She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it.

She looks up at Ares. She heavily hopes he can understand what's going on, and why she's about to do what she's about to do, because she then hops onto his back.

The dappled horse stamped its foreleg and swished its tail impatiently. Its eyes were shining like emeralds through the dangling forelocks.

The howling was very close now, growing more and more frenzied.

Ares definitely didn't like it, but would much rather live than be killed as well. The kelpie was prancing around in place, very ready to go anywhere but here.

She was clearly hesitant but would rather live than get torn apart. She mounted the horse boy, although she had no idea how to ride it properly.

"We're going to be okay." She assures him, stroking his neck.

As soon as Lise was mounted, with a half rear, she plunged into the bushes and they were off, Ares following close behind.

Riding bareback is not fun, especially when you have no control over your mount or where it's going. The trees flashed by in a blur, branches slapped at them. Whenever Puck changed direction, Ares kept hot on his tail. The wind shrieked in their ears, but they could still hear the terrifying bays of their pursuers, seemingly right on their heels.

Puck never slowed or grew winded, but sweat darkened his body and made Lise's seating slick and even more terrifying.

She was absolutely terrified, much more than she ever had been in her life.

She keeps one hand on Ares, the other on the satchel. The stuff in the satchel had proven useful before and she was unwilling to lose it.

And then a huge black creature burst from the ferns to their right and lunged at the horses, snapping its jaws. It was a hound, bigger than any they'd seen, with eyes of blue fire. Puck leaped aside to avoid it and reared, Ares skidding to a halt behind him.

The bushes exploded, and five more monstrous dogs spilled into the road. Surrounding them, they snarled and howled, snapping at the horse's legs and leaping back as the two equine kicked at them. Massive jaws clicked shut inches from their dangling feet.

Then, through the trees, it was possible to see him, a lean figure on a huge black horse. The boy from Lise's dream, the one she saw from the bus that day. His cruel, angelic face wore a smile as he drew back a large bow, an arrow glistening at the tip.

She takes the knife from her satchel, slashing at any dogs that get close enough. She's heavily regretting not bringing her handgun.