Stolen Breath

In the dark northern forests of the Empire of Dercia there is a place where no birds sing and not even the wind dares to stir. The area's trees grow twisted and the branches grow like fingers grasping for something just out of reach.
It's said that this is the domain of an ancient shadow, an entity that have haunted these forests for centuries if not longer, it's said to be active during moonless nights, hunting for the living, though it's not hunting for the kill, it's hunting for something far more terrifying, their breath.
The entity known as "Stolen Breath" among the locals is a legend that has been passed down through generations, they say that the entity doesn't even hunt for the victims, it dont need to, it knows where they are. The few survivors describe the encounter as a darkness that closes around them, the air grows thin as if they were high in the mountains and their breath becomes harder to draw. Then, they feel the tightening in their chest, like an invisible hand squeezing the life out of them. It’s only then that they realize—the shadow has arrived.
People who wander too far into the woods rarely return, those that do are changed forever. They return pale, gaunt and trembling. Their voices are faint and rasping as if they are always out of breath. People say that the entity took a part of their soul. As time passes, they weaken, fading away as if the life force is slowly being drawn from them. Once it has stolen someone's breath, they are marked. They feel it each night in the darkness—a tugging, pulling them back toward the forest as if the shadow isn’t done with them. Eventually, they succumb, drawn back into the trees by an irresistible force. No one knows what happens when they return to the forest… but their bodies are never found.

Some swear by holding their breath if they find themselves in the woods after dark, believing that if you don’t breathe, the shadow can’t find you. But few are brave enough to test this theory.

To protect themselves, the villagers leave offerings of sweet-smelling herbs and lit candles at the forest's edge, hoping the light and fragrance will confuse the shadow.