I'm a Park Ranger in a Park You Won't Find On Any Map

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Okay well um, my name is James and I work as a park ranger in a park that isn't on any map, has no name and I know it's situated in Southern Britain. I only took this job in the first place to help pay for University, I was fresh out of college at the time. I've never met my boss, I've only ever spoken to them over email which is weird,but the money is good and I was provided my own accommodations inside of the park down by the river. It's sort of my own personal property as well so the public are not allowed in that area. My job is sitting in a tower five nights a week, with Mondays and Wednesdays off, and responding to radio calls for help or deal with teenagers going out late at night to get high or drunk. At the time I couldn't complain; the money was good, I had a decent place to call home and very few pressures, but the job was boring as hell then, October 28th 2007,  It changed.

Trudging grumpily, I made my way from my front door through a small wooded area with my torch in hand and Red at my side. Red is a grey wolf cub I saved from poachers about six months prior but that's for another time. Anyway, the tall oak loomed over,blocking the sky but the moon light still seeped through partially illuminating the path. Not that it did much good. My area of property was surrounded by a chain-link fence and the wooden gate was coming up. Eventually path and the nature trail joined together where I had already removed my key from my inside coat pocket and had slid it into the keyhole on the wooden gate. I turned it where it clicked and then pushed the handle down and opened the door. Red ran ahead of me and I stayed to lock up again. the trees parted here and I could see the roof of the tower,mighty as ever. I shined the torch in front of me and flinched a large four legged figure darted right into the bushes. It was instantaneous and almost silent. I blinked and looked again checking if I had actually seen anything, but as far as I could tell it was nothing, my imagination playing tricks on me. Red ran back down to and jumped around playfully tail wagging. A gust of cold wind swirled past and he stopped immediately and shot around glaring into the darkness growling. He sniffed the air again and stopped. I looked with the torch and nothing seemed to be present so we walked on towards the stairs of the tower. I was slightly on edge and something had clearly agitated Red. I tried my best to brush it off and was relieved when the base of base steps of the came into view. The were solid wood like the tower,it made it less slippery during rain or snow. 

Finally at the top and I walked across the surrounding balcony to the centre building. I went for the handle expecting it to be locked. It wasn't. Charlie usually forgot to lock the door anyway, at this point I expected it. Inside all was warm and cosy and only missing the boil of the kettle for a shitty cup of coffee. I crossed the room to the large bay window with a painted black wooden frame and where rain had began to trickle slowly down the glass, my desk, a ham radio and computer where there. Red was lay down in his scraggy dog bed with a raggedy doll he played with. He was still young after all. Coffee in hand and my feet upon the desk, I stared unexpectantly at the radio frequency waves on the small monitor. Nothing, like usual. I pushed the radio to the back of my mind and the rain had picked up, significantly. The gentle pitter patter of raindrops was replaced by aggressive hammering banging loudly off the windows. I had just picked up my book i'd been reading for the last week when static cracked through the radio. Startled and somewhat excited, I put then headphones on and pulled the microphone close.

"Ranger tower Alpha whats the emergency?" I asked as calmly as I could.

"H-help, please," A woman's voice, the terror in her voice shook and disturbed me deeply but I listened, "There's something out here, a creature or a bear or something, my girlfriend... I think shes, shes dead-d". Suddenly a loud rumble of thunder and flash of lightning disturbed the night sky followed by a loud blood curdling shriek on the radio so painful it hurt my ears. The radio cut to static and I felt my stomach churn, heart sink and pulse race all at once. Most calls were nothing or someone taking the mick. This was real and I could not possibly have been prepared for it. I turned to Red and he was already standing and snarling viciously at the door. This only heightened my fears, nothing ever got past Red and his primal instincts were always correct. Always. My computer had a GPS system that could trace all of the walkie talkies visitors were encouraged to carry from the office so they could contact us. I inputted the time of the call and the system gave me the location and identification of the walkie. Number 109. I pulled out my mobile phone and inputted the identification into the park security app and the GPS showed up on screen. I felt sick to my stomach and trembled the entire time I was getting ready. My hands were shaking so bad i could barely zip up my rain coat. I slid my key into the locked cabinet in the kitchen area and turned it until I heard it click and it slid open. Protruding hooks held my company issued rifle in place where I promptly removed it and re-locked the cupboard. I was ready to leave and Red seemed eager. I didn't fancy the pouring rain, not one bit. This was bad, even for Britain.