In the nighttime, the latter half of the eternal cycle of the sun and moon, with the emergence of the moon, the creatures that dwelt within the forest had long since fallen into slumber, following the light of the sun to rest, until it rose, once again.

The entire forest had fallen silent, with only the wind, shifting branches, flowing waters, and the occasional scurrying of the forest’s more nocturnal creatures to bring color to this soundless world…

However, tonight, under the shadow of the new moon, the silence of the forest world had been distrubed. First, an elderly, well-dressed man had wandered into a spot in the forest, seemingly out on a walk, at least in the eyes of the forest’s nocturnal guardians…

Yet, suddenly, the man’s face had spawned a disgustingly evil smile and a burst of malicious, killing intent, that seemed almost like the roar of a monster, had emerged from the man, followed by the gruesome transformation that saw his weathered hands replaced by hideous claws! Almost every beast, nocturnal or not, had fled in the wake of this overwhelming, ghastly power, but for those who were unfortunate enough to not flee in time, were too overwhelmed by fear to move, or had foolishly attempted to stand their ground against the disturbance to their silent kingdom...the result was the same…

Soon, an unholy ground for the forest’s creatures emerged in the night, called into existence by a horrifying, black whirlwind! The trees, animals, and even the stones that had once enjoyed the silence of the forest, were gone in an instance, absorbed into the black vortex, with not a trace remaining of their existence...

Instead, what took their place was a barren plan, with only thin layer of manicured grass and some pebbles to hide the forest floor’s naked form, surrounded by terrified trees that shook in the wind, as if desperately trying to call for the kin, only to be met with a new, cold, empty silence…

However, this terrified mourning wouldn’t last long, as the old man now proceeded to carve through more of the forest’s children, tearing them apart and scattering their remains amongst the shadows as pathways, leading into this unholy ground, began to form!

Soon, though, the elderly man walked back to the center of the barren land, seemingly to inspect his work, as he ran his hawk-like eyes over every blade of grass within the circle of trees and into the forest, causing any creature unfortunate enough to look in his direction to be assaulted by a frightening, chilling, murderous aura that felt like the edge of the grim reaper’s scythe…

With all the creatures having retreated far into the forest, imposing upon their further-in, though still similarly terrified, brethren, the elderly man looked to be finished with his work, as his horrid claws receded, once again revealing a pair of weathered, pale hands, and the horrifying grin on his face faded into obscurity…

A serious, dignified expression replaced his old look as he began to speak…

Jacob: “With this, I do believe that I have a suitable ground for our young master, and…”

The elderly man lifted his hand, snapping his fingers as a flash of light emerged from a lustrous, eggplant-colored ring that was lined with gold and covered in strange, black inscriptions. The elderly man cracked a slight smile at what emerged from the light, which was a wooden box, tightly bound with metal chains and locks...

He leaned down and stroked his pale, weathered hand across the similarly weathered-looking box, causing it to begin moving!

Jacob: “And his rather obnoxious ‘guest…’”

The elderly man’s cold voice seemed to freeze the movements from the box, causing his smile to recede. He soon picked up the box and disappeared from the barren ring, but reappeared a split-second later, though the box was no longer in his possession... 

Jacob, having straightened his clothes and dusted himself off, now began to slowly make his way back from where he came, sighing as he walked down one of his newly cleared paths…

Jacob: “I do hope that he’s able to entertain such a low-level guest...but honestly, haven’t I, perhaps, been a little too generous with…? Huuuu...I suppose that that remains to be seen, doesn’t it?”

The trembling forest, with none of its children being able to understand this monstrous being and its intentions, was only able to helplessly watch as Jacob entered the shadows, disappearing into the night, leaving only an eerie silence in his place…

The creatures that cowered within the forest could only timidly wait, hoping that the peaceful silence of their kingdom of night would return and that the clawed, elderly devil would not return and would not disturb their world again. If only they knew that the sacrifice of their kin was only a prelude to a battle between intruders, but even if they had known...what would they have done...?

…