The Hunter

Ben woke to the crackle of a fire, the smell of cooking meat, and his head resting in Max's lap. It was dark and there was no sign of Toby, so Ben had to assume he had never been found. He moved to sit up, but Max placed a hand on his head to keep him down.

“Stay. I assume that little brat is near by, so call him back. You've won.” Max grumbled, poking at a leaf wrapped package in the fire.

“He can't get out by himself, let me go.” Ben answered truthfully, trying to sit up again.
“Out?” Max growled through bared teeth.

This time Max let him, so Ben swiftly got to his feet. He could feel Max's eyes on him as he made his way to a wood pile near the lean-to that had been thoroughly searched earlier. Shoving the wood aside, he cleared away dirt and brush to reveal a layer of leaves over a platform of wood.

“You're joking!” Max snapped from just behind Ben, making him jump in surprise.

The two of them worked quickly to uncover Toby, who stared up at them with big, frightened eyes.

“I thought you had forgotten me,” Toby whispered earning a sneer from Max.

“I swore I wouldn't.” Ben laughed and helped the other boy out of the hole.

“When did you two do this?” Max demanded, kicking brush into the hole.

“Toby was working on digging a hole to put excess meat in. We had the idea last night to stick him in there while I distracted you.” Ben replied, wiping dirt off of his friend.

“Clever.” Max grumbled before returning to the fire.

A few moments later, Ben and Toby followed.

“So you're the man under the suit, huh?” Toby asked, seated across the fire from Max and Ben-who had been forced to sit at Max's side.

“Hmm, 'man' is a funny word. Most call me a monster. Ask your questions, brat. I know you're the one who convinced Ben to this.” Max huffed, pulling one of the bundles out of the fire and prying it open to cool.

“I don't think I need to ask them.” Toby replied darkly.

Max met his eye for a moment before shrugging. He pulled another bundle out of the fire and set the cooling one in front of Ben.

“I'll tell you what I can, then, but don't regret it later.” Max said after a moment.

“I won't regret a gift given.” Toby replied and Max laughed.

There was no humor in his laugh.

“It is not a gift...This island is the smallest of twenty three, all located in a 500 mile patch of the ocean closely guarded. This patch is known as the third purgatory. There are four in total. This is one, known as the Islands of Hell. There are the Nightmares, in which you are put into a comatose state and fed vivid and horrifying nightmares until you either manage to force yourself awake or die of a heart attack. And the Black Boxes, in which you are placed in a box totally devoid of anything; no light nor sound nor human interaction. You are fed and watered from a hole in the wall once every two days. You live in your own urine and shit and trash. There is no escape from that one.

And finally the Pit, which is perhaps the worst, in my opinion. You are thrown into a pit. If you survive the fall, you then have to fend off attacks from everyone else within. The only food you get is the flesh of others and the only water is from a constant rain that never dies out.”

“I've seen all of them. All Hunters and Guards do as part of our training. The Guards can be found in all four of the Purgatories, but Hunters like myself are only found on these islands. I remember the Pit most vividly. I have nightmares of being thrown into them.”

“What are these Hunters? And the Guards? What's special about them?” Toby asked.

“Well, Hunters are simple; we are hired to hunt down and kill a very specific kind of prey. These creatures cannot be hunted anywhere else in the world. The Guards make sure everything runs smoothly in the purgatory they are assigned to."

“What kind of animals are these?” Ben asked softly, shivering.

Max looked down at him, the light dancing on his face eerily.

“Criminals.... Meaning you.”

Toby burst out laughing and slammed his hand on the ground several times, tears in his eyes.
“You seriously think I'll believe that Ben has a single bad bone in his body?! His blood has no salt, it's all sugar!” Toby howled.

Ben shot him glare, but he had to admit Toby was right. However, he wondered why Toby made no move to defend himself.

“More importantly, why can't we remember anything? And why are we here?” Toby questioned as he sobered.

“It's all part of your punishment. Your memories were erased so that you would live in terror. I won't risk telling you why you are here in case you remember something. If I catch wind that either of you have remembered anything...well, bad...terrible things will happen to you and it is possible you will be put into a vegetative state. I really could not care less about what happens to you, brat, but I like Ben, so I'll not risk his memory returning. Whether I like him or not, I have rules I must obey.” Max frowned.

“What about our fish trap?” Ben demanded, not liking the direction their conversation was going.

“Did I not just say I hunt criminals? Every single human on this island has gone on trial and deemed guilty for an unforgivable crime. Yes, their memories have been erased, but not completely. For some, it is simply in their instincts to do evil. To kill, torture, thieve. And sometimes they somehow retain their memories,” Max's eyes fell on Toby for a moment, but the boy did not look at all disturbed.

“So,” Max continued, “you need to hide. There is also the problem of the guards, but that is not scheduled for a few more weeks.”

“What's not scheduled?” Toby asked, narrowing his eyes.

Max was silent a moment before he grinned widely at Toby. It was not a friendly, grin. It looked to Ben like the grin of a dog who had cornered a competitor and was about to rip it to shreds.

“A small island like this gets over populated sometimes. I can't keep up with terrorizing everyone all by myself.”

His voice was sweeter than honey and both Ben and Toby looked uneasily away from Max.

“Before the Guards come...what happens to these other people?” Toby asked softly.

He was asking another question, one neither of them wanted to actually ask. 'What would have happened to us if you didn't take a liking to Ben?'

Max turned his attention to Ben and smiled. His eyes held an attentive fondness and Ben found himself getting uncomfortable. Max gave a soft chuckle and turned to Toby instead.

“I'm going to happen. I'm going to kill them and rip them to shreds. I might let one escape for the thrill of the chase, but that person won't last long. I would like to be clear when I tell you not to be found by the others or separate yourself from Ben.”

Silence fell and Ben's stomach dropped. Max had to be joking, right? Ben glanced at Toby, but the other boy's expression was unreadable. Max shifted, lifting one knee and to rest his arm against. His eyes were on Ben again. It was impossible to tell if Max had been joking, but Ben got the feeling he had not been.

“What's special about us...or rather, Ben?” Toby asked softly, his anger completely gone. Or hidden.

Max snorted.

“Mainly, I like his face. He asks the wrong questions, but he is not an idiot. The way he looks at me when I approach sends chills through my body. He doesn't run. I can give a list, but it will all seem trivial and meaningless... Perhaps you would like to know, also, that I've been ordered not to kill him.”

“Not to kill him but why?” Toby tried to ask, but Max cut him off.

“Enough. I've said all that you need to know.”

“No you haven't,” Ben said swiftly, surprising both Max and Toby.

“Oh?” Max said, a color rushing to his cheeks as he leaned dangerously close to Ben.

Ben paled considerably, but continued where he was going. He jerked his thumb at the cooling meat that he had been had the stomach to touch since Max had been talking.

“Where do you get this?”