The Hunt

A lone hiker celebrates reaching a summit,
As they bask in the rewards of the afternoon sun,
A deep growl echoes up the valley through the trees,
After looking in the direction of the sound they spin back,
Suddenly startled by a second growl behind them,
Much louder, much closer,
To escape, the hiker has nowhere to go but down,
Yet every path is watched.

Beset on all sides by those hunting them,
Lurking in the black shadows beyond the trees,
Panic sets in, their breathing becomes shallow,
And they run, forging a path through the undergrowth beside them,
They shall not follow the worn paths,
Where the scent of countless travellers lingers,
Downward through brambles and black thorns,
Slicing and slashing their skin as they run, at times tumbling.

Their descent stops suddenly so they can catch their breath,
Their lungs burning with exertion and fear,
Concealed behind a large black tree trunk, they listen,
They hear light steps to their left and right,
Cautious, patient but persistent,
Noticing distant movement beyond the rolling mist,
They see one of their pursuers,
Large, black-furred and quadrupedal,
Gleaming orange eyes, a black scaled serpent-like tail swaying,
Its head resembled a black alligator’s,
Wider, heavier, and unnaturally broad,
Its powerful canine legs ending in large raptor-like obsidian talons.

It slowly raises its head to release a throaty guttural call,
Repeated short bursts, not quite a howl, not quite a growl,
It is calling, communicating,
Several other beasts in the forest respond to the call,
With the late afternoon sun fading on the steep hillside,
It suddenly echoes with a symphony of terrible beasts,
They run, and the hunt begins anew.

Their descent is crazed, running at a frenzied pace,
Lush wet ferns and leaves slap at their face, legs and body,
Through now heavy mists, as light fades deep in the valley,
They can hear the creatures behind them,
Running, growling, snarling, hungering,
They let out a terrified, almost inhuman scream,
And as they barge through a large fern cluster, they plummet,
The ground disappearing beneath them,
They find themselves falling from the forest edge, flailing, screaming,
Before suddenly crashing into dark icy waters below,
Driven back into the Ocean of Dreams.