A Shelter
It was a calm winter night. The wind howled as it blew through the trees as they weaved left to right. The moonlight glistened on the trees, and the stars sparkled. Distant wolves could be heard howling. I took a step, the leaves broke under my weight. I froze in my steps as I was trying to be quiet. “Shit.” I thought. The shadowy trees started looking like human figures, I hated that. I felt like my imagination was little cynical, dubious, or evil. Maybe all three. Every step I took my heartbeat felt grow stronger and stronger. I can feel the vein in my neck pulsating blood. I don’t know what it is, I have this feeling in my gut, some kind of worry or paranoia. I look down at my hands, and they’re shaking. The color of my hands are blue and white. “How long have I been out here? I can’t remember anymore.”
There was something about being in the winter cold that still felt refreshing at the same time, even if my hands felt numb. My breath blew out mist as I took more steps to achieve my destination. It had at least been several weeks and the winter doesn't help the fact that I can't find very much food. I looked down at my body and I can tell how much weight I've lost in the very fews weeks of traveling.
You'd think that being as old as I am, traveling would become easier. It doesn't. My body has adapted to the constant strain, but the temporary pain and the uncomfortable part of it all sucks, especially when you carry a backpack full of supplies to keep yourself alive. My feet still forms blisters from excess travel, but it takes many miles to do that since of all the calluses I've developed.
I come upon a small cave like area. With my torch I peer into it, luckily I could see the very back of it. It wasn't big at all. I would guess it's about 15 feet deep. I walk carefully as I inspect the cave to make sure there is no wildlife around. The last thing I need is to be ambushed by a wolf or bear.
A few more moments pass before I clear the cave. It doesn't seem to have any kind of threat. Letting out a deep breath, I unload my pack from my back, getting my bed ready. After I finish with that, I head back out with a torch and weapon to gather some wood for the night.
It's a weird feeling to travel with a pack in the winter. You can feel the backpack actually trap the heat on your back, ultimately making you feel warm. It was nice, but now the sweat that lingered on my back made me feel the frigid air even more so.
I shiver as I gather nearby wood from my newfound shelter. Looking around I can see that I have enough to make fire for the night. I start grabbing the tinder, for a moment forgetting to be as silent as possible.
A howl erupted nearby, literally making me jump as I tried to grab the wood, missing with my hands. "Oh god. Oh god." I panicked, starting to quickly grab the wood and run back to the cave. I stuck my torch under the tinder and started the fire as soon as I could. I need to able to see.
As the fire started to catch, I hear a rustle in the nearby foliage. I turn to look and I see red eyes, floating in the dark space around me.
