Chapter 1:
You have once again entered the world of survival horror.
Good luck.
Panic was starting to take hold and a certain fear washed over me. I didn't know the first thing about driving a boat.
My focus drifted across a panel in front of me and I almost cheered when I saw a switch marked 'starter'. I flipped it and heard the engine turn over, sputtering a few times and finally rumbling to life. A moment later, the engine made a choking sound and a small sign flashed.
Low Fuel.
I sighed and slammed the panel in frustration. When it seemed that nothing else could go wrong, the engine made a final cough and died, black smoke wafting from below deck.
"Damn."
A radio caught my attention and I picked up the receiver and cursed, not even hearing static – the device dead. I tossed the receiver against the wall and crumpled to the floor, holding my knees in tight, staring at the lifeless form across from me.
Fuck. Why had I been so impulsive? After seeing the body, I should've gone and told her… I shouldn't have stayed aboard.
Something about the body caused me to flinch.
I could have sworn it twitched.
My whole body froze up, paralyzed with fear and, as I looked upon the mangled form, it slowly started to move.
His fingers clenched, scratching at the wood of the deck, and his head tilted as he put his weight onto one arm, trying to stand. My legs started to tremble and before I realized, I was crawling towards the door; wishing to get as far away as I could.
Halfway out the door something caught my ankle, wrenching it and struggling to drag me back. I pawed at the deck, relentlessly trying to grip the smooth surface and a sudden jerk of the boat caused me to roll over.
The man was nearly on top of me, his eyes white and glazed and his arm outstretched, reaching for my face, while his other gripped the meat of my calf. He opened his mouth and moaned horribly, blood frothing from his throat in a gurgle.
I tried to move back, away from the cracked and bloody teeth; away from the stench of death, but its grip was too strong. Spastically, I drove my foot out and met the thing in the jaw with a wet crunch, crushing the lower half of its face. Blood seeped over the skin of my leg and out through the fresh wound. The creature's grip loosened with another violent rock of the ship and I scrambled backwards, away from the sickening mess.
I was on the verge of a complete breakdown and reached for my mouth, throwing up over the bloodied deck. I tried to stand on shaky legs and spotted something in the distance, out the window. It was a peculiar line on the horizon, a growing dark mass, just above sea level.
The waves started to get rough and the small boat was thrown around, disorienting me and threatening to trow me off my feet. Every time that I stood and looked out the window, the beach was closer until finally the boat hit shore abruptly. I wasn't prepared for the impact and was thrown through the empty space where the windshield had been, landing hard on the other side. I felt a searing pain in my head and was overcome with a wave of dizziness.
Darkness flooded over me.
My vision began to clear and soon colour made its way into my mind, as did the rank odor of the blood and vomit in the hot sun. I forced myself to my feet and looked over the bow of the boat. The beach was deserted.
I could hear the cries of sea-birds, over the roar of the surf, as well as the noises of other jungle life. It was something from a dream… primal and in spite of its beauty, it scared me shitless.
I felt a thin stream of warmth trickle down my nose and saw a drop of crimson hit the deck at my feet. A large metal box seemed to call to me; a red-cross clearly visible on one side of the dented and worn out case.
I opened it up and found a first-aid kit, a bottle of water and a flare-gun. I put everything in the backpack and wiped the blood from my forehead, cleaning the small cut above my eye. A twinkle caught my gaze and I retrieved my sunglasses from the deck at my feet, slipping the silver frames back on and shielding my eyes from the painfully bright sun.
With a breath I tossed my backpack over the railing with the rifle and jumped, wanting to get far away from the corpse and landed on the beach, falling to my knees. I could feel the heat of the afternoon sun on my neck and sighed. It was hotter here than back on the mainland; and the heat only intensified the nausea I felt.
There was nothing on the beach, save for rocks and boulders, at the bottom of a sheer cliff-face. Off to the right, however; was a cave, leading upward in darkness and I made my way over to it, awkwardly adjusting the weight on my back as I went.
I stopped at the cave's entrance and sipped from the bottle of lukewarm water that had settled to the bottom of my bag, steadying my nerves, then forced myself forward after zipping the bottle safely inside the backpack once more.
The wind howled through the pitch-black maw, billowing around me and sending shivers up my spine. Fear tickled me with paranoid thoughts of what could be in the cave with me, hiding; waiting for the perfect time to attack and devour me, gripping me with cold, gnarled fingers… I forced the thoughts away, trying to focus.
"C'mon Jamie, get a grip." My voice sounded shaky and the words echoed around me in the gloom.
The cave was steep and the gound was thankfully smooth, my bare feet carefully testing each step before I committed to the step. It was dark and foreboding, but began to lighten as I neared the end and I saw that the walls were lined with industrial pipes. The cave opened up onto a path and the pipes disappeared into the ground, through a grouping of holes, lined with concrete.
I walked along the path as it led through dense jungle and stopped to put on my shirt and cursed, finding it to be missing. I knelt and opened my backpack, pulling out a can of peanuts which I snacked on while continuing to rummage, then swore again in frustration.
Of course, I didn't think to bring another shirt with me.
A noise in the underbrush caused me to look up. There was another crash in the jungle and I un-slung the rifle, quickly raising it. Slowly I set the rifle down long enough to close my backpack, shouldering it quietly before slowly retrieving the weapon. My muscles were tense and I just knelt there, listening… hoping that whatever it was, was gone. The jungle returned to its normal symphony and I stood, continuing down the path.
The dirt trail twisted along through the thick vegetation and I was suddenly aware of a horrible smell. It was the same putrid stink that I had smelled on the boat, before finding the body… the smell of death.
Something crashed through the underbrush beside me and a weight slammed into me. I spun and was faced with a torn face that had once been human. In horror I backed away as it reached out to me, growling through crusted lips and blackened teeth and staring into me with the same lifeless, white eyes as the man on the boat. In a panicked frenzy I swung the butt of the rifle, hitting the grotesque form in the face with it; and it tumbled loudly to one side, out of sight.
Breathing heavily I started to move away, then turned and ran down the path, soaked in sweat only partly caused by the heat. What the hell was going on?
Panicking, I looked back over my shoulder and kept running, away from the creature that could only be described in one way; but I refused to think it. It just wasn't possible.
Eventually I came to a fence, the gate resting open and ran through, turning to close it with shaky hands. The path let out onto a crude and unpaved road, long since overgrown with jungle life. In the grass off to one side was a metal sign, partially rusted, but I could still make out what it said: 'PRIVATE PROPERTY NO TRESSPASSING. VIOLATORS WILL BE SHOT ON SIGHT'.
I followed along the road and the trees thinned into a small clearing. Off to one side, a concrete runway was still intact, though in some places, plants had forced their way through, cracking the pavement and slowly absorbing it into the ecosystem. In the other direction was another road and I followed along, aware of sinister noises around me. There was the whine of a generator, faint but obvious; as well as a rhythmic thumping in the distance, which grew steadily quieter.
I wanted to curl up in a corner somewhere and wait for someone to rescue me, but I knew it wasn't going to happen. I was alone.