Expedition Dead

The Forest

The Hoia-Bacui Forest was...erie. There was no other way to put it. It was deserted, and the nearest town was full of tense, terrified locals that spoke no English. Though the sky was a sunny, clear blue, the section above the dense forest was gray. There was a silvery mist that lingered everywhere, clinging even to the treetops. The air actually grew colder with each step closer to the edge of the trees.

The whole place had an ominous feel to it, a fact that the entire team caught onto fairly quickly.

Julia glanced at her team's faces and saw both wariness and fear. No one looked nearly as confident as they had on the drive over. She didn't blame them- she was terrified to take even one step forward at this point.

Since she was the leader and it was her job to get them to do this right, she sucked it up and motioned for the team to stop.

Marvin glared at her, obviously annoyed at her stopping, and raised an eyebrow. "Shouldn't we get started?" he asked in a tone that implied she knew nothing and he knew exactly what they should do.

Julia kept her composure, despite the shock and annoyance she felt. Wasn't he afraid? And why was he questioning her? It was his job to keep them on task...but it was her job to lead them to their destination at all costs, and she had the authority to give orders. Not him.

"This won't take long," she said as nicely as she could.

He let out an audible sigh and she squashed her anger. She told herself he was just trying to do his job, which she should appreciate.

Julia looked around the group, keeping up a calm facade.

"I know this is scary," she began. "Terrifying, actually. Just remind yourselves that you- we- were chosen for a reason. We are the best. Treks and Climbs knows we can do this. We just have to believe it. So, no matter what happens in there, we're going to believe it, too. Okay?"

With each sentence, the team's faces grew more and more relaxed. When Julia finished, they nodded.

"Okay," Oliver agreed.

"Okay," Julia repeated. "Let's go."

The team walked forward, hands linked, into the forest...and nothing happened. No ghosts jumped out at them, no one dropped dead, there were no dead bodies hanging from the trees or zombies eating someone's brains. There was only silence. Deafening silence.

Julia noticed that no animals scurried around and no birds chirped. It made her nervous, but she walked on.

The team soon fell into a comfortable formation.

Julia and Travis, the strongest hikers, took the lead. Travis looked out for low-hanging branches and threats from either side while Julia kept a lookout for anything suspicious ahead or on the ground. Raven and Oliver followed, watching the highly uneven ground for any tracks besides the ones they made. Ginger and Anna followed them, poised and ready to follow whatever orders thrown their way. Kevin and Marvin, also extremely strong hikers, closed the ranks. They listened for anyone/anything else, watched the others to make sure they were safe, and regularly took turns looking behind to check for possible dangers. 

The cold, dark, damp forest was still eerily silent, even with their footsteps. No one spoke, focusing intently on their jobs instead. The silence and the tense air surrounding them had Julia more on edge than she'd ever been in her life.

All thoughts of happiness and confidence were long gone. All Julia felt now was miserable stress and fear.

*** 

When growling stomachs were loud enough to break the silence, Julia called for a break. Not even Marvin complained as they perched across from each other on two trees that had fallen side by side and dropped their packs to the ground.

"It's really freaking me out in here," Ginger mumbled. She looked tired, her hair was wild, and her face was extra pale.

"It's too quiet," Anna added, taking a bite of her protein bar.

Kevin nodded in agreement.

"It's eerie, but it doesn't seem haunted," Julia declared. "Just...off."

"Well, something's been happening for everyone to die in here," Marvin said.

Travis, bless him, changed the subject, but Julia could tell that everyone was even more terrified now. It was all she could do to get them to smile.

But they did. For a few short minutes, they smiled and even laughed.

Then a twig snapped.

Everyone froze, heads whipping behind Julia's tree.

Travis and Marvin nodded at each other and stood, grabbing their knives and silently heading towards the noise to investigate. 

Julia's heart was pounding so hard she felt it in her ears. She had to sit on her hands to hide their shaking so she could appear calm and collected to her team. She focused on the way Kevin was anxiously spinning his own knife in his hands to distract her.

The team sat, totally and completely silent, for five minutes. Each minute brought a new fear, another wave of anxiety. When Julia physically could not take it anymore, Kevin jumped up.

"I've got to do something," he whispered. 

He took off, moving quickly and silently in the direction the others had gone.

Ginger and Anna were left alone on their tree. They hurriedly got up and squeezed next to Julia, Oliver, and Raven. They turned around so there were people keeping watch in both directions, and they all linked their arms for both warmth and security.

Julia had never been so scared that she had to fight off tears. The foreign feeling was unwelcome, but wouldn't leave. All she could do was bite her lip until she drew blood and sit straighter and more attentive than she had been before.

Everyone jumped up at the sound of rapid, clumsy footsteps. Julia drew her knife and moved to the front of the group. Her palms were sweaty and her heart was about to beat out of her chest.

She watched, horrified, as Travis stumbled through the trees, all but carrying a bloody Marvin.

Raven clamped a hand over her mouth to stifle a scream while Julia ran to help. As they laid Marvin out on a tree, her eyes zeroed in on the knife sticking out of his shoulder.

Kevin's knife.