Suddenly, I opened my eyes. Bright light blinded me, and a pack of Hyenas was in my view. They circled me, baring their sharp-pointed teeth.
The last thing I remembered was being in a surgery room.
How the hell am I here? Is this a jungle? I swear, I was just in the middle of surgery! Am I dreaming?
One of them had its face close to mine, the smell of death sleeping through its mouth as it glared its teeth at me. Its thick saliva drips onto my face. I felt like puking.
It noticed that my eyes were now open. Wide and staring right at it. The Hyena growled and backed away just slightly as it saw that I had become conscious. The tension grew as we became aware of each other's presence.
Ok, don't panic, you... You have read about this. That is a Hyena. Hyenas do not like to be startled. Just move very slowly and back away. You have to make yourself big to scare them, right... I am taller, so I can make myself bigger. Right?
I slowly sit up, and they halt their movements. They stop circling and confront me instead, silently waiting for my next move.
I proceed to stand. There were three of them, all observing me closely. Its beady eyes followed every micro movement I made.
Make yourself big... I saw it in a documentary. They back away if I make myself big, right?... But how?
I straightened my back to make myself look taller than them. I try not to cower as they growl and close the space between us. I take a few steps back, but they slowly follow me. As if we were in the middle of a dance of death. I decide to quicken my pace just ever so slightly.
Oh god... Starting to panic, I took a deep breath. I can do this. You trained for this, Ivy... you can do this. Slowly...
I made more distance between us. The space between us grew larger, large enough to reassure myself that it was all going fine.
It's now or never, Ivy!
I spun on my heel and sprinted for it towards the jungle. There was no time to lose. The Hyenas started to scream and run towards me.
"Please leave me alone! What the hell is going on! I don't want to die! If you leave me alone, I swear I will buy you guys a lot of meat. I have a lot of money!"
I bartered aloud, still running away. I felt stupid trying to reason with animals. But on the verge of life and death, I reasoned with stupidity, anything to save myself. The wind slapped my skin as I kept running. My nostrils burned from breathing in the sharp, icy air. My ears were numb, frozen solid as if the cold had scrubbed them raw. Still, I ignored it and kept running.
I ran further and further into the forest, somehow managing to jump over branches and swat through bushes and vines. Thorns tear through my clothes and skin. Flashes of red seep through, the sting barely noticeable in the middle of my adrenaline rush.
Just when I thought it was over, as I started to slow down from exhaustion, I heard something. A gush of water. The forceful splash and the moist air surrounded me, and I stumbled towards the noise. The familiar sound grew louder. My heart nearly gave away from the relief. I had found a way to escape. I turned around to see they were only a few meters behind me.
I can do this!
Making it to the edge of the river, I jumped in. There was no other option.
The ice-cold water slapped me, burning every inch of my skin. My chest tightened as my breath started to get more rapid, and I gasped for air. The water was not moving that fast, but it was still deep. I pushed through the pain and continued swimming until I reached the other side.
Getting out of the water, I shiver as I hug my body tight. I felt dizzy and weak as my teeth clattered. A numb feeling washed over my body.
I watched the Hyenas at the other side of the river. The person paced back and forth, assessing the situation.
Even in this dire situation where I could die from the cold, I felt a sense of relief having escaped from these beasts.
"That's right! You can't get across the water, can you?"
I mocked them as I shivered, laughs escaped my mouth from the sheer comfort of the fact that they cannot get to me anymore. They growled as I laughed.
Just when I thought I was safe, one of them jumped into the water. In a flash, they were in front of me. Taken aback by this, I tried to run, but I was just too weak to even attempt it.
Oh no... It's jackals that don't like water, not hyenas. Seriously, how can I be so dumb! I am surely going to die now.
I felt the bite of its teeth sink into my thigh, sending me falling backwards. Even with the numbness from the cold, I was able to feel every single bit of pain. Its canines dug deep into me. I could feel the wrenching pull from it as it tried to strip the flesh from my bones.
"Argghhh!"
I screamed. My voice echoed into the forest. My life was over just like that.
How the hell did I even end up in a place like this? The last thing I remember was that I was in the middle of a heart bypass surgery. I was the surgeon, but now... I am here. Is... is this how my life ends?
Expecting death, I clenched my eyes shut. Waiting to die.
A roar was heard, but in the midst of my moment of death, I did not care to listen. The teeth that had sunk into me suddenly loosened, and then was followed by a whimper, screams, and then a thud.
It suddenly got quiet, and all I heard were footsteps coming. I was still alive. I slowly peered open one of my eyes to see what was going on.
I thought it couldn't have gotten worse, but now, in front of me, was a Lion. It stood before me with a blood-soaked mouth, the dead hyena dangling from its mouth, motionless and limp. The other two lay dead behind it.
It was only the Lion and me now. He towered over me, glaring as he threw aside the dead carcass. Slowly, he walked over to me, licking his lips.
There is no way I can outrun it. He already caught his prey, so why would it want me?
Tears drip from my face as I cover my face with my hands. There was no escape from this.
But instead of a bite, I left a lick. A wet and coarse tongue scraped over my hands a few times. A fierce motion with a musty smell. Then it stops. I remove my hands and look at the Lion in front of me.
Why is it liking me? Is it tasting me before it eats me?
I winper at the thought.
Please! I am not tasty at all. What the hell do I do?
"Mr Lion," I hold up my hand in defeat, "Please... just eat the Hyena's. I am just made of bones, there is no meat on me!"
In the midst of going crazy this time, I started to talk to the Lion. Saying this, the Lion stops and looks at me, tilting its head as if it understood me.
What? It's not eating me? Now I am really going crazy to think it understood me.
It placed its paw on my foot, grazing it ever so slightly, tugging at the ripped trousers, and looked at me.
Oh no... is this what I've heard about how they sometimes like to play with weak prey before eating them?
"Mr Lion, please just kill me. I don't want to be your plaything. I would rather just die now than later after being tossed around." I couldn't help but cry, feeling utterly insane.
It just stared at me as if it was surprised. Wiping my tears, I felt the cold sink deep into my bones. I shiver.
"If it's not this Lion, this cold is gonna be the death of me. Either way, I am done for." I sniffle to myself, gripping my body.
Just then, the Lion that stopped in front of me morphs into a human. I blinked and then blinked once more. Still seeing the same thing, I rubbed my eyes.
Am I hallucinating? I guess I really am dying. If this is hypothermia affecting my brain so much that I seemed to have witnessed a Lion turn into a human. I am basically dead.
"Are you ok?" the hallucination shakes me, trying to snap me back. But the world started to spin.
My vision swirled and fuzzed out. The bitten area felt numb, and the only thing I could feel was the cold. Just an echoing throb from the bite as my consciousness fades in and out. His voice appears to come and go as my eyes felt droopy, heavy and slow.
My vision becomes blurry as I try to reach out. I touch its face and then its hair in my dizzy state.
"So warm..."
A warm sensation could be sensed on the palm of my hand. My hallucinations felt so real that I felt like I was touching bare skin.
The figure looked at me, "For a skinny female, you have such a pretty face." It watched me for a few agonising seconds, then knelt down and grabbed my head.
Slowly, I felt its face close into my neck, a sharp pain and then the feeling of its lips brushing against my skin. I shudder as it's tounge runs over my neck. Jolts firing through my body.
The last thing I saw as the figure pulled back was the sharp, captivating golden eyes.
My eyes shut involuntarily, and slowly, all I see is darkness.