Marked by The Moon

The rain hit my face as I ran through the forest with my shoes sinking into the wet ground with every step. Terrified, I ran without noticing the branches scratching my arms. The cold I had felt earlier had already disappeared beneath the fear pushing through me. Something was behind me. I could hear it crashing through the trees. I pushed myself to run faster, even as my lungs burned and begged me to stop, my heart pounding hard against my ribs. Don’t look back, I told myself. Another crash sounded behind me, closer this time. Whatever it was, it was getting closer. I forced my legs to move faster, but the rain had made the ground slippery and difficult to run through. My foot suddenly slipped beneath me, and I quickly reached for the nearest tree, grabbing the trunk just before I fell. I held on for a moment, trying to catch my breath. Then everything went quiet. The crashing behind me stopped. Even the rain seemed to fade, and the wind disappeared. I held my breath for a moment before slowly straightening up. In the silence, my breathing sounded painfully loud. Then a branch cracked behind me. I froze. Slowly, I turned around, but there was nothing there. Only darkness between the trees, thick fog hanging in the air, and rainwater dripping from the branches. Then a low growl echoed through the woods. My breath caught. “No,” I whispered, suddenly afraid of whatever could be hiding in the dark. My eyes searched desperately through the trees. For a moment, I saw nothing. I squinted, trying to see through the fog, and then two pale eyes appeared between the trees. My stomach dropped. I took a step backward, whispering a silent prayer and hoping I hadn’t somehow come across one of those serial killers I’d heard about on the news. I stared at the eyes, waiting for whatever was hiding in the darkness to move. But suddenly, they vanished. My stomach dropped even further. I couldn’t see them anymore, but I could hear footsteps. A branch snapped ahead. Then another. Getting closer. Whatever it was moved slowly through the trees, its heavy footsteps making my chest tighten. I moved backward again as the fog shifted between the trees. Something was moving through it. I tried to see what it was, but all I could make out was a massive dark shape. It was much larger than I expected. That definitely wasn’t human. Unless some lunatic was wearing a costume. But what kind of serial killer wore something like that? I quickly pushed the thought away. Now was definitely not the time for that. My breath trembled as I took another step backward. A branch snapped beside me. I jumped so badly that I screamed and ran. Whatever it was kept chasing me through the trees. I could feel it toying with me, letting me run just far enough before coming closer again. But I forced myself forward as my lungs burned and my legs grew numb. I could feel it getting closer. My foot almost slipped again, but I caught myself and kept running. It felt like I was running through a maze. The same trees. The same branches. The same endless darkness. Still, I refused to look back. Then I saw someone ahead. A man. He stood between the trees, completely still. Creepy. But as I got closer, I slowed down, and for a brief moment, my chest filled with hope. “Help me,” I gasped. He didn’t respond. Something crashed through the trees behind me. I glanced over my shoulder before quickly turning back to him. “Please,” I pleaded. He slowly raised his head. I froze. His eyes were red. A deep crimson that made my stomach twist. For a second, I forgot about the creature behind me. Something about this man frightened me, but the sound of whatever was chasing me grew closer, leaving me with nowhere else to run. He looked past me, and his expression hardened. Before I could speak again, a terrifying sound tore through the forest. I screamed. The man moved. One moment, he was standing several feet away. The next, he was beside me, seizing me in his arms. I struggled against him. “Let me go!” His skin was ice cold, yet against my freezing body, it felt strangely warm. His grip tightened around me. Then whatever had been chasing me crashed through the trees behind us. I turned. And for the first time, I saw it clearly. A huge shadow stood between the trees, its long limbs barely visible in the darkness and its pale eyes fixed on me. Something about its shape made my mind recoil. I didn’t understand what I was seeing, but every part of my body urged me to run. The man pulled me behind him. The shadow lunged at us. I screamed—