*I own no character except my OC and the hapless, mostly nameless victims. This is a redo of a previous story I started that I just didn't like how it was going. Sorry for any inconvenience. Let's begin.
Wha… where am I? Cool and damp, whatever it was, her face was resting against it. The cold below battled the oppressive heat that cloaked her exhausted body as she tried, for several minutes, to lift her head up. Just barely managing to lift her head up a few inches, she squinted through bleary eyes at her surroundings. This place… what is it? Dizziness washed over her and forced her to drop her head back down. Upon impact, something rustled underneath her. Slowly, as to not excite her nauseous state, she peeked downwards. Bright reds, yellows and earthy browns assaulted her vision. She had to close her eyes almost immediately. Leaves? I'm outside? Over an unmarked period of time, she gained enough strength to lift her head from the ground- and found that she was indeed outside- and looked around. Blinking away the last of the blurred vision and nausea, she took in her surroundings.
Enormous, towering trees on all sides, their leaves scattered about the mossy forest floor floated into her vision while the threat of rain overhead thundered painfully in her ears. Feeling that getting rained on would be extremely uncomfortable, she forced herself to stand. She found it funny that the ground still seemed too close even when standing. Wait… what was that? Holding perfectly still, she cocked her head and tuned into the distant sound. Thumping? Low and pulsing, it was like something was stomping along as they walked. At least, she assumed it walked because the sound kept a steadily moving pace.
The longer she listened, the hotter her body grew and this strange gnashing feeling swirled in the pit of her stomach. Hungry…I'm so hungry. Stumbling along on shaky limbs, she edged towards the thumping. With each step she grew stronger and faster. Soon she was in a dead sprint; the pulsing all but exploding in her ears. Where, where Where Where WHEREWHEREWHEREWHERE! The heat was unbearable now. Red streaked the outer edges of her vision. She rounded a tree. There! There was the source of the pulsing. Oh god, if sound had a taste it would be delicious. Unable to control herself any longer, she leapt for the pulsing-
An echo sang around her, wrapping around her body and whistling through the trees as a warm liquid splashed along her arms and face. That pulsing sped up; mixed with the distant but lovely echo, she felt blissful. Color gave way to deep red as she bathed herself in it. Amazing. She sighed to herself contentedly. Her strange hunger became sated. Abruptly, the pulsing slowed until it stopped altogether, taking the pleasing echo with it.
Bewilderment quickly turned to grim horror once her vision adjusted to the grizzly scene at her feet. Blood cloaked almost all of her upper body, matching the crimson of her hair. Torn flesh hid beneath her elongated nails and her mouth felt sticky. Retching violently, more blood and flesh splattered out before her. Severed pieces of bone floated amongst the carnage. What really got to her was the lifeless stare of the shredded victim. Long blonde hair, matted with dirt and drying blood, splayed out behind the woman's face- which was frozen in perpetual terror. Below the slender neck was a broken, exposed rib cage of missing organs and flesh. That's all she noticed before taking off into the woods.
God knows how long she ran. Blood caked on her body, pinching her with each bound. Soon the rush of water caught her attention and she immediately sprinted towards it. Not a minute later, she found a shallow river flowing through a smooth rock bed guarded by huge pines on either side. Stumbling into the knee deep water, she scrubbed furiously at her body. Blood flowed down stream as it slipped from her being. Long after she was free of the horrifying substance, she could still smell it, still taste it…
Panting from exertion, she stood in the chilling water for what seemed like ages. Closing her eyes, her mind calmed and pushed the scene amongst the trees deep into the recesses of her mind. Once she trusted herself to open her eyes, she immediately regretted the decision. Staring up at her from the water's reflection was a monstrous beast with haunting emerald-shaded eyes With the moon glowing just behind the figure. Jumping at the sight, the image became distorted, but only for a short while. Again, confronted by the creature looking up at her, she studied it.
A feline face framed by long, very human-looking, crimson hair from which two long ears protruded; twitching slightly like a rabbit's might. Attached to the face was a wiry muscled neck which flowed into lean shoulders, a sloping back and powerful hind legs that matched the leaner, front ones. Beyond her haunches was a long tail tipped with the same crimson hair higher up on her body that stopped just between the shoulders. Tearing her eyes away from the reflection, she picked up a back foot, finding a feline paw with non-retractable claws. Repeating the process with her right front foot, she found it to look more like a human hand- long fingers and a palm- but there was padding on the underside and long, slightly curved talons tipped the fingertips. Covering her entire body was a thick coat of fur so black that purple hues glinted across the top layer as she moved. Engrossed with looking at this strange creature, she couldn't fathom this beast and her were the same entity.
She refused to believe it.
Quickly leaving the water and the reflection, she climbed up onto the shore line. Exhaustion took her and she laid down on the smooth stones. She didn't even have the strength to shake herself dry. Hunger-what she called the burning sensation- began to pool in her body, but she rejected it. Images of her earlier experience haunted her thoughts as her eyes drooped.
What…. Who am I? No one answered.
Just as her eyes closed, she thought she saw a figure watching her from among the trees farther up the bank. Tall. She thought to herself. She wouldn't be able to confirm her sighting because slumber took her then; sending her tumbling into a sea of unconsciousness.
*Let me know what you think I have plenty of ideas as to where this should head…