The Slithering Curse of Blackroot Forest

written by @UniversalMonk

The cold evening air bit at Emily’s skin as she left her friend’s house, pulling her jacket tighter against the chill that seemed to creep up from the darkening streets. It was a clear night, with a full moon illuminating her path.

She had always loved walking home through Blackroot Forest Park—despite the rumors. Disappearances in the woods were a favorite topic in her small town, whispered about in hushed tones by her classmates. Kids had gone missing before, sure, but Emily had always rolled her eyes at the stories.

A kid in her grade had vanished a year ago, one of those quiet types. The town went wild with theories: runaway, kidnapping, something sinister lurking in the trees. Emily had never believed any of it. The woods were just woods, after all—trees, dirt, and a few animals. The rumors? Nothing more than scared people spinning wild tales.

She pulled her jacket tighter, her breath fogging in the cold. The idea of something lurking in the woods seemed almost laughable now. With school looming the next day, Emily was already counting down the days until the next break.

The weekend had slipped through her fingers way too quickly, lost in endless debates on Lemmy. Sure, it was fun sparring with strangers and incels online, but now the thought of facing another week of homework and assignments left her drained.

As she walked, her thoughts wandered, and she hoped the walk would give her a brief escape from the relentless grind of schoolwork. The stillness around her felt like a much-needed break from the noise.

As she walked, the trees almost seemed to close in around her, branches forming jagged silhouettes against the darkening sky. Emily wasn’t scared—she loved the quiet of the woods, the way the wind whispered through the leaves, the occasional rustle of unseen animals in the underbrush. It was peaceful.

Then, she saw it. Something moved just beyond the edge of her vision. Maybe it was a cat, she thought, something small and injured. She took a few hesitant steps closer, curiosity drawing her in despite the uneasy feeling creeping up her spine.

It wasn’t a cat.

Emily froze in place, her heart thudding in her chest. A figure crouched in the darkness ahead, barely reaching her knees, its body twisted and hunched over like something born of nightmares. She squinted, straining to make out its grotesque shape, the hair on the back of her neck rising. Her breath hitched.

“Hello,” it rasped, its voice like nails dragging across stone, each word a slow, grating sound that made her shiver. “You came at just the right time. Yes, yes, yes, You’ll do. You’ll do. I have a task for you.”

The words sent a chill down her spine. The creature stepped into the moonlight, revealing its grotesque form. It had yellow, bulging eyes that blinked far too often, as if it couldn’t quite control them. Its skin was a mottled blue-green, patches of fur and feathers sprouting in random places. Its head was bald, and a long, thin tail lashed behind it, whipping back and forth like an agitated snake.

Emily’s mouth went dry, and terror gripped her. Every instinct screamed for her to run, but she couldn’t move. The creature’s gaze held her frozen in place, her muscles locked tight as if some unseen force was holding her still.

“I know you want to run,” the creature said, baring rows of sharp, needle-like teeth. "But you can’t. See, I’ve made sure of that. I’m not too frail to use the magic of the Old Way. Now, if you want to live, you’re going to do exactly what I tell you to.”

Emily’s heart raced, but her body remained rigid, trapped by the creature’s magic. “What do you want?” she whispered, her voice barely audible.

The creature grinned, its watery eyes gleaming with malevolent delight. “Find a special stone hidden deep within these woods," it said. "Bring it to me. Or you die right here, right now.”

“I just wanna go home,” Emily said, her voice trembling.

The gnome’s grin widened, revealing more of its jagged teeth. “Oh, you’ll go home,” it said, shrugging. “If you help me. And if you say no… well, I’ll suck the life right out of you and eat your insides right where you stand."

Emily’s mind raced. She had no idea if the creature was bluffing, but the threat was enough to make her nod, even as fear tightened her chest.

“Good girl,” the gnome said, still grinning. "You’re going to go home now, and you might even think about telling someone. Maybe your parents, or a friend. But don’t. Because if you do, I’ll kill them too. I’m going to follow you, and you won’t even see me.”

Emily swallowed hard, her throat dry. "I don’t know anything about rocks,” she stammered. “Or how to find them or anything like that.”

The gnome snorted, picking its nose with one long, gnarled finger. “Tomorrow, when the sun comes up,” it said, “you’ll come back down this path. Then, head toward the mountains. Look for a tree shaped like the letter ‘T.’ At the base of that tree, buried in the roots, you’ll find a shiny black-green stone. That’s what I need. Bring it to me.”

Before Emily could utter another word, the creature let out a sharp, high-pitched cackle that echoed through the trees, a sound so shrill it sent a shiver crawling up her spine. In the blink of an eye, he melted back into the shadows, vanishing as if he had never been there at all, leaving Emily standing frozen in the cold, lifeless woods. The silence that followed was thick and heavy, pressing in on her like a weight, the air itself seeming to hold its breath.

Emily stumbled backward, her legs shaking as she turned and ran, her heart pounding in her ears. When she reached home, she slammed the door behind her, locking it tight.

She wanted to believe it was all a hallucination, a bad dream brought on by fatigue. But deep down, she knew it was real. And the gnome’s voice echoed in her mind, warning her not to tell anyone.

The next morning, despite the dread gnawing at her stomach, Emily found herself venturing back into the woods. She followed the path just as the gnome had instructed, the trees towering over her like silent sentinels. The further she went, the more the air seemed to change. It was heavier here, thicker, as though the very forest was watching her.

Hours passed as Emily wandered through the woods, her boots crunching on the carpet of yellow and red leaves that blanketed the ground. Each step seemed to stir the crisp, cool air, carrying with it the earthy scent of the forest—damp moss, rotting bark, and the faint sweetness of decaying leaves. The wind picked up now and then, sending leaves swirling around her like nature’s forgotten confetti. She had nearly given up, frustration mounting as the hours ticked by.

Then, just as she was about to turn back, her breath caught in her throat. There it was—a tree, its gnarled trunk twisting unnaturally into the unmistakable shape of a ‘T.’ Her heart pounded in her chest as she stepped closer, the ground beneath her feet crunching louder, the leaves hissing as the wind picked up again.

Nestled within the tangled mass of roots was a small, shimmering stone, nearly hidden by the twisting wood. Its surface was black, with a faint, ghostly green sheen, exactly as the gnome had described.

Her hand trembled as she reached for it.

Emily hesitated for a moment, her hand hovering over the stone. Something about it felt wrong, like it pulsed with an unnatural energy. But she had no choice. She picked it up and tucked it into her pocket.

As the daylight drained from the sky, casting long shadows across the forest floor, Emily made her way back to the clearing. The air had grown colder, biting at her cheeks and nipping at her fingertips. The wind whispered through the trees, rustling the dying leaves that clung stubbornly to the branches. In the dimming twilight, the gnome was already there, waiting in the center of the clearing. His hunched figure looked more grotesque now, silhouetted against the fading light. His yellow eyes gleamed, glowing unnaturally in the twilight, their watery surface reflecting the last bit of daylight.

“Ah, good,” he rasped, his voice like gravel grinding together. His lips curled back in a grin, exposing sharp, jagged teeth. “You’ve done well, girl.” He took a slow, deliberate step closer, his tail whipping behind him with a sinister hiss. “One of the Hearts of the Blackroot, bound to the soul of the one who retrieves it. And only the innocent can unearth it," he continued, his eyes gleaming with twisted delight. “I needed you, girl. I needed your purity to awaken the power that’s been buried here . With it, I can reclaim what was stolen from me—my place among the dark, ancient ones who rule the shadows. And now, thanks to you… it begins.”

The wind howled briefly, and Emily felt a shiver run down her spine, the dark promise in his voice sending a wave of dread through her.

The gnome waved his hand, and a strange sensation washed over Emily. At first, it was a tingling, like static electricity prickling her skin. But then, the tingling turned to burning, and her body began to contort. She screamed as her bones cracked and shifted, her skin stretching and tearing.

She looked down in horror as her hands began to shrink, her fingers fusing together, her arms shortening until they disappeared into her torso. Her legs followed, folding inward as her spine elongated. Her skin turned slick and slimy, her vision blurring as her eyes elongated into slits.

Emily opened her mouth to scream, but what came out was far from human—a sickening, wet hiss slithered past her lips. Panic surged through her as she tried to shout, to cry out for help, but her voice was gone, replaced by that horrible, alien sound.

Her body twisted and contorted, the sensation of skin and bone melting away into something slick and revolting. She looked down in horror, but her hands—her arms—they were no longer there. Instead, her entire form had elongated, writhing in the dirt like a grotesque, pulsating mass. The cold, slimy surface of her new body glistened in the fading light, stretching endlessly into the dark, damp soil.

Emily had become something horrible—a monstrous, grotesque creature, her human identity completely swallowed up by the nightmare she had become. She could feel every ripple of her new skin, every twist and turn of her grotesque body as it squirmed on the forest floor. The ground, once firm beneath her feet, now felt cool and comforting as she burrowed deeper into the earth.

The gnome’s twisted laughter echoed in the clearing as he watched with glee. “Yes,” he cackled, his yellow eyes flashing with cruel delight. "Welcome to your new life, little worm! Crawl in the dirt, where you belong!”

The gnome’s laughter ripped through the trees, a high-pitched, maniacal sound that bounced off the trunks like a twisted echo. “You didn’t think I’d really let you go, did you?” His sneer was a venomous hiss, sharp as a blade. “Now, you’ll live here in the darkness, cursed by me forever. These woods are your home now, my little worm. And just as I promised, you’ll never see me again!”

As Emily writhed helplessly in the cold, damp dirt, a horrible realization crept into her mind. She could feel the earth shifting beneath her, the slithering movement of countless others burrowing just below the surface. These weren’t ordinary worms. Through the haze of her panic, she recognized the shapes—thicker, unnatural, grotesque.

And then it hit her, the awful truth sinking into her like ice water down her spine. The worms, squirming and writhing in the dark soil, had once been human too. Victims of the same cruel trick. These were the missing kids, the ones who had vanished without a trace.

She had ignored the warnings, dismissed the stories as silly rumors. And now, she was paying the price. Her fate was sealed, just like theirs, trapped forever in the cold, unforgiving earth.

END