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Then it stopped. An eerie silence followed as the creatures of the forest stood in shock. The only sound was the river. Then it shrank suddenly, leaving mud and a few fish flopping in it, and abruptly surged forward, lapping at Ash’s hooves. But it didn’t stop there. It  gurgled forward and rushed at the forest. “Run!” the fox cried, springing away so suddenly that the hedgehog lost her grip, soared through the air, and landed… right on Ash’s head.

He froze, unsure if he should be frightened or angry. But it was just a hedgehog, wasn’t it? Nothing to be afraid of. Just prickles. Plus, it wasn’t her fault. So he shouldn’t be angry. So what should he do?

The fox answered his question as she dashed away, calling again over her shoulder, “Run!”

“Hang on tight, Ms. Hedgehog,” Ash warned, and felt the creature nestle down in between his antlers. Then he crouched and leapt, bounding after the fox as quickly as his long legs would take him. The mink was somewhere behind him, and the wolf was keeping up fairly well. Ash knew that he could outdistance any of these animals in a sprint, but wolves were known for their endurance. That’s how they caught deer. They ran them down.

Something swooped overhead, and Ash nearly sent the hedgehog flying as he skidded to a stop and ducked, gazing upward.

It was some kind of bird. Or bat. Or lizard. Somehow it seemed to be a combination of the last two. And it was attacking him.

Or was it?

Ash didn’t know and he didn’t care. The water was rising too quickly for him to crouch there cowering. Either he would certainly drown, or possibly be eaten by the predators that seemed to surround him. Option two was definitely better.

“You okay up there?” Ash asked the hedgehog. “We’re going to go pretty fast in a second, so get comfortable.”

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@birds-rock