Kimberly backed away from the carved trunk, her face pale as ash. "Who the hell would do that?" she whispered, voice trembling.
No one answered. They didn't need to. Each of them could feel that the carvings weren't old. Some were fresh, sap still dripping like the tree itself was bleeding.
Louis swallowed hard and glanced around. "There are dozens of them… they're everywhere."
Emily felt her stomach twist. The symbols covered the forest, circling them, surrounding them. Not random, not scattered, all arranged and deliberate.
Dylan forced a laugh that cracked in the middle. "So what? Some crazy tribe out here marking their territory? Fine. Good for them. We just need to get the hell out before—"
A sound cut him off.
It wasn't an animal or the wind. It was a hiss. Low, long, and impossibly close.
Everyone froze. Emily's heart slammed in her chest as her eyes darted between the trees. Shadows stretched unnaturally long, and the silence pressed harder, as if the forest itself held its breath.
Then, another hiss. And this time behind them.
Kimberly screamed.
Louis grabbed her arm and yanked her close. "Move! Now!"
They ran, crashing through the undergrowth, branches slapping at their faces, roots clawing at their boots. Emily's lungs burned, but she didn't stop, her legs moving on instinct alone.
Something moved fast and agile above them, leaping from tree to tree with sickening grace. Emily caught a glimpse: pale skin against the dark leaves, eyes glinting red for only a second before vanishing again.
"They're following us!" Elena shouted, her voice breaking.
Emily didn't look back. She didn't dare. She only knew Elena was right. Whatever was out there, whatever had marked the trees, it was hunting them now.
Louis stumbled, but Dylan hauled him up, dragging him forward. "Keep running and stay together!"
The forest floor sloped downward, and suddenly they spilled into a clearing. The canopy opened just enough to reveal a sky painted in bruised purples, night creeping in far too quickly.
Emily bent over, clutching her knees, her chest heaving. Kimberly sobbed openly, covering her mouth with both hands as though afraid the sound would draw attention.
"We can't keep this up," Louis rasped, wiping sweat from his brow. "We need a plan. We need—"
Something hit him.
It was so fast that Emily barely saw it. A blur of white, a snap of motion, and Louis was gone. One moment standing beside her, the next, dragged screaming into the dark.
"LOUIS!" Emily shrieked, lunging forward, but Dylan caught her arm and yanked her back. His grip was iron, his eyes wide with raw terror.
Louis's scream cut through the trees, high and agonized, then was silenced so abruptly that it left a ringing in Emily's ears.
Kimberly sobbed louder, shaking violently. "Oh my God! Oh my God! They got him—"
"Shut up!" Dylan barked, though his own voice trembled. "We can't help him now. We are all gonna die if we stay here."
Elena's face was pale but hard, her jaw clenched. "He's right, we need to keep moving."
Emily felt her chest collapse inward. Her mind screamed to go after Louis, to find him, but the truth was undeniable. Whatever had taken him wasn't human. Whatever it was, it wanted them all. And Louis was already gone.
They stumbled forward again, slower this time, every crack of a branch sending shivers through them. Night thickened quickly, swallowing the last of the light. The forest felt alive now.
Dylan walked ahead with the machete raised, though Emily doubted it would matter. Kimberly clung to Elena, her sobs quieter now but constant. Emily kept close, her fists clenched so tight her nails cut into her palms.
For the first time in her life, she prayed to see another human being; anyone, anything, but when they finally saw firelight flickering through the trees ahead, her relief curdled instantly into dread.
Because fire meant people, and in this place, that wasn't a good thing.