The Sprinter

Chapter 28

Eloise batted another branch out the way, the sap coating it clinging to her hands. She'd only entered the forest this morning, but she was already sick of it's thick, humid air. The canopy was so dense that it was hard to tell the time of day, but by the grumblings of her stomach, she could guess it was close to nightfall.

It had been three days since she'd left Tinaeco farm and Mirae to fend for herself. The food she'd been given had run out yesterday, and the water this morning. Thankfully, she knew that she was close to Haven Port. The forest surrounding it was only a day's walk - she should be there in a few hours. Maximum.

With the port so close, the ship that she had dreamed about for years now, her last chance at escape, Eloise found that despite her shaking legs and the pit in her stomach, she had no inclination to stop. This was it. This was the route she had spent nights studying, days thinking about, years longing to walk, and now she was on it. She was here. She was going to get away.

A branch snapped above her head. Eloise halted, her foot frozen mid stride. It was probably nothing, but as adrenaline flooded her veins, she didn't feel compelled to take that risk. The forest fell quiet, the thick feel of cloying silence stuffing itself into her ears. She brought her hand up to cup her ear, leaning forward to catch any sound.

The stickiness of the sap came off on her ear as her hand brushed against it. A sudden iciness flooded her veins. Her eyes widened as Salene's voice came back to her:

"They secrete a sap-like liquid to break apart their prey, making it easily digestible."

Eloise slowly tilted her head back, staring further and further into the canopy, until a pair of vivid green eyes returned her gaze. A Skricarah.

She flinched away, and the carnivorous bird dropped down from the tree, landing with padded feet directly next to her. It stared at her, cocking its head in an almost comical way as it extended its neck. Eloise slowly turned her head, moving it right until she could see it properly. It's back was covered in an array of golden red and orange feathers, which clashed significantly with its green underbelly. It was a large beast - as tall as her knees. A long beak curved forward out of its face, sprouting beneath the forward-facing eyes that now studied her.

As she looked closer, she realised that it wasn't studying her. It seemed to be analysing the air around her, the space in which she stood. It couldn't see her. Of course it couldn't. Motion sensors. It could only see her when she moved. Which meant that it was waiting for confirmation - just a flinch to make sure it was striking in the right place. But it wouldn't wait all night. All she had to do was wait it out. To not run.

The Skricarah shoved it's head forward, extending its neck as it screeched into her face. Eloise ran.

{~****~}