500 Word Story
First draft
I let out a high-pitched shriek as my feet slid out from under me, and I skidded across dirty forest floor. Desperately, I tried to grab something–anything–as I fell, my ankle twisting under me. Trying to restrain myself from crying out again but I couldn’t, I lay on the ground, teeth clenched tight and hands wrapped around my ankle in the shadows provided by the huge dorm behind me. I couldn’t make out what it was behind me, all I knew was that I was trying to get away from it. I got up off the ground and began to run. My breath came out in gasps as I was trying to put one foot in front of the other. I pounded across the needle covered ground. If only someone could hear my footsteps, my rapid breathing. I had nearly run out of breath before I screamed. My legs felt like led. No matter how much my body was screeching at me for a rest. I had to keep working at it, pumping myself harder and faster. I could hear it behind me. It's fast paced feet. Whoever it was, was gaining on me. I propelled my legs forward faster. Hoping the adrenalin would increase my natural speed. I leaped over a log a millisecond before crashing into it. I shuddered to think what would have happened if I didn't jump it. If my shins had crashed into the log and my body had toppled over it onto the dirt covered floor leaving me defenseless to my tracker. My breathing increased rapidly. I couldn't make sense of anything. There was a low hanging branch I failed to skirt around. I ducked, but stumbled on a pinecone and came down on one knee. Panic seized my body, my fear was coming true. It was going to attack me. I was going to die right here in the forest. My hands on the ground, my nose pressed against the ground as if I was crawling. I was going to leave this world a defenseless organism. I sprung back up from the earth. I somehow found the strength to sprint through the forest again. I searched ahead of me looking for some way to escape the menace behind me. I saw a break in the
I let out a high-pitched shriek as my feet slid out from under me, and I skidded across dirty forest floor. Desperately, I tried to grab something–anything–as I fell, my ankle twisting under me. Trying to restrain myself from crying out again but I couldn’t, I lay on the ground, teeth clenched tight and hands wrapped around my ankle in the shadows provided by the huge dorm behind me. I couldn’t make out what it was behind me, all I knew was that I was trying to get away from it. I got up off the ground and began to run. My breath came out in gasps as I was trying to put one foot in front of the other. I pounded across the needle covered ground. If only someone could hear my footsteps, my rapid breathing. I had nearly run out of breath before I screamed. My legs felt like led. No matter how much my body was screeching at me for a rest. I had to keep working at it, pumping myself harder and faster. I could hear it behind me. It's fast paced feet. Whoever it was, was gaining on me. I propelled my legs forward faster. Hoping the adrenalin would increase my natural speed. I leaped over a log a millisecond before crashing into it. I shuddered to think what would have happened if I didn't jump it. If my shins had crashed into the log and my body had toppled over it onto the dirt covered floor leaving me defenseless to my tracker. My breathing increased rapidly. I couldn't make sense of anything. There was a low hanging branch I failed to skirt around. I ducked, but stumbled on a pinecone and came down on one knee. Panic seized my body, my fear was coming true. It was going to attack me. I was going to die right here in the forest. My hands on the ground, my nose pressed against the ground as if I was crawling. I was going to leave this world a defenseless organism. I sprung back up from the earth. I somehow found the strength to sprint through the forest again. I searched ahead of me looking for some way to escape the menace behind me. I saw a break in the