Chapter 1 - Sels

Chapter 1 – Sels 

Lush verdant hills rolled across the landscape, pierced by rocky outcroppings near the tips where the storms had blown free the soil that clung to the peaks of the hills. Waist-tall grass blanketed the terrain as it swayed in the light breeze blowing fresh clean air down from the mountains to the south, though it lacked the bite you’d expect with those frost-tipped peaks in the distance. Gigantic stubby trees sprouted from the leeward sides of the hills, massive domes dotting the landscape as their branches enveloped the surroundings behind huge sail-shaped leaves. Strange, though the leaves would likely make great kites. 

Sels walked along a well-trodden path that had begun being overtaken by too-soft moss squishing under her feet as her lengthy legs carried her across the plains. Moss seemed to be overtaking everything, the slow creep of nature reclaiming a world left abandoned then rediscovered. The moss at least added patches of color to the world, splashes of vibrant reds, deep blues, and brilliant yellows to the otherwise monotone green surroundings. It was mundane, but Sels reveled in the simple beauty of it.  

Nature was magnificent. Even in the most mundane environment she thrived, boundless curiosity and wanderlust led her to becoming one of the lead scouts of the City, and had been the first choice for an emissary to connect with the surrounding towns, with the world growing larger each and every day. And so she wandered the paths woven across the land, connecting with the sparce populations that had established themselves as possible in the abandoned towns throughout the fallen empire. 

Sels was tailed by two newly Awakened she had found since passing through a town a few days prior, and they couldn’t be more different. Sr’Eth was diminutive to begin with, but they shrunk nervously from within a cloak cut of thin strips covering their entire body, while Thalla towered over them challengingly, wearing a simple cloth wrapped around her torso and legs, outlining her strong frame and well-built muscles set into her light-blue skin.  

They were doing their best to adapt to their situation. Waking up without memories in an unknown world was certainly a shock, but Sels did what she could to ease their worries. It helped that she was able to converse with both of them, her mastery of languages one of the most important skills in this new world. A few days of traveling certainly helped bring some relative normalcy, though she didn’t know when they would next find a settlement. Hopefully soon. The way back to the City was about a week's travel, which would be further slowed as they soon moved out of Dawnweek and into Dimweek and the constant fog that accompanied it. 

For now, she would have to continue onward with her newfound companions, traveling in silence. Thalla was of few words, marching on with determination while Sr’Eth was too anxiety-ridden to start much of a conversation as he nervously took in the rather plain surroundings. It certainly didn’t help that neither spoke the other’s language, relying on Sels to translate between them. She, however, was engaged in her penultimate task; drawing.  

A map specifically, sketching out nearby landmarks and frequently diverging from the path to climb hills to get a better view of the surroundings, always catching up with her travel buddies. She had an eye for this, and part of her mission was to provide accurate maps once she returned from her journey. Some of the Scavengers had found several maps during their explorations of the City, but they had proven unreliable. Sels carried with her the faulty maps and compared them to the updated copies she had made. They weren’t abhorrently incorrect, but enough to be nearly useless for navigation. Roadways had shifted, locations of settlements displaced, notable landmarks rearranged.

Taking a moment to survey the surroundings, Sels took off from the path towards an upcoming hill while leaving her companions behind. They were used to this and let her go, knowing she would return as they kept on walking on the squishy mossy path. Tromping through the waist-tall grass, Sels crested the top of the rocky-tipped hill and was pleasantly greeted by a view of a grove of dome-shaped trees, which likely contained the town she had been looking for. Previous towns had been nestled safely within natural terrain to protect from the season-storms, so it would make sense to shelter a settlement within a grove of theoretically resilient trees reinforced with stony outcroppings surrounding. 

“’Ey friends, I found our destination! Come on, it’s just around here!” Sels called out, though only Thalla could understand her as the brutish woman started stomping up the hill tailed by Sr’Eth hurriedly plodding along behind. While waiting for her companions at the top of the hill, Sels extracted her spyglass from her pack and started surveying the surroundings while correlating them with the defective map, along with her updated copy. 

The town was labeled “Hemken,” little more than an out-of-the-way trading post connecting the southern mountain range to the plains to the north. Sels would need to get a better view of the surroundings, but it seemed to have shifted relative to the map. It should have been out of the way; however, it seemed to have been moved west, putting it central to the mountains so paths through the peaks would likely converge on this location as a stop before or after the journey. This miniscule town would likely become very important in the coming years as the Awakened began reclaiming the land and people flowed through the countryside in search of adventure.  

Thalla and Sr’Eth had finally joined her on the top of the hill, the former grunting what could be construed as “Why did we climb this hill?” as Sels gestured to the sheltered grove a few hills over. “There should be a town over in that grove, and with it hopefully some people.” she relayed to both of her companions, before unpacking a traveling snack of dried meat and salted roots before further leading them towards their newfound destination, though with a few detours on some of the taller hills for further scouting. Sels didn’t see any notable activity, and even as they closed in on the grove it was oddly quiet, though even that was settling in. The world was always oddly quiet for her, as if she was used to constant background noise. 

Arriving at the grove, Sels was proven correct; it was home to a small town, a tiny waystop with little more than a handful of buildings sheltered within the roots of the gigantic dome-trees. The writhing roots of the trees stretched to squat bulbous trunks high above the ground, keeping a perimeter and surrounding ramshackle buildings of wood and stone, lined by small canals that ran east-to-west to facilitate drainage during storms. Water pooled at the bases of the trees turning the ground swampy, giving extra squish to each step as Sels paraded through the miniature marsh towards the buildings deeper inside. 

And it appeared to be abandoned. Everything had that feeling, the emptiness and silence washing away the history of this little town. But this was different, Sels spotted footprints that had dried in the marshy ground, buildings recently maintained, scrapped of moss and fortified, lived in. At the very least someone had been here, taking shelter before moving on. Potentially several someones, as Sels kneeled down to check on the footprints and found discrepancies in several of them, different sizes for presumably different people. 

Standing back up, Thalla had continued to wander further into the village, checking on one of the empty homes, delving into the dark confines. Sr’Eth continued to hover behind Sels however, waiting for further direction, nervously glancing this way and that, keeping a hesitant watch.

“Let’s sweep through the town and see if we can find anyone,” she said to Sr’Eth before echoing the directions to Thalla in her language. “Check for any Awakened, and if there is any food-” before being cut off by a violent shout from Thalla’s direction where she had disappeared into one of the homes. Sels rushed into action, bounding across the swampy ground, and nearly tripping and sliding in the muck, before reaching the building her traveling companion had entered, where she was greeted by a worrying yet relieving sight. 

Thalla had a spindly fellow pinned to the floor while she was bleeding from a cut on her arm, likely caused by the dropped knife a few paces away, its wickedly curved blade glistening with the fresh blood drawn from its latest target. The man Thalla had pinned was struggling ineffectively against his opponent's superior strength, long limbs strained while Thalla growled at him from her position over him. 

“The demon has returned! Take cover and arm yourselves!” the man screamed, before witnessing Sels at the doorway as Sr'Eth was catching up behind. “Hide! Get away from here, I will fend her off! Save yourselves..?” he continued shouting while ineffectively trying to shake Thalla off, who gave no indication of moving off top of him. Sels instead bounded over to Thalla, carefully sweeping up and stowing the knife on her way, before stepping in and working to separate the pair. 

Thalla got up reluctantly, releasing her captive, but not before kicking her prey in the side as she moved away, grunting in anger while the newcomer cradled his side before sitting up and rubbing his wrists where Thalla had grabbed them. Sels got Thalla settled across the room, seemingly oblivious to the bleeding gash in her arm, which would need to be taken care of soon. She then settled the newcomer and finally got a good look at him, kneeling next to him in the dim room. 

He was tall and willowy, caramel tan skin with dusty yellow hair like sandstone. He wore long loose-fitting pants and a similar long-sleeved shirt, both of which were tighter at the ankles and wrists to keep them secured, slits cut in both lengthwise to facilitate a breeze as he walked. The same kind of clothing Sels wore, with the same tan skin and slender figure. He could have been a relative, however, he was missing the most distinctive part of Sels; the extensive network of tattoos covering her body. Lines formed tangents and crisscrosses along her skin, circles and crescents connected with flowing rivers of ink woven across her body. 

“Sorry about my... traveling companion” Sels said in the language he used to call out with, the tongue she spoke in natively. The language she hadn’t been able to speak with someone in properly since she had Awoken. “She is a bit, rough, I guess. Do you mind telling me what happened?” She prodded, fetching a waterskin from her belt, held out in bribe. “And what is your name friend? Mine is Sels, sorry we couldn’t have had a, ah. More peaceful meeting.” 

He stared incredulously at Sels, past her to Thalla, and back to Sels, then to Sr’Eth who had taken position by the doorway, keeping watch outside. Sels was thankful for that. Despite his timidity, Sr’Eth had a good mind for safety, and stood watch diligently. Sels again proffered up the waterskin, which was swiped and then quickly emptied as their new friend gulped it down. Sels had dug into her pack and then held out some dried jerky in offer, which was further gobbled up at record pace. 

“Crazy for you to be traveling with a demon, friend,” while glancing back at Thalla, who in turn was wrapping her arm in a cloth she had found, unable to understand the conversation and thus paying no attention to it. “Your ‘companion’ here ransacked our little community a few days ago. Killed poor Otono, took our food, and left” as he stared daggers at Thalla, who continued to ignore him. 

“Now, if you don’t mind,” as he stood, standing tall, defiant. He would have been imposing if he wasn’t thin as a stick. “I would kindly ask you to leave. Any friends of that demon are not welcome,” as he moved to stride out of the building before being blocked by Sels. 

“I think there’s been a misunderstanding. Thalla has been traveling with me for a few days, found her when she Awoke in a ditch. I am an emissary from a city to the northeast, could we please talk?” He gave a second look at Thalla where she had taken a seat by a window and was now properly lit. Narrowing his eyes, he took a good look before letting out a curse under his breath. “Fine. We can talk and renegotiate from there. Let me get the others.” 

______

There ended up being a handful of people who had hidden at the call from the man, whose name was Tares. Sels, Thalla, and Sr’Eth had settled into the biggest building in the tiny town, which was little more than a living room and kitchen with three offshoots for personal quarters. They were joined by Tares, a tall, pale, four-armed woman with bulging eyes named Thanaph, and a mousy elderly man with obsidian skin who went by Fnanl. They were also joined by a serious, shorter adult named Toirin, who stood stoically by the door keeping watch, his ashen grey skin and tan cloak blending into the stone and wood walls forming the interior of the crowded room.  

A hearth crackled in the corner heating a pot of hastily thrown together stew, though it wouldn’t be enough. Sels already had to split her share of supplies between Thalla and Sr’Eth and was hoping to resupply at their next stop, though Hemken, referred to as The Grove, had barely enough to support the few inhabitants. They had mixed success with foraging, supporting themselves with grain harvested from the domed trees forming the grove. The stew would be bland, but better than nothing. Food always helped though, usually regardless of quality. Good and bad food united just the same, either in revel or disgust. 

“We assumed the newcomer was just confused,” Fnanl explained, low-pitched and nasally, “you know how it is, Awakening... She just stumbled into our grove, raving in a language none of us could understand. Well, except for Otono...” as the room fell into a silence. 

“Otono tried speaking with her, but she went berserk and attacked him” Tares continued. “He was eviscerated before I could even intervene. The demon ransacked our stores while I hid everyone else, then took off southward,” as he shot a covert glance over to where Thalla sat in the corner, far from the fire, eyes gazing out the window into the grove. 

They all sat in silence for the moment, the fire sputtering as Sels tended it, shifting the coals and collapsing a lump of burnt wood into the pyre of the fireplace. Tension hung in the air like dimweek fog, while the smell of mold mingled with the earthy fragrance of the stew added further murk to the atmosphere. Though the stew was more of a soup, far too much water and not enough of anything else. The fact that it barely needed stewing was also a contributing factor.  

“Sorry.” Thalla grunted, not looking away from out of the window she sat beside. The rest of the room turned to her, surprised she had been the one to break the silence. Sels was the only one who understood her, and moved to quell the others as Tares and Toirin both reached to their belts warily, Sels’ hand held out wardingly.  

“What for?” responded Sels, only to be met with a shrug.  

“Felt right,” as Thalla stood, her chair letting out creaks and cracks of relief, before walking toward the door out into the grove. Toirin backed away as she passed while Tares shot her a glare which was met in kind, as silence settled back over the room, now with one less body. Sels saw Thalla wander off into the trees and disappear from sight through a window, while everyone turned towards her questioningly. 

“Well? What did the demon say?” Tares snarked at Sels, “Only to leave us-” 

“She said sorry” 

Tares quieted immediately. With a sigh, Sels’s glanced at the pellucid soup, determined it was as ready as it could be, and started doling out portions in the scavenged wood bowls, passing them to the remaining occupants of the room. “Let’s eat... well, drink for now, and figure out what to do next friends. And afterward, I will need a walk...” 

______

Sels found herself sitting on one of the rocky outcroppings atop one of the hills secluding the Grove, dusty-grey thin rods of stone splayed out next to her as she made marks in her notebook, surveying the landscape with the dying wisps of light as Dim bled to Dusk and thick dark cloud cover strangled the light from the earth. Now, with a higher vantage, she was able to confirm her earlier suspicions; The town had shifted west compared to her faulty maps, while a river in the distance looped around the hills more south of where it should have been, while also curving closer to the Grove. Another advantage this spot would have for the future  

It was quiet other than the occasional cawing from an avian above, the wind across the hills, and a soft whistling as breezes ducked and wove throughout the grove, the sail-like leaves ridged on their edges adding texture to the wind as it passed over. For some reason Sels smiled at that. She was no naturalist, though she felt as if she should know someone who was. They likely would have marveled at the shapes, investigating how the leaves whistled to them, absorbing the texture and making observations in a notebook parallel to her own. 

With a slight consideration, Sels set down her notebook and stone-pen, stretched her long limber legs, and walked over to one of the discarded sail-leaves on the ground nearby, grabbing it then settling back in on the stone she sat. Lifting the leaf to her mouth, her lips found the groves in the structure and blew, trying to mimic the wind and recreate the whistling she had heard.  

She failed spectacularly. The whistle was closer to the dying breath of a of a wheezing senior, and when she drew a new lungful of air she inhaled what seemed to be a thick layer of dust that coated the interior of the leaf, filling her lungs with and leaving her hacking on the ground. Coughing up a grey-green pulp, she released the leaf and took a swig from her waterskin attached at her hip to try and clean out her mouth. 

“So hungry you needed to try the local flora?” a voice chimed to her from nearby, as steps on stone sounded the arrival of someone unexpected; Toirin. Sels spared him a glance before downing more water as he walked over to the rock she was sat at. Even after the meeting earlier, she hadn’t realized how far she towered over him, as he barely came to her eyeline when he stood straight while she hunched over her water on the rock she perched on. He stood tall, straight-backed and proud, as if he was a royal guardsman in formation in front of an emperor.   

“I would like to accompany you back to Mosstone.” Direct. Sels had gotten hints during the meeting earlier of his candor, though his humor was new to her. He dutifully stood watch, chiming in here and there, but for the most part stayed out of the discussion. He had taken his duty seriously and showed more respect than anyone else she had met so far. In a world of unknowns, it seemed that Toirin knew exactly what he was; a soldier. 

“Unfortunately, we both know you can’t friend. There are barely enough supplies for me to make the trip, and the Grove needs all the hands they can to try and survive.” He took a moment at this, considering his rebuttal, but Sels continued “I appreciate it, truly. But it would be best for me to travel alone. As we discussed, once I am back I can coordinate proper relief.” 

In honesty Sels would have liked a traveling companion. She had grown used to the company of Sr’Eth and Thalla, the latter of whom was still missing from the afternoon. While they weren’t the most engaging, the simple presence of other people soothed her. Toirin seemed capable from what she’d seen, which in fairness was little, however he carried an air of respect with him. 

Toirin had heard this before, and had even agreed with the plan earlier, despite his new rejection of that notion now. He pondered for a moment before bowing his head “These are fair points, and I concede your arguments,” voice rough yet smooth, like stone weathered by the elements, hints of gruffness sanded by respect and poise. 

“However, I believe I would be more of assistance than a hinderance to you. While not the best, I have moderate success at foraging, and am the most skilled hunter of this town. Allowing me to accompany you would be beneficial, as you need as much food as you can for the journey, and comparatively I would require less rations than you.” He said that last miniscule grin, and with a small tilt of his head gestured to his diminutive stature opposed to Sels. 

“Additionally, these are... strange times. Hands are necessary here, however the diminishing returns of an extra set here are outweighed by the benefit of lending you mine for the journey. A pair to pair, if you will.” 

Sels considered for a moment. He certainly knew how to form an argument, and she could use an additional set of hands. Thinking for another moment, she eventually shook her head. “As much as I would like too, it would be more useful for you to stay here. These people need all the help possible, and as much order as possible.” 

If Toirin was crestfallen he didn’t show it. “It is your choice. However, I posit this offer; should the situation here improve prior to tomorrow, and the people of the Grove able to sustain themselves, I would gladly accompany you.” 

“Offer accepted friend. And thank you, for understan-” 

Looking past Toirin, she saw Sr’Eth gliding up the hill, body surprisingly still as they made their way up the incline, as if floating on a stream, the layers of their cloak muffling their footsteps and camouflaging them against the ground. 

“Sels! Thalla is back! And she brought food!” they shouted up, nearly at the top of the rocky knoll. “She hunted a grand beast, come! She is preparing it below.” Sels made a sideward glance at Toirin, who simply gave her a discreet wink, whispering an accompanying “I always come prepared to win an argument,” before marching down to greet Sr’Eth. “What great fortune, I would love to see this beast the demon’s-kin has slain!” 

Sels shook her head and followed the shorter man to meet Sr’Eth before trekking back down the hill to the Grove, trailing behind Sr’Eth and Toirin, the latter of whom had somehow achieved something Sels had struggled to successfully do in the last half-week; get Sr’Eth talking. While originally reserved, he remarked enthusiastically to Toirin. Something must’ve happened since Sels had departed from the group hours earlier for her walk and subsequent mapping, though it made her smile finally seeing the timid Sr’Eth opening up to someone, excitedly whispering about this “grand beast” that Thalla had apparently hunted. 

And grand it was, though even that was potentially underscoring its magnificence. A thick mound of a body that would have been supported by six powerful tree-trunk-like legs, while a long slender neck was mirrored with a similarly long tail. Spiked ridges lined its back, and Sels almost mistook it for a boulder the first time she saw the mound of grey-white flesh. Most interesting was its face however, two eyes on the side and one centered on the face lead to a slender snout, reminiscent of a proboscis. It stood out, not only due to the size as it was as long as Sels’ torso, but the fact that Thalla was roasting it over a fire in the center of the Grove, while Tares and Thanaph were carving into the flesh with knives. 

Thalla glanced over, noted their arrival, then went back to turning the skull over the fire, the leathery skin charring and sending savory smells wafting through the air. Toirin was led by Sr’Eth over to the carcass to assist with the carving, but not before the former shot a wink over to Sels and nodded towards Thalla. Taking the queue, she walked over, standing next to Thalla as she roasted the head in silence broken by the crackling of the fire and the shuffling of bodies nearby. 

“Nice catch friend, though we would have gladly helped if we knew you were going hunting.” 

All she got was a shrug and grunt in response. 

“Where did you find this beast? Let alone take it down, it is...” Sels took a glance, and roughly judged it at least three times Thalla’s size. 

“Was hungry.” 

They stood in silence for a while longer, Sels content to be by the warmth of the fire as Dusk had set in full effect, black clouds choking the light from the heavens and blanketing the land in shadow as a chill seeped into the bones of the earth and its inhabitants. Tares and Toirin had set up another fire nearby and had begun roasting steaks as the flames licked and charred the exterior.  

Eventually Thalla let out a sigh. “Needed food, and saw this earlier. Wanted to help,” as she determined that the skull was finished, grabbing it with grace uncharacteristic of her large stature, before hauling it away onto a table that Thanaph and Sr’Eth had pulled out of a house nearby. Thalla was about halfway over when her foot caught on something as she fell towards the earth while carrying her bounty, the skull tumbling through the air and- 

Toirin was there in a flash, diving towards the head and grabbing it before it could hit the ground as he caught it and landed on his back, saving it from the puddle of mud that Thalla had fell into. Thalla pulled herself out of the mud with the help of Sr’Eth, while Toirin let out a howling belly-laugh, carefully lifting himself while holding the skull, then plodded over to Thalla handing it out to her. 

“It’s yours. Take it, and know we’re thankful for the feast,” as he handed off the head to Thalla, who nodded in thanks. Her foot slipped against but was caught on the arm by Toirin, before carefully walking and setting the head as the centerpiece of the table, and for the first time since Sels had found her a few days prior, let out a smile. The rest of the Awakened sat down with plates of meat, and began to dig in to their first real meal in a while, surrounded by friends and the crackling of fire in the background. 

Maybe things would be alright. 

 Prologue III: Disruption