Fuck Kadic, I wasn’t going to waste another valuable minute of my life on this godforsaken planet while the weeks turned into more days back on Earth.

I had to escape.

Fury blinded me and drove me to do things I otherwise wouldn’t even imagine attempting.

There had to be some way off this planet. I found it a little farfetched to think that no one could leave if they wanted to unless they waited weeks and weeks on end for another ship to return.

I waited in the room we had been talking in until I heard the sound of his apologetic voice talking to the men. Once I heard his throne room door close behind him, I scanned the hallway to make sure I was alone.

Once I’d determined it was safe to leave, I hustled my way down the hallway and out of the palace, ready to leave with only the clothes I was wearing on my back.

I knew the direction of the town center, and it wasn’t far from here. I knew it to be within walking distance because it was closer than the waterfall we had flown to.

I plunged into the woods as I dodged tree limbs and jumped over logs and puddles, getting increasingly dirty, but I didn’t care. Branches whipped and lashed at my skin as I hurtled away from the palace and further into the forest, but I didn’t mind the sting or the pain because it represented freedom.

My only hope hung in knowing the fact that there would be a clearing on the other edge of the forest that spilled out into the town and that I’d approach it fast.

Surely someone there was willing to help me.

I stopped beside a huge black tree with weeping limbs. It was shady and helped me cool off. I was panting and hot, trying to gasp for air. I needed the break.

After a moment or two, my ears prickled. I heard something rustling in the leaves on the ground.

“Who’s there?” My voice was shrill and hollow, bellowing through the trees.

Nothing responded except the wind.

I heard the noise again, it sounded closer this time. Oh shit, what the fuck was there? Was it Kadic? Had he found me? Or was something following me? I had no idea. I spun around in a circle, challenging my tormentor.

“Stay back! I’ve got a knife!” I screamed.

It was a lie; I had no knife, or any weapon, for that matter.

My yells pierced and sliced the air as I heard a hiss. I turned to face my fears of what would be in front of me.

Horror ran my blood cold as I looked up and saw what appeared to be a giant lizard with teeth resembling those of a shark.

Its cold dark eyes were staring right through me as it flashed its sharp teeth in warning. I jumped over a log and began running as fast as I could, praying the fucking animal wouldn’t chase me.

I dared a glance back behind me and noticed that the lizard creature was chasing me, galloping along. I wasn’t sure I was capable of running fast enough to escape its jaws, but I was going to try my hardest.

Miraculously, I saw a small cliff that looked easy to jump over and land back on the ground safely. It was almost like a little quarry.

I held my breath and shut my eyes. I leaped and, as soon as my feet hit the ground, I was relieved. All of my body parts were still attached and unbroken. I’d lived through it, but I still had to account for the lizard.

I looked up and the creature was hissing at me and walking in circles. I took this to mean that it lacked the ability to jump down into the quarry with me.

I gave myself a mental high-five at my quick thinking and extremely excellent luck that the beast didn’t have jumping capabilities, at least not from that high up.

I looked around and tried to determine whether I should press on and continue to the town or go back to the palace. I had no idea how long it would take me to get to the edge of the clearing where the town was.

I knew the palace was not far from here because I hadn’t been in the woods long. It remained a mystery in my mind about how far away the town was, though.

My will to live was stronger right then than my prideful quest for freedom. I began walking back the way I’d come, toward the palace. I hoped that Kadic would still be meeting with his advisors and I could sneak back in the palace before he noticed I was even missing.

After a few minutes, I got the feeling I was being followed again. The hair on the back of my neck prickled. Fear laid its blanket over me, momentarily immobilizing my muscles. Finally, I turned around and rasped with shallow breaths.

I nearly vomited when I saw a black animal much like a panther standing behind me, only it had wings. It wasn’t docile like the Pegasus creature I had flown before.

It showed its teeth, and I stifled a scream. I didn’t want to alarm it in the event the noise from my mouth would alert it to pounce and attack. Its growls threatened me to stay back.

I scanned the woods, looking for another lifeline way out, but this time I came up empty. There was no escape.

I heard a roaring sound and looked to my left. A neon yellow creature was coming toward me that looked like a bear mixed with a lion. It was twice as large as the panther creature.

I was so fucking screwed.

I hated to think that I would be hunted and killed in an alien forest on a foreign planet. I looked back at the panther and, to my horror, noticed the giant lizard was baring its teeth right beside it.

It made that terrible hissing sound again. In my peripheral vision, I noticed a large downed tree limb near me. Thinking on my feet, I jumped to whisk up the limb in an instant.

My instincts to stay alive surged adrenaline through my veins. I was ready to battle to the death.