In the middle of the wide Forest Glade grew a huge, spreading lime tree. Its branches reached high, and there was no end to the hollows and nooks. It was beneath it that animals from all over the forest met - especially a group of inseparable friends: the squirrel Pola, the hedgehog Tymon, the owl Klara and the hare Igor. One morning, when the dew could still be gathered from the leaves, Pola jumped down from her favourite branch and swished her fluffy tail. - Who will be the first to reach the old oak tree by the stream? - she called out. Igor was already setting up to run, Tymon was burrowing his paw into the soft earth and Klara was fixing her feathers, ready to take off. They all knew the route by heart. There was a rock wall halfway up, from which one could always call out and hear a joyful echo. This time, however, something strange happened. When Pola shouted: - Heyooo! - only silence fell. Igor repeated after her, but heard no reply. Tymon tried to whistle and Klara to hoot, but no sound came back from the opposite direction. - 'After all, the echo has never failed us,' muttered Pola, glancing at her friends. - 'Something is wrong here,' added Igor, wrinkling his nose. - Maybe the echo has gone into hiding? - Supposed the owl, looking intently at the stone wall. The friends decided not to leave the matter unexplained. - Perhaps someone or something had caused the echo to escape? - wondered Tymon, looking around. They decided to venture deeper into the forest to see if the echo had only disappeared from the rock wall, or perhaps in other favourite places as well. The further they hiked, the more unusual signs they noticed. There was a light, silvery dust in the air that they had never seen before. There were paw prints on the soft moss - they didn't match any animal they knew. When they reached the clearing by the stream, a shadow swirled over their heads. For a moment they had the impression that someone was watching them. Clare spread her wings wide and Tymon scrambled on his needles. - 'Did you hear that? - Pola asked. In the silence a quiet whisper could be heard, as if a distant wind was trying to say something.... The animals looked at each other anxiously, ready to discover what was really going on in their forest. However, at that exact moment, a dark silhouette slid out of the thicket. They all froze motionless, holding their breath as the shadow approached slowly towards them....