The woods had not forgiven them. Even as the teens pushed farther south, the memory of the shadows clung to the air like smoke after a fire. Every snapped twig, every whisper of wind through the trees made them turn sharply, hearts pounding as if the darkness itself was stalking them again.
But the artifact was still safe. And that mattered.
"We don't stop too long," Cole said, his voice low but firm. He had regained strength fast enough after the incident with the shadows. He walked ahead, cutting through overgrown branches, his grip tight around the satchel that held the Lupercalia's Artifact. " Am starting to think, whatever those things were… they'll come back."
"They weren't just 'things,'" Lenora replied, glancing over her shoulder for what felt like the hundredth time. "They were watching us. Thinking."
"That's worse," Kevin muttered. No one disagreed.
The forest began to change as they moved south. The trees grew taller, their trunks darker, their branches weaving together so tightly they choked the sky. Light barely touched the ground anymore. Even the air felt heavier — thicker, like breathing through unseen resistance.
"South better be worth it," Joyce said under her breath.
"It has to be," Cole replied. "The Artifact led us this far. It won't stop now."
But even he didn't sound completely sure.
They found a clearing just before nightfall.
It wasn't much — a small open space just like the former one, surrounded by crooked trees that leaned inward like silent watchers. The ground was dry enough, and for once, there were no strange markings, no unnatural silence.
"Here,"Lenora said. "We stay here and make plans" No one argued.
They moved quickly, setting up a small tent using what little equipment they had left. Kevin gathered firewood while Joyce kept watch, her eyes scanning the shadows like she expected them to peel away from the trees again.
Cole placed the Artifact carefully in the center of their camp. For a moment, it pulsed faintly. All of them noticed.
"You saw that, right?" Joyce whispered.
"Yes," Cole said quietly. "It's reacting."
"To what?" Kevin asked, dropping the wood.
Cole didn't answer immediately. He stared south — deeper into the forest, where the darkness seemed almost alive.
"The Blood," Lenora finally said. "We're quite close."
Night came fast.
The fire crackled weakly, its light barely pushing back the darkness. Beyond its glow, the forest became something else entirely — a place where shapes moved without form and silence had a presence of its own.
They sat close together.
Too close.
"So," Kevin said, trying — and failing — to sound casual. "What do we actually know about this… Lupercalia's Blood?"
"Since that incident, you've been trying to sound smart and chalant. What's up?" Joyce joked
"That's not funny. Am always smart you know" Kevin chuckled
"Smart?" Lenora laughed
"Guys, I don't think we have time. Let's dig some info about this Lupercalia's Blood" Cole wasn't in the mood for jokes.
"True though. We don't know enough info about it," Lenora answered. "Just that it's powerful. And dangerous."
"And hidden," Joyce added. "Very well hidden."
Cole hesitated.
"There's something else," He said. All eyes turned to him.
"The Blood… isn't just an object."
A pause.
"Well, 'Blood' isn't an object to start with!" Joyce exclaimed
"No.... Not that!" Cole said
"What do you mean?" Lenora asked.
Cole swallowed slightly.
"I think… it's alive."
The fire popped loudly, making them all flinch.
"That's not funny," Kevin said.
"I'm not joking."
Silence fell again — heavier this time.
"Alive how?" Joyce asked carefully.
Cole shook his head. "I don't know. But the Artifact… it reacts differently when we move closer south. Like it recognizes something. Or someone."
"Which means Lenora was right about us moving south. The Blood should be anywhere south" Kevin added
That didn't sit well with anyone. The wind shifted.
Cold — Too cold.
The fire flickered violently. And then — A whisper..... Not from them but from the woods.
"…closer…"
Everyone froze.
"You heard that?" Lenora breathed.
"Yes," Cole said, already standing.
Another whisper.
"…bring it…"
The trees creaked softly, though there was no wind now.
"The shadows....." Joyce said
Kevin grabbed a burning stick from the fire. "Nope. Nope, I don't like this."
Lenora stepped back slowly. "It's not the shadows…"
"No" Cole said, his voice tightening. "It's something else."
The Artifact began to glow faintly again.
"…the blood remembers…"
The whisper came from everywhere at once. And then— It stopped.... Just like that.
The forest went silent again. Too silent. No insects. No wind. No movement — Only the sound of their breathing.
"What… was that?" Kevin asked, his voice barely steady.
Cole stared into the darkness, his grip tightening.
"I think…" he said slowly, "we just got its attention."
Lenora looked south, her expression shifting from fear to something sharper.
"Then we're not just searching for the Blood anymore," she said.
"It's searching for us too." The fire dimmed.
And far beyond the trees — Something moved.