I didn't know if the man carrying me was just fast or it was my dizziness blurring my vision. My head was constantly throbbing, and it was getting worse every second.
"Hold tight."
His soothing voice was the main reason I stayed conscious. I tried to listen and held his neck in my arms, but I kept sliding down while losing my strength. If not for his large palm suddenly holding my back from falling, my face would already meet with the ground.
"I'm sorry," I murmured, keeping my heavy eyes open. I focused on hugging his warm yet sturdy body when I looked at the path behind us and noticed something strange.
Multiple black shadows appeared and started chasing us at full speed. I thought it was my blurred vision playing tricks on me, but they grew more distinct with each second.
"Hey… There are—"
I tried to warn him when my eyes forcefully closed and the little control I had slowly slipped away from my hand. The view of the forest was replaced by a peaceful darkness.
I had a dream, a recurring one I had throughout the years.
I was standing in front of the tower's window while gazing up at the beautiful night sky. A lonely red moon stared back at me as I hugged my toy bunny. I didn't know how to describe it, but longing surged in my heart every time I saw it.
A feeling of someone missing their home.
If I blinked, my surroundings would change, and I appeared in the freezing woods with a wounded pup struggling to stand in front of me. It had glowing red eyes, the same color as the snow he was standing on. It pained me watching the blood still dripping down its paws.
He looked at me with hostility as I walked towards it despite its intimidating growls.
"It's alright, it's alright," I assured softly, but it snarled and bore its fangs at me. When I blinked again, he was already on my lap while yipping happily.
The pup licked my small palm, and I giggled softly while petting it. I enjoyed my time spending with the pup until it was time to bid it farewell.
"We will play again once you're all healed," I said with a gentle smile. "I won't forget about you."
The pup had a melancholic and reluctant look in its eyes, but it calmed down at my promise. It naturally wouldn't forget about our goodbye ritual and waited until I touched our noses together.
"Get better quickly."
Those words were always the end of our dream before I would return to reality. This time it was the same with the difference being the absence of my bed and the large arms holding me tightly.
"Wake up, Bambi!"
It took me a moment to grasp the situation while I gazed blankly at the handsome face staring at me. I was escaping from rebels and that man was trying to save my life.
"You finally woke up. Come up, I need a free hand," he ordered without giving me a break and my limbs wrapped around him on instinct. This time, I had enough strength to hold on to him on my own.
He supported my bottom with one arm, but I didn't complain as I focused on the five shadows stubbornly chasing after us. I opened my mouth to speak, but I froze when their glowing red eyes gazed deeply into my soul.
They looked human, but they had long fangs and ran faster than galloping horses. Only then did I realize we were running even faster than them with my savior skipping through the forest with ease.
"What are they...?" I murmured while lowering my head to hide from their gaze. The bloodlust in their eyes caused my body to tremble.
"We call them bloody bats or just annoying mosquitoes," he uttered while holding me closer to his chest.
I glanced at him, closed-lipped. Bats? Mosquitoes? In a human form? I wanted to ask more questions but couldn't when he suddenly cursed under his breath.
I turned my head out of instinct and my eyes squinted as I followed his gaze. The exit of the forest signaled more freedom, but I quickly found why he cursed when he came to a sudden halt.
A cliff.
"Oh, no…" I sucked in cold breath as I gazed down only to see nothing but dense fog and darkness. I could feel my heart start to race and skip a beat while I clutched his shoulder, unknowingly digging my nails into it.
We were screwed.
Some pebbles rolled down and I held my breath in anticipation of a small drop. The sound only came a few seconds later which could only mean a lethal drop.
"What now?" I asked as I gazed at him in panic. If we stopped now, we would become food to the monsters behind us. If we continued forward, it would result in an instant death unless we had nine lives.
As soon as I questioned, our pursuers stopped running as well and walked towards us in silent steps. They both gazed behind and I saw five creatures creeping closer with each second.
My savior took a deep breath as he shifted his gaze to me and then looked ahead at the forest landscape beyond the drop. His response was a helpless exhale while rubbing my back.
"We don't have a choice, dear."
I paused at his words while my eyes widened. Was he telling me jumping from this cliff was better than getting caught?
'We are so dead...' I thought in distress. 'Dead, dead, dead.'
My lower lip trembled as I opened my mouth, but no words came out. I gave up and closed my eyes with my embrace tightening around his neck.
He was right.
At the very least, we could die quickly and no one could torture us. I fought to survive until the very end.
"Just trust me," he whispered, securing my body with both his arms. "We won't die."
"Huh…?" I opened my eyes to look at him in confusion but that was one of the dumbest decisions in my life. He lowered his body to get momentum and suddenly launched forward.
I felt like time had stopped when a strong wind blew my hair in all directions and we fell into the mist. I have never screamed louder despite my stomach squeezing inside me.
"Don't let go!" he yelled as his palm settled on the back of my head and I clung to him as tightly as possible.
I was beyond scared. I couldn't die just yet. I wanted to survive and live for the sake of my parents who died for me.
"Hold tight and don't let go! I need my hands," he ordered again but my mind barely registered his words. My tears blocked my vision and the wind locked my ears.
All I could do was hold on to him and brace myself for the impact.