Leon, Pola, Jasiek and Nela find an ancient gate hidden in the Forest of Shadows, and when they open it, the forest wakes up and something strange steps out.
Leon, Pola, Jasiek and Nela lived on the edge of Zarosle, where the town gave way to the Forest of Shadows. The grown-ups spoke about that forest in low voices, as if it could hear them. The children loved it for exactly that reason.
On a Saturday morning, Leon emptied his rucksack onto the floor and found his grandfather's old compass buried under a packet of biscuits. The needle spun so fast it looked like a red blur, then jerked and pointed toward the trees.
He ran to the window. "Meet me under the old oak!" he shouted.
By the time the others arrived, the compass was still trembling in his hand. Pola frowned at it. Jasiek only grinned. Nela, who always noticed the quiet things first, glanced toward the forest and lowered her voice.
"It wants us to go there," Leon said.
So they went.
At first the path was easy, a strip of mud and fallen leaves between brambles and fern. Then the forest thickened around them. The light dimmed under the branches. The leaves above their heads turned a darker green, almost black, and even the birds seemed to have forgotten how to sing.
The compass needle spun once, twice, and then steadied.
Jasiek stopped so suddenly that Pola nearly bumped into him. Something hard was buried under the moss at his feet. Together they pulled away roots, wet leaves, and clumps of earth until a heavy iron handle appeared, fixed to a wall of old wood.
Not a wall.
A gate.
It stood half-hidden among the trees, tall as two grown-ups and covered with narrow signs that glimmered like trapped stars. The marks twisted and curved across the wood, catching the last light in the clearing.
Nela took one step back. "Maybe we should leave it alone," she whispered.
Leon looked at the compass. The needle was glowing now, bright green at the tip.
Before anyone could stop him, he grasped the iron handle and pulled.
The gate groaned open.
Cold blue light spilled through the gap, and a thin mist slid over their shoes. Something moved inside the glow, huge and silent. At first Leon thought it was only smoke. Then a shape lifted its head.
It was like a wolf, but not quite. Its body was long and shadow-dark, its fur made of pale feathers that stirred as if a wind only it could feel was passing through them. Amber eyes caught theirs from the mist.
The creature gave a low growl.
The ground shivered.
Leon's compass flashed so fiercely that he nearly dropped it. A ring of light spun up around the open gate, and the wooden frame slammed shut with a crack like thunder.
The children froze.
On the other side of the gate, something heavy began to breathe, and then, slowly, the strange wolf took one step toward them.