Not since his earliest entries has Loren’s writing been so shaky, though this is worse than that – this entry is nearly illegible. The depths of his fear are palpable even from the first few words he’s written.

Day ten

I knew it. I knew it. Something’s following us. I’ve been feeling it watching us from afar for days now, always keeping its distance. Always taking care not to be seen. Every time Crispin or I saw it in our periphery and we turned to see – it was gone. Vanished. It didn’t want us to see it.

But I saw it.

At first I thought it was another courser. It’s shaped like one, after all, but it’s not. Its eyes are too large, too wide. Its hooves I’m not sure are even hooves at all, although they’re hoof-shaped. I thought they were cloven, at first, like mine, but – they spread too far. They stretched to each side, like some kind of two-toed paw, almost, and its face

Its face was too long. Almost like a donkey in shape, but its mouth is far too wide to be any donkey or courser. It opens too far. I don’t know if I caught it when it yawned, or if it was trying to intimidate us, or what it was doing, but its mouth

its teeth

It has so many teeth. Rows of sharp teeth - fangs that don’t belong in the mouth of any courser in existence - and it could open its jaws so wide I thought they’d unhinged like some kind of massive, toothy courser-shaped snake.

I’ve never been more terrified of something in my entire life

Was it a mistake coming here? Maybe it was. I never should’ve left home, if this was what awaited me.

Is this how I die?

No, I’m sure we’ll be fine. The Harvester mentioned a spirit like this, the one time I spoke to him with his voice like dry leaves rustling in the wind. “A dangerous spirit,” he’d called it. I think calling it ‘dangerous’ is grossly inaccurate with how terrifying it looks, how many teeth it has –

But we’re staying on the Moor. I’m keeping an even closer eye on little Simon - I’d be beyond devastated to lose my closest friend - and Crispin and I are sticking together at all times. One of us always keeps watch at night, too, just in case. I can’t leave yet – I’ve accomplished a great deal of study and research on this expedition, but I’m not finished yet.