The unicorns break all at once, a wall of white and silver and terror that surges forward like a wave. They bolt toward the far end of the enclosure, muscles bunching and hooves tearing through straw and earth, the sound of them deafening.. Lanternlight flashes across their flanks, painting wild streaks of gold across their bodies as they gallop, desperate to outrun what they cannot understand.
Lena runs too, her figure caught in their wake, but their speed is beyond anything she can match. Within moments she’s left at the tail end of the herd, swallowed by their chaos; the sound of her boots and their hooves melding into one long, feverish rhythm. When she stumbles, the world seems to tilt, dust and dirt rising in choking clouds as she hits the ground. By the time she pushes herself up, the unicorns are already gone ahead, their pale shapes vanishing into the folds of shadow and mist.
For one fleeting instant, it’s quiet again.
Then the air splits open.
The sea panther lunges from the side, its massive form a blur of motion, wet hide glistening in the lanternlight. Claws rake down her back, slicing through fabric and flesh alike, the heat of the pain white-hot and immediate. The force will send her forward into the dirt, breath ripped from her lungs as the weight of the creature lands atop her, pinning her with terrifying ease. There’s a sound—low, guttural, almost mournful—as its jaws find her neck. The pressure builds, sharp teeth pressing against skin, muscle, bone—and then everything stops.
No pain. No sound. No fear. Only an instant of stillness amidst the lantern light, the chaos fading into quiet as the Sea Panther lifts its head once more, blood dripping from its jaws, its horns catching the light.
The Sea Panther has killedLena.
~FIN
Lena runs too, her figure caught in their wake, but their speed is beyond anything she can match. Within moments she’s left at the tail end of the herd, swallowed by their chaos; the sound of her boots and their hooves melding into one long, feverish rhythm. When she stumbles, the world seems to tilt, dust and dirt rising in choking clouds as she hits the ground. By the time she pushes herself up, the unicorns are already gone ahead, their pale shapes vanishing into the folds of shadow and mist.
For one fleeting instant, it’s quiet again.
Then the air splits open.
The sea panther lunges from the side, its massive form a blur of motion, wet hide glistening in the lanternlight. Claws rake down her back, slicing through fabric and flesh alike, the heat of the pain white-hot and immediate. The force will send her forward into the dirt, breath ripped from her lungs as the weight of the creature lands atop her, pinning her with terrifying ease. There’s a sound—low, guttural, almost mournful—as its jaws find her neck. The pressure builds, sharp teeth pressing against skin, muscle, bone—and then everything stops.
No pain. No sound. No fear. Only an instant of stillness amidst the lantern light, the chaos fading into quiet as the Sea Panther lifts its head once more, blood dripping from its jaws, its horns catching the light.
The Sea Panther has killed
~FIN
