Hunters (A Short Story)

Katie

Sep 29

September 19, 2022 (11:15 p.m.)

We came to the woods to find them. We came to search. We think we're hunting them. We were wrong.

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September 15, 2022 (noon)

This is day one. I'm excited, and I think the others are, too. As excursions go, this one is fairly long for me, and I think I've packed enough. Clothes, food, water – I'm only worried about coffee. But that's, as they say, a me problem. Dan would say I'm addicted. I say he wouldn't like me without coffee. I guess we'll see which of us is more correct.

I suppose I can take some time and space here to talk about what we're doing, and why I'm excited, and how I got here in the first place. One day, when I'm eighty, if I can keep up with this journal, I might like to read it and enjoy the memories. So it started like this:

I'm eight, or maybe nine, and my dad has gone camping with two if his good friends. Just camping. But they get more than they bargain for, and on the last night of their trip, they score the coolest recording I've ever heard. Hoots and calls and howls and growls, and they swear, up and down, that they managed to get proof of Bigfoot. I'm hooked. I've always believed in ghosts and magic. I like the idea that there are things in this world that we haven't figured out yet. Awfully boring otherwise, right? And that tape becomes an obsession. I listen to it over and over. I start categorizing the sounds. I start researching on my own. And now, all these years later, I finally get to go out and try my luck. It's taken me a while to feel comfortable telling people about this, because I'm not crazy or stupid. But man, if I could get a recording, or even better, a picture. I know chances are slim. But I have to try anyway.

So, into the woods I go.

There are five of us in the group. Me and Dan, who's only coming along because he says I can't be trusted to not freeze to death. Laura, for her camera. Ryan – he's searching, too, and he's good with maps. And Scott. Because he didn't have anything better to do. We're loading up the car now, and I'm stealing a minute to write this. I should go help. And then we're off!

Will write more when I can.

September 16, 2022 (8:30 a.m.)

Night one was…less than successful. First of all, it rained. It rained from the time we got into the woods to the time we woke up this morning, and now it's foggy and gray.

We couldn't have recorded anything if we wanted to. We couldn't make dinner. Which is fine, because we packed granola bars and such. But still, just not the night we wanted.

And the rain plays tricks on your ears. Scott freaked himself out thinking he was hearing popping and cracking sounds around our campsite, and then he freaked the rest of us out, too. Convinced something was going to ambush us and eat us in the middle of the night. We all know better, but it is disconcerting to listen to rain splatter everywhere and to know it's impacting what else you can hear. Or rather, what else you can't. It's easy to think something's there when it's not. For Ryan and me, I think that might actually be exciting, but for the others, I think they'd rather not think about it.

Otherwise, an uneventful night. Hopefully the fog clears and we have better luck today.

In the meantime, I've started recording what I think are the standard conditions out here, at least as I can see them. Lots of twigs and leaf cover on the ground, rocky and uneven. Caves up on the hills. Might be worth exploring a few of those, just in case. It's mostly quiet around here now, the calm after the storm, so to speak.

One major area of interest: There's lots of mud near the river now. Could be a great place to find tracks.

September 17, 2022 (8:00 a.m.)

The fog never cleared yesterday, but today it's sunny and bit warmer. It was frustrating to lose a day, though. I suggested we walk along the river and look for any signs there. Now all of our boots are covered in mud and Dan thinks I'm a crazy person.

Morning now, and so we're trying to get an early start. I'll come back to this later with any updates.

September 17, 2022 (7:00 p.m.)

Okay, so Dan's actually really mad at me, and Scott's being a weirdo. He's insisting he saw tracks in the mud. I looked – I was hoping he was right – but honestly they just looked like puddles to me. Ryan looked, too, and wasn't sure either way, and Laura snapped a couple of pictures, just in case. I told Scott there are lots of animals in these woods that we're not searching for, and to just let it go.

Dan's upset about his boots, and he's also frustrated that I didn't bring any wool socks. And he's not wrong. I totally forgot. He's loaned me his second pair, which means he doesn't get dry socks. I feel bad. I don't know. We've only got two more nights out here, and that's counting tonight. We're heading home on Monday. I think we'll be fine.

In a bit of bad news, though, it's starting to rain again. Hopefully it passes soon and we're able to head out for an hour or so later this evening to do some searching in the dark. We've not had any luck during the day, so maybe we'll do better at night?

September 18, 2022 (2:30 a.m.)

No dice on the night search. The rain won't let up. And Scott's convinced he's hearing something out in the woods. He says it's following us. It's making everybody nervous, even Ryan. I thought he'd be interested, but he says we'd be better to leave it along, whatever it is. Dan thinks I'm being mean to Scott. Laura thinks Scott's being paranoid, but I've seen her looking over her shoulder. I kind of can't believe it. Dan, Laura, and Ryan are all pretty experienced hikers, so I didn't think this would be a problem. I'm over here fuming, honestly, because this is so dumb, but I think maybe we all just need to get some rest. It's not a been a great day, and we're tired, but it won't help anything to just sit here and scare ourselves and be irritated with each other.

This is not the experience that I wanted.

September 18, 2022 (5:00 p.m.)

Scott, Laura, and Ryan have all packed up and left. They're going to hike to the closest town and catch a ride from there. So it's just Dan and me. I love that man. He's annoyed as hell, but he'll stick with me. And at least Ryan left us his map.

Anyway, the others are leaving because this morning, when we woke up, there was a massive tree branch right outside of our tents. Like, right outside. I don't know how it didn't fall and kill all of us. Scott is convinced it was "the Bigfoots." That's what he's been calling them. I'm not sad to see him go. I pointed out that it was just bad luck, that the rain's been really heavy. But the others said it doesn't matter. It's clearly not safe out here right now, and it's better to leave.

I don't disagree with them. And I'm worried about Dan's poor, wet feet. But it's only one more night. We're out of here tomorrow morning. I just don't even feel like I've really had the chance to do what I came here to do. I haven't searched any of the caves. I haven't been able to record anything. I just can't leave yet, not while I still have a chance.

The weather's dried out. My plan is to head out tonight after dinner and bring the recorder and a camera. If I don't find anything, then fine. I won't be the first. But I can't just give up.

September 18, 2022 (11:00 p.m.)

I'm stealing a minute because we heard them! Or, we heard something. I think it was a Bigfoot. Dan thinks it was a bear. But I got it on tape! And we've definitely been hearing some popping and cracking sounds out in the woods – maybe now that Scott's not whining about it, I can hear it better? – so I think we might finally have some luck! I'm planning to check out some caves in the morning before we leave. But for now, I'm going to stay up, listen, and hope I get something good.

September 19, 2022 (1:00 a.m.)

I'm probably an idiot. I'm out in the woods. I'm taking a breathing break. But I can hear them. They're out here. They're close. I actually think I heard one of them following me. It almost sounded like it took a step for every step I took. Maybe it's unwise, but I'm taking this chance, just hoping to get a picture. It's true that I don't have Laura's awesome camera, but maybe I'll get lucky enough to score something. Fingers crossed!

September 19, 2022 (9:00 a.m.)

We're supposed to pack up and head back morning, but it's pouring down rain. Pouring. I did manage to poke my head into a couple of caves last night, which was not the smartest thing to do, and I didn't find anything anyway. But at least I've got the recordings.

We went to bed at about 3:00 last night, and when we woke up, I swear it looks like our tent is just in a whole different spot. It's just the rain, I know.

Dan's thinking maybe we should just wait out the weather. We've got enough supplies for one more night, and we'd both rather be safe than injured. I can't lie – I'm elated after last night, and hoping that if we do stay, we're able to get some real, definitive evidence.

Dan's sick of wet feet.

September 19, 2022 (3:00 p.m.)

Well, we're definitely not going anywhere today. We've packed up, and we've been trying to figure out where we are, but I swear, things just look different in the rain. It's so foggy and damp, and it keeps pouring and then misting. Dan's so frustrated. He can't figure out WHY he can't figure out where we are. We can't even find the river. I'm a little scared, but I trust him, and he knows what he's doing. I figure, If nothing else, we can set up camp tonight and try again in the morning, hopefully after the weather lets up. For now, we're stopping and resting. It's useless to just tire ourselves out for no reason.

I haven't said anything, but I swear, I think Scott got into my head. I hear stuff. I hear stuff and I'm worried and I think it's just the stress of being a little lost. I should be excited, because I swear I saw something big and hairy out of the corner of my eye as we were trying to figure out where we could set up. But I think it was just a tree. I think I'm just tired. I'll probably write more later. Maybe the rain will let up and I can get in one more good night.

September 19, 2022 (8:00 p.m.)

We've eaten dinner, and Dan says we're not going anywhere tonight. No searching. No recording. Just sitting, safe and quiet, in our tent. He's convinced there's a bear in the area, and it's safest to stay where we are. I kind of hope it's just a bear at this point. I was excited, but I'm feeling a little…stalked? I can't think of the right word. But I've definitely felt some kind of shift in the air. I'm ready to go home. I'm going to turn in early, and hopefully in the morning, we'll get out of here quickly.

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September 20, 2022 (2:30 a.m.)

They're hunting us.

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Thank you for reading! This is the ninth of twelve stories I'll write for my 2023 Short Story Challenge. The theme this year is: Wild.

Here are the first eight, if you'd like to read them:

Dark, Dark, Dark

Fairy Tale

Spring Mountain Child

I hope you join me and write some stories of your own this year! It's fun, and I hope this will be a happy year full of good stories. But just reading is fine, too, and I'm glad you're here.

The next story will be posted at the end of October.