Duck Lake trapdoor

Averna had vanished from the valley. Karst wasn't sad about it but he wasn't content either. He did not like how someone could be there one moment and gone the next, and was fearful that she would resurface spontaneously when he least expected it; a poltergeist, of sorts.

It hadn't been his intention to leave the valley in search of her, or anyone. He wanted to find herbs for his collection. As soon as he crossed the threshold that the massive boulder represented Karst moved quickly. He did not know how to track things with any great finesse, and meandered in short frantic spurts until home was far behind him.

He moved north; the smell of water became more prevalent as he snaked along, all the way up to the moment it changed to something familiar, making his stomach churn with hunger: stale blood on the air. As Karst ventured closer he spotted her — a pale shape.

The only beast he'd met with such an appearance was the ghost woman, and as his blood chilled in his veins and goose-flesh emerged across his body, Karst stopped with a lurch and stared.