The Inner Kingdom

Chapter One - The Humiliation

Location: Unknown

◑April ◐

The lightning was deafening overhead as it cackled and lit up the night sky, highlighting the features of the trees around me. The place was unfamiliar, and I had no idea how I came to be in this predicament.

As I stumbled through the wooded area, trying to escape whatever it was chasing me, I tried to remember my name and how I got into this situation.

Too terrified to look back, I continued to run blindly through the prickly bushes and clingy branches.

Curiosity almost got the best of me, but the pounding sound of the predatory footsteps stalking me kept my adrenaline, and my legs going.

With each step I took, I pictured the creature behind me in my mind; built like a mountain lion with sharp teeth, waiting for me to slip, so it could take me down.

As if it were playing with its food, every time I slowed down, it would let out a soul-shaking roar causing me to speed back up. The fear fueled me to keep going as I ran further, hoping to find shelter somewhere.

I did not have enough time to stop as I broke through the woods into an enormous clearing encased by trees; in the center of this picturesque view was a large lake. The sight was so breathtaking and beautiful I almost forgot about the monster hunting me.

As I contemplated jumping into the water, I realized that I no longer heard the monster's fierce steps shadowing me.

It was very difficult to find the exact location of where I came into the clearing when I turned around to look back at the woods. I couldn't recall the trees being so close together; it was as if they made a doorway just for me, which disappeared once I entered.

Something shifted in the left corner of my vision, which caused my eyes to quickly latch onto a pair of glowing big green orbs that were staring out of the dark at me. They held me captive for a few heart-wrenching moments. Backing away little by little, it finally vanished into the woods.

My body alerted me to the fact that the air I did not realize I was holding in had ran out; I began to gasp for it so desperately, my lungs ached.

The adrenaline that was powering my every move gradually started to drain away, causing my knees to buckle. I sat there in the short grass for a while, taking in my surroundings. Unlike when I was running through the woods, there was neither lightning nor clouds in the sky, but up above there were two giant moons. They were so big it looked as if the Earth was going to crash into them.

The moons lit up the surface of the lake, giving it an unearthly celestial glow. Using the remaining energy left in my body, I crawled toward its edge to wet my dry cracked lips.

Mesmerized by how clear the water was upon closer inspection, I soon noticed my reflection as clear as if I was looking in a mirror; my face covered with long puffy welts, is what I saw staring back at me.

Touching a long wound near my eyebrows brought out a long hiss from between my clenched teeth.

Bringing my hands down from my face, I saw that they were littered with many open cuts, which I must have sustained when I was running through the woods.