Chapter 11

"Jack, slow you down far up ahead." They are walking through an umber-brown, ancient forest. It reeked of age. Its woody incense was from centuries of snapping branches crashing to the forest's floor and rotting silently.

The composting, organic smell rose in waves like a miasma. Every sprawling tree we passed under reminded me of a watchful guardian, a silent sentinel of the groves.

Jack and Rick decided to venture deeper into the tangled heart of this ancient forest. I hope to find Nicole. The deeper they had gone into the woods, the more it revealed its dark secrets to them; the sounds of the unknown creatures surrounding them as it echoed like a surround sound system playing through a hollow room, hardened leaves cracking like crushed chips in a sealed packet

The further Jack and Rick went, the more mystical and spellbinding it became. Massive roots spread eagled the ground, twisting like the great backs of sea dinosaurs. The foliage became thick and lush, forming an arch of fairytale-green above our heads.

Arthritic boughs, gnarled with age, dripped their bounty of nuts onto the path. Briars, brambles, and berry trees flanked the trail, making it impenetrable on either side.

Shuffling noises came from deep in the interior, deadened by the cunningly woven web of leaves. A troupe of shambling badgers crossed the winding trail in front of us at one point. They were finishing up their early morning foraging and looked startled to see us.

They arrived at a comprehensive clearing, where the trees fell away, revealing the bespeckled sky.

The last of the morning's stars glint like silver pinpricks, luminous and bright. An ore gold moon hung quietly in the distance, casting a honeyed sheen over the trees.

Jack sat down against a lightning-blasted tree trunk and watched it fade away. As if on cue, an avian aria erupted from the knot of trees. The solitary songbird was soon joined by his beaked companions, creating a symphony of song.

The heart-haunting melody was an elixir for the soul. The sweet sap fragrance of the forest washed over its comforting goodness and seduced them and them. It's getting dark; we might have to stay over the night said Jack opening his backpack as he placed some stinging nettle leaves into the broth we were brewing, and it added a tingling, chlorophyll flavor. "When are we leaving?" said Rick, Jack looked over his shoulder. The forest clearing looked freeze frame perfect in the enhanced light of the full dawn.

"Why do you think she is around here?" Said Rick, "It's the one place she always wanted to see, so I hope I am writing, but my instincts never fail."

Just then, they heard something leaping between the trees; Rick reached for his backpack pulling out a 9mm pistol, "where did you get that?" It's my dads; one can never be too careful in places like this; for a moment, Jack thought Rick brought the pistol with them to kill him, but that can, t happen as Jack had known Rick for a long time, even though the day of Nicole's disappearance was vaguely clear of how her body had just vanished

Jack had started to make a fire as the air became cold; they had only snacks to nibble on, "I think we should start heading in the other direction in the morning since there is no sign of her." Said Rick; the forest has swallowed them more profound than they had thought.

Jack had been prepared for tonight by bringing warm clothes and a sleeping bag, but what was to come and what lies ahead was not expected from the dark clouds. The superiorly thick smoky clouds rolled in like boulders, ready to crush anything in their way. The darkness was engulfing and seemed to consume any spec of light entirely. Any last hope was gone. Without warning, water came gushing down – throwing itself onto the trees.

The rocks seemed to slice the water from its many thousands of sharp daggers embedded all over it. The water came gushing down like a waterfall along the jagged surface of the wise rock.

The relentless winds caused the rain to crash and erupt like lava from a raging volcano. It splits like an aggressive wild animal, angered by the strong storm. The storm is punching and beating the rocks with all their might, and the wind gusts knife the piercing thorns of branches.

With an earth-shattering roar, lightning cleaved through the sky and bit viciously into a towering tree. The massive conifer burst into vibrant flames, the only light in the wind-lashed forest. Torrents of rain poured onto it, causing gouts of steam to fill the air. The other trees moaned in the furious wind as if they mourned the loss of their fellow.

Rick slowly backed away from the tree he had been sheltering under. Raindrops the size of bullets and slabs of sleet slapped onto his back but were immediately shaken off by his shivering. He cursed his ill fortune as he stumbled to the forest's edge.

"We need to get covered he screamed, then the rain killed there on the hope of warmth and light, their clothes were soaked, up ahead was a cabin, "why had they not seen it before, it was was barely visible to eyesight the stroke of lightening, Lightening up the dark sky, had given them enough visibility to careful walked up towards the cabin, that's when Rick spotted a Grizzly bear.

"Do not move, stand still; Jack trailed Ricks's eyes and looked into the bear's eyes who was staring at them like they were a meal; it had moved closer as it revealed its sharp razor-like teeth; where is that gun? "have you ever used something like this before?"

Rick shook his head, Ricks's's dad was a hunter, and his dad had asked him many times to join him, but he had refused; how he wished he had not refused and gone with his dad instead. Perhaps if he had gone with, he wouldn't feel as paralyzed as he was; it was like glue stuck under his shoe as a tall, vigorous bear stood barely ten feet away from them.

They didn't move at all. There was no time to run, and there would have hardly been enough time to drop to the ground. Neither likely would have been good options regardless. Running would have been a poor decision given the bear's incredible speed during its approach. Triggering the predator-prey instincts also would have been a poor decision. "Stand your ground" rang through Jack's mind, as this is what he had been told before he entered the backcountry. Qar he watched. Rick had brought the 9nmm for bear defense but safety. It was grossly underpowered for trying to deter a bear. Rick recounted reaching for his 9mm for lack of a better option. He knew he could use it as a noise maker by shooting it up in the air, but shooting the bear with it might only aggravate her more. It mattered little as the encounter would be over before he could load a single bullet.

The grizzly had no immediate physical reaction to the bear spray: no coughing, change in breathing, or shaking of her head in discomfort. It did seem, however, that the rush dissuaded the bear from moving closer toward Jack.

It turned to her left and ran away, likely in the direction of her running cubs. From the moment we saw the first cub to when the sow ran away, only 1 minute had passed.

Was it over? She had run away, but she could just as quickly change her mind. Jack handed Rick what was left of the bear spray, feeling rattled and unprepared to use it again. They stood at the encounter spot for about 30 seconds before Jack felt like the bear had left for good. They were stunned but collected. There were no tears and no panic, just disbelief. Once they verified that none of them were harmed, they laughed and shook hands "now, thats what I call an incredibly unforgettable experience. The tracks then became the focus of their attention.

They observed how deep they were in the loose sand and recalled how heavy the bear's footsteps had sounded during its approach.

Looking back, They agree that the bear spray likely saved our lives. Each time Jack sprayed her, she reacted in direct proportion to the accuracy of the spray. The more natural the spray was to her eyes and nose, the less she wanted to be near me.

Rick was beyond grateful that Jack had that can of spray when they least needed it. In a situation where it seemed we had little to no control, the bear spray gave them a way to stand their ground and fight back.In this case, the cabin door was locked, it had no curtains up and no sign of anyone being there as they walked around th cabin, it had one small glass when attempting to look through the window they heard a growling. "Let's get inside Rick insisted there is no time to look around."