Escape (Short Story)

The correct path to chose seemed obvious, yet she hesitated still. She played the options back over in her mind. She didn't want to make a second mistake again, she might not be so lucky this time.

And time was running out. She had to get this done and over with before it returned, that much was clear. She had only barely eluded it last time, and still felt the chill caress of it's presence. It was a harbinger of things to come.

The pill hadn't helped like she thought it would. It merely hampered her awareness. She nearly hadn't sensed it in time to escape it's overwhelming will. No, she would have to be more cautious this time, more aware of her surroundings. The consequences were too high.

So she made her decision and quickly continued on, hoping she had chosen wisely.  The afternoon was wearing down, it would soon be dusk. And in the twilight, it would resume it's pursuit.

The steady incline of the terrain was slowly wearing her down, but she couldn't backtrack. She'd tried that the day before and gotten snared in a trap that she barely broke free of before it was after her again. She didn't want to chance that again.  She felt too weak to struggle free of another.

Twilight had come, the last glimmers of daylight quickly fading away. There was a new moon this night. It would be pitch black beneath the forest canopy, so she decided to travel along the tree line, where she could navigate by starlight. It was no use trying to hide in the dark, it could sense her presence. Much like she could sense it's presence by the icy chill that crept through her bones when it was near.

She felt she was making good progress, when suddenly she felt the presence. Damn! ...how had it found her so quickly? This would be a long night indeed, and she was already weary. How long would this go on? How long could she endure the constant strain?

There was no time to think now. She could hear the rustling of the brush not far behind her. She started running faster. She had moved farther inside the tree line, hoping it could not track her as well in the darker wood, but now she was having a hard time seeing herself. Her heart was pounding now and she was having a hard time keeping her breath. And she started hearing an eerie sound, like a dark sinister laughter, as if from off in the distance.

It was all she could do now to keep from stumbling on the underbrush, or running into the trees, yet she could hear it getting closer, feel it's will trying to break her resolve. She was ...

Suddenly the blackness of the forest broke and she found herself running up upon a rock precipice. Too late, she realized what she was seeing and tried to stop herself. But she had been running as hard as she could, her mind thinking nothing but fear and escape. She managed to slow herself down somewhat, but her last footfall landed on the edge of the rock and slipped. The forward momentum of her doomed escape run carried her over the edge.

And that distant laughter was deafening as she fell.

~Greg~