As Aran walked, he reflected on all that had happened since the morning the obelisks fell. As he considered the horrors he’d witnessed, he found it odd he wasn’t simply sobbing in a corner. When he concentrated, he could feel the terror threatening to consume his thoughts, but it felt muted, distant. He frowned. Not that I particularly want to feel helpless, but I should, shouldn’t I? This doesn’t feel like my own emotions, it feels like their… pushed back?

He shook his head. Not really anything to do about it, and not being a taught ball of nerves and fear wasn’t really a problem, in this case. Still, something to investigate. He’d felt more in control since waking up after the explosion than he had in his entire life, and that in itself was concerning.

Aran kept his eyes on a swivel, searching for any sign of movement in the snow as he walked, the highway disappearing in a bend through the woods ahead. The wind had picked up, and barest hints of more snow were twirling in the air. With his cautious pace, he hadn’t made as much progress as he’d wanted, and with the gray cloud cover, the late afternoon sky was darkening far earlier than he’d hoped. He wasn’t sure on the exact distance to the next town, but felt sure it couldn’t be much farther, he’d walked for miles without so much as a rest stop to break up the lines of trees edging the road.

As the sky continued to darken however, he was forced to consider the idea he might be sleeping in the woods tonight. He had no source of light, and did not relish the thought of stumbling into another of the snow monsters in the dark. Snow drifts were getting harder to discern, and snow was falling now, making continuing a foolish prospect. He figured he could climb a tree as a last resort, but a car would make a much better shelter if he could find one. He hadn’t seen any in several miles, but with the amount of snow on the ground, he figured they might be buried. At a particularly large drift some 15 feet tall, he spent the remaining light digging. After 30 minutes digging, and shaking snow out of his shirt, he gave up. Grimacing, he looked to the side of the road. Tree it is then. It took him longer than he cared to admit, wading through the snow, to find a tree that seemed suitable. He hadn’t climbed a tree in years, so he found a pine with limbs that looked strong enough to hold him, and started climbing. It was surprisingly easy, his tough skin letting him ignore the scraping bark he remembered from childhood. Swinging up into a branch where the trunk split, forming a natural seat, he let out a sigh. He had a clear view of the road from his vantage point, and felt reasonably safe from anything that might be stalking the woods tonight. Draping his looted jacket over himself as he leaned back, he drifted off.

---------

The soft crunch of snow woke him. He was instantly on alert, eyes darting to the ground below him, but he quickly realized the sound came from the road. He pulled his legs up, slipping his jacket on quietly as possible while keeping an eye on the road. He could see lights, very small from this distance, but the wind had dropped, and the sound of movement in the snow sounded clear in the night. The lights seemed to be in a cluster fading back and forth as they moved from side to side on the road. They appeared to be moving north, in the direction Aran had come from. They hadn’t yet reached his point in the road, but he decided to climb down anyway. His heart thumped in his chest. It was too much to hope these were people, and not some monster hunting in the night, but either way he didn’t want to be stuck in a tree when they reached him.

As quietly as he could, he began lowering himself down. The wood was slick, however, and on one of the last branches, his bare foot slipped. He fell, catching himself in the gut on the branch, limb creaking as the pine needles rustled, sounding like a gunshot in the still night air. Aran’s heart felt like it was coming out of his ears, it was hammering so hard. He looked out past the needles now, the lights all shining in his direction, unmoving. The silence was deafening as he lay there, perfectly still. He strained his ears, in a silent standoff with the lights.

No matter what the lights are, they know I’m here. He grit his teeth. He couldn’t call out, if it was a monster it would only lead it straight to him. The silence stretched out endlessly, as he hovered between calling for help, running like hell, or staying where he was. A sharp tug on his leg pulled him out of his thoughts, the tree, and onto his back with grunt. He tried to yell, but a sharp jab to his throat cut off his air as another covered his mouth, a dark figure crouching over him, pinning his arms down. His terror would make itself known, however, as he choked and a whine escaped his lips. The figure pressed on his mouth harder, leaning down to within a hair's breadth of his face. So close he could see the faint light reflecting off the whites of its eyes.

In a voice so quiet, he almost wasn’t sure he’d heard it, the figure whispered “Shut it!” The voice stunned him to stillness, staring up at a face he could now see was masked in cloth. The figure slowly removed their hand from his mouth, and when he made no move to make any more noise, pulled out an object seemingly from nowhere. Lifting the object, they manipulated the front surface, opening up shades on what Aran now recognized as a lantern, the light nearly blinding him as the figure rapidly opened and closed the shutters, pointing at the other lights. After a few moments, flashes answered from the other lights. This seemed to satisfy the figure, as they stood soundlessly, and moved off of him. He scrambled to his feet, the figure flinching at the noise, raising a finger to hidden lips in a sharp gesture. He shrugged in a way he hoped looked apologetic. The figure turned, shaking it’s head and ducked beneath the low-hanging branches, heading for the other lights.

Aran couldn’t bring himself to care all that much that he was making noise, he’d found people! He’d begun to worry he was the last human on earth, what with all the burned out cars straight out of an apocalypse movie. Aran practically shuffled through the snow quickly to catch up with the figure, now dark against the snow in the dim moonlight, partially overcast by clouds. It was only when he got close again, that he noticed how short the figure was. He cocked his head, staring at them as they led the way, watching the distinctly feminine walk. He couldn’t help but feel a little heat in his cheeks, that so small a person was so easily able to get the best of him and pin him down. The pinning now took on a slightly different feel in his mind as his mind started walking down a different path. He shook his head quickly. Just found people and already a horny asshole? Come on man! To distract himself, he looked at the other lights, which were slowly resolving into a group of dark huddled figures standing in the road. As they reached the group, in the light of their partially shuttered lanterns, he counted 4 more figures, most of them with eyes studying him from behind similar cloth masks. Each of them wore thick, dark clothes that looked warm, with a practical cut. The one he’d arrived with whispered quietly with another, both of them glancing his way. After a few more minutes, the other figure waved back up the road with a series of hand gestures, and without a word, the group started moving. Aran stared at the figure that had found him, following quickly when they motioned for him to follow.

Aran could hardly contain the questions burning in his mind as they walked, but kept his mouth shut after he received another glare for stepping too loudly in the snow. It looked like they'd be walking for a while, so he worked on getting a list of questions ready for whenever they arrived… wherever it was they were going. He assumed the town; Burville, I think? But couldn't be sure.

So, questions:

Why was a bomb dropped on me? Were bombs dropped in other cities? Are there monsters attacking everywhere, or are there safe places? Is the government still standing? Why are these people out in the middle of the night in the snow? Is there magic everywhere now? Can people fly?

Aran pondered over the last question. He doubted he'd have enough time in a week to think of all the questions to ask about magic, let alone however long this walk would take, and settled for asking for an explanation of what they knew about it so far. Satisfied with his list, at least for the moment, he continued with a bit more vigor in his steps with his newfound companions.

It was several hours of slow walking before they rounded a bend in the road, and the hazy light of predawn lit a massive wall. 30 feet tall in some places, it crossed the road, continuing into both to the east and west on either side, where the trees still brushed against it. Parts of the wall seemed thrown together of whatever materials were available, scrap metal and even some wood, while other sections were of what appeared to be completely smooth stone, as if it had been hewn in a single, massive piece. Aran stared, awestruck. They built a wall around the whole town in a week?! I bet they’ve got some awesome wizard in there or something! The one who’d rescued him grabbed his arm, dragging him forward as the group tightened up, surrounding him and watching in every direction, as one stepped forward.

“3rd Patrol, returning to report!” he shouted, cupping his hands to project over the wall. A moment passed, and a singular head popped up, staring at them.

“You’ve returned with more bodies than you left with. I’ll alert the Mayor.” There came the muffled sound of terse words on the other side of the wall, before a small door opened in the wall, well hidden, as Aran hadn’t noticed a way in before. The group moved forward, and his rescuer poked him, prodding him forward. As they passed through the door, all of them visibly relaxed, shoulders dropping as they all removed their masks. Aran looked around, too shocked for words. The inside of the wall was anything but what he’d expected. The houses nearest the wall were either ruined or demolished, leaving a flat span of earth nearly 60 feet wide between the wall and any standing structure. The other structures were all fortified, every window covered with wood or sheet metal, and no lights to speak of, even the streetlamps were gone, only the holes in the concrete marking they’d ever been present. Turning back to the wall, it was even more impressive than he’d originally thought, some 5 feet thick, and with a small platform running along the top and inside where the wall wasn’t as wide. Several men and women were standing along the wall, all gazing outward.

“Uh. Wow,” he muttered.

The one who’d found him pulled down her mask, revealing pale skin and piercing blue eyes in the growing light. Dark hair spilled out of her hood, nearly invisible against her dark clothes. She locked eyes with him, a grim smile across her lips that didn’t reach her eyes. “First time seeing the wall, huh? Only thing keeping the riff raff outta Burville, these days,” she said, her voice higher and softer than he would have thought, her eyes drifting over the motley expanse of stone and steel.

“Yeah. How’d you build it? The stone all looks so smooth, did someone make it with magic?” He paused, slightly embarrassed at the fervor in his voice. She cocked her head as she turned to him.

“Well, yeah. Nobody here knows how to quarry stone with hand tools,” she chuckled. “Some guy named Ben Crawford figured out earth magic (that’s what he calls it), and built all those bits, and we filled in the gaps with whatever we could find. Took 2 weeks just to plug the gaps, then another week to actually make it strong.”

“Damn, that’s so cool.” He stared at the wall, thinking how awesome it would be to make walls with magic. Building a house would take a snap of his fingers!

“Yeah, it’s pretty snazzy. Haven’t heard of any other towns with one yet, but we haven’t been in regular-”

“Wait.” She stopped, looking up at his interuption. “How long did you say it took?”

“3 weeks to get all the holes fille, I guess 3 and a half total including Ben’s time to create the stone parts.”

“But…” Aran’s mind reeled. He couldn’t have been out that long. It wasn’t possible. The human body couldn’t survive without food and water for weeks and it had definitely not been a week since he started walking here. “Uh. So how long has it been, since the uh, the obelisks arrived?”

“Month and a half, why?” His eyes nearly came out of his head. A month and a fucking half? That shouldn’t be possible? I know I’ve had some head trauma, but surely I’m not that bad at counting days! He stared down at his hands, shaking slightly.

“Holy shit.”

“You okay dude?” She said, leaning forward to look at his face.

He jerked his head up, staring at her. She pulled back, eyes narrowing at the sudden movement. “How long ago did the bomb drop on Welksfield?” She didn’t answer at first, eyes still narrowed. “How long?!” He yelled, on the verge of panic.

“A month and half! That was like, the day after the obelisks, right? Why the hell are you yelling?” She glared at him, but he was no longer paying attention. I was out for over a month? It must have happened when I fell in the crater, I was still eating, still getting hungry before then. It doesn’t seem possible, but it didn’t seem possible that I don’t need to eat, and it certainly didn’t seem possible that I consumed that ice monster’s mana yesterday either. But… was I just laying there for a month? That’s so fucking creepy. I guess, it doesn’t really matter. I’ll have to make up some reason I have no idea what’s going on though. Falling asleep in a crater for a month is probably more off-putting than I probably already am.

“Well? You gonna answer, or just stand there like a jackass?”

Aran snapped back to the present, and the woman in front of him. “Uh, sorry. I just haven’t had a calendar in a while, and was surprised it had been so long.” She stared at him, eyebrow raised. “Uh, and sorry for yelling in your face. Been a while since I had someone to talk to other than myself.”

She kept her eyebrow raised, “Yeah, it shows.” She relented, adding “It’s fine. By the way, my name’s Alice.” She extended a gloved hand. Aran instinctively reached to grab it, finding her grip surprisingly firm through the thick leather. The touch was surprisingly comforting, after so long alone.

“I’m Aran. I’ve been alone pretty much since all this stuff started, so, can you tell me what all has happened? I mean, this place seems pretty well off, but my hometown got bombed.”

“Holy shit, you’re from Welksfield?!” This seemed to get the other’s attention, as several turned to stare at him, and the one who seemed to be in charge approached. Her outburst startled him, and as the leader approached, he now saw he was a man who looked to be in his 40’s, dark skinned, with a shaved head and close-cropped beard. The man stuck out a hand, “I’m Rick Merbuck, 3rd patrol team. You said you were from Welksfield?” Aran took the hand, a bit intimidated by the man’s bluntness.

“Uh, yeah. I’m Aran, Aran Briggs, lived my whole life there.”

“Do you know of any other survivors or stragglers out there? You’re the first we’ve seen since the Judgement.”

“Uh, the what?”

“Oh, the Judgement, it’s what we’ve been calling the day when the obelisks dropped, and all this… happened. The police station and City offices were alerted for refugees, but none arrived. Do you know if there were any survivors holed up anywhere? We haven’t been able to get close enough, with all the radioactivity.”

“Wha- nobody? Nobody’s made it here? Fuck. I mean, uh, I haven’t seen anyone since the bomb, and before that… I didn’t see anyone besides Melody.” He looked down, taking a deep breath. “No. I haven’t seen anyone else at all, and I searched all over the city.” Rick looked at him sharply.

“You’ve been in the city? Shit, kid, we need to get you decontaminated, ASAP!” He motioned to Alice. “Get him to a shower immediately, and burn those clothes-”

Aran interrupted, shouting “Hey! These are all I’ve got, you can’t burn my stuff!”

“Kid, I’m sorry, we’ll get you some clothes, but you’re walking around wrapped in cancer right now. I promise, we’ll make sure you get some clothes. Besides, you don’t even have shoes, I don’t know how you haven’t lost feet to frostbite yet, but we’ll get you what you need.” The thought of shoes was a balm, and Aran admitted to himself a shower sounded. He probably smelled like death, the thought suddenly making him very self conscious.

“Okay. I could use a shower, anyway.” The small smile Alice quickly smothered let him know that he really needed a shower, apparently. She turned and led the way up the street, between more of the fortified buildings. As they walked, he decided to use the time to check off more items on the list. “So, why was the bomb dropped on Welksfield? There were monsters, but I mean it seems like weird stuff was happening everywhere. Did you guys not get any?”

Alice laughed darkly. “Oh, we got monsters. But not right away, it was several days before anything started attacking us. It was just a few at first, ones and twos, but it caused a panic like you wouldn’t believe. Anyone on their own, or anyone… small enough to grab.” Her voice went quiet as she walked. “More and more came, until you couldn’t go outside without risking your life. A lot of people volunteered, and the police gave out guns, for all the good it did us. Some people, like Ben, discovered how to do… magic. Still don’t like saying that, even with all that’s changed. But they're the only reason we’re alive.”

“So, do you and the other patrol… people… Have magic too? Sorry, do you guys have a name or like a rank or something?”

She shook her head, “Nothing like Ben, but we’ve been training on his advice, and we can make ourselves hard to see. Stealthy. That’s how I snuck up on you earlier. And we’re just volunteers, really, we call ourselves Rangers.” Okay, now that’s pretty cool. Little on the nose though, Aran thought to himself. “We’re here, this is our intake building. We set it up thinking there’d be a ton of you, but…” She trailed off. “Well, regardless, just through the door you’ll find several doors, each has a shower and a towel behind it. Make sure to leave your clothes outside the door, and I’ll have someone stop by to drop off some new stuff for you.”

Aran nodded his thanks, and stepped through the door, and while Alice hadn’t lied, the truth was the shower stalls were rather ramshackle affairs made of whatever the town had been able to pull together, set in a large open space, which looked to have been a gymnasium in a past life. He shook his head, opening the first door and finding a small bench, started undressing. Ridding himself of his borrowed clothes, he dropped them outside the door, and for the first time since he’d passed out in the crater, stopped and really looked at his whole body. With some relief, he realized he hadn’t lost anything from the radiation, nor grown any extra bits. As he ran his hands over his grey skin with the strange patterns of black scars crossing it, he felt melancholy. Some people apparently got to be heroes, saving towns with earth magic, and he got turned into a grey freak. He heaved a sigh. No use just sitting here being sad about what I can’t change. A shower ought to make me feel better. He moved into the shower area, and found what looked like an emergency shower from his old chemistry class. Turning the lever, he was immediately blasted by cold, bitter smelling water. He quickly scrubbed with the provided soap, unsure of how much water he’d get. 5 minutes later, he opened the door to peak out, and found a neat pile of clothing, as well as a selection of boots in various sizes. He slipped on the soft cotton shirt, as well as the dark denim pants, both of which fit well enough. He savored the luxurious feeling of slipping on thick woolen socks before trying on the boots. They were obviously intended for hiking, and appeared handmade, oddly enough. Finding a pair that fit, he slipped on the included black coat, and stepped outside.

He found another of the members of the patrol waiting for him, introducing himself as James. “Nice to meet you. Uh, do I need to like, talk to anyone about a place to stay? I don’t have any money…”

James chuckled. “Nah, we’ll get you sorted. We’re to report to the Mayor’s office, they’d like to hear more about what’s going on in Welksfield. I’d say we need to head straight there but… are you okay? You look a little uh, grey.”

“Huh? Oh. Uh, yeah, I’m fine, that's just how I look…” Aran said, embarrassed, shoving his hands in his pockets.

“Oh shit, sorry dude, I just assumed when we found you that you were dirty. Uh. Fuck, that came out wrong-”

Aran cut him off, “It’s okay. It’s fine. I know I look a little weird. Let’s just go.” James nodded sharply, ready to distance himself from the topic. They walked quickly up the street, and looking around, Aran found he could see the wall in nearly every direction. “How big is the walled-in area? I thought Burville was a lot bigger.”

James shrugged. “It used to be. The wall surrounds everything that’s left. Monsters and fighting destroyed most everything else to the west and south.”

Aran let out a low whistle. “That’s… wow that’s pretty bad. How many people are still here?”

“About three thousand. We lost more than double that. But, we’re keepin’ on. You’ll see, it’s not so bad, with the wall. Plus, you’ve got us patrolling outside.” James grinned reassuringly. Aran chuckled. “If you say so. So, is the government sending aid? You guys seem to have held up pretty well, are there other places like this?”

“We haven’t heard yet. We’ve been patrolling farther and farther, but haven’t seen any sign of other groups of survivors, besides you. Phones stopped working a while back, and while we got power working for parts of the city, most is back to the dark ages. Internet went down around the same time as the phones, but luckily we’ve been too busy to miss it, really.” Aran mulled that over as he followed. No phones, no internet? So, we’re down to word of mouth. And a town as small as Burville, I doubt anyone’s going to send help… He refrained from voicing his concerns, as they walked up the steps to a large brick building, tall windows now sealed with storm shutters.