The Bryne Runaways (Updated)

Chapter 45

I wake with warm light touching my face and I see that the sun is out and shining. It's morning. I rub my eyes fully awake and I look for Uncle Ben who isn't near. I get up quickly and take out my knife. Where'd he go? I move outside into the bright light and look for him eagerly when I finally found him. He's down by this small lake where he's washing up. I breathe out my worries and put away my knife. There's no trouble here I say in my head. Nothing will haunt us anymore.

I fall on my bottom and I take out my pack of crackers, beginning to eat them as I look around the wilderness that beholds me. I bit into my salty cracker and hear the birds chirp a perfect melody in the air. It is so delightful, it's just like eating sweet tootsie rolls on a swing. That's another memory I don't want to forget. Uncle Ben comes back to the cave and takes a seat next to me throwing his arm around my shoulders. "Good morning bud"

"Hi" I say as I swing my legs around looking into the wild.

"What are you looking at?" He asks me.

"At the green" I say back to him.

"What's there to look at?"

"Everything" I finish my breakfast and look away from the beauty to Uncle Ben who's washed up.

"Are we almost there?" I manage to say something to where we are heading because so far I'm curious to know a little something about all this going on. Why did we need to leave? Why do people want me? Who am I?

"I can't say because I haven't checked the map yet" Uncle Ben says and I react calm but in the inside, twisted. I nod okay and my eyes go back to the forest.

"Just get ready we're about to get moving" I do as I'm told and I'm putting my books back in my pack as well as the other materials I took out. Suddenly Dr. Meredith leather notebook falls on the ground and I look at it directly. The brown coffee stained notebook. I wanted to know what's in that notebook but it's supposed to go to someone name Chris. I don't know who that is. All I know is that it's not for me to look at but why did she give it to me? She could've gave in it to Uncle Ben to keep away things.

I pick it up and I feel some type of odd feeling deep in me, then I remember Dr. Meredith. The brave soul who began the mysterious puzzle. The words she said plays in my head. The cure to the madness. Those words. It haunts me. Dr. Meredith broke the silence and Gordon shot a bullet into her stomach and I was there to witness it all. I try not thinking about too much so I just put the notebook back in my pack, I couldn't do it. I'm not going to. It's not meant for me to see.

I take my pack and I hear the clicking noise of my medallions under me. I pick them out and I'm surprised I haven't lost them yet. I thought they would have fallen off or be taken from me. I kiss them and hide it under my long sleeve shirt. If my grandfather from my mother's side and my grandmother from my father's side is watching just know that I've been reaching out to you guys and I haven't got no response. Don't keep me waiting here. But....

Oh dear medallions please help me.

Uncle Ben and I leave the cave and into the forest. Deep in the forest is where I think we really are. To be completely honest I don't know where we are or where we're heading, I'm just following my uncle to where he leads.

Uncle Ben stops to refill his canteen by a small pond he sees and I stay behind sitting on a dirty log that I now notice has carvings all over it. Deep carving. I get up quickly from it and see the entire log carved up. It didn't look clawed up by any animal but carved by a person. A human being.

My fingers trace the marks along the wood and I look up from the log and into the other trees around me where they all are carved up the same containing blood marks or with red or orange paint. On one of the trees there has arrows attached to it and I pick it out. I hold the arrow in my hand and it contains blood on the tip of the sharp end and I drop it without hesitation.

What is this?!

I hear a noise behind me and I look over to see a corpse of a large animal tied up to sharp spears in the air. I hear my name and I look over to Uncle Ben and he's running to me now. I turn back where behind me is a dark hooded figure in tribal type of clothing made of real animal-like material, they maintain a black fade within themselves with sharp carved weapons that took a swipe that I managed to get away from. I fall onto the ground to where I can see now that it's a hunter. The type of ones who attacked my friends. I grow much more afraid of the deadly hunter up close realizing his instincts are completely dangerous and his mindset is different than our own. He brings his knife down with his hand that is washed in red paint as he tracks my movements which reminded me of my knife.

TAKE YOURS OUT!

He raises his knife up high and I move from where it lands right beside my leg. He swipes his knife again but this time into a tree and I somehow had the courage and wanted to stab him but he caught my hand. He sends me back with a forceful shove resulting for I to land on a pile of wet leaves. He throws my pocket knife down and walks over to me. In my mind I have a near death feeling until Uncle Ben swings at him in the face and drops him. I get off the ground and begin to run but with more hunters joining the hunting game. A hunter
randomly appears in front of us looks at us behind his hood and we run the other direction where there is a clear path.

My feet run through the wet soil and the pile of colorful leaves over rocks where I look around to capture the skulls hanged on the tree bark and the paint marks all over the trees. Once I have gotten things together I now notice that we have entered a hunter's territory. It made more sense. They had their things here that belonged to them also they had traps out, gas tanks and their sleeping site, it made the entire place look very lethal and highly guarded.

Arrows are shot at us and we try to get away from them. I look behind and I see hunters running around for us causing to accidentally trigger off a trap. I look at what I did and a wide thick net falls down from the trees. I get out of the way instantly and the net that I see contains sharp glass on it. These are traps meant to kill animals but severely injure humans. I see a tomahawk heading my way and I move and it sticks to the tree. Uncle Ben pulls me over to him and we began running from the attack. We take cover behind sandbags that are already here. I breathe roughly and I lay my head back. This is just pure difficult to handle. So many times I've been through things like this.

The forest got silent again like if nothing had happened but the hunting game is always silent when it's going on. They are waiting for the perfect shot. I calm my breathing and Uncle Ben looks at me and I stare at him.

"Norman I'm gonna draw them away from you. Stay here until you think there's no more. You run far away and I promise I'll find you." He says and I don't want him to go. I feel my chest get punched and this pain isn't helping right now.

"Uncle Ben please-" He doesn't let me talk but takes me into his grip then afterwards leaving me completely alone. I wanted to go after him but he is already getting chased by more than one hunter. He needs my help. I look down at the ground with my adrenaline rushing and my heart rapid that is still beating. Get up, he needs you.

I move my head to my side to see another gas tank knocked over.

I have a reckless idea that can save us.

I stand high with my fists clenched and my bravery that strives high. I hop over the sandbags and to where the lonely tank is abandoned, the birds fly away when I come in contact with the tank, with my pocket knife I pop open the plug to where it leaks the substance of the running liquid that fuels the dancing fire.

I drop my pack down to ground and pull out my matches. I take out one and with my feet I forcefully launch down the spewing yellow liquid where it meets the others. I hear a snap of a branch and from close I see a nice view of a hunter with a knife who has a nasty scowl upon his face. He runs to me quickly but he's too late. I toss the lighten match down to the path where it evolves into something bigger and runs faster to where it intertwined at its destination.

Fire meet gasoline.