Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
y/n trudged back to her lookout tower, her body heavy with exhaustion. how late was it? it had to be sometime past midnight, maybe even closer to one in the morning. the forest was pitch dark now, with only the moon providing a faint glow through the trees. as she approached the base of her tower, she felt a small sense of relief. the familiar structure stood tall, a beacon of safety in the otherwise ominous surroundings.
y/n climbed the stairs, each step a little more difficult than the last. her legs ached from the long hike, and her mind buzzed with the strange events of the evening. finally, she reached the door to her tower. she quickly stepped inside, locking the door securely behind her. the small, confined space felt oddly comforting after the vastness of the forest. she flicked on the light, the harsh brightness momentarily blinding her. she blinked a few times, letting her eyes adjust, and then made her way over to the radio.
sitting down heavily in the chair, y/n took a deep breath before reaching for the radio. she needed to report back to connor, to let him know what she had found—or rather, what she hadn't found. she pressed the button to transmit, her voice cracking slightly from fatigue. "connor, this is y/n. do you copy?" she said, her voice echoing in the small room.
for a moment, there was only static. y/n frowned, her finger still on the button. "connor, are you there? it's y/n. i made it to the campsite." alas, the static continued and she couldn't help but feel a pang of frustration. tonight was just not her night. she was about to release the button when she finally heard connor's voice, slightly garbled but clear enough to understand.
"y/n, i copy. you're back safe?" he asked, sounding relieved.
"yeah, i'm back," she replied.
"sweet. what's your status?"
"um..." y/n started, unsure of where to even begin. "the campsite was abandoned, but i found...i don't know, connor. it felt off. and then, just as i was leaving, i heard a scream." there was also the cloak she found.
she could've grabbed it when she had the chance.
"a scream?" connor's voice crackled through the radio. just by his tone, y/n knew that he didn't believe her. "must have been one of those rex foxes, they sound pretty much like a screaming lady at night. don't worry, it's enough to spook anyone." he reassured.
y/n shook her head, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "but it sounded so manly..." she whispered.
there was a pause on the other end of the line, and she could almost picture connor rubbing his temples, trying to make sense of her words. "i don't know what you're talking about, new girl. but i heard from the rangers that many campers have been flocking to that area lately because of the disappearance of those three kids." he said and the abruptness of it all made y/n's heart drop, not to mention his nonchalant approach in the manner made her all the more worrisome.
"kids went missing in that area?" she repeated, not wanting to believe it.
"yeah?" connor answered, almost perplexed. did she really not know of the stories? "about three months ago. they were hiking with their families, they went off the trail and just vanished. no trace of them since."
"okay..." y/n's eyebrows furrowed. "but what does that have to do with the campers?" she then asked.
"because all of them have gone missing, just like the kids. people have started spreading rumors that the area might be haunted by some 'entities', especially since the parents said their kids were lead off of the trail by some whistling." connor detailed, and as soon as y/n heard this, a chill practically ran down her spine. the people who were responsible for those kids going missing...it couldn't be the ones who were whistling near the abandoned campsite? no, it had to be some teenagers just trying to scare her and nothing more. "it's crazy, i know. you would think these rumors would scare people off by apparently it entices them. well...at least you know why our team had to staff tower 11 urgently." he informed.
y/n felt like her entire world was spinning and like she was going to throw up. she closed her eyes and tried to take a deep breath to steel herself but to no avail. if she had known then what she knew now, then she wouldn't have picked up this job. "that's..." she trailed off, unable to finish her sentence.
"ah, geez, i hope you don't believe in those rumors, do you?" connor said, awkwardly after realizing that he might've gone too far.
slowly, y/n came out of her daze and she cleared her throat. "absolutely not."
"great. anyway, thanks for staying vigilant." connor chuckled. "i gotta contact the authorities, so they can take care of this commotion first thing in the morning, we can't tolerate these goons anymore." he stated. "if they find them, i'll personally make sure they never set foot in this forest again."
y/n felt a little at ease when hearing this. "try to keep me updated then."
"over and out."
she sighed, turning off the radio and leaning back in her chair. the conversation with connor had left her feeling unsettled. she couldn't shake the feeling that something was off, but with no one believing her, there was little she could do at the moment. wanting to get some rest, she decided to wrap up her tasks for the night.
and so, she completed her report for that night. when she was finished, she settled on a simple meal before going to bed. as she ate, y/n's mind wandered back to the strange events of the evening. the abandoned campsite, the silence, that damn scream—everything felt like a jigsaw puzzle with a few crucial pieces missing. she tried to focus on her food, but her thoughts kept drifting back to the unsettling feeling that had settled in her gut.
after finishing her meal, she cleaned up quickly, too tired to do a thorough job. the prospect of sleep was too inviting to delay any longer. she walked over to her bed, intending to collapse onto it and let sleep take her. but as she neared the bed, something caught her eye.
"what the..." out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flicker of light outside. furrowing her brows, y/n walked over to the window and peered out into the darkness. there, in the woods below her tower, a figure was moving, scoping the area with a flashlight. her heart skipped a beat. who could that be at this hour? she grabbed her binoculars and stepped outside onto the balcony, the cool night air biting at her skin. She raised the binoculars to her eyes and focused on the figure.
it was a man, but she couldn't make out any details. just as she was about to get a better look, the man seemed to sense her watching. he scurried away, disappearing into the darkness.
y/n lowered her binoculars, a frown deepening on her face. what was going on out there? first the scream, and now this? it was too much of a coincidence. she stood on the balcony for a moment, contemplating whether she should go back inside or try to investigate further. but the figure was gone and it was too dark to see anything else.
with a small groan, she headed back inside, locking the door behind her. she knew she needed to rest, but the events of the night had left her feeling more awake than ever. as she crawled into bed, she couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding. this place was full of secrets, things that people like billy and connor refused to tell her and she had a feeling she was only just beginning to scratch the surface.
