Her Tiny World

Chapter 22. Chased

Mina

I was paralyzed with fear as the large opossum opened its mouth full of pointy teeth at me. The animal probably saw me as its next meal. Even a few drops of drool dripped from its tongue. I grabbed the strap of the bag across my chest with both hands, twisting it. It was smelling my fear in the air when it growled and ran towards me. Without thinking I turned and ran along the road as fast as I could, but every now and then my feet would step on small stones in the grass, which slowed me down. Behind me I could hear the quick, slender steps of the beast that didn't struggle with the ground, unlike me. Suddenly the animal jumped on me, sending me to the ground. A drop of drool landed on me, making me shiver with the heat of it. That terrible giant mouth was on me, ready to snap at me. So I started kicking the animal's face with my legs in desperation.

"I'M NOT FOOD! I'M NOT FOOD! I'M NOT FOOD!"

I screamed as I put all my strength into every kick I landed on the beast. The kicks left the animal bewildered, causing it to back away from me. I was free. Soon the kicks would lose their effect so I couldn't waste a second. I got up and ran as fast as I could. As much as I distanced myself from the predator I wasn't safe yet. Further ahead there was an old hollow tree trunk, completely dry and cracked lying on the ground. The entrance was flush with the ground, but the length was raised straight up, supported by some large stones. I won't be able to keep up the run for long. Maybe I could lose it there. That kind of place was perfect for scary bugs and snakes, but even scared I didn't have time to be careful so I just went inside the tunnel. Although it was a dry place, in some parts there were cracks wide enough where I could easily get my entire leg stuck. Walking the slope to the other side was a little tricky due to some moss that had grown there, which made me slide sideways frequently. Sometimes I had to get on my hands and knees on the ground to keep from rolling backwards. I was almost at the exit, I just needed to go up a little more. When I got to the end of it I stopped at the edge of the trunk. There was nowhere to go, just a drop to a pile of dry leaves down there. It wasn't a fatal fall, I would come out alive of it, but it could hurt me badly. I was thinking about what to do when I heard the animal growl again. I slowly turned back and saw the beast coming after me. I needed to throw myself or I would be caught right there. So I took a deep breath and jumped.

I threw myself on top of the pile of leaves, sinking into them. Luckily I didn't feel anything when I hit it. I cleared some out of the way so I could get out of there. The opossum was up high looking around. I ran back to get away from it when something held me in place, throwing my arms and legs forward with the sudden stop. I became aware of the animal's breath on my neck, making my eyes widen in fear and my heart race in my chest. It had me by the bag. The predator violently shook me sideways, making the world a blur. Then my body slipped out of the bag, being jolted away straight to the ground. It felt like all my bones had been broken at the same time. I wanted to throw up, but only cried.

When the animal realized I wasn't there, it came after me. Next to me were some roots intertwined with enough room for me in the middle. If I got there it wouldn't be able to reach me. I got up as fast as I could and squeezed through the roots. For a moment I felt safe, but then the animal got my arm, sinking its teeth into my flesh. The pain was excruciating. I guess anything alive in the world could hear me scream at that moment. I screamed a terrible scream of pain which was mixed with crying. As I struggled to get free I only made it even worse. The skin where the teeth were was ripped as I pulled on one side and the beast on the other. It felt like a serrated knife was cutting me. I screamed louder and cried louder. The pain burned from inside out. My throat scratched from so much effort I made for the voice to come out. Blood trickled down my arm to my shoulders, the animal's muzzle was getting covered in red. It was going to rip my arm off. I groped in my belt with my other arm and took my knife out so I used all my strength to hold it tight and took it right into the animal's face. I plunged my blade into it as deep as I could. As I screamed the beast let go of me, squirming with loud shrieks. I saw as the large animal was struggling with my knife trying to pull it out of its flesh. I threw myself into the space, falling convulsing and in great pain inside. My whole body seemed to crash all at once, focusing on the pain. I cried and shook and bled and screamed. All at once. I propped myself up on my good arm and sat up with great effort, leaning my body against the wall. I pressed the injured arm to my side, trying to do anything to keep the pain away. Though the crying was ceasing, my arm still ached and burned as hell, but in the dark I couldn't tell if it was still bleeding or not.