Shadows Approach

The setting sun washes the grounds of the Ridgewell Estate in a beautiful, orange light. Among the grounds, a lone stallion takes an early evening stroll. He's heard much about the estate from his brother, who lives here, and he has not been disappointed. Though from Manehatten, the man decided to surprise his brother with a visit this week. It's been too long since the siblings had been able to spend time together. The man thought his brother would have been overjoyed when he showed up at his doorstep, but instead, the man's brother seemed... Horrified. As the man enters a stone path through a wooded section of the estate, something his brother told him before he left for his walk echoes in his mind. "When you hear the bell ring, return home immediately, without delay. You mustn't be out past sunset." When he'd tried to get more information from his brother, all he got was "We mustn't mention those who prowl the night. Lest we be their next victims." The man was pretty sure it was just some sort of elaborate prank to get him to stay home so he could help make dinner. The ringing of a bell snaps the man from his daydreaming. He pauses his stroll to listen to the bell until nearly a full minute later, it stops. For a moment, the man thinks of the words of his brother, but he once again brushes them off as a prank. That, or his brother's starting to go crazy. The man takes one last look to the hill behind the treetops. The lord's estate sits atop it, like a bastion of elegance, and beauty at the end of a forest trail. Ah, the Ridgewell Estate was truly as remarkable as they said it was. The next few minutes of the man's walk are blissfully silent. With nothing more than the sound of a breeze rustling the leaves of the trees. However, as his walk progresses, the man begins to notice that the light of the sun is fading quicker that he had anticipated it would. When he looks to the sky, he cannot see the sun. Only a gray sky, quickly turning black. Now, the words of his brother begin to rattle in his mind. Perhaps, he should turn back, and head home. A blur in his peripherals. The man snaps his head to the left. He looks into the woods left of the path, but can only see darkness, slowly encroaching. It's getting dark very fast. The man hastens his step. More movement in his peripherals. The man swears he can see something moving in the shadows. A whispered giggle causes the man's hairs to stand up on end. For a moment, he freezes in place. Quiet giggling rumbles into a cacophony of sinister laughter. The shadows around the man seem to move, and dance. They laugh all the while. He breaks out into a sprint, only to find the path ahead completely covered in shadow. The man turns. Maybe he can keep running through the path, and make it to the manor. Something grabs at his leg, but he manages to pull it free. A puff of cold breath washes across his shoulders. He attempts to sprint once more, but the shadows quickly close in, and all goes dark. Throughout the Ridgewell Estate, the man's agonized screams echo. No one dares to leave their house to investigate. Not even his brother. They all know what happens to those who go outside after the shadows come out. The General of Shadow has made that abundantly clear. Inside their homes, families huddle together for comfort, and pray to their king they are not chosen tonight. They beg their king to save them, and question where? Where has their Lord gone? Why has he left them to suffer at the hands of such malevolence? Has he abandoned them? Or has the General already killed him? How much longer must they suffer? Will salvation ever come? Or will they be doomed to be consumed by the army of Umbra?