There ain’t no sky today. Same as yesterday, and the day before, and the day before that. It’s been no lighter than a dark, dull grey for nearly 3 years now. We were somewhere between the old kingdom and Arcenegon. It was early evening. I think. It’s hard to tell most days. Serena was still asleep. Good. She needed rest.

“You talk in your sleep.” I heard a voice behind me.

“Good morning to you too, Nick.”

Nicolas was sitting on a rock behind me, looking towards the trees. How he knew I woke without looking was beyond me, he just could tell those things.

“Did you even sleep?” I asked.

“I don’t need to. We should get going soon.”

“Let Serena sleep longer. She needs it, and with her leg-”

“We’re all dead if we’re not moving by nightfall. Well, you two are.”

“But nightfall is no different to any other time-”

“It is here.”

“How do you figure?”

“Because, Eva, these are the mountains. People stay out of the mountains for a reason.”

“And we’re in them because?”

“Because it’s the least traceable path. No one follows people into the mountains because no one who goes in ever comes out.”

“Well, that’s reassuring.”

“You’ll be fine if you don’t do anything stupid. Just-”

He was interrupted by a rustling sound from the forest. He stood up as we silently watched. A couple of seconds later, a bear ran from the treeline, quickly turning away when it saw us. I breathed a sigh of relief. Nick didn’t.

“Wake her up, we need to go. Now.”

“Why? It’s just a bear, that’s what you’re worried about?”

“And what kind of thing do you think a bear would run away from?”

Nick pinched his nose, and it was then I noticed the smell, an awful, repugnant smell, like that of a decaying corpse. Serena groaned, even in her sleep she could notice. I quickly shook her awake.

“Hey, wake up, we need to go.”

“Hide, not go,” Nick quickly interjected.

“But I thought you said-”

“It’ll hear us if we run. If we hide we’ve got a better chance.”

“What’s going on?” Serena asked, the fear evident in her voice.

“Yeah, what is it?”

“The reason people stay out of the mountains.”

We found a place to hide in a large oak tree. We tried to ask Nick more, but he just told us to be silent.

After about an hour, the smell got stronger, and then I heard a twig snap. I heard Serena’s breathing quicken, and Nick seemed paler than usual. I was used to his concern, but fear? That was new. I heard movement in the leaves below and saw what looked like a large, bony hand, with sallow skin and long, dirty claws on its fingers. The hand moved around, searching for something. Searching for us. I could hear the creature breathe, and through the leaves, I could see its silhouette. It was bipedal, with long, skinny limbs. The thing was so thin it looked emaciated, and it was tall, probably fifteen, sixteen feet. I couldn’t see its head as well, but I could tell it had horns on each side. No, not horns, antlers, like a deer.

Right as the hand was about 2 yards from me, it paused and was slowly retracted from the branches. The creature tilted its head upward as if listening for something. Then it turned and hurried away. I heard the others both breathe a sigh of relief, I did the same. Serena spoke first.

“What was that thing?”

Nick paused before answering, “I don’t have a damn clue.”