Burning Forest

He forced himself up and began to limp towards the tree, picking up speed as his adrenaline pumped through him. As he reached the tree, he grabbed onto the lowest branch as hard as he could, pulling himself up and leaning against the trunk. He knew that he wouldn't be able to hold on much longer, the heat was too intense and his muscles were beginning to weaken. With one last burst of strength, he lifted his right leg up and planted it firmly on the tree, he brought his left foot up to rest on top of his right, resting his arms on the tree for support. He grasped onto the lowest branch with both hands and pulled himself up to the top of the tree, he could feel his hands begin to slip, but he fought through the pain and the fatigue, his fingers were starting to bleed from the heat of the tree. He reached up and grabbed hold of the branch with his right hand, using it to pull himself up and onto the branch. He slowly lowered his body down and rested against the trunk, breathing heavily into the smoke that filled the air around him.

There was no more time for rest, he knew he had to act now. He had to save as many people as he could. Dominic looked up to the sky, the clouds had turned black and he could see dark figures moving in the sky, they were coming for him. As he looked up to the skies, he could see a figure move past him in the sky; it was the raven, she was coming for him.

Dominic had a few seconds to prepare himself before the raven arrived.

He could see the raven flying in a straight line towards him, her wings flapping rapidly as she approached, her sharp talons reaching towards him. Her eyes locked on to his, her gaze was deadly and she was ready to kill him. He quickly scanned the area around him and realized that there was no way to escape, she was coming for him and she would kill him without hesitation. He had no choice but to face her head on, there was no other option.

He reached into his rucksack and pulled out a bottle of whiskey, taking a swig as he prepared himself for what was to come. The raven swooped in close to him, her eyes fixated on the bottle. She circled around him once, then twice, he could see her eyes darting towards him as she attempted to land. Without warning, the raven dove down towards him, her talons reaching out towards him. As she landed on his shoulder, he could feel her claws tearing through his shirt and flesh, she was digging her sharp talons deep into his shoulder. She started to pull him down from the tree, Dominic holding onto the tree as tight as he could. He could feel the blood flowing down his arm and shoulder as she continued to pull him down. He gritted his teeth and held on, he was going to fight her for as long as he could. He could feel the alcohol beginning to numb his nerves as he fought through the pain and fatigue.

As the raven continued to pull him down from the tree, her talons began to tear through his chest, she was digging her claws deeper and deeper into his body. He could feel the blood running down his body and dripping down his leg as she tore him apart. As she pulled him down, he reached down to grab the bottle of whiskey and took another swig, he could feel the burning sensation in his throat as he swallowed the liquid down. As he drank, he could feel her talons ripping away at his chest, he could feel the blood pouring out of him as the raven pulled him closer to the ground. He took another sip from the bottle, the burning sensation in his throat soon disappeared as a warm feeling spread throughout his body. The raven continued to pull him down, her grip was too strong, he was losing strength quickly. She dug her talons deeper into his body, pulling him down further towards the ground.

Suddenly, she stopped. Dominic felt her claws pull away from him, he was free. He looked up at the sky and saw the raven hovering in the air above him, her eyes fixed on him. She opened her beak and let out a loud caw, revealing a row of razor sharp teeth that glinted under the sunlight. She cawed again, sounding like a scream, then she began to flap her wings, lifting herself into the sky and into the air. With a final cry, she flew away, disappearing beyond the horizon.

Dominic quickly crawled out from beneath the tree and made his way over to the edge of the clearing, trying to catch his breath. He sat down and looked around him, he could still see the smoke rising from the nearby forest, he knew that the fire had reached the outskirts of the woods and was spreading ever outward. He could see a large amount of people wandering around aimlessly, some were falling to their knees and others were stumbling around in a daze. He could see people lying in the street, some were writhing in pain, others were just staring blankly into the sky. He could hear the sound of sirens in the distance, he knew that the firefighters were on their way to put out the fire, they had to hurry though, he knew it was already too late.