The Silent Forest

Summary: A field trip becomes a nightmare when the gang is separated from the rest of the group in the middle of a vast forest. Things go from bad to worse when they discover that they are not alone.

Pairings: Chaylor, Troyella and some mild Zekepay. Ryan will also feature but with no pairing.

Disclaimer: Yep, I own it. *Keeps dreaming*

Warnings: Possible character death(s). Rated T for some language and quite a bit of violence/blood. Probable spelling and grammar mistakes due to my lack of beta.

14. A Night in Hell

He wouldn't have gone if he hadn't been completely desperate, but Chad hadn't been to the toilet since before they'd arrived at the forest and he couldn't hold it in any longer. The others were sound asleep, which was understandable after the eventful day they'd all had, so he decided that now was the perfect opportunity to sneak away, relieve himself and return freshly rejuvenated. In his haste, getting up from where he lay on the floor, Chad accidently nudged Taylor. She stirred and opened her eyes slightly.

"Where are you going?" She mumbled, rolling over to face him.

He didn't mean to wake her. She needed rest. She'd had a very tough day, what with almost dying and all. "Just gonna take a leak." He said softly. "Go back to sleep."

He waited until she had closed her eyes again before wandering off to find a good spot. He didn't want to be too close in case one of his friends woke up and saw him. But, obviously, he didn't want to go too far either. It was dark out there and he needed to be able to make his way back easily and quietly. So he walked into the trees and found the ideal place where he could still see where his friends were but was far enough to be able to hide himself if one of them did decide to roam after him.

As strange as it was; peeing against a tree out in the open, it was also a great relief. At least there was one less thing to weigh on his mind. He was just doing up his flies when things started to get strange. There were quiet, hollow thuds all around him, as if the trees that surrounded him were dropping rocks to the ground. The sound reverberated and then faded. It was only now that he realised just what kind of situation he'd gotten himself into. He was alone in the forest.

It was probably nothing but he decided to get back to the others. He was done now anyway so there was no need for him to procrastinate. It wasn't long after he started walking that he realised that he was hearing more footsteps than his own. However, even with the knowledge that he was being followed, he did not allow himself to panic as he was certain that, if he made a sudden movement, whoever was behind him would strike. So he continued to walk, hoping that he would make it back to his friends safely.

He was almost there as well. He was within a stones throw of where Ryan, Sharpay and Zeke all lay in a neat row. He thought he was going to make it. In fact, he was starting to doubt that he was being followed. Because, logically, who would be following him out there in the middle of nowhere? Who would follow him and why? He told himself he was just tired and that his mind was playing tricks on him. But what he told himself was wrong.

All of a sudden, strong arms wrapped around his middle, lifting him clean off the floor and knocking the air out of him with one tight squeeze. He opened his mouth to shout but his attacker was one step ahead of him and, before a sound could leave his mouth, a huge, dirty hand was clamped over it. The sour, grimy fingers slid carelessly in and out of his open mouth making him moan with disgust. He writhed and kicked and bucked in an attempt to free himself from the sturdy grip that was around his body but to no avail. He was too weak. He tried to shout against the hand that silenced him but no sound could pass the barrier.

And there, right in front of him; peaceful in sleep, lay his six friends, completely oblivious to his situation. Ironically, they were all he could see. Chad knew that if he could just get their attention, the combined strength of the seven of them could easily overpower his one foe. But that was the issue. He couldn't get their attention because the unfaltering arms around him made it impossible for him to make any kind of sound at all. And now, he was being carried away; backwards into the forest.

Chad knew he had to think quickly because, before long, he'd be too far from his friends to be able to find his way back. So he thought. Hard. And only one thing came to mind. His jaw snapped shut and his teeth closed around the podgy fingers that flittered clumsily in and out of his mouth. For a split second, he could taste the blood. The next, he was on the floor. No more restraints. His ambusher had dropped him. And Chad didn't waste his time.

He climbed hurriedly to his feet and ran. Unfortunately, after being dropped, his direction had changed and he no longer found himself facing the camp of his friends, just tree upon tree upon tree. But that didn't stop him. He weaved dangerously around his obstacles. He didn't care where he was running as long as he got away from whoever had tried to take him. Why had someone tried to take him?

He couldn't hear footsteps behind him and, without stopping, had a look to see if he was being chased. All he could see was darkness. His legs were getting tired and his lungs were burning. In his chest, he could taste blood each time he inhaled. Despite all this and the fact that he now had no idea where he was, Chad refused to stop running. Not until he was certain he was safe.

The thought of traps hadn't occurred to him at all but, to be fair, he was considerably preoccupied. And even if he had thought about traps, the one he was to run into was so well hidden that there was no way he could avoided it anyway.

A hoop of rope closed around his ankle and, before he could react, he was tugged into the air where he dangled upside down from his captured leg. He grunted out of shock and hurt but didn't attempt to shout, knowing that making noise would only give away his location and, with the position he was currently in; completely unable to defend himself, he really didn't want to be found. He tried to conjure up enough strength to pull his upper body- against the gravity that suspended him- far enough upward to be able to reach his ankle so he could untie himself. He couldn't even reach his knees.

His lips were throbbing due to the blood that had rushed to his head and his ears were roaring. The pressure on his ankle was growing and he could feel the rough rope digging into his skin. As he wriggled, the fibres bit deeper into his flesh until he felt the warm liquid of blood slowly dripping down his leg, past his knee and into his underwear.

He heard someone approaching and knew instantly that it was bad news. He was helpless and exposed and there was absolutely nothing he could do to escape. All he could do was wait to be found. A shadowy figure appeared in the darkness. It was hard enough to make out the moving shape in the dark, not to mention the fact that he was now seeing things upside-down, but he could see that, whatever it was, was slowly shuffling towards him as if without a care in the world.

As it got closer, it got clearer and, before long, Chad could make out the silhouette of what looked like a large, burly man. He walked- or rather, hobbled heavy-footedly- with his back hunched but, regardless of his bent back, still displayed an abnormal height. He wore loose, torn clothes and no shoes and the top of his head was dotted with uneven clumps of tangled, wispy hair. His breathing was loud and came out in short growl-like pants.

The ogre-like man stopped walking, just a foot from Chad's face. He leaned forward to closely inspect his catch. His vile smell was overpowering. He lifted his hands and slowly traced them over Chad's unguarded body. Unable to do anything else, Chad wriggled and swayed to try to distance himself from the man, or at least encourage him to stop.

The sudden movement seemed to anger the man. He grabbed Chad by the waist and dug his sharp, claw-like fingers into his flesh. Chad yelped but could do nothing to free himself from the painful grip. His sides were burning as the man shook him violently as if he were nothing but a rag-doll. When convinced he had put Chad in his place, the man stepped back and continued his inspection.

Chad wasn't sure, but he could swear he saw a small smile on his wonky, misshapen features.

"What do you want?" Chad spat fiercely. He tried to emit as much confidence and courage in his voice as he could but inside he was feeling more afraid than he'd ever been.

The man took another step back, shocked and surprised by Chad's voice. He tilted his head to the side curiously and reached a hand up to Chad's face while licking his lips ravenously. Chad tried to turn away but he could only crane his head so far to the side. One of the man's brittle fingers protruded and he traced it lightly over Chad's bottom lip.

"You want me to bite you again?" Chad threatened as he shook his head to get the hand away from him.

Chad didn't know if the primitive man understood him or not but his words did seem to have an effect because the man backed off, side-stepped and started walking again, past Chad, in the direction he'd already been travelling in.

Chad didn't protest. As long as the man left him and moved on, at least he could eventually free himself from the trap and find his way back to his friends. But freeing himself wouldn't be an option, as he was soon to learn.

There was a snap as the rope was cut. The pressure on his ankle suddenly disappeared and he went plummeting head-first to the ground. His head impacted the floor with a soft thud before the rest of his body followed. The blunt trauma was enough to make him dizzy and disorientated. With a groan, he rolled over onto his back, clutching his throbbing head in both hands. Above him, the image of the leafy branches blurred and swayed unnaturally and he slowly became aware of the fact that he was swimming in and out of consciousness.

The rope around his ankle was pulled tight again and the floor beneath him started to move. He stayed awake long enough to realise that he was being dragged away, then surrendered to the darkness.

Chad didn't know how long he'd been out cold but, when he awoke, it was still dark. The first thing he became aware of was the relentless throbbing of his head. He was half-lying, half-sitting, propped up against a square, wooden pillar on a dusty, rotten wood floor. He didn't bother to look at his surroundings. All he knew was that he was alone and that he had to escape before his captor returned.

His hands were messily tied around the pillar with untidy knots but apart from that, he had no other restraints. He got to work immediately, gnawing at the knots with his teeth. It hurt his jaw but within a few minutes he had succeeded in untying himself. It had been easier than he'd expected but, then again, he had been tied up by a man who seemed to have to mental age of a three-year-old.

Using the pillar for support, Chad got to his feet. His eyes scanned the small, dark room he was in for an exit. There was a tiny, clouded window and a heavy door beside it. Without a second though, Chad made his way to the door and twisted its greasy handle. It was locked. Maybe this guy wasn't so stupid after all. He was in the process of pulling and shoving the door with all his strength when he heard a distant but familiar growl. He'd taken too long. The man was returning.

The door was a lost cause so Chad went for his only other option; the window. He had no time to think it through so he just kicked out the glass and climbed through the jagged hole. The shattered glass ripped through his thin t-shirt and scratched his skin but he paid no attention the stinging sensation and ran.

The man was on his tail in seconds. He could hear the heavy footsteps chasing close behind him. He heard the angered grunts and the loud, agonised moans. In his mind, he could picture the face of the man behind him; the wild eyes and crazy, crooked grin. He was scared out of his mind. And he was certain he was going to die.

There were noises all around him. At one point, he even thought he heard someone call his name. Then suddenly, one of his frantic feet got caught on a heavy rock and he stumbled to the floor face first.

He couldn't move. All he could think about was how his now angry kidnapper was going to tear him to shreds. He was going to die and he knew it. And it was going to be painful. Savage. He would never see Taylor again. He would never see Troy again. His young life was about to be cut short.

He felt the dreaded hand on his shoulder and knew that the end was near. Now, he only had one thought;

Please God, let this nightmare end…


A/N: Sorry for the long wait. It's the end of term so things are a little bit crazy. I know that probably wasn't as satisfying as you'd hoped it would be as well. I'm off school now as of today so updates should be a lot more frequent. The story should be over by xmas day. I've already written chapters 15 and 16 so they will both be up this weekend. It's all one hell of a rollercoaster ride! Thanls for reading and please review.

xX M Xx