The Forgotten Path

Ethan's breath came in short, sharp bursts. The weight of Eleanor's words settled deep into his chest.

"You were here before."

How? When?

Nothing made sense.

The forest whispered around him, the wind curling through the trees like unseen fingers. The carved symbol on the bark—the eye within the circle—seemed to pulse beneath his fingertips, as if it were alive.

Eleanor stepped closer, her presence almost ghostly in the dim moonlight. "You need to leave before you remember too much."

Ethan's pulse thundered. "Why? What happens if I remember?"

She didn't answer. Instead, she turned, her pale hair catching the wind, and began walking deeper into the woods.

Something inside him screamed to run in the opposite direction. But another part—something buried deep inside him—urged him to follow.

So he did.

The deeper they went, the more distorted the forest became. The trees twisted unnaturally. The path beneath his feet felt uneven, shifting like something breathing. Shadows stretched longer than they should have.

It was as if the forest itself was alive. Watching. Waiting.

Then, without warning, Eleanor stopped.

Ethan nearly crashed into her. "What—?"

She raised a hand, silencing him.

For a moment, there was nothing but silence. No wind. No rustling leaves. Just an eerie, suffocating stillness.

Then, the sound came.

A slow, deliberate knock.

Ethan's spine stiffened.

It was coming from beneath them.

Beneath the earth.

He took a shaky step back, his eyes scanning the ground. "What the hell was that?"

Eleanor didn't move. Didn't blink. "It's waking up."

Ethan's stomach twisted. "What's waking up?"

She turned her gaze to his, her dark eyes like black holes. "The reason you forgot."

Before Ethan could respond, the ground lurched.

The soil beneath them trembled, vibrating with something unseen. A low, rumbling sound echoed beneath their feet, like something shifting. Moving. Rising.

Eleanor grabbed his arm. "We need to go. Now."

Ethan was too stunned to move. "What's happening?"

She didn't answer. She just ran.

And this time, Ethan didn't hesitate.

He followed.

The forest blurred around them as they sprinted back the way they came. But the path was different now. The trees weren't in the same places. The air felt heavier, thicker. The whispering was louder, pressing against his skull.

Something was changing.

Something was chasing them.

Ethan could feel it—a presence, just behind them. Not footsteps. Not breathing. But something worse.

The feeling of being hunted.

The moment they burst from the tree line and into the open, Ethan felt the air shift. The heaviness lifted. The whispers stopped.

They were out.

But when Ethan turned to Eleanor—she was gone.

His heart pounded. He spun around, scanning the trees, but there was nothing.

No sign she had ever been there at all.

Ethan swallowed hard, his hands shaking.

Then he looked down—

At the dirt clinging to his fingers.

At the symbol—the eye—now burned into the back of his hand.

And the moment he saw it, a single memory slammed into his mind—

A voice.

A scream.

And his own name… whispered from beneath the earth.

Something had been buried.

And whatever it was—

It wanted him to remember.