“The hunter has now become the hunted…”
“This book is a piece of crap on drugs!” high-school student Ike Richmond complained aloud, flinging the ancient withered text at the wall. “Tell me why I have to tortured with this again, Jeb?”
“Because if you don’t read some kind of book, Mrs. Burns will fail you in English,” his friend Jeb Timmins responded with a tinge of annoyance.
“And?” Ike said, not caring about a single ounce about Jeb’s response.
“Your parents will be ticked off if you don’t pass,” countered Jeb.
“And?”
“They’ll probably kick you out of our band if you do.”
“Get to the point already.” Ike demanded.
Jeb smirked, knowing he was about to end their quarrel. “If you quit the band, Tara will dump you. Guess who’s gonna be on the rebound? He licked his lips.
“Fine, Fine, I’ll read it,” Ike gave in. A sense of false hope entered Jeb. “Eventually.”
“Your impossible.”
“Am I?”
“Yup.” Jeb spun around in his computer chair, for seemingly no reason at all. He and Ike hung in his bedroom everyday after class. Rarely, they did schoolwork. Most of the time, they talked about chances to make money, get girls, or popularize their band. This day was like any other.
“So, are you ready for the gig?” Ike asked his buddy. “We’re gonna be off the roof.” Their band consisted of four members. Tara, the group’s drummer, was the ‘babe’ of the group. At one point, all of the other guys in the band had dated her. Greg, an African American who loved to do nothing all day but chill, served as the band’s bass guitarist. Ike, Tara’s current boyfriend, was the rebelling lead guitarist. Jeb took his place as the group’s lead vocalist.
“Sure am,” Jeb hastily replied while casually checking his wristwatch. “Crap! If we don’t leave now, we’re gonna be late! Quick, get the RV. We’ll pick-up Greg and Tara on the way!”
____ ____ ____
“Were lost,” Tara pointed out. They had been driving around in circles for ages. Admitting that they were lost was inevitable.
“No we’re not,” nervously denied Jeb, who was driving. He was the one with the vehicle, after all. “I know exactly where we are.” It didn’t take a genius to tell he was lying. For a deep fog had enshrouded the road. They couldn’t see two feet in front of them, let alone know where they were going.
“Your not fooling anyone bro,” Ike interjected. “Just admit that you drove us into the abyss, and then maybe we’ll become un-lost somehow.”
Jeb angrily started, “You know what! You should be freaking grateful that…”
“Chill down bros,” the calming voice of Greg brought peace to the tight space as he rested his hands on the shoulder of Ike and Jeb. “If we just take a deep breath, maybe we can find our way out of this fog that Jeb brought us to.”
“I TOLD YOU WE’RE NOT FREAKIN LOST!” Jeb shouted, doubting himself even now.
Tara stroked her long red hair, getting tired of the quarrel. “Listen, just admit that we’re lost and…”
A huge pounding sound erupted from outside of the automobile. It sounded near.
“What was that!” they all erupted in union. No one had an answer.
The sound repeated, closer this time. Again, there was no explanation. It just kept getting louder. It was louder than a gunshot in complete silence. Then finally came the “BANG!” A gargantuan gash, maybe even claw marks, appeared on the side of the RV. Tara and Ike slowly backed away from that side of the van, shuddering. Greg followed calmly, reaching for the pistol he always kept in his pocket. For whatever reason, Jeb didn’t move.
He was the one to die.
A grotesque creature rammed into the already crumbling wall. It disintegrated into a million pieces scattering all over the tight space. Jeb didn’t stand a chance. Dazed by the missing wall, Jeb barely had time to notice the bellowing creature wrapping its enormous mouth around his body. Just like that, he was swallowed whole.
Tara screamed.
Greg speedily whipped out his pistol. He took three shots at the beast’s head. It just seemed to smirk. Greg blinked. Bad idea. In a millisecond, his arm was gone, ripped from its socket. He fainted.
Tara screamed again.
The beast approached the location of Tara and Ike. Tara couldn’t scream anymore. Ike had already peed his pants. They couldn’t go on much longer. As the beast reached Ike, it smacked him across the head, almost immediately knocking him out. The last thing he remembered seeing was a golden arrow digging into the neck of the creature.
____ ____ ____
A gruesome man slapped Ike back into consciousness. He held a golden crossbow, obviously his savior. “Hello, friend,” the man grinned. “My name is Ivan Faust. It seems like you and your armless friend are now my new bait. Enjoy life while you can.”
)
