Trapped in the forest

Freya scrabbled through the thick, biting undergrowth. What had begun as a wonderful stroll in the
forest had turned into her worst nightmare. Her heart pounded. She tried to put aside the horrors
she had seen, but she couldnt. They were so strong, so vivid and disturbing. She had to get out of
the forest.
The peaceful Honey-glades passed calmly by as Freya and her boyfriend, Wilhiem walked under the
sun pierced leaves. They had recently graduated from Velterax Academy, a prestigious school with a
great and long history. Martian colonisation had led to many great changed to the red planet. It was
a proud world of scholars and scientists. Soon, Freya and Wilhiem would join their ranks.
As they passed a great rust red Olympus Oak a shuttle flew by, almost as magnificent in its grace as
the age old tree, planted in the first days of humanities colonisation. Wilhiems boyish traits leapt
out like a cat chasing a mouse. He was awed by their presence and hoped to design them some day.
Freya, oblivious to his childlike impulses calmly stated Its only a shuttle Wilhiem. Its a lovely
evening, lets find a place to sit and enjoy the sunset.
They walked on and eventually came to a bright clearing where they sat on tree stumps watching
the red tinted sunrise. As they looked at that sweet cherry aura around the sun, they remained
oblivious to the red, red danger that lurked behind them. Out of the deep green bushed, starkly
contrasting the worn path leaped five armed men. They bound the pair, shocked and surprised, and
ultimately, doomed. Still struggling, they were dragged through the sharp bushes to a camp in the
heart of the forest. Freya knew their chances were almost nil. She tried to talk, speak to Wilhiem,
but she found her mouth filled with rough rope.
They were left alone in a corner of the camp for a while, neither of them knew how long exactly. In
the pitch dark of night, they may as well have been blindfolded, yet somehow, Freya could still see
her love, or at least, sense him. Until suddenly, a tall gruff man with a torch burst into view. He was
accompanied by two muscular men with pulse rifles. The gruff man nodded to his guards. They
grabbed Wilhem and uncompromisingly dragged him to his feet. He had lost all strength and will to
fight. When he was happy that Wilhem wouldnt try to escape, he spoke in a deep, growling voice
We are going to kill your friend, and you are going to watch. We are the new power in the Terran
Republic and you are to be our bargaining chip.
I tried to scream, but the rope cut against my mouth, halting any further attempts. One of the thugs
held his rifle to my head so I rose, trembling uncontrollably. We were driven further into the forest,
thorns etching scars in our flesh. After about two-hundred metres we stopped. Wilhiem was pushed
further on at gunpoint and forced to kneel.
One of the thugs pressed his rifle against his head. Time froze. She saw my dearest friend collapse to
the ground. Dead. The deafening gunshot stung her ears and she curled up on the ground, crying
tears of bitter lime. Her eyes stung, both from the tears and from the horrible sights that no one
should ever see. As her loss turned to rage, she looked for a way to escape and see that these brutal
men were brought to justice.
Her hand passed over a long discarded blade, cutting a deep would in her soft palm. But then that
sharp pain renewed her survival instinct. She cut her bonds, tossed the knife at the nearest man and
ran. She ran like a gazelle fearing for its life. Bullets streaked over her shoulders and her cheeks were
shredded by the organic metal shards.
Just as she thought they she was going to escape, and a faint glimmer of hope rose in her breast, a
sudden, sharp, striking pain shot up her leg and she fell. She saw blood seep from her leg and one of
the thugs loomed over her, ready to take that last shot. She was ready now, her hope was gone, why
not die she thought. Then suddenly, his head exploded and numerous more gunshots went off.
Another man knelt by her. He wore the uniform of the Iron-Guards, Mars elite forces.
Everything is going to be all right. Then the world went black.