It was Paul's birthday. He had just turned ten years old which meant he was now old enough to go camping with his dad by themselves. "It's too dangerous", his mother had always said, "Wait until he's older". While she never once said what "older" meant exactly, for reasons that were only known to his mother and father, ten was the magic age.
The day of the big trip, Paul's father sat him down at the kitchen table to have a talk. Paul looked at his father with all the seriousness he could muster and listened. "Now", his father began, "Where we are going today, it's a very big place. It's easy to get lost and there are lots of wildlife that can hurt you. I don't want you to be scared, I just want you to be aware that getting hurt can happen". Paul nodded his head and his father continued, "Which is why when we're out there, you need to listen to me at all times and do what I say when I say it. I promise you that it's for your own safety if I tell you to do something. I want you to have fun but you also need to be careful. Understand?"
"Yes sir", Paul said in his best serious tone. He was looking forward to the trip and he knew that if he wanted another trip he should listen. However, he was a little disappointed that it sounded like he would not have as much fun as he originally thought. "Good. Now go grab your backpack and I'll show you how to pack".
Paul's father showed him how to roll his clothes tightly and how to lay them in the backpack so they would not take up much room. Next he put in some snacks, a few bottles of water, and finally some bandages. "Perfect", his father said, "Now go load up".
The drive to the woods was much longer than Paul was expecting. Luckily, they stopped for donuts. Paul wanted a coffee, seeing as how he was ten and could enjoy adult things now, but his father ordered him an orange juice instead. Paul was still able to take a sip of his father's coffee and realized that orange juice was a much better choice.
Once they arrived at their campsite, Paul looked around and wondered where all the other people were. "Hey dad? Where is everyone else?" Paul asked. "We're on our own up here", his father answered. "It's the best way to camp. You know I used to do this every year by myself?" Paul shook his head. "Well, I guess from now on I'll have a camping buddy", his father said with a smile. They both grabbed their packs and strapped them on their backs. Paul's father locked the truck and they both began their walk into the woods.
The woods were quite peaceful this time of the morning. The animals were happily making noises and the wind blew through the leaves making it feel cool despite the hard trail. Paul spotted a rabbit just ahead of them and looked at his father who nodded to him, "Go on then. But don't get out of sight". Paul took off after the rabbit who took off almost as quickly as Paul had. The two ran for quite a while and Paul, despite being weighed down, felt like he was very close to catching the animal. As he stretched his arm out he heard a loud yell behind him, "Paul, that's far enough". Paul stopped immediately and looked back. His father was quite a ways behind him but they could still see each other. He looked towards where the rabbit had been and saw nothing but heard it running away. Paul sighed and walked back towards his father. He had been so close and he would have caught it before his father could not see him anymore. He kicked a rock on the trail and saw the dirt kick up around his feet. He kicked another one but it was embedded in the ground. He wanted to dig it out but his father walked up and he thought better of it. "I know I could still see you", his father said, "But remember what I said earlier, we need to stay close and you were getting farther than I could reach if something happened". Paul nodded his head but was still a little angry. His father gestured for him to keep walking and they both continued down the path in silence.
After a while they reached a small clearing by a stream. They were still in the woods but this particular area was not as heavily wooded and the ground was smoother without a lot of roots poking above the earth. "Here is where we'll make camp", his father said while taking off his pack. Paul took his off as well. They pulled out the tent and began the process of setting it up.
"We can explore a bit now", his father said once the tent was set up, "But first let's get some food in us". The two sat down and ate some of the prepackaged meals his father brought. Paul ate his excitedly, he had alway seen the stockpile of them in his father's closet, but was never allowed to eat them as they were supposed to be for emergencies only. However, Paul was thoroughly enjoying his pasta and small cake.
Once they finished eating, Paul followed his father into the woods. They spent a few hours looking at the wildlife and pointing out interesting things they each saw. Paul's father even took him to an overlook where they were able to see the outstretched valley. "Come on", his father said suddenly, "We need to get back before it gets dark".
The trek back to camp was not as much fun as his father was walking quicker than he was used to. They made it back to the campsite as the sun was beginning to set and his father let out a sigh of relief. "I'll grab some wood. Stay put and look after the camp. I'm putting you in charge of camp security", his father said. Paul smiled and stood up to start walking around the perimeter of the camp to keep the enemies out. Not that Paul had any idea what enemies lay out in the woods but he was definitely not going to let anything get past his watchful eyes.
On his second trip around the perimeter, he saw his father standing in the woods looking at the camp. Paul looked to see what his father was doing but he was not doing anything, just staring. Paul waved and his father lifted his arm and then dropped it back down. The two stared at each other for a few moments and Paul called out, "Hey dad, where's the firewood?" His father called out in Paul's voice, "Hey dad, where's the firewood?" He thought at first it was his echo but his father had certainly opened his mouth to repeat the words back. Paul froze and suddenly realized that whoever was standing in the woods was not his father. He initially thought it was as there was only supposed to be the two of them in the woods but it definitely was not. This person was not wearing any clothes and Paul saw that this person did not have a beard. Paul realized how foolish he was to think it was his father but it was almost dark and quite difficult to see. A sudden thought to run into the tent flashed in Paul's mind. He was about to act on that thought when the person turned and disappeared into the creeping darkness. Paul stayed frozen in his spot for only a moment before he heard his father behind him dropping the firewood.
Paul quickly told his father the story who listened with a glare on his face. "You're certain it responded with your voice?", his father asked. Paul nodded his head. His father got up quickly and laid the wood out to start a fire. "First thing in the morning", his father said as he lit the wood, "We'll move the camp. It's pointless tonight but we'll keep the fire going all night".
They ate dinner in silence with his father scanning the trees constantly. "Go brush your teeth and get ready for bed. I'll be in the tent in a moment". Paul got up and grabbed his toothbrush. He walked over to the stream and brushed his teeth as well as he could. Once he was in the tent and in his sleeping bag, he felt better. His father was here and he was nice and warm. He closed his eyes and only opened them because he heard his father talking in a hushed tone. He could not make out much but realized he was talking on the phone. After a few moments his father came in the tent and laid in his sleeping bag. Neither one spoke and before long Paul drifted off to sleep.
Paul did not sleep well that night. He had a dream of being lost in the darkness and could not speak or hear anything. He was spinning around in circles looking for someone to help him. Just as he was about to cry he woke up. It was still dark out and he rolled over. Paul sat up and an electric bolt of fear shook his entire body. His father was not in the tent. He unzipped the tent and looked at the fire pit and only saw the soft red of embers. Paul scanned the campsite and looked towards the stream. There was no sign of him. Paul took a deep breath and told himself that his father just went to get more firewood.
He was about to go back in the tent when he heard a voice call out behind him, "Paul. Paul".
Paul turned around and peered into the darkness. The moon was full and shone its light in the woods. He saw his father standing in the woods. Paul looked harder this time to make sure. He looked like his father, he was wearing his father's clothes. But something just seemed wrong. Paul was not sure what it was but everything about him seemed off. "Paul", his father cried out again, "Come here. I need to show you something". Paul stepped backwards. He was certain this person was not his father now. His father would never leave him in the middle of the night and he would definitely not ask him to come into the dark woods. Paul was unable to say anything but he did manage to shake his head. "Paul", this person said again with a growl, "You get here this instant. I won't say it again".
Paul began walking backwards, unable to take his eyes away. The person bowed its head without taking his eyes off of Paul. Then it dropped to the ground and ran on all fours towards the campsite. Paul turned and began running as fast as he could. He heard the sounds behind him. The crashing sound of fast steps. The labored breathing of something not quite human, an animal, a predator, chasing its prey. He did not look behind him. He just remembered what his father had always told him, "If you have to run from anything, person or animal, never stop. Don't look behind. Keep looking forward. Don't run in a straight line. And don't stop until you can't run any farther".
That's exactly what he did. He used the light available to him to see his surroundings. He ran randomly. Not back and forth, his father had told him that only slows him down, but he would veer sharply down a path and then weave around smaller trees. No matter what he did though, the thing behind him never slowed.
Through all of his running and veering off the main trail, Paul still managed to get back to the stream. He jumped in without a second thought and swam as hard as he could to one of the rocks in the middle. He climbed up and looked towards the shore. He saw the creature on the shore. It snarled at him and then called out in a distorted voice, "Paul… I will devour you".
Paul was shivering from the cold water and from fear. He had no idea why this was happening. He wanted to cry but did not. He realized he was stuck in the water and had no way of getting to shore while the creature was still there. Suddenly, the creature looked into the woods and snarled. It did not even look at Paul before it sprinted off on all fours into the woods. Paul waited to make sure it did not come back and he swam to the other shore, just to be safe.
He walked for a while before he found his campsite. Paul thought about how smart it would be to go back to the tent, but he could not see how it was better to stay in the woods. He took a deep breath and got back in the water to swim across. He made it to the tent and opened the flap hoping to see his father inside. Paul was instead greeted by an empty tent and no sign of his father. He zipped up the flap and sat down on his sleeping back and finally began to cry. He was scared, he wanted his dad, and more than anything he just wanted to be home. As upset as he was, he noticed a few things that he had missed when he first woke up. His father's knife was in the tent and so was his phone.
Paul grabbed the phone but it was already dead. He set it back down and grabbed the knife. He pulled the knife out of the scabbard and saw the shiny silver blade. His father had always told him to never touch his knife without permission and definitely not without an adult around. Paul decided that this was different and tried not to feel too guilty about breaking that rule. He felt better with the knife and laid down. He was now aware of how exhausted he was. Despite that he still tried to stay awake.
He then heard footsteps near the campsite. Soft, slow footsteps. Then the breathing. Heavy and deep. A low growl came next. Paul clutched the knife in his hand and held his breath. The footsteps got near the tent. A shadow appeared over the tent. It was tall, gangly, and there were antlers on top of the head. Suddenly there was scratching on the tent. Violent and fast scratching. The fabric began to rip and tear. Paul screamed out and stabbed where the shadow was on the tent. The creature howled out in pain and thrashed the tent in anger. Paul stabbed again and again the creature howled but this time it retreated. The sound of its footsteps got farther and farther away. Once it was quiet, Paul stuck his head out of the tent. There was a trail of blood leading into the woods. Paul remembered going hunting with his father and how he learned to track wounded animals by following the blood trail. His father taught him that the only reason to kill any animal is if you need it for food or to put it out of its misery. Paul wondered if this counted as one of those times.
Paul decided to venture out of the tent if only to make sure that it was actually gone. He walked around the small perimeter of the tent and saw the damage from the outside. The tent was torn up. He doubted that it would protect him much but he decided it would be better than sleeping outside, if he could sleep at all. He heard a growl off to his side and turned to see the creature back at the edge of the woods. It was not standing up straight but leaning off to the side. It was hurt, hurt and very angry. The creature opened its mouth and let out an ear shattering shriek. Paul clutched his ears closed and closed his eyes. It felt as though his ears would bleed and his head would split open.
Then the creature was silent. Paul opened his eyes and saw that it had stayed still. Its eyes darted between Paul and at something behind Paul. It took every ounce of self control to not turn around to see if there was anything behind him. His father had told him, "Don't take your eyes off of danger. That's when they strike".
Paul heard steps behind him and then a voice he had heard all night said, "Paul. Do not turn around". Paul nodded and sighed with a shudder. "Hand me the knife". Paul passed the knife behind and felt his father take it. "Take this", he handed Paul something small and cylindrical. Paul felt it and realized that it was a bullet. "When I tell you", his father continued, "Run straight to the fire pit and cover it with ashes. Then throw it to me. Throw it as hard as you can right at me. Understand?" Paul nodded his head and took a deep breath. "Now!"
Paul ran as hard as he could to the fire pit. He saw his father dart ahead of him straight at the creature. The creature let out another shriek and charged directly at his father. Paul saw the creature slash at his father, which missed. The gleam of the blade in his fathers hand shone briefly in the moon's light before it struck the creature who let out a howl of pain. Paul reached the pit and smothered the bullet in the ash. He pulled it out and looked for his father. He saw him next to the creature. They made eye contact and Paul pulled his arm back and threw with all the strength he could manage. The bullet hit his father in the chest. His father clasped the bullet with both hands and then dropped to his knees. He quickly dropped it into his pistol and then pointed the barrel at the creature. A loud bang sounded in the night and the creature flung backwards from the impact.
Paul walked towards his father and they both looked at the creature who was no longer breathing. They both walked back to the tent where they packed up their equipment and walked back down the trail to the truck. Once in the truck Paul's father explained that he had gotten up to gather more wood for the fire. He had run into the creature and attempted to chase it away before realizing what it was. He had gotten lured away by more of them before realizing that the one he was chasing was no longer there and that's when he came back to the camp and found Paul. Paul listened to his father recount the events and shuddered at the mention of more. "Is that why we left when we did?", he finally asked. His father nodded. He said after a while, "I am sorry that this happened. But I will say that you did everything you were supposed to. It kept you alive and I am very proud of you". Paul smiled at this but was still quite shaken by the whole experience. Once they arrived back home, they were greeted by Paul's mother, who ran up and hugged both of them tightly.
Paul climbed into his bed and pulled the covers up to his face. He thought all about his day and how scared he was. His father came into the room and said, "I want you to know that you were very brave today. It takes a lot to actually do something when you're scared. And to do what you did with how scared you were, is very brave". Paul did not feel very brave, but he let the words sit for a moment. His eyes closed and his thoughts did not linger on the events of the night. Instead they went to a place in his mind where he was capable of anything, because he was brave.