A Lost Soul

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. A flicker of light piercing through the shroud of darkness in the starless night. A beacon, reaching out like a friendly hand, weaving between the trees until it came to rest on the body of Hest. Lost, alone, huddled against a tree wrapped in his thoughts of a life he once knew.

Echoes of laughter stir him from the torment of his mind. Tired and groggy, he stands up, shaking himself down and heads towards the source of the light. It’s probably just some campers he thinks, they should have spare food. As his eyes begin to adjust, he can see the silhouette of a building in the distance.

The light should not have reached him from there, but this didn’t cross his mind as a small sense of hope overtook everything else and guided him onwards.

Reaching the cabin, he noticed the outside walls seemed to shimmer and reflect the moonlight. Instead of being made with wood or cement blocks, the place had a look as though it was wrapped in oiled leather. It felt warm to the touch and the wall seemed to shudder as though it could feel his presence. Quickly withdrawing his hand, he went and knocked on the door. No response. What do I have to lose?

Letting himself in, he was hit with an overwhelming odour. A smell of iron mixed with something else. He knew the smell but was too nauseated to pin down what it was. The feeling that something wasn’t right gnawed at the back of his mind as his senses seemed to come under siege. Shaking his head, he turned to leave before catching sight of the banquet of food on the table in the middle of the room.

Spread out in all its glory are all his favourite foods from plates of spare ribs to piles of bacon-wrapped sausages accompanied by a large pitcher of water. There was only one chair and surely there was too much here for one person. They wouldn’t notice if a few bits of food disappeared. Sitting down, he wiped his hands against his dirty clothing and smiled to himself for the pointless gesture.

Now covered in grease, he stuffs his face with more food than is humanly possible. The barrage of flavours bouncing around his mouth from the sauce of the ribs mixed with the taste of the juiciest chicken feel like heaven in such a desolate world. His nan used to make the most amazing sausages for Christmas so he had left them till last. Bet this taste incredible, he thought as put one in his mouth. His teeth sink in causing the sausage to burst in his mouth, just like nans, and then the crunch. Wait, a crunchy sausage? Spitting it back out, Hest stares as his eyes widen in horror at the mangled chewed finger resting in his hand.

Panic flooded over him as he fell back stumbling off his chair. Reality came crashing down on him, pushing against the pressure on his mind. The warmth of the cabin evaporated and darkness encased him.

The walls thrum in delight. The tinge of happiness followed by the torrent of despair always leaves such a bittersweet taste in the flesh. Hest can feel the delight radiating all around him as the air begins to thicken, almost solid and too dense to breathe. Fear sets in as the cabin's delight is replaced by a longing of hunger. Fear, the final ingredient needed for a healthy meal.

The cabin begins to vibrate violently, shaking Hest’s soul free from his body and casting it out into the darkness of the forest. Discarded, scared and confused, he turns around to find the life of the cabin gone, leaving nothing but a ruined derelict shell in its place.

They say his soul still stalks this very forest. Driven mad with an insatiable hunger and an unyielding feeling of coldness. He is hunting, hunting for a new body.

So, as you sit around the campfire, basking in its warmth and feeling safe in the light. Remember, it shines out in the woods, like a beacon, reaching out like a friendly hand, weaving between the trees until it comes to rest upon a lost soul. You have never been in as much danger.

Sleep well.