The Sprinter

Chapter 25

She ran, her feet struggling to keep up with the downward force of her body. She tripped on a rock, and went flying - then falling. She rolled, the grass clinging to her as she tumbled down the hill. She tucked her knees into her chest, balling up and holding on, her eyes squeezed shut. She felt it as the slope levelled out underneath her, and as she rolled to a stop.

Eloise let go of her legs and pushed herself onto her knees as she tentatively opened her eyes. Mirae stood in front of her, tears streaking down her face, blushed from heat and crying. The young girl stared at her, mouth open. She couldn’t stop sobbing. Her chest heaved with the weight of her sorrow, trying again and again to shake it off - in vain. You can’t shake off something that comes from inside you.

Eloise dug her hands into the ground, using them as a pivot to swivel around, to be greeted by a pair of legs. He wore black, tight-fitted trousers. She looked up slowly, scared to the bottom of her stomach, but there it was. The smile that haunted her, both day and night. The eyes that shone, even without light. The face that had taken such utter delight in the torture of a child. It was him. The Commander.

Eloise flung herself back, opening up her chest. And then, she yielded to the power - the power that was her.

It was just as horrible as she remembered it - more so. It burst from her, fighting to get out. It flowed through her skin, out of her body. Leaving her forever. Now that she knew, she could feel herself, feel her essence, leaving her. Memories flew past her. She was torn between the longing to grab onto them, in case the ebb of energy proved too much for it, and the fear of what she would see when she touched them. They swirled around her head, kept company by the endless din of the silence, and the pain. Pain. It flooded her, then battered against the walls of her skull when it found itself trapped. It ripped through her skin, creating boundaries and crafting chasms for the power to flow through.

She couldn't open her eyes. Wouldn't. She knew what she would see, anyway. The light, shining out from every pore of her being. Both every colour, and blinding monochrome. Pure, yet completely immersed in texture and culture.

She could feel it dwindling. Inside her. Not out. It was so desperate, so contained, it would never stop pouring out. Never. It would go until it reached the stars, and left her an empty husk - barely atoms. She gasped, and tried desperately to reign it in. It struggled, but obeyed. She held it, grasping it tightly, grasping herself, lest it disappear.

The waves of energy returned to her, retreating back into her, squeezing to fit. She didn’t understand it; it was pouring out, threatening to leave her with nothing, but now, returning to her, it felt like too much. Far too much.

But then, it was gone. Sucked back into her, cocooned tight in her chest. She collapsed, crumpling into herself. She heard footsteps - Mirae’s. She grabbed Eloise by the shoulders, and turned her over, leaving her lying on her back. Tears still streaked her too young face, but they were now matched by an expression of pure shock and disbelief. Eloise struggled against her weight, and sat up, leaning heavily on her hands. She had saved her. She had run, but she had come back. To fight. She had saved Mirae.

“I -”
“Shh,” Mirae cut her off, “you don’t need to explain. That’s why they’re chasing you. And you have to go.”

Eloise nodded, swallowing.

“Your father -”
“He’s gone,” Mirae said, barely a hint of the loss she must be feeling showing on her face.
“It's ok, I can take care of myself. You need to go. I saw him - that creature. He got away. He's going to come for you again.”

Eloise stared at her, too tired and too shocked for the information to register.

“Run.”

Eloise stood up, clasping Mirae’s arm to help her. She looked at her, at the girl she was, the girl that had died the moment that creature had thrown her father into the lake. It wasn’t fair on her. She would be alone - alone, because Eloise had chosen to run. She couldn’t, she wouldn’t -

“Go,” Mirae said. Eloise inhaled, her breath shaky. She nodded, and turned to walk away, facing the hill she had just ran down. Ran down - to save her. There were handprints burned into the grass - her handprints. Even then, even then the energy had been thrumming through her, ready to break loose. One more time, if it happened one more time - she would die.

Eloise shook her head. It wasn't important now.

Now, she had to run.

{~*~}