Written by: Ahmed Al-Jawaid

It was a quiet night under a star-studded sky when four friends, Youssef, Sara, Ali, and Hind, decided to embark on a wild journey to explore nature. Youssef, who led the group, was obsessed with maps and unfamiliar routes. He suggested they take a mountain road far from the hustle and bustle. "This road is a shortcut," Youssef said confidently, looking at an old map he had found in an antique library. However, things did not go as planned. The darkness grew thicker, and the road became more rugged. As they argued over the correct direction, the car suddenly stopped. "What happened?" Ali asked nervously. "It seems the engine has broken down," Youssef replied, trying to calm everyone. With their phone batteries dead and no signal to call for help, they decided to search for assistance on foot. As they walked in the dark, they saw a faint light in the distance. They approached it to discover a small village surrounded by a dense forest. The houses were simple and lit by old lamps, but the strange thing was that the village was not on any of Youssef's maps. "Guys, this village was not on the map," Youssef said, trying to comprehend what he was seeing. "Do you want us to go back to the car? Personally, I prefer a roof over my head tonight," Hind replied with a bit of tension. They decided to enter the village, where they were greeted warmly by the residents. Everyone they met seemed overly happy to see them. "Welcome! We love visitors," said an elderly woman carrying a basket of fruit. Despite the warm welcome, the friends felt uneasy, but fatigue and hunger pushed them to accept the villagers' invitation to stay in one of the houses. On the first night, they enjoyed a lavish dinner prepared by the villagers. The food was delicious, and the people were incredibly friendly. But during dinner, Sara noticed something strange. "Did you notice that there are more people in the village now? It's like the number has increased since we arrived," she whispered. "Maybe some people went out to work and have now returned," Ali said, trying to explain. Sara's observations were not mere illusions. The next day, the friends noticed that the villagers were acting strangely, watching them from the windows and smiling in a disturbing manner. While exploring the village, the friends noticed an old house in the center that was off-limits. Driven by curiosity, Youssef decided to investigate the place to uncover the secret of this strange village. Inside the house, he found an old notebook filled with notes. The pages contained names and photos of people who had disappeared under mysterious circumstances. As he flipped through the pages, he realized that some of the photos were of people he had seen in the village, but they were listed as missing for decades. "Oh my God!" Youssef exclaimed. "The villagers are not what they seem." Youssef ran back to his friends and explained what he had discovered. Fear began to grip them, and they decided to leave immediately. As they prepared to leave, the villagers surrounded them with their eerie smiles. The village leader, a tall man with piercing eyes, approached them and said, "Why the rush? We love having visitors stay." "We need to return to our city," Sara shouted. The man laughed menacingly and said, "No one leaves the village. You are now part of us." The friends began to realize the horrifying truth. The villagers were not ordinary humans but beings that fed on fear. The more frightened the visitors, the stronger they became. As the villagers closed in on them, a crazy idea popped into Youssef's head. He said loudly, "Wait. If you feed on fear, why not turn this into a profitable business?" The village leader stopped and asked, "What do you mean?" Youssef explained, "Instead of kidnapping random visitors, we can turn your village into a horror tourist resort. People will pay a lot of money to experience something scary." The villagers looked at each other in confusion. The leader then said, "Continue." Youssef added, "We will help you attract visitors and organize the experience to be scary enough to feed you, but without causing anyone to disappear. Everyone wins." The villagers agreed to the idea, and the friends began working with them to turn the village into a horror tourist destination. They designed scary stories and events, such as a haunted house, shadow forest, and village chase. They launched a website and named it "Horror Village - An Unforgettable Experience." Bookings started pouring in from all over the country, and the village became a successful tourist destination. Tourists returned home with thrilling stories, and the villagers got their nourishment from the visitors' fear without harming anyone. The friends became the resort's managers, each overseeing a different aspect. Youssef became the director of planning and creativity, Ali handled public relations and promotion, Sara was responsible for visitor experience, and Hind oversaw public safety to ensure everyone returned safely. One night, while celebrating the project's success, Ali joked, "We turned a village that devoured visitors into a village that feeds visitors with fear." Everyone laughed, but deep down, they knew they were part of a strange, unforgettable story. If you ever find yourself on a wild journey and arrive at a strange village, you might have reached the Horror Village.