A Second Chance

© Cederwyn Whitefurr

6^th March, 2020

All Rights Reserved.

This Week's Writing
Challenge: Two characters from different stories of yours meet in a
situation unrelated to either story. (For Cederwyn: a human gets
turned into a deer)

At least 1000 words, don't
worry if you go over.

Tag all prompts with:
WritingGroupChallenge.

Add all prompts to a
separate folder.

Put the prompt description
at the beginning of your story.

*

Douglas blinked, he
couldn't believe his eyes. Weeks of living rough in the forest had
left him dishevelled, his beard was long and matted with dirt and
filth and even though he regularly bathed in a nearby stream – the
odour from his body was quite something to behold.

Near at hand he had his
.30-06 bolt action rifle and he carefully picked it up and sighted
through the scope at his prey. It was a perfect shot, the
unsuspecting deer grazed on shrubs, plucking the leaves and chewing
them, oblivious and unaware of its existence was about to tragically
end...

His finger slid down over
the trigger guard and he smiled to himself, as he began lightly
squeezing, knowing in a second the rifle would kick hard against his
shoulder and he'd had the the kill he'd been searching for...

*

As he applied
the last half ounce of pressure on the trigger, Douglas grinned and
breathed out – right as the pin hit the primer on the chambered
round...

He never felt
it as the cartridge exploded within the chamber, detonating the rifle
and sending the sending the bolt through his head like a scythe...

*

Darkness...

It's all he
knew – he was – somewhere – he screamed by no voice gave sound
to the cries of fear and terror that flooded him. He had no form, no
– existence – he was, yet he was not. Alone in this terrible
darkness, he began to run, fear giving him strength and the ice cold
terror that seized him felt like wolves at his heels.

No matter
where he went, it was unending – like purgatory where he'd spend
the rest of eternity in this endless, lightness void of space and
time. There was nothing...and no-one...

*

A blinding
light come from nowhere, yet everywhere, and he found himself on his
knees, clutching his head, trying to shield his eyes from the pain of
this burning, agonising white fire that seized him, seemingly
consuming him all at once – yet leaving him untouched and unharmed.

A man-like
figure stepped from the light – its silhouette human yet... His
mind reeled, unable to believe what it had seen. It was tall. Way
taller than any human – human-like in form, masculine and
undeniably male. Yet it stood on black cloven hooves, digigrade, fur
covered legs that ended in the body itself covered with fur that
were...

He stare, eyes
widen and stricken with fear, as he looked up the muscular chest and
seen the muzzle of a deer staring back at him, its eyes narrowed in
disgust and loathing at the insolent wretch that knelt before it.
Powerful antlers graced the stag's head, each one black tipped and
darker than a moonless night.

"Human..."
Come a deep, unfathomable voice.

Neither human
nor animal, but something that made him drop his head in
subservience, for such was the power and the strength that hung in
that single word.

Stepping
forwards, the stag-man gripped his chin and lifted him up, forcing
the sobbing man to look up into those dark eyes.

"You
hunted my forest children..." It growled at him, the muscles
beneath the fur trembling with suppressed rage.

"What I
done - " Douglas whimpered.

"Hunting
– I take no offence too," Snapped the Stag as he tightened his
grip. "I know what lurks within your heart human..."

"I - "
Douglas moaned and began pleading, wringing his hands together.
"You're mistaken great one, I - "

"Silence!"
Shrieked the Stag.

Faster than a
flash of lightning, the Stag backhanded the human with what should
have been a bone shattering swipe of his paw, but only knocked him to
the ground. As Douglas tried to rise, the stag stood over him and
pinned him to the ground with one cloven hoof.

"I'd
subject you to an unimagined eternity of suffering for the crimes
you've committed in the past against my children...and the crimes you
would commit again!"

Choking, the
Human looked up, then his face went ashen.

"Yes..."
Growled the Stag. "Do you think the last thoughts of my
children were pleasant ones? Some you killed quickly – for your
sake, that shall be overlooked. Some..."

His right paw
clenching in anger the Stag's muzzle curled back in a look of pure,
feral hatred.

"I would
give you an eternity of pain, fear and suffering – everything you
done to them, would be done to you – except you would feel and fear
as they felt and feared..."

"No,
please, forgive..."

"Forgive?"
Roared the Stag, his rage making his eyes narrow to mere slits.
"Forgive you...for your unspeakable crimes against my children?
Oh, you dare ask for forgiveness..."

"I'm...I
need help...I'm...I'm dreaming, I got to be I want to wake up...I
want to wake up!" Douglas began screaming, his sanity snapping.

Slamming down
a hoof, the Stag roared deafeningly...

"THEN
AWAKEN..."

*

In a dark
thicket, the Doe licked her newborn fawn, whose eyes opened and she
took in her first glimpses of this new and terrifying world. Her
white fur was slick with embryonic fluids and her mother diligently
licked her clean. As the fawn struggled to her small hooves then
instinctively began nudging and nuzzling her mother, her ears flicked
and the Doe snorted a quick bark of alarm.

From the
thicket, stepped a half-human, half stag. He crouched and cupped the
Doe's chin with his paw, before he smiled at her. She blinked and
nuzzled the enigmatic hybrids paw, as he used his fingers to scratch
under her chin.

"Thank
you mother..." Whispered the Stag, as he smiled at her and
nodded. "Your willingness and service to me shall be rewarded
in the Great Forest at the end of your days, in this, I promise
you..."

Turning to the
fawn, whose legs faltered and she fell, the Stag got on his knees
then picked her up, holding her on her back as he placed a single
finger on her small, leathery nose.

"You have
been given a second chance...do not waste it..."

END