RUN GIRL RUN

"Got it," Thunder nodded. "I need you to go upstairs, look under the bed you were sleeping on and meet me outside. Understand?"

Sunfire hesitated, relaying the words back to herself, and she nodded. She turned around and made her way upstairs. She was slow at first, but something compelled her to go faster and faster, as though she were being chased. She ran down the hallway and into the bedroom. Underneath the bed was a single vest, made of some very slippery material bearing a silver sheen. It was cold, and almost rigid, but it could be worn with some uncomfortable adjustments. She slung the article over her back and left the room, frantically making her way back down the hallway.

As she ran, she noticed something, it was now storming outside. She had no idea when it started to storm, but it certainly was, and it was storming hard. Inbetween floor creaks, Sunfire noticed something: another horrible noise on top of the pitter-patter of the rain, there was something growling, rasping, and screaming it's head off out in the cold night. No amount of guessing could tell her what could've been making that noise, but it was there, and it was coming.

The unsettling presence only made her move that much faster out of the house, and into the freezing rain. All lights inside the house were now shut off, the only source of illumination being the clouded moonlight from outside the house. As she emerged she began to look for Thunder, her eyes rapidly darting from place to place in the darkness; searching. He was found on the left wall of the house coming out of the door, the side facing a large clearing of tall grass and shrubs. He appeared to be wearing a thick looking leather coat with the unmistakable jagged bulge of something metal underneath it.

"There you are!" Sunfire ran up to him, panting in fear. "I-I found this vest underneath the bed upstairs, is this what you meant?"

Thunderhoof simply nodded, providing a line of sight to the dagger he had strapped around his neck, easily within his jaw's reach. "Put it on, I have a sweater for you after."

Sunfire nodded shakily and put on the vest, it squeezed her uncomfortably, but she managed to get into it without much pain. Unfortunately, the vest's material did not conduct heat well, leaving her colder than before. "What is it for?"

"It'll keep that thing from touching you, at least until it figures out a way to get you without touching it," he started. "Problem is, it's hard to move in, and if without wearing anything over it, it's pretty easy to see."

Thunder outstretched a singly hoof, presenting Sunfire with a dark red pullover hoodie. "Put it on, it's freezing out here."

Sunfire nodded and pulled the sweater over her vest, awkwardly trying to get her hooves through the holes. With enough effort, she was warming up in the warm cotton embrace.

"Good?" Thunderhoof asked.

The horrific growling had only gotten louder in the time they'd taken outside.

"Mmhmm" Sunfire replied, trying to hide the edge of pure terror to her voice.

"Then let's go!" Thunder now had a slight edge of worry to his voice, no longer sounding as monotone as he had hours before.

The two turned to face the clearing beside the house, and started to move. It was but mere moments before the two broke out into another sprint, putting the dilapidated house behind them.

They ran as fast their outlandish build would allow, hopping over branches and brambles to the best of their abilities. The grass they were moving along was slick with rain, making their stamina drain fast. Whatever was behind them was gaining on them, it was getting louder. It's rasps were becoming more audible with every passing second, instilling the growing sense of terror within them.

Sunfire wanted to talk, but she couldn't risk wasting anymore breath than she already was in her panicked state. Eventually she decided to risk it.

"What the fuck is that thing behind us?!"

"I'll answer that later! Keep running!"

The two were panting heavily by the time they came to a fork in the road. Two paths, both branching away from each other, and no going back. One lead to the left, and as if it was swallowed by something not too far away, the mouth of a cave. The other path looked to lead to another clearing, wide open with plenty of places around it to hide.

"Dammit, we're beyond the part of the forest I recognize, which way do we go?!"

"The left."
"The right."