The Other Side

Chapter 1

I ran through the unfamiliar fields. Long, vast stretches of grass spread out ahead of me, giving way to trees scattered off into the distance. I panted as andrenaline rushed through my veins, redoubling my speed.

“HISSSSSS”, its hiss caressed my skin, cold and steely…

Each sound that escaped its mouth made it seem like it was coming closer. I could imagine its claws grabbing onto me, piercing through my skin, digging deep inside me and pulling me back into the hands of death.

I turned and saw the eyes of my pursuer. It was like those eyes were made for me…
They were cold, empty and white when I had first spotted them but they turned blood red the moment they lay on me.
It was like watching warm thick blood flow through. They spoke volumes, showing the lengths it would go to have my blood spilled.

Floating in the air it came to halt. It’s eyes bored through mine in a hypnotizing way…

“SCREEEEEE!” Its screech pierced my ears and etched itself into my mind, like an unforgettable memory, echoing again and again…

I ran into a thin lining of trees that seemed endless, going as far as I could see. I saw them grow more clustered and closer as I ran deeper.

It was dark…

Shadows lunged from all corners. The trees towered over me, blocking what little moonlight that came through.

I turned again.

It had stopped. Its skeleton-body, covered in dried blood, from its previous kills, flakes of them floated in the direction of the gentle wind slowly making their way to the floor. Decaying strands of white and grey hair barely clung to it’s skull. It was floating in the air, mouth opened in a deep snarl as it regarded my every breath.

Every part of my body was aching for relief and my breath came out in laboured pants.

My clothes were caked with mud. My hair, once silky brown, was now completely tangled and sticking to my damp neck. My eyes were frantic as I took the scene in. My mouth was dry from the fear that travelled through my body. I only had one, almost completely worn, shoe left the other was long forgotten probably miles away, causing little twigs and other sharp objects on the forest floor to splinter my bare foot.

Seconds stretched into minutes and minutes into hours. There were no traces of home or any civilization in sight. I was lost in the woods, running aimlessly trying to escape my ill fate and go back to the safety of my home to end this nightmare. But this wasn’t a nightmare, even though it seemed like one.

It still didn’t move, staring eerily at my back, its target. And then against my every instinct I stopped for a second to catch my breath even though I knew one wrong move would end with severe consequences. It still stared at me making me feel exposed like my skin was inside out.

Suddenly, it lunged forward soaring through the sky heading straight for me. The sudden movement made me go reeling and I fell on the ground from the impact.
I let out a bloodcurdling scream that nearly burst the blood vessels in my eyes but it didn’t stop.

There were a few trees but the rocks and my ungainly position made the fall painful. Even the andrenaline couldn’t block out pain on impact. It crackled up my leg with each step I took after pushing myself up.

But one moment was all it took for it to catch up with me. I felt the sharp tips of its claws brush the pulse point on my neck.
I stayed silent, thinking that it would not get me if I were quiet…but…

… I was as wrong as hell...

It grabbed my arm pulling me back and making me fall back on the floor.