Ren opened his eye—the only one he had left.
His back rested against a tree trunk, head tilted to the ember-lit sky.
No fog
No smiles
Only complete silence.
He blinked, dazed. "Where—?"
Ren didn't remember escaping, the villagers' eerie smiles still etched into his mind.
But then—pain.
It struck without warning. His left arm pulsed violently, nerves rethreading like lightning through raw flesh. Bone grated as it pulled itself back into alignment. Muscles twitched, repairing along torn ligaments.
He gritted his teeth, tugging at the tree roots just beneath him.
Then, his eye socket pulsed with an even worse pain. He could feel the tissue knitting behind the socket, the blood vessels crawling into place. Muscle, tissue, nerves—rebuilt from nothing, piece by agonizing piece.
It was over. The pain was over.
Ren slumped forward, panting, sweat rolling down his face.
Suddenly, he felt something. A warm breath, slow and heavy, brushed against his cheek.
He tensed, eyes flicking sideways in panic.
The pale horse.
It stood just inches away, spectral and strange. Its nostrils flared gently as it sniffed him, sweeping its muzzle side-to-side, breath misting with each exhale.
Ren acted quickly, scrambling across the ground, his palms scraping away at the dirt for traction. Ren slammed his back against another tree and stared wide-eyed at the creature.
But the horse didn't move, only turning its head in his direction.
"What are you—?"
It didn't move.
The lack of aggression worried Ren. Everything in this place had a hunger—a purpose built around torment. Everything in this cruel world tried to break him. Tear him apart.
Yet, he felt no malicious intent coming from the horse before him.
Still, Ren wouldn't lower his guard.
"What does this thing want? I've seen enough to know...everything here wants something. So-" His gaze flickered across the horse—spectral flesh, milky eyes, and a faint pulse beneath its hide. "What...does it want from me?"
And then—
Flash
A vague memory.
The blood
The screams
The smiles
And a glowing figure that tore through the fog.
"You-" Ren swallowed hard, his voice just above a whisper. "You were there..."
It didn't respond. Of course it wouldn't.
Slowly, Ren pushed himself up from the ground, taking a cautious step toward the horse.
And another
Then another
"You...saved me?" Ren raised his shaky hand, the horse lowering its head in response. "You didn't let me fall. Didn't let me become one of them."
His fingertips brushed against the horse's side.
Cold and smooth, like moonlight given weight.
But beneath it, subtle and undeniable—a pulse.
"You're real..." Ren gave in to a bitter smile. "Not just another controlled corpse. You're aware, aren't you?"
The horse didn't blink, but also didn't deny.
And that silence, that quiet understanding, was enough.
"I'm not the only one here thinking...Feeling."
It should have been a comfort, but it wasn't.
Because that voice.
"Help me..."
The one from the woods. The desperate voice of a pleading woman.
Ren's smile faded as he remembered, his eyes dropping to the forest floor, roots twisting beneath the ashened ground.
She still felt something. Just like this creature in front of him.
"She's still out there." Ren's voice dropped to a whisper. "Alone..."
A pause.
His fingers curled into the creature's mane—wisps of smoke that slid through his grip.
"And that thing—it has her by now...Probably hearing the same lies I did." Ren swallowed hard. "Whispering to her...Sinking in while she's alone. Twisting her into something she's not."
Ren's eyes gazed up at the horse, his jaw clenched.
"I can't let that happen. I promised…"
The horse tilted its head slightly, as if it understood. As if it agreed.
"I don't know why you saved me. Don't even know if I can trust you...Maybe never will." Ren paused, building courage to speak. "But if you can help me get to her…Don't disappear on me just yet."
Without hesitation, the horse turned to the side—a silent invitation. With a tired grunt, Ren pulled himself up.
And then—it moved.
The ride was silent.
Too silent
Ren leaned forward, his hands resting just behind the horse's neck. Each step it took was soundless, smooth in a way that felt unnatural. He exhaled slowly, gaze fixed ahead—no landmarks, no paths, no trails.
Ren didn't guide it.
Didn't give it directions.
Yet, the horse moved without question, like it knew where it was going.
"How...does it know?" Ren asked under his breath.
He didn't even remember where he first heard the voice, but it carried them forward like it had always known the way.
Ren's thoughts turned inward. The shame he had tried to bury.
"Back then, I didn't stop. I didn't even look back." His grip tightened. "I told myself I was too weak. Too broken...I mean, maybe I was, but—no...I was only scared...Scared of what would have happened if I stayed. But not anymore...I'm not running anymore."
And then—
"Please..."
Ren's eyes snapped up. He heard it clearly, that same voice.
"End my suffering…Please, someone…"
Ren didn't hesitate. He slid from the horse's back before it even stopped, stumbling across the ground as he landed. Ren stood up and took off running, pushing through branches that tore at his clothes, stumbling over twisted roots.
The voice became clearer.
Weaker
"Someone..."
His feet slammed into the ground.
Harder
Faster
Each step was driven by guilt
By fury
By resolve
"I'm coming!" Ren shouted out, gritting his teeth. "Hang on! Please! Don't let go!"
Ren pushed himself harder, the forest pulling away like curtains opening for a stage.
A clearing
The surrounding trees arched together like fingers reaching to crush the sky. And in the center of the clearing was a colossal tree, its branches flailing off in random directions.
From the twisted branches of the main tree hung a lone figure.
Ren walked closer to get a better look, his eyes widening when he found it.
The voice that had been calling for him.