As the two brothers walked deeper into the dark forest, the path looked ordinary at first. Tall trees stretched upward, their branches tangled so tightly that little sunlight reached the ground.
The air was cool and damp, carrying the scent of moss and wet bark. The ground was soft beneath their boots and scattered with fallen leaves that had begun to decay.
But the deeper Edris and Kael walked, the stranger the forest began to feel.
The sounds changed first.
The birds disappeared, and the distant rustle of animals slowly faded until the forest felt unnaturally quiet. Their footsteps pressed into the soft soil, and even that sound seemed too loud in the silence.
Kael noticed it before Edris did.
"Do you hear that?" he asked quietly.
Edris slowed his steps and listened carefully.
"Hear what?"
"Exactly."
Edris stood still and listened more closely.
Kael was right.
There was nothing. No insects buzzing, no birds calling, and no movement in the brush.
Only silence.
