Heart pounding...
Feet stomping...
Twigs snapped like bones as they splintered into a thousand pieces while the wind pierced the air. It howled through dead tree branches like a starving wolf crying for a feast. There was no sound of pursuit in the air over the gale like winds, but she dare not stop. Dare not look back to see the disturbed smile or the way its arms swung lazily at its sides. Even as the darkness continued to grow despite the full moon overhead, casting gnarled shadows across the ground, she continued on...
Even as the night and forest clawed at her sweat covered skin.
Blood mingled with salty water, making the numerous cuts sting like a whip across her flesh. Pain kept the adrenalin pumping strong through her veins. But fatigue caught up to her like a rubber band when her lungs started burning and her muscles cried for rest.
Trees passed in a blur as she made one last effort to get away. Leaping and hurdling over fallen trees and jagged rocks, she stumbled at the sight of white as she passed a break in the trees. With a panicked shriek, she slammed into the rough soil infront of her, pebbles flying in all directions and slamming against her battered body in her struggle to stay as upright as possible.
The shadows clawed at her...
The wind died...
Only her breathing, uneven and shallow, rent the air as she spun on her knees, legs digging painfully into the harsh terrain. But despite the sharp sting, she paid it no heed. Not even a second thought passed as a defeated sigh left her lips while her head hung in despair.
‘Snap!’
She spun around. Fear clutching her heart in a vice as she whipped her head from side to side. She squinted in an effort to see through the unrelenting darkness and menacing shadows of the forest around her, but to no avail. It was hopeless even as the full moon sat high in the sky above her... The silvery light a menacing yellow in the night.
A spike of fear, a small thrill as if she’d been dunked in icy water, suddenly took hold and she shuddered. Every muscle tensed, like a coil spun too tight when a cool breeze washed over the back of her neck. The fine hairs raised and goose bumps rose in a wave across her body. Eyes as wide as dinner plates, curiosity took control and she turned, rigid from fright and throat constricted against the air that threatened to rush out in a wave of sound, she turned...
And screamed...
~X-x-X~
“Hello! Welcome to SPR. How can we help you?” Osamu Yasuhara, office worker for SPR, asked. His grey suit rumpled while papers fluttered to the floor.
“Um... Yes. I’m Nadoru Yumi. I have an appointment?” A young woman, no older than twenty-four, with deep chocolate eyes and brunette hair questioned, unnerved by Yasu’s young appearance. The pair was saved from the typical affirmation when the office door slammed open.
“Morning Boss! Little Boss! Lin!” Silence greeted the cheerful greeting until ‘Little Boss’ stopped.
“Not fair! I’m not that short anymore! You’re just being mean, Yasu!”
“Sorry Mai. But you’re still shorter than me, which makes you short.” Yasu joked, stepping up beside the brunette; a brunette that barely reached his chin.
In the year since Eugene had been found and Oliver and Lin had taken him to be buried, Mai had filled out and even grew her hair. Instead of short and choppy, it was longer, to her shoulder blades, and wavy. She’d even toned her muscles through her work with SPR. Skinny jeans and singlets gave her a more mature look compared to her skirts and jumpers of her high school days.
