Faun

Faun heard more than saw the other two omegas run off together toward the rockier terrain, while Faun veered into the lush forest. Faun zigzagged under trees and between narrow trunks, hoping to at least slow down whatever creature his Alpha may be. 

The tall, thorny bushes quickly tore up Faun’s leggings, trailing drops of blood along the forest floor.

Faun knew it was idiotic to leave any trace of himself that could be tracked, but moving slow and careful just wasn’t an option for him. 

Faun ran until the dry air in his lungs burned, and the night chill numbed his limbs. Finally, at a shallow stream, he stopped. With trembling hands, Finn cupped water onto his aching legs, gingerly rinsing the blood off. A creaking branch had Faun’s eyes flickering in the dark, bouncing between dark shadows but seeing nothing. 

Keeping his eyes towards the noise, Faun reached behind himself to cup more spring water, raising the drink to his parched mouth.

 Deeming it safe for the time being, Faun turned from the dark woods towards the trickling stream, downing the handfuls of water. Eyes closed in bliss, Faun felt his aching calves and knelt until the chill of the stream covered them. 

A rustle in the grass, too much movement for the light wind of the woods, had Faun bolting upright at the edge of the stream. Heartbeat pounding in his ears, Faun stared steadily at the dark shadow where he heard the noise. 

Faun was sure there could be a reasonable explanation. Maybe it was just a stag, curious about Faun. Or perhaps the sound was made by a very large rabbit taking a midnight stroll. 

A slow, languid movement in the lush fauna, 20 feet from Faun, had him holding his breath. Whatever was there was no animal. Faun felt his vision narrow to the long, long shadow lazily moving nearer and nearer. A snake then, the largest snake Faun had ever seen. Faun forced himself to release the tension in his body as the snake’s lengthy tail disappeared into the nearby foliage. 

With more bravery than he felt, Faun took a staggering step toward the end of the scaled, pine green tail. 

“Hey, big guy,” Faun whispered, taking another step towards the flicking tail. The shimmering scales were almost hypnotizing in their slithering movement. Daring one more step, Faun let his eyes roam up, up, and up the coiling serpent, and felt the blood drain from his face. 

Dark scales turned into tan, scarred skin. Looking up into the emerald green eyes, a foot above his head, Faun felt time stop. The creature, no Alpha, coiled its powerful tail under him, preparing to strike. Faun said a quiet goodbye to his mother in his head and prepared himself for the worst.