Ace's room looked like it had lost a small war.
Clothes were scattered across the floor, some half-folded, some definitely not. Books lay open on the bed, pages bent. A flashlight sat on the desk beside his phone, the screen glowing faintly.
6:07 PM.
Ace grabbed a duffel bag and tossed it onto the bed.
"Okay… ropes… where did I put the ropes?"
He dropped to one knee, digging under the bed, knocking over an empty bottle in the process. He pulled out a coil of rope, dust-covered but intact.
"Got you."
He tossed it into the bag, then turned to the desk and started piling things in—flashlight, spare batteries, a knife wrapped in cloth, another knife that definitely wasn't wrapped safely.
The usual.
Ace moved fast, like he'd done this before. Not rushed—just practiced.
Halfway through checking his ammo, he heard footsteps on the stairs.
He froze.
Then relaxed.
"Door's open," he called.
Darren poked his head in, grinning.
Darren was Ace's younger cousin—the youngest kid in the house, loud, nosy, and way too curious for his own good.
"So I heard you're going on a hunt."
Ace didn't look up. "Yeah."
"Nice."
"I guess."
Darren stepped fully into the room, eyes roaming over the mess. "Wow. You planning to fight a monster or lose a war to your laundry?"
Ace scoffed. "You here to help or just talk?"
Darren shut the door behind him and lowered his voice, leaning in like he was sharing state secrets.
"So… does this mean Aunt Sophie knows about all those secret hunts you've been going on?"
Ace stopped moving.
Slowly, he straightened and turned.
"No," he said flatly. "And if you tell her, I will hunt you down like a dog."
Darren blinked. "Whoa. Chill, bro. I'm not a snitch."
"Oh really?" Ace said, narrowing his eyes. "You? Darren Eldren, son of Garrick Eldren? Not a snitch?"
"Yeah, duh."
Ace stared.
Darren sighed. "Okay—ONE time. I told everyone about your secret crush."
"You swore you wouldn't tell anyone."
"Come on," Darren said, waving it off. "She was way outta your league anyway."
"That's not the point."
"And she rejected you."
Ace pointed a finger at him. "You didn't know that when you ratted me out."
Darren muttered, "I kinda did."
Ace ignored him and went back to packing.
Darren lingered by the door, quieter now.
"So… you coming back tonight?"
Ace zipped the bag. "Yeah."
Darren nodded, pretending not to care too much. "Cool."
They headed downstairs together.
Sophie stood at the bottom, arms crossed like she'd been waiting the whole time.
"Is everything packed?" she asked immediately. "Flashlight? Rope? Guns? Ammo? Knives?"
"Yes, Mom," Ace said. "Everything's packed. I'm not five."
She raised an eyebrow. "You'll call me when you get there."
"I will."
"And when you're done."
"Yes."
"And if something feels off—"
"I leave," Ace finished.
She studied him for a second, then stepped aside. "Alright. Be careful."
Ace nodded, slung the bag over his shoulder, and stepped outside.
Ace stepped out through the gate, tugging the strap of his bag higher on his shoulder. The evening air was cooler now, carrying the smell of dust and distant street food.
Cedric was already there, leaning against the fence, scrolling on his phone.
"Sure took your time, huh?" Cedric said without looking up.
Ace groaned. "My mom kept nagging me."
Cedric smirked. "Shocking."
Ace shot him a look. "You try surviving a ten-minute safety lecture that somehow includes three different ways you could die."
"She cares about you, man."
"Yeah," Ace said, exhaling. "Can't really blame her."
He kicked a small stone off the road. "She was just a normal small-town girl once. Married the wrong douchebag and suddenly the world's full of monsters."
Cedric finally pocketed his phone. "You really hate your dad, huh?"
They started walking, side by side.
"Obviously," Ace said. "Last time I heard from him was two fucking years ago. Calls just to say he's hunting a king lich or some shit and then vanishes again."
Cedric blinked. "Still insane to think about."
"What part?"
"The king lich part."
Ace snorted. "Yeah, well, that's him. Probably forgot he even has a family."
Cedric shrugged. "Still… must be kinda cool though."
He glanced sideways. "Your dad's considered one of the most powerful hunters alive."
Ace rolled his eyes. "Cool in theory, maybe. Sucks in real life."
There was a brief silence, broken by Cedric pointing at Ace's bag.
"You bring the extra ammo?"
"Yes."
"The good ones?"
"Yes."
"The ones you didn't cheap out on last time?"
Ace stopped walking. "First of all, those bullets worked."
"You missed six shots."
"That's not the point."
Cedric laughed. "I'm just saying, if I die because you wanted to save money—"
"You're not dying," Ace cut in. "Worst case, we run."
Cedric raised a brow. "You say that like running is easy."
Ace smirked. "Skill issue."
They kept walking, the road slowly sloping upward.
Ace cleared his throat, clearly wanting to ditch the earlier topic.
"Must be nice," he said. "Having a hunter mom."
Cedric nodded. "Yeah, I guess. She knows the job. Knows the risks."
"Yet she still sent you here."
Cedric shrugged. "Well… somebody's gotta do it."
Ace glanced at him. "You ever think about not doing it?"
Cedric thought for a second. "Once. Then I remembered I'd still be bored."
Ace chuckled. "Fair."
The town lights behind them grew dimmer as trees closed in on both sides.
Cedric stretched his arms. "So what are you betting on? Ghost? Goblin?"
"Please be a goblin," Ace said. "I'm not in the mood for chanting or weird smells."
"If it's another skinwalker—"
"I'm dropping out," Ace said instantly.
Cedric laughed. "Liar."
"Okay, maybe not dropping out," Ace admitted. "But I am complaining the whole time."
They shared a grin as the silhouette of the hill began to rise ahead of them—dark, quiet, and way too calm for comfort.
Neither of them said it out loud, but both knew one thing.
Whatever was waiting up there?
It definitely wasn't boring.
The closer they got to the hill, the louder it became.
Ace slowed. "You hear that?"
Cedric frowned. "Yeah."
At first, it sounded like wind—branches brushing together, leaves shifting. But then laughter cut through it. Loud. Careless. Way too human.
Ace swore under his breath.
They crouched instinctively, moving low as they reached the tree line. Cedric raised a hand, signaling stop, and both of them peered through the bushes.
Ace's stomach dropped.
Teenagers.
A lot of them.
Groups clustered everywhere—some sitting on fallen logs, some leaning against bikes, others straight-up livestreaming the place on their phones. A couple was daring each other to go closer to the house. Someone had brought speakers. Actual speakers.
"You've gotta be kidding me," Ace muttered.
Cedric stared, stunned. "Is… is that a smoke machine?"
Ace followed his gaze. Sure enough, someone was fogging up the front yard like it was a haunted house attraction.
"Oh my god," Ace whispered. "They turned it into a fucking picnic."
Cedric rubbed his face. "We're so screwed."
A group of kids laughed as one of them shouted, "Yo! If Anthony didn't come back, that means the ghost got him, right?"
Another voice replied, "Nah bro, he probably ran away. People always overreact."
Ace's jaw tightened.
"They're idiots," Cedric said quietly.
"They're dead if we don't do something,"
Ace snapped back.
They scanned the crowd more carefully now. Flashlights swinging randomly. People stepping on broken wood. Someone had already pushed open the front door of the house.
Ace's eyes caught on something else—scratches along the side of the hill, deep gouges in the dirt like something heavy had been dragged uphill.
He swallowed. "Cedric."
"Yeah?"
"Tell me I'm imagining those marks."
Cedric looked. His joking expression
vanished. "You're not."
For just half a second, the laughter from the crowd dipped. The forest seemed to go quiet—too quiet. Then somewhere deeper inside the trees, a low, uneven sound echoed.
Not a growl.
Not a voice.
Something… breathy. Wet. Almost like snorting.
Ace felt his skin prickle.
"Please tell me that was one of them,"
Cedric whispered.
Ace shook his head slowly. "Nope."
A girl near the house laughed nervously. "Did you guys hear that?"
"Probably a dog," someone replied.
Ace clenched his fists. "That's not a dog."
Cedric checked his gun, lowering his voice. "We can't fight with this many civilians around."
"I know," Ace said. "Which means step one is getting them out."
Cedric groaned. "Great. Crowd control. My favorite."
Ace took a breath, eyes hard now, all joking gone. "We scare them. Loud. Convincing. No monster talk."
Cedric nodded. "Got it."
Ace looked one last time toward the house. For a split second, he thought he saw movement behind the tree line —something tall, horned, and still.
Then it was gone.
Ace swallowed.
"Cedric?"
"Yeah?"
"If this thing comes out while they're still here—"
Cedric finished the sentence quietly. "We won't be able to stop it."
Ace straightened, stepping out of the shadows.
"Then let's make sure it doesn't."