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 Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2023 1:57 am
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Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2023 2:43 am
Altair woke with a groan, eyes squinting in the darkness as he stood up from the ground - what the heck did he do last night that he ended up here without any recollection?
He was in the middle of trying to trace his steps when the voice cut through his thoughts - and his pounding head - snapping him into reality and focusing his senses. His nostrils flared as he spun around - looking for signs of the voice's owner. Nothing.
GET OUT.
The words rang in his head and he didn't need a second form of encouragement. Altair wasn't a coward by any means - but he wasn't stupid. Without knowing who his enemy was there was no sense in picking a fight. He was too tired to fly and even if he had the strength the forest was too dense and he didn't know where the creature was lurking. He found a break in the trees and headed for it, sensing something following him at a distance, watching him. He had no choice but to continue on the path he was taking.
He came to the edge of a small cliff - not high enough to be deadly but high enough that it gave him caution. He looked to his left and right to find another route but the ledge seemed to go on for too long to make the trip worth it. He knew there was no chance of turning back. He flared his wings and they shuddered - too weak to make enough movement to lift him down but perhaps they could help break his fall.
Altair heard a snarl behind him and he took a deep breath, flared his wings and jumped. His wings slowed his descent a little but he still landed at the bottom with a tumble and enough force that he knew he was going to bruise. He gasped for air - the fall winding him in the process. There was no time for him to recover - he heard a cruel laughter behind him and pushed himself to his feet - continuing forward to what he hoped was the exit.
It seemed like he had been travelling for hours - there was no way to tell. The canopy was so thick he wasn't sure if he could even see the sky beyond it even in the middle of the day. Eventually, he came upon a river - though that seemed to gentle a word for the raging current that was before him. Spring melts had sent the river raging and he knew he had no chance in swimming across. He wandered to the right, following the current back to its source and eventually came to the base of a water fall. Here, there were large rocks protruding from the water. With enough luck and balance he may be able to cross. He stared for a few moments.
Suddenly, at his back came a rush of air as if something had swiped at him. He needed no more encouragement and he jumped onto the rock. A mistake, he slipped and his leg scraped against the sharp edges of the rock. He scrambled, pulling himself up as the current splashed against his hooves. His wings flared - the muscles screaming out in protest - and he jumped, using them to keep balance. One by one, he made his way across only stumbling a few more times.
Blood was trickling down his leg at a steady flow and he continued his journey with a limp. Time passed slowly and every step was agony but he persisted. Finally, head, he saw it - a pinprick of light that grew larger the further he walked. Pain in his leg forgotten, he ran coming to a skidding stop as he got closer. There - the exit, clear as the day that waited beyond but blocking the way were webs - some as large as he with threads as thick as the stems of a flower. He couldn't see the spiders that had made the webs but he knew they were nearby - watching him. He heard gnashing behind him - snarling and chittering to his left and right. Something breathed heavily so close to him he felt he could feel it on the back of his neck - smell the fetid breath. He closed his eyes and ran - shuddering as the webs stuck to him. None kept him in place, luckily but they tangled around his body and he could do nothing but hope no friends came with him. Finally, he felt no webs wrapping around him and he stopped running - feeling the warmth of the sun shining down on his face. He turned behind him and watched the edge of the woods, wondering if he'd succeeded in escaping on time.
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