OPEN NOVELLA CONTEST - LONG LISTED
Safety was never an option.
She has nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide. Nowhere safe to reside. No matter how far she runs or how quiet she hides, they always find her. She will never be free of her hunters. Theresa k...
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"Quickly, I think it went this way."
"Are we sure it's not human? I'm tired of following your false lead."
"I know it is one of them. I saw its ears. Come, quick. She saw me before. She knows we're coming after her."
One of them grins, a laugh breaking through his chest. "Oh, I can't wait for the coin on this one's head."
The rest of the tavern cheers, smashing their mugs down on the benches, leaving them abandoned. Almost everyone rushes out of the dark room, snatching their swords, daggers, bows, axes, arrows, crossbows and spears. Only a few left behind; the ones too old to hunt.
Kane lead them down the street, running with his sword unsheathed and face full of unadorned rage. But that rage only existed because of his fear. Though no one would ever admit it, they all feared them. That didn't stop them from shouting as they charge out of the town, beckoning more to join them, for the women and children to cheer from them. The Hunters of Caleria were worshipped by its king and queen, for they were the protectors, no matter how idiotic and reckless they were.
For once, though, Kane was right. It was one of them. A being that resembled a human, but had long, pointed ears and unnaturally coloured eyes. They were rare these days, or at least the villagers rarely saw them so close. But this one seems to be daring, or just very very stupid.
She was neither of them.
Safety was never an option, and it never would be. Her feet pound the earth, covering the ground faster than anyone else ever could. The shoes she wears are thin. They do nothing to protect her from the stones that cut her soles. She races out of the village, too scared to scold herself for losing track of time.
The woods ahead will protect her, even if for a little while. The hunters won't follow her in there. There have been too many tales about the monsters that lurk in the shadows. She knows they're nothing but tales. Even if they are mildly true, it is because she is the monster.
The sky greys above them, bringing unwelcoming rain. It'll anger the villagers, but only because it'll make it easier for her to hide. If only she didn't have to hide.
Theresa leaps over a fallen down tree, something in her heart aching. She is agile as she runs deeper into the woods, letting the darkness of its core swallow her whole. But she isn't out of their reach, not yet. Their shouts and angry cries still follow her, bruising her skin, pulling her hair. She has never felt peace, not truly. Nor has she ever felt safe. Too many want her dead, but she is too afraid to die. Even though she knows she'll be just as lonely in death as she is in life.
The sun and its light are gone now, but it doesn't affect her vision. Everything is still clear and bright, but she knows the humans cannot see like she can. If she could make herself smile, she would. But she hasn't smiled for the past eighteen years, if that age is even correct. How should she know? She's always been alone, for as long as she can remember.
