The Locust Man

Chapter Three

When you stare too long into what feels like an endless sea of brown and green, your eyes can begin playing tricks on you. Even the most rational person could find their imagination beginning to run wild. The forest almost feels like it consumes you, and for some... it truly does.

Hundreds of people go missing every year while exploring forests, even in national parks with well-established and frequently used trails. Everything can start to look exactly the same when you're in the middle of the woods; you could literally be walking around in a giant circle and not even realize it. Many unfortunate folks have gone off-trail for one reason or another, only to never make it back to that trail.

Our patch of woods wasn't tiny by any means, but we figured it couldn't be that big, because we were pretty sure we knew where all of the borders of it were. We assumed it didn't go too far past the mine, as the terrain there became more rocky as it rose in elevation. On one side was the old highway, and on the other was the next few neighborhoods over. A nice little square patch of peaceful solitude, nestled within a barren wasteland of empty shops and run down houses.

The old men in our town loved to tell horror stories of the woods, passed down from generation to generation. As part of our upbringing, most kids had pretty much heard 'em all. Tales of miners who disappeared in those woods while on their way to or from work, never to be seen again. Countless deaths that had occurred within the walls of the mine, seemingly as a result of the dangerous working conditions. The mutilated bodies that had been discovered over the years, officially deemed as 'animal attacks' by the police. The missing girls. And, of course, the 'Great Disaster of 1902'. All of it, blamed on The Locust Man.
          
When we made it back to the mine, and with it the trail, I found myself hesitant to walk past the entrance. I still couldn't completely shake the feeling that we had been chased by something down there, even though logically, I knew we hadn't. If something was chasing us, it wouldn't have stopped its pursuit just because we exited the mine, right? Mikey unknowingly provided me with a much welcomed distraction by making a joke.

"Hey, Dev! Why don't you go back in there and grab your flashlight? We'll wait right here for you, buddy!" 

"Pshh, whatever. Shut up, dude." Devin scoffed, as Lacey and I giggled.

"Was The Locust Man in th-th-there?" Michelle asked.

"Yep, he sure was." Devin replied. "He was big and scary, too! And he tried to eat us!!"

She gasped and looked at me. I shook my head and smiled, gesturing for her to keep walking. I turned around and peered into the darkness pouring from the mouth of the mine once more. As my eyes began to adjust, I swore I could see the slightest bit of movement from within the shadows. I held my breath and forced myself to strain my eyes harder, and the movement I thought I had seen, stopped.

Couldn't be...

As we embarked on our journey back toward civilization, and hopefully with Mikey and Devin's curiosity now fully satiated, I began inspecting the abrasions I'd received from running through all of that brush like a lunatic. I was still so ticked off about Lacey screaming like she was being murdered out there. I warned her about those damn shoes, too. I was also annoyed with Michelle, for not listening to me when I had specifically instructed her not to move. Actually, it was pretty safe to say that at that point I was pissed at all of them, because when I really thought about it... the boys were mostly to blame for it all. They had been the ones who'd concocted the entire idiotic plan in the first place.

"So... how exactly are we supposed to cross the creek now? I mean, with Devin carrying Lacey and all." I asked.

Mikey turned around and said,
"Hmm, I dunno... she might have to just hop all the way across on her one good foot!"