He thought he escaped a demonic ritual in the forest, but an old letter reveals the truth: the dark pact demands his blood today
I was fifteen years old when I accompanied my grandfather into the forest, with no idea where we were going
. All I knew was that I was heading into the woods with him on an important matter, as my mother had repeatedly instructed me to obey him without question.
I remember it as clearly as if it happened yesterday at noon; deep inside the forest, an ancient, dilapidated house appeared before us. Upon arrival
, my grandfather stepped inside and began muttering incomprehensible words, causing fear to creep into my heart.
I struggled to keep my composure only because of my mother’s strict advice to listen to him.
My grandfather ordered me to sit in a corner of the hut, retrieved items I had never seen before, and sat beside me.
He lit a candle, placed it in front of me, gave me strange herbs to eat, and burned incense that filled the air with an unsettling atmosphere. Within minutes
, bizarre illusions took hold of my mind, causing my entire body to tremble uncontrollably with intense terror.
Suddenly, my grandfather leaned over and whispered coldly into my ear, ‘Here comes their leader!’
My vision blurred as I saw shadowy phantoms, flying entities, and creatures crawling straight out of the walls.
I was so terrified that I almost lost control of myself right before that massive creature stepped forward.
It walked upright like a human, covered in dense fur, yet possessed the terrifying face of a vicious dog, and I recall his name was Arak.
The hideous entity approached me, sniffing the air while alternating between menacing snarls and eerie laughter.
‘What is your name?’ it asked, its deep voice shaking the very foundation of my heart. I was paralyzed with fear,
suffocating under its foul stench, when my grandfather suddenly declared, ‘This is my sacrifice to you, take him.
‘ The creature replied that I was unfit, yet vowed to keep me under his watchful eye wherever I went until the promised offer was delivered.
My heart pounded so violently against my chest that I thought it would burst, and I wept frantically in that cursed forest where no one could hear my cries.
Eventually, darkness consumed me, and I collapsed into unconsciousness without knowing how much time had passed.
When I finally awoke in the evening, my grandfather was preparing food and casually remarked, ‘You are awake, hero?’ I pleaded frantically for us to leave, sobbing uncontrollably, but he merely smiled with cold detachment.
‘You survived, boy, and now you are a man. I shall share a secret with you,’ he said calmly.
As my fear intensified, I listened silently as he revealed, ‘You are not of my bloodline; fate brought you to me to serve as a sacrifice, but this will all end tomorrow.’
I trembled in horror and asked what he meant, but he offered no further explanation, leaving me in absolute, terrifying silence.
Refusing to eat or drink, I feigned calm while desperately searching my mind for an escape plan.
I told him I was exhausted and needed sleep, so he instructed me to rest in the corner while he guarded the entrance.
I lay on a bed of straw, pretending to be asleep without making a sound or movement until just before dawn.
Noticing the old man in a deep slumber, I quietly crept toward the exit, only to freeze when the giant beast reappeared before me
. It stared at me intently, chuckled softly, and whispered, ‘Leave, you are not the one,’ before vanishing into the darkness.
I ran blindly through the dense woods without stopping, putting as much distance as possible between myself and that nightmare.
Years passed, and I believed the dark memory of the forest was buried forever, especially after my grandfather passed away months later.
Yet, a suffocating shadow and the faint stench of sulfur stalked me through the nights, echoing the creature’s chilling promise that I would remain under its gaze.
Today, while sorting through my late mother’s belongings, I uncovered a sealed wooden box with a black wax stamp.
Inside lay a folded parchment with my grandfather’s trembling handwriting: ‘To the one who thinks he escaped…
the true sacrifice was never you, but what flows in your blood, and the pact made with the forest demands payment now.
They are coming for you.’ At that exact moment, the room’s lights flickered and died completely.
From behind the locked door came that same cold laughter from years ago, accompanied by heavy breathing whispering, ‘It is time for the second pact…’
