Dawn came slow. The fog was thinner than yesterday, but still hung over the valley like a veil. I had not slept. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the yellow eyes staring from the edge of the village. I saw them blink, then disappear.
I sat by the dead fire, knife in my hand. The blade was cold. I had sharpened it three times during the night. There was nothing left to sharpen.
Elias found me there. His face was grey, his eyes tired. He sat down on a log across from me.
"You saw it?" he asked.
"Yes."
"Was it the same thing? The one from the north ridge?"
"I don't know. Maybe. It was big. Low to the ground. Eyes reflected the starlight like glass."
Elias stared into the dead fire. "We need to set up a watch. Every night. Two people. No exceptions. If it comes back, we need to know before it gets close."
"I'll organize it after breakfast."
He nodded. Then he stood up and walked away.
---
I called a meeting after breakfast. People gathered around the fire pit. Their faces were tight. Some were still eating. A few children clung to their mothers. Whispers spread fast in a small village. Everyone knew something had been here.
"You all know something was here last night," I said. "I saw it. Didn't get a good look, but it was big. It was watching."
Marta crossed her arms. Her jaw was set. "What do we do?"
"We watch," I said. "Every night, two people stay awake. Four hours each shift. If you see anything, you shout. You wake everyone. You don't try to fight it alone."
Rik stepped forward. He had his bow in his hand. "I'll take first watch tonight. With Sera. She has sharp eyes."
"Good. I'll take second shift with Elias."
Paul raised his hand. "What about weapons? We have knives and axes, but not enough for everyone."
I looked at Tomas. "Can you make spears?"
Tomas nodded slowly. He was chewing on a piece of bread. "Give me a day. I'll need straight branches and time to sharpen the tips. And something to harden the points. Fire, maybe."
"Do it."
---
The rest of the morning, I walked the perimeter of the village.
The valley was small, but there were gaps. Places where someone could slip between the lean‑tos. Paths that led straight into the forest. I marked them with sticks stuck into the ground.
I found a spot near the stream where the ground was soft. Perfect for a pitfall. Not deep, just enough to trip something up. I dug a small test hole with my knife. The dirt was dark, loose. It would work.
I found another spot near the north path, where the trees were thick. A tripwire could work there. I didn't have rope for traps, not yet. But I marked the spot anyway. Tomorrow, I would start digging for real.
I walked back to the village. My boots were wet. My legs ached.
Tomas and his crew worked on spears. They cut straight branches from the grove of trees, stripped the bark with knives, and sharpened the tips against stones. By midday, they had ten spears stacked against a lean‑to.
Paul brought a bundle of firewood. He dropped it near the fire pit. "That's all I can cut today," he said. "My arms are done."
"Rest," I said. "Tomorrow we need more."
Lora walked the edges of the valley with Mira. She showed her which plants to avoid – the red berries, the white flowers – and which to pick for medicine. The yellow ones for fever. The green leaves for cuts.
I helped where I could. I carried stones for the well. I tied ropes between trees to mark the perimeter. I showed Rik where to stand for the first watch – a high point near the stream, where he could see both the north ridge and the path to the forest.
"When the sun goes down, you stay there," I said. "No fire. No talking. Just watch."
Rik looked at the spot. It was a small rise, covered in grass. "What do I do if I see something?"
"Shout. Run to the fire pit. Wake everyone."
"And if it comes at me?"
I looked him in the eye. "Then you run faster."
---
Evening came. The sun dipped behind the hills. The valley turned grey, then purple, then dark. The fog rolled back in, thin but cold.
Lora found me by the fire. She was holding a bowl of soup. The steam rose into the cold air.
"You haven't eaten," she said.
"I'm not hungry."
"Eat anyway."
I took the bowl. The soup was warm. I pretended to drink it. She knew. She always knew. But she didn't say anything.
"Ash," she said. "You can't stay awake forever."
"I'll sleep when the village is safe."
"That might be a long time."
I didn't answer.
She sat beside me on the log. Her shoulder touched mine. "Tomorrow you're going to check the smoke, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"Alone?"
"Yes."
She was quiet for a moment. The fire crackled. Sparks floated up.
"Be careful," she said.
"I will."
She leaned her head on my shoulder. We sat like that until the stars came out.
---
The first watch was Rik and Sera. I walked with them to the high point near the stream. Rik had a spear and a knife. Sera had a bow she had made from a branch and string.
"Stay quiet," I said. "No whispering. If you need to talk, touch each other's arm."
They nodded.
"If you see anything, you shout. You don't wait. You don't try to be brave."
"We will," Rik said.
I walked back to the fire pit. Elias was waiting. He had a blanket wrapped around his shoulders.
"Second shift," I said. "We take over at midnight."
He nodded. "I'll try to sleep until then."
"Good."
---
I lay in my lean‑to, but I didn't sleep. I listened to the night. The wind in the trees. The stream gurgling. The distant call of an owl. The crack of a branch somewhere far away.
I thought about the eyes. How they had stared at me. Not afraid. Just watching. Calculating.
I thought about the smoke to the south. Soldiers? A patrol? A camp? If they found us, we couldn't fight them. Not yet. We had no walls. No army. Just a few spears and scared people.
Now, I had to survive the night.
---
At midnight, Elias shook my shoulder.
"Your turn," he whispered.
I sat up. The village was dark. The fire was out. The stars were bright overhead. I could see my breath.
We walked to the watch post. Rik and Sera were there, shivering. Their faces were pale in the starlight.
"Anything?" I asked.
"Nothing," Rik said. "Just the wind. A fox crossed the stream, but that's all."
"Go sleep."
They left. Elias and I stood in the dark.
The hours passed slow. The moon moved across the sky. The wind died. The forest went silent. Not even an owl.
Then I heard it.
A twig snapped. Somewhere near the north path. Close.
I held up my hand. Elias stopped breathing.
We listened.
Another snap. Closer. Maybe fifty paces away.
I pulled out my knife. Elias raised his spear.
The sound stopped.
We waited. Five minutes. Ten. Nothing.
Then the eyes appeared.
Two yellow dots, low to the ground, near the edge of the village. Not at the north path this time. Near the stream. Near the spot where the children played.
I didn't move. I didn't speak. I just stared.
The eyes blinked. Then they moved. Slowly. To the left. To the right. Testing.
Elias whispered, "Should we shout?"
"No. Not yet. It's too far. It will just run."
"So we wait?"
"We wait."
The eyes stopped moving. They stared at us. I could feel them on my skin.
Then, slowly, the shape behind the eyes lifted. A head. Large. Blocky. Covered in grey fur. It raised its snout and sniffed the air.
I saw its teeth. Long. Needle‑sharp. Dozens of them.
It stared at me.
I stared back.
Then it lowered its head and walked away. No rush. No fear. Just... gone.
Elias let out a breath. "It came back."
"It's testing us," I said. "Learning our patterns. Our numbers."
"What do we do?"
I looked toward the north ridge, dark against the stars.
"Tomorrow, I go south. I check the smoke. I find out who's out there."
"And if it's soldiers?"
"Then we move. Deeper into the hills. We find another valley."
"And if it's not soldiers?"
I didn't answer. I just stared at the dark.
The thing was out there.
And it wasn't going away