For the first half of her existence, Zuri had spent her time looking over her shoulder out of dread that her homicidal history would find her in a hidden place.
She had exerted every effort to make it go away and leave her life. She made an effort to alter her life and take a different direction, but this did not cause her heart to reach a state of serenity.
She had repeatedly urged herself to let go since whatever she believed was still chasing her wasn't there, but her terror always overshadowed her thoughts and the soothing mantras she spoke to herself.
Zuri observed that as she made her way back to her alleged apartment, she kept checking behind her in an effort to get there securely. She was no longer breathing evenly, and it was 12:40 p.m., the hour she feared the most.
Suddenly, a snap heard from behind her and her bones froze up. "W-what was that?!" she looked behind her, trying to see through the shadows of the buildings around her.
It took her a couple of seconds to notice something moving within the shadow. Before she could freeze to death, she dashed out like a crazed woman. Her breaths were no longer even and her heart almost followed the rhythm of her breaths.
"Please, not me. Not me!" She chanted to herself as she somehow rushed past the building of her apartments until she reached the hefty trees that swallowed her.
She looked around, realizing that she somehow ended up in the forest behind the buildings. It wasn't that big of a forest; but it always gave her the creeps whenever she walk past them at night back from her work.
Though, as she walked around to find an exit; the aerie looking place grew thicker and thicker and the air around her turned gloomy all of a sudden.
"I'm sleeping. . .this is a nightmare and I will wake up in no—"
SWISH!
The sound of a quick sharp hiss cut through the air as something flew past her shoulder and pressed into the tree ahead of her. Zuri froze completely as she stared with wide eyes at the main source of the sound, only to find a long arrow pressed into the tree trunk.
And that tree could have been her!
Where did that thing come from?!, she thought to herself as she stared at it with wide, terrified bright blue eyes. She then slowly looked behind her, and turned ridge when she saw about six black shadows standing with a strange balance on the thick tree branches.
Her heart almost beat out of her chest as they stood there like stiff statues. And then she realized that her breath had been locked in for a while now. She gasped for air, and while doing so, she heard the sound of stretching string that belong to the bow, a silent warning to the intruder that they'll waste no minute to shoot at them.
Suddenly, Zuri began to raise her hands in surrendering. At least she had to save herself in dream, she didn't want to know that she might be dead in her dream as well.
But, she was still unaware that this was no dream, but a terrorizing reality that she crossed into and got lost in.
"I mean n-no harm." Her soft shaky voice echoed through the forest as the moonlight formed a source of light above her.
THUD!
One of the figures dropped on the ground in a swift move, their tall and lean body moved closer, the bow and arrow were still on action; ready to shoot.
THUD! THUD!
Two other figures jumped down, standing behind the first figure who appeared taller and very musclar than the other two, while the others remained on the top. Zuri watched carefully with trembling heart and body as the first one walking closer with a little crouch posture towards her, a hunting position.
They stood when they were ten steps away and their features appeared. The man looked strange, his appearance held the meaning of some kind of tribe, maybe the natives? Zuri wasn't sure, but where did they come from? There were no tribes in America of this sort, at least not anymore as far as she knows.
He wore a thick tribe-like necklace around his neck, bracelet around his wrists and ankles. Two black lines on each side of his cheeks parallel to each other and a black eye-shadow around his wide but piercing eyes.
But, his eyes!
His orbs were dark red as he glared at the small female standing in surrender like a weak and injured prey.
Strong trances of muscles shaped his body, and an ankle skirt of some animal's skin wrapped around his big lower half. He also had long dreadlocks that reached his upper back with the sides buzz cut, showing the soft jiggles of some sort of tattoo underneath the faint hair.
"An outcast." he declared in his deep almost forwarded voice, and the others let out sounds that made Zuri flinch and withdraw into herself.
"I-I'm lost." How can she understands them?
"An outcast is not welcomed here in our territory without a permission," the man stood properly from his softly crouching posture and looked down at her. "An unwelcome outcast's fate will be destined by the capture."
The hoots got louder making Zuri step back and the man walk closer. " P-please, I mean no harm! I-I'm just l-lost!"
He tilted his head, his features gave Zuri shivers. Whoever this was, he was going to kill her! At least she was going to get killed in her dream, this is not real.
"Lost or an intruder. You will be sacrificed!" he smirked. "Better yet, I heard that the Kimachi prefer females body. It's a good way to capture him after a very long time." With a nod, two figure out of nowhere dropped behind Zuri and took hold of her arms.
Their hands tightened and she began to thrash around. " Plea. . ." she was lifted as she pleaded the man with the cruel gaze, and was taking deeper and deeper into the forest, lost in the middle of nowhere.