Artificial Earth

18

First Lake
4:30 a.m

ON THE OTHER SIDE OF FIRST LAKE, Hal, Lou and twelve other volunteers were spread out just outside of the forest. It was still very much dark and unnaturally getting darker by the minute, trees were swaying because of the force of the wind, lightning was flashing every few seconds followed by thunder and mud flowed ankle deep covering the landscape like a never ending carpet.
Hal never considered himself as being heroic, a concerned citizen more likely, always ready to lend a helping hand to those in need. He thought of himself as an average guy, doing only what he thinks is best for all, contributing to society. This dark stormy morning however, he might have made a mistake, going way over his head this time, he thought but wouldn't admit it out in the open. Pride and ego got the better of him.
"We'll divide ourselves into two groups and use the hand radio's to coordinate...remember our first priority is to find the kids and the missing guy, be extra careful, If you see the creature, shoot it down. If you find yourself in trouble...run! Don't be a hero, okay?" Hal said, cautioning them.
"Lou, You come with me...the rest of you go with Martin over there. We'll head deep in the forest, Martin, your group search the edge of the forest near the shore line." he said.
Hal, Lou and four other guys entered the forest, the beam of their flashlights criss crossed the surroundings as they navigated their way through infinite blackness. Giant fir trees stood on either side of them filtering the force of the cold wind, the sound of croaking frogs forming a steady melody, and the sloshing of their feet on mud and water, harmoniously blending in like a symphony orchestrated in the rain.
"Martin, Can you hear me?" Hal asked, using his hand radio.
"Clear enough, Copy." Martin replied.
"Good. Anything there?" Hal asked, moving forward.
"Negative, Copy."
"Let me know if you see anything."
"Okay, Copy that."

Something moved in the bushes, Hal and Lou pointed their flashlight towards the source of movement....A rat the size of godzilla emerged startling the group. Lou found himself embracing Hal, Jim the tall slender guy fell buttocks first in the mud and the others assumed evasive positions. They all looked at each other then laughed, making noise that seems out of place with it's surroundings.
"Come on let's go." Hal said, leading the way again.
"We should've brought a video cam with us.." Lou said, still laughing. "The look on your face Hal was priceless."
"Yeah, right."  Hal said, grinning.

The group pressed forward and entered a clearing.
"What the hell..." Hal gasped.
Tall trees were laid down like toothpicks, uprooted, in the middle, dozens of eggs each the size of a horse were laying side by side.
"Hal, I think we better get out of here." Lou suggested, slowly backing away.
The group slowly backed away where they entered. After a few feet, Hal took out his hand radio to try and reach the others.
"Martin!...Martin do you Copy?" Hal whispered loudly, waiting for an answer.
"Martin! Do you Copy?" he tried again. Static.
"Martin get out of the shore line, I repeat, get the hell away from the shoreline.."
Static
"Maybe the storm messed up the signal." Lou said.
"We can worry about them later, right now we have problems of our own...geez, there were at least a dozen of those eggs out there, who knows how many of them already hatched.." Jim said.
"We have to get out of this forest and warn people." Lou nervously said.
"Okay, we stay near the trees..." Hal was saying when something caught his sight.
"Hide behind the tree, now!" he ordered.
They all leaned behind the large fir's trunk. ""Turn off your flashlights..." he whispered.
Just then, a serpent like creature the size of car silently slithered by...It was at most fifteen feet long, hideous and has two small feet and two slender hands with a long neck and tail, almost like a giant lizard. Another serpent like creature came out from across their position, this one larger than the first, then another one soon followed and paused as if sniffing the air before moving along.
No one dared move. Hal held his riffle in one hand while he took out his hand radio again. "Martin, If you can hear me please respond."
Static
He placed his hand radio back inside his raincoat, then checked his riffle.
"Okay, we avoid the path and stay near the trees, use them to conceal ourselves. Follow my lead and be alert, keep your guns ready." he said, brushing water off his eyes.
"One more thing, don't use your flashlights, we'll only use mine, follow the light." Hal pointed out.
They moved in darkness, staying near the trees. Hal took lead, gradually moving farther away from the clearing. He was about to cross the other tree when one of the creatures blocked his path, coming out from the darkness.
Bullets flew in the air hitting the creatures body, it twisted and made a monstrous sound then moved towards Hal. At the same time, another serpent suddenly slithered from behind the group, snatching one of them then biting his head off.
"It's a trap! They knew we're here!" Hall cried out, shooting the creature in front of him with another barrage of bullets.
Lou ran to help Hal, Jim followed but was blocked by another serpent, shots were fired at different directions. Another member of the group was hit by a tail and flew toward a tree, hitting it with a loud crack, instantly killing him. Hal continued firing at the creature in front of him together with Lou, the creature bellowed before dropping dead on the ground. The two remaining creatures cornered another guy and tore him apart, allowing Jim to run and escape.
Hal, Lou and Jim ran as fast as they could in the mud and rain, never stopping, never looking back. They were lucky enough to get out of the forest, and as they stepped out, they saw Martin sitting alone in the mud.
"They're gone....they're all gone." Martin said, crying in the rain.

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THE DISPATCHER RELAYED INFORMATION about a call coming from Police Officer Gumry, cut short by a series of gun shots. Sheriff Gilbert stood in front of the communications table listening to the recorded playback.."Dispatch this is Officer Gumry...."Oh my God!" followed by rapid gunfire.
"Deputy Monroe, Any word from Officer Gumry?" Sheriff Gilbert asked.
"None, Sheriff. I've been trying to establish contact but all I'm getting is static." Deputy Monroe replied, holding the hand held radio.
"Call the other men in, have them report here immediately."
"What about Officer Gumry and his crew?"
"We'll worry about that later, I want to know If anyone else is missing...Let's all regroup and have a meeting first before we decide what to do next."
"Excuse me Sheriff, I think you need to hear this." a police officer said, entering the room.
"What?" Sheriff Gilbert asked, moving towards the police officer.
"A total of thirteen residents voluntarily headed out to the forest to search for missing people and to hunt the creature...only four came back alive."
"Damn It!" Sheriff Gilbert exclaimed, anxiety written all over his face.

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Authors Note

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