Blemishes and roses (ON HOLD)

Chapter 1: The Hounds

   Nina was running like mad, well now she knew the true definition. Dirt sprayed across her skirt and shoes, mud making it even more difficult to run. The brown muck that resembled cow dung squished and pulled at her heels, making it hard to pick up her feet. 

   Branches whipped her face, leaving stinging lines of red skin, and maybe blood. The air left millions of bumps across the bare parts of her skin, which by the feeling of the cold air, was barer than usual. 

   The sounds of barking came from the distance, though not the type of barking that was a greeting. Growls accompanied it, and Nina was pretty sure the best thing she could do was run away from it. Far away from it. 

   The only thing that kept her from tripping even more on wet slippery tree roots was Zephyr, running like mad with her. She couldn't see him in the hazy blackness, but if she did he was probably expressing pure terror. 

   Yelling came too, the yelling of angry men echoing through the maze of trees and whatever damn growth that made their world hell. Maybe she was too young to think of these things, but Nina was sure she had a good excuse. 

   The mud slipped under her, sloshing and sticky and she almost lost her balance in mid sprint. Knees shaking and joints aching, she bit back a dirt comment that might just leave soap in her mouth. If this wasn't possibly the last hours of her existence. 

   " We...are...almost..there." Zephyr said through long wheezes as they both practically tumbled down a hill. The sound of barking was closer now, not that far away. Thorns from some angry bush cut through the flesh on her arm, leaving what was to see scarlet streaks. Nina barely had time to yelp, she didn't have the energy to use her voice at all. 

   She knew that Zephyr meant nothing, just to be optimistic. They were no where but in the woods. They were going to be shredded by dogs and if not that, sliced into pieces by knives. And neither sounded very appeasing on the menu. 

   The barking was now more of a scream in her ears, of was she screaming? She heard a crack, close too, then a grunt that came from her best friend. And then they were not using their feet but their faces on the sticky wet ground. 

   She smelled copper and salt, and her nose ached. Rocks were thrown at the inside of Nina's skull and the world was a dizzy mess. Her ears gave out a sharp high pitched ring and all she could do was let her body curl up into a small ball, well, if her body could accomplish such a feat. 

   There was a muffled sound of whining and paws hitting hard on ground, growls and a few yaps of excitement. And Nina, who's eyes were open, as if it really mattered, closed them. Just because she wanted this part of the world to end.