What is your biggest fear?
The wind whistled in his ears, footsteps dashing across the ground in a desperate scramble to flee from the many more sets following him. He could hear the snow crunch beneath his feet, the panting of helpless prey mixed with the growls of animalistic hunger.
What is your biggest fear?
Twigs were snapping left and right, alerting even more beasts to his presence. He didn’t turn to look, he didn’t dare, but he could feel the number of glowing eyes on his back steadily increase.
What is your biggest fear?
He could feel his legs starting to give out, and the beasts chasing him grew nearer, victory apparent in their joyous howls. He pushed forward, a new burst of energy born out of the innate instinct to survive.
Suddenly, his face was against the freezing snow, dirt and blood sticking to his face. The impact felt devastating, as if he had fallen from the heavens above for a sin beyond his comprehension. He couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, and he struggled in vain.
What is your biggest fear?
The sounds grew impossibly close, on the edge of tasting their prey. He scrambled to get up, ignoring the aching exhaustion running through his cold body. No sooner did he start to get up did he fall back with a pained gasp. Something was tugging his leg-
He thrashed around helplessly, but it did nothing to deter the murderous creature wrapping a thorny branch around his calf. Panicking, his eyes flew around, finding nothing but the endless darkness to accompany him to his certain death. A low growl sounded behind him, and he froze.
Too late.
He watched, paralyzed as the glinting eyes of the beast bore into his own terrified ones. It stalked closer, canines bared in an almost taunting way. He could almost feel its satisfaction as if it were his own as it lazily circled around him, studying his every movement.
‘I won’, it screamed, and he could feel the bone chilling dread go down his spine.
He stared, captivated by the deadly beauty of it all. For a startling moment, his body has forgotten all about his survival, finding meaning in the inevitable suffering he was going to endure at the hands of this otherworldly creature.
It tilted its head, eyes flashing.
Then came the others. It happened quickly, several growls and howls and snapping sounds filming the air, waiting for the command to tear him apart.
What is your biggest-
A scream. Bloody gore spilled from his leg, greedily disappearing into the beast’s mouth. His blood painted the pure white snow a crimson red, an artwork befitting of the goriest of occurrences : death. His hand was next, and he watched as his own body was slowly ripped apart by the triumphant beasts in front of him.
My biggest fear?
He had scoffed.
Dogs.
It wasn’t supposed to be like this.
He has just been gathering some herbs and heading home for the day. He was just on the edge of the forest, never inside, he never would do that. The sun had just been setting, it hadn’t even sunk below the horizon yet. He didn’t know how it got so dark, how the forest seemed so empty and devoid of life so quickly. And by the time he realised…
The edge of the forests had never been difficult to navigate. The path home from the peaceful clearing to his house was a well-trodden one, permanent dents left in the place his feet would go everyday.
On that fateful day however? Nothing was simple. The once simple expanse of grass giving way to his home became an endless labyrinth, a place untouched by time. He had noticed before, that the forest seemed to be growing closer to his haven. How he wish he hadn’t assumed it was just the growth of new young trees, but rather the birth of something more sinister.
Large, black trees had towered over him, drenching him in a terrible darkness blocking the moonlight (when did it get so dark?). Time seemed to be non-existent in this sprawling labyrinth of nightmares.
And yet, he had watched, transfixed by the eerie beauty of it all.
That was when he had met his bringer of doom. He had felt the beast before he had seen it, almost as if it were an extension of himself. A pair of eyes watched from amidst the dark bushes, head tilted with curiosity.
His gaze had been captured by the creature, so close he could hear it’s breathing. What? No, that wasn’t possible, it was much farther away-
It was breathtaking. It was- he didn’t know what it was. It wasn’t a wolf, he was sure of it. But what was it doing in the woods?
And then he heard it. A cacophony of growls, snarls and hisses. The moment of silent awe was burst in less than a fraction of a second, and his body responded before his mind did. Fire, it thought, and so fire he wielded.
Fire from where?
He remembered it so vividly, the way flames danced in his hand, as he held it as far away from his body as he could. However, nothing could’ve prepared him for what had happened next.
The beast watched, amusement swirling in it’s gaze. It walked forward calmly, not the least bit deterred by the fiery heat dancing on his hand. It gently placed it’s snout on his hand, snuffing out the fire in an instant. What-
And that was when he had started running. The sudden nimbleness of his body surprised him, and he took off running blindly, not realising that he had been running towards the forest, a grave error (he would only realise much, much later that it didn’t matter which way he went).
Questions swirled in his head, made giddy and nonsensical from the dizziness that came from running so fast. He didn’t know how long it had been until now, only that the effort was all wasted.
He could feel his consciousness start to fade, bile rising up in his throat as he stared at what was once his right arm. A cold, unforgiving darkness settled over him, slowly seeping into the edges of his vision until it all went dark.
At long last.
“Welcome home, master.”
@noose-lion Hope this works for the art! (The narrator : it did not work)
