David Golemon: Primeval

"It's all around us," one of the three men said as he pulled the bolt back on his rifle, chambering a round, never realizing he had just ejected an unfired bullet from the rifle. He flailed the British-made weapon in all directions.

Except for the banging of wood against the trees and the wind in their branches, the forest seemed dead. The sound of the men crashing through the underbrush was becoming fainter as Geroden tried to pierce the night with his eyes. The man in front of him had backed toward the warming fire, still rapidly swinging the rifle toward any sound he heard. Geroden took hold of the man's rifle and stilled it.

"Careful, you fool; you'll shoot one of—"

The horrible scream of a man chilled the blood of Geroden and his hand slid slowly from the barrel of the frightened man's weapon. The screaming went on for three seconds, and then abruptly stopped. The noise of the sticks striking the large and ancient trees continued. They seemed to be drawing closer and were very much louder, doubling the fear that was near to crippling them.

Several of the first group of men came rushing back from the surrounding woods and into the large circle of firelight, backing in as they trained their weapons on the woods behind them.

"Did you see it? Did you see it?" one man yelled at another as even more of the first group backed into the camp, their rifles also pointing into the forest.

Geroden strode quickly to the man that had spoken. He was wide-eyed and terrified.

"Why have you returned?"

The soldier didn't hear the question. He shrugged the sergeant's hand from his sleeve and continued to stare into the woods. The fear of the sergeant had disappeared as something far more dangerous had arrived.

"You," Geroden said, pulling on the arm of another of the frightened men, "what is the matter with you?"

"There is… is… something out there… more than one I think."

"What do you mean something? "

Before the man could answer, screams of pain and terror filled the darkened night once more. The men still out in the dark forest started to fire their weapons, making those in the camp stoop low and aim at anything that looked menacing, which of course was everything.

Suddenly, the large fire exploded as a shapeless object flew from the woods and struck. Flames and burning embers shot high into the air as the men saw what had hit: the mangled body of one of their own. His uniform and hair quickly caught fire as the men stood watching in stark terror.

The striking of wood against wood became louder. The beat was not uniform but it seemed as if whatever was out there was herding them together. Then came the first sounds other than the screaming of men, or the strange beating of the trees — a horrendous bellow of something inhuman. Other growls and roars answered the first cry. More men ran in from the trees, from front and back. They were all looking behind them in absolute terror. The night became alive around them, the beating of wood sounding as if it were right at the very trees next to the camp, just out of the large fire's circle of illumination.

"For God's sake, what is out there?" one of the men yelled just as a shot rang out.

Another, then another rifle exploded, and Geroden flinched as the second gunshot went off next to him. All of the men started firing into the woods, striking trees and snow-covered underbrush.

Two more bodies of their comrades were thrown into camp. The first struck a tree, sticking for a moment before flopping lifeless to the snow-covered ground. Then the second landed at Geroden's feet. As he looked up in shock, the giant animals attacked the camp in force.

Geroden had taken aim at a darker-than-night shadow as it traveled from the thickness of one tree to another when warm blood struck him in the face, unnerving the sergeant. He turned and ran, running over one of his own comrades, knocking him into the fire as he tried to escape through the back of the camp. Behind him were the cries and defensive fire of his men. The nightmare of the past few weeks had made its presence known, and the reason man feared the dark forests of the world was made evident as the night became death.

Colonel Petrov held the children close to him as the murderous rage of whatever had been tracking them attacked the men inside the camp. The screams of terror and pain seemed to last all night as men fled, and then were taken down and butchered just as others died, trying in vain to find and to kill the invisible intruders.

"Colonel, what is out here with us?" Anastasia asked, holding her brother hard against the large man's body as they cowered behind two large trees that seemed to grow twisted against one another.

"Satan may have come for us this night," he mumbled as he pointed his pistol into the night. Petrov found himself sliding back into his childhood — the days when he had been forced to pray at the cathedral with his family. The thought and memory made him wish for those times once more, the comfort in the belief of good.

"I'm frightened, Anna," Alexei cried.

Suddenly the screaming stopped. There was one shot, then one more — then silence.

Petrov cocked his pistol and waited, sure that whatever had killed the men, would soon make him and the children their next target.

A crashing came through the woods and Petrov knew he had to try to save the children. If they remained with him, he knew they didn't have a chance. He quickly stood Alexei up and pushed him into the arms of Anastasia. Then came a louder and harried sound of something crashing through the underbrush. While looking into the woods, Petrov reached in, pulled out his journal, made sure the oil cloth covered the leather book, and then thrust it into Anastasia's grasp.

"Take this — you and your brother must run. Hide until morning and then head to the south, down the river as it flows toward the sea. Find other men — they will know what to do. Show them my journal and they will see to it you are reunited with family in America."

"Colonel, I'm scared," Anastasia said as she pulled Alexei to her.

"As I am also, child, now go. God hasn't been with your family of late, but maybe now he will have mercy — now go! "

Anastasia pulled Alexei along by the hand and vanished into the trees just as Geroden tripped and stumbled into Petrov. He caught the large colonel's coat sleeve and arrested his fall.

"God… oh… god, they are coming, Comrade Petrov, they are coming!" he breathed heavily, trying to force the words from his bloody mouth.

Petrov looked at the cowering fool and then, shrugging him away, he placed the pistol against the sergeant's head and pulled the trigger, sending the smaller man crashing to the ground without even a grunt.

When the colonel looked up, he was satisfied that he had done his duty to the children. If they were to die, it would not be by this man's hand.

He swallowed and looked up. He saw the giant looking at him between two large trees. The massive and muscle-bound arm was perched against the two thick trunks. The eyes glowed with an internal fire that cast them in the shade of yellows and reds. The creature could not be any smaller than eleven feet as it watched the Russian. The great head tilted to the right, as if trying to figure out what the man had planned. As the cries of the escaping and frightened children came to Petrov's ears, he saw the giant's eyes narrow and look in the direction where they had vanished. It sniffed the air in all directions and then it grunted deep within its massive chest. The great beast tilted its head, and something akin to a nod made its chin drop to its collarbone. That was when a small rock struck the colonel from behind, dropping him easily.

The beast took two large steps and stood over the two fallen men, and then watched them closely for any sign of movement. When there was none, the giant grunted once more. It easily stepped over the one dead man and the unconscious Petrov, and went in the direction the children had fled. It saw the small prints in the snow as if they were glowing bright green. As the great animal disappeared, blending into the darkness, several of the other giant beasts showed themselves from their hidden places and came forward, dragging Petrov and the dead sergeant away into the night.