The Other Earth by Derek Schumacher (reading like a writer .TXT) 📕

Neil stepped out the little slot in the wall which he supposed was his door, and took a gander at his new and improved home. It was certainly impressive to him, but then again, there wasn't exactly anyone else to judge his construction skills. After all, if the walls keep him warm and safe, who cares? Certainly not Neil.

The project had taken a good chunk out of the day, but Neil supposed he might have a good hour or so left before nightfall arrived. The evening light had just begun to show up in the sky, so there was still some time left. He exited his hut and slid down towards the river. There, he looked both ways, east and west. He hadn't went down the sides of the river, so maybe it could be an idea, but it would probably have to wait for tomorrow. No one likes a quick expedition, the best ones are lengthy and full of detail and interest.

Returning up the hill to the hut, Neil glanced around his little area. Over time, he was sure it would develop into something amazing, but for now, it's all he's got that safe.

He then moved towards the patches of trees surrounding his little shelter, and gathered plenty more twigs and tinder, carrying them inside the hut, and stacking them in the corner. It would be much easier to have a convinent pile of wood to toss on the fire then to have to go outside to gather more.

As Neil sat down to begin fixing himself a fire for the night, an alarming sound could be heard from up above. A crack of thunder. A storm was coming, and that meant rain. The man quickly got up, and began to ponder. He needs to find a way to keep the wood dry, or else there'll be no way for him to start a fire. Wet wood doesn't burn, and that sure doesn't help the cause.

Suddently, Neil strikes an idea. What if he gathered a bunch of branches, ones with plenty of leaves? The leaves could be used to redirect the water to the ground, and not onto the wood. Genius!

Smiling at his own amazing idea, Neil gets up and begins to commit to his plan. He found any low hanging limbs bound with leaves and used his knife to slice them down to the ground. After gathering a good amount of them, he hauled them back into the hut, and began to lay them one by one over the wood he had gathered for fires. Speaking of fires, he should probably start one soon, before it really does rain.

Grasping the jagged rock he had kept near his log, and his newly acquired knife, he created sparks in no time, lighting his fire hole's fuel ablaze in no time. What a useful tool this knife will be in the future. Sheathing the weapon and sitting down on the log, Neil yawned and stretched his arms. A good day of work, and a good day of completion.

As the fire grows, so does the sound of thunder. Neil decides to call it a night early, and grabs a surplus of leaf-riddled branches. Laying down on the log, he covers himself with the branches. Hopefully they'll do a decent job at keeping him dry once the rain starts.

Another crack of thunder is heard, and before long, the droplets of rain begin to fall from the sky at a steady pace. And, as the rain rolls in, the dark clouds cover up what left of the sunset there was, leaving only the fire illuminating the dark. But, because of the lovely new constructed walls, the light almost seemed brighter, as it was contained in a small area, rather than being spread out over a widespread area.

Neil began to close his eyes, smiling as he watched the fire ripple in the rain, almost as if it was dancing. He remembered dancing, but never doing it himself. It was something people always did at celebrations and parties, things Neil had never gone to, or at least he never remembers going to. He didn't need to do all those things to have a good time. No, all he needed was himself, and nature.

People are complicated, and of course, so is the world. But, at least the world will always be there. Where as people have a tendancy to dissapear, and leave. Neil knows plenty about this, after being left by his entire race. It still angers him at the thought. He swears if he sees someone else, he'll give them a peace of his mind.

But for now, he's got better things to do. Like sleeping.

It's Morning, Isn't It? It's so dark. I don't understand, I never remember putting a roof or anything on this hut. I can still hear the rain, I can still feel the rain. The leaves didn't work, I'm soaked to the bone. But I can't move, I'm stuck, I'm cold. What time is it? Oh, who I am kidding? No one is ever going to answer my questions. They haven't for years, and now, they never will. Another crash of lightning and thunder. The winds picked up during the night. Wait, is it still night? Am I sleeping? What's going on? I hear something. Not just the rain, or the wind. It's so dark, the fire has gone out, but how long ago? There's that sound again, and I know that sound. I heard it before, I remember. That day, by the river. That noise that I heard behind me. It's here, in my home, right next to me. And I still can't move. Time is frozen, I'm stuck. The rain, is slowing down, and so is the wind. Soon there won't be any noise, except for that noise. The noise of the shade, the noise of the past. The noise of something that you had forgetten, and yet, you are destined to remember. I wish I could understand, but I don't. That's why this is happening. Because I don't understand. But don't worry, it won't always be like this. No, not at all. The sound grows louder, the growling in my ear will not stop. It's louder than the storm, louder than the beating of my own heart. It wants me to go with it, to be dragged like the others. But I will not. I will be stronger than the rest, stronger than the ones who abondoned me. Who left me to die on the desolate planet, all alone. I will show them all that they have made a mistake. I will stop the noise. I will stop the visions. I will stop the nightmares. I will kill the shade.

Good Morning, Today is September 17, 2118.

Neil was restless. He couldn't sleep, no matter how hard he tried. The storm continued to rain on, the winds blew around the new constructed walls. The man got up, pushing the branches off of himself. He then glanced down at the sheath at his belt. He knew what he had to do. He nodded quietly to himself, and got up from the log. His clothing was soaked, the blood that had accumulated on him had been washed away and nurtured itself into the ground.

Neil stepped outside of his camp, and faced northward. He hoped it was still there, maybe it was waiting for him? Guess there was only one way to find out. He began the walk, each step squishing on the soaking wet ground, water logged from the intense rain, which doesn't seem to stop. He's sure that the western area would be flooded after this storm, but he'll check on that later. He's got more important things to do.

Sadly, the tracks had been washed away with the rain, along with the blood stains from days ago. But that didn't matter. He could hear it. Ever since that day, Neil could always hear it. But until last night, he tried his hardest to ignore it, to keep quiet with himself. But enough is enough.

Eventually, the man reached the clearing, the same clearing. The same rocks, the same grass, the same bushes. Stepping farther into the area, he saw it. It was just standing there, doing exactly what it did four days ago. But this time, things would be different. Neil would make sure of it. He reached down towards his belt, and to the sheath tied to it. Then, he flipped it open, and pulled out the knife he had found the day before.

The blade was shining in the rain, the hilt rough, but easy to grip. Neil stared at the shade, the thing causing his mind to go on a fluke. He would stand for no more of it. This would be the day that everything would change. For better, or for worse? He didn't really care, he just wanted to see if one thing was possible. If it was possible to kill a shade.

 He took another step towards the figure. Still no reaction. Neil wasn't close enough, but soon he would close the gap between the two of them. He didn't plan on giving the shade a chance. It deserved nothing, no rights, no mercy. These things have no feelings, no sense of reason. They deserve to die for what they have done to the human race. And Neil will be the one to put them down.

Suddently, he broke into a dead sprint towards the creature, brandishing his knife. Neil spoke nothing, no battle cry, no curses. The only sound filling the air was the rain, the wind, and the footsteps approaching the shade. The creature began to lift it's head to look at the approaching man. The eyeless sockets gazed upon Neil, and it tried to put it's arms up, in an attempt to grab it's opposer.

But, Neil was filled to the brim with momentum. As he charged towards the shade, the visions began to appear, impairing his movement. But, he knew what to do, how to temporarily disable the terror. The man turned the knife towards himself, slicing into his arm, dark red blood spewing off to the side and blowing into the wind. The rain washing away traces of the cut, which was only a few centimeters deep. But the pain was incredible. Mainly because of just how frail Neil's body had grown.

This was