Life on the Inside

Chapter 1

After a long, tough walk dragging the jaguar through the dense rain forest, I made it back home. It wasn't anything fancy or huge, but it was just what I needed, and it served it's purposes. It was a small shack that stood almost seven feet or so off the ground, with a ladder under the center of it to get inside. The shack was supported by many small wooden beams that came from smaller trees that I was able to cut down, and the walls and floors were also made of smaller tree trunks. I made the shack a few weeks after I got trapped in this place, kidnapped by strange scientists who wouldn't tell me what they were doing or why... and they threw me in here while I was unconscious, then when I woke up, I was here, and have been for five years, with no possible escape, no communication with anyone but myself, and constant danger.

I gutted the jaguar and buried the guts nearby. It was a stupid thing to bury them so close to the shack, because the guts could easily draw in other dangerous animals, but with the sun setting, there was no time to stray too far away from home.

I quickly came back and cleaned off the fur in the water from a small stream right next to the shack, then I took all the meat off the bones. Jaguar didn't taste the best, or even good for that matter, but from what I learned before I got trapped here, jaguar's populations were through the roof, so I figured I may also be helping that, not like I cared or anything, but I also didn't want to waste any opportunity on food. In the Inside, I liked to call it, you had to take what was given to you.

Grabbing some tinder from the shack, I started a small fire, and cooked my kill on the small, but ever brightening fire. I cooked most of the meat that was on the jaguar, but there was no way I would be able to eat it all in the next day or two before the meat spoiled. So once I finished eating the somewhat gross but filling meal, I decided to improvise a little bit with the remaining meat.

I set up four traps between trees that were close together, using the meat as bait. If a small creature walked by, a falling rock with knock it unconscious, or kill it.

After I finished setting all the traps nearby in the dark, I looked at them, and couldn't help but smile a little, being proud of my ingenuity . I then climbed up the ladder into my shack to retire for the night. I got into my small hammock I had set up in the corner of the shack, and fell asleep within minutes.

-

At the break of dawn, I was already awake and alert. My morning routine was relatively simple. Wash clothes, check the traps, and go to the barrier. I changed into my clothes that I cleaned yesterday, and went down to the creek near my hut to wash the clothes I wore yesterday. I absolutely hated my clothes getting uncomfortably dirty, so washing them daily was a must for me.

I put the clothes outside the hut to dry, and went out to check the traps I placed the night before, however, when I walked up to where I thought I put one of them, there was nothing there. It looked as if the trap had just disappeared entirely! Speechless, I walked around the two trees, examining what may have happened. THUD!

"OW! What the heck!?" I yelled, grabbing my foot and hobbling backwards. My trap had been there the whole time, cleverly disguised by yours truly, to the point where I didn't even see it."Dang...at least it works..." I looked at my foot again to make sure nothing was broken, and it was only bruised a little, I got lucky. I was sure that kind of force could take out a small animal, so I set the trap back up to it's original position again.

Fortunately, two of the traps I set up succeeded in killing what would be my meals for the day. I left them in my hut, and would get to cooking them as soon as I ran out to check the barrier.

As I ran to the barrier, it became increasingly foggy. After only ten minutes of running, the fog had become so thick to the point where I could only see a few feet ahead. I hated when it got foggy because I could never run my usual pace.

By the time I finally reached the barrier, my feet and shorts were soaked from the morning dew of the rain forest.

I edged up slowly to where the barrier was with caution, holding out my hand so I didn't ending up walking straight into it. Then, finally, my hand pressed up against the cold, invisible force field, sending chills throughout my entire body, as it always did.

I looked out beyond the barrier, and even with the fog, the view was still breathtaking. It was absolutely beautiful and stunning. Colors were vibrant, trees stood tall and their branches spread out far. I could also hear the sounds of small monkeys climbing their way around high above me, and in the distance I could hear the songs of small, exotic birds. The barrier on this side stood right next to the edge of a cliff, that dropped at least a few hundred feet. I could never figure out how far it went down, because I couldn't see down off the cliff, and I had no math skills whatsoever.

I came every day to the barrier, in hopes that maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't be there when I show up, but it remained there, ever since the scientists put me in here five years ago. Maybe if they told me why I they trapped me in here, I wouldn't feel so hopeless and alone, but that's too much wishful thinking apparently.

I laid my head on the cold force field, and prayed. I don't know what, or who I was praying to, but I just hoped that I could get out of there. Living every day with the constant threat of death from poisonous insects to lethal predators.

As I started to turn around to head back to the hut, something odd caught my eye. There, out in the distance, was a huge storm cloud that had a size much larger than I had ever seen before. Sure it was the rain forest, and it rained often, but this storm cloud just...looked different. From where I stood, I could see what appeared to be blue lightning light up the inside of the cloud, giving it an almost blueish tint.

The storm was heading straight to my direction, and fast. I could feel the incoming winds, and they were powerful. I ran back towards the direction of my hut as fast as my legs could carry me, not caring about tripping or running into anything. Even after five years, I still couldnt remember the layout of the rain forest. Maybe I had a horrible sense of direction.

The wind was becoming even stronger now, and it caused me to almost lose my balance.

What the heck was happening?