Alaska

"What do you guys want to do first? I say we go check out the Bald Eagle sanctuary at Plato’s Bend."

"Josh, please put that tourist map away for now." Enzo said. "We can check out the sanctuary in a couple of days. Today, we're going off-road. You guys are gonna shit your pants when you see this place... Nathan, did you remember to bring it?"

"Yeah. But it's in pieces. It was the only way to get it past TSA at the airport."

"Did he remember to bring what?" Damien, the oldest asked as he turned away from the railing on the observation platform him and Nathan were on.

The view rose far beyond their expectations. The horizon was a rigid spine of snow-capped peaks; the mightiest held onto lingering clouds. The forests were vast and stretched for miles without interruption—the ideal place for wildlife, which moved with a quiet sovereignty, traversing the lands for age upon age. The air tasted clean, metallic with the right amount of April's chill to keep one alert. And the rivers ran cold and swift, carrying glacial silt that transformed the water's hue into a milky shade of green.

"He brought a gun. A revolver." Enzo said, jumping off a boulder to join them on the platform. "We might need it to scare off grizzlies. Hopefully, we won't have to shoot any."

"Yeah, I'll put it back together before we go hiking. It'll take a half hour or so."

Visiting Alaska was Enzo Rinaldi's idea from the start—a childhood promise born from a love of geography—something that never strayed too far from his mind. The Alaskan landscape was the one place in North America that intrigued the most.

Finally, in their senior year of college, he talked his closest buddies into going with him rather than their usual destination of overcrowded beaches in Florida.

With their spirits high, they descended into the valley to set up camp, taking in the strange beauty around them along the way.

"This looks like a good spot." Enzo said. "It's near that stream so we can wash our hands and stuff. Me and Damien will start setting up the tents. We all know we're faster at it. Josh, you can gather wood for when we return and need to start a fire. Nathan, after you finish putting the pistol back together, use this backpack to fill it with bottled water and snacks. Anything else you guys want to bring, put it in this same backpack. We'll take turns carrying it instead of us all getting weighted down by a bunch of shit we don't need to take. I'll bring an empty one in case we find something worth keeping. Got it!"

The nodding of heads meant they were all in agreement. Within two hours, the camp site came together. Everything was in place just the way they wanted. They were ready to begin their trek to an old, abandoned mining district established in 1905. It hadn't been operational for seventy years, since the early 40s.

Enzo couldn't believe he was actually in Alaska. You could see the excitement written all over his face. All four of them were electrified to be somewhere they'd never been before.

"So where are we going again?" Josh asked in a curious tone.

"It's called Fiddler's Mine inside Hatcher's Pass. It's only about two miles over this ridge. I think we can make it there in an hour, hour and a half tops."

"Wait!" Josh interjected. "Why didn't we just set up camp over there?"

"You want to lug all this stuff over that? No way! Plus, we're leaving for another spot tomorrow and it's best to be close to the road above in case we need to get to the car for anything."

"Yeah. Okay, that all makes sense. My bad..."

"What's so special about this place, Enzo?" Nathan said.

"I read about it years ago. It's an old, abandoned goldmine with tons of history. I read about others 20 miles north of here, but this one is supposed to be not as run down. And supposedly, they never sealed the mine itself. We've got to see it! Who knows, we might even find some gold too, haha."

"That sounds cool as fuck! Wouldn't it be crazy if we found a huge nugget? We'd come back to Minnesota flashing some cash!" Josh said.

"Dream on, buddy. Our chances of seeing a UFO are better. But you never know." Enzo said, volunteering to be the first to wear the backpack.

They headed into the wilderness with nothing but a map, their reception flickering between one bar and none.

Almost an hour into the hike, they took a quick break so Enzo could urinate and gift the job of carrying the backpack to someone else.

Enzo made his way to the nearest pine and let go of his bladder. While zipping up his pants, he saw something in the bark.

"Hey guys, check this shit out!" Enzo called to the others.

Nathan and Josh gathered around the pine with Enzo and were looking at something carved into the tree. Damien remained at a different tree relieving himself there.

"That's odd and kind of scary. What do you think it means?" Josh said, aiming his phone to take a picture.

"Yeah, it is kind of scary." Nathan added. "Looks like someone needed help. And over here I'm pretty sure it says. 'He's going to kill us'. Probably just someone bored playing some kind of-"

"Hey! Over here! Check this out!" Damien shouts.

They left the tree and hurried toward Damien, who was already transfixed on something lying on the ground.

"It's a bear trap with dried blood on it." Damien said.

He got down on his knees to get a closer look and pulled something stringlike away from the rusted teeth of the trap.

"Dude! This is a shoestring with more dried blood on it."

"Let me see." Enzo said, stepping forward to reach for it.

"Hmm. It is a shoestring... Maybe a hunter caught a bear and the bear's blood got all over his shoes... What else could it be? Anyway, let's get going. We only have about five hours of sun left."

They left the area but not without taking a faint sense of unease with them.

After another half hour of enduring the rugged landscape, a clearing finally came into view. Fiddler's Mine, or what was left of it, stood in front of them. Several red-bricked structures with broken windows were the first things they saw. Enzo's pace quickened, leaving his friends trailing closely behind. He had finally arrived at the place he only saw in books or the internet. So many desirable choices to see flooded his frame.

"Look at that!" Josh said. "Someone put all those ore carts in the shape of a triangle."

"Yeah, and there are a bunch of rocks around the whole thing in a circle. Let's check it out!" Enzo said.

If they could have seen the structure from above, perhaps they would have noticed that the entire arrangement was made into a pentagram—a religious symbol or maybe, something more cryptic or evil.

"I wonder what it's for." Damien said. "The big rocks go in a circle, but smaller ones go from the edge of the circle to the ore carts and back down at an angle. Weird. It must have served a purpose for someone."

"It's probably just a poor man's crop circle, haha." Josh jokingly added."

"Alright, we should probably stick together so we can see everything together." Enzo said. "There! The mine entrance is over there. Nathan, take the backpack off so we can grab the flashlights. We can leave the bag near the entrance. I've got the other one."

The young men weren't aware of how extensive the mine was and where the ore cart tracks lead to, but they did find several rooms inside the dark corridors.

The first one they crept in had an old wooden desk half sunken into the earth. Debris cluttered the place, including rusted soda cans of brands they had never heard of. Enzo grabbed a couple and put them in the empty backpack.

The second room they discovered was noticeably less cluttered and had several chairs, a table, and a mattress laying on the ground. None of the items seemed as old as everything else they saw.

"Man! I think someone lives here or recently has." Damien said. "These candles don't look old at all. Maybe squatters?”

They swept their lights across the room's dirt walls, revealing a long, narrow space no bigger than a train car.

Josh's light came to a halt when he saw something disturbing.

"What the fuck are those?"

All their eyes focused on what appeared to be a dozen or so spines hanging from the ceiling in the corner. The bones were moving slightly in the dead air, casting eerie shadows on the wall behind them.

"What the fuck is that, is right." Enzo said. "I wonder what kind of animal they came from."

"Listen guys..." Nathan said in a rush. "You know I'm a biology major and I'm almost a hundred percent correct when I say, those are human spines. Let's get out of here..."

"Wait! Wait a minute..." Enzo said, grabbing Nathan's wrist as he tried to pass. "How do you know they are human?"

"Does it fucking matter! I know what I'm looking at! There could be an explanation, but I don't care. Let's get out of here. NOW! I'm leaving."

"Alright guys, let's go. Nathan's being a chicken. I mean, it is kinda weird. Maybe they're from miners who died here long ago." Enzo said, taking one last look at them before leaving.

They'd been inside the mine for barely twenty minutes. But that was enough to shift the mood into something unnerving. The young men reached the main exit, exchanging chatter along the way about what they had seen. Enzo's pulse had barely risen. There was no way he was going to let something like old bones end his chance to explore.

"I know everyone is a little freaked out but let's check out this building. I want to take pictures of the inside." Enzo said.

"Um! I don't think those was there before." Damien said, pointing.

Looking back at the ore carts, they could see what looked like sheets of paper stuck to a few of them, edges fluttering in the wind.

They cautiously walked over to investigate.

"Now, were getting the fuck out of here. Someone clearly doesn't want us to be here." Enzo said.

What they were looking at were large handwritten words on four pieces of dirty, wrinkled paper. The words spelled out an ominous threat.

Enzo wasted no time tearing them down. They scanned the area for the person or persons responsible.

Fear hit like a jolt, wiping their minds clear of everything except leaving.

"Nathan, grab the gun and let's go."

"Dude, I'm about to freak out." Josh said as he crept in closer to the others. "Whoever it is, is watching us right now."

"Everyone relax! It's four of us and probably only one of them. I'm sure they just want us to go. Too bad. I really wanted to see more."

Enzo took the pages and ripped them up, leaving the pieces blowing across the ground. Nathan fumbled through belongings inside the backpack searching for the gun.

"It's not in here! Did anyone else take it?" Nathan said.

"No! I watched you put it in there. Let me check." Enzo said, rushing to look for himself.

"Damn! It's not in here. Fucker must have went through our bag when we were in the mine. Let's go!"

They started out on the same route back, looking behind them every few feet to make sure they weren't being followed.

Adrenalin hit hard.

Sweat rose from a fear they couldn't shake.

They didn't feel safe, keeping silent, listening for anything out of place. Enzo felt bad for putting his friends in a potentially dangerous situation. But all he could really think about was making it back to camp.

Leading the pack, Nathan saw something shiny ahead of them on the ground. He halted their beeline to deal with his disbelief.

"Okay... What in the actual fuck! It's the gun! Maybe we dropped it on the way here."

They were puzzled but grateful at the thought of being armed again. Nathan rushed forward to pick it up.

As soon as he grabbed it, he saw that the handle was attached to a wire. It triggered a chain reaction that happened so fast he had no time to think. A rope, camouflaged with the ground, quickly tightened around his ankles, dragging him 20 feet into the air; the gun ripped from his hand back to the ground. His friend's faces morphed into shock.

"Get me down from here! Hurry!" Nathan yelled.

"Why is this shit happening!" Josh cried out, tears began flowing down the terrified look on his face.

"SHIT! Damien, help me find where the rope is tied to so we can get him down!"

Chaos ensued. The two of them ran around searching for a way to get their friend down. Josh froze where he was, crouched low, bracing for the next awful thing to strike. Nathan swung wildly, the momentum knocking him into surrounding trees. His reverse perspective twisted and twirled, not allowing him to get a clear view of what was happening on the ground.

With no advanced warning, the rope broke the branch it was attached to. Nathan came crashing to the ground with a resounding thud. For a few seconds everything went still—then Nathan cried out in pain. He had broken his left shoulder.

"It's broken! My fucking shoulder is broken! I can still walk. Help me up and let's keep moving. Someone is out here trying to kill us!"

Enzo and Damien undid the rope around his ankles and helped him back to his feet. Josh scooped the gun up, grabbed the backpack and hurried behind them.

"It's empty! There's no bullets inside!" Josh said, tears still streaming down a disappointed face.

"Check the backpack." Nathan said. "The bastard probably took the box of bullets too but check the side pocket. I put some in there for easy access."

Nathan was right. There were extras in the side pocket. Josh nervously fed each chamber until it was full and resumed rushing away with his friends.

Several yards later, the leaf-covered earth suddenly crumbled beneath Enzo and Damien. They had fallen into an 18-foot hole, both yelling as they plunged.

"Holy shit! You guys alright?" Nathan said, looking down at them from the edge of the hole. "This place is full of booby traps!"

"We're okay but get us the fuck out of here! Hurry! There's a fucking skeleton down here! And It's missing the spine! Whatever you guys do, don't let them get you! If they do, we're all done for!" Enzo yelled.

"Did you hear that, Josh? It up to you now. Pull yourself together, man! We're not dead yet."

"What do you want me to do?" Josh muttered through trembling lips."

"Uh...you have to run back and grab that rope I was tied in. That's the only way we can get them out. You have the gun. Shoot that bastard if you see him! Hurry!"

Josh took careful steps at first, aiming the gun at everything. He soon picked up his pace slightly before sprinting a thousand feet until he reached the area. He grabbed the rope with one hand, keeping the gun steady and ready in the other. Back in the hole, Damien and Enzo clawed at the dirt walls trying to climb out. It was no use.

While they waited for Josh, the guys heard two shots fired, fearing the worse. They felt their lives ending. They were too young to die.

But Josh returned seconds later, madly huffing for air. Nathan eyes went straight to the gun in his right hand.

"What did you shoot?" Nathan said.

"Nothing. I was so scared, I fired two shots to let whoever is out here know we have bullets."

"Good thinking. Now let's get them out of there."

They made it back to camp as quick as they could, being cautious to avoid additional traps the unknown psychopath may have left.

They grabbed a few items then headed out the valley before the sun reached the horizon. Nathan needed a hospital.

*

"I hope you boys learned a lesson." an officer said to them. "Too bad you didn't see who was chasing you. Descriptions help, you know. I'm going to need at least one of you to show me this skeleton in the hole you claim you saw. I told the mayor two years ago we need to seal that damn mine so kids like you won't go in places they shouldn't be going. Didn't you see the 'No Trespassing' signs?"

But there were no warnings or markers. Nothing posted. Whoever it was stalking the woods removed them, keeping unsuspecting strangers completely vulnerable.

Sometimes a calling begins as something bright and hopeful, only to unravel into the worst thing imaginable, altering lives forever.

None of the boys agreed to go back for anything, leaving their gear to become part of the quite mysteries whispered about, but never solved...