SHRED

Chapter 1 - We need to run

Mitch poked the fire with a stick, his stomach growling with hunger. "I'm starving over here!" he announced to Kaiden, who was lounging in a camping chair.

Kaiden raised an eyebrow. "Feel free to get off your arse and start cooking, then."

Mitch groaned. "Come on, you're way better at cooking than I am."

Kaiden smirked. "It's your turn, Mitch. I'm not always going to bail you out."

Mitch countered with a grin. "I'll buy the next case of beer if you do it."

Kaiden chuckled. "You'll just drink most of it yourself anyway."

The banter continued until Mitch dramatically flung another stick into the fire, frustration etched on his face. "You're such a pain in the arse, no wonder you're still single."

Kaiden laughed, unfazed. "So are you."

Mitch wiggled his finger. "Uh-uh, single by choice. I'm having fun playing the field."

"The field is looking pretty empty to me." Kaiden smirked.

Mitch laughed and threw a nearby bag of marshmallows at him. Kaiden caught them and opened the bag, popping one in his mouth. After a few chews, he looked down at the bag.

"That's right, you enjoy those vegan treats." Mitch grinned as Kaiden threw the bag back at him. "Would you stop doing that."

"What's the problem? It tastes the same." Mitch popped a marshmallow on the end of a new stick and held it over the fire. "You ate a whole plant-based burger the other night and had no idea."

Kaiden waved his hand in the air. "I was being polite."

Mitch shook his head and smiled. "You're so full of shit."

As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the sky in a warm orange glow, the men fell silent, admiring the view. But their peaceful evening was shattered by a commotion a few campsites over.

"Sounds like it's getting rowdy over there," Mitch commented.

Mitch had barely finished his comment when loud panicked cries filled the air, followed by screams and chaos.

"K, what's going on?" Mitch pressed his mouth into a tight line.

"I don't know," Kaiden replied as he got up and headed for his tent. After a few moments, he returned with his loaded Glock and handed Mitch a spare.

"Remember how to use it?" he asked, his voice low and serious.

Mitch nodded as he accepted the weapon. "It's been a while, so I might be a little rusty."

With their guns drawn, they cautiously approached the commotion, their senses on high alert. As they got closer, they saw people running, screaming, and covered in blood. The air was filled with the sound of guttural growls and snarls.

A woman stumbled in her attempt to run away from the chaos. Kaiden held out his hand to her. "Can you tell me what's going on?" he asked calmly.

The woman's eyes were darting around wildly, and she didn't stop running to answer him. "He's dead." was all she yelled as she dodged past them to flee.

More people started racing past them, all of them terrified, and a couple with blood sprayed all over them. They stopped on the edge of the clearing, which was the main campground, and used the trees for cover. They could see abandoned camping equipment; chairs, sleeping bags, and cooking equipment littered the grounds. There were even a few fires still lit.

Across the grounds, on the other edge of the clearing, they could see two people standing and watching a group who were running away, towards them. Once the group were close enough to notice them, they started yelling out, telling Mitch and Kaiden to run.

As soon as the group reached them, a woman grabbed Kaiden's arm. "We need to run," she panted, her green eyes wide with fear.

Kaiden gestured to the man and woman who were following the fleeing group, they were walking and didn't seem to be in a rush. "What kind of weapons do they have?"

The woman shook her head, "I don't know. We didn't see what happened, but they killed four people. There was so much blood."

Kaiden raised his gun and approached the duo. They stopped and stared at him, and Kaiden felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Now that they were closer, he could see they were both completely covered in blood. Being drenched in blood wasn't even the creepiest part. They were both smiling like a couple of deranged clowns.

"I'm going to give you one chance," Kaiden continued, "Drop whatever weapons you have on the ground." He motioned to the ground with his gun. "I won't ask again, and I will kill you."

The blood-covered duo kept staring at him with their ominous grins and took a step forward. Without turning around, Kaiden called out, "Anyone who doesn't want to see this, look away."

A few seconds passed before two pops filled the air, followed by thuds. Mitch approached his friend and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. They both turned towards the group who were now hunched together and crying

One of the men suddenly stood up and pointed towards the other side of the clearing. "There's more coming."

Emerging from the tree line were five people who seeemed to be watching them.

"Let's move," Kaiden said.