Running Wild

Chp 4

"What are they talking about?" I nickered to Holly as we slowed to a stop.
"They want to make sure we're healthy so we can go out with other horses, although if they were worried about us being sick they should've put us farther away from the others."
I was about to reply when something big, furry and loud came barreling from the other building in the property, a splash of black and white covered the creatures coat as it bounded towards us, a long, slimy tongue lolling from its mouth.
I let out a shriek as it grew closer, taking off as fast as I could to reach the other side of the pen. Holly flicked her tail and lowered her head slightly, as if asking why I freaked out, as the man stepped closer, attempting to calm me down.

A long while, some kicks and bites later, the humans -yes, all three of them had to work together- were able to get me to relax enough to move back into the barn, where the woman in the white coat forced disgusting white paste into my mouth and pushed something long and thin into my neck, drawing a crimson liquid that seems to become eerily translucent in the sunlight.
"Alright, we're done with these two. Of course, as soon as the results come back I'll let y'all know what they are, but as of right now we should move on to the next few. This is taking longer than I thought it would."

"Aye aye Taytum." The man saluted and led the way to Josie's stall, speaking with the woman about their coats and bodies. Eventually they were brought out like Holly and I but as soon as they left the barn I couldn't see them anymore. I heard the swish of the whip and the voices of the humans as they spoke about a herd to the north and transport, whatever that meant.
Holly quickly distracted me, bringing up the voice I heard back at the auction house and asking what it had said.

~~~~

*1 week later*

Wake up, eat, run around with Holly, Josie and her dam in the round pen as the humans call it, go inside and eat and go to sleep.
That's been my routine since I arrived at this place, nothing changing in the slightest. The man and woman who'd brought us here left several days ago, leaving us with the woman who had worn the long white coat and another man I hadn't seen until the second day, when he'd taken over feeding us.

I awoke to the sound of the barn door creaking open as per usual and slowly lifted myself to my hooves, watching curiously as the new man and white coat lady brought halters to our stalls.
"I'll get the filly and colt, you can get the mare and her baby." The woman stated, stepping into our stall and slipping halters over our faces- much to my dismay.
"Leave me with the tough ones eh?" The man grunted, though his lips were curved upwards in amusement.
"This colt can be stubborn too, Jace. Don't be a baby." The woman huffed, shaking her head and rolling her eyes as she led Holly and I outside.

What about breakfast????

I snorted, walking cautiously as I noticed we were walking towards the large trailer we'd arrived in.
"It's alright boy. We're gonna set you up in a nice sanctuary herd we have on our land alright? You'll be free to do whatever you want." The woman soothed, stepping up the ramp and attaching clips to our halters.
"Sanctuary herd?" I asked Holly, nibbling on the bag of hay provided in front of us.

"It's basically a wild herd of horses, but the humans keep an eye on them to make sure everything's going ok and the bad humans aren't causing trouble." She explained, glancing at Josie and her dam as they were loaded in after us.
"If they're wild why are humans watching them?" I inquired with a snort, completely confused.
"They're not supposed to be wild would be my guess. The humans who've been taking care of us bought us to make sure we didn't go to a bad home and are going to let us roam free somewhere like in the wild."
I bobbed my head softly, watching quietly as a few other horses were loaded with us.

We stayed silent the rest of the ride; I was too busy watching the scenery go by and listening to the other horses converse to talk much myself. We drove for what felt like forever, occasionally hitting a bump, before we slowed to a stop and the humans began unloading us.
Apparently more humans followed, as another human death trap came to a stop and three more people stepped out, immediately coming over and helping grab a horse.
The humans spoke in soft tones for a little while before we headed off down a dirt path between some trees, barely noticeable to the naked eye.

My ears swiveled this way and that as sounds echoed around us; the chirp of the birds, the rustle of the leaves, the sound of our footsteps. I inhaled deeply, catching dozens of different smells as our walk progressed deeper into the leafy trap.
Luckily I wasn't the only one on edge. The older horses seemed to see something no one else had and it wasn't long before I felt eyes on my back, causing my skin to twitch uncomfortably.

The humans took no notice of it, rather, they spoke animatedly, grins on most of their faces as though they had no cares in the world.
"I'm assuming since we're doing this the tests came back ok?" One of the new humans questioned, leading an old stallion.
"They came back yesterday and everything looked fine. I figured it's best to move them now so we have the space for more horses." The woman I'd become so familiar with replied, gently rubbing my nose with her finger.

"I picked up a couple yesterday, they're in rough shape and barely let anyone near them." Another one added, pulling along a young pony.
"I could have a look at them if you want, after these guys are free I won't have much to do until we get another group." The woman offered politely.
"I'd love that, thanks Taytum."

"Why are they calling the woman Taytum?" I asked Holly, hoping to get my mind off the deserted woodland surrounding us.
"That's her name Lo, they have a name their dams give them just like we do. The man who's been caring for us is Jace, or at least that's what I've heard." She replied softly.
"Oh! That makes sense." I nickered softly and tuned back in to the humans conversation, intrigued.

Not long after, a branch snapped. This wouldn't have been a problem, if there were broken branches under someone's foot. There were not. The horses -myself included- shifted uneasily; their tails and ears twitching back and forth while the humans tried to hurry us along, the once calming chatter became nonexistent until we neared a break in the trees.
"It's just up ahead guys, almost there." Taytum called, pulling us slightly faster.
"Wait, Tay-" Jace began, seconds before a large creature with stark black fur and blood red eyes stepped out of the foliage, foam dripping from its muzzle that showcased extremely sharp teeth.

"How did that fat thing fit in such a small hiding place!?" Taytum growled, holding tight to the lead ropes Holly and I tried pulling free. The horses in the back began to fuss and fight, panic in their eyes as the large creature stalked forward.
"Get off my land, rogue." Jace ordered, a deep rumble filling the air as he spoke. The 'rogue' let out a rumble of its own, a challenge by the sounds of it.
I tuned out, keeping my wide eyes on the highly dangerous creature while Taytum began undoing my halter, although I have no idea how she was doing it with one hand without looking.

In a split second the beast launched itself into the air, it's powerful legs pushing it to the middle of our little huddle. Panic enveloped the group, everyone scattering and taking off into the woods, leaving the humans to fend for themselves while their lead ropes dangle from their halters.
I sprinted off down the path, towards the break, when a somewhat familiar, sharp, high pitched whinny filled the air and forced my muscles to freeze, the beast had taken Josie's dam and was prowling towards the little filly, who was bleating to her dam as she shook on her hooves.

The humans were too preoccupied -for the most part- trying to retrieve the fleeing horses, which were almost all of them, to help. My ears flattened against my skull and I charged, letting out a war cry of a neigh. I turned at the last second and slammed my body into the creatures, causing the both of us to crash to the ground.
The moment I was down I scrambled back up to my hooves and bit at the beasts matted fur, hoping to do as much damage as I could.

The moment I deemed it safe to, I turned around and comforted Josie, ignoring her dams prone body on the ground. I hadn't known her for long, but she acted like I was her foal too, and for that I'd do my best to keep Josie safe.
I ushered the filly towards the break in the trees I'd been running too before I heard her calling, hoping to get us free of the woodland cage we'd gotten ourselves caught in. Chaos still ensued around us, Jace and Taytum were ordering the other humans around to get the horses and make sure they were safe, I couldn't see Holly but I assumed she ran off with the others, their panicked cries still echoing in my ears.

I shook it off and sped up, glancing around once more to make sure we'd be ok.
"Momma..." Josie nickered sadly, stopping in her steps to look longingly at her dam.
"I'm sorry Josie, but we have to go." I gently nudged her forward, only to have something latch onto my leg, leaving a searing pain in its wake.

A/N I feel like the first part of this chapter was a bit rushed.... But I really like how it ended. Sorry not sorry for the cloffhanger. Oh, also, NEARLY TWO CHAPTERS WORTH WOO-HOO!!!!
That is all.