HUNTING SEASON

There is a boy named John Green. He is only eleven. His family had been broken for a long time, and when he was just a baby, his dad left, leaving an empty feeling around the house like a ghost.

John's mom worked long hours at a local hospital. When she came home, she was always exhausted. The job didn't pay much, but it was enough—barely enough.

John is a lonely child. He never had friends, and this ate at him because he was constantly alone.

John especially loved video games. They kept him company when nothing else would. He didn't have many, but the ones he did have, he valued and treasured. The one he loved most of all was Hunting Season.

In this game, you played as a legendary hunter with a mascot guide. The mascot didn't have a name, so John just called it "the duck." Your main goal was to kill every animal on the list. The game gave you a prize every time you completed a hunt. The mascot would give you a prize if you got lucky—a new gun or a skin.

John always thought the duck was quite funny. He would laugh whenever the duck showed up because it was so random and entertaining.

But recently, John had been playing this game constantly. Because of this, the game cartridge broke. He tried to fix it, but nothing worked. It was just broken. He eventually gave up on fixing it, even though it hurt to just give up.

He didn't have anything to do, and it wasn't like he had friends. He was alone again.

His mom saw this. Her heart went out to the kid. She had to do something—anything to help. She was his mother.

She didn't have much money—that was an understatement. They were broke. They didn't even have money to pay the bills. But she wanted to do something kind for her son because she didn't want him to feel alone. She wanted to give him that little bit of comfort.

So one evening, she came back a little late, exhausted but still smiling. She called to John. "Honey, can you come to the kitchen? I've got something special for you."

John's eyebrows furrowed as he glanced at the clock. It couldn't be time for dinner yet.

His mom was happy to see him after her long day. "Honey, I got a little gift for you. I took on a couple more hours and—well, you'll see."

John's eyes widened. A big smile spread across his face. "A gift for me? You mean it, Mom?"

His mom nodded. "Yes, a gift for you, kiddo." Then she took out a plastic bag from behind her back, handing it to John. He quickly thrust his hand into the bag, pulling out his favorite game, Hunting Season. He was so joyful he was practically jumping up and down.

His mom told him it was a one-day rental. "So make the best of it," she explained.

"Thank you so much, Mom." He was excited, almost jumping with joy. He ran straight into the living room, putting the cartridge into the slot and turning on the system. He quickly plopped down onto the ground, picked up his controller, and prepared to play his game.

The game booted up, and he pressed play. It seemed to take longer to load than usual, but it was probably his mind playing tricks on him.

He started looking for animals in the beautifully crafted landscape. Then he saw a beautiful deer in front of a stream. He aimed at it and shot, hitting its head in one swift movement.

Then he saw the duck mascot standing behind a tree. "I never saw this animation before," he thought. "Maybe it's just rare."

But the duck was off. He couldn't put his finger on what was different. The duck pointed at the deer for just a second, then disappeared.

John wasn't sure why it seemed so dead and empty. A cold chill ran down his neck. He pushed this feeling aside, convincing himself it was just a glitch. He continued on. The rest of the round went normally. Even the duck seemed normal again. Eventually, John forgot the whole thing before starting the next round. He had to use the bathroom—he'd been trying to hold it, but he just had to go.

So he went to the bathroom. After a couple of minutes, he came back and looked at the TV, ready to get back to playing.

He looked and saw the duck looking back at him.

John startled and did a double-take. The duck was there, but it was just in an idle animation. "That was weird, but the duck is right there, so I must be wrong," he told himself. He sat back down, a little uneasy. He hit play on the game, and everything was normal. He started playing—it was exactly the same as he left it.

The duck looked different, though. That was the only different thing. The duck looked more human-like now, like it was just a duck costume. Maybe he just never noticed before. But the game played the same.

He couldn't help but notice the duck seemed off.

Maybe he just never noticed before, he told himself. But John knew it wasn't like this before. Before he could think any more about it, he heard his mom call him for dinner.

Reluctantly, he got up and went to the table. His mom smiled. "Honey, how are you liking the game?"

John wasn't sure if he should tell her. What would he tell her? She would probably think it was just a child's imagination, he thought to himself, and he convinced himself to keep this information to himself. "It's a ton of fun. Thank you again for getting it for me."

His mom smiled happily. John finished his food and asked to go back to the game, but his mom said, "You've got school tomorrow, and as much as I would love to say yes, you have to get to bed."

He sighed and reluctantly nodded. He headed into the living room, turned off the TV, and went upstairs to brush his teeth and go to bed for the night. Not long after, his mom went to bed too.

He couldn't get to sleep because of the music from the game playing downstairs. "But the TV is off. It must be my imagination. It must be."

He couldn't get any sleep because it was too loud. The music was slow and deep. He hesitated, but he had to investigate. He wouldn't get any sleep if he didn't, so he crept up from his bed, tiptoeing out of his room.

As he walked down the stairs, they creaked under his weight. As he walked into the living room, the TV was still on, and the room was filled with the blue glow of the television. The volume was way higher than he ever set it. "How did this not wake up Mom?" he thought to himself.

It was in the middle of a round. "I could have sworn I took out the game when I finished." He looked at the screen and saw a couple of dead animals mutilated on the ground, their heads missing.

The duck was standing in the middle of it all.

The duck's neck creaked as it looked up at John. A glimpse of its pupil could be seen. The color was blue.

Then the TV went black. It felt like the room went cold. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up.

His legs were shaky, his mind racing with thoughts of fear and nightmares. He couldn't bear it. He ran straight back up the stairs. He opened his bedroom door and shut it quickly, motivated by fear. He had trouble locking it because of how much his hands were shaking.

He hopped into his bed, pulling the covers over his head. He didn't believe what he saw. It was like a nightmare—it didn't make sense. It wouldn't leave his mind.

He stayed up as long as he could, but eventually he fell asleep against his will.

All night he had nightmares of what he saw, and in each one, there was no duck—only him in the duck's place.

Morning eventually came. He slowly woke up. He could feel the bags under his eyes. He hadn't gotten any sleep last night.

He somehow convinced himself it was a dream—a very bad dream. In the back of his head, he knew it wasn't, but he didn't know what he had actually seen. He could feel his sanity sliding between his fingers, and if he wasn't careful, it could slip through completely.

He went into the living room and saw his mom had already taken the game back, probably on her way to work, because his time with the rental was up.

Somewhat relieved, he got dressed for school. His mom had left his breakfast on the counter, so he quickly ate and made his way to school.

The school day was odd. It felt like he wasn't alone, like something was inside him, trying to take control.

When the bell rang, he walked home as fast as he could. He walked up to the house, but on the front porch, he looked down and saw the game lying there.

He didn't understand how. It had been taken back to the store. Beside it was a note that said, "The company HCT has decided to let you keep a copy of the game. Enjoy." He couldn't believe it. He didn't want to believe it.

He picked up the game. His hands were shaking. His mind was boggled. "Why? How? It doesn't make sense."

He went inside the empty house. The shadows stretched long. He felt the cold settling in. The hairs on his arms stood up. The feeling that something was watching him filled the air.

He took the game out of the package and put it in the slot. It booted up pretty quickly, all things considered.

The weather outside took a turn for the worse. Rain hit the windows like constant tapping. But all he could think about was this game. It was like his mind was in a trance.

It finally started. Everything seemed normal until he hit play. He hadn't even shot anything yet, and the duck was already there.

This time something was very wrong. The duck was rotten, and its hand was missing.

Its eyes were now human. Its body was twisted. It looked scared and alone, desperate like a lost puppy.

The duck disappeared, leaving only blood in its spot. John's eyes looked haunted. His body broke out in a cold sweat.

Despite the fear, every piece of him told him not to continue, but he physically couldn't put down the controller. He wanted to. He just couldn't, so he continued.

The game started. It was usually bright and sunny, but not anymore. It was a dark, rainy night with a path through the woods. In the background, he could hear a highway.

There were no animals. The silence followed him like a stalker. He walked and walked until he saw a pig in a clearing. Despite his mind telling him not to take the shot, that it wasn't worth it, his body acted on its own. It was like he wasn't even controlling it. He put five shots into the pig's head, splattering blood behind the pig.

The duck appeared in an instant. It looked dead. It began running toward the screen. With each step, a snap could be heard, like its body was shutting down. It screamed. The sound penetrated his ears like needles.

It reached out, trying to grab John, trying to escape the TV. The screen shut off with a nasty screech, and the sound bar completely caught fire, smoke filling the room.

The game shot out of the slot, falling at his feet. John felt lost in his mind. Something wasn't right. The smoke detectors started going off, the loud beeping sinking into his head.

Scared and frustrated, he ran out of the house, falling to his knees on the lawn. He began screaming, but he stopped when he saw his mom pulling into the driveway. A sense of relief filled him, but the looming danger still hung heavy in the air.

He broke down crying in front of his mom. His mom jumped out of the car and ran to him. "What's wrong? What happened?"

But he couldn't stop crying. His mom took his hand, leading him back inside.

She saw the burnt sound bar and the game she had taken back to the store. But she saw the fear in his eyes, so she didn't push the matter yet.

She began cleaning up the mess. "Honey, how about you go upstairs and go to sleep?" John was still shaken. He nodded and headed up to his room.

He shut his door and got in bed. His eyes grew tired, and sleep took him.

He dreamed of being in a black void with no one but himself and the duck. Sometime in the night, he woke up in a cold sweat. The very first thing he noticed was the bruise on his side, but he didn't remember getting it.

He got up and walked to the mirror to check on it, but when he looked in the mirror, he didn't see himself in the reflection. He saw the duck standing in his spot.

He fell back, hitting the ground hard and getting the air knocked out of him. He lay there for a while.

After regaining his breath, he slowly stood up and looked back in the mirror, only to find himself standing there. Had he imagined the duck? Was he losing his sanity?

He walked to his bed, feeling anxious. He fidgeted with his fingers and got back in bed.

Then he began hearing knocking all over his room—in the walls, all around him, behind him. He began shaking. "Stop! Stop it, I said stop! Why won't you leave me alone!"

It didn't stop. He began screaming in a different language. Blood began pouring out of his mouth. Then he woke, realizing it was just a dream. But he looked down and saw he was the one knocking on the wall.

He grabbed his hand, stopping it. He stayed still on the bed, his eyes full of tears. All night he sat still.

The next morning came, and he was sitting on his bed staring at the door.

His mom walked in. "Good morning, John. I made your favorite pancakes."

He didn't respond. Something wasn't the same. Something was very off. She felt a cold chill run down her neck.

She slowly approached him. "I'll just leave them here." She left the pancakes on his desk. She slowly left the room to go to work.

John eventually sat up. His eyes were glazed over. He made his way out of bed and walked straight out of his room. He walked downstairs. His steps were jerky and unnatural.

He took one step at a time, his bones popping. He took his seat in front of the television and put the game back in. The game began to boot up. John began a match.

The forest was wet and foggy. His feet sank into the mud with each step. The rain came down like strikes. A hog saw him. John aimed his gun—the metal of the rifle felt cold against his skin. As he took the shot, hitting the pig straight in the head, blood splashed across the ground.

With each step he took, the trees and animals began to disappear, replaced by something that looked more modern. It wasn't the forest at all. He was now walking in an office building late at night. The shadows in the halls loomed heavy.

Eventually, he stood in front of a door that appeared to be unlocked. Slowly, he opened it, stepping into the room. Shadows stretched long across the space.

There was something in the corner. He looked closer, but it could not be made out. The shadows hid it as if it didn't want to be seen.

The walls were decorated with pictures of fantasy lands and cities. In the middle of the room sat a chair. On it was a VR headset.

He walked in front of the headset, holding it in his hands. He lifted it to his head, sliding it on. He sat in the chair, his legs crossed. The game character began to glitch, with brutal snaps and pops. His body began to collapse in on itself. Eventually, it went to a game-over menu.

John only watched the screen, lost within his mind.

John's eyes widened as if he had just woken up. His body was covered in sweat, but at last he was in control. He stood up, breathing hard. "What the hell is going on? I need help, I want help!"

He got up off the ground, walking to the phone to call his mom. As he walked past the mirror, the duck was standing next to him.

The duck's body was rotten to the bone and covered in burns. Its hand was missing. John almost threw up. His eyes widened at what he saw. It was so twisted.

He glanced at the TV. The duck wasn't on the menu anymore. He heard walking sounds beside him. It suddenly felt at least twenty degrees colder.

Each step sounded like its body was breaking. The door slammed open, taking a chip out of the wall. Whatever it was, it was gone.

He was left there, wondering what had happened. He took the game cartridge and threw it outside, shutting the door, hopefully ending this nightmare.