The smell of fear, and other things

He was running as fast as he could, his legs felt like rubber. He knew they were chasing him, but he couldn't summon the nerve to look behind out of fear that the simple act of turning his head would slow his pace. The path that lay before him was a dirt road running between two vast cornfields. The corn stalks were 7 feet tall if they were an inch. It was dark outside, but somehow the path was lit from behind by car headlights. This was especially odd since his pursuers were on foot. Each step he took stirred up a small cloud of dust that was visible in the phantom headlights. He couldn't afford to take the time to question his surroundings. He only had time to run.

His pursuers had only one thing on their mind- hunger. They were acting out of instinct. They were carnivores, and craved fresh meat. He was the closest thing out there in the desolate acreage of farmland. His mind raced along with his body. His hopes of escaping were waning since there seemed to be no end to the cornfields. He thought of taking a sharp right, into the corn stalks, and trying to hide, but they would undoubtedly hear his every move; not to mention running through the stalks would slow him down. He considered that if he were to veer into the cornfield, he would clear a path for them, and they could continue less hindered than he, closing in that much quicker.

"Thump". His foot hit a rock. His body flew with the momentum he'd built. He dove head first in slow motion into the dirt. "It's over" he thought. He summoned the strength to claw his way from down on all fours back into an upright running position. But it was too late. He felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. His body gave out and he tumbled to the ground. They got him.

In what he thought would be his last act, he tilted his head up and looked at his would-be killers. As they stood over him all he could see were their silhouettes against the mysterious headlights that followed behind them. He opened his mouth to scream but only to let out a tubercular cough. He heard some laughter...and smelled mustard.

Just then he woke violently. "It was only a dream..."