Shayde pushed forward through the tall red and orange wildflowers. They lapped against the side of her dark grey fur which was now singed and reminded her of the horrible tragedy she had endured only a few days earlier. As the sun and the moon had taken turns crossing the sky overhead she pushed forward, barely stopping to rest or eat. She was afraid that once she stopped moving, the horror of losing her entire family would catch up to her. She had not stopped to think about anything: not the horror of the past or the blank expanse that was her future now. Now here she was, once again caught in a sea of fire. Only this time, she did not feel panic or fear. She only felt numb, a dull sense of self preservation pushing her forward.
She had run as fast as she could the first day, until her legs began to falter and she was forced to stop and rest. The second day she carried on at a much slower pace. By the third day, her muscles were burning and her stomach churned. She needed food, but she was not used to hunting without her pack. She expended even more energy trying and failing to find food until finally she came across the leftovers of some other animal's prey. The meat was old, but she was desperate. She no longer knew how many days she had been traveling, eating whatever she could find or catch. She was exhausted, starving, and stubborn enough to ignore both of those problems until she collapsed. It wouldn't be long now. Perhaps her journey would end right here in the midst of the flames. That is where her true life had ended days ago and it seemed ironic that as much as she had pushed forward she found herself here again. A short, delirious laugh escaped her mouth. Shayde could not bear to think of what would become of her now. Instead, she just focused on the rhythmic movement of her feet falling heavily on the hilly ground.