A Monkey Man

His heart hammered in his chest as he sprinted through the neverending white hallway. They chased him with needles and scalpels, never relenting. He opened one of the doors on his left entering another long hallway that only continued to grow as he ran. He let out a scream as his eyes flew open, the birds in the trees around him took flight, fleeing the scene. He hated doctors, all they did was pump people with chemicals and slice them up. He leant sideways looking down at the ground, there was something down there he could just sense it. He quickly untied himself, tossing his duffle to the ground as he made his way down the thick trunk. He had to keep moving within this forest, couldn't pretend he was safe. His eyes were still bleary as he moved through the dark woods, the sun must have already set. It was a bad idea to be moving at night, that is when some predators went hunting. He didn't move very far, opting for a taller tree to rest in. He scrambled up the thinner trunk, peeking over the tops of the other trees, it wasn't night thankfully. The thick clouds must have been brought over by the wind, blocking the sun and turning it into a silvery pearl in a dead sky. He turned to the way he'd come noticing how very far he'd travelled.

He saw a farmer in the fields, checking his crops. It was a bit strange for the farmer to be on foot but not unheard of, some families wanted to keep things traditional. The farmer looked up to where he sat, shading his eyes from the pale sun. Nikolai quickly ducked down, finding a secluded branch to relax on. He pulled from his bag a small muesli bar, saving the bigger stuff for when winter closed in and he couldn't find food. He needed to start finding where certain plants grew, he needed to learn to survive and undo evolution. He feared the government, but he feared dying of starvation more.

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Alexander hated these fields, the tickling grass made him angry. He gazed up at the forest, the pale sun hurting his eyes. He could see a tall tree with what looked like a tall peak, that would be a good vantage point. What confused him was that the peak disappeared, he rubbed his eyes before looking again, he'd found Nikolai. He sped up his pace, getting to the edge of the forest fast. He had no idea where this tall tree was now, he'd lost all sense of direction now that he was surrounded by darkness and trees. He tried to continue on in the same direction, tried being the keyword. He walked for hours, never seeming to come out the other side, was this boy a sorcerer? His mind started to give up, leading him in random directions, following sounds that weren't even there. At one point he'd collapsed and slept but he didn't know how long for. He sat down at the base of a tall pine, trying to reconnect his brain with reality. It'd been years since he'd been stuck in a woods, years since he'd seen his best friend get kidnapped in that same forest. Years had gone past but he'd never gone into a wood alone, at least until now. He raised his head, letting it fall back against the tree, "NIKOLAI!!!!" he let out an odd yell for a grown male the sound barely human. He heard something hit the ground beside him, glancing over he found a small muesli bar. He looked up frantically but saw nothing but branches and leaves, letting out a sigh he happily ate the given food. He'd need all his energy for what lay ahead.

"Alex! Come look!" The young male voice of his best friend called his attention to a deep dark hole. The deep scratch lines around the edge told of a vicious creature within. "How about we go back home? It's getting dark..." He didn't like the dark and they'd been warned about the forest and what lay within. His friend was a thrill seeker, enjoying the fear that something could happen at any moment, he however hated it and wanted to go back to his warm safe house. He couldn't remember exactly what happened next, didn't really want to. He was just wandering around the forest when torchlight fell upon his face and his father ran to him. They'd never found a body, never found the hole in the woods. From that day forth no one ever entered the woods at night.

He squinted at the darkness around him, his eyes still heavy from sleep. He hated the dark, never liked to be outside at night. The memories from that night haunted his thoughts as his mine began to race. Nikolai was smart, stayed out of reach of predators. Nikolai! He had to make sure the boy was ok. "Nikolai? Are you ok?" His frantic tone called above him to where he thought the boy was. He heard a soft grunt from somewhere above, he was ok, obviously he was asleep too.

Alex stood up, using the tree to balance himself, he had to find some sort of shelter for himself. He remembered passing a small cave (more like an overhang) halfway up a cliff, the main problem was where that cave was. He walked forwards, digging his heel in and dragging it behind him to create a path back. He would have to stay below Nikolai, his tree climbing skills were horrid. His rock climbing skills were not absolutely amazing but there was definitely some skill there. He'd done many thing that night to find a way out, climbing cliffs and finding water were the easiest to remember.

He felt breath on his arm, spinning to the right he caught a glimpse of a boy running back the way he came, his hood falling off to reveal firey orange hair. "Nikolai!" He yelled as he sprinted after him, the sound of a branch snapping above him caught his attention as he held out his arms. The boy, who had jumped into the branches, landed heavily in his arms, his eyes showing fear and distrust. If they could survive this night he'd make sure he wasn't charged. The boy squirmed, trying to get free but it only caused his arms to tightened around him. "Nikolai..." The word was barely a whisper, a sound that could bring a man to his knees. He didn't know what to say next, the look on the boys face cause a stab at his heart.

The boy scrambled from his hold and back up the tree, Alexander looking on in awe at how this man could climb so well. He stayed there for another few minutes before finding some nearby sticks and leave to make a fire. He made a ring out of stones to stop the fire from spreading, stacking the wood with the leaves he tried desperately to make it light. It took a long time, but he eventually rubbed the sticks the right way and smoke started to waft out. His careful breaths coaxed it to life, gentle and soft breaths so as not to extinguish it. He lit the fire, the warmth something he didn't know he needed. His eyes gently closed as he basked in the warmth, slowly he drifted to sleep.