Deception

A boy sings out a long and restless tune. He labors, hacking and slashing away at something concealed by shade and rock, A strange essence gushing out at him with each slash. Suddenly, a rustle wakes him from his trance. He pauses at his relentless work to scan the forest around him, watching cautiously like an animal. After a brief moment, he continues to slash and sing, with an added layer of haste. He loses himself in the simple motion of violence and his tune of exasperated sorrow. Not too far from him, a shadow emerges from the forest, revealing a girl. She had been watching the effort and enjoying the song. She walked over to an empty clearing and fell down into the grass, thinking. Thinking about a perfect world where she didn't need to hide herself around others. She dwells on this thought for much too long and begins to mourn a recent loss. She had intended on forgetting this loss by distracting herself with the sight of another person, but she had failed. Before long the sound of heavy breathing and labored movement began to reach her ears. She rolled through the grass into a position where she knew she wouldn't be found in order to hide. The boy came into view dragging a concealed burden. The girl hid herself as best as she could as he marched beside her, but her hiding spot was almost revealed by her shock. Her most recent obsession had just caught her attention yet again, as he smelled of a familiar scent. The same smell of flowers and meekness that she had grown to adore so much in her time in this prison. She enjoyed the smell, but was distracted by the other additions to it, namely unfamiliar scents that reeked of trouble. After the boy had passed, she crawled out of her hiding place. There was a crimson line throughout the grass that seemed to have been left by the boy. Maybe his scent was that of blood? She had little time to think, as she was not allowed by herself for too long and needed to return home. She ventured back out into the unknown while her obsession continued to haul a product of his labor to an unknown destination. She dashed her way through the forest before stumbling into a more methodically cleared area. Houses and other makeshift creations came into view as she got closer and closer to home. Upon entering the village, she was greeted by no one. Everything was deathly quiet, and this concerned her dearly. She ran to the only person she truly trusted and begged to know what had happened. The man struggled to breathe; he was entering the last days of his life, but he still did what he could to be there for his children. He heard her concerns before softly telling her a story both to calm her and explain what had happened. The man told a long winded story of a creature who disguised itself as whatever it needed to trick its prey. Anyone who got close enough to this creature to discern any details about its true nature was fated to die within hours of doing so. The oldest in the village has deteriorated greatly, but he is the only one who remembers how to defend against this creature. The others have all gone to learn about this creature and how to protect themselves from it. The girl absorbed everything she heard and nodded with understanding. The man once again stated that meeting this creature was dangerous and warned her not to go near anyone in the forest under any circumstances, regardless of how familiar they feel. The girl nodded once again before running off. The man covered his face in shame when she was gone, as he knew exactly why his daughter was not with the others. He began to cry and belittled himself for not being able to protect her in his sorry state. Fortunately, he would not have to suffer from shame for much longer, as he drifted away in a deep, lasting slumber. The girl had grown a new appreciation for the rules that she had not known until now. Feeling enlightened, she ventured back into the forest, intent on warning her obsession so he could continue his work in safety. She wandered around aimlessly, gradually losing her senses to the imposing forest, before reaching another clearing. She had not been here before and did not know a way back home. The boy stood atop a rock looking out into the sea. The girl steeled herself, before running out calling to him. He turned to her in a practiced motion before smiling as if looking at an old friend. She explained how dangerous it was to be outside without anyone you know around, and told him that they should head back home. He took in everything she said and agreed to come back home with her. She confessed that she had forgotten the way back in her excitement, and asked him if he knew where to go. He reassured her and then took her hand before leading her into the forest. The girl had no idea where they were going but she began to feel strange. The forest used to be a place of adventure and freedom that she loved to run and dance through. Now she was lost and afraid of dangers that seemed to be everywhere. Everytime she felt scared, she turned to her guide, who was already looking at her. His eyes contained an unsettling amount of kindness for someone whose hands were covered in blood. She told him that having so much blood outside was a bad thing and that her dad had told her to always ask for help if she saw someone like that. He agreed that he was in bad condition and she was the only one that could find help. He continued to lead her until they reached a dark and cut off part of the forest. The girl was not blind anymore, and waited for the perfect opportunity to try and slip away. Her captor seemed distracted now. He was weak; working all day had taken everything out of him. He turned to face her only to realize she had ran when he was distracted. A big frown grew on his face, and his senses began to deteriorate. The girl ran aimlessly through the forest, her visibility having disappeared thanks to the fall of the sun. In the few patches of sky she could see only stars. In her blind panic, the girl ran into an unseen obstacle and fell over, badly injuring her leg. She began to cry out, not knowing any other response to her situation. Eventually, a figure emerged from the darkness. The figure got closer and then revealed themselves as one of the village elders. The girl asked for help and her new savior quickly helped her up and then began to carry her back home. The girl now recognized where she was going and was calmed. The elder brought her back home and then placed her down next to a fire before leaving to get someone who could treat her. The girl relaxed and began analyzing her surroundings, having found nothing else to do. The wait was long and excruciating but she endured it anyway. The elder came back and carried with her an assortment of items, but she had not brought any help. Upon being asked, the elder simply smiled and said that help was coming. She then left once again to an unknown location. The girl was feeling really weak now. She examined her injury and saw that it was beginning to do a lot more than just bleed. She needed help, now. She began to cry for help once again, not wanting to surrender to hopelessness. Her calls would be answered, but not by who she was expecting. The boy emerged from the darkness and was shocked to see her. She became silent for a moment, and then began to cry for help even more. Her calls were again answered by the elder, who realized what she was worried about and chased the boy off. The elder then turned to her and smiled. She had brought a knife this time. She stopped pretending to be someone she was not, and her form began to collapse. The girl could no longer scream and cry; she was too terrified to make any noise at all. The demonic presence before her was impossible to comprehend, but it did not need to be comprehensible to terrify her. The creature moved towards her and began to use the items it had brought to prepare her for consumption. A number of ingredients were strewn across her body and then the creature began to hold her over the fire. The girl's death was slow and painful, as the creature had no intention of sparing her any suffering. She would not survive to see the next phase of her torture though, and the only thing left of her afterwards was the terrifying story told by a boy that had witnessed everything.