As he pressed deeper into the forest, the trees seemed to grow taller, their shadows darker and more menacing. George glanced around, trying to get his bearings, but everything looked the same—the same towering trunks, the same thick underbrush, the same oppressive silence.
His heart sank. He had no idea where he was. The trail he’d been following was gone, swallowed by the forest’s dense undergrowth. He spun in a slow circle, eyes scanning the darkness for any sign of Thunder, for any familiar landmark that could guide him. Nothing. Only the quiet, endless expanse of trees.