The night was silent, devoid of any noise. If one were to listen closely, you could hear the whispering of the trees, as they spoke to each other. The whispers continued as tree after tree told the story to another.

Deep in the forest, there stood a man. He stood before a massive lake that clearly reflected the light of the full moon on his face. He held a picture in his hands and he gazed at it. His eyes were misted over and a small smile framed his lips.

A tear dripped down his cheek and onto the picture.

He crumbled the picture up in his hands.

The silence of the night became more profound, leaving the world around it engulfed in silence. The man fell to his knees, having seemingly lost his strength.

A shadow formed itself in front of him, standing above the suspiciously still water. The shadow disfigured in and out of the darkness before forming something akin to a solid body. However, the body was still transparent. The shadow stood up straight, looking down at the kneeling man as if giving him a condensing look.

It was almost as if he did not notice this shadow, for the man only had his eyes locked onto the picture he had crumpled up in his palms. The shadow did not make a sound and observed silently.

When the moon reached its highest position, the man's body began to shake. As if possessed, his body bent backward and a large crack filled the surrounding area. The man bit his lip, to prevent himself from screaming out in pain. His left arm was next to break. The fingers cracked backward, then it bent at the elbow and at the shoulder.

Realizing that his right hand was next, the man stuffed the picture he held in his hand into his mouth. Tears ran down his face as the right hand broke next. Before his jaw broke, he chewed and swallowed the picture.

His legs were next, all the joints breaking.

By this time, his vision swam in and out of darkness. He thought of his daughter and a large drop of tear dripped down his eye. 'I am sorry.' Was his last thought, as his neck broke.

Wind whipped around the area, its strength forcing trees out of the soil from the roots. Just when the wind calmed, a whirlpool of water appeared from the previously calm lake. It splashed through the shadow and onto the man. The ground rumbled, throwing the dead man a few centimeters off of the ground. White mist engulfed the area.

As suddenly as this had happened, it all disappeared. By the time the mist had cleared, the man's body had disappeared. Left in his place was the small shoot of a tree.

Small Theater(S/T):

Man: I can't believe you killed me in the first chapter. Couldn't I have lived on for just a few more years.

Author: Oh shush. You'll delay the progress

Man:...