The silence roared in the depths of the forest. But not for long when the crunching of dry leaves and sticks became more and more frequent. Then eventually huffing of a boy came in. 

It was a terrible idea to take on that dare in the name of 'bravery' but well, how could he refuse in front of the person he was adoring? But none of it mattered right now given the fact that he was trying to outrun an animal he had alerted on by mistake. An animal that he had never even caught a proper glimpse of. The boy remembered clearly the memory of what occurred some minutes ago.

All he had to do was go beyond the wooden-steel board, which had the words inked in red and bold, "Don't cross this fence. Danger Ahead." That warning sounded the usual to the foreigners, but for the lives residing in Noletown, it was something they took seriously more than their responsibilities. He was supposed to take a picture near a gate no one has seen for decades and then straight up come back. 

"Just how dangerous it could be? A picture that is almost nothing. I will be back in  a flash" were the words he had said to his friends with a tone of confidence. He thought it was true. "The rumors are just bullcrap to keep teenagers like us out of the forest." The rumors are just rumors; they are never accurate.

But when he heard the cracking sound of someone stretching their body or their neck...? He dared to go beyond the gate out of curiosity only to find nothing, or, to be specific, no one. 

The sound was just my misunderstanding. He thought to himself. It was his worst misunderstanding itself when he did not notice the creature hovering over the gate. Staring at his red hair through its soulless eyes. The dark figure, still not clearly visible in broad daylight, lightly landed down right behind the boy, unaware of what was waiting for him the next. 

The boy began making his way back to the board, which meant nothing to him. He was not in as hurry as he thought he would have been. But the warnings from what’s called'sixth sense' made him turn his back. To be greeted by the sleek fur accompying long and sharp claws on its four limbs. Then screeching sound left the odd creature's throat. 

It did not take the boy another second to run. To run for his life. 

The screech had not only alerted him but also the birds resting on higher strata. The canopy of trees shook like waves moving over the surface of water when the birds escaped the place where the sound had echoed.

The boy ran and began taking sharp in between to lose the creature behind. 

"Was it a black panther or a bear?" he questioned himself. Rushing through the dirt and making sure to not lose his footing due to the roots protruding out of the ground, he prayed to all the gods out there to save his life. To let him get out of the forest alive in one piece. The boy did not dare to glance behind in fear that whatever was behind him would pounce at him at the very moment. He took another turn and then another after walking straight through the dirt path. Not lowering his speed. Pushing out any branches coming right onto his face and sometimes ignoring the branches or towering bushes grazing his skin and his clothes, leaving them torn.

The sound of it did not deafen out either. The boy could hear its heavy voice growling, sometimes screeching but not as loud as before. 

The boy moved his arms as if cutting the air, his legs began to give out, but the rush of adrenaline mixed with fear made him not give up. The moment his eyes came upon the same gate he had stood before came into view, it made him doubt his sense of direction and also his chances of survival.

I swear I had turned left, then it was right by the dry tree. But I should not have led back here. He did not have more time to think when he heard footsteps of it some inches away. He took another sprint away from the gate and away from it. He took another sharp turn when we came by the tree whose stems were touching the ground. And then another somewhere in the forest; after some moments, only to lead back to the gate.

He wanted to scream in frustration, but that could alert that creature. Speaking of the creature, he could not feel its presence anymore around him.

He breathed in a sigh of relief, taking support of gate bars when he could not feel his legs anymore. He has run before for soccer practice, but this practice session was one that gave him hell. He had lost track of time. The broad daylight was now taking its color of orange. 

"The sunset is near. I need to quickly leave this damn forest," he thought to himself before taking out his phone for GPS use. The map stated it could not determine his location. He was about to curse out loud when he heard the sound of leaves crunching. He turned around in the direction where it came from. Again, there was nothing or no one. But the moment of bushes moving vigorously before his eyes made him tremble. A pair of long black ears came out, then a black body hopped in front. But when those eyes caught a glimpse of a boy on his knees by the gate, it rushed back to the place where it came from. 

"A stupid rabbit." He thought before getting up and walking away from the gate. "The rabbit had a small paw- That thing did have four legs, or was it two hands at the front...?"  Without wasting a breath, he began to run again in the direction he came from before, unaware of the soulless eyes wanting to devour him from a distance. 

This time he was not as careful as he was before while avoiding the roots. He fell onto his face. His face brushing against the hard, gritty ground. He got up on his feet when he noticed their soulless eyes staring into his eyes. 

He prayed to all the gods out there. This time only wishing to get out alive.