The Chase

Ted Bowman ran through the jungle as fast as his legs would let him. He had been running for what seemed like hours, dodging between branches and vines, terrified that he might trip and fall, and then it would be all over. He could hear the creature behind him, roaring and crashing through the undergrowth, getting nearer with each passing second. He tripped and almost fell, but managed to catch himself just in time. As he ran, his thoughts went back to the laboratory, where it all began...

===

Ted and his friends stepped out of the helicopter and surveyed the jungle which stretched on endlessly before them.

"Well, this sucks", said Myra Beckett. She was a thirty-year-old woman with a great love of fabulous handbags. She flicked her long red hair out of her eyes contemptuously.

The rest of the group consisted of Olivia Cain, a young woman with curly, dark hair, Ken Myoko, who was asian, and, of course, Ted, who was the eldest of the group, at the age of fifty-three.

"Stop complaining!", snapped Olivia. "This is the chance we've all been waiting for- to test our theory on genetically modified crops. If we get it right, we'll be rich! And think of all the lives this new knowledge will save!"

"Ngh", grunted Ken, who was a little travel sick.

They all picked up their bags and walked inside the large, white building before them. It was four stories high, and was made of some sort of pale stone and glass.

They were greeted by a tall, young woman, who had blonde hair and artificially white teeth.

"Hello, my name is Lila Rowe, and I'll be your guide for today", she said chirpily. "If you'd like to put your bags by the door, and follow me, please..."

Once the tour of the building was over, the group was shown to their rooms, where their bags were waiting. They all went to bed early, the jet lag getting to them.

Over the next few days, they all worked hard on the genetically engineered crops. They tested them on various animals that had been brought to the facility. Finally, after a week or so of continuous hard work, they came to a conclusion and packed up.

They were all standing outside the door of the building, waiting for the helicopter to arrive, when they heard a scream. Rushing back into the building, they encountered Lila, who was covered in dark, reddish-brown stains and chemicals from the lab.

"RUN!", she screamed, scrambling past them out of the door.

"What's she talking about?", sniffed Myra, staring after the guide in alarm.

A roar ripped through the air as the wall behind her exploded outwards. A huge, monkey-like creature climbed through and glared at them.

"What is that?", whispered Ken, talking a step back.

"It's the test monkey!", Myra squeaked, recognising the tag on the beast's arm.

Ted remembered the creatures they had tested their genetically modified crops on. A monkey had been one of them.

"But... how?!", Ted cried. Something else, a sort of huge bird, flopped through the hole. "They weren't affected by the crops!"

"A delayed reaction", Olivia murmured, seconds before she was crushed beneath the fist of the mutated chimp.

===

Ted's mind snapped back to the present as he stumbled out of the forest and onto a long road. It stretched on for miles. Ted stumbled down the road, drawing a breath to shout for help. Suddenly, several more mutated animals left the forest of the other side and began to lope towards him, forcing him away from the road, away from help.

Ted ran and ran, thanking his wife for forcing him to go jogging every evening. The others hadn't been fast or fit enough to run for long away from the creatures, but he was. Maybe he could find another way out of the jungle and get help.

Suddenly, the jungle ended, and Ted found himself facing a huge cliff that loomed over him. There was no way he could climb it. He heard the creature's pounding footsteps behind him stop. He could feel their glares boring into his back, smell their rancid breath. He knew the chase had finished, that it was the end for him.

Ted Bowman turned to meet his death.

______________________________

This was a short story that I wrote in my English class in Year 10, so I was probably about... thirteen years old, I think.

We were given two pictures: of a rather dirty, battered, and exhausted-looking man of about fifty years, and of a road that was long and didn't seem to have an end.

Then, we had thirty minutes to write a story on it.

This is the story I wrote ^.^ I don't think it's too bad. I decided to call it The Chase because, well... someone gets chased in it. And there was only two minutes left of class...

Please leave comments if you can. Criticism is okay, as long as it's constructive. Try not to jump on the bandwagon. I love hearing ways to improve my writing, but not if it's intentionally insulting.

And don't forget to vote!

Thanks :)