Sequel to Most Dangerous Game

The illuminated moon opened up the night. It was shining bright down on the unconscious General. That night Rainsford had thrown him out the window, attempting to kill him, but with Zaroff’s success, did not. At first glance, a person could conclude Zaroff was dead, but from a first-person view, any man can see he was slowly with a light heart moving.

“Ugh!...what happened? How did I get here? “Rainsford! Of course, but what have I done to him? Ah, yes, the hunt, he must have been upset with me to push me out a window. Yawn!…I think I’ll go back to sleep now, I need to rest for tomorrow.” Moreover, little did Zaroff know, tomorrow was going to be the worst day of his life.

It was early in the morning, around 6:00 a.m, and Zaroff was still outside getting ready to hunt. The morning air was cool and breezy with gusts of winds. As the moon went down, the sun was creeping up, trying to peek over the clouds.

“It is a perfect day to hunt, and I feel like a new man,” the General thought. He was now no longer hunting humans. After Rainsford, he decided to give up hunting humans. “Since my defeat to Rainsford, I haven’t been the same,” Zaroff stated. “I can’t bring myself to kill humans anymore, thus I choose to hunt the exotic animals of the island.”

As General Zaroff was gathering his hunting gear, he noticed his gun was still in his house. The General walked back up to his house, and opened the door only to find Rainsford, who was surprised to see him. “Ah, Rainsford, you have defeated me in my own game. As a man of my word I will send you home tomorrow, after my hunt.”

“Don’t you have any respect for mankind?” Rainsford asked.

Zaroff stated, “Why of course my dear friend, I have given up hunting humans forever.”

“Good, then I will stay the night, but first thing in the morning I want to go home. But, what kind of animals are on this island?”

“There are all sorts of exotic animals; macaque, liger, crocosarus, and bushback.”

“Will you be joining me for the hunt?”

“No, I’m going to stay here and rest.”

“Well then, I’ll be going now, and will be back late at night, so don’t wait up.”

“Wait Zaroff!” Rainsford shouted, as the General was on his way out.

“Yes, what do you want?” Zaroff replied. “I want to hunt you.” Rainsford exclaimed, “Are you mad? I will not let you hunt me!” Zaroff said angrily. “You have no choice, I will let you get an hour head start, you’ll be supplied with food and water, and a small, little hunting knife.” Zaroff replied, “I told you before, I’m a changed man, hunting you made me realize how cruel I was. You were right, I didn’t give the others fair chances to win, I was murdering them and because of you, it was pretty ugly. I can now understand what I was really doing.” Zaroff was almost in tears explaining how he has changed.

Rainsford, with no emotion or care as to what Zaroff was telling him said, “Your supplies are outside and after all that nonsense, you only have 45 minutes left.”

General Zaroff ran out of the house, picked up his supplies and darted into the sinister jungle. For some odd reason Zaroff knew exactly where to hide, like he had been hunted before or the more logical reason, he just knew the jungle like the back of his hand. “This man is insane. Why the nerve. Just a few days ago, he was telling me how wrong it was to hunt humans. Now this, who does he think he is!?” Zaroff thought to himself.

Crack! Smash! Zoom! “What was that?” General Zaroff said very nervously. “Screech! Thud, there it was, the rare and exclusive macaque landed right next to him. Speaking softly to the monkey, “My good friend, do not be frightened for I am not here to hunt you, but I am the one being hunted. After all the years of hunting I know what it feels like to be the prey; to know what to do or where to go. But, most importantly, I truly know what it feels like being a man and knowing another man is out ‘there’ trying to kill me, thinking it to be a fun sport.”

The macaque stared at him in awe as if he understood what Zaroff was saying. Then just ran, ran as fast he could into the thicket of the jungle. The General was confused as to why the monkey took off, heard it…rustle…rustle…rustle. It was Rainsford, “but how could he have found me already?”

At the same time, it appeared that Rainsford didn’t see him, as he just passed him and threw his cigarette right where the General was lying.

Finally, it seemed that Rainsford was gone, so the General carefully got up like an old dog does after a nap. He could feel his heart beating as fast as lightning. Every breath he took, he thought could be his last. He decided to make his way toward the pond, and on his way, he encountered a few obstacles. He had to make his way through the filthy trail. After he walked the trail, the temperature dramatically changed. From being sunny with a slight breeze, it became overcast, cold and damp. With his teeth chattering and hair follicles stinging, Zaroff had to crawl through narrow, dirty, hollow logs. At last, he made it to the pond. Rustle…rustle, “Not Rainsford again,” Zaroff pleaded. With no time to think, he leaped into the muddy and murky pond. By this time, Rainsford had screamed out, “I’ll get you tomorrow! I’ll get you!”

Zaroff finally got out of the pond. It felt like eons, but in reality, it was only a few minutes that he was in the pond. “When is this all going to end? This has to be a dream,” Zaroff thought.

“But, of course it’s not my dear General” In no time at all, Rainsford jumped on Zaroff. Begging, “Rainsford, please, you don’t want to do this.” “But I do, oh how I really do.”

While Rainsford was going to reach for his gun, Zaroff jumps up and runs, running like a zebra runs away from a tiger. “Ha ha ha. Chuckle chuckle,” still laughing, “you can’t escape me.”

Rainsford right behind the tired, panting General Zaroff, was coming up to the end of the cliff. Zaroff was too tired and shocked to remember the cliff. Womp! The General tripped over a tree branch on the ground, which might have saved his life for the time being. “Now I have you just where I want you,” Rainsford said with a crazed look in his eyes.

In a hazy voice, “Please, cough…cough, don’t do it, cough, please let me live.”

“Ha ha ha ha, begging will get you nowhere, ha ha ha.” He raised his gun slowly and put the cold dark barrel to the General’s head. Pausing Rainsford thought to himself, “I can’t do it, I just can’t.” General Zaroff cold, dirty and muddy was crying he knew his life was over.

Or was it? Rainsford had tears rolling down his cheeks and was mumbling, “I can’t do it, I can’t do it.”

Backing up slowly and cautiously, he dropped the gun. “God Rainsford, I’m sorry for what I put you through, and wow am I ever relieved you dropped the gun. I..I,” stuttering, Rainsford was speechless. “Shriek”.

Rainsford had fallen back into a spike pit. Zaroff quickly gasped and jumped up to try and help him. Looking down, Rainsford somehow miraculously avoided all the spikes. “Are you ok?” No reply from Rainsford. “Rainsford, Rainsford wake up.” “Huh, Rainsford said drowsily, “Help me.”

Using his genius, will power and motivation, General Zaroff got a vine. He let it down slowly into the pit. “Here, grab onto this.” With all his might and determination, he pulled Rainsford out of the pit.

“Thank you, I’m sorry for what I have done,” said Rainsford.

“Don’t worry about it right now, just try your hardest to make it back to my house,” replied Zaroff.

Back at the house, the next day all apologies were made. Zaroff and Rainsford were friends. “I have forgiven Rainsford and he has forgiven me.”

“Now the both of us hunt, strictly animals, no humans.”

“We concluded that manslaughter, which we were doing by hunting and murdering other humans, is wrong and bad.”

“Are you ready?”

“Yes, I’ll be right there Rainsford. Today we shall hunt my old friend, the rare macaque.”