19 Days - One Shots

The Stranger in the Woods - Part One

One Day

Mo Guan Shan's heart rate increased with excitement, his eyes darting around watching for any movement. Thick, dense woods surrounded him in all directions and he could scarcely see the sunlight through the leaves. Not that he needed it though; his eyes had adjusted perfectly well to the darkness throughout the few years he had been hunting here.

Sometimes Guan Shan wondered if he would ever get bored of hunting for food in the same area all the time, but as he thought this, his heart raced in his chest and a predatory excitement stirred in his stomach as he realised he enjoyed hunting for his dinner much more than one probably should.

Movement and the sounds of a disturbed bush to his right caught Guan Shan's eye and he lifted his bow and arrow, a slow grin spreading across his face, that familiar feeling churning his gut. He crouched low to the ground and silently made his way in the direction of the rustling sound. Suddenly, a rabbit darted out of the bushes; without hesitation Guan Shan shot the rabbit, hitting his target.

Guan Shan stood with a satisfied grin and sauntered his way towards his prey, shouldering his bow. His mother would be happy with what he had found. A condescending smirk worked its way onto his face as the faces of the villagers popped into his head. They would stare with envious eyes as he brought food home to his mother. No one was as good a hunter as he and he knew it.

Suddenly, a flock of birds flew away from the trees and a few bushes rustled nearby. Guan Shan was bent over to pick up the rabbit when he stopped and listened. A sudden chill ran down his spine when he heard quite literally nothing. All wildlife in the forest had come to a stop as if holding it's breath and that's when he realised.

He wasn't alone.

His eyes darted around frantically but he saw nothing, no one. Was it a human? No, he would have seen or heard someone if it were. An animal, maybe? But what kind of creature could disturb the surrounding area enough to make it as silent as it was? A feeling of uneasiness crept it's way into the back of his mind and he decided it was time to leave. He picked up the rabbit and marched back the way he came with haste.

Sudden movement to his left whirled Guan Shan around but yet he saw nothing. The movement picked up to his right, making Guan Shan pick up his pace. Whatever this was, it was unnaturally fast and it made his adrenaline race with fear. A small, irrelevant thought popped into his mind. Is this how my prey feels when I hunt it? Guan Shan definitely felt like he was being hunted.

A black shadow raced a few meters in front of him though he couldn't make out the shape. He came to a stop and twirled around, bringing his bow and arrow out. He realised his hands were shaking and he took a deep breath to steel his nerves. It didn't work. Suddenly, he froze with fear as he felt breath snake across the back of his neck and a voice whisper in his ear.

"Boo."

-------

Guan Shan woke with a start. What happened? He raised his head to find it was stiff and he looked around to realise he was in a sitting position leaning back against a metal fence with his hands tied above his head. His arms felt cold and his fingertips tingled where they had been raised for so long.

The crackling of a fire caught his attention and he wondered how he hadn't noticed it at first. He looked around and noticed the outside world was pitch black. How long had he been there? Judging by the darkness, he guessed a good few hours had passed. Guan Shan looked to at his right hand and tried to pull it free of its bonds to no avail. He turned and tried the same with the left.

"I wouldn't bother if I were you."

The deep voice startled Guan Shan and he turned to look around but saw no one. It was the glint of a silver cup to the right of the fire that caught his attention but he couldn't see anyone holding it. He had to really focus to notice the figure holding it. The figure was dressed in a black cloak that covered most of their face. He seemed to blend right into the shadows, only being noticed when he wanted to. Guan Shan swallowed.