I didn't so much as dare to glance over my shoulder as the beast let out a low snarl behind me. My back pressed against the trunk of a tree, I had stopped breathing, trying to avoid it catching on my scent. My traitorous heart though- it thundered in my chest so loud and fast, all I could do was pray to the mother the thing was deaf.

"You think you can hide from me, girl?" The sound of its voice was unlike anything I had ever heard. Each word accentuated in an other-worldly snarl, hatred and death dripping from every syllable. The sound of its scraping steps came closer and closer, accompanied by the smell of rotting flesh and saltiness.

I could taste it on my tongue. Feel the panic in my aching bones and rushing blood, as it threatened to overwhelm me. My gut recoiled and I might have thrown up, had my body not stilled so utterly. Every single muscle locked in place, bound by some primal instinct not to move an inch.

I saw my life flashing before me as a razor-sharp claw scraped against the bark of the tree. I could feel its reverberations against my back.

This is how I would die. Alone, in the woods. Torn to shreds by one of the faceless creatures hunting in these territories. I wondered if Maranthe would come looking for me after. If she would break out of camp, defying any and all orders, just to find the remains of what used to be her friend, scattered in some cave. It awoke something in me. The thought of her, having to face that scene. Going through the loss and grieve all over again. Only this time there would be no one left to find her, beneath all that numbness. No one to sit with her through the nightmares and terrors whenever she closed her eyes.

"Time's up"

I slashed my knife up the same second the beast finally lunched from behind the tree. There was the tiniest hint of surprise in those terrible cold eyes, replaced almost immediately by a gust of rage as the blade slid right into its right shoulder. I was covered in reeking black goo as we both slammed to the floor, one of its claws buried deep into the flesh of my arm. I screamed, but allowed myself not a single second of hesitation, turning my knife in its shoulder. Two rows of long curved teeth snapped shut and I barely managed to pull back in time for them to miss my throat.

Every fiber in my body screamed for me to run, but with the weight of it on top, I barely managed to move, kicking and thrashing against its grip on me. The thing let out sharp hiss as it severed the claws from my arm, angling the paw to strike again and with some raw strength, I hadn't known was still buried within me, I leaped out from underneath its body and found myself sprinting through the trees. A roar, loud enough to wake the dead echoed behind and I knew it was already scrambling back on its feet.

I couldn't feel my left arm as I ran through the forest. My feet carrying me faster than I ever thought possible. The muscles in my back contorting again and again in an instinctual impulse to unfold those wings. Free them from the spells and magic that had bound them together and leap to the skies. To no use. Whoever had set those spells in place had done their job well.

Thunderous steps hurtled after me, so much faster than my own. There was no outrunning this. No hiding from it in the forgotten broom closet in the back of the training pit. No way of talking myself out of it by making up some smart excuse.

This wasn't the males, beating me up, five on one, for daring to train with them. It wasn't commander Trysan, assigning me to yet another round of senseless chores, with the sole purpose of wearing me out. This was death, and it was about to rip me from this world where I stood if I didn't pull myself together. Because despite being born to unknown parents, despite being smaller and slower and less strong than all the males, it was still Illyrian blood that run through my veins. And they would never be able to keep that from me.

I dug my heels into the earth and moss beneath me, turning in a fluid motion towards what was meant to be my end and erupted.

The ground went splattering in shards of wood and dirt, sending both us and several trees being hauled into different directions. I barely caught a glimpse of fur, claws, and thick black blood before I heard its bones cracking as the main impact found its target. I could feel the heat and power singing my hands, all the way up through my arms and to my chest where the magic had ripped through my body. Its burn was whipped away by the icy autumn wind as I sored through the air, taking one last look up at the stars, before my body hit the ground.

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I'll continue writing as soon as I find the time. Feel free to leave reviews, they always motivate me ;-)