Chapter 9: Chapter 1: The found boy

“Roxy! Watch the door!” Ash shouted as he tossed the young skull-faced girl a loaded trench gun.

Roxy quickly snatched the weapon out of the air, turned towards the Church’s front door, and took aim. “What about the windows?!” Roxy shouted back. The Church’s heavy wooden double doors were starting to splinter as they were assaulted.

“The windows are grated with Bone-steel bars, those things won’t get through,” Ash said as he dropped a small sack of all the ammo he could find next to the woman. Once his hands were free he pulled a sword out of the sheath that was attached to his belt. This sword once belonged to his father, it wasn’t Ash’s weapon of choice, it was kept as a memory. But the sudden attack left him with limited options. “Stay here, cover the front. I’ll head to the kitchen and block off the back door.” Ash said. He quickly leaned over and pressed his forehead against Roxy’s, a silent word was shared between them. A moment later Ash turned and rushed towards the kitchen.

Even before Ash reached the kitchen door he could hear the creatures inside. Their screeching and growling caused Ash to grip his sword. He gritted his teeth, Ash already lost one home, and he vowed to never let it happen again. All of his training led to this. To get stronger he shed blood, to get stronger he got used to being soaked in sweat, to get stronger he cried until his tears were dry. Ash was strong now, and he refused to let the monsters take away everything he’s gained. 

So with one final deep breath, and a clench of his new mechanical left fist, Ash threw the kitchen door open. He instantly swung his sword in a downward slash, cutting the creature that jumped at him in half. Ash didn’t flinch as blood splashed onto his face. Instead, he followed his training and took in his surroundings, observing all the information he could.

Ash counted seven of the short, furry, humanoid creature’s around the kitchen. Their sharp claws were digging into the walls and ripping through the fridge while their razor-sharp fangs tore through any food they could find. He quickly rushed forward before the creatures could drop their food and attack him. 

~S~o~t~G~

The sun shined brightly as a small rusty truck made its way down a dirt road. A woman wearing a hooded white robe was behind the wheel, driving at a slow and steady pace. Her pale white hands gripped the steering wheel tighter as she slowly approached her destination.

A small smile appeared on her lips as her truck pulled to a stop. She took a breath as she could smell the smoky remains of the destroyed village in front of her. A village surrounded by a massive forest and bordered by a large lake at its back. Tall walls made of wood and reinforced with monster bones kept the village safe from the monsters in the forest. But where the village's gate once stood, there was now nothing more than a pile of wood. Burn marks and broken pieces of splintered bones told the story as they could be seen scattered across the ground. The robed woman frowned as she moved her head, looking for something.

'She said he would be here. So, where is he? I hope I'm not too late. She'd be pissed at me if he starved to death. Her crow scouted this place, what, two weeks ago? So he should be fine, right? It's not my fault this place was so far away!' The robed woman grumbled in her mind and then sighed as she walked into the village past the destroyed gate.    

She slowly made her way through the ruins walking down the main dirt road. She carried a small burlap sack in her hand as she walked past scattered and splintered wood from destroyed buildings. The once-bustling village was now silent, and the only sound is the noise from the wind blowing through. The woman stopped to look around as she noticed something strange.

'Where are all the bodies?' She thought as she turned her head from side to side.

From what she understood, the village was attacked by a powerful group of nomad bandits. The bandits would have left the bodies behind to be fed on by any monster lucky enough to find a free meal. But now, the woman couldn't smell any rotting corpses, and she couldn't hear rustling from any creatures. But she did smell something.

"You can come out now. I won't hurt you." The woman stated in a soft voice.

A scraping sound filled the area. Causing the woman to turn around as a young boy holding a sword appeared behind her. The sword dragged across the stone road, bouncing off of random rocks and pieces of wood as he slowly walked towards her.

"G-Go away!" The boy shouted in a raspy voice as he swayed, barely able to stand as he hunched over.

His sunken eyes were glazed over as he stared at her. His face was thin and dirty from dried blood. He had long, messy black uncut hair draping down around his head and nearly blocking his eyes. His shirtless tan body revealed ribs poking through his skin; his bare feet were dirty and covered in cuts.

'He's supposed to be around thirteen, but his body seems so weak, so small.' The woman thought as she sensed him. "You don't have to fear me, Child." The woman spoke in a soft voice as she slowly lifted her hood, causing long brown locks of hair to fall to her waist.

The boy watched as the woman revealed her face. A face most would call pretty. Her pale face was soft and round, but the boy was drawn to stare at her eyes. Her eyes were covered by a thin cloth that wrapped around her head.

"Come here. I won't hurt you." The woman held out a hand as she spoke, but the boy didn't move. Instead, he narrowed his eyes at her.

"H-how can you see me?" He asked in confusion. The woman smiled as the boy moved his hand around in front of her.

"I might not be able to see with my eyes, but thanks to the Mist. My senses are far above the average person, allowing me to see even better than most." The woman said, then knelt as she pulled out a large metal thermos from the sack. "Do you want to know more about me, or do you want to eat? You seem hungry. Steam poured out of the thermos as the woman unsealed the lid. She flipped the top over and poured out a creamy white soup into it. Chunks of meat dropped into the soup, causing small splashes in the lid.

The boy wanted to ask what the ‘Mist’ was, but he dropped his sword once the soup's aroma filled his nose. He licked his dry lips, quickly taking a step forward, but he froze before taking another step, forcing his eyes away from the soup and back to the woman.

"Wh-who are you? Why? Why are you here?" The boy managed to ask as he wiped the drool from his lips.

"My name is Amelia, and I came here to buy some more supplies and do some trading. Although it seems that won't be possible." Amelia said with a sigh. "Would you rather hear my stories, or do you want this soup? Eat it. I have more in the bag." The woman, Amelia, held up the soup-filled lid towards the boy. His stomach wouldn’t let him hold back any longer. The boy rushed forward, reaching for the soup with shaky hands.

"Careful, it's hot, and if you eat it too fast, you'll get a stomach ache." Amelia explained. The boy nodded as if he understood but all of his attention was focused on the soup that was now sliding down his throat. Ignoring the heat, he didn't feel it; all he felt was his empty stomach finally filling once more.

~S~o~t~G~

Amelia sighed and tilted her head down at the boy as he laid on the stone street. He wore a satisfied grin on his face, not even noticing Amelia as she knelt to pick up her now empty food containers. The boy had eaten two Thermoses worth of soup and a packet of dried meat. But she wasn't worried. She was prepared for this and had more food in her truck if she needed it.

"Hey, now that you're full, how about you tell me your name?" Amelia asked while she tightened up the burlap sack, causing the boy's eyes to snap open.

"O-Oh! Uh," The kid stuttered and shrunk back. In the back of his mind, he wanted to obey his parent's orders. Orders to be cautious of strangers, and especially of people not from the village. He gulped, then looked around nervously. Finally, his eyes landed on a pile of burned wood that was nothing more than Ashes. "M-My name is, uh, it's Ash?" He said in a shaky voice. Simply talking to the woman and eating her food broke his parent's rules, but she was the first person he’d seen in weeks, and he knew his parents were gone. Ash no longer knew what he should do.

Amelia nodded as she stood up, brushing off her robes. "Well, come on, Ash, it's time to go." She turned to walk away, causing Ash to stand up quickly.

"Go? What do you mean?" He asked as he tried to steady himself. Slightly dizzy from standing too fast. 

"I came here for supplies, but clearly, I can't get them from here. I can't leave you here either, so you're coming with me." Amelia stated simply.

"I-I Can't leave!" Ash, seemingly now filled with energy, shouted in a panicked tone.

Amelia twitched in annoyance but managed to keep herself from frowning. Instead, she turned around with another smile on her face. "What do you mean? Why can't you leave?" She asked. She was trying her best to speak in a gentle tone.

"I-I can't… I'm not done yet. I have to finish." Ash’s voice grew quieter with each word. His head pointed downward and his body started to slightly shake. Tears started to fill his eyes as he started to remember what Amelia’s appearance made him momentarily forget.

"What do you need to finish?" The woman asked a frown formed onto her face. Ash gulped as his body quaked harder. Then, after a brief moment, Ash shook his head as he turned to run, grabbing his sword on the way.

"This is why I hate kids," Amelia muttered as she listened to Ash rush away. Once Ash was far enough, Amelia looked up to a nearby rooftop. "Are you one of ‘her’ pets? Did she have you protect him until I got here?" Amelia spoke to a creature hidden on the rooftop, but it didn't respond. The creature simply jumped away, across the rooftop to rooftop, once it confirmed Amelia's identity. Leaving the job of protecting the boy to her.

~S~o~t~G~

Amelia sighed as she slowly followed Ash's trail; while she was annoyed, she was in no rush. It only took her a few minutes to find Ash, and when she did, she was forced to stop in her tracks. She followed Ash towards a side gate in the village wall. The gate led out and into the village's farmlands, massive fields to grow crops to feed the villagers. Except now, instead of vegetables, the grounds were filled with graves. Amelia couldn't see the graves, but she could smell them. Hundreds of shallow graves dug deep enough to hide the bodies in a layer of dirt but not deep enough to mask the smell of rotting flesh. A loud screech shook the woman out of her thoughts.

"GET OUT OF HERE! SHOO! GO AWAY!" Amelia turned her attention away from the graves and towards Ash's voice. Five bodies laid at Ash's feet, wrapped up in scraps of cloth crudely tied together. "I SAID, GO!" Ash roared as he swung his sword around the best he could, fighting off a screeching vulture trying to get to the bodies.

Even though the bird is nearly as large as Ash, and its teeth are sharp enough to rip through Ash's flesh to the bone. Ash didn't back down. Instead, he swung his sword as hard as he could to keep the bird at bay. ‘Great, the second her pet leaves, monsters start to show up.’ Amelia groaned in her mind. ‘I guess I should use my Mist then.’ Amelia thought. The blind woman took a deep breath, then churned the Mist flowing in side her body. She then forced the Mist out of her body in one invisible burst. While Ash didn’t notice anything, all of the Mist sensitive monsters in the forest surrounding the village took the burst as a warning. Stay away, or be killed by a real monster. Once the vulture felt the burst of Mist, it let out one last cry, then quickly flew away. 

"I-I have to finish…." Ash said once the bird was out of sight. “I have to finish.” He said once more as leaned against his sword trying to catch his breath. Amelia didn't speak. She simply walked up to the boy.

"Give me your hands." She said as she knelt to him.

"W-what?"

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"Your hands, show them to me," Amelia repeated in a firm voice. Her voice sent a shiver down Ash's spine; he quickly dropped his sword and did as she ordered.

"Gah!" Ash yelped when Amelia grabbed his wrist. He bit his lip, fighting back the pain as Amelia ran her thumbs across his palms and over his fingers.

While parts of his hands were rough and calloused, most of it was covered in sores and blisters.

"Fine," Amelia said as she stood up and let go of Ash's hands. She untied the burlap sack from her waist and held it out. "Here, take this; there is still some food and drinks left. Finish what you need to do. I'll be waiting at the village's front gate. I'll take you with me. There is nothing left here for you." With those final words, Amelia placed the sack in Ash’s hands, then turned and walked away. She didn’t give Ash a chance to reply. 

Ash didn't say anything as she walked away. Once she was back in the village past the side gate, he put the bag down and picked up a nearby shovel.

 ~S~o~t~G~

Hours have past and the day turned to night as Amelia watched over Ash. She said she would be waiting at the gate, but she hid to protect him and keep the monsters in the forest away. 

'So, he finally passed out.' Amelia thought as she walked up to Ash's sleeping body. ‘He must have buried all of the bodies he found lying in the streets, but I can still smell some bodies rotting in houses. I have to take care of those; leaving them to rot could spread disease to any monster that comes and finds them.’ Amelia sighed in her mind. The blind woman then stood up and walked towards the field of graves. ‘These graves are too shallow. Once we leave, a monster will come by and dig them up.’ Amelia knelt to the ground and placed her hand on the dirt. ‘I'll bury these people first.’ 

The dirt around Amelia's hand started to vibrate lightly; a second later, the vibrations spread to the whole field of bodies. Once the vibrations covered the whole field, the dirt surrounding the bodies started to shift and separate, causing the bodies to sink lower into the ground. 

'There, that should be deep enough. I guess I'll take care of the bodies in the houses next.' Amelia thought as she stood up. She turned to Ash, who was still sleeping peacefully. The woman wasted no time. She lifted her arms, causing the dirt around Ash to rise. She then brought her hands together, causing the dirt to surround Ash and harden, forming a dome around his body. “There that should keep him safe until I'm done.” Amelia mumbled. She doubted any monster would be dumb enough to get close to the village after she sent her warning, but she didn’t want to risk it. With the bodies buried and Ash safe, Amelia made her way to the village. 'It's going to be a long night.' She thought as she passed the side gate.

~S~o~t~G~

Sunlight shined onto Ash's face causing him to groan as he was pulled out of his deep sleep. After a few moments, he let out a sigh; he was wide awake now. "Gah!" The boy grunted when he tried to sit up. His entire body was stiff and sore. He gritted his teeth, fighting back the familiar pain. He couldn't remember the last time he woke up without feeling this way.

A series of satisfying cracks and pops could be heard as Ash twisted and stretched out his body. "Much better," A smile appeared on his face as he stood up, but only a second later, his eyes widened when they landed on the burlap sack. "Oh crap! That lady!" Without a second thought, Ash grabbed the sack and his sword and ran towards the main gate.

~S~o~t~G~

"Um, good morning," Ash said as he walked up to the robe-wearing woman. Amelia was standing next to her truck, which she pulled into the village. Ash didn't notice, but the stone street was now clear of debris.

"Woah! I've never seen a truck like this before." Ash said as he walked up to the vehicle. The only trucks he saw were used for transporting wood from the lumberyard or fish from the docks. They looked nothing like the one he was looking at now. He studied Amelia's truck as he circled it. There were large metal plates bolted all over the truck, from the sides to the hood and the roof. The windows and windshields were reinforced with metal bars and metal mesh screens. While the bed of the truck at a metal top covering it. The entire truck was built like a steal box on wheels. Even the tires had metal mesh covering them.

"You've spent your whole life behind these walls," Amelia said as she pulled the truck bed’s top open and reached inside. "Life outside these walls is dangerous. Traveling in armored vehicles is standard in most cases. But we can talk about that later; for now, you have something important to do." Amelia lifted a small bucket from the truck bed. The blind woman handed the bucket to Ash, who looked up at her in confusion.

"Huh? What's this?" Ash asked.

"Some soap and some towels. Go take a bath in the village’s river. You smell terrible." Amelia stated. The blind woman’s enhanced senses working against her.

Ash turned his head to try and smell himself. It had been weeks since the boy had taken a bath, and digging holes all day to bury rotting bodies didn't make for a pleasant smell.

"Once you're done bathing, put these clothes on." Amelia handed Ash a bag filled with everything he needed, from a shirt to shoes. "Now go, shoo, and don't come back until you sell like soap." Amelia wasn't giving Ash a chance to speak as she started pushing him away.

~S~o~t~G~ 

A large river ran through the center of the village, a river the village was first built around. The river ran from the lake behind the village to the ocean over a hundred miles away. Ash was currently sitting on a flat rock knee-deep in the water. The young boy sighed as he washed his hair. His body was shaking, but not because of the cold water or the pain in his hands.

A broken metal shield floated down the river. The shield floated past Ash, past a small bridge, past a ripped pair of pants, floating along until it slammed into a reinforced grate. A grate was built where the river met the village's walls, a grate that usually kept monsters from getting into the village through the river. But now, it stopped items that once belonged to the villagers from floating out. 

~S~o~t~G~

 "I'm done," Ash said as he walked back to Amelia. The boy was freshly washed and was now wearing a pair of simple black pants, shoes, and a long-sleeve shirt. 

"Good, but you need to put this on as well," Amelia said as she held up a dark blue vest. Ash tilted his head in confusion as he looked at it. Instead of being a simple piece of cloth, the vest was bulky and thick.

"Huh? What's that?" Ash couldn't help but ask. Amelia ignored his question as she lifted the vest over his head and lowered it onto him. Ash followed her lead lifting his arms and slipping on the vest. But as soon as Amelia let go of the vest, the weight landed on Ash, causing him to stumble forward. 

"Gah! What the!?" Ash cried out as he braced himself against the truck. "Why is this so heavy?" He asked as he turned to Amelia.

"It's an armored vest. If you're leaving the safety of a village or city, you must have protection." Amelia replied.

"But it's so heavy."

"Don't be a baby. Normally those vests are made with small plates of bone steel. But you wouldn't be able to move if I gave you one of those. So instead, this vest is made by stitching together monster leather." 

Ash stood up straight and adjusted the vest. It wasn't as heavy as he thought; he just stumbled because all of the weight hit him at once. "Wait, what about you? Why aren't you wearing a vest then?" He asked as he looked back at Amelia.

"My robes are lined with monster leather as well. But I’m also a master of full body hardening." She said simply. "Now enough talk, let's go while the sun's still up. Get in the truck." 

“Full body, what?” Ash asked but Amelia ignored his question as she entered the drivers side of the truck. Now left alone, Ash gulped as he looked around. Finally, the fact that he was leaving hit him. Ash's hand started shaking as he picked up his sword, which was left leaning against the truck. He took a deep breath as he gripped the handle. Once he was ready, he stepped into the truck.

~S~o~t~G~

Amelia slowly pulled the truck out of the village, past the destroyed gate. "There's one more thing I should do," Amelia said as she pulled the truck to a stop. She stepped out of the vehicle before Ash could ask what she meant. 

Ash could only watch as Amelia stepped up to the destroyed gate and knelt to the ground. She placed her hands on the dirt, and a moment later, Ash watched in awe as a solid dirt wall lifted out of the ground where the gate once stood. Once the dirt wall was as tall as the village walls, Amelia stood up dusted herself off.

"Woah, h-how did you do that?" Ash asked as Amelia stepped back into the truck. 

"You'll learn in time," Amelia said as she gripped the steering wheel and slowly drove the truck forward.

"Wait?" Ash suddenly questioned when he realized Amelia was driving. "How can you drive? I thought you were blind?" 

"I am blind," She said. "Now sit back and go to sleep. We have a long way to go before we hit the next city."

Ash wanted to ask more questions, but when she told him to sleep, his body started to feel heavy. His body was finally able to relax after weeks of living in fear. Weeks of being alone digging holes and eating any old piece of food or can of uncooked beans he could find. Now he was sitting in a comfortable seat, and his muscles just let go. He found sleep within less than a minute.

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