Mute

Martin raised his head in the direction of the distant shouting and set forth to investigate. The dense and prickly brush that covered the rocky land scraped at his unprotected torso as he trudged closer to the source of the unknown noise. He had walked through the forest for what seemed to be five minutes before he found the source of the sound: a distressed-looking woman who carried a large backpack and continued to shout the same phrase.

“Sunny!” she shouted, “Sunny!”

Martin deliberately rustled a bush near him to let his presence be known, which the woman immediately reacted to by jerking herself backward to face him. The woman’s face revealed a fearful expression, which quickly distorted into that of surprise.

“Oh my god are you alright?” She paced quickly at Martin with a look of concern on her face and dropped to her knees so she could look him in the face. “What are you doing all the way out here, are you lost?” A brief silence loomed between them before he answered by shaking his head vehemently. The woman looked deeply perplexed.

“Where are your parents?”

Martin didn’t answer.

“You can talk to me” the woman stated while displaying a warm smile.

The boy stared at her for a few seconds, then created an X out of his index fingers and rose them toward his face where he placed them over his mouth. The woman’s worried expression returned. Her eyes drifted to the side and she contemplated her situation. Moments later her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a dog’s bark.

“Sunny!” She stood up and shouted, “Where are you?” She waited for a response, but never got it. She faced Martin.

“Stay close to me, we’re gonna find that dog, alright?”

Martin complied and they both headed deep into the forest. As they walked, the woman spoke about her life in the city and asked questions that went unanswered. Occasionally a bark would be heard and they both would continue to follow it blindly while the woman kept calling. They found a stream eventually and they stopped to rest and replenish their water supply for a few minutes before continuing. When dusk arrived, the woman gave a deep sigh and turned to Martin.

“We need to get you home”

He nodded in agreement, and began to walk back the direction he came. When the woman attempted to follow, he turned and pointed at her, then to the direction where they had heard the dog’s bark. The woman looked conflicted.

“Do you know your way back?”

Martin gave a single nod and turned his back to the woman for the last time. “You sure?”

He ignored her and kept walking.

He hadn’t been walking for three minutes before he found he spotted the corpse of a dead animal in the middle of his path. He advanced upon it slowly for an examination, and found it to be the body of a brown and white mutt. Its eyes were closed and its mouth was shut, it would have looked very peaceful if it weren’t for the fresh surgical wound that ran along its neck. Frightened, he looked all around him to see if the dog’s killer was about. Nothing. Then he heard the sound of a dog’s bark in the distance. He looked back towards the dead mutt, it still lay there dead and unthreatening. Terrified, he decided that head back alone was not an option. The night’s first wave of fireflies appeared as he frantically sprinted back in the direction of the woman. He reached the stream that they had rested at earlier only to find her body peacefully lying on its back with its arms crossed on its belly. Its neck had the same wound.

The boy heard the bark again, only it seemed closer this time. He jerked his head in all directions searching for the best way of escape. He impulsively selected the thickest patch of brush he could find and dashed into it. He ran. The bark was heard again, though this time it seemed much closer. He stumbled over rocks and roots as the night became blacker. The bark repeated three more times, each time getting closer. The small branches around him torn at his skin and snagged his shorts as he ran through them. He heard the woman questioning him from behind.

“Where are your parents?”

Her voice sounded mechanical, like it was being projected from a megaphone.

“How far from here do you live?”

It now seemed like she stood right behind him, but he didn’t dare look.

“You can talk to me” The voice whispered in Martin’s ear.

Martin felt a hand grasp his shoulder and he was tossed to the ground. His impact with the earth pressed the air from his lungs and before he could regain his breath he was effortlessly flipped on his back by whatever stood behind him. What he could see in the dark appeared to be a partially organic and partially mechanical humanoid. Fastened to its exterior were a pair of mechanical lungs, each one inflated and deflated like a bellows fueling a fire. Secured to the monster’s waist appeared to be a varied collection of vocal organs floating freely in a transparent tank of dirty liquid.

The creature used one cold, iron hand to secure Martin to the ground while leaning forward to get a better look at the boy who now suffered in silence. His breath shook heavily and his face was wet with tears and blood, but no noise was produced from the child. The creature now took its free hand and ran its fingers down the boy’s neck while gazing at the familiar mark that ran along it. Upon seeing Martin’s scar the creature stood up, turned its head in a robotic snap, and leisurely wandered back into the forest where it had come from. Martin watched the monster until it was out of sight.

He had survived again, and he felt relieved until he heard the monsters parting words “Goodbye Martin” shouted the invisible voice in the distance.

Hearing his own name did not strike Martin, but he was horrified that it was spoken in the same voice that narrated his conscience.