//------------------------------// // Timberwolf // Story: Human and Pony Alike // by ShutterGuy //------------------------------// The silence was unnerving and I began to feel sick from not being able to see the road. In the last thirty minutes I sat in darkness, due to the sack on my head, I was able to think about things. Things like When will we arrive? Where are we going? Why did they have to throw a sack on my head. and the one that kept popping up in my mind WHAT HAVE I GOTTEN MYSELF INVOLVED WITH?! I felt the bus come to a sudden stop which made me almost hit my head against the seat ahead of me. I heard others around me started to get off one by one. I didn't move due to the earlier threat that the soldier said. After a couple of suspenseful minutes I finally felt that same heavy grasp of the man's hand on my shoulder. He pulled me up by my shirt and started to tug me towards what I could only assume was the front of the bus. Why, if this is a job, do I feel like some criminal? Suddenly the bag was ripped off and I was shoved out of the bus, making me struggle to regain footing. The duffle bag still on my shoulders swung around and threw my balance off causing me to fall onto a white tiled floor. I shot back at the man a nasty snarl. "How about you try that again. We'll see who ends up on the floor this time." the soldier stepped down and approached me with a almost pleased smile. He shot out a hand towards me and in instinct I grabbed it and pushed away. But, I was too slow when he used the other hand to grab the collar of my shirt. In a jerking motion he lifted me up close to his face. "Every man that signed up to be a 'rent-a-cop' for tonight are dispensable." His eyes narrowed. "Especially you maggot. Your life can easily be replaced with another. Remember that." His tone was deep and menacing. He released his grip and I landed on the floor standing up. With my fists clenched tight I did everything in my power not to throw a punch at him. He turned and headed back to the bus which Robert was just hopping out of. Once the man stepped inside, the doors of the bus closed and headed its way through a huge metal door. Beyond the door seemed to be open country, but with darkness of the night it was difficult to tell. When the bus disappeared into the blackness the door automatically slid shut with a loud metallic clang. I looked around to realize that I was inside some hanger. Behind me stood the other men mumbling to each other about the scene that played before them. Captain O'Harrea subquested himself apart from the group with his arms folded and was glaring at me with a disapproving look. I turned my body towards him as he signaled to the men to move out. Robert's hand patted my back and I glanced over to the concerned face of my friend. I felt the frustration subside as I let out a sigh. That went well. The clomping of boots echoed through the hanger as we approached a set of doors. O'Herrea Made his way over to the pin pad and entered a code that I couldn't make out. The lock disengaged and the doors swiftly slid open revealing a long hall way that sloped downward. I felt a shiver crawl down my spine. Something about this place gives me the feeling that something dreadful is waiting. O'Herrea continued to proceed down the hallway and the men silently followed him. Robert leaned in began to speak in low voice as to not to draw attention. "Chris, man. You know if you started a fight with that guy, you would have probably lost. Even as strong as you are, you can't expect to take on someone who's trained to fight." "It doesn't matter. I'm not going to just sit around letting someone push me like that. I got to stand up for myself." "Yeah, I can understand that. However, you need to start choosing your battles better or you'll find yourself getting seriously hurt one day." He poked me in the shoulder. He wore a stern face but his eyes were filled with concern. "Don't worry about me, man. I can handle myself in a pinch." I gave him a nudge. His mouth was held open like he wanted to say something back. He shortly closed it afterwards and shook his head. I smiled and walked with the other men toward the hallway with Robert close behind me. -_-_-_- After several minutes of walking down the hallway the air became cold and thick. The men in line kept their tongues silent and heads forward as they followed O'Harrea. He stopped in front of a door and turned to face his subordinate ranking members. His face was somber as he announced, "This is the locker room, you ladies have three minutes to get ready for your shift. Move!" The men fluidly filed into the room while the captain eyed each one. When it came to me he narrowed his eyelids in a menacing stare. I bet this man never smiled in his life. And why does he give me the dirty look? Upon entering the locker room I could see that our names where pasted on each locker. On finding mine I swung the duffle bag off my shoulders and lowered it to the ground. Closer inspection at my name revealed that the tag was already peeling off. I could see that it had covered another name beneath it. I peeled it back halfway to uncover the last name of 'Mason'. Wow they don't even remove the previous guys name. The feeling of being expendable slowing crept into my system. I grunted in annoyance as I opened the locker and began to push my duffle bag into it. I stopped when I heard a clattering sound ring off the tiled floor. I brought my head downwards to see that most of my stuff had fallen out and was laying askew around my feet. Again I grunted and pounded the locker. You've got to be kidding me! Frustrated, I pulled out my duffle bag and begun to reload it with the fallen items. I grabbed at random items stuffing them into bag. However one particular item caused my hand to hover over it. It was the aged camera that used reside on top my dresser. I silently stared at it noticing the newly formed crack in the lens glass. There would have been a time that I would have thought that the end of the world had come due to this. Now it was just a remnant of a ironically broken dream. I wonder how mad he would be? I started to remember the years I spent in high school studying; trying to better myself in menial subjects like math, english, history, and science. All in which I actually did okay in, but where I soared was in a extraordinary elective class of film photography. I was the one everyone went to when questions needed answers. Even the teacher would ask me questions on rare occasions. My father seeing how I progressed in leaps and bounds, he used almost all the money he had to buy me my first camera. I couldn't have been happier back in those days. However, that all came to a crushing end in my senior year. I had a huge fight with my father which resulted in me running off to some friends house. In my return I found my mother crying hysterically. In those moments received the most heart retching news that I could ever receive in my life. My father had passed during the night. And my passion for photography died along with him. I felt the tears start to build up and I clinched my eyes to push them back. Not here, not now. I picked my camera and humbly placed it in the duffle bag. After picking up the remainder of the items on the floor I managed to successfully place it into the locker. Before I closed it though, I noticed a radio and flashlight that hung on the backside of the locker door. I grabbed them and attached them onto my belt. Okay let's get this party started. -_-_-_- I was the first to leave the locker room. Upon exiting, I saw O'Harrea leaning against the wall on the opposite side of the hallway staring at me. "Mr. Taylor. Please follow me I need to talk to you." his voice was slightly less stringent. He pushed off the wall and began to walk away. I followed him wondering what could he possibly need to talk to me about. Once he knew that the locker room was out of hearing range, he began. "To think I would ever see another Taylor. And in this hellhole no less." his comment struck me off-guard and I instantly was looking at him in confusion. "What do you mean by that?" O'Harrea completely disregarded the question. "He used to talk a lot about you, you know? He would go on and on about his son back home and how that he was a success just waiting to happen. Couldn't shut him up about it. Even after we threatened to cut out his tongue." I half expected him to at least chuckle, but his face was expressionless. Hearing this about my dad made me weep inside my heart. However, I was striving t keep a straight face. "How do you know my father?" he slightly turned his head towards me. "U.S. Army, we were stationed in Germany. Our battalion name was called Spearhead." He began to move a little slower. "Chris. What are you doing here?" "Well I signed up with..." he interrupted me. "I meant why are you not out and using your talent." He shot me a glare of annoyance. "From what your father had showed me you could've been one of the best out there. But instead here you are wasting your life on security detail." "That part of my life is over. I'm just playing with the cards that were dealt to me." He suddenly stopped and turned towards me with an angry look. "You were given a winning hand and your the one who decided to flop! You have no one to blame but yourself." at the end of his sentence the lights flickered. I glanced up at them Wha... He continued paying little attention to it. "You can still get a hold of your life, but you need to actually try to make it work." He held his index finger at my chest. "Do you expect me to just go back the way things were! It doesn't work that way!" I raised my voice in resentment and we glared into each others eyes. After a short while the lights flickered again. Okay what's going on?! "No I don't expect that. However, I don't think your father would like it if his son was just wasting his life away." "How am I wasting my life away? I got a job isn't that a step forward?" I gestured to the uniform. O'Harrea's face went grave and shook his head. "Chris. I have been doing this for five years and I watch men leave here worse off than how they came. Sometimes some men don't leave because they no longer have a choice. Why do you think I'm still here?" I stood there trying to process what he meant about men not having choice to leave. He noticed this and to my shock he placed a hand on my shoulder in a brotherly manner. "Just get out of here the first chance you get." he began to walk away but then hesitated like he remembered something. "Oh yeah. your father wanted me to give you this if I was to ever see you again." He pulled out an aged piece of cloth and extended it towards me. I grabbed it and opened it up my heart skipped a step at seeing it's contents. inside was a slightly worn out dog tag where the name "David T. Taylor" still held its embossment and a dirty folded piece of paper. I looked at O'Harrea in a trivial manner. "You just happen to be carrying these?" "I was my piece of memory of your father. He was a good man Chris. You should be proud to be a Taylor." He walked away leaving me alone with the last present I would ever receive from my father. Dad I... I'm so sorry... Tears building up in my eyes, I promise to make a difference in life. I will make you proud one day I swear. I leaned my head back and closed my eyes trying to hold back from crying. Through my eyelids I could see that the lights flickered off again. Okay seriously that's starting to... BOOM A thunderous clasp caused me to cover my ears. What was that?! I opened my eyes to see that all of the lights were now out. I couldn't see anything at all not even my hands in front of my face. I folded the cloth gingerly and placed it in my pocket along with my knife. I was about to pull out my flashlight when suddenly the emergency lights came on with an eerie orange glow. The hallway had given me the creeps before, but now it just made my skin crawl. "All personnel report back to the hanger and wait for further instructions!" O'Harrea announced and I slightly jumped at the radio coming alive. Turning to head towards the hangar I immediately stopped as a blood curtailing scream came from behind me. My legs locked up and my senses were heightened as I tried to imagine what could have happened. I continued to stare down the hallway when I heard something else that made slightly quake with fear. Howling. I fought with myself trying to decide whether I should go to the hanger or see If I could save the person in trouble. Trying to face a wolf alone I'll die. Another scream echoed in the hallway and I started to run towards it. It doesn't matter I need to help them! The orange lamps flashed past me as I sprinted down the dark corridor. I rounded a couple corners and could hear the sounds of struggling. I turned the last corner and saw a man running in my direction he was wearing a white lab coat. When he got closer I could see blood stand out on his coat. He grabbed me and with his eyes bulged looked at me with a diluted and frantic stare. "P-Please you h-have to help them. Close the portal make sure no more get in." his pupils shrunk at the sound of growling that came from behind him. He let out a whimper as terror formed across his face. He let go me and dashed like mad down the way I came. I squinted to see two neon green eyes staring at me. The creature was large and its stance was similar to a wolf. It just stared at me growling from the darkness with its glowing neon green eyes. The smell from its breath was putrid and gagging I held my stance never taking my eyes off the creature. I could feel the fear crawling up my legs giving me the thought of fleeing. However, I knew that I stood more of chance if I stood my ground. I hope. The creature moved slowly towards me with a creaking sound. A sound that you normally heard from wood? It crept into the light of the soft orange lamp that hung over my shoulder. My sight confirmed that this creature was constructed of numerous branches and short logs. I was taken back with my eyes wide and baffled. What?! How is that possible?! This can't be real, can it? Almost to cue, the creature bounded towards me sweeping with his wooden claw. It slashed across my shirt and abdomen leaving little blood trials. I jumped back, my eyes shot down at the claw marks in fear. IT'S REAL! THIS THING IS REAL! I put my hand immediately on my stomach and cringed. The pain felt like barbed wire scraping across my skin. I looked back up at the creature with the newfound understanding that my life was in danger. I started fumble at trying to pull out my knife, but the creature wasn't going to let me as it leapt towards me with its spear like fangs expanded widely. I threw my back against the wall on my left just as the wooden monster landed with a snap of it's jaws. With adrenaline pumping hard into my system I was able to clearly perceive the situation in a slow manner. The creature landed just in front of me and its back was exposed, If I'm to take action I need to do it now. Not wasting a second I jumped on it's rough wooden back wrapping my legs around its torso and arms around its neck. It began it to shake attempting to knock me off causing wooden limbs and branches to jab into my sides. I need to end this now! I firmly grasped the bottom of it's jaw and with all my strength I twisted it upward. I heard a sickening snap of the wood and the creature let out a horrible yelp. As the creature fell into individual pieces along the floor below me I felt my heart sink into the pit of my stomach. My breath was heavy and short from the rush of battle. The head was still in my hands it's eyes shut and the terrified expression still held on its face. I hated harming any animal let alone killing it. It was either you or the creature. I tried to justify as I lowered the head. I stumbled on the pieces of wood as I stood up and continued towards where the man came running from. I came to a set of metal doors that were lightly ajar and an aqua bluish glow seemed to radiate from inside it. I pushed the door to the side see a huge room with wires and coils everywhere. In the center of the room there was the oval ring like portal to a sinister looking forest on the other side. The portal seemed to be kept open due to two electrical towers that still seemed to be powered up. What's it a portal to? What kind strange place would have wooden living creatures? I noticed on the floor several bodies of scientists that were killed by the creature. I put my hand on my forehead and heart became heavy as I overlooked the murderous scene in front of me. I then looked back at the portal with determination thinking on how I would close it. With my senses still in their heightened state I could feel the presence of another life. In my paranoia I started to look around wondering if it was another wolf. I bent my knees to ready myself in case of any surprise attacks when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I spun around swinging my foot into the air only to be stopped by a two hands mere inches from his face. It was Robert. "WHOA! It's me man take it easy with the kicks!" I brought my leg down. "Why are you sneaking up on me?" I gave him stern look. "I have been looking for you. Since I heard the loud..." His eyes widened at what he saw behind me. "What the hell... Happened here?" "It was a monster that came from the portal." I nodded my head towards the aqua glow. "What monster?" He asked with an raised eyebrow. And almost right on cue I heard a familiar growl coming from behind Robert. "That's impossible!" My brain began to rack up questions. I was flabbergasted to see that wolf-like creature back on it's feet especially after what I did to it. "What is that thing?!" Robert yelled out with an extended finger pointing at the creature. "I-I don't know some sort of wooden wolf, b-but I destroyed it!" I stumbled to get out my thoughts as I tried to comprehend the fact that it was still alive. "Well you didn't do a good job then!" Robert started to look around frantically for a weapon to use as I did the same. On the floor I saw a wrench close to one of the fallen scientists. I ran over to it with the wolf in my peripherals, he seemed to ignore me as he inched his way over to Robert. "Robert! Heads up!" He turned to the wolf that was already rushing towards him. BANG My ears ringed at the sound of a gunshot. I directed my head at the doorway to see O'Harrea standing there with a pistol in hand. He had shot off the jaw of the wolf. BANG Another shot and the wolf collapsed back into a pile of mixed limbs. Perhaps its really dead now. I doubted that thought but I was happy to see it stopped for now. "So this what they've been working on." he eyed the both of us and an expression of rage formed across his face. "Are you two deaf and stupid? I ordered to go to the hanger!" "O'Harrea listen to me!" The seriousness in my tone caused him to lose his rage. "We don't have a lot of time we need to shut off this portal before more of those things get through." He lifted his head to the portal and then to the pile of wood. He sighed and then nodded. "Okay, Chris you deal with the portal while me and Robert see if anyone is still alive here." he turned to Robert. "Come on." I grabbed the wrench at my feet and made my way over to the portal. I stood before the portal which was about six to seven feet tall. I quickly scanned the world it projected on the other side. It seemed to just be a typical dark forest with the exception of some flowers and other plant life I never seen before. Out of curiosity I put my hand through and could feel humid forest on the other side. That's insane. I quickly brought my hand back and placed it on the wrench. I moved over to the electrical tower and brought up both my hands. I twisted my body back and with all my might I swung the wrench forward and smash it against the tower. The portal began to slowly close. I looked the sparks flying out of the tower and smiled a little. Well it seems to be working. I lifted my hands up again and repeated my action. The portal began to rapidly close. Okay one more should do it. As I brought up my hands for the final swing I heard both O'Harrea and Robert yell in unison. "Chris! Look out!" I glanced back to see the flying form of the wolf only feet away. My eyes shot open and I tried to dodge, but it was to late. The wolfs claws pushed me back into the portal and felt my body pass through the threshold. "CHRIS!" My friends voice became muffled as to my horror the portal closed shut. My body skipped across the soil and landed with a thud against a tree. I heard the growling in front of me. I lifted my head to see six pairs of neon green eyes glaring at me with hunger. Oh god. I'm screwed.