The whispers began to spread like a sickness, creeping through the quiet village streets. The children who had once laughed and played now sat in silence, their eyes distant and dull.
They spent their days staring blankly at nothing, and their nights tossing and turning, haunted by the song that refused to leave their minds.
The melody lingered inside their heads like a splinter, sharp, painful, and impossible to ignore. No one dared to speak of it, not after Tomas's disappearance.
The elders had forbidden anyone from mentioning the song, warning that curiosity would only bring more danger.
The children were afraid, terrified of punishment, terrified of the unknown, yet the song's pull was relentless.
It whispered to them when they closed their eyes, hummed softly from the shadows, and danced just beyond the edge of their hearing.
No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't forget it. Curiosity, however, is a powerful thing, and children are born curious.
