Hunter's Prey

Chapter 1

Darkness crept into the forest. The trees once a rich brown and lively green now stood dark and ominous. The beating of her heart and breath was quick and erratic. Tears ran down her face and blurred her vision. Panic and fear coursed through her body. Several low hanging branches scraped and cut her arms and legs as she ran through. She was being chased.            

Her fingers clutched the bracelet she was so intent on recovering. The bracelet he had given her. The bracelet he had made for her. Her mind briefly going back to that day, that very special day. That day they had spent swimming at the waterfall.

" It's beautiful," she said.

"Not as beautiful as you," he asserted.

She smiled at Kieran, her sky blue eyes looking lovingly into his warm brown ones. Her eyes sparkling as she did. Kieran had been her friend since childhood and her intended. She knew of no one as kind or as genuine as him.

"I made it from Ademan stones," he proudly said as she smiled even wider.

"You didn't have to go to the ruins for me," she said, sounding concerned. The voyage to the ruins was perilous. It took three days and the path up through the mountains was the fastest route. It was a climb up a very steep mountain and a fall could mean your death. The look on her face made it all worth it to him.

The Ademan stones were found in the ruins. The stones glow a rainbow of colors. They were of some significance to the people long ago. But that significance was lost to time. The ruins were a place from the past back when their civilization had strife. Those people knew of war and hunger. Her people were taught about the ruins, about the days of old, about how civilization fell. The people were different now. She thought of that as she was clearly being chased by an outsider. No person would have dared stalk her, chase her and no wild animal would have bothered with her for this long. She knew the animals that hunted this forest, how they hunted, when they hunted, what they hunted, and who they hunted.

She ran faster and faster through the forest she knew. The forest where she spent so many happy days. Those days so different from now, a nightmare come to life. The laughter from those times echoing in her brain as she ran. Her luminous dress doing nothing to camouflage her. The dress riding high on her thighs shown bright white through the darkness. Streaks in her dark brown hair were also illuminated, as were the few freckles she had on her face and body. This was a common appearance among her people.

The hunter was close. She had seen a pair of glowing green eyes that made her shiver when recovering her precious bracelet near the waters edge at the waterfall. Whoever or whatever was close. She could feel it. It did not matter how fast she ran. The hunter seemed to match her speed. In desperation she stopped running and hid behind a tree. Then the realization of how it was impossible for her to hide occurred to her and she began to run again.

"Stop." She heard the voice loud and clear, but did not understand the language. It was a man's voice. A human voice. It was deep and authoritative.

Unfortunately, she did stop. The hunter approached. He quietly stalked towards her. She couldn't see or hear him, but she sensed him. A gust of wind came through where she stood and chilled her. He got closer and struck out his hand lightly touching her dress that flowed in the breeze. She froze. Her breathing stopped. He walked around to face her. His eyes were glowing green. His hair and appearance looked wild. She had never seen another man that looked like him. He was tall with a stocky build. His hair and beard were long and unkempt reaching his shoulders. He wore the hides of other animals as his clothes. He looked intently at her. She felt mesmerized by his eyes and dared not to move.

He approached her as he did when he knew he had captured his prey. Slowly and methodically he moved towards her. Although, something was different this time. He felt something deep within him, a feeling, a sensation that he pushed aside. Her big blue eyes shown brightly back at him. The freckles around her eyes were glowing and only seemed to drawn him in more towards her eyes. They were mesmerizing. Her pale skin looked almost luminous in the darkness. He had already noticed her hair and now seeing it up close, watching it move around her in the wind, he appreciated it more. Her dress which he couldn't help but touch was soft and left his hand tingling after he touched it. She was magnificent.

He studied her intently for some time. She still did not dare breathe as they stared at one another. She clutched the bracelet tighter and tighter in her hand wanting Kieran and silently cursing herself for losing it earlier. Some of the Ademan stones were a little pointy and cut through her flesh. She felt the blood in her palm. Then felt it drip down her hand to her fingers finally hitting the forest floor. She was lightheaded and when she saw his hand move up to her face, everything went dark.

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Thank you for reading. My apologies for any mistakes. I will be setting up an Instagram page pretty soon and I would love to interact with everyone here or there.