A faceless being, within its scythes' cold embrace, a human soul resides. Baren and scorched earth till the eyes could see, the dark ashes lay still, no longer resembling the form of a human being.
'Hah... do you truly believe... We would die so easily?' Yet, with an ominous tone, words scattered and the winds aroused, making the dark ashes dance for another moment.
The faceless monster's scythe lowered; it was a being that had no emotions... yet at this moment was overwhelmed by something inexplicable.
'We already said it... I am Immortal!' A hand reached out towards the blade that cut through life with ease.
'This world is ours... and as such will witness it also...'
...
'This was the way he died... for now at least, this is enough.' Inside a world of darkness, a shadowed dark tone tore through the facades of stories... Yet his speech seemed to give off warmth rather than ominous feelings...
...
*Knock...knock*
'Uhm?'
*Chirip...Chirp...* As the first light of dawn filtered through the tattered curtains, a young man stirred from his slumber, his mind slowly awakening from a deep dream.
"Brother, are you still sleeping?" A kind and sweet voice mixed with a slightly hurried tone.
'...' Lying still, the young man gazed at the wooden ceiling.
*Chirp...* His blue eyes only diverted to the little birds doing their morning routine of singing at his window.
"Liam... Brother?" The girl asked again.
'Ugh, why is it morning already...' But instead of answering, the boy closed his eyes.
*Chirp...Chirp...*
...
"Hey, wake up! Hey!"
"Ugh..." The young man only felt a moment passing, but his eyes opened quickly as he heard the sweet voice right beside his head.
"Wake up, Father is calling for you." A gorgeous beauty gazed down at the young man named Liam.
Her beautiful ebony skin was even more highlighted by the still-rising sun's rays of light...
Her complexion was quite the opposite of the man but both the eyes and hair were the exact ocean blue and raven black.
"Uh..." Being woken by such beauty could easily be named all man's dream, yet Liam only grunted at the scene and turned to his side.
After all, a daily occurrence can't affect someone the same way as others.
"Hey, don't turn around on me!"
"Uh... just a little bit more, he was just about to..."
"Humh? You dreamed of that boy again?" Hearing Liam's words she slid down from the bed and stood back upright.
"Yes... but... he... this time he was in a lot of trouble..." He wanted to begin his usual lengthy description, but rather cut it short... this time's memory wasn't something he would want to share with his innocent little sister.
"I envy you, you have so many vivid dreams, I can't remember any..."
"Dream... Just a dream?" Repeating it in his mind once was enough for the sleepiness to go away.
"Hm? What are you saying?"
"Nothing, you just woke me up." Saying this, he reached toward the ceiling, stretching his arms, only for him to spring up with a single move.
"Alright..."
"Anyway, Father is calling for you, he wants you to go down to the village to sell and buy some stuff." Seeing now that his brother was up, she began to speak of the matter at hand.
"Ugh... Okay... Thanks, Mercy..."
"Uhm?" Mercy was about to go out but froze in place for a moment, pondering gaze.
"Hmh? What is it?"
"Brother... did you grow again?"
"Hmh? Did I?" Without much thought, Liam swung his legs over the edge of the bed and rose to his feet, the cool wooden floor beneath his bare feet gave a familiar comfort as he stood in front of her.
"Uhm..." Even though Mercy wasn't a short woman with her 170 centimeters... The man easily towered over her, whose head only reached the shoulder level of this more than two meters tall giant.
"Uhm... It seems around one or two cm..." Putting his hand to her head then to his chest, the man made a quick eye calculation and dismissed it like nothing.
"Are you even human... Why are you still growing?"
"Maybe I'm still young... You know we don't know my exact age... And besides... You are no human either."
"Why are you twisting my words? You know I didn't mean 'humans'? Hm... But... Doesn't this mean you are younger than I am... Am I the big sis then?"
"Haha, you wish. Now, sh-sh, I want to get dressed."
'Dressed?' Hearing his words, she looked in front, to the naked body only wearing underpants, a physique that clearly prioritizes actual use over simple looks, a body of real muscles.
"You also got more muscular..." Thinking, Mercy unconsciusly reached out...
"Nope, no touching." Only for Liam to catch her by the wrist.
"Wha... who would want... You don't even have abs!" A light red tinted her face, making her quickly retaliate.
"Hmh, then why are you getting embarrassed? Don't worry..." Leaning in, he whispered into her ears.
"I love you too... sis..."
"Uh, just get dressed and come out quickly!" Since she lost the conversation, she quickly stormed out of the room...
"You... dummy..." Only a few soft words sounded as she closed the door behind herself.
"..."
"Hm... she ran away..." The bright atmosphere in the room... the moment she left, everything darkened, if someone was inside... only just the weight of this dark would be crushing them.
*Chirip...Chirip...* But for this, the only witnesses were the little birds, and for some strange reason, even they quickly flew away.
"..." The moment that door closed, the man's bright smile dimmed and quickly disappeared completely.
"..." A moment of motionless silence ensued.
*Sigh...* Full of annoyance.
"Fuck..." His hand reached up to his face, covering his eyes.
*chirp...* The fleeing birds' chirping dimmed.
'Shut up...' From between his fingers, an annoyed gaze was given to the world, eyes that lost their vivid gleam became dark like the starless night.
*chirp...*
*Sigh...* But one more sigh was the only thing he did.
"Alright, let's begin." His hand fell, and his bright smile and gleaming eyes returned.
...
*Creak...* A few moments later, Liam's door creaked open, a plain and loose-fitting grey-white tunic and brownish-black trousers tucked into his leather boots.
A leather belt cinches his waist, serving both a decorative and functional purpose. His clothes were simple, like any other villager's, nothing special, nothing unique.
"Ah, you are out?" Mercy asked without looking back, she was already bustling around and doing chores.
"Yeah..." Liam gave her a light glance, seeing her also already in working clothes.
Mercy wears a long, ankle-length dress with muted earth tones like Liam, brown and white. The dress is modest and practical, with long sleeves and a fitted bodice that laces up the front.
Over her dress, she wore a simple apron to protect it from stains while working. Her long and straight hair was secured with pins, keeping it tidy and out of the way.
"If you are hungry, you can eat, we have bread and some leftovers, ah, and cheese too."
"Thanks, hmh... A simple cheese sandwich is enough..."
"I knew you would say that, so I already made it."
"Uhm? Ah, thanks."
"No problem, the things are outside at the shed, it's a little more than usual, so take more turns if you need it."
"Aha and... What do I need to get?" He sat down at the table and asked while following Mercy's hurried moves with his eyes.
"Uhm... The usual, some bread, eggs, and milk... The knives are worn down, so I put them in the shed too, and it should be today that a merchant arrives, so also get some spices."
"..." As Liam munched on the food, his gaze seemed to look through the world, and his thoughts began to move around.
'This dark elven girl in front of me... Lythienne Mercy, she is my sister, though we are not related, we grew up together, and according to what she said, even before we were adopted and I lost my memorise, we were together in slavery.'
"Brother...? Are you listening?" Hearing nothing from him, Mercy turned around.
"Yeah, the usual, some repairs and spices."
"Uhm... Then good." Hearing him recite it she quickly turned back.
'Thought I lost my memories of that time I believe her, I don't remember my blood family or anything about them and she couldn't tell me either since I was already there when she met me, but on the other hand, she does remember her own... and how she lost them...'
'To this day, sometimes she cries for them in her sleep... Nightmares still appear off when she witnessed her father being pierced by blades...'
"..." Glancing at the gleaming and sparkling smile, Liam shook his head lightly.
'Though she shows nothing of that outward... I think she is afraid it would hurt Taegan's feelings.'
'She is a strong, kind, and beautiful girl... Although she rarely goes down to the village, everyone knows and loves her. Yes, really, everyone...'
"Thanks for the meal." As he finished, he quickly rose from the table. Liam didn't wish to waste any more of his time.
"Ah, yes, stay safe brother."
"..." As Liam was about to step out of the cottage, he halted his step, a moment of silence.
"Sis..."
"Yes?"
"Don't overwork yourself while I'm out..."
"I won't."
"Hmh... And if something happens..."
"I know, the first thing I will do is call for you."
"..."
"Don't worry, nothing happens here in a place so far behind God's back."
"Humh... right, but you should always be prepared, most people aren't as kind as you and Taegan..."
"You are still not calling him father..."
"Alright, I'm going then."
"Brother..."
"..."
*Sigh...* She only gave a light sigh to this recurring conversation.
...
Outside the moderate-sized cottage, which was stationed at the edge of a dense forest.
'Taegan Sylven, he is our adoptive father.' Liam continued his inner monologue as he went past the small fields of vegetables and herbs in front and at the side of their home.
'He is as kind as Mercy and truly... He is a great man... I have never seen him want anything except peace.'
'That is the exact problem I see... He took us in when we were little, with nothing going for him... An unreasonable act... I can't comprehend it.'
'He has never shown anything except love, so I won't dismiss him; he is truly great, but clearly, there is something he is hiding, and if he does, I won't trust him.'
'Humh...' Arriving at the back where the open shed was, Liam looked confused at the carcasses placed on the large workbench.
'Two deer and three rabbits... Strange, why are the animals dying?'
'Taegan doesn't hunt. No, rather than hurting the animals, he promises the old ones that their young won't be hunted by the people of our village... But still, this is a little strange...'
'Usually, not so many die at once; something is amiss. The world has been changing nowadays... the news reached us not long ago... but is it already starting to affect even us...?'
'New things are dangerous... Not just for us but for all things... but Taegan said nothing so I'm sure he will work something out, I shouldn't worry about it.' And just as quickly as these thoughts came to his mind, they left.
'Hmh... Mercy said to take more turns but...' Liam put his hand to his chin, a motion reflecting his thinking mind.
'How should I take everything with me at once? One basket of herbs... Since they are easily damaged, I can't put anything on them...'
'Alright, got it.' From the inner shed wall, he took down some thin rope, tying the two deer together, after tucking both the small knives and his hunting one into his belt, with ease, he threw the two deer over his shoulder, balancing them so they didn't fall off.
In one hand, he took up the three rabbits, and in the other, the large basket filled with herbs of different kinds. "Good, this is what I'm talking about."
'Umu? My back... it feels it... Soon I'll have to work something out for this injury too... but for now... it will be fine.' Liam's body, although outwardly hardly anything could be seen, was a total mess. His spine was hurt, his eyes were bad, and even his shoulders didn't move correctly.
His every step took an effort; every move shot through his body like wires being dragged through his veins, breaths hurt like hell, and stinging pain came from even a little inhaled dust.
Yet he dismissed it again... all of it, just the same as every day, pain filled his body, but to others, it seemed he couldn't feel anything. He was a strange man, even in this bizarre world filled with monsters, magic, and whatnot.
Finally, just like every other day, after getting ready, he began to walk down from the small hill where their little home was stationed.