The Thing in The Forest

Chapter One- 2023

I am lucid and conscious. I am crammed inside the driving section of what appears to be a truck. I am aware of my arm, twisted vines as sinew, elbow-deep inside of a man's stomach. There is a gurgling sound coming from him as he lives his last moments.

I slowly pull my arm out, feeling the warmth of real flesh. I don't think I have felt this way for a long time. This vehicle looks very different than the last time I saw one. There are so many buttons and bright lights within and the sitting area is much larger and more luxurious than what I have seen in the past glimpses of my reality.

The man, bleeding all over his seats and onto the floor of the truck, finally gasps and is gone. But I can still hear a small breathing within my metal containment. I peer over the seat and see another row, and down on the floor, covering her face, is a young woman.

She has no pants on. I have seen this many times before. This is why I have been called from my slumber within The Forest. She is weeping, probably from the traumatic events that happened here in this truck before I got here, and now because I am looming over her. I do not need to look in the mirror to know that I am grotesque and barely humanoid looking anymore. I left that life long ago.

There is a bell noise coming from the wheel behind me and I notice that there are keys still in the... I do not have a word for this mechanism. A metal slot. A vehicle's keyhole. It does not matter. I do know that this makes the vehicle go forward with some pushing of the levers down below. I know that this girl can go away from here if I move. I hope that she will not cry anymore.

I open the door and crawl out, stretching my elongated legs as I emerge. They do not look very human anymore. They are wrapped with bark and the muscles and sinew beneath are made of vines. I can hear creaking from my body like a strong wind blowing the pine branches together. It reminds me of home.

I reach back into the truck and grab the man, throwing him easily over my shoulder. There is a puddle of blood and viscera that I leave behind on either side of where he was sitting, but I cannot do anything about that for her.

I can feel The Forest calling to me. I can hear her sweet night song lulling me back into her. I carry this corpse further into the trees, stopping to look back at the woman.

She crawls over the back of the seat and starts the vehicle. I can hear it come to life. She is crying and shaking, but she seems to know what to do to get it started. She takes one look at me before jolting the vehicle forward and she quickly vanishes around a corner, the red lights dimming as the trees obscure my view of her.

She is safe now. The Forest continues to sing to me. I devour the man and I lose consciousness once again.