THIS IS WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT. ON THE WAY IT STARTED TO LOOK FAMILIAR AND I REALIZED THAT’S BECAUSE—” he stopped mid-sentence as multiple heads began to poke out of the trees. He ran towards Tye, Ashley, and Kato who all stood back-to-back.
“Dallas, jog my memory. What did you see out here?” Tye demanded.
“I told you! Human-like creatures. That’s what I thought you and Ashley were when I saw you,” Dallas said, his voice trembling with fear.
“Human-like?” Tye asked. “What do you mean human-like?”
Almost as soon as he had asked, one of the creatures stepped forward. It was indeed human-like, as Dallas had said. Its features made it seem like the warped version of person. A naked, bald, lanky gray figure walked with a pronounced limp towards them, one arm slung low to the ground. Its disturbingly large eyes stared at the teens with dilated pupils. Another stepped forward. It had many of the same features but was at least seven feet tall, incredibly skinny, and had an elongated head. A look of terror seemed frozen on its face, yet it laughed a terrible hyena-like laugh that echoed through the forest. A third scrambled from behind the trees. This one was morbidly obese and had two massive hands, capable of completely engulfing basketballs, and a third childlike arm growing from its side.
As they watched in horror, more of these creatures appeared from the woods, slowly forming a circle around them. Some wore crude armor, some held arrows, others wielded clubs; all of them were grotesquely deformed and seemingly intent on hunting down the teens in front of them.
Tye gritted his teeth and looked towards Ashley, Kato, and Dallas who had all assumed defensive positions. “You guys ready to fight?”
“Why fight?” Ashley responded. “We can take Kato and Dallas and fly out of here.”
“No, that won’t work!” Dallas responde
d. “These things are the best pack hunters I’ve ever seen. They followed me for an entire day before I stumbled onto you guys. All it takes is one second of exposure and they’ll find you no matter where you go. They also have an uncanny ability to almost... appear where you want to go. The only way to get them off of your trail is to kill them.”
“How many can there be?” Tye asked, feigning confidence. “A few dozen? A hundred? We got this.”
Almost as soon as he had finished his sentence, one of the creatures raised a crudely constructed bow. It let out another screech, a warped war cry, and its massive pupils darted towards Kato. With lightning speed, it shot an arrow directly at him. Kato’s pupils dilated and just as he was about to duck out of the way, he noticed that it seemed to have frozen mid-air, a mere few feet from his head.
Confused, another creature shot an arrow towards Dallas, only for the same thing to happen. Frustrated, the first creature shot arrows in quick succession, which froze in the air one by one.
“Did those arrows break physics?” Tye whispered. Feeling a presence above him, he looked up and to his surprise, he saw a girl materialize from thin air and float just above them, her hands extended before her. “Yo... Guys... Look up.” Nearly in sync, the others turned their heads up and were shocked to see her. She waved her hands nimbly and the arrows turned around and were shot back at the creatures at blinding speed, hitting them all perfectly between the eyes.
With another swift movement, Tye and the others felt the ground below them begin to shake. He noticed that the cracks in the ground seemed to be forming a circle around their feet. Before he could register what was happening, all four of them were raised into the air on a circular platform.
The girl floated in front of them as they looked on. She raised her hands into the air and slowly brought them down, and the ground crumbled and caved in on itself, creating a massive pit that the creatures fell into en masse. Some tried to run from the carnage but were pulled back into the fray, seemingly by her sheer will.
None escaped. After what felt like hours of destruction, she brought her palms together and instantly, trees from the surrounding area were plucked from their roots and swiftly dropped into the pit, crushing everything inside. With another quick movement of her arms, dirt filled over the trees and hardened, completely sealing off the pit.
