The sunrise was lazily breaking through the thick mists surrounding the slopes of the Shadow Mountains. Four silhouettes walked along the narrow path, creaking wet leaves underfoot. Marta, the team leader, looked at her compass and spread out a crumpled map covered in notes. Right next to her walked Andrew, carrying a heavy rucksack on his back, full of ropes, carabiners and torches. A little further along walked the energetic Zosia, who, with her camera around her neck, was trying to capture every charming moment, and just behind her the whiny but reliable Bartek was picking up the sounds of his surroundings, checking for wild animals following them. 'I'm telling you, this is a great idea,' Marta broke the silence, stopping abruptly. 'The last point on this map, just beyond the Forest of the Winged Deer.... no one has got there yet.' Andrew sighed. 'Maybe because no one's come back? We're doing something crazy again.' 'That's why it's worth it,' Zosia laughed, taking a picture of the fog-lit boughs. The group passed abandoned, rusty mine carts and piles of stones, slipping underfoot. Bartek leaned against an old, mossy road sign with a barely visible inscription. 'People said these mountains are cursed,' he whispered, as if he didn't want to wake the sleeping forest. From now on, the path became less and less visible, dropping downwards, leading towards a steeply sloping valley. At one point Martha stopped abruptly and raised her hand. On the path, just in front of them, lay a strange object - an old wooden box, covered with rusty fittings. A few metres further on, almost grown over with moss and roots, stood an abandoned hut with broken windows. 'It's here,' whispered Marta, her voice trembling with excitement. Zosia took a step forward, crouching by the box. 'It's locked with a padlock. Who left it here?" she asked. Suddenly, a quiet creaking could be heard from inside the hut, as if someone was carefully moving across the dishevelled floor. Everyone froze, feeling adrenaline rising. Was someone inside waiting for them? Or was it just the wind that knew all the secrets of these mountains? At that moment, Bartek turned abruptly as he heard rapid footsteps behind him....