The creature in the woods

The Mark

Ethan barely slept for the next few nights. He kept imagining those glowing eyes, watching him through the darkness, waiting just outside his window. Every time the wind howled or a tree branch tapped against the house, his heart would race, and he would stare out into the night, expecting to see the creature lurking in the shadows.

But the nights passed without any sign of it, and soon, even Ethan began to wonder if it had all been in his head. Maybe he had scared himself so much that he imagined the creature. But then there was the journal—the story about the boy who had fled the beast, just like him.

One thing kept gnawing at him: the mark.

What did it mean to be marked? Had the creature somehow left a trace on him? He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong, like a heavy weight pressing down on his chest, as though the forest was calling him back.

The weekend came, and despite his fear, Ethan decided he needed answers. The only place to find them was in the woods—the same woods he had barely escaped. He had to go back, but he wasn’t stupid. He wouldn’t go alone.

“Are you crazy?” James stared at him wide-eyed when Ethan brought up the idea at the park on Saturday afternoon. “You want to go back into the woods? After what happened?”

Ethan nodded, his hands clenching into fists. “I need to know what’s out there. I don’t think it’s going to leave me alone, not until I figure out what’s happening.”

James shook his head. “Man, I know you think you saw something, but—”

“I did see something,” Ethan cut him off, his voice sharper than he meant. “It wasn’t my imagination, James. It was real. And there’s a story about it in the old town records. I’m not the first person it’s chased.”

James looked skeptical, but the serious expression on Ethan’s face made him pause. “Okay, fine. But even if it’s real, what do you expect to do? Fight it? We’re just kids, Ethan.”

Ethan sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “I don’t know what I expect. I just… I can’t let it go. I feel like I’m connected to it somehow. Like it’s waiting for me.”

James looked at him for a long moment before finally sighing. “Alright. If you’re going back in there, I’m not letting you do it alone.”

Ethan managed a weak smile. “Thanks, James. We’ll be careful. Just go to the edge, see if we can find anything.”

They waited until late afternoon, when the light was starting to fade but the sun hadn’t fully set. Ethan didn’t want to be out there after dark again, but he also knew the creature would only come out when the night crept in.

Armed with flashlights and a sense of growing dread, Ethan and James headed toward the forest. The closer they got, the quieter Ethan became, his stomach tightening with anxiety. James was visibly nervous too, his eyes darting toward the treeline as they approached the path that led into the woods.

“You sure about this?” James asked again, but Ethan didn’t respond. His gaze was fixed on the forest ahead. The trees loomed taller than he remembered, their branches twisted into strange shapes, and the air felt thick, like it was harder to breathe.

The two boys stepped into the woods, their footsteps unnaturally loud in the silence. The fog was already beginning to rise, swirling around their ankles as they walked deeper into the forest. Ethan’s heart raced, his ears straining for any sound—any growl, any snap of branches that would signal the creature’s presence.

After a few minutes of walking, they came to the spot where Ethan had first seen the creature. He recognized it by the strange, gnarled tree with roots that seemed to rise out of the ground like a twisted hand. He stopped, pointing ahead.

“This is where it started,” he said quietly. “Where I saw it.”

James looked around, his face pale. “I don’t see anything. Maybe we should—”

Before he could finish, the sound of something moving in the distance cut him off. Both boys froze. Ethan’s breath caught in his throat as he listened. It was faint, but unmistakable—the crunch of leaves, the snap of twigs underfoot. Something was out there.

Ethan’s flashlight flickered as he slowly turned toward the sound, his pulse hammering in his ears. The fog seemed to thicken around them, and the air grew colder, biting at their skin.

Then, through the mist, they saw it.

The glowing eyes.

They hovered just beyond the trees, watching, unblinking. The same eyes Ethan had seen that night, filled with malice and hunger.

James gasped, stumbling backward. “Ethan, we need to get out of here—now!”

But Ethan couldn’t move. The creature’s eyes were locked on him, and suddenly, he understood what it meant to be marked. He could feel the connection now, a strange pull that seemed to drag him toward the beast. It was like the forest itself was alive, twisting and warping around him, urging him closer to the creature.

The growl came next, low and guttural, vibrating through the ground. The creature stepped forward, its massive shape becoming clearer through the fog. It was taller than any man, its limbs unnaturally long, its body shrouded in shadow. And it was coming for him.

Ethan’s paralysis broke, and he grabbed James by the arm. “Run!”

They bolted, sprinting through the trees as the growls grew louder behind them. The fog swirled around their legs, the branches reaching out like claws, trying to trip them up. Ethan’s lungs burned, his heart pounding in his chest as they raced toward the edge of the woods.

But the creature was faster. It was gaining on them, its breath hot on their backs, its glowing eyes piercing through the darkness.

The treeline was just ahead. They were almost there.

With a final burst of speed, Ethan and James broke free of the forest, stumbling into the open field beyond. The creature let out a furious roar, but it didn’t follow. It stayed hidden in the trees, its eyes glowing with rage as it watched them escape.

Ethan collapsed onto the grass, gasping for air. James lay beside him, panting heavily.

“What the hell was that thing?” James whispered, his voice shaking.

Ethan stared back at the dark forest, his heart still racing. “I don’t know. But it’s not going to stop. It’s still after me.”

And he knew, without a doubt, that the mark was real. The creature would keep coming for him, no matter how far he ran.