He thought it would have gotten easier once he had crossed the river, but it was not to be. Damned nature, he thought, how am I supposed to survive in this?He had been brought up in the city; had gone to university, become an engineer, and a successful career in oil exploration followed. And it would have continued if the light aircraft hadn't crashed, he the only passenger, and the pilot dead.Nature was lush about him, but he had no idea how to survive. He tried waiting by the plane for rescue, but after several days, no one came. So he took the gamble – attempted to walk out.He was near exhaustion as he came upon the clearing and almost collapsed.Suddenly a voice said: 'You okay?'He looked around. Saw the man. He was a large man with a beard, scruffily dressed, a weather beaten face, a battered homburg pushed back on his head. 'Thank God,' said the engineer, sure that he was now to survive.The man smiled; sat beside him. 'Were you in that plane that crashed over yonder?''Yes. I've tried to walk out, but I'm no good in this place. I know nothing of nature.''Ah, the modern predicament,' said the man. 'What do you do?''I'm an oil man.'The man winced. 'Oh, one of those. Don't you understand what you're doing to nature, destroying it?''What do I care for it? We're technologists now. What do we need with it?''Well if you want me to help you get out, you'd better start to learn.'It was many hours later, and much conversation, before the engineer began to be lulled by the environment around him. The man had told him how to just sit there, taking it all in, and he had to admit, it made him feel relaxed for the first time in his life. Around him, the bush seemed to expand, as if coming to him, and he felt an intimate relationship with it all. And it wasn't long before he had this thought that maybe he never wanted to leave after all ...
*****
It was two days later when a small helicopter landed with the two man search team. They had found the aircraft and were following his trail when they spotted him.'Well I've never seen anything like it,' said the first man.The second was speechless, just looking into the bush, the engineer almost entwined within it, his body cold, but a serene look upon his face.Just a few yards away, they found a skeleton, years, maybe decades old, a battered old homburg hat beside it.They were about to leave to report what they'd found when they saw a bearded figure close by. 'You okay,' he said.
YOU ARE READING
I, Horror
HorrorWelcome to my horror fest. How scary can Flash Fiction get? Why not judge for yourself. In these short tales of the macabre I bring the Gothic into the modern. But a warning: there's no blood or gore here. I try to freeze it instead.
