Adolf was made still, as the pair of glowing eyes in the dark circled him. The atmosphere was quite tense, and the forest was alive and active, the silence transformed into a wailing whispering sound in his head. He felt that there was someone else present.
The figure approached from the cover of the trees. The movement was peculiar, somehow elegant yet awkward. The entity was tall and cloaked in darkness, with a face that was hidden beneath the large hood covering its head. As the figure walked forward, the head tilted and the moonlight reached the face within the hood. The face was ghostly pale with burning red eyes that seemed to be staring deep into the darkness.
"Who are you?" Adolf managed to speak out, though shaking, firmly.
The creature inclined its face in an inverted manner, a slight grin showing its sharp canines. "I am the one who protects this forest. The one who knows its secrets, a true nag.," the creature said in a serrated voice that was beautifully dangerous. "And you, young one, have strayed too much from what is appropriate."
Tightly, Adolf squeezed the warmed stone, that rested on his palm. "I am not scared," he stated, speaking more in comfort to himself rather than the monster.
"The guardian stepped forward, "It is prudent to be afraid." "But there are worse things than fear in this place. You have questions, am I correct? This young person has felt the core of this wood and it has accepted them."
"In promising that the person is still in the woods who knows all, what do you mean?" Adolf inquired, worry forming a knot in him.
"The stone you bear is powerful, that is all I will say," the elder added. "It can be used to clarify but also to cause pandemonium. It is best to be measured in such decisions because every single decision you make reverberates throughout this forest."
Adolf felt an urge that was new since he was in the woods. "I feel the need to learn—I want to find out why I was taken to this place."
The guardian's smile faded. "Then you must follow the path deeper into the forest. But know this: you are not the first to seek answers here, and those who came before you have left their marks."
With that, the figure faded back into the shadows, leaving Adolf alone in the glade. Taking a deep breath, he glanced around, the whispers now softening to a gentle hum, as if urging him onward.
He stepped forward, the glowing stone lighting the way, as he ventured deeper into the heart of the mysterious forest.