Mistaken

Dreams and nightmares (Chapter 1)

Chapter 1

Jason

The branches of the old willows swayed in the wind, dancing in rythm with each other. Their leaves were just beggining to change into the rich yellow, orange, reds, and browns of fall. The sky could barely be seen through the small gapes in the canopy. The clouds were dark and full of rain, the wind blew in strong gusts, and the sky was an ugly shade of green. The chilly gusts of wind rolled over the bare skin of my arms, causing goosebumps to rise. I had come unprepared and now I was suffering the consequences.

I ran through the forest, sticks and leaves crinkling and cracking under my feet. The branches caught on my shirt, tugging at me almost as if they were trying to stop me or warn me. I heard ripping and felt the cool shock of cold air on my chest and stomach, but I continued to run.The wind blew my dark hair into my face, blocking my sight and sending me crashing to the ground, my foot caught on a branch.

I sat there for a moment letting my heart rate and breathing slow.

Why was I here? What was I doing? The questions suddenly popped into my head, and I realized I didn't know the answer to either. Why was I running? I didn't know the answer to that either. I felt confused and lost ... and afraid. Why was I afraid? The fear coursed through my body and ate at my insides, sending trembles over my skin.

I repositioned my body so I was leaning against a nearby log. Laying my head back against the bark I tried to sort through my confusion. After a moment of sitting there I recognized another feeling. The feeling was one of urgency. I felt like I should be running as fast as I could away from this place. My nerves were on edge and I didn't know why.

I got up and sat on the log that I has been leaning against. This made no sense. I tried to remember what happened and think of a reason why I was running, but my brain was starting to hurt and I could feel exhaustion creeping up on me. I sat there for a moment and tried to clear my mind to stop the violent pounding in my head.

That's when I heard the leaves. It started behind me, and then I heard it to my left. It was the crinkling of leaves being crushed underfoot.

Through all of the confusion one word stood out loud and clear-- run. In a burst of motion, before I could even comprehend it all, I took off. My muscles sprang to life, pushing me as fast as they could. Behind me the footsteps picked up speed as well. It sounded like a herd of rhinos was chasing me. There must have been at least a dozen men chasing me. I didn't have time to think of the reason for it, or to think of anything at all. The only thing that my mind could focus on was running and getting away from these people.

I heard people running all around me. The only clear pathway I had was straight infront of me. I chanced a look at one of the pursuers to my right. He wore a big black vest with black pants, a black long sleeve shirt, and black gloves. It all looked thick and padded, and he also wore a thick black helmet. Why would he need so much protection, especially if he was chasing me?

I glanced back at the forest in front of me, focusing on keeping my feet from tangling up in the leaves and branches. I kept up my speed and so did my pursuers, never falling too far behind me and never fully catching up to me.

My adrenaline was racing through me, my heart was pumping faster than ever, and I was terrified. What were they going to do to me? Capture me? Kidnap me? And why did they have so much protection? It was like I was some dangerous criminal that they thought could pull out deadly weapons at any moment and start killing people.

I spent a large amount of time trying to speed ahead of them and get away, but they kept pace with me. I realized after a while that I was just waisting energy, but it was too late; I was already exhausted. I knew my legs couldn't hold out for much longer, and I feared capture was inevitable.

I wished I knew why they were chasing me. Maybe it had been a bad idea to run. Maybe it was a problem they could calmly settle through talking, but their clothes told a different story. What were they doing? They were patient predators, waiting for their prey to tire and weaken, but if I was tiring shouldn't they be too? This was wasting time and just making us all tired. What were they waiting for?

As I ran out of the forest into a clearing my question was answered. Standing there waiting for me were about two dozen more men, each dressed just as the men who had been chasing me. They all stood in a semi circle, ... and they each held a gun pointed straight at me. I froze as I saw the guns, raising my hands into the air in surrender. I fought to catch my breath, my heart still racing on. My pursuers followed me out into the clearing, forming a line behind me, completing the circle, trapping me. While watching my pursuers trap me I saw something that I hadn't noticed before -- a gun attached to each of their hips, and as I watched they pulled them out and pointed them at me as well. They had led me into a trap, and now there was no way out.

They stood there and stared at me for a moment, their guns steadily pointed at me. I expected them to say something like "surrender" or "freeze", but there was no need; I was already good and frozen. My heart had already skipped several beats, and even if I wanted to I couldn't move.

They stared at me for a moment more, but as I stood there frozen one of the men yelled a word that made my heart stop -- "Fire!". My blood seemed to freeze in my veins. Before I even had time to duck and cover, their fingers were already pulling their triggers. I only had time to scream before the bullets were piercing my skin