Prologue

The night was black, and the moon was high, giving a dim and faint light over the forest. There were small clouds slighting blocking the crescent moon. Scattered through at the sky, they hide the stars, the amount of stars were countless. Hunter was trying to connect them, tracing the window with his finger and leaving a streak in his path. Something seemed to bother him, and Rachel caught his slump position every now and again, as she glanced over at him from her view of the road.

"What's bothering you?" Rachel asked with her eyebrows squinted. Hunter slowly turned his head to look at her.

"Nothing, nothing is bothering me." He fixed his posture to match the shape of the car seat.

"Don't give me that, you haven't said a damn thing this entire car ride. I know you, you can't lie to me. Now what's wrong" Hunter had a pause. He closed his eyes and took a deep sigh.

"Well, Joseph broke up with me the other day."

"What!?" without missing a beat, Rachel responded. "What happened?"

"I'm not sure, but he just left and I haven't heard from him since." Hunter pulled his knee's to his chest and rested his chin on his knee. "I'll be fine, I've been through worse." He looked back up at the moon. "I just wish that he told me why." there was a silence in the car.

"Well, when we get there, you can tell me everything that happened in a little bit more detail." there was a smirk on the side of Rachel's face. "Then we can plot how we can kill him."

Hunter let out a small chuckle. He let go of his legs and slide them off of the seat, fixed his poster, and looked at the road. In the distance he spotted a bright red light, the light got closer and closer, and he was able to make out what it was. Soon he could make out the word "Motel." even though it was still blurry.

"Almost there!." Rachel had a playful tone, like she was talking to a child. Hunter looked over at her with annoyance and resignation.

"I can see that, thanks." He spat out sarcastically. Rachel snickered as she turned into the parking lot of the motel. The car started to shake as it drove over the rocks used for the drive in. Rachel pulled up in front of a room. The door was red and had a golden number on it. Six. When Hunter got out of the car, he walked over to the door. He rubbed his fingers over the cold number. The freezing metal made his finger-tips tingle slightly. He could see his breath, it was heavy but calm. There was something nostalgic about the door.

"Hunter." Rachel broke the trance that hunter seemed to be under. He looked over at her with confusion. "I'm gonna go get the key, maybe you should unload the car."

"Yea, I guess you're right."

"I know I am." Rachel turned sharply, her hair flipped behind her, almost like a whip. Her hips bounced from side to side as she walked, trying to taunt Hunter. He snickered, and paced towards the car. He opened the trunk and pulled out two suit cases, and placed them down next to the car. He pulled out one more suitcase, and carried this one towards the door. He looked at the door for a brief moment, placed the bag down, then went to go get the other bag. He placed his hand on the bag then looked into the trees, he felt…something.

Hunter

A voice called him. A distant whisper. Puzzled he looked into the trees, frantically his eyes searched for the source. His eyes focused on a deep and dark path. He looked into the darkness, that seemed to only grow darker the more he looked into the distance. A cold chill grew up his spine, crawling inside of him. He then shook it off, and continued to do what he was doing before. He picked up the suitcase, turned, and slowly started to walk towards the door.

Hunter!

The chill shot up his back like a rocket. The voice was not only louder, but more aggressive. Hunter didn't realize he dropped the suitcase until he heard it hit the ground. The voice was still echoing in his head, he heard nothing else. Shaking, he slowly turned his body to look at the path once more. It seemed to grow larger and larger. Quickly charging in his direction, almost like it was attempting to swallow him in. He stood there, shaking. Trying to get a grip on reality, he quickly buried his face in his hands. Shaking his head back and forth, trying to convince himself it wasn't happening.

"Hunter!"

He jumped up and look at the pathway again. A hand grabbed his shoulder and turned him around. Rachel stood there, worried. Her face full of compassion and tenderness. Hunter let out a deep sigh of relief. His heart was beating hard in his chest, almost in an attempt to leave him. His heart was trying to run from the darkness. Rachel pulled him in, trying to calm him down. She felt his heavy breath, thumping heart, and shaking body all at once. "I'm here." She whispered. "It'll be alright." Hunter finally relaxed himself.

"Thank you, I'm ok." Hunter slithered out her arms.

"Are you sure?" Rachel took a step back.

"Yea," Hunter sighed. "Just spooked. That's all."

"Alright, well you head inside, I'll take care of the rest of the bags." Rachel handed him the key. He took it and nodded. He walked over to the door, quick, trying to get away form that eerie place. He reached the door, and almost ran into it. He placed the key into the door, and turned the lock. He looked at the number one last time before going in.

Six.

Inside, there were two beds next to each other, about five feet between them. Folded nicely and prepared for guest. As he walked past the television, that rested in between the two beds, he let his fingers slide across the screen. He walked over to the farther bed of the two. He sat at the edge of the bed, and closed his eyes. He sat there for a moment, just letting the silence take him in. After a moment, he took of his boots, removed his jacket, and laid on the bed. He looked up at the ceiling and placed his hands behind his head. The lamp on the other side of the room gave a calming shadow on the wall next to him. He began to drift, so calm and comfortable, he felt like he was floating. Everything was peaceful until BAM!

"What was that for?!" Hunter pushed the suitcase, that Rachel slammed on top of him, off onto the floor.

"You looked to relaxed." Rachel was pulling pajamas out of her bag. "So I decided to intervene. You like that word choice? I know you do." She turned her head and winked at hunter.

"I don't see why that bothers you?" He was trying to hold back his chuckle

"Well its simple, its not fair." She pouted.

"What isn't fair?" Hunter sat up, interested.

"I'm not relaxed yet, and you are. Even though I'm the one who had to do ALL the driving." As she spoke, she waved her arms around like she was in a black-and-white soap opera.

"Well I guess so, but remember, I'm the one who had to sit there and had to listen to nasty pop music." He pulled out some sweats out of his bag, and began to change.

"You love that music, you may not want to admit it, but beneath all that Rock&Roll you have a taste for it."

"I mean sure, if I'm at a party, then I'll listen to it, hell I'll dance to. But when I'm just trying to relax, its not for me." He threw his dirty boxer briefs at her. It hit her in the back of the head and rested there. She grabbed and slowly pulled it off to see what it was.

"Ew!" She quickly tossed it on the ground. "That's not ok!"

"You dropped the suitcase on me, its only fair." He stressed his words. Rachel picked up one of her bra's and pulled on it like you would with a rubber band. She released it, and the bright pink bra flew towards hunter, who ducked under it. Hunter then grabbed one of his socks and tossed it at Rachel, who was diving to the other side of her bed for cover. Soon, the two were on opposite ends of the bed room, launching their cloths at each other. Bra's, socks, Briefs, Thongs, and T-shirts were flying gracefully in the air. They were snickering and spewing out war cries. Hunter stood on top of his bed with a pair of Tighy-Whity's around his head. "VICTORY SHALL BE MINE!" He launched him self forward with a bra in each hand. Rachel's eyes grew wide as the 5'7 man was gliding in her direction. He landed on top of her, the two then laid on the floor, laughing. Hunter then rolled off of her, pulled of the Tighty-Whity's on his head, and just laughed next to Rachel.

"Thank you." Hunter then managed to get out.

"For what? Kicking your ass in Under-War?" Rachel let her tongue slide out of mouth.

"Well first of all, I kicked YOUR ass." He sat up and dropped the underwear on Rachel's stomach. "and no, thank you for bringing me out here, I needed a few days off."

"My pleasure." Rachel stood up, and started to clean up the mess. Hunter started to help her by grabbing his things.

"So where exactly is this Ski loft?"

"Not that much further. I would say about an hour left, something like that." She waved her hand around.

"Alright, I can do that, but I think calling in to this motel was a good idea." Hunter placed everything back in his bag, and zipped it shut, he then sat on the edge of the bed. Rachel flopped on her bed, face first. She said something but hunter couldn't make it out, he heard only muffles.

"What?" Hunter looked at her with as she slowly sank into her bed. She turned her head and then looked at him with annoyance.

"Go to sleep." She finally said after a brief moment of controlling her aggravation. Hunter got up, turned off the lamp, and closed the blinds. Rachel didn't move a muscle, she laid there, paralyzed. Hunter smiled as he walked past her. He pulled the blankets over her, and she still did not change her position. Hunter then got in his bed, and curled up into a ball under the blanket. He closed his eyes and slowly fell asleep.

ɸ

When I opened my eyes, there was nothing but darkness. I wasn't sure if I actually opened my eyes. I looked around, and couldn't see anything like the motel room. The air was warm, dry, and it was hard to breath. It was silent, the only thing I could hear was my own breathe. After a moment, I slowly tried to balance myself to my feet, stumbling, but I was able to stand. Once on my feet, I looked around. Trying to find something to resemble reality, nothing. That's all there was, nothing.

I started to walk forward, not knowing where I was going, but did it really matter? It was all the same, it was all leading to more noting. I kept walking, just going all with the dream. Suddenly, I heard my name. It was distant, and echoed through out the area. I froze while walking, holding my breath. My heart stopped and my mind began to boggle. I stood there, shocked, and puzzled. Then, I heard the voice a second time. I listened closely, it was Rachel. Rachel was calling my name. She was panicking, I could tell because she would never call for me like that, unless something was wrong. I started to run.

I heard footsteps, they weren't mine, the foots steps I heard were softer, and not as fast. I tried to follow them, but I couldn't quite find out where there were coming from. They were moving away from me. I started to run faster. I couldn't control my breath, it was heavy and frantic. My heart was racing, faster than I was running. The footsteps I was hearing have gotten very distant and faint, I could barely hear them. I slowed down, trying to find the footsteps. I looked everywhere, in every direction. There was nothing, the foot steps were gone. I stood, placed my hands on my knee's, and tried to calm myself down. I closed my eyes and just thought to myself. It's just a dream. It's a dream. It's just dream.

A scream then broke my silence. A loud, Fear filled, scream echoed everywhere. It made me jump. It was Rachel, she was in danger, I had to help. I ran faster than I ever knew I could, this time I knew where I was going, I knew where the scream came from. I didn't know what was happening, or what I would do when I found her, but I was going to do whatever I could. I saw a light, very faint in the distance. The closer I got, the easier it was to tell what it was. It was a door, a red door. There was a number on it. Six. It was our Motel room. I touched the six, but this time it was hot, scorching. I pulled my hand back as soon as I touched it. The pain was so real, the sting was unbearable. The tip of my finger was bright red, like a cherry.

After a moment of stand there in confusion, I finally decided to move. I hesitated at first, not quite sure if it was safe to open the door. What's on the other side? Will the door knob be burning like the number? Will I be ok? After a brief moment of hesitation, I moved. Quickly I turned the door knob and pushed my body into the room. I moved so quickly, and so hard, I fell onto the floor. The door slammed behind me, aggressively. Startled, I rolled over. I held the upper part of my body up with my elbows. I looked all around, trying to figure out where I was. It was the motel room, but without any of the furniture. There was no beds, no dressers, no lamps, nothing. It was empty. A very dim light was peaking through the crack in the curtains, just enough light for me to realize where I was. After catching my breath, I stood up. Looking around I tried to figure out what to do. Where's Rachel?

I started to walk towards the bathroom door, which was slightly cracked. I could see that the room was pitch black nothing in there. My heart was racing, I was confused and intimidated. I've never had a dream so realistic, so full of emotions, so terrifying. I was pacing towards the door. Then right before I was about to open the door, a screech was heard. Long, sharp, and hissing at me. The sound forced me to stop, it was almost like it was calling my name. The second time I heard it, it felt like scratch was going down my spine. Cold and bitter, my body began to freeze. I couldn't move. Where would I go? If I keep going forward, who knows what I will find, if I go towards the window, I might get hurt. I stood there thinking, although I couldn't think straight. I started to pant, scarred and confused, I started to shake. Every part of my body was shivering cold. My heart was pounding hard, and my breath was quick. Then, I heard the screech again.

This one seemed louder and harder. It was getting impatient. If I didn't respond quickly, it might respond for me. I was scared, but after reminding myself that it's only a dream, I quickly turned around. I was confident, but my body wasn't. My entire body was still shivering and shaking, but I walked towards the window. I was quick, trying to burn off the adrenaline that my body was producing. I was dreaming, if I got hurt, I would wake up. My hand won't be burning in the morning, and Rachel will be in her bed snoring. She will be wrapped up in her blanket and she will be deep in a sleep, like always.

When I reached the window, I placed my hands on the curtains. One hand on each curtain. I pulled them slightly shut before opening them. I took a deep breathe. I closed my eyes and tilt my head down. Breathing deeply, forcing myself to calm down. This was only a dream to, and that's all its going to be, a dream. I quickly tilt my head and opened my eyes. At the same time, I pulled the curtains open. The image I saw forced me to jump back. The shadow and a giant, bulky man was standing there. He had on a helmet that resembled a pyramid. Without even seeing him, he was intimidating, but that's not why I jumped back. I wasn't scarred of him, even though I should have been. The man was ginormous, and he was frightening, even though I only saw his shadow. Who knows what he actually looked like. Even so, I wasn't scarred in the slightest. I felt like I had to give him something.

The figure was holding something in his hand. At first, I couldn't make it out, but he lifted it. Slowly, almost like he was trying to show it. The shadow was long, it seemed to match my height, if not, beat it. Once I was able to see most of the shadow, the man held it at his side. A sword, or at least that what it appeared to be. The creature then pulled his sword back, under his arm, aiming the point in my direction. He placed the tip of the blade on the glass of the window, I know because it a very quiet tap when it touched. I heard my self hasp when I realized what he was doing. When he forced the blade threw the window, I leaped to the side, just in enough time. But it wasn't till after I landed did I realize that the blade sliced my leg.

I looked at the sword as it was pulled back out, and I saw my blood drip off of it. I looked at my leg and saw the gash. Stinging pain was starting to fill my mind. This wasn't I dream, now I was sure of it. The pain was too real. I've never felt worse pain. Blood was slowly sliding down the slide of my leg, I placed my hand over the wound. I screamed at the touch of my own hand. My screamed echoed all around, including my own head. I sat on the floor hoping that this was all over soon.

ɸ

Hunter woke up in a sweat. His hair was drenched, dripping with sweat. So he thought it was a dream. He ran his fingers through his hair, sat up, and looked around the room. It was all back to normal. The slight coming in from outside was white, dim. Must be a cloudy day. Hunter though as he pushed the covers off of him. He laid in bed for a moment, chuckling to himself. The dream he had made him realize how much he valued the people in his life. It was so real, he actually thought he lost Rachel. When he got out of bed, he noticed that Rachel's bed was empty. His stomached turned for a moment, but this isn't the first time she has done this. She normally get ups early and makes herself some coffee. She isn't exactly a morning person, but getting up early is something she does often. He stood up, and noticed a folded up piece of paper on the nightstand. His eye brows squinted when he saw it. It picked it up and unfolded.

"Let's play Hide and Seek, Hunter!" The hand written was sloppy. Scratchy. He chuckled and put the letter back down. He grabbed a white T-shirt, some tight jeans, some bowers, a towel, and headed into the bathroom. He looked at himself in the mirror, and fixed his hair. Not like it mattered, it was going to get ruined when he got in the shower. He turned on the water, and tested it for 10 minutes. Not too hot, and not too cold. He doesn't want it to burn him, but he doesn't like to shiver in his showers either. So he had to make sure that he got it just right. After he finally got the water just right. He got undressed, and placed his dirty clothes in a pile in the corner of the bathroom, and jumped in the shower. As soon as he got in, he felt something stinging, he blamed it on the water being to warm, so he ignored it. He let the water attack his body, he loved the feeling of the water pushing hard on his back. He pushed his wet hair back and when he looked back down, he noticed something red. Blood. It was all over the bottom of the tub.

He looked at his leg, and saw a cut. Exactly where he got cut in his dream. Shocked, he turned the water off. He grabbed some toilet paper to stop the bleeding. A dream? After a moment of holding the cut, he got out the shower. He wrapped the towel around his body and looked to see if this motel has a first air kit. It did, in the bottom drawer of the nightstand. HE pulled out some gauze, and wrapped his wound. A little bit of blood seeped through the gauze, but he kept that wrap on. He went back into the bathroom, dried his hair, and put on the clothes he put on. Tossed on some boots and then his leather jacket. He needed to find Rachel, and fast. He walked to the door, and as soon as he opened it, he paused. Snow?

Hunter walked out and held his hands in front of him. When the "snow" landed on his hands, it turned black. It confused him at first, but he stood there and thought about it. The only thing he could think of to explain it was ash, but he knew it wasn't possible to rain ash, but last night, he gave up on what was possible. He was cut by a giant man with a pyramid shaped head, and his best friend is missing. Something wasn't right, and he didn't like it. His stomach was turning, but the rest of his body seemed calm. He wasn't scarred, but he was nervous. The air was dry, and it tasted the same. Hunter was licking his lips as he started off into the woods.

Hunter.

The voice from earlier called out to him. He wasn't scared, only anger filled him. He balled up his first, and went to the car. He opened the door and looked for the keys. He searched everywhere, and the longer he looked, the more frantic he became. It wasn't long till he realized they were already in the ignition. He looked at them, with his eye brows squinted. He was beyond confused. Who left the keys there? Rachel would never. He turned the keys, and the car was silent. He took a deep breath, and tried again. Still silent. "Come on!" Hunter forced the keys and tried to start the car again. Still silence. He banged his head against the car wheal, and growled. He took the keys out the ignition, and hopped out the car as fast as he could. He stood there, and growled and then let out a scream. "RACHEL!"