Wicked Yokai Prince

RUN

Soon, she was running, the crisp air burned her lungs, the temperature plunged cooler and the fog that crept slowly now rising up covering the ground. She could hardly see, fogs swarmed like water rising getting thicker and thicker until seeing itself became so difficult. She could hardly see where she's going. 

Rin couldn't discern beyond a few inches before her but she kept her limbs moving throwing one foot in front of another.  She knew she couldn't stay there, she needed to get out of the forest before evening chase after her. Running and running. Huffing until her lungs burned and her chest ached, but she kept on running. 

A sudden prick on her skin made a hair-raising sensation, yelping as the drumming of her tireless legs pounded on the ground even faster. 

Think of something else, don't be scared. You'll get out of here somehow. 

Then there was laughter, eerie sound of children laughing sent chills down her spine. Cold sweat drifted down her temple, heart rate rushing, gasping for air and more air, chasing her way out without turning over her shoulders. 

She felt eyes latched onto her, watching her, sending swarms of goosebumps swarming her skin, until the fog became so thick that it looked like a white and grey wall, floating steady, and yet, moving, preventing her from getting anywhere. 

She's trapped. 

Rin sucked a deep breath, her eyes surveyed the wall before her. That's when she heard a crack of leaves, rolling of sands, and other noises she can't describe. She took a glance over her shoulder and witnessed something out of the ordinary. 

The world behind her is changing, uprooting trees tumbling on the ground. Roof began to rise and houses grew from the ground side by side birthing a ghoshly village. 

Another sound grabbed her attention whirring herself to the direction of the sound. Lanterns and lamp posts sprouted like trees, tracing the streets with soft flickering of their dancing lights.

Soon grey globs rose like smoke from the ground taking forms of creatures she only read in books as a child. Some of them took forms of humans combined with animals, and some were as innately natural as demons and ogres. They strolled casually passed her vaguely paying attention to the human with frightened eyes, frozen like a dear struck on a headlight in the middle of busy spirits walking by. 

Until an eye contact, a girl with whiskers dressed in old fashioned kimono, her eyes were slits like a cat, but her mouth were shapely like human's. Her eyes widened with fright just as much as Rin's. 

Rin soon realized she'd been spirited away, letting out a scream of terror that captured everyone's attention. 

A loud commotion, the parading spirits stalled and took all their attention to her. Suddenly the air had become polluted of her smell, spirits sniffing the swarm the rare scent of human pungent. All eyes flew to her direction, curious glances from the spirits around, whispering and murmuring about the human who got spirited away in their small village.

A shrill wail drew her attention from not too far off distance, plucking prickly eyes away from her when the wail was joined by other loud voices of upset spirits, screaming, some protesting, and others were outright voices of anger.

She knew she needed to get out of there as she bolted and tried to escape but a hand landed on her shoulder. Then a strange man in white robe appeared beside her, she was hardly able to take a glance when an orb of light blinded her from seeing him. 

"Don't be scared now." The spirit groaned as he guided her closer. "Just keep walking one foot over another." 

His voice had been soothing and they were coaxing.

"That's right," he continued soft and melodic. "One foot in front over another."

Rin followed until she felt her foot lifted. Her foot raised from the ground and then the other, taking strides in the air as they began to hover going higher and higher until the breeze from the sky ruffled her hair. 

They were flying.