Chapter 7: Shadows and Whispers

The warmth of the fire had long since faded, leaving only the glow of embers behind. Echo, Alice, and I sat in tense silence. The remnants of our laughter from earlier had dissolved, replaced with an unsettling stillness. The encounter at the ruins had shaken us, and though we had managed to escape, the feeling of being watched still gnawed at the back of my mind.

Alice sat cross-legged, fiddling with the end of her sleeve. Her usual carefree nature was dampened, her fingers tapping nervously against her knee. Echo, ever vigilant, lay with his head resting on his paws, his ears twitching at every distant sound beyond the firelight.

"We need to figure out what those things were," I muttered, staring into the dim glow of the embers. "They weren't human. Not anymore."

Alice nodded slowly, biting her lip. "I've seen people change before, but… this was different. They moved like they weren't really controlling their bodies."

I sighed, rubbing my temples. "The ruins. Those glyphs. It has to mean something."

Alice hesitated before responding. "Maybe it's not just the ruins. Maybe the light itself… maybe it changed more than we thought."

Silence fell between us, thick and heavy. The weight of unanswered questions pressed down on my chest. The world we were surviving in was cruel, but the thought that something darker was at play made my skin crawl.

Suddenly, Echo lifted his head, his ears perked. A low growl rumbled from his throat.

I tensed. "What is it, boy?"

Alice grabbed her bow, eyes darting to the shadows beyond the trees. The wind had died down, leaving only the crackling of the embers and the rustling of unseen movement. A shape stirred beyond the fire's reach.

My grip tightened around my crowbar. I felt my heartbeat hammer against my ribs. Was it another survivor? Or something else?

"Who's there?" I called out, trying to keep my voice steady, despite the fear creeping into my gut.

There was a pause. Then, a whisper—a sound so faint I almost thought I imagined it.

"…Help."

Alice shot me a nervous glance. "Toni…"

I swallowed hard. The voice was weak, desperate. But we had been tricked before. I wasn't about to let sympathy get us killed.

Echo stood, his posture stiff, golden eyes locked on the darkness ahead. I adjusted my stance, ready to fight if needed.

Then, from the shadows, a figure stumbled into the firelight.

It was a man—ragged, thin, barely holding himself up. His clothes were torn, his face sunken and hollow. Blood crusted along his temple, his hands trembling as he lifted them slightly.

"Please…" he rasped. "Don't… don't let them find me."

Alice and I exchanged wary glances.

Then, the distant sound of inhuman shrieks tore through the night.

The trees seemed to shudder, the darkness shifting like a living thing. The shrieks were growing louder—multiple voices, guttural and raw. Whatever was hunting this man was closing in fast.

Alice sucked in a sharp breath. "Toni, we can't just leave him!"

I hesitated. Every survival instinct screamed against taking in a stranger, but leaving him to die felt just as wrong. Before I could decide, the man collapsed to his knees, gasping for breath, his body wracked with exhaustion.

Echo barked sharply, snapping my focus back to the looming threat beyond the fire's reach. Shadows twisted, flickering between the trees. Figures moved—unnatural, jerking motions, as if their limbs were barely connected to their will.

I clenched my jaw. "Alice, help him up. We need to move. Now."

She rushed forward without hesitation, throwing the man's arm over her shoulder as she hoisted him to his feet. He groaned in pain, his body barely able to hold itself together.

The first figure stepped into the dim light. Its face was wrong—stretched, hollow-eyed, its mouth slightly open as if it had forgotten how to close it. The moment it spotted us, its body twitched violently, and then it lunged.

I swung my crowbar with all my strength. Bone cracked as the creature's head snapped to the side, but it barely staggered.

"Run!" I shouted.

Alice didn't need to be told twice. She gritted her teeth and hauled the stranger forward, Echo darting beside us. The fire was no longer a comfort—it was a beacon, and our enemies had found us.

As we sprinted into the night, the creatures shrieked behind us, the sound crawling into our bones.

The hunt was no longer beginning.

It was already in full force.