Snippets of Eventide

No.1: Waking in Eventide

She crept from the back of the couch and leapt to the coffee table, chuckling as I doubled back. "He thought he'd killed me once, but he's foolish to think I would be gone forever." Her voice grated on my ears as she stepped closer, sitting on the very edge of the table. "Now, my question is this..." Her tail lashed and she cocked her head. "Will you be clever and leave here, tell them both you've found nothing and keep your sorry life, or," She bared needle teeth and razor claws. "Will you throw your life away for some misguided sense of purpose?"

My heart pounded in my chest, slamming against my ribs. I glanced towards the door. I couldn't just tell him he was crazy, tell him there was nothing here to worry about. I swallowed, slowly bringing my eyes back to the cat. There was no way I could take her on my own. I needed Ginger.

I nodded. "Alright," my voice shook. "I never saw you, I'll tell them I didn't find anything."

The cat only watched as I turned towards the door. My legs trembled as I took the first step.

"Liar."

My blood ran cold and I whirled as the cat leapt, claws stretched towards my face. My scream cut off as my vision flooded black.

#

I was in a forest void of colour. Greyscale trees swayed below a colorless sky as I laid flat on my back amongst tall, monochrome grasses swaying in a wind that didn't reach my skin. Slowly, I pulled myself to sit, and finally to stand. I shuddered. There was something wrong, something so wrong about this place.

"You think I can't tell when a mortal is lying?"

The cat's voice came from above my head. She stared down at me, blue eyes burning into mine. Black and white fur stood out against the grey of the world. Her tail draped over the thin branches below, flicking at the tip.

"Where am I?" My voice shook like the colourless leaves on the trees, but I tried to put as much command as I could into my words. "Bring me back, now."

But the cat only laughed, mechanical and heartless. "It's too late for that now." She narrowed her eyes to a cold glare. "You're doing to die here."

I opened my mouth to protest, but a cold breeze from behind made me whirl. Something was moving, approaching, through the trees. Something hovering just over the ground. No... I squinted. Swimming. Swimming though the air like it was water. It got closer and my heart skipped.

It was a shark, long as a school bus with a mouth full of razor teeth. It's leisurely swim slowed as soon as it met my eyes. It seemed to grin, mouth stretching too wide for it's body. Then it charged.

I screamed, scrambling out of the way as best I could. It chased after me, weaving it's way around trees and bush as I ran. My feet pounded against the hard ground and my breath came fast and raw in my lungs.

There had to be somewhere to hide. There had to be somewhere. There had to be.

But I ran and ran and the forest stretched on and on, an endless expanse of grey trees and grass and sky. The shark was gaining on me. It was getting closer. I was tired. I was slowing. My lungs and legs burned.

I stumbled.

I fell hard on the ground, rolling and slamming into a thin tree trunk. The shark charged and I squeezed my eyes shut.

But nothing happened.

My eyes flew open to Dakota standing over me arms stretched out towards the shark. It swam as if in slow motion, it's charge reduced to a crawl. Dakota panted, ribs heaving as he stared unwavering at the shark.