The breathing was thick and heavy.
No. It was not hers. It was something else.
It was too close, too close, and too real.
Lara squeezed her eyes shut.
If she couldn't see it, maybe it wouldn't see her.
But the darkness behind her eyelids was worse.
Because now the shapes were clearer.
Closer.
Waiting right in front of her.
She dropped to the ground, curling into herself, pressing her forehead to her knees.
"Please…" she whispered. "Please don't let anything take me…"
When nothing happened, she stood, then stumbled as she walked toward the perceived safe direction, guided only by the moonlight that sifted through the canopy above.
But every step Lara took felt wrong, like she was walking somewhere she wasn't allowed to be. The ground was uneven, roots twisting under her feet like they were trying to trip her, pull her down, and keep her there.
She didn't know how long she had been walking.
The forest didn't answer.
It just listened.
