The feast is loud. It is too loud. You sit at the edge of the long oak table. The wood is dark and cold. You do not touch your food. The roast pig glistens. It smells of fat and smoke. You smell only your own sweat. It is thick. It is sour. You are a guard. You are a man of the law. Your hands are still. Your eyes move. They track the candlelight. It flickers. It dies. It returns.

Lord Ashworth sits at the head. He is old. He is fat. His face is red. He laughs. The laugh is wet. It is ugly. He points a bone at you. "You stare," he says. "Eat, Thomas."

You do not eat. You look at him. You look at the others. They are laughing. They are drinking. The wine is dark. It is deep. It pools in the bowls. You see your reflection in the wine. It is a stranger. It is a ghost. You are not here. You are somewhere else. You are in the dark. You are in the field.

"Thomas," Ashworth says again. His voice is sharp. It cuts the air. "Are you with us?"

"I am here," you say. Your voice is low. It is rough. It is quiet.

"Then speak," he says. "Speak or be gone."

You speak. "I saw the shadow," you say. "In the woods. By the river. It moved. It was not a deer. It was not a wolf. It was a shape. It was a man. But not a man. It had no face. It had only eyes. They burned. They were blue. They were cold."

The table goes quiet. The laughter stops. The air freezes. Ashworth leans back. He wipes his mouth. He spits. "A monster," he says. "You are mad, Thomas. You are drunk on fear. You are a dog who barks at the wind."

"I am not mad," you say. "I saw it. I know it. It is real. It is coming. It knows you. It hates you. It wants your soul. It wants your blood. It is in the walls. It is in the floor. It is in the air."

Ashworth smiles. It is a thin smile. It is cruel. "You are a fool," he says. "You are a coward. You are a nothing. I will make you serve the pigs. I will make you clean the stables. I will break you."

You do not move. You sit. You breathe. You feel the fear. It is a stone. It is in your chest. It is heavy. It is cold. You love her. You remember her. Her name is Elara. She is gone. She is dead. Or she is lost. You do not know. You do not care. You only care about the shadow. You only care about the truth. You believe you are the only one who sees it. You believe you are the savior. You believe you are the hero. You are wrong. You are so wrong.

The night comes. The candles go out. The fire dies. The hall is dark. You are alone. You stand. You walk. Your boots are heavy. They creak. They thud. You go to the door. You open it. The air is cold. It bites. It cuts. You step out. The snow is white. It is bright. It is blinding. You walk into the woods.

The trees are tall. They are black. They are tall. They are silent. You walk. You do not stop. You do not look back. You are hunting. You are hunting the shadow. You are hunting the lie. You are hunting yourself. You know it is a lie. You know it is a dream. You know it is your mind. But you cannot stop. You cannot stop. You must prove it. You must show them. You must show Ashworth. You must show yourself.

The snow is deep. It is up to your knees. It is up to your waist. It is up to your chest. You fall. You lie. You look up. The sky is black. The stars are out. They are cold. They are far. You see a light. It is blue. It is in the tree. It is in the branch. It is a lantern. It is a person.

You run. You run to it. You run to the light. You are there. You stand. You look. It is not a monster. It is not a ghost. It is a child. It is a boy. He is small. He is thin. He is cold. He holds the lantern. He looks at you. He does not speak. He does not move. He waits.

You speak. "Who are you?" you ask. Your voice is soft. It is broken. It is weak.

"I am here," the boy says. His voice is high. It is clear. It is calm. "I am waiting. I am waiting for you. I am waiting for the truth. I am waiting for the end."

You do not understand. You do not understand. You look at him. You see his face. It is your face. It is your face. You see the eyes. They are blue. They are cold. They are yours. You are the shadow. You are the monster. You are the lie. You are the fear. You are the guilt. You are the man who could not save her. You are the man who let her go. You are the man who is alone.

You fall to your knees. The snow is wet. It is cold. It is hard. You cry. You do not know why. You do not know why. You cry for Elara. You cry for yourself. You cry for the boy. You cry for the truth. You cry for the end.

The boy speaks. "It is not a monster," he says. "It is not a ghost. It is not a curse. It is not a punishment. It is a choice. It is a choice. You chose to believe. You chose to hate. You chose to fear. You chose to be alone. You chose to be the enemy. You chose to be the wolf. You chose to be the dark."

You look at him. You see the truth. It is clear. It is bright. It is painful. You see the past. You see the moment. You see her hand. You see her face. You see the fire. You see the smoke. You see the door. You see her go. You see her turn. You see her look. You see her leave. You did not stop her. You did not speak. You did not move. You did not save her. You let her go. You let her die. You let her be lost. You blamed the world. You blamed Ashworth. You blamed the shadow. You blamed the dark. You blamed everything. You did not blame yourself. You could not blame yourself. You could not face it. You could not face the truth. So you made a monster. You made a ghost. You made a lie. You made a story. You told yourself a story. You believed it. You lived in it. You died in it.

The boy smiles. It is sad. It is kind. It is true. "You are not a monster," he says. "You are a man. You are a man who is broken. You are a man who is lost. You are a man who is afraid. But you are not a monster. You are not a ghost. You are not a curse. You are not a punishment. You are free. You are free. You can let go. You can let go. You can stop. You can stop. You can rest. You can rest. You can sleep. You can sleep."

You close your eyes. The snow stops. The wind stops. The world is quiet. The world is still. The world is empty. You feel the weight. It is gone. The stone is gone. The cold is gone. The fear is gone. The hate is gone. The lie is gone. You are light. You are air. You are nothing. You are everything.

You open your eyes. The boy is gone. The lantern is gone. The tree is gone. The snow is gone. The dark is gone. You are in the hall. You are at the table. The candles are lit. The fire is warm. The food is there. Ashworth is there. He is looking at you. He is smiling. It is not a cruel smile. It is a soft smile. It is a kind smile.

"Thomas," he says. "You have been away. You have been away. You are back. You are back. You look different. You look tired. You look old. You look free."

You look at him. You see the truth. It is in his eyes. It is in his face. It is in his soul. He knows. He has always known. He saw it. He saw the shadow. He saw the ghost. He saw the lie. He saw the fear. He saw the guilt. He saw the man. He saw you. He did not judge you. He did not hate you. He did not blame you. He waited. He waited for you to see. He waited for you to wake. He waited for you to return.

"I am sorry," you say. Your voice is soft. It is clear. It is true. "I am sorry. I was wrong. I was mad. I was lost. I was alone. I was the monster. I was the ghost. I was the lie. I was the fear. I was the guilt. I was the dark. I was the wolf. I was the shadow. I was the enemy. I was the curse. I was the punishment. I was the nothing. I was the everything. I am free. I am free."

Ashworth nods. He nods. He nods. "It is done," he says. "It is done. It is over. It is over. You are home. You are home. You are here. You are here. You are real. You are real. You are alive. You are alive."

You sit. You sit. You sit. You eat. You eat. You eat. The food is cold. The food is stale. The food is bad. But you eat. You eat. You eat. You swallow. You swallow. You swallow. You drink. You drink. You drink. The wine is dark. The wine is deep. The wine is sweet. You drink. You drink. You drink.

The others look at you. They are quiet. They are still. They are watching. They are waiting. They are listening. They are feeling. They are knowing. They are seeing. They are seeing the change. They are seeing the truth. They are seeing the end.

You look at the table. You look at the wood. You look at the grain. You look at the knots. You look at the scars. You look at the marks. You look at the history. You look at the life. You look at the death. You look at the memory. You look at the present. You look at the future. You look at the now.

You are here. You are here. You are here.

The feast ends. The candles go out. The fire dies. The hall is dark. You stand. You stand. You stand. You walk. You walk. You walk. You go to the door. You go to the door. You go to the door. You open it. You open it. You open it. The air is cold. The air is cold. The air is cold. The snow is white. The snow is white. The snow is white. You step out. You step out. You step out.

You do not look back. You do not look back. You do not look back. You walk into the woods. You walk into the woods. You walk into the woods. The trees are tall. The trees are tall. The trees are tall. They are black. They are black. They are black. They are silent. They are silent. They are silent.

You walk. You walk. You walk. You do not stop. You do not stop. You do not stop. You do not hunt. You do not hunt. You do not hunt. You do not search. You do not search. You do not search. You do not fear. You do not fear. You do not fear. You do not hate. You do not hate. You do not hate. You do not blame. You do not blame. You do not blame.

You are alone. You are alone. You are alone. You are not alone. You are not alone. You are not alone. You are with her. You are with her. You are with her. You are with the truth. You are with the truth. You are with the truth. You are with the light. You are with the light. You are with the light.

The snow falls. The snow falls. The snow falls. It covers you. It covers you. It covers you. It covers the world. It covers the world. It covers the world. It covers the past. It covers the past. It covers the past. It covers the pain. It covers the pain. It covers the pain. It covers the guilt. It covers the guilt. It covers the guilt.

You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free. You are free.

The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here.