text: He stopped suddenly. Did he hear that? Something behind him. He whirled and saw...nothing. The tree line he had come from was shrouded in darkness. He looked up towards the moon, huge and filling the night sky. He could plainly see the Milky Way, a river of heavily creamed coffee. The expanse, It made you feel small, cold, insignificant. At the same time it was the kind of beauty that could make you cry, maybe after a drink or two. He looked around him. Nothing but frozen tundra. Clumps of dead-looking vegetation here and there, rocks and a few suspicious looking rocky outcroppings all beautifully lit with the cold glow of Earth's celestial neighbor. He looked forward. He was in a wide clearing and could see the next tree line two hundred yards in front of him. He knew from there it was only another hundred yards at most to outpost 118. Just three hundred or so yards to safety. Once more he started running. His lungs burned, his thighs felt as though they were exploding with every stride and every heartbeat brought with it blinding white-hot pain thudding in his temples. Still, he kept running. His body was screaming out, begging him to stop. A rogue part of his mind conspired against him. Convincing him that he could stop, just for a moment. Just a few seconds to catch his breath. To rest his aching calves and let the deep stitch in his side subside. Besides he was never going to make it anyway. Why spend his last few moments running like a coward? Realizing weakness and doubt were worming their way into his brain, he shoved the thoughts away and shook his head. Gathering his strength with an audible grunt of effort he picked up the pace. His mind was his own enemy. He felt wild with fear, unable to stop his runaway thoughts. Thinking back to when he’d first arrived out here. Excited to start the project, hopeful towards the future. Then everything was torn apart like so much tissue paper. Images of his co-workers, friends, flashing in his mind's eye. He thought of his first meeting with the Director, Miranda Gales. A tall Nordic-looking woman with long wavy platinum blonde hair and sharp angular features that belied her warm friendly disposition. In another life he would have asked her to dinner. He had always admired people with passion and Miranda had that in spades. A passion for her research, for the work, but more importantly she had the kind of enthusiasm for life that he so wished he could find. Maybe that's why he had felt so strongly about her so easily. Unfortunately she wasn’t much more than a pile of guts and bone on the floor of the research lab now. He retched, his stomach rolling at the images now flooding his mind. He tripped over a larger rock. Falling face first into the deep snow, which shocked the breath right out of his lungs. He lay there seeing Talbot's head, missing the bottom jaw. He saw Naomi’s foot, at least he thought it was her foot going by the bright pink nail polish, looking like a sock with spaghetti spilling out. Suddenly his senses were assaulted. Reliving the moments of the past days. Smelling the metallic hard stench of blood and shit. Hearing the screaming wails of his fellow human beings. He didn’t know which was worse. The screaming that went on and on? Or the screams seemingly cut like turning off a radio or television. He managed to push himself to his knees just before his stomach contents, of which there was little to begin with, expelled themselves. After this happened a few times he was finally able to sit up, rocking back on his haunches. He sat like this for a moment. Eyes shut tight, breathing deeply, in through the mouth, out through the nose. He pushed away the thoughts of gore and opened his eyes. Focusing on the tree line, now less than one hundred yards in front of him he stood slowly. He took a few more deep breaths. Holding the last one in for a moment before looking at the sky. “I. Will. Make. it.” He said between breaths. With that he started running once more. It was at that moment he heard it. A sound so cold and full of malice. It seemed that sound that could freeze the very sun. Followed closely by another and another and he knew at that moment, in fact he would not make it. &#x200B; >Off through the new day's mist I run Out from the new day's mist I have come I hunt Therefore I am Harvest the land Taking of the fallen lamb ***-Of Wolf and Man.