My name is Hunter and I just turned 14. I am probably not the way you are picturing me. I am half the height of everyone I know. I barely eat, since I have no money. On top of that, I can’t  afford a shower in my tiny hut. You probably assume I am a dirty kid. You are right. My once blond hair is now a sandy brown. On top of that, I have no brothers or sisters. My life was pretty boring and bleak until this one terrifying night. Let me explain:

I had just came in from a long hunt in the woods. I slipped off my hunting boots, and rested my empty traps on the wall. It was almost 10:45 PM but my parents were not home yet. Although they had given me strict instructions to make sure I caught something tonight. My family have not eaten a full meal in days, and I was starving. They had always told me to never go out into the woods past eleven o’clock, but what harm could it do if I did it for just one more night. So, I put on my hunting boots and gathered my snares and my pocket knife, and set off into the night.

I started off down my usual trail. The wind was stronger and the moon seemed more pale. I heard the rustle of a small rodent. Maybe a squirrel, so I traveled towards it hoping that I would be able to bring something home to eat. I followed the sound, deeper and deeper into the woods until I got to where I am restricted from going further. I was about to turn around, when something caught my eye.

There was a small hut hidden behind a large oak tree. I had never seen it before. I found this strange since I have been passed the “restricted zone” hundreds of times with my parents but never saw a hut. From the looks of it the hut was abandoned. It had large wooden walls cracked and chipped. The windows were gone. Only a few shattered pieces laid on the floor. I decided to check it out, although to do that I would have to pass into the one place in the woods I am never allowed to go.

I stepped under the sign with the letters “FORBIDDEN” scarred across it. I threw a rock onto the hut to make sure nobody was in there. Then, I made my way to the door. I placed my hand onto the handle and twisted it. The door opened with a loud squeak, making me cringe. I tiptoed toward the fridge and opened the door. To my surprise it was stocked with food. I filled my pockets with whatever I could and carried a chicken in my trembling hands. As I approached the door it flung open, and two large men walked in. The next this I knew I was pinned to the floor with a man trying to knock me unconscious.

The pain was short but intense. It felt like a hammer had been driven through my skull. All my fear and stress disappeared, as I fell to the ground and everything went black. I had a dreamless sleep that felt like it had gone on forever. Gradually, I began to become more conscious of my surroundings and I did not like where I was. At all!   

My hands were cold and my feet were frozen with fear. A tear trickled down my chin, collecting the dirt of my face. It then hung onto my chin and dropped to its doom, just like what was about to happen to me. I looked around me. I was in a forest, tied to a tree. The deathly black sky, sent fear shooting into my soul. The wind cracked above my head, like a lethal whip ready to strike. The only light was from the moon, illuminating a terrifying figure in the distance. It looked like a massive man. His cheekbones were high in his face and his lips were cracked giving him a monstrous appearance. His jet black hair whipped in the wind and his broad shoulders were held high. His face had an expression of grimace on it as he strided towards me. I was only a 14 year old boy trying to feed my family. My parents had poor backgrounds and very little money. I should have never tried to break into a hut in the middle of the forest. The man continued his journey towards me with fast and purposeful strides. In his right hand, he held a chain. As he got closer, I realised that the chain was stained with blood…

I started to panic. I tried to wriggle and twist my way out of the rope, but it was no use. As he approached me I closed my eyes, awaiting a painful death. Soon, I could feel his foul breath on my face. He was so close to me his nose was inches from mine. I felt the urge to regurgitate. Suddenly, he whispered in my ear, “Run while you still can. I won't end you, but my master will.” He then cut the rope, leaving me in awe at what just happened. Soon enough reality hit me and I ran through the bitter night.

The trees in the forest reached out to grab me like a claw in a death machine. I did not stop running until I saw an opening, where my home was built. Although, this time something had changed. Fear surged through my heart as my brain tried to process the impossible situation in which I was currently in. Where my miniscule hut was supposed to be there was only a tiny patch of yellow, burnt grass. I was completely alone in the woods with nobody I knew. Locked up from the outside world. I did not know it then, but this was the beginning of a very, truly terrifying ordeal.

My first reaction was to run back into the woods in search of my family. Although, I decided to stop panicking and think it through. I scanned the burnt remains for a sign or clue that led to my family. I searched every patch of black grass and mud, but there was not even the slightest hint. Something inside of me wanted to give up and curl into a ball and cry myself to sleep. I tried to push the feeling down, but it was too strong. I was on the verge of going crazy, when something caught my eye.

A small piece of broken glass glistened in the moonlight. This was the only piece of the house that remained. I walked towards it cautiously, not knowing if it was a trap. I forced each leg in front of the other until the glass was underneath my feet. I reached down and picked it up. It felt cold and damp and had no particular shape to it. I looked through it but nothing was different about this piece of glass. Then, through the glass, I noticed a note on the floor. It was small and crumpled. I examined it in my hand. Small writing was scribbled on the faded piece of paper.

To Hunter,

          If you are reading this you must believe me that everything I tell you is true. I know this is probably too much for you to take in. Although, I am going to tell you everything I know. You were part of an experiment to see how artificial intelligence can be used to create a man. Therefore your brain, body, world and parents are not real. We have tested you in different situations. Today was the last stage of our test. We analysed how you responded to fear. I have no control over the decisions the AIA make. If it were up to me I would stay with you in this fake world. You see, I can’t expose you to society yet, due to obvious reasons. I'm not sure what you should do next. The only thing that might help is that I know of another artificial man. He was part of an experiment that went… wrong. He might be able to help you understand. With Every Second That passes he will be harder to find.

Love Mom

Fear, panic, anxiety and confusion all  raced through me at once. What did all of this mean. I dropped the letter. It was too great to think through. Am I really fake? I couldn't be. I had a heart beat. Or did I? I placed my clammy hand on my chest. I felt no beat or movement. I just felt my slow, artificial breathing. I walked over to a tree and slouched down beside it. My eyes were closing and I fell asleep before I could think about the disturbing set of events that had just recently occurred.

I woke up to a misty morning sky and a small drop of water splashing off of my nose. I stood up not remembering what had happened. Then, it suddenly all rushed back and I slouched back down into the damp mud. It started to rain more heavily now and the branch over my head protected me from most of the down pour. I wanted to think about what had just happened. Although, there was not much to think about. The only thing that might help is that other man out there. I had so many questions to ask him, but I had no idea where to even look. Maybe there was a clue somewhere on the note.

I pulled out the note from my pocket. This time I read it over more slowly. To my dismay nothing seemed to stand out. I scanned the back of the note as well but there was nothing special. I read it over one last time. Again, nothing stood out apart from one sentence that said, “With Every Second  That passes he will be harder to find.” I noticed “With”, “Every”, “Second” and “That” all had capital letters. Suddenly it all made sense. The capital letters formed a word.

West. That was the direction I needed to travel. Excitement raced through me, as I started to run in the direction. I knew that trees grew greener and lusher on the south side. Once I knew where south was it gave me a general direction of where west should be. As I travelled the mud seemed to getter thicker and thicker and the rain seemed to turn into hail. Every second that passed by I felt more wet, cold and tired. I knew that I could not continue at this rate. I decided to wait out the heavy and misty rain. I layed down beside a large oak tree. I noticed a small daisy dancing in the wind. It was the only colour in a world of grey. My muscles ached and my eyes stung from the mist. I rested my head on a damp patch of grass. I felt my eyes close and my mind go blank.

When I woke up from my dreamless sleep the rain was still pouring. Although, it was eerily quiet. Warm gooey liquid was dripping onto my forehead and trickling down my nose. I wiped my face and saw that it was not mud or rain, but saliva. I looked up, forcing my eyes to make contact with the beast above. A massive dog-like creature with black fur and silver eyes looked down at me. Its fur was matted with a crimson red. I was not going to be the creatures first meal. I reached into my pocked and pulled out my knife. I raised it slowly to the creature's head. Then with one quick motion I brought it down.

There was no blood. There was no howl. There was just a clang of metal against metal. My knife was still in my hand when I sprung to my feet. I looked at the creature. It was sitting on its bottom staring at me. Its head was tilted to the side, as if it did not quite understand why I was slowly backing away from it. To the creatures right was a dear. I slowly approached the wolf and pick up the dear. It just stood there and stared. Next I reached out a shaky hand toward the large animal. It let me stroke its robotic head. It then, suddenly, barked and jumped onto my chest.

I fell on my back, disorientated. The world seemed to be spinning around me. Saliva oozed onto my cheek. I prepared for excruciating pain, but none came. Instead a wet sloppy toung socked my cheek. The animal then got off of my chest and barked. It slowly started to jog around a tree and into an opening. It seemed as if it was the edge of my “artificial world”. It led off of  cliff.

The animal then ran to the end and sat down beside a shadow. Or was it a shadow. At first it seemed as if it was just a large rock. Although, as I neared  closer I realised it had a distinct shape. It was a man. His back was towards me, as the sun set. His figure gave me hope and inspiration of what he might turned out to be. As he turned his head, I stepped back and and had to catch my breath.

The figure, the stranger, the person I had never seen before was my brother. I had never known that I had a brother until the age of eight. My mother had shown me a picture of him but she had told me that he was no longer with the. She had explained that I would understand why when I was older. Although I never seemed to be old enough to know. I stared at my brothers blue eyes. Even if I had never scene the image of him I felt a connection almost as if I had known him my whole life.

He stared at me and I stared back. It felt like we were frozen like that forever. He looked a lot older than me and was a lot taller. His voice was raspy and deep as he muttered out the words “hi”. I smiled back and asked him his name. Turns out I am not the only one left in my family on this deserted place. Samuel is here with me.