GOATPUPPY
By narxfang
Chapter One: The Storm
By narxfang
Chapter One: The Storm
It was a dark and windy night in Fellvale. A flash of light streaked through the sky followed moments later by a thunder clap. It echoed through the air with a hard crack. The rain was still off in the distance, but it would be here soon. Farm workers could be seen quickly preparing for the storm of the century. A women was pulling the horns of a rather uncooperative ram while her counterpart carried a sheep under each arm into their old barn. The animals were noisy and uneasy at the sight of the storm in the distance. Would this barn really be enough to protect them?
“Grab the lil one over there!” shouted the man to one of his youngest daughter. In the corner of the field was a baby goat huddled in fear against a bail of hay.
“C’mon lil goatpuppy. I got you.” The girl herself was only eight years old. She had deep amber eyes and long dark hair. She smiled at the baby goat revealing several missing teeth. “I won’t hurt y’know. Trust me.”
Goatpuppy stood up on wobbling legs and timidly made its way to the girl’s arms. She grabbed her and ran to the barn where the noise was significantly less though the wood planks that made up the roof and walls creaked ominously under the force of the wind. Goatpuppy always felt safe in the little girl’s arms. She was the master who named all of the animals, and seemed to care the most.
“Goatpuppy, don’t worry lil Goatpuppy. I will hug you tomorrow okay? Jus’ stay right here until the storm passes-”
“Ayven! Get over here now! We got to get inside!” shouted her older sister Ridely from the barn’s entrance. “Hurry!”
“I love you. Be safe!” Ayven said as she ran towards her sister. She truly did love the animals. Especially the baby goats. They were so cute. The door slammed shut behind her and a large plank of wood locked the animals in for the night. The wind howled furiously and the whole barn seemed to sway back and forth steadily. The animals eventually became numb to the sound and quieted down. Each of them committed to a solemn silence. With each hour the wind became stronger and the noise louder. The flashes of light, and cracks of thunder only got worse.
A bright light smashed through the cracks in the wall blinding the animals. The sound that followed was unbearably loud. The creatures lurched from where they lay and yelped in fear.
It was hot.
Something was not right. Goatpuppy had her eyes shut tight until she heard a sheep scream in terror. Her eyes could not help but notice the fiery hell on the other side of the barn. It was growing rapily by the second. The animals jumped their pens and into the central area. The fire was approaching fast and the barn was locked. The animals pounded against the door with their hooves and heads but it was to no avail. Goatpuppy was small and able to crawl through the bails of hay along the side of the barn until she reached the front. She always felt safe by the hay. It was warm and soft and a great hiding place. She climbed up on top one bail just in time to see the mighty ram known as Goatdog to lean forward and smash into the barn’s door. The wall shook but the door did not open. Panic was grasping the animals like an infectious disease. Their hair was getting singed by the conflagration as more than half the barn was now ablaze.
Goatdog rammed into the door again. The wall creaked eerily, but the door would still not budge. A sheep squealed in pain as the fire lit her wool on fire. The poor sheep lurched into the air screaming in horrendous pain. Goatdog prepared one final attack. He smashed his hoof against the ground and then charged with all his might. The mighty blow failed once again. The mighty Goatdog lay on the ground in defeat. They were doomed.
Goatpuppy cried out as the flames licked at her from behind. The fire was here.
The whole wall creaked. She looked up and watched as a large beam collapsed into the central area sending sparks flying in all directions. The entire front wall with the impenetrable door fell back without any support. It smashed into the ground mixing dirt and dust into the air
They were free! Goatpuppy rushed out with the other animals who scattered in every direction. Goatpuppy squealed as lightning struck the house near them setting a small portion of it ablaze. She ran off towards the only place that looked safe—the forest.
Chapter Two: The Devil Tree
Goatpuppy ran for some time into the forest. She ran until she could not run any longer and then she ran some more. The cracks of thunder and lightning seemed to strike behind her at every turn. Trees were set ablaze only to be put out by the torrential downpour moments later. One tree off in the distance had a terrifying appearance. It had a gaping hole for a mouth and two smaller holes in the perfect position to be its eyes. Its branches were raised like clawed arms. The tree was what she imagined the devil would look like if he ever manifested himself in this world. She would make a point to try and stay cfar from that tree. Her thoughts soon returned to the world around her as a rock exploded from a lightning strike. Earth splinters blasted into the air with fury. She could see the red-eyed faces of voracious creatures hovering off in the dark distance. A low howl pierced through the night following by the panting and heavy footsteps of wolves.
Goatpuppy bleated in distress as one of her pursuers crashed into the muddy ground just behind her right leg. It’s face caught on the earth and the whole wolf flipped over onto its back with a loud thud. Another wolf jumped over that one and was hot on her hooves. It had a bloody scar crossing its snout. The scar bee-lined upwards into the middle of its face creating a V shape. It barked at her baring its vicious fangs. She had no choice but to run towards the devil tree.
Mother earth seemed to groan. It was long and drawn out until the subtle popping noise grew into a cascade of cracks. A massive tree with a face of the devil screamed as it mashed down onto them. The wolves yelped as they were crushed under the branches. They scurried away with a limp. Everything went dark.
The muffled sound of the storm returned slowly as Goatpuppy opened her delicate eyelids. She was fortunate to be small. The branches had all missed her. It was oddly dark though. She walked forward until she felt the hard bark of the tree make contact with her soft face. She turned around and walked until she felt the same. Was she inside the tree? Inside the mouth of the devil?
Fear began to take hold of her. What could she do? Was there a way out? Her legs felt weak. She huddled down in the corner where she first found herself. With her snout she gathered up some leaves and made a tiny bed. She wanted to look for a way out, but she was just too tired. She couldn’t take another step with her tiny legs. She slowly fell into a soft slumber. Her breath was light and the tree was warm.
=v=
She didn’t know how long she slept, but when she finally woke she could see a tiny sliver of light. Goatpuppy bleated in excitement! Maybe she could escape now. She crawled towards the light through the hollowed trunk of the felled tree. The space was tight,even for her, but she was able to move freely enough. She slid down a wet rotten section and into a large portion of the trunk. The light was just beyond the next slump. She crested it only to see her worst fear. Bright eyes peered back at her.
Goatpuppy squealed in fright.
The hot breath radiated out in a cloud of fog from the creature in the dark. She wouldn’t be able to escape within the trunk of this tree. The creature took a heavy step towards her and then another. The sliver of light revealed dried blood matted against its fur, and then its face came into full view. It wasn’t the scary wolf she had met earlier, it was a dog? Or a wolf?
With bright turquoise eyes the wolfdog limped forward. He whimpered in pain as he laid himself down to rest. He clearly didn’t want to hurt her. His leg was bleeding. It wasn’t too bad, but it needed tending. She quickly crawled back to where she had slept and grabbed some leaves with her mouth and brought it back. She stopped just out of his range. What if he was pretending? What if he attacked her? She wasn’t sure if this was wise, but how could she leave him to bleed to death from such a small wound? She closed her eyes as she walked over. Nothing happened. Goatpuppy placed the leaves against his wound and applied some pressure. He whimpered but held still.
The bleeding stopped after some time. The wolfdog licked her face in appreciation. His name was Noah and he had been separated from his family who lived in a nearby village. He would help her get there where it was safe, and then she could return to her farm.
Goatpuppy felt such a great sense of relief. She couldn’t believe she had made a friend in the scary forest. He was much larger and stronger than her as well which would come in handy even though he was still injured.
The sliver of light was coming from the side of the trunk, but it was still above them. She jumped up at the crack in the trunk but could not reach it. This was not good. Noah came up from behind her and shoved her on top of his neck and lifted her up. Together they were able to reach the crack in the trunk. She could see outside. The coast was clear. She began to bite chunks of bark and wood off. Slowly but surely the sliver expanded until she could crawl out.
The whole forest was devastated by the storm. It seemed as if every other tree had been toppled with the wind. Smoke could be seen in the distance from a raging fire. Likely started from the lightning. There were no wolves to be seen and so he got to work opening the crack up more so her new found friend could escape. After what felt like several hours Noah finally managed to crawl out. His leg was still sore so it was difficult, but with a bit of help she pulled him out with her mouth.
At last freedom.
