"Run."
Hongco didn't look back.
Vinh followed.
The forest behind them—
still watching.
Still alive.
Branches snapped.
Breath uneven.
Heavy.
Hongco bent down mid-run.
Grabbed a dry branch.
Friction.
Spark.
Then—
Fire.
A small flame flickered in her hand.
Unstable.
But enough.
"…Why—"
"No time."
They broke through the trees.
An open space.
A lake.
Wide.
Still.
Too still.
They stopped.
Not by choice—
but instinct.
Behind them—
the glowing forest ended.
The eyes—
didn't follow.
"…They won't come out…"
Vinh whispered.
Hongco narrowed her eyes.
"…No."
"…They can't."
Silence.
Then—
The water moved.
A ripple.
Slow.
Heavy.
Something rose.
Not fully.
Never fully.
Only—
tendrils.
Long.
Pale.
Moving beneath the surface—
then bursting out.
They shot forward.
Fast.
Too fast.
"Move!"
They split instantly.
Two directions.
The tendrils hesitated—
Then chose.
Hongco.
"…Tch—!"
They chased her.
Cutting through water—
dragging across the ground.
Vinh turned—
but stopped.
He couldn't help.
Hongco ran.
Fast.
But the ground—
uneven.
Her foot caught.
She fell.
Hard.
The torch slipped from her hand.
Rolled.
Flame flickering.
The tendrils surged.
Closing in.
"…Damn it—"
Too close.
Too fast.
Then—
They stopped.
Just before reaching her.
Hongco froze.
The tendrils shifted.
Turned.
Not toward her—
Toward the torch.
They lunged.
Wrapped around it.
Vinh's eyes narrowed.
"…It's not—"
The flame flickered violently.
Then—
It went out.
The wood—
darkened.
Then—
It bubbled.
A faint hissing sound.
The surface of the branch—
collapsed.
"…That's not water…"
Hongco's voice was low.
"…It's dissolving it."
The tendrils released the remains.
The torch—
half gone.
They didn't chase her again.
Instead—
They moved outward.
Farther.
Reaching beyond the clearing.
Into the glowing forest.
Vinh followed the motion.
The tendrils wrapped around—
the lights.
The glowing things.
Small.
Countless.
"…Bugs…"
They pulled them back.
Into the water.
One after another.
The surface rippled again.
Then—
It began.
The lake churned.
Not violently.
Controlled.
Water spiraled inward.
The level—
dropped.
Slightly.
"It's… drinking…"
Hongco pushed herself up.
Still breathing hard.
"…No."
A pause.
"…It's diluting something."
The water compressed.
Then—
It erupted.
A column shot into the air.
Not clear.
Clouded.
Dimly glowing.
It spread outward.
Falling.
Like rain.
Vinh stepped back.
A drop landed near him.
The ground—
reacted.
Soft at first.
Then—
it sank.
"…Back."
Hongco grabbed his arm.
Pulled him away.
More drops fell.
Closer.
Closer—
A few struck the ground between them.
The soil hissed.
Darkened.
"…We leave. Now."
No argument.
They turned—
and ran.
Not away from danger—
Back into it.
The forest.
Behind them—
the lake continued.
And in the distance—
Another column rose.
Then another.
Far beyond.
"…It's not just one…"
Hongco didn't slow.
"…This whole place…"
A pause.
"…works like this."
Vinh didn't answer.
His breath burned.
His mind raced.
Forest.
Lake.
Creatures.
Not random.
Connected.
Behind them—
the rain of poison fell.
Ahead—
the glowing forest waited.
And somewhere between—
They were still alive.
For now.