the road is blocked.           
 two  creatures,  alive,  and  a  burning 
     car. the windshield is shattered,    
              from outside.               
                                          
                                    
             
                                    
                                          
   the womans name is lynne, she heads  
   from the peninsula of kola - called    
    there long ago by the depth of the    
   boring hole, now again returning to    
   denser civilization. but she is not    
   human. she has long claws with which   
  she picks out the flesh of her prey and 
     tears at it with her teeth, blood    
   dripping onto the dirt road. she does  
      not look up from her killing.       
                                          
     her steed is hornblende, a dark    
    horse, a glowing panther. she's an    
    extremely digitgrade thing, with a    
  polite face. while her regular (and now 
  disinterested) mouth is responsible for 
     eating plant matter (mostly fatty    
     fruits like avocado) her tail is     
  carnivorous and has a mouth (and will?) 
  of its own. the entire tail is hollow   
  and juicy, and feels wonderful inside.