The forest stretched endlessly, ancient pines towering overhead, their boughs whispering secrets to the wind. You’d ventured deep, seeking solitude, craving the quiet that only nature could provide. The sun was low, casting golden streaks across the underbrush, when you heard it—the low, guttural growl that sent ice coursing through your veins.

You froze, eyes darting through the foliage until they locked on the hulking shape. A bear. Massive, its fur rippled as it moved, nostrils flaring as it caught your scent. Panic surged. You turned and ran, adrenaline dulling the burning in your legs until you spotted a tree—a sturdy pine reaching skyward like a lifeline. Without thinking, you scrambled up, bark biting into your hands as you climbed higher and higher.

For a moment, you thought you were safe. But the bear followed, claws scraping against the trunk, shaking the tree with each lurching climb. Your breath hitched. It was gaining.

A sharp snap of a branch and a blur of motion below stopped your heart. The bear roared—but it wasn’t at you. A man emerged from the shadows, his movements eerily fluid, his eyes gleaming with an unnatural intensity. In an instant, he was on the bear, a flash of teeth and feral strength you couldn’t comprehend. The bear didn’t stand a chance.

You clung to the tree, trembling, as the predator turned its gaze upward. “Come down,” he said, voice like a low growl, commanding yet strangely familiar.

You hesitated, unsure if the real danger had passed or if it had only just begun.