78 The plants fight back

There is a noise coming from the far off distance

The noise was deafening and echoed eerily around your neighborhood

It came out of nowhere startling you awake just before twilight

You climb out of bed wanting to investigate the source of the noise. You go from room to room in your home trying to locate the source of the noise that had awoken you from your slumber. You are not able to find anything causing the noise and wander back to your bed. The noise continues and shows no signs of stopping any time soon. You lay in your bed trying your best to fall back asleep but unfortunately, sleep will not come.

As time goes on you start to become weary of the noise as it becomes louder shaking you from your thoughts. Once again you climb out of bed to look for the cause of the nefarious noise. You come to the same conclusion as before; the source of the noise is nowhere to be seen and not coming from your home.

The only thing that you can think of is that it has to be coming from somewhere outside. You go towards a window and peek out expecting to see a car alarm going off or some other mundane object. Outside are your neighbors standing in their front yards looking all around. This would normally be seen as a little odd due to a large number of people out at the same time, but when you take into account the time and the main attire being pajamas it is a sight to see.

You go out to talk to them hoping to get some information about the noise. Before you even get halfway out the door your ears are assaulted with a loud screech coming from the front of the neighborhood. In the not too far off distinct is a giant of a being towering over the people, homes, and trees.

It's too dark and far away to make out what the being was, but one thing is for certain it is time to get out of dodge and run.

You take off running in the opposite direction hoping to get as much distance between you and whatever that thing is. You go towards the back of your neighborhood hoping to getaway. In the back of the neighborhood, there is a small section of woods that lead to a pier. You hope to make it there and swim across to the other neighborhood and get some help.

As you run you continue to hear the screech of the creature and the screams of the ones who were unable to getaway.

As you run you start to feel the ground shake as the creature gets closer. For the first time in your life have you wished that you participated in gym class? The creature keeps getting closer and you just know that you aren't going to be able to make it to the woods you don't know what deluded you into believing that you ever had a chance. At this point escaping is a one out of one million chance. All you can focus on is trying to survive as long as possible.

You continue forward trying not to fall over your own feet hoping that you don't trip. You find yourself on the last stretch of the neighborhood before you enter the woods. Your feet are trembling under the shaking ground, the screeching is getting louder with the screams of the people being a close second.

You enter the woods and try to guide yourself to the lake. You quickly get discombobulated being surrounded by all of the trees and trip over a root. You find yourself face first in the dirt on the shaking ground. You turn over and see the pinkish-blue sky signaling the rising of the sun.

You finally get a look at the creature that has been terrorizing the neighborhood.

It looks like a giant tree around 30 feet tall with roots for hands and feet and a hole for a mouth with jagged pieces of bark for teeth. In its hands/roots were people that it was picking up and eating. With every bite, the tree seems to get bigger and stronger as it continues to stalk towards you.

The appearance of the creature awws you into silence. It is hard to believe something so frightening can look so serene.

Its screech takes you out of your trance and you get up and continue running. The trees are starting to be uprooted by their giant brethren and used as projectiles.

Just when you think that you may be safe you feel its rough roots start to grab you from behind and lift you into the air. You squirm and struggle trying to get out of its hold, but the roots are too strong. It lifts you closer to blood and flesh stained mouth and your horror swallow you whole. Inside its mouth is full of razor-sharp bark that tears at your skin and leaves splinters in the wounds. It seems that its bark is worse than its bite. Your life starts to wither out of you and with your last breath all you can think of is " I'm sorry I planted those damn trees in my yard."