The mark of the monster

A man returns to his decayed hometown to claim the childhood love he saved for, but finds the village steeped in hostile silence and an ancient, inexplicable dread. Recollections of a ring of blood-darkened stones on a nearby mountain and a foster father's urgent warning about a black stain in his blood resurface. After violent encounters that trigger uncontrollable, savage rages, he and his beloved become entangled with the town's hidden rituals and a monstrous presence. The story follows escalating physical and psychological horror as ancestral secrets, cultic relics, and bestial transformation converge to imperil their lives and sanity.