Mt St Helens Nathional Forest, Washington State. October, 2023
The woods slowly grew quiet, a wave of frightened hush emanating in all directions, a shockwave of silence rolling outward from a single point as every animal, bird, and insect for a square mile either hid or fled. A twisted figure rose up from its crouched and troubled slumber at the core of the unnatural quiet. Hungering, it cocked its head strangely on its sinewy neck, detecting a low sound in the near distance. Something in the forest was blissfully unaware of the predator hunting under the midnight sky. The creature sniffed the cool night air, steam rising from its blunt nostrils. Spurred on by the hollow rumble in its gut the thing stalked out on two horrific legs, swimming through a sea of moonlight and shadows, homing in on the only living thing in the forest foolish enough to be noisy.
The tent rustled again, the sharp pitch of nylon and soft crunch of pine needles harmonizing with the sounds of muffled giggles and sighs. Jenn thought she heard something outside, a stealthy thud, but it was hard to tell for sure with Jason moaning in her ear. What he was doing was infinitely more interesting than anything happening outside, and she quickly fell back into the rhythm of lovemaking, her eyes closing, her warm hands kneading Jason's back and hips.
The sharp snap of a branch startled Jenn again. She opened her eyes just in time to see a large, gnarled shadow slip quickly past the tent. She gripped Jason's shoulders and shook him. "There's something out there," she gasped in his ear, shaking all over and wondering why she hadn't purchased any bear spray from the Spring Camping Essentials display at the sporting goods store along with her hiking poles and sunscreen.
"It's probably just a raccoon or something," Jason sighed, aching to get back to fooling around. He stroked Jenn's hair and kissed her forehead. This was only their second camping trip as a couple, and Jason knew Jenn had little experience with the outdoors. Every natural night sound had scared her last time, too.
"What if it's a bear?" she whispered, still trembling.
"I doubt it's a bear," he reassured her.
"Or a cougar..."
"I brought a shotgun. It's ok."
Jenn remained frozen, listening, her fear magnifying every sound; the whisper of wind through the trees, the rustle of the sleeping bag as Jason shifted his weight, the ragged breathing just outside the tent wall.
Jason kissed Jenn's forehead again and unzipped their shared sleeping bag.
"I'll go scare the little guy off before he gets into our stuff," he said, grabbing and switching on the flashlight. "But when I get back you better still be na-"
The top of the tent sheared open like tissue paper. Jason was snatched up and out by an unseen force, violently ripped through the trees, his gurgling screams echoing off the dark trunks, punctuated by the thrashing beam of the flashlight fading deeper into the woods.
Jenn screamed for what felt like a cold eternity, but was, in fact, mere moments before the monster returned for her. A sharp blow to the head and she fell as silent as the darkness around them.