• Chapter One

    My eyes snap open, and my body jerks awake. I look around. Where was this? My brain automatically assumes it’s a forest, which technically, was. Around me were trees, five metres from the ground to sky. Plants, spruces, leaves and all kinds of greenery decorated the forest floor. Sitting up, I check myself for injuries. Only a few scratches, nothing major. I was fine, but where was I? And how did I get here? I stand up, pick up a rock from the ground and place it between the roots of a tree as a marker. I had to find out where this was, and the only way to do that was explore. I search my head for answers, memories, but it’s blank. Possible amnesia? No way, not me. What are the chances of me getting amnesia? I put the thought aside and begin my exploration mission. My shoes brush away dry leaves. Hmm. Dry leaves. Maybe it was autumn right now? The weather was clear sky with sun, but it was as cold as ever, as I could see my breath in the air with every puff I exhaled.
    “Cold….” I mutter unconsciously. I was wearing a grey hoodie, t-shirt beneath, and shorts with pockets and a plaid design on them, along with sneakers. I could see giant goosebumps on my arms. My skin was also dry. I looked at my left wrist, which had a watch on it. Yes! The time was….eleven twenty-three. Just what is going on? I couldn’t see anything beyond the mass of trees that surrounded me, only the sky. I sigh and walk towards a random direction, occasionally placing rocks beneath the roots of trees as markers. I had to find out where the hell this was, before my patience dwindled out.
    At one o’clock I was hungry and thirsty, but not quite tired. It was then that I had the idea to check my pockets. Why didn’t I think of that before!? I scowl at my own stupidity and pat myself down, rummaging through my clothes. In one of my pockets I had a keychain with 4 keys attached to the end. Wouldn’t really help right now. In my other pocket, however, was multi-function pocket knife. Score! I thought. I opened it carefully, slowly pulling out each tool and examining the functions. A mini scissor, a mini knife, slightly bigger knife, nail trimmer, can opener with screwdriver, mini flashlight, key chain, and tweezers. At least I had something. I held onto the pocket knife, feeling slightly more secure with it in my hand. At some point I began walking up-hill. It would be good if this lead me to the top of a hill or something, then I could check out where I was, and hopefully, find a city or something I could head to. I kept walking, and the hill became steeper. There was a part of the hill so steep I had to climb up using my hands and feet, to keep myself from slipping. After an hour I reached the top of the hill, and as I scanned the view eagerly, my heart sank like the Titanic. There was no city, only forest as far as I could see, and beyond that a body of water. I gulped down the lump forming in my throat. s**t! I thought. Why the ******** was this happening to a kid like me? I catch myself. Kid? I thought. That meant I was under eighteen. I sweep my brain again for some answers, and up surfaces a number. Fourteen. I was fourteen years old. A bit of relieve fills my worry-filled head. At least I knew how old I was. But that didn’t solve my problem. I was going to die in the wild, stranded. Hypothermia? Eaten alive? Who knows what was going to happen to me. I grit my teeth and push out the unnecessary thoughts. I let my spirit burn and focused myself. I scanned the view again, and my jaw drops as I see smoke rising up from a part of the forest not too far from my location. My head pieces the info together. Smoke equals fire…which equals people! Having a new goal now, I felt refreshed and ready to go. I began heading towards the source of smoke, legs walking a bit faster than before.
    Three o’clock. I’m close to the source of smoke. My throat would give anything for a bit of hydration. My stomach growls unhappily, but I set my priorities first. Have to get to fire! I rake my hands through my neck-length hair. A strand of hair falls off. It was black. It could be dark brown too, but then another piece of info resurfaces in my head. I was female. A girl. I allow myself a small smile for remembering.
    I could see the fire! I resist the urge to run towards it, something was holding me back. I look at the fire. It was definitely built by humans. It was a campsite, with a glowing fire, tarp nearby, pots and plates scattered around. And I could see the people too. Ten people, all male. Most of them were below eighteen, I guessed, with three guys looking over twenty. Suspicion is my first instinct. I considered it a good thing too, because here there’s no thing as being too careful. Wonder if there were any other girls. It was pretty weird though. Why weren’t there any females around? And no one seemed to be doing any work. My fingers toy around with my multi-function pocket knife as my head searches for options. Then it hits me. Another idea, but would it work? I look at my chest, nearly flat. I grin crookedly. I walk away from the campsite, quite a ways away. I flip out the mini scissor in my pocket knife, and slowly begin my handiwork.
    After a hour I dig a hole and dump all my hair into it. I had given myself a haircut, and just by touching it I could tell it was short enough to pass as a boy’s. It was messy and it stuck out, but it worked. Pretending to be a guy would help me get along better with the group of males here. I couldn’t look at my reflection since there weren’t any puddles nearby, but oh well. This is a one-shot plan. I steeled my courage and stepped onto camp grounds, and all the people are instantly alerted, hostility on their faces.
    “Hey you! Stop right-” a scrawny guy yells, but is pushed aside by a taller boy, who seems to be the oldest and leader of the group.
    Cold is in his eyes. “Who’re you?” he asks, voice deep. Intimidation was his specialty, but I didn’t let down my barrier. I couldn’t be penetrated by his glare. I eye him back, with enough hostility in my eyes to match his. No more, no less. Enough to put us on equals even though he was much taller than me.
    I’m about to answer him, but then my head comes up with a blank, once again. I forgot my name! How could I have forgotten that I forgot my name?! I should have thought of a temporary one before I stepped onto the campsite. Inside I swear at my stupidity, once again. The leader senses my hesitation, and scowls.
    “Hayden.” I say, with confidence that surprises the leader. He immediately changes face.
    “Why didn’t you say so? Hey Pedro! Get the guy some food and water would’ja? He’s a newbie!” he shouts to the scrawny guy, all hostility before erased by a laid-back personality. I was suspicious. How could this guy welcome a stranger that he‘s just met? I slowly let my guard down, but kept it up a few centimetres just in case. Never to careful, right?
    The scrawny kid, who must be Pedro, heads towards me with a wooden bowl. He unceremoniously dumps it into my hands, and I quickly thank him. Inside the bowl was murky, watery soup. It was lukewarm, and in a split second I down half the bowl, I was just that thirsty. I lick the corners of my lips to savor the faint meat taste, and in few more swigs I’m done. The Leader looks at me and motions me to follow him. We sit around the campfire together, alone. I was a bit wary, but he seemed like a nice enough guy.
    “Soup good?” he asks, feeding the fire a stick. I nod. “Well then, you probably don’t remember how you got here, right?” He knew something.
    “Why are we here then?” I ask, trying to keep my voice lower than usual. The Leader’s face is bright from the fire in front of him. The other guys are doing things elsewhere. He thinks for a while then answers, eyes focusing on his thoughts.
    “We’re not sure exactly. But here’s mostly what I know,” he explains, scratching his head. “So it’s like, people, yeah? Like us? We suddenly wake up in this forest. No one knows what’s happened or whatever, random people pop-up time to time, and we’re all in this forest that’s never ending. Some people try to find a way back. Some people just wait, like us. So it’s like we got our minds wiped clean, and suddenly we appear here, with no recollection.”
    It made sense to me. It was just the reasons behind these happenings that I didn’t get. How did, no, how could people suddenly appear in a never-ending forest out of thin air? And exactly how many more people were here?
    “But…how did you get all this stuff from civilization?” I ask, pointing at all the utensils, pots, pans and tarp. “You can’t find these in a forest.”
    “Ah those? They come from crates. Crates are these boxes that come up time to time that carry items necessary for survival. And like the people, they pop up randomly. No set schedule, you see,” the Leader answers, staring at the fire. Suddenly another boy runs up to the Leader. He whispers urgently into his ear, his expression panicked and frantic. I could pick up only the word ‘run’. Something was going on.
    “Stay here, Hayden, we’ll be back,” he says, not looking at me. His face was scowling with concern over the problem. Question is, what was the problem? He quickly gets up and follows the boy who alerted him. I get up too, ready to do a little investigating of my own. I decided I wouldn’t stay here long; I had a feeling of unrest. Nobody treats you this well under these circumstances unless they wanted something back. The Leader, I thought, was probably not as nice as he seemed to be.
    All the boys left to resolve the problem, leaving me alone. Not a smart idea. The problem must be pretty big, considering how everyone left in a hurry. I scouted the campsite, and my feet brought me towards the tarp where a bunch of sleeping bags underneath were located. There were two bags. I rummaged through them, and I came across a gadget-looking device. My head had an idea what it was, and it took me a while to remember what it was exactly. After minutes of thinking I realize it’s a camera. Technology! It stood out like white on a black background, since it was the only piece of technology surrounded by raw nature. I look around and listen to see if anyone was coming back. I tuned the camera on and looked through the pictures. The first few were of the boys lounging around the campsite, seeming to be having a relaxing time. Then I continued looking through, until I found one picture that almost made me drop the camera. I blinked to make sure I was seeing what I saw. What the ******** is this?! , I thought, anger boiling inside me. The camera screen displayed a picture of the Leader and a girl, about my age, beaten to a pulp, blood and bruises all over her. Holding her head up by her hair was the Leader, a sadistic smile on his face, smiling at the camera like it was the most natural thing to do. In horror I continued looking through the pictures, and found more pictures of the group of males at the campsite assaulting a small group of men and women. They seemed to be inside a dark area with barely any light. A cave maybe? All the victims were malnourished and filthy. I think now I had a clearer picture of what was going on. It was like the noble/peasant relationship during the olden times; the Leader’s group were the royals and the group of people in the camera were the slaves. My instincts were correct; something was definitely wrong here. The reason why the males on site were slacking off was because they had slaves to do all their work for them. I quickly closed the camera, not needing to look through anymore. I carefully put it back where I found it inside the bag, and searched the bag for other pieces of info. Nothing but towels and water bottles. In the second bag under the tarp there was a blood soaked coat. I quickly stuffed it back into the bag, not wanting to touch it. I got out from under the tarp, and back to the campfire. It was still burning, and I fed it a few more sticks to keep it going. s**t, what should I do? I shouldn’t have got myself into this mess. Option A: Be a human and save the poor souls that were being tortured. That meant I had to put myself in danger. Option B: Leave right now without a word. I could still die in the wilderness, since I didn’t have a crate full of resources to save me. Option C: Continue living here and pretend I didn’t find the camera. But there was the chance I was going to turn into a slave too.
    “Dammit….!” I mutter under my breath, needing to say something. “What the hell is a fourteen year-old suppose to do?” The smart thing to do was just leave immediately. I had a fairly full stomach from the free soup I just had; I could try to find myself a crate and create a campsite just for me; but who could sleep through the nightmares I was going to have after knowing I abandoned slaves that I could have broken free? My head had it’s own little debate. In the end my mind was made up. It just wasn’t my problem; and I wasn’t supposed to play hero anyways. I could easily mess up and turn myself into a slave, or even worse, get myself killed. How was one girl supposed to fight through ten guys, survive, and save a bunch a slaves in need of helping? Besides, even if through some miraculous miracle I was able to save them, I still wouldn’t have water or food available to share with them. And they were probably to weak to even run. Yes, I thought. I’ll just leave. My mind’s made up. I took a step towards the forest, away from the campsite, but my heart stopped me. It was a fight over my body, between my heart and mind. My heart won, and I found myself running towards the direction where the Leader headed to fifteen minutes ago.

    Chapter Two

    Why was I doing this? It was a perfectly questionable question. It was the most bizarre thing ever; a fourteen year old girl with temporary amnesia was running through an unknown forest to save a bunch of slaves. I blindly ran through the forest, hoping luck was on my side and following my instincts. Branches whip my limbs and face, and the occasional root tripped me, but I kept running, adrenaline pumping through my veins. I wasn’t even tired yet. Maybe I was a good runner before I was dropped into this crazy forest? I could hear talking up ahead. I stopped, mid-run, paralyzed by fear of discovery. I dropped onto the forest floor, and squirmed towards the shelter of a bush beside me.
    “We got them,”the Leader announced, breath all huffy with exhaustion. I could tell by their breaths they were all tired from some workout. “Why the hell did you let them go?!” Rage was in the Leader’s voice. His image immediately shattered as he showed his true colours. A sick, sadistic human abusing people for his own needs. I peeked from under the bush and saw all ten of the guys, outside a cave. A giant stone blocked the entrance of the cave, like Jesus’ grave. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that was where they kept the slaves. The eleventh person, a fairly well built-kid, was blubbering at the sight of the angry Leader.
    “They-the-” the blubbering kid started, but was cut off by a deadly fast punch by the Leader. A few of the other boys winced as blubber-mouth hit the ground, grabbing his cheek in pain.
    “Ah..haii….” blubber mouth whimpered, fear choking him up. From under the bush I could tell this was the real deal. I was seriously witnessing a fight here! I whipped out the blade of my pocket knife, my fear replaced with anger. Since when was I such a justifying person? My personality maybe? I waited and observed the scene. The was no way I was going to be able to push the giant boulder blocking the cave entrance away. It was too big and bulky.
    “You little piece of s**t!” the Leader spat out at blubber-boy. “Hurry and find the last slave, and if you don’t find him I’m going to mutilate your already messed-up face! The rest of you, head back to camp! Hayden’s going to be our replacement for the lost slave. Prepare the gear.”
    The little b*****d…, I thought. He was planning to enslave me from the start. The boys all headed back without a word, afraid to further anger the Leader. He put up a good act, I had to say. And I was right to leave camp, otherwise I would have been just sitting there, unsuspecting to the trap coming to me. I feel a giant hand clamp around me neck, and leaves rustling. I’m lifted off the ground easily by my attacker. Oh s**t…
    “You little son of a b***h, come with me!” a weary yet angry voice hisses into my ear. I stab my pocket knife onto the attackers arm, and the man lets go, him grunting in pain. I didn’t stab deep; just enough to cause a scare. I whip around and get a clear few of my attacker. It was a very tall man, black, and if it weren’t for the fact that he was malnourished he would have been very muscular and strong. I could see his detoriated muscles from underneath his saggy skin. He was tired and thirsty; I could see that. He must be the missing slave!
    “Listen mister!” I say, holding up my hands in surrender. “I’m not trying to-” I’m cut off as the giant man drags me by the arm to the cave entrance.
    “Now you listen here,” he whispers in a sinister, desperate voice. “You better help me move this stone before I snap you in half!”
    “I know! I’m not with the other guys-” I urgently explain.
    “Shut up! I don’t need to hear your pitiful lies!” he growls with his heavy accent. “Now push you filthy little maggot!”
    I had enough sense then to shut up and do what he said. We were just about to push when blubber-boy from before spots us. He doesn’t recognize me, and sees me with the missing slave. Uncertainty fills his eyes. Mister Slave beside me, mid-push, sees him too and rushes towards him like a raging rhino. He was desperate to get his friends out. Even in conditions like these he was going back for his slave-mates. Blubber-boy is brought back by Mister Slave, mouth clamped shut by Mister slave’s giant hand.
    “Push, or your neck snaps,” hisses Mister slave, and blubber-boy nods, tears in his eyes. Blubber-boy throws a confused look at me, and I avoid his gaze. The three of us push simultaneously against the rock blocking the cave entrance. It was moving alright, slowly but surely. Blubber-boy’s now in tears, probably thinking how the Leader was going to kill him now that he’s helped the enemy. Muffled voices from the other end of the cave. Excited. Disbelieving voices. The rock thuds as it finally rolls away, un-blocking the cave entrance. People spill out from the cave, most of them shielding their eyes from the unaccustomed brightness of the sun, some shivering from the bite of cold weather. It was four o’clock by now.
    “AHhh…hahhh..iiaaaa..” a sobbing woman with crinkled hair, sunken cheeks and baggy eyes cries. I couldn’t tell if they were tears of joy or pain. Some of the more capable slaves immediately burst into sprints away from cave, ditching everyone. Who knows where they’ll go? The last person was a the girl my age I saw beaten to a pulp in the camera, and my eyes widen with recognition. She was the worst looking of them all, bandages peeling off her bloody face. She was skinnier than twigs, with bruises all over her limbs, and scratches over her skin and clothes. She looks ready to collapse but Mister Slave catches her as she falls. Blubber-boy and I are the only ones singled out, not sure what to make of the scene. A few slaves run up and hug Mister Slave, their Savior.
    “Well, well..” an all too recognizable voice says.”Hayden, you….and Michael too, huh?” The Leader was here, and everyone is suddenly frozen. The Leader and five other guys step forward, all with bows in their hands. Not a good sign. Without a word they start shooting using sharpened sticks as arrows. The weren’t as effective as real arrows but they were just as dangerous. Get hit and it’ll sink into your flesh. The first arrow, shot by the Leader, flies towards the group of people surrounding Mister Slave. Mister Slave shields them using his big body, the arrow sinking into his abdomen. Everyone breaks into a frenzy and then it’s just a mob of people trying to escape, some getting captured, some getting shot. Among the mass of panicked people I see Mister Slave trying to shield as much people as he can beneath his giant body, but me? I make a break for it. I run towards the freedom of the forest, but someone grabs my wrist.
    “Please…! Don’t leave me!” Blubber-boy pleads, running alongside me while holding my wrist. The Leader and his group of people all focus on recapturing slaves, and screams and shouts could be heard, mixed with the cacophony of the forest. I run like there’s no tomorrow, dragging along a blubbering boy who clung to me like a child to his mommy. As I reach the thicker part of the forest less and less people got in our way; up ahead I could see Mister Slave, carrying the unconscious girl, on his last legs. Dozens of arrows stuck out from him, blood pouring from his wounds. Mister Slave looks behind him and sees us. With one more look at the girl he was carrying he blocks our path.
    “Look, I don’t know who you two are, but please…help this girl. I don’t give a damn what you did before, please…help her..I can’t move any longer…they’ll catch us if I continue on. Here! Hurry and run!” he says, and he gently places her into my arms. She felt too light to be healthy.
    “Move! I’ll stall them for as long as I can! I swear, if you hurt her, I’ll come back as a ghost and haunt- MOVE!” he shouts, and so me, blubber-boy, and unconscious girl all run deeper towards the forest, running for our lives. At one point I look back, but I see nothing but trees, no sign of Mister Slave.