A figure belongs to that of a young adult male limped through the forest. The figure appeared average in every aspect; someone you would not be aware of in any crowd. The only trait of him was his bright orange full-body outfit which stood out against the white snow and black tree trunks. A dotted trail of blood followed him showing where he has been. The forest was quiet, the only things he could hear were his own heavy panting and the snow crunching under his feet.
He slowed down and came to a stop next to a tree, seating down with back against the black tree trunk. A sharp pain demanded his attention. He folded his right leg in for examination. Blood had seeped through the fabric of his shoe and gave it a red hue. He swooped up a handful of snow and pressed it against his wound, providing a slight relief that he desperately needed. With the other hand, he delivered a mouthful of snow into his mouth to treat his sore throat. After some much-needed rest, he turned his attention to his surrounding. The day was gloomy, the clouds so dense not a single ray of sunlight came through. With no wind, the heavy snow fell straight down onto the ground like layers of blanket. The dense forest restricted his vision like a shutter from all sides. All the sceneries suggested peace, but his heart told him something hostile approaching from a place unseen.
Soon enough, a faint barking broke the quietness. The man’s eyes widened as he scrambled up and tumbled away deeper into the woods. He threaded his way in between the trees, but the barking only grew louder. He looked back and saw a long mouth poked out from the back of the trunk. In shock, he ran faster, but tripped and went into a roll down a slope. A headache followed after he came to a stop, and the bruises across his body only worsened it. After a few seconds, when the world stopped spinning in front himself, he found himself in the centre of a clearing, around him were steep slope leading back into the forest. He tried to get up on two feet, but a sudden pain from his right leg disrupted him. He cried and saw a dog with dark brown fur, pointy ears, and long mouth biting onto him. Blood oozed out around the wound caused by the sharp teeth stabbed deep into his flesh.
The guards must be close, he thought. He dragged his body forward, but wasn’t for long. A wave of insurmountable pain surged from his chest rushed through every fibre of his body. A loud bang entered his ear, almost piercing his eardrum. His limbs gave out and he lay face down in the sow defencelessly. Two guards in dark, tactical uniforms appeared at the edge of the forest. The squat pointed at the prisoner with a revolver with a wisp of smoke still coming out of the barrel. They descended the steep slope slowly, seemingly not in a rush. They stopped at a step distance away from the prisoner, avoiding the puddle of blood. Without a word, the squat pointed his gun at the prisoner and pulled back the hammer. The prisoner on the ground jerked once in reaction to the click.
As the trigger was about to be pulled, a random voice joined in.
“What’s going on here?”
A new figure stood at the edge of the forest in the opposite direction of where the three people already at the scene came from. She was wearing a pair of worn-out, chestnut brown knee-high boots. Her body was covered by a wood brown cloak, with the hood over her head.
She descended and approached the group.
“It’s none of your business. I’d recommend you keep at a distance and keep yourself out of this.” The taller guard said. The girl ignored his words and continued her path until she was in front of the prisoner’s head. She squatted down to get a better look at the wound, completely unaware of the two guns that are now pointing at her.
“Is this necessary? He won’t see the sunrise tomorrow either way.”
“We were ordered to do so. Now, please leave or we’ll have to take necessary action against you.”
The girl paused for a moment. The world seemed still. She stretched her arms, revealing her smooth and pale hand. The guards clung tighter onto their weapons, but it was nothing more than a stretch. The girl’s arms disappeared under her cloak again.
“You two can leave now.” She said in a calm but commanding voice.
Magically, the two guards put their guns away simultaneously, turned around, and followed their own footsteps back into the forest without looking back. The dog, unsure whether to stay or to leave at first, followed its owner back after a swift eye contact with the girl.
The world is quiet once more. The girl rolled the prisoner onto his back. The prisoner groaned in pain. The pool of darkened blood was revealed during the process, the girl didn’t flinch at the sight of it. She kneeled down on the snow, just out of the puddle, placing the prisoner’s head onto her laps. She caressed his hair with her hand with a kind smile. The prisoner struggled to ask questions, only a few unintelligible noises came out of his throat.
“Shh…” The girl gestured with her index finger over her mouth, “I can’t help you any further, so you might as well save your energy and enjoy the last few moments of your life.”
A mix of different emotions went through his head. Anger, disappointment, regret, grief… Blood rushed into his head. His vision went black for a moment as he coughed out blood, giving his outfit a new coat of paint.
“Don’t blame me.” The girl spoke as if she knows what he was thinking, “None of these were in either of our control.
“The sky will clear up soon before dusk, you can enjoy the last sunset then.” She followed.
The prisoner looked up at the sky. The cloud was so dense, there and the snow so heavy, the possibility of the snow stopping before the night falls seemed so slim, let alone the sky clearing up. He did not argue however, as it didn’t matter to him. He didn’t have much time left, his fingers and toes felt numb, not sure if it was because of the wound or the cold. His glanced upward, met by the eyes of the girl. She was still wearing the smile, the smile that made him blush slightly and looked away. She cupped his cheeks in between her hands, rubbing them playfully. The prisoner felt his eyelid getting heavier with every minute passing by. Right before his window to the world closed, the girl spoke up in excitement.
“Look!” She said, pointed far in the distance.
Following the direction she pointed at, above the treetops in the far, the clouds parted as the girl predicted, revealing part of the sky. With the tip of the sun still visible, its light illuminated the edge of the sky with a gradience from red to orange, and the clouds with a fiery crimson and red-violet that slowly turned into a dark shade of blue. Beams of light scattered out from a single point hidden behind the trees, reflecting off the snowflakes in the sky.
The two watched the picturesque scene in silence. The sun is now completed behind the trees, and the darkness crept from behind them, absorbing the sky, like a blanket pulling over their head. The prisoner’s sob broke the silence, he stared at the remaining light in despair, not wanting it to go away.
The final shed of purple disappeared under the sky, and the twilight was all that remain.
“It’s okay, you will see it again when you wake up.” The girl comforted him as his sob came to a stop hopelessly.
The girl covered the prisoner’s eye with her hand.
“You must be tired, have some rest.”
The prisoner closed his eyes with a whimper.
The next morning, as the sun raised, a pile of snow the size of a man was all that left in the clearing. No blood, no footstep. All was white, as if nothing had happened.