The Dark Entity

Prologue

1997

Clover was roaming through a forest, one she'd never been to before, chasing a pretty insect- she thought it might be a moth of some kind- around the trees. She reached out to get ahold of the tiny flying creature but it flitted away, out of her grasp.

"Get back here, bug!" she demanded, giggling as she chased it further into the woods.

Her family was on summer vacation here, and the forest grew in the land behind the building they were staying at. As soon as Clover, her sister, and their parents arrived, Clover was eager to explore the woods. Lucky for her, she had been allowed to as long as she didn't stray too far from the perimeter. Her older sister, Daisy, refused to join Clover- she was terribly afraid of anything creeping and crawling and didn't want to take her chances.

Clover didn't mind though, she enjoyed spending time alone in the place she loved exploring most. For being ten-years-old, it was sort of odd for her to have such an interest in nature. Most kids her age were only interested in whatever new remote-controlled toy had come out, or if any new parks were being built near them. But for Clover, how could she not be drawn to the woods, or nature in general? There was so much to discover in a forest, they were filled with tall trees and a variety plants and insects- much like the one she was chasing.

The young girl noticed a fallen tree branch up ahead, it was lying on the dirt trail in the way of her path. She still didn't stop running, still keeping her eyes on the speedy moth. When she approached the log, she jumped and landed on the other side of it.

In a way, it made her feel like she was on some important mission, running away from something and jumping over objects to get away faster.

She focused on the flying insect and didn't hesitate to follow it off the pathway as it flew sideways into another jumble of trees.

"I will get you!" she exclaimed confidently as she dodged around a spikey-looking bush.

The moth stopped flying and took rest on a nearby tree stump. Clover stopped to catch her breath, tired from running all this way.

"I..." she huffed out. "I got you, moth," she said, cupping her hands around the small winged creature. She brought the moth up to her face to examine it.

"I wonder if you're dangerous...?" Clover thought out loud. She shook her head, "I bet you would've already bitten me if you were dangerous. I don't think you will."

She placed the moth on the stump again and sighed, "If you want to fly away, you can do it now, I won't chase you anymore," she said, only slightly upset.

As if it was listening to her, it crawled an inch and took off towards the trees again.

Clover smiled, "Bye," she whispered to the moth, even though it was already out of sight.

A moment later something in the distance made a noise. She turned, expecting to see a bird or possibly one of her family members, but nothing was there.

"Hello?" she asked to the nothingness.

There was no response so she walked closer to the spot where the sound had came from. She saw a tree's leaves rustle for a moment and then settle- something was definitely there.

Clover neared the spot where she'd seen the leaves move and waited for someone or something to reveal itself.

A quick movement burst from the leaves on the tree, making Clover jump in fright.

She gained focus again and noticed it was a squirrel. The animal looked at her and twitched it's nose.

"Hello," she greeted softly, waving a little.