Have you ever heard the Walker in the Woods? Have you ever felt their eyes watching you from beyond the trees? That sense that you’re not as alone as you thought?
It’s just a deer or a squirrel, you tell yourself. Certainty, you would know if someone else was out there with you. After all, maybe this is your property or an empty park.
But, dear reader, what if I told you you weren’t as alone as you thought? Or, as you hoped. For you see, the Walker in the Woods might be there with you. If you’re lucky, you’ll only hear something in the distance snapping twigs underfoot. It could be an animal, and its far away, so it’s nothing to worry about you can tell yourself.
Or maybe, it’s closer than that. Maybe it’s from just out of sight, behind a grove of trees too thick to see through. Maybe it’s close enough for you to realize that the ‘animal’ can’t be a rabbit or fox, it’s far too big.
Or, if you’re particularly unlucky, maybe it’s right behind you. A hot breath down the back of your neck; a low whisper in a language you can’t understand; a shadow from behind that seems to block out the light.
But, dear reader, worry not. For you see, you are not alone in these encounters. The Walker is an old entity. Now, you might be thinking- how can one entity appear all around the world, wouldn’t it make more sense for it to be some unknown species? But rest assured, reader, there is only one Walker in the Woods.
Yes, the Walker may share their territory with a slew of other creatures, your witches, Fey-creatures, ghosts and monsters. But, there is only one Walker. In mine own humble opinion, if there was more than one, that would spell the end of life as we know it- or maybe the two Walkers would fight until only one remained.
Now, again, you may be wondering how I came across such esoteric knowledge as the Walker in the Woods. Well, simply put, it is my job to know these things. It is not a glamorous job, I lament, and the pay is almost nonexistent other than a sparse helping of gratitude from those who heed my advice. But, unfortunately, I am not here to discuss the troubles that plague a lowly field officer such as myself, or to complain about a shadow organization that keeps tabs on the unnatural and monstrous.
No, that discussion is best left for another time. Today, we are discussing the Walker.
You see, the Walker is either as old as, or older, than the trees. As far back in history as we can search, there has always been some thing lurking in the dark. As we go further back in time, we can try to attribute these bumps in the night to the Fey or monsters of other kinds, but by asking these beasts, they all claim that the Walker had been there as long as they can remember.
And these creatures, you understand, have long memories indeed.
Now, before I go on, it would be in both of our best interests if I describe the Walker to you. Keep in mind, that encounters with the Walker in the Woods with accurate descriptions are extremely rare; if you are close enough to see the Walker, it is unlikely you’ll be able to convey the encounter to anyone else. It is also impossible to record the Walker on any form of media imagery; electronics malfunction in its presence, photos and videos become distorted, and even artistic representations will twist their ink or paint to blur the creature’s face. The paint or ink will refuse to dry so long as anyone looks at it, and the moment everyone looks away or blinks, it’ll run and twist of its own accord, distorting the image. As of yet, I have not found a means to keep an image of the Walker from distorting, even through arcane, occult or divine means.
However, this strange phenomenon does not extend to text or oral description. Nor does it prevent one from drawing an image of the Walker’s body or limbs.
Now, reader, you may think that you can simply make a collage of images, like a puzzle create the creature’s face. Rest assured, my predecessor also thought she was clever with that trick.
The fire raged for weeks and ravaged the Western coast of the United States, and her body was never recovered. Nor was our testing facility there, as it was reduced entirely to a mound of slag.
What about holograms or magical illusions? Those, too, were attempted once. In the case of the former, the machines refused to even turn on. In the latter… it took six days to find all the pieces of our occult consultant.
Now, there is an official ruling to avoid finding any loopholes in the creature’s ability to distort images of itself.
Ah, but I digress, dear reader. Allow me to describe the beast to you now. And quite the beast it is, by all accounts.
Standing between ten and fifteen feet tall, the creature is bipedal primarily, walking on long, thick legs ending in wide paws. The creature has extremely thin arms, as if they have no bones or muscle, ending in oversized hands. Each of the Walker’s hands has seven fingers, two of which are opposable like a human thumb, on either side of the hand. However, each finger possesses additional joints, though the exact number varies by account, from three to six. The Walker’s chest is concave, as if crushed in. The Walker’s skin varies from deathly white, to obsidian black, to mottled camouflage, according to the various accounts. The variation in these accounts is attributed to stress in the viewer.
But, the one thing that is always consistent among the accounts is the head, at least among viewers who survived seeing it. The Walker has a roughly humanoid head, however the Walker has no ears on the side of its head, and three horns along it’s brow, with two large antlers growing from the side of its head. But, the creature’s actual face is much harder to describe.
This isn’t due to its unique ability to mutate images or memory of itself. Rather, it’s because almost nobody who had seen its face has been found alive. We only assume the images we have created of the Walker’s face are accurate due to the distortions appearing as we have slowly created a more accurate image.
The Walker in the Woods has no nose, a small mouth without lips, and two enormous eyes. It is believed these eyes are black and filled with millions of pinpricks of light, each eye roughly the size of a human’s face. A scar runs from the middle of the Walker’s eyes, where a nose would be, down to the creature’s mouth, where it branches off at two angles, resembling an upside-down ‘Y’. The small mouth on the Walker’s face is actually an illusion, according to a survivor who only saw the creature’s jaw. The Y shaped scar will split open, revealing a three-way set of jaws as the Walker’s cheekbones peel back, lifting the upper corners of the mouth away. The inside of these flaps of mouth are lined with backward facing, jagged teeth, like those of a sea turtle, but far larger.
It is believed that even if you see the Walker preparing to bite with this monstrous maw, which appears to open far wider than physics should allow, you can still escape. This is proved by our sole surviving witness. However, none who have looked at both of the Walker’s eyes have survived; the only evidence we possess of its gaze come from those who have witnessed the Walker peeking around a corner at them- and only if they were able to outrun it.
Not many do, as far as we can guess.
It is theorized that maintaining eye contact with the Walker causes a trance-like state that allows it to more easily kill its victims, though this cannot be corroborated, for understandable reasons. It is known, however, that looking at the creature’s eyes, even briefly, or through the trees or a veil, prevents the use of arcane, occult and Divine powers. Because of this, monsters, feybeasts and other supernatural entities are just as vulnerable to the Walker in the Woods, needing to rely on their own limbs to flee to safety. Beings able to fly without supernatural assistance are most likely to escape, if they can get above the treeline. Merely getting into the branches will not save you, dear reader. The Walker in the Woods, despite his name, is quite capable of scaling a tree or two.
But, my reader may ask themselves, how does one escape such a creature, who itself does not seem bound to by even divine powers? Well, you’re in luck, for through my own efforts we have compiled a list of rules to possibly save your life in the event you encounter the Walker.
Rule One: Do not explore the woods alone.
The Walker, throughout the eons, has never appeared before more than two people at a time. A single pair is not enough protection from the Walker. It is theorized this is because when there are three or more in the group, the odds of a survivor increase. As you may have noticed, the Walker does not like to be observed by others.
Rule Two: Do not acknowledge the Walker.
The Walker in the Woods is a stalker who relishes the hunt. They like to instill fear in their victims, slowly coming closer. If you run, or look for the Walker, you’ll provoke it to attack. The Walker has no interest in prey who ignore it.
Rule Three: Do not call out to the Walker.
This rule, while similar to Rule Two, serves a different purpose. You see, the Walker can mimic sounds, and uses this ability as it hunts. It could be the sound of a woman’s voice in the trees, asking for help, or the cry of a baby. If you call out into the trees, the Walker may one day use your words against another victim. Below are a brief sampling of phrases and voices known to belong to the Walker:
-An infant crying.
-A young woman begging for help, and screaming in pain.
-A boy, calling his pet Spot to come here.
-An old man, wheezing that he had fallen and cannot get up.
-A series of gunshots, which may sometimes be followed by the screams of dying men.
-Deer, bears, wolves, tigers, a lion, and an assortment of birds, which may or may not be indigenous to the region you encounter the Walker.
-Various men, women, children and otherworldly creature’s speaking unknown languages, believed to be from lost or forgotten civilizations or other worlds.
-Bestial roars, believed to belong to extinct animals.
Rule Four: Should you be pursued by the Walker, attempt to get to your own property border as fast as possible.
There is no known reason why the Walker chooses to abide by government certified property borders. My personal hypothesis is… because it thinks it is funny. As far as I have been able to determine, the Walker has no reason to be halted by the idea of privately owned land, as the Walker has been known to follow people across a third party’s private property with no aversion. How the Walker in the Woods knows where an individual’s property border is, I cannot say. Just know that your own property, legally bought and paid for, suffices.
Rule Five: If you cannot reach your property, get away from the trees.
Any type of clearing will do, whether it be a natural clearing, or a paved street. A meadow, lawn, or otherwise flat, clear zone is preferable but not needed specifically. The Walker prefers to avoid being seen unless attempting to instill fear; it will hesitate to follow you into a clearing and may be convinced to chase prey elsewhere.
Rule Six: Get inside a building as soon as possible.
This will not stop the Walker. It is merely a means to slow it down. Only crossing one’s property border will truly stop the Walker from following you, reader. But, if you find a building in the woods, get inside and shut the doors. Better still, is a building in a clearing, such as a house with a big lawn on all sides. Once you are inside, you will continue to hear the Walker coming for you. It may choose to look through windows, or cast shadows into the rooms from outside to frighten you. It may choose to speak to you through the door, begging to be let in, or calling for help. Do not let it in. Do not open the door. If you’re lucky, after several minutes, the Walker will give up and leave.
If you are unlucky, the Walker in the Woods will knock on the door. Gently, at first. Then, again, harder. Soon, it will rattle the door handle, shaking it in the frame. If the building has multiple doors, all of them will bang and shake violently as the Walker attempts to get in. Do not be fooled, however. The Walker will only be behind one door. Even if another door creaks and groans under a violent beating, looking outside through a window will suffice to prove the Walker is not there. Simply open the door, and continue to flee. Soon enough, you’ll hear the bursting explosion as the Walker finally breaks down its chosen door, and it’ll begin to chase you again.
You may need to hide within another building. You can continue this game of cat and mouse until you outrun the Walker, or it grows bored of chasing you. Ideally, you’ll find your way back to your property.
Rule Seven: If you cannot find a group of more than three people, get to your property, and the Walker will not grow bored of hunting you, it is possible to divert its attention to another.
This last rule is a failsafe, chanced upon by a worker within my organization. While going through the forests of Eastern Europe to examine an oddity reported to the organization, this worker became prey to the Walker in the Woods. Despite following the advice to hide in a clearing, and through several abandoned buildings, the worker continued to be hunted. After several hours on the run, the worker came face to face with the Walker. Terrified, the worker cried out in fear, babbling in horror. The worker, as they were about to be eaten alive by the Walker, muttered their coworkers name, who was also somewhere in the forests.
The Walker stopped, pulling back. The worker reported that a voice, ancient and horrible, spoke directly into his brain. It said, “An offering has been made.” And, without a word more, the Walker turned and loped off into the trees, leaving the worker alive.
He ran to the nearest research station, where he reported the incident. There, it was discovered that the man had spoken the full name, first and last, of his coworker, who was also alone in the forest. Despite trying for over an hour, nobody could reach her via radio or cellphone. A rescue team was sent in search of her, but she was never found.
Two weeks later, the oddity was researched and packed away, and the worker was sent off, with three guards, to get safely back to the city to board his flight home.
They never made it.
It was determined, via trial and error, that speaking the name of an individual you know to be alone, to the Walker will send it off to hunt that person. While hunting in this way, the individual will be cut off from all outside contact. No means of reaching that person has been discovered, other than going into the trees to find them first. But, this is ill advised. For you see, dear readers, the Walker does not take kindly to their offerings being taken from it. No number of guards, or houses, or clearings, will stop the Walker from taking its offering. Neither will property borders.
Once you have made an offering to the Walker in the Woods, you have two weeks from the moment you speak the name to get to your property. Do this, and the Walker will leave you alone. Fail to get to safety, and the Walker in the Woods will come for you, regardless of any other safety precautions.
How do you know you are being hunted by the Walker in the Woods? If you have been offered up to it? First, is the feeling you’re being watched. Then, your ears will ring. You may hear footsteps nearby. A fleeting shadow in the corner of your vision. Or maybe, you’ll just hear a-
I’m sorry, dear readers, but I have to stop here for now. Somebody is knocking on my cabin door.