Baked Scribe Flashback : Okuri-inu

The footfalls matched his exactly.

They were coming from somewhere above, and to his left, on the ridge and out of his sight. But he could hear it, the clear sound of rocks crunching under footfalls, in perfect time with his own.

Don’t lose your step.

He couldn’t explain where the thought had come from, but he couldn’t shake it either. One foot in front of the other. No mistakes. It was more important than ever.

The thing up above, whatever it was, continued to follow along. Every step matched his. He tried speeding up, and his unknown companion simply mirrored him perfectly. When he tried slowing abruptly, the speed of the other’s steps matched the change with exact precision.

Don’t lose your step.

The sound of his breathing filled his head as he walked, and just over the sound of the competing sets of footfalls, he thought he heard ragged, anticipatory breaths, also in perfect time with his own.

Don’t lose your—

His foot caught on an upturned root, causing him to first stumble and then, in his panic, fall to the ground.

He felt the thing leap down on him just as he heard the snarling cry. The large canine pinned his arms to the ground and slashed at him with teeth that ripped through his skin like paper. It bit into his arms and chest, clawing at the flesh on his legs and torso. He tried to yell out for help, but was cut off as his mouth was already filling with blood. Something bit into his neck and pulled, causing bright stars of pain to explode all around him as the world first went to the stark white of overly saturated film before dropping back down to the perpetual cinders of darkness.