The frozen lake cracked beneath his feet, but he couldn't move. Not until all the sparkling lights -eyes- moved from the perimeter of the lake.

He sighed, trying to adjust his weight without disturbing the frail ice keeping him from sinking to his untimely death while simultaneously fighting to not freak out. He needed to think of something, and fast.

How has it come to this? Only about an hour earlier he was trying to convince himself that he was imagining the strange shadows surrounding his cabin. And now, here he was, surrounded, not even sure what the creatures were. He didn't see a way out of this and he didn't have much time to think of a plan.

After coming out of his house, located in the middle of the woods, noone to see or hear him in miles, they started hunting him. He had thought he heard something and staring outside his window in the perimeter of his property, he spotted them. So many of them, all around the house, near the bushes and between the trees. Not wanting to be a sitting duck in the cabin, he stepped outside. Was his mind playing tricks on him? Surely he had to be mistaken.

Panic rose within him when he heard the first footsteps heading straight at him and he started running blindly. While terrified, he was sure he could escape them, after all this was his forest, he almost knew each bump and tree, he had spend all his life here.

He started running in circles, passing the same spots again and again in order to confuse them. The creatures were not a match for his speed but by the sounds of it, there were dozens of them. Frantic thoughts scattered in his brain. How did they find him? Why? What did they want from him? But as he continued running, that vast depth of the trees all around them, he couldn't find the answers. He just had to be smarter than them and somehow get out of this predicament.

His first mistake was the overconfidence. That's what got him in this position. He tried to lead them to one of his traps but in the end, there were so many of them and when an arrow grazed his hip he threw caution in the wind and began to blindly run as fast as he could. It was too late by the time he understood his mistake. His strides brought him on the frozen lake, where he lost his footing and slided almost till its middle. Now here they were, each side waiting for the other to make a move. He cursed to himself.

The only thing keeping him alive till now was the non existent light. The night was starless, the moon nothing but a sliver, hidden from the thick clouds that had been present all day so every arrow that was thrown vaguely in his direction was just destroying the ice, the fragile thing between him and the freezing water. He was stuck between deciding to charge forward and destroying everything and everyone standing in his way until his eventual downfall and waiting patiently for the floor to crumble beneath him. That's when he heard it. The absolute silence. Everyone knows that nature is never silent. Something is always heard. The breeze, some animal, even the leaves moving and the bugs crawling. When nature sits still, something lurks in the shadows. Something abnormal, that disturbs the natural order of things. Just as he watched the sparkling eyes starting to close in on him, screams echoed all around. The reflecting eyes snuffing out one by one. Horrible sounds of death, wet noises that left a metallic taste in the air and gut wrentching crunching sounds filled the clearing.

He cackled. At last, his brothers have arrived. He was worried their hunt would keep them away longer, forcing him to face the enemy alone but there they were, creating a path just for him to crawl closer to the edge of the lake and join in on the feast. Fury about his predicament and sheer curiosity about what had the audacity to try to bring him down propelled him forward.

He stumbled upon a man, trying to crouch down and leave undetected but tonight, he had no such luck. His fingers elongated, revealing the claws he used to grab at him and slice open his frail skin. He brought the flailing body closer and unhinged his jaw to swallow him. The vile satisfaction hit him at once, the creatures were humans. Probably the villagers from the small town behind the mountain, oh how long have they prepared for this? Thinking that they had a chance to what? Eliminate them? Maybe they would have succeded for him if his brothers hadn't arrived on time but even so, then what? Nothing would stop their tribe from slaughtering them whenever they saw fit. Whenever they needed to feed, hunt or even just for fun. Had the humans really tried to stage a hunt, believing they would somehow win? The anger drove him further into the woods, screaming and tearing apart everyone he discovered. He ripped their flesh, crushed their limbs and lacerated their bodies, until his screams turned to laughter. Hours must have passed because the first rays of sunshine painted the sky and his eyes adjusted more, seeing the massacre around him. The others were feasting on the bodies and unearthed the last of the hiding humans, killing them on the spot.

He turned around and started the long trek back to his cabin. He wanted to dose off for a few hours before gathering the others to raid the village again that night. It was clear that they had to send off a message, since apparently the humans started having hopes of ridding themselves of them. That would never happen and they needed to be shown their place. But first, a good few hours of sleep to replenish his strength. He smiled to himself. They would have such a fun night.