There comes a point in every human's life when they discover the true terrors that lay underneath the 'normal' façade that the human mind conjures up to keep themselves sane in a world that they know is filled with monsters and demons but they choose to ignore this in favour of believing that they are the only species to walk the earth. There are those who believe, that know the truth but many are locked in mental institutions, called crazy and jacked up on so many drugs that their perfectly capable minds become warped, their reality distorted. The rest, they hunt; they protect us against the very things that we refuse to believe in.
However, this is not a story about hunters, no this is a story about a little orphaned boy named Kieran Winchester, as far as he knows his mother left him to the orphanage when he was six weeks old and hasn't looked back since. His mother never left his father's name or anything else for that matter when she abandoned him.
He may not be the smartest, the bravest or the strongest kid on the planet but when he got running it was like he could fly. When he started running he never wanted to stop, it was an escape he never knew he needed until the silence in his head became too overwhelming that he needed out, out of his room he shared with four other boys, out of the orphanage, out of the town, he just needed to get out and go somewhere far away, somewhere no one from this back water town would ever be able to find him, where he could be somebody different every day.
Life was never the easiest for Kieran, he was a magnet for bullies and thugs, at least once a week he found himself running for his life across town while people chased after him in cars or on foot, throwing insults and whatever else they could find around them that would inflict some sort of damage. He saw things in the dark when others did not, he saw clues in places that were bare and he saw darkness where others saw light, it made him a target for every kid in his school.
It was for that reason the Kieran found himself sitting at the bus stop with a single backpack packed with the meagre belongings he had acquired over the past few years. He had scrounged up as much change as he could find to buy himself a bus ticket, he barely had enough to take him to the next town over but it was a start for now.
Kieran pulled his worn red hoodie closer to his body to try and chase away the blistering winter winds. A thin sheen of ice lay across the deserted road and the small patches of grass that lay around the bus stop. It was like any other blistering cold night in the far corner of hell as Kieran has so kindly come to call his home town over the years.
He checked up and down the street again for any sign of the bus, it was meant to arrive twenty minutes ago but there was no sign of it in sight. It was just another thing to add to the ever growing list of things that suck in his life. Kieran hiked his backpack up further onto his shoulder. He sighed as he made his way slowly back towards town, leaving the bus stop behind. He was so sure he finally had an out but life didn't seem to want to look up for him just yet. His old faded black converse squeaked against the iced pavement, the soles were worn too thin, small patches of his old socks were soaked through from the ice under foot.
The loud rumbling of an engine roared from somewhere to his left. Kieran didn't pay the noise any attention until a bright light was shone into his eyes. He stood still, squinting against the harsh light. Kieran could just make out the outline of a truck behind the bright lights. "Well would you look at that boys, we've caught ourselves a freak!"
"Crap," Kieran mumbled to himself. He recognised that voice, it was the same voice that had been tormenting him since the first grade. Cameron McNally was the biggest douche bag this town had ever seen. There wasn't even a second thought that entered his mind before Kieran was taking off down the street. His heart was pounding against his chest painfully, every breath he sucked into his lungs seemed to be stolen before he could quiet catch his breath.
The roaring of the truck grew closer behind him. Kieran struggled to run, his old sneakers were sliding against the iced pavement. His backpack slapped against his back almost painfully the faster he tried to race down the street. He turned sharply down an old alley behind the old industrial plant situated just outside of town. His feet lost traction on the pavement, he was sent flying painfully into the brick wall of the alley. A muffled scream was torn from his lips. Kieran didn't allow that to slow him down, he pushed himself back off the wall. He continued to sprint down the alley. His eyes searched wildly for some place to hide until the boys got bored and left to harass someone or something else. He knew from experience that all of the buildings were bolted or padlocked shut.
A large chain link fence stood high at the end of the alley, a small section of the bottom left corner was pulled back from the last time Kieran was forced to crawl through the gate in a life of death situation. The sound of the roaring engine was growing louder with each passing second. He could hear the older boys throwing curses and insults out into the night air. Kieran slowed his steps until he reached the fence. He pulled back the loose corner of the fence, the freezing temperature made it difficult to mauver. He tried to squeeze through the small hole created. The sharp edges of the fence scraped against the side of his neck and shoulder, it drew blood to the surface of his skin. A small sliver of blood slid down the pale expanse of his neck.
The pain didn't register in his mind because of the adrenaline coursing its way through his veins. It made concentrating on the approaching voices just that much more difficult.
Once free of the chain link fence Kieran made a break for it. He raced down the narrowing alley, the further he ran the narrower the passage became until he was squeezing between the sides of two buildings out into an open clearing. He looked up and down the area for any sign of the guys who had been chasing him but came up empty handed.
His heart was beating erratically in his chest; the noise was so loud that he could hear it pumping in his ears. Even with the blistering cold a thin sheen of sweat was plastered against his forehead, sticking his bangs to his sweaty skin. Kieran lent back against the cold metal wall behind him, it took him a moment to catch his breath. His chest felt tight, like his skin was pulled to tight around his own body. "Fucking jackass," he mumbled to himself.
He reached a hand towards his neck, searching his skin for the silver chain he wore. An elderly man had given it to him a few years back, he said it was to help keep him safe but it hasn't exactly worked too well. Kieran sighed contently when his fingertips brushed against the familiar pendant.
Kieran stood for a moment, relishing in the almost seemed too silent but who was he to look a gift horse in the mouth. He turned back to the alley he had made his escape from only to stop dead in his tracks as a pair of green eyes stared back at him. "Got ya now freak!" hands reached for him, dragging him back into the dark alley with a startled scream.
He was shoved to the ground, suddenly there were hands on him, pushing and pulling at his clothes. Punches were thrown and steel capped boots struck his back repeatedly. There was too much pain, too many hands and bodies to focus on. Kieran could feel ever strike and every kick. His face felt wet with what his muddled mind concluded was a mixture of blood and tears. Black spots morphed at the edge of his vision. His limbs refused to respond to his internal screaming and instead fell limp at his sides but the wild punches and kicks still came. One particularly hard hit to the back of his head sent him spiralling into unconsciousness. It must have been some sort of brain damage or his mind playing tricks on him but before unconsciousness claimed his mind Kieran could have sworn that some of their eyes turned black.