Bite Me.

Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

         

  I remember white. The forest floor layered in white and the treetops cloaked in the thick frozen water. Snow pelted the earth relentlessly and cruelly as I cried out into the darkness, but could hear no reply. My fur was stiff with snow and my eyes and nose crusted over with ice. I was weak and tired.

The cries grew fainter and fainter, the wind picking them up and carrying them away. I trudged forward through the thick snow blanket struggling to keep my footing. My unsteady foot, numbed long ago from the cold, went forward and as I pressed my weight down I felt the ground below me come loose.

I fell.

Tumbling and hurdling forward into white nothingness.

I did not arise. I couldn't. It hurt so much everywhere. And then in the distance I could hear something. At first it was soft like the grumbling of a river. Then it grew stronger. Until it finally grew to a terrible roar. I looked to my left to see a light. It was moving forward quickly through the blizzard. It scattered the snowflakes before it as it screamed forward through the snow closer and closer.

As I watched it come closer I felt something deep inside me stir. Like a flame growing inside. It spread to every cell in my body, vibrating. My muscles twitched and ached, my toes curled as my limbs strained against me. It was like something inside was fighting to burst out of me.

Without realizing it my foot moved forward. It was hesitant and careful sinking deep into the snow. I then found myself moving slowly forward as the feeling overtook growing stronger inside of me. And finally I was standing, moving closer to the roaring object. Standing turned to walking, walking turned to running and as I moved faster and faster all I could hear was a voice that became more and more incessant. It screamed in my head urging me faster and faster and faster. It was only one simple word.

Run!

***

            I woke up with a start, jerking up into the shade of an old oak. My lungs burned as I panted swiping a hand over my sweaty forehead. It was quiet all about me yet all I could hear was the blood rushing through my ears and the wheezing of my lungs. I looked around the serene forest clearing, seeing no one other than myself and a few sparrows fluttering away that I must have frightened. I let out a long, tired sigh and moved back to lean up against the tree.

The calming effect of having something solid behind me and supporting me caused me to stretch out like a lazy cat and enjoy the feeling of the crisp grass tickling my backside.

            Slowly and almost uncertainly the birds started back up with their songs again as the small animals rustled in the underbrush and went back to scavenging and such. The soft sounds of the woods was slowly returned to its normal rhythm as I peered up through the overreaching branches of the oak tree.

I looked down and watched as the ground was speckled with random spots of sunlight that were able to creep through the layers of branch-like arms and leaves. I moved my hand forward until my fingertips touched one of the specks of light. It was odd. Feeling the warmth of the sunlight only on the tips of those fingers as the rest of my body was chilled by the shadow of the tree.

Odd.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

I looked down to see my beeper going off. I reached down and lifted it up to read the three words moving across the rectangle screen.

Gym. Fight. Emergency.

****

"You ASSHOLE!"