2025-07-18 19:24:42Sarah returned from the university, burdened with worries. Her beloved father was still missing, hours had passed, and no one knew anything about him.
And Maher… she had gone to look for him in her uncle’s lab, only to find it empty.
She no longer knew where to search or what to do.
How could her uncle and brother disappear without a trace?
How could she search for her ill father all alone, with her mother weighed down by grief and her tears long dried?
"I can't bear all of this on my own."
The moment her mother saw her, she ran toward her In desperation.
“Did you find them?”
Sarah lowered her head in defeat. She had nothing to offer that could lift her mother’s sorrow. Her mother collapsed onto the couch, sobbing again, louder this time, tearing at Sarah’s already broken heart.
“Mom… I reported them to the police. They said they’ll begin searching within 24 hours.”
Her mother cried out in anguish:
“They’ve been gone for ten hours! Maher should have been back long ago. And your father... he doesn’t even remember us anymore. He told me plainly, he won’t be coming back. I’ve lost both my husband and my son in a single day.”
Sarah held her mother tightly, offering comfort through nothing but her presence.
In the Forest
“My name is Layan… and you?”
He replied with dry sarcasm:
“The demon Maher.”
She frowned, replying with the same tone:
“Hahaha. Very funny.”
He glanced around cautiously, not wanting to alarm her, then asked:
“How did you end up here?”
She shrugged with a hopeless sigh.
“My brother… I was following him. Then suddenly, he was no longer ahead of me. Maybe I got lost… I don’t know.”
“How old is your brother?”
She looked around in fear before replying:
“He’s not a child. He’s twenty-five.”
Maher turned toward her silently. She continued, explaining:
“His name is Majed. He used to leave every morning and come back at night, exhausted. We’re the only two left in our family. But then… he stopped recognizing me.”
Maher froze. Victim of Saven al-Nisyan, then.
“Go on.”
She continued, grief clouding her voice:
“He changed. Became angry, aggressive. Denied I was his sister. I was his favorite… he used to call me his little darling. But he forgot who I am. I tried everything to help him remember, but nothing worked. He yelled, accused me of using him, and left the house. I followed him everywhere. He started picking fights, he nearly stabbed someone. I stopped him, but he pushed me and ran. I chased him… but I lost him. I couldn’t find my way back.”
A rustling sound behind the trees caught Maher’s attention. He grabbed her hand and placed a finger over his lips, signaling her to stay silent. They continued moving cautiously.
Layan clung to Maher’s arm in fear as he scanned the surroundings for danger.
“I’ve heard terrifying sounds these past two nights,” she whispered. “I think mythical creatures live in this forest.”
Maher looked at her, intrigued.
“How did you survive these two days?”
She hesitated, then said:
“I’ll tell you, but don’t you dare call me crazy.”
He nodded. She spoke quickly:
“Something attacked me. I couldn’t see it, but I heard it, felt it. Then… something else saved me, something with wings. Twice. So I decided to stay under this tree. It’s kept me alive. There’s a guardian up there protecting me.”
She pulled a pear from her clothes and said excitedly:
“Look! He even feeds me. He dropped this fruit down to me. If not for it, I would’ve starved.”
Maher thought, A fantasy that fits our current nightmare.
She looked at him suspiciously.
“You don’t believe me, do you?”
He raised a mocking brow:
“Did you believe I’m not a demon?”
She stepped back uncertainly. Doubt crept into her heart again.
Maher exhaled in frustration. But before he could say a word, a creature sprang out from the shadow, scharging at them with terrifying speed.
Maher shoved Layan out of its path and met the beast head-on with his bare arms.
Layan stood frozen in horror. The monstrous black creature attacking Maher looked like a bear, but it wasn't. Its crimson eyes, razor-sharp fangs, and claws that tore into Maher’s back… it was something far worse.
She screamed.
A glowing panel, visible only to Maher, appeared, offering two choices: a flaming orb or the sword of severance.
He chose poorly.
Still, the sword had proven useful once before.
Maher leapt onto the beast’s back, sword in hand, but the creature flung him off with brutal force, crashing him into thorny branches.
It lunged again, fangs bared.
Maher raised the sword, but it shattered in two.
The sword of severance had failed.
Maybe he should’ve chosen the fireball.
Where was the new prompt?
Why wasn't it giving him the orb now?
Instead, the panel returned with a grim choice: dagger or surrender.
"Damn it!"
Layan screamed:
“Maher! Watch out!”
He cursed, diving to the side.
The beast roared.
Maher fought back with the small dagger, landing several hits, but the creature only grew more enraged. One blow from its claw sent Maher flying into the thorns again.
He was weakening. Blood pouring, strength fading.
This battle is lost... but I won't give up… not yet...
He rose with effort, slashing again and again, though each strike drained him more.
Another panel appeared, blinking:
Energy Depleting… Surrender = Death. Press to Recharge.
He looked at the advancing beast, then hit the prompt.
A surge of energy filled his body, thirty percent restored. Wounds still bleeding, but fire in his spirit renewed.
He whispered:
“What about the fireball?”
The panel responded :
Option no longer available. Face it or fall.
Maher screamed:
“Surrender is not an option!”
He drove the dagger into the beast again and again, but nothing slowed it down. His breathing grew ragged. Blood loss, exhaustion, pain…
"Where is its weak spot? I can't die. I must defeat it. I have to save my uncle!"
The creature loomed, raising him between its claws.
Maher stared into Its maw.
"Is this it? Did I lose the battle before It even began?"
He should’ve chosen the fireball.
Too late for regret now.
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