Found in an artificial lake in the village. At first, when I saw it from far away, I got really scared.

Within minutes, other villagers began gathering along the shore after noticing the same thing. People pointed nervously from a distance while whispering theories to one another. No one wanted to step too close. The uncertainty itself became contagious. One person suggested it might be a trap dumped in the lake years ago. Another swore it looked like part of a military device. Someone else quietly mentioned the possibility of a dead animal — or something worse.

Each new theory made the atmosphere heavier.

What had started as a peaceful walk slowly transformed into something tense and surreal. The crowd kept growing, yet nobody seemed willing to approach the object directly. Children stood behind their parents. Phones appeared as people snapped pictures and argued over what they were seeing. And standing there among strangers staring into the dark water, I felt a strange realization settle over me:

Fear expands quickly when nobody has an answer.

The human mind hates uncertainty. The moment something cannot be explained immediately, imagination rushes in to fill the empty space. Every shadow begins to feel dangerous. Every unusual shape becomes evidence of something hidden.

For a while, the lake itself no longer felt familiar.

It felt secretive.

As though something ordinary had suddenly slipped out of place, cracking open reality just enough to let panic inside.

Then the old man arrived.