MEMELAND

The moment Kai stepped beyond the village lights, the world changed.

Behind him remained warmth.

People.

Voices.

Life.

Ahead lay only darkness.

The trees swallowed the moonlight, leaving the forest draped in shadows.

Kai tightened his grip on the knuckleduster.

The metal felt cold against his skin.

For several moments he simply stood there, listening.

Nothing.

No insects.

No birds.

No rustling leaves.

Not even the wind.

The silence was wrong.

A forest should never be this quiet.

Yet here, it felt as though every living thing had fled.

Or died.

Kai pushed the thought aside and continued forward.

The beam of moonlight filtering through the canopy became his guide.

Roots twisted across the ground like snakes.

Branches clawed at his shoulders as he moved deeper into the woods.

Every shadow seemed to hide something.

Every creak made his heart beat faster.

But he kept moving.

Lily.

Ethan.

Those names repeated in his mind.

The image of the two children laughing near the well surfaced again.

He quickened his pace.

---

Minutes passed.

Then he found the first sign.

A small woven basket lay overturned beside a tree.

Herbs were scattered across the ground.

Kai crouched.

Fresh.

Very fresh.

The children had definitely come this way.

Nearby, he spotted footprints.

Two smaller sets.

Heading deeper into the forest.

And something else.

A third trail.

Long grooves carved into the soil.

As though something had dragged itself through the undergrowth.

Kai frowned.

The marks weren't made by paws.

Or feet.

They looked almost...

Serpentine.

A chill crawled up his spine.

He stood and followed the trail.

---

The smell reached him before the sight did.

Blood.

Fresh blood.

Kai immediately broke into a run.

Branches whipped past him.

His breathing grew heavier.

The smell intensified.

Then he emerged into a small clearing.

And froze.

A wolf lay on the ground.

Or half of one.

Its body had been torn apart.

Ribs exposed.

Flesh shredded.

One side of its torso completely missing.

Blood soaked the earth beneath it.

Kai stared.

The wound was recent.

Very recent.

Slowly, he knelt beside it.

The blood was still warm.

Whatever had killed it couldn't be far away.

The realization sent a surge of fear through him.

But another feeling quickly followed.

Urgency.

If the creature was nearby—

The children were in even greater danger.

Kai stood.

Then noticed droplets of blood leading away from the clearing.

A trail.

He immediately followed it.

---

The blood became easier to track as he moved.

Small stains on leaves.

Splashes across roots.

Occasionally entire patches of crimson-soaked earth.

The further he went, the worse it became.

Then he found a piece of cloth.

Kai picked it up.

His stomach sank.

A small section of a dress.

Torn.

Bloodied.

Lily's.

The memory of her teasing him near the well flashed through his mind.

"You're weird."

His grip tightened.

No.

No.

Not yet.

Maybe she was alive.

Maybe—

A sound interrupted his thoughts.

Sobbing.

Faint.

Barely audible.

Kai's head snapped toward the source.

A bush.

Several meters away.

He rushed forward.

"P-Please..."

The voice trembled.

Kai pushed aside the branches.

A boy sat curled against a tree.

Covered in dirt.

Tears streaming down his face.

Ethan.

The boy immediately flinched.

"K-Kai?"

Relief washed across Kai.

"Ethan."

The boy burst into tears.

"You came."

Kai knelt beside him.

"Are you hurt?"

The boy shook his head rapidly.

"N-No."

"What happened?"

The child's face paled.

His entire body trembled.

"It took her."

Kai felt his chest tighten.

"What took her?"

Ethan pointed deeper into the forest.

Toward the darkness.

A shaking finger.

"There."

His voice cracked.

"The monster."

The word hung in the air.

Monster.

Not wolf.

Not beast.

Monster.

Kai swallowed.

"Where's Lily?"

The boy's eyes filled with tears again.

"It grabbed her."

His voice became barely audible.

"I couldn't stop it."

Kai looked in the direction Ethan was pointing.

Then back at the boy.

Every instinct screamed that he should stay.

Protect the child.

Take him back to the village.

Yet another voice whispered within him.

If Lily was still alive—

Every second mattered.

Kai made his decision.

"Ethan."

The boy looked up.

"Can you hide?"

The child nodded weakly.

"Stay here."

Kai placed a hand on his shoulder.

"No matter what happens, don't move until I come back."

The boy hesitated.

Then nodded.

Kai stood.

And ran.

---

The forest blurred around him.

His heartbeat thundered in his ears.

The blood trail had become impossible to miss now.

Large streaks painted the ground.

Broken branches littered the path.

Signs of a struggle.

Signs of someone being dragged.

Kai pushed harder.

Faster.

Then he saw light.

Moonlight.

A clearing.

He burst through the treeline.

And stopped.

The world seemed to freeze.

His breathing ceased.

His thoughts vanished.

Because in the center of the clearing sat a creature.

A dark figure.

Humanoid.

Yet completely wrong.

Two crimson eyes glowed within the darkness.

Its body appeared made of living shadow.

Long claws extended from both hands.

Its lower half trailed into darkness instead of legs.

Like a serpent made of black smoke.

And beneath it—

Lily.

The girl lay motionless on the ground.

A massive wound tore through her chest.

Blood stained the grass.

The monster's claws dug into her body.

Feeding.

Eating.

Kai couldn't move.

Couldn't breathe.

Couldn't think.

He was too late.

The creature slowly lifted its head.

Crimson eyes met his.

For a brief moment, neither moved.

The monster stared.

Kai stared back.

Then the creature smiled.

A mouth filled with jagged teeth stretched unnaturally wide.

And it laughed.

A horrible clicking sound.

Mocking.

Amused.

As if it found the situation funny.

Something inside Kai snapped.

The fear.

The horror.

The helplessness.

All of it transformed into rage.

Pure.

Burning rage.

The monster's grin widened.

Then it vanished.

Kai's eyes widened.

Gone.

The creature had disappeared into the shadows.

Instinct screamed.

Move.

Kai threw himself backward.

A claw sliced through the air where his head had been an instant earlier.

The monster emerged from the darkness.

Fast.

Far faster than anything he had ever seen.

Its claws carved through the tree behind him as though it were paper.

Kai barely rolled aside in time.

The creature let out another mocking click.

Its crimson eyes gleamed.

Predatory.

Patient.

It wasn't hunting anymore.

It was playing.

And Kai had just become its newest toy.

The knuckleduster suddenly felt very small in his hand.

The monster lowered itself into a crouch.

Preparing to strike.

Kai raised his fists.

Blood pounded in his ears.

Moonlight illuminated the clearing.

Neither looked away.

Neither moved.

Waiting.

Watching.

The next attack would decide everything.

And deep within his mind, among the countless whispers and broken memories—

A familiar voice spoke once more.

"Kill."