So… this is how I go. I have to be honest, this really sucks. Everything hurts and breathing is a chore, but I at least know it's almost over.

The beeping of the heart monitor could be heard echoing throughout the room. I couldn’t help but count in sync to the slowing rhythm as if I were an unbalanced metronome.

I peered through my eyes one last time and gaze around the hospital room. Each shallow breath becomes more painful and hoarse— Desperate gasps becoming shorter and shorter as my grasp on my consciousness quickly escapes me. You'd think at least one relative would have cared enough to come to check on me, but it's been a week and I've been all but forgotten.

Lung Cancer they said. Terminal too? Just my luck. It’s not that I've never been lucky before, I just didn't expect... Well, this. My eyes flicker to the name on my wristband that seals my fate as a hospital prisoner.

Zoe Samilia. That's me. Well, not for much longer anyhow. My eyes flutter shut, and then… Nothing. The sound of my desperate breathing is gone. No more pain, just.. emptiness.

I don't know what I was expecting, but does this mean I'm just going to be stuck in limbo? I wait for what seems like forever in the dark. I see nothing, I think nothing.

Wait...Theres...something...I feel something. Am I being pulled? To what? Where am I going? I feel a rushing sensation, and suddenly, I regain all of my senses. I hear a name being screamed, and the shredding of wood around me. "Nyxia!!!" A woman Shrieked - and then silence.

A moment passed, maybe two, and I felt like I couldn't move.

Am I unconscious? I felt trapped, like when you get sleep paralysis and you want to lift your arm but your body is still asleep. Suddenly my eyes snap open and I gasp loudly as if I had been holding a breath I couldn't take. Red covers my vision and pain seizes the back of my skull. I wince in pain as I touch the back of my head.

"Ouch!" I pull my hand away and see red covering my fingers and hand. Blinking in disbelief, I wipe my eyes with the back of my hand. When I pull it away, I can see the red more clearly.

"Blood?" I murmur as I look up to scan my surroundings. I'm in a box of some sort..

Wait.. what kind of box has windows?

Crunch.. Riiiip...

I soon realize that it's actually a carriage that I'm in. Tree branches and thorny vines cover the inside of this carriage that has been flipped on its side; Shattered glass littered all over the ground and covering my dress. I touch the tattered fabric of my garments, confused.

Wait... I don't own any dresses.

Snap... Crunch...

I could have sworn I was in a hospital gown a few moments ago. Glass begins to fall from my dress and my black hair as I slowly sit upright.

Wait… my hair isn't black.. and these hands.. These are the hands of a child. Confusion continues to fill my body as I assess myself. I'm much smaller than I was in my 24-year-old body, and it's obvious to see that the body I'm now inhabiting is that of a child.

Aside from a few scratches from the glass and this splitting headache, I'm not really that injured. I blink, looking to the roof of the carriage that is to the left of me. It's torn open by the tree branches that have pierced through, allowing soft blue moonlight to shine inside and revealing a pool of blood.

Riiiiiiip.... Snap..... Crunch...

Drag marks? I frown, seeing that the blood is smeared outside of the roof of the carriage as if something heavy was dragged out. I only now start to realize that the entire time there have been some disturbing noises coming from outside.

Gulp... I swallow hard, and slowly stand upright inside the carriage. Even on its side, I'm small enough to stand up straight. I grasp the side of the carriage seat to help steady myself, wobbling like a toddler making is first steps. This headache was definitely not helping either.

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I inch closer to peer through the roof, avoiding any glass as well as the massive pool of blood. Peeking through the ripped roof, chills suddenly pierce my entire body as a horrific scene is revealed to me.

Laying in a clearing in the forest are two bodies surrounded by five wolves; ripping flesh and munching on bones. The moon is the only witness aside of me to this scene. No one else is within my view. My body begins to tremble in fear. I notice one of the wolves raise their head, trying to chew on - is that a hand?! I feel my body shake harder as I realize the situation I'm in.

I don't know who those poor souls are, but they were clearly dragged out of this carriage. I probably knew them… But who they were and who I am are questions I must save for later. I need to get away from those wolves before they realize there's dessert to complete their meal. But… how?

I quickly retreat from the moonlight and press myself heavily against the seat behind me. I try to regain my composure as my breathing becomes noticeably shallow; My hands trembling in fear.

Okay Zoe, now is not the time to freak out. Think. What can you use, how can you get away?

Above me is the carriage door, but it's too high up for me to reach it. I turn around to tug at the carriage seat to see if its loose to stand on. As I scower, a loud creaking noise echoes through the night. Fear consumes me as the consumption of flesh and bone cease. My body won’t let me move a muscle. Not even an inch.

Please don't come over here... Please..

I instinctively begin to pray with all my might.

Do I even believe in a God? I really am not sure, but for some reason at that moment it felt right.

After what felt like hours, the munching of bones continues. I sink to my knees slowly, exhaling a shaky breath as I give a silent thanks to the bodies that the wolves are preoccupied with. It’s morbid, I know. But I’m not in the mood to die again.

I give up on the door above me and continue to scower my surroundings. A large tree root protruded through the floor boards creating a small narrow hole that I could squeeze through. The floor boards looked jagged and sharp while the root was covered in dirt and glass, meaning I will have to squeeze through the small space between both the root and the jagged floor boards.

It's that or... I glance back to the roof of the carriage and quickly dismiss the thought.

Hell no.

I begin to slowly move towards the hole which is of course directly in view of the moonlight. I begin to realize that if the shine from the moonlight can see me, so can the wolves. Determined, I lift my tattered blood-smeared dress and slide my left foot through the small opening; My gaze fixed on the wolves as I place my hands on the root to steady myself. The moonlight illuminates their fur; A rugged mix between a gentle grey and crimson red made the wolves appear strangely beautiful yet horrifying at the same time.

Silent prayers repeat in my head as I fumble to find my footing in the hole. As soon as my foot is steady, I tuck in my body and and push myself through. The space is too tight and I force my body through as the jagged edges scrape against my back and my thigh. I wince quietly as I feel something warm trickle down my back. I grit my teeth and continue pushing, scraping my back slowly as pain soars through my body. I endure through the pain a little more until my head and torso are through the hole and out on the other side.

Excitement starts to bubble up in my chest as I feel a sense of accomplishment.

Yes! I'm almost out! Now, slowly... I slide my right foot through the hole and find myself crouched outside of the carriage and on the ground. I take a quick peek at my surroundings, still staying close to the carriage. My body aches. Everything hurts. But I feel I can overcome this.

Okay.. Don't run. Wolves have a great sense of smell and they can hear really well, so I will have to move slowly for now.

I nod, reassuring myself and take a few steps forward.

Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiip!!!

My eyes widen as I whip my head around towards the ripping sound. My dress was caught on some broken wood of the carriage. I feel the blood drain from my face as the forest echoes in silence. Seconds later I hear bushes rustling close to the carriage. Instinctively my body bursts out into a sprint. My dress rips completely but I disregard it as the fabrics are torn away. Snarls and growls sound behind me, and I now know I'm being chased.

I ignore the pain of the branches as they whip across my face, arms and legs. I keep running and I won't look back. Fear had completely consumed my thoughts and my heart loudly pounded through my chest.

I'm going to die. I'm going to die. I just came back to life, and I'm going to die again! Tears sting my eyes as I feel my stamina diminishing.

This body is too small. I can't run fast. I'm too slow. Shit. This is it. This is really how it ends, again. If this is my second chance, this is the worst second chance I could get! I cursed the Gods as I ran, hearing the wolves get closer and closer. My body swelled with pain, and I felt tears pricking the corners of my eyes.

Suddenly, I broke through what seemed to be the endless forest; The wolves right on my heels. The sound of their paws got louder and louder. I whipped my head around briefly and saw them. Their glowing, hungry yellow eyes. Their once white fangs, now dyed red. The wolf in the middle was the closest, its mouth snapping loudly as it approached. I glance backward mid-run as I see it lunge. My hand instinctively reached out, and everything seemingly seemed to move in slow motion.

I don't want to die. I want to live, but what can I do? No one can hear me, no one is coming. Just like… Just like my old life. I am still all alone. I watch in horror as the wolf's mouth begins to close around my hand. As I felt its teeth brush against my flesh, something cold came rushing from the depths of my soul and quickly spread throughout my entire body. It traveled quickly down my arm from my chest as if a coat of armor had been placed on me. As soon as the coldness reached my fingertips, I felt a release.