The Spark

The Chase

Wiping my eyes, I slowly made my way to the forest. In the distance, I could hear the bloodthirsty chant of Jack and his hunters coming closer and closer.

Quietly, I tiptoed my way down to the beach, trying not to make any noise. To my delight, one of the hunters had left their spear lying on the ground, so I picked it up and crept closer to the beach. Once I got there, I was going to find Ralph and then...what?

"Hey, she's getting away!" came Bill's cry. "Look, Jack, she's getting away!"

Adrenaline pumping through my veins, I charged down the mountain and into the forest, clutching my spear. Whether or not Jack had let me go, it didn't stop the fear of getting caught from prickling underneath my skin.

From behind, I could hear the stampede of Jack's tribe following me.

Great, I thought dryly. Jack never gave them the memo.

My lungs burned and my legs ached, but there was no time to think about that. If I ever tried to live in Jack's tribe, who knew how long it would be before I lost control of everything I knew about myself and became nothing more than a mere animal?

My foot slid on a leaf and I tripped, rolling to the ground and ripping open the wound on my arm that I thought had healed all the way through. Shivers of pain rippled up my arm and into my head, biting the corners of my eyes and nearly making me scream.

I bit my lip to keep myself from screaming and trudged on, the blood dripping down my arm and leaving a nice, easy trail for people to find me.

Damn it. I couldn't keep going like this.

I clutched my arm and tried to stop the bleeding. I didn't have the luxury of using my tie as a bandage, as I had left it back at Castle Rock and had no intention of going back. What I needed to do was find Ralph. The only way that both of us would be able to make it out of this nightmare alive was if we stuck together. And if we didn't, well...at least we wouldn't have to worry about dying alone.

I ducked into a nearby bush, still clutching my arm. Maybe I'd be able to use my brassiere as a bandage of some sort. I blushed at the thought of running around with nothing underneath my shirt. I took my hand away, which was wet with blood, and assessed the damage. In the dim light, beads of blood glowed on my arm, thin webs of skin holding the wound together. If I tried to strain my arm, I'd risk tearing more of my arm open.

"I think I found her!"

Holding my breath, I sat stock still inside the bush, hoping and praying they wouldn't find me. I squeezed my eyes shut, feeling like a small child again: if I can't see them, they can't see me.

Something began poking past the bushes, the leaves rustling. I held my breath and slowly opened my eyes, hoping for the best but trying to prepare for the worst.

"Ha! Found ya!" My heart sank when I realized who it was.

"Percival?" I tentatively crawled out of the bush and stared at the small child who stood in front of me, clutching a spear. A bar of red and black were slashed across his face, and the once adventurous and youthful sparkle in his eye was replaced by something more savage and primitive. His knuckles were white against the spear, which was pointed at me.

"I found you!" he said triumphantly, as though we were merely playing a game of Hide and Seek.

"Percival, I don't want to do this," I said desperately as I stood up, tentatively pointing my spear at him. "I really don't want to do this."

"Of course you do!" Percival said, rolling his eyes. Rolling his eyes! A while ago, this naive but polite child would've been above such sass and attitude. "Of course you want to come with me and go back to Jack!"