Chapter Ten: "A Voice from the Shadows"
A heavy silence settled after the scream that had torn through the night. It was not an ordinary silence—it was different, strange, nearly pressing down on Yusuf's chest to suffocate him.
He felt that even the rustle of leaves had stopped, that the wind had ceased blowing through the branches, that the entire forest held its breath waiting for something he did not know.
He stood there, in the middle of the abandoned camp, blood still staining his shoes, the smell of death still lodged in his nostrils. His body was rigid, his eyes fixed on the darkness that had swallowed the scream. He heard only his heartbeat—so loud that he thought everyone in the forest must hear it.
His mind did not rest for a moment. The images returned to him again: the large man's remains scattered among the roots, his blood feeding the tree trunks, his removed eyes leaving two bloody voids in his face, his scream frozen on his lips.
Then the scream he had heard moments ago, the one that had stopped suddenly as if the air itself had swallowed it.
He wondered to himself, his inner voice trembling:
Is this what those poor souls felt before they became scattered pieces of flesh?
Is this cold feeling in my stomach the same that preceded their death?
Were they hearing their heartbeats with this intensity, knowing the end was coming?
He counted the seconds in his silence, each second stretching like an hour. He expected to hear approaching footsteps, to see red eyes glowing in the darkness, to feel the breath of something hot on his nape. But nothing came. Only the silence. The heavy silence that nearly deafened him.
---
Then a sound pierced the stillness.
It was a human voice—weak, faint, coming from among the dense trees a few steps away. A female voice, laden with desperate pleading, as if its owner was on the edge of death:
— "Please… someone save me… anyone… I'm trapped!"
Yusuf froze. He felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. His heart, which had been pounding violently, seemed to stop for a moment, then returned to beating even harder, as if trying to make up for lost time.
The voice was close. Very close. Perhaps only a few steps away. But he saw no one. The trees around him were dense, the darkness pitch black, and the light from the dying fire barely reached where he stood.
His heart split in two. One half wanted to run immediately, to get away from this place, from these sounds, from this fear. The other half could not ignore a human's cry for help. He remembered his mother's voice when she had once cried out, remembered that no one had come to help her.
He spoke to himself sharply, but his inner voice was strained:
This is a trap. A hunt. No doubt about it. It can't be a coincidence that a woman's voice comes after everything that happened.
But another voice inside him said:
And what if she really is a woman in need of help? What if you leave her here and she dies? Will you forgive yourself?
Thoughts began to alternate quickly, as if his mind was working at full speed despite the exhaustion and hunger:
The creature that killed them… disappeared after slaughtering the strangers. Perhaps it had its fill of them. Perhaps it is not in this area now. If it wanted to hunt us all, it would have chased the short man who fled in terror…
But a woman's voice? How did she get here alone? How did she survive that creature? And why is she stuck in a tree in the middle of the forest at night?
All these questions circled in his head as he stood in place, his feet rooted to the ground. He knew that any uncalculated step might be his last. He knew this forest showed no mercy.
He breathed slowly, trying to calm his heart that was about to burst. Then he opened his mouth hesitantly, his voice emerging hoarse and cracked:
— "Is someone there? Can you hear me?"
He paused for a moment. The second stretched like a year. Then the reply came quickly, pleading, as if its owner had been waiting to hear a human voice:
— "Yes… please help me! I'm trapped and I can't get down!"
Yusuf clenched his fist around his chest as if trying to keep his heart from exploding. His voice trembled, but he tried to sound confident:
— "Where are you? Are you stuck up there?"
The voice came again, closer this time, as if it had moved toward him:
— "Yes! Please hurry… I can't hold on much longer! The branches are starting to break!"
Yusuf raised his head, searching among the tops of the giant trees surrounding him. Their branches intertwined above his head like a ceiling of dense shadows, light barely reaching there. He saw nothing. No movement, no human silhouette, nothing.
He thought for a moment, then called out:
— "Can you shake the tree you're stuck in? So I can see where you are?"
The voice paused for a moment. Then one of the tall trees a few steps away shook. Its upper branches trembled violently, leaves falling as if something heavy was moving up there.
But the scene did not convince Yusuf. He looked at the tree with narrowed eyes, trying to see a human shape among its branches. He saw nothing. The branches swayed, leaves fell, but there was no shadow of a person.
He asked sharply, his voice now more biting:
— "Before I come… how did you get stuck at the top of this tree? How did you climb it?"
Her voice came trembling, as if on the verge of tears:
— "There were two men… they tried to assault me… I had no escape but to climb the tree! Please don't leave me!"
Yusuf thought quickly. Two men? But the strangers he had seen were three. Where was the third?
Then he wondered: could an ordinary woman climb a tree this high?
This tree was taller than any in the area, its trunk smooth, its first branches high above. Even he—a man in his prime—would not climb it easily.
Suspicion grew in his mind. Every cell in his body screamed that this was a trick. That what he was speaking to was not human. That what awaited him among that tree's branches was not a trapped woman.
But her voice was convincing. There was in it weakness and pleading that made him hesitate. He remembered his mother's voice when she had called him at night, afraid. He remembered that his mother always told him: "If you hear someone crying for help, do not abandon them. No matter what."
He said to himself, biting his lower lip:
I will not let the forest kill my morals. I will not become like those cruel strangers. But I will not be a fool and throw myself into death's embrace.
He said aloud, trying to keep his voice calm:
— "I can't climb this tree like this. I have no ropes, no tools. I'll look for something to help me."
She replied quickly, as if she had been waiting for this answer:
— "Okay… but please hurry! I can't hold on much longer!"
---
Yusuf began to move. He walked slowly, his eyes scanning the ground as if searching for something to help him climb. He would occasionally bend to pick up a twig, then throw it away. He would take a step forward, then step back.
But inside, his heart pounded like drums. He counted his steps carefully, moving inch by inch away from the tree's vicinity. He knew that what he was speaking to was not human. He knew the danger was near.
He felt eyes watching him. He did not see them, but he felt them. The sensation was familiar from childhood, when he would play in the dark and feel that someone was watching him from behind the curtain.
He felt them on his nape, on his shoulders, on his back. He was watched from every angle.
And suddenly, he sensed an impact above him among the branches. A heavy sound—not the sound of a person moving cautiously, but the sound of something large descending from above quickly. He raised his head, his heart nearly leaping from his throat.
He saw nothing. The branches still moved, leaves still fell, but there was nothing visible.
He wondered to himself, his voice trembling:
If this creature were able to kill me, why waste its time? Why lure me this way? Why not pounce on me as it did with the strangers?
The questions gnawed at him from within, fear dragging him toward the edge of collapse. He felt that if he stayed in this place a moment longer, he would lose his sanity. He needed to get out. To anywhere but this place.
In the midst of his tension, he spotted something.
There was a small stream, behind a large tree a few steps away. The water glinted under the faint moonlight filtering through the branches, flowing quietly between rocks.
One desperate thought occurred to him—desperate, but better than nothing:
This stream… it connects to the larger river. I saw the river when I was walking. If I jump into it and pretend I fell by accident, perhaps the current will carry me away. Perhaps I can get away from this place before it pounces.
He began moving slowly toward the stream. He tried not to appear as if he intended to go there, pretending instead to still be searching for something to help him climb. He took a step, then stopped, then stepped forward again. Each step brought him closer to the water, and each step quickened his heartbeat.
He was only a few steps from the stream.
He felt the water's proximity. Saw its flow before him, heard its faint murmur. He extended his hand toward the water, thinking for a moment that he would succeed, that his hands would touch its cold surface before something could reach him.
But before he could, the sounds stopped suddenly.
---
There was no more voice of the trapped woman. No more rustling branches. No more anything.
A heavy stillness descended, making Yusuf breathe a sigh of relief for a moment. He thought it was over. He thought whatever had been there was gone.
But this relief did not last long.
He heard the rustling of branches around him. It came not from one place, but from everywhere. From front and back, from above and beneath his feet. The sound came from every direction, as if the entire forest was moving.
Then the woman's voice thundered again.
But it was different this time. Not weak, not trembling. It was sharp, harsh, like a knife slicing through the air:
— "Why didn't you come to help me?" the voice said coldly. "It seems you have no mercy. You left me screaming and pleading while you pretended to search."
Yusuf froze. He wanted to answer, but his tongue was heavy.
The voice continued, growing harsher with each word:
— "And now you try to escape? You think water will save you? You think the current will carry you away from me?"
Yusuf felt his knees tremble. He wanted to run, but his feet would not obey.
Then the voice changed suddenly.
It was no longer a woman's voice. No longer a human voice at all. It became harsher, deeper, as if the earth itself were speaking. The voice came from the throat, not the mouth, vibrating in the chest, filling the entire space:
— "You fool… you have fallen into the trap."
The darkness split before him.
From among the trees emerged a colossal creature, like darkness suddenly incarnate. Its height exceeded any human Yusuf had ever seen, its body a hybrid of bull and beast, muscles piling upon muscles like natural armor.
Twisted horns emerged from its head, embracing the air like a crown of dead bones, each horn ending in a point sharp as a spear.
Red blazing eyes glowed in the darkness, like two embers that had not been extinguished for centuries. They saw everything, piercing the darkness as if it were nothing. Their gaze was heavy, falling on Yusuf like stones piling on his chest.
Sharp fangs like swords protruded from its open mouth, glinting in the faint moonlight. Between them, he could see a long black tongue moving like a serpent, tasting the air as if savoring Yusuf's fear.
Its body was covered in coarse black fur, and in some places the skin was exposed, showing old scars like records of battles fought ages ago. A crooked tail moved behind it like a second serpent, striking the ground from time to time, leaving deep furrows in the earth.
The creature stood before Yusuf, blocking his path. It looked down at him, its head tilted slightly to the side, like something examining something small, unworthy of attention.
Then it laughed.
A laugh that emerged from the depths of its chest, shaking the entire place. The trees around it trembled, leaves fell as if afraid, the air itself began to quiver. The laugh sounded like demonic incantations—ancient words Yusuf did not understand, but they made his skin shrink.
The laugh stopped suddenly. The creature looked at Yusuf with its glowing eyes, then spoke in a booming voice that shook Yusuf's chest, made his teeth chatter from its intensity:
— "I am the messenger of this land and its savior. I am the one who dispenses justice upon the outcasts. Accept my punishment and I will forgive you, you wretched sinner.
My mercy is vast; if you come to me willingly, I will grant you a merciful death without pain.
But if you refuse…" He paused, smiling to reveal his long fangs— "then you will be torn limb from limb, as you have seen."
Yusuf's knees trembled.
He tried to compose himself, not to show weakness, but his body betrayed him. He felt cold sweat seeping from beneath his arms, felt his breath falter. He cried out in confusion, his voice barely escaping his throat:
— "What sin have I committed? What did I do? I have hurt no one! I came here by accident!"
The creature laughed so loudly the branches around him shook. His laugh was like thunder, filling the space and echoing off the trees as if the entire forest laughed with him.
— "You deluded one!" he said with clear disdain. "You are in the land of the outcasts. No one is cast here except after staining themselves with sins.
There is no room for innocence. Everyone whose feet have touched this land is guilty. You are guilty. They are guilty. Everyone is guilty."
Yusuf tried to compose himself. He knew this creature did not want to hear his excuses, but he could not remain silent. He cried out, his voice louder than he had expected:
— "And if I am guilty, then you are here too! You are also in this land! Haven't you committed a sin yourself? Why do you not punish yourself?"
The creature's face changed suddenly. Its features twisted into a hellish mask of anger. Its eyes glowed brighter, its breath grew hot—Yusuf felt its heat on his face despite the distance between them. It said with a severity that made Yusuf step back involuntarily:
— "You dare compare yourself to me? I am the messenger of this land and its herald!
I redeemed myself when I abandoned my wretched human body… and since then I have been the master here, the savior, possessing the right to punish you outcasts."
It stepped closer. Its step was heavy, making the earth tremble beneath Yusuf's feet. It continued, its voice now quieter, but its quiet was more dangerous than its shouting:
— "You, little one, know nothing. You do not know where you are, nor what you did to deserve being cast here. But I know.
I know every sin you have committed, every crime you have hidden, every darkness in your heart. I see it now. I see it writhing in your chest like a worm."
Yusuf felt the words pressing on his chest like heavy stones. He did not know whether the creature spoke the truth, or whether it was trying to destroy him psychologically before killing him physically.
But suddenly, he felt all his sins return to him. Every mistake he had made, every word he had spoken that should not have been spoken, every moment he had wished he had been better than he was.
He shook his head violently, trying to shake off this feeling. He shouted:
— "I do not belong to this land! I came by accident! The waves washed me here! I did not choose this! I did not know this place existed!"
The creature smiled slyly. Its smile was slow, as if granting Yusuf time to understand what it was about to say. Then it spoke, its words falling like stones into still water:
— "That is what everyone says at first. Everyone who comes here says it was chance, that they did not choose this, that they are innocent. But they soon understand. They understand that nothing here happens by chance. Neither your presence here, nor your arrival at this camp, nor your meeting with me. Everything is written. Everything is destined."
It raised its massive hand, its long fingers moving in the air as if drawing an inescapable fate. It declared in a voice that brooked no argument:
— "Time for words is over. Time for punishment has come."
---
Suddenly, Yusuf felt the earth beneath his feet disappear.
He looked down and saw the roots he had been standing on moving. They emerged from the soil like giant serpents, writhing and twisting, searching for his feet. He tried to jump, to run, but the roots were faster. They wrapped around his ankles, pulling him toward the ground with irresistible force.
He screamed. He tried to grab a nearby branch, but the branches moved too. They transformed from dry twigs into flexible arms, swooping down on him from every side. They wrapped around his arms, around his waist, around his neck. They were cold, damp, like snake skins, not tree branches.
He looked at the creature and saw it standing there, motionless. It was watching him with its glowing eyes, smiling. It smiled like someone watching a show they did not want to miss.
Yusuf tried to scream, to cry out, to do anything. But the branches pressed on his neck, strangling him. His voice emerged as a muffled gasp, unheard.
The roots began to pull him toward the ground. He felt the soil swallowing him, as if the earth itself was opening its mouth to devour him. Dirt entered his mouth, his nose, his eyes. Its taste was bitter, its smell like the death he had witnessed moments before.
He tried to resist, to pull back, to break free. But the roots were stronger. They pressed on his body from every direction, crushing him, pushing him downward.
In the final moment before he disappeared completely, he raised his eyes toward the creature. It was still standing there, watching him. But something had changed in its face. It no longer smiled. Its face was rigid, as if waiting for something that had not yet happened.
Then the earth swallowed him, in something like a gateway.
For a moment, he felt he was crossing a gap between worlds, that his body was no longer in the same place.
---
Everything became darkness. No sound, no air. He was falling, falling into an endless void. The roots still held him, pulling him down, to a place he did not know.
He wanted to scream, but his voice did not come. He wanted to weep, but his tears did not come. He only fell, and fell, the darkness around him growing thicker, the cold growing harsher, the fear growing deeper.
And suddenly, the falling stopped.
He was there, at the bottom of the darkness, not knowing where he was, not knowing what would happen to him. He was simply there, his eyes closed, hearing his heartbeats gradually fading.
The last thing he remembered before losing consciousness: the creature's voice whispering from afar, as if from another place, from a world he did not belong to:
— "This is your beginning, Yusuf… not your end."
Then nothing.
Only darkness remained.
---
End of Chapter Ten