My boots sink into the foot-deep carpet of ash until the crunch of gravel stops their descent as I continue forward. My back and knees are killing me as I climb the mountain, the pack on my back weighing me down badly as my hike continues. Each breath is a struggle as the ash falling like snow is thick around here and the filter on my gasmask works overtime to keep me from choking on the fine gray powder, this mixed with the increasing altitude makes my aging body scream in agony with each step.


    Every few minutes I have to wipe the lenses of my mask so I can watch where I am going, a fall right now could be lethal. As I ascend I pass the wreckage of part of the massive concrete wall that had once surrounded the caldera that started this apocalypse. As I climb my mind wanders back to the start of this all, the walls being hastily built not to stop the volcano, but to stop the strange being that attempted to crawl out of it.


    I slip into a shell crater and swear loudly as I fall into the pit of ash that nearly goes over my head. I pull myself from the hole and remember the great barrages of artillery fired by the remnants of the US Army to hold the things back as they breached the walls, the futile struggle against something that nowadays is considered a part of life in the Ashlands.


    We call em "Demons" which is probably untrue to their actual nature, but the word fits. Malicious beings that don''t follow any known biology and have strange abilities that aren''t exactly magic, but they definitely aren''t natural. Distantly over the sound dampening of the falling ash, I hear a haunting howl, like an air-raid siren mixed with a person mimicking a wolf. I can see through the powder ash a blue streak moving below the mountain I am on. I shake my head and continue climbing as the demon passes. The only thing we know is that there are different kinds of them and they can be categorized which is nice I guess. Some can be killed with any gun and others require more ritualistic means or a really big boom to take care of.


    That one down there is the hard kind, I refer to them as trains due to their sound and shape. Long and streaking is the best description of them, but up close they look like dozens of glowing human silhouettes all in a line moving in tandem. They are one of the least hostile kinds, but as far as I can tell they are an unstoppable force, and if they run into you as they move you just sorta turn into powder. It seems painless from the things I''ve seen, I don''t wanna find out myself.


    As I pass more old fortifications I remember how life has changed in the ash after all these decades. At first, the only thing to worry about was other people. After the nukes especially because the limited food being shipped in stopped entirely. Those times were the worst as the ash had yet to spawn the ecosystem that it has now, the only food being the rare animal corpse or whatever wasn''t already eaten by the starving masses... there was a third option... but those were times of great starvation...


    Then after that, the demons came and the less natural aspects of this wasteland appeared...


    On my hip, the handheld magnetometer I carry makes a loud beep as if something is disrupting the natural magnetic field of the earth. I sigh and grab it. I start waving it back and forth slowly looking for the source of the disruption. I find it and move away, changing my direct path up the mountain taking more energy and causing my aching bones more pain.


    Alongside the demons, something began popping up throughout the Ashlands. We called them anomalies, naming them after the things from the old video game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Fitting enough because most of the real anomalies act very similar to those from the game. I don''t know what kind I avoided there, but anomalies are not one category of thing, it''s just what we in the ash call non-living things that are supernatural. From things that can teleport you into the skies to invisible clouds of superheated gas that cook anything living in seconds, there are many fun ways to die in the ash. Luckily anomalies also tend to produce strange magnetic fields, radiation, or radio waves so Geiger counters, magnetometers, and radios are capable of detecting them long before your senses can.


    I put the device back onto my belt and continue upward to the top of the mountain. I am starting to struggle as the face gets steeper as I get higher and higher. At one point I have to get onto all fours to scramble up the face reminding me of my days as a kid, back when the skies were clear and green grass grew everywhere. The higher I go the worse the ash gets for some reason, yet there isn''t any wind to cause this type of ashfall.


    After hours and hours of climbing the ash grows thick. My knees are screaming but I have to summit the mountain before nightfall. I probably slipped a disc in my back again due to a stumble earlier, the 75lbs pack on my back doing horrors to my spine, but decades of survival has made my back strong... that and after the supernatural stuff started an ecosystem formed in the ash.


    Where once were forests of trees, towering mushrooms took their place and the interior of those shrooms turned out to be quite tasty and nutritious. The various beasts and monster-like critters that came about proved to be decently edible. I have no clue how flora and fauna managed to evolve this quickly, but it probably has something to do with radiation and stupid supernatural stuff. Regardless I haven''t been starved since, so I can''t complain too much. I just wish the critters didn''t look like the cryptids I read about when I was younger. It makes it awkward to eat em sometimes.


    I can see the summit now and I am spurred forward with a sudden jolt of energy. I scramble up the rocky face of the mountain only to be nearly blown off by a powerful gust of wind. As soon as I reach the top the wind is brutal, ripping at me with chilly intensity. I struggle to walk forward into the wind as the powdery ash feels like bullets hitting me. I struggle forward as what appears to be a wall of floating ash is in front of me. I grit my teeth and struggle forward, my boots barely keeping purchase on the bare rocks of the mountaintop. I reach the wall and with all my might I throw myself against the wind and through the wall...


    I have to cover my eyes as I am blinded by a brilliant light as the wind is suddenly gone, replaced with a gentle breeze...


    I let my eyes adjust and I slowly open them and loudly gasp for air as a sight I never thought I would see again graces my vision.


    Before me are green mountain faces, sprawling forests, and endless fields of grass. The sky is blue and beautiful and I can see multiple pristine lakes and rivers flowing from the mountains. The blinding light is the pale sun above which stares down at me invitingly like a friend who I haven''t seen in many many years.


    I fall to my knees and land on the sparse grass of the mountaintop and run my gloved hands through it as I feel tears well up in my eyes. I have spent decades wandering through the endless expanse of ash with thick clouds above my only sky... through the ruins of the United States and Canada, I never thought this place of all would be the place with blue skies and greenery...


    I stand above Yellowstone, the last green place in North America, and the ground zero of the apocalypse...


    I make it down the mountain and stop for a moment to rest my aching body and catch my breath. During this time I exchange the ash filter on my mask and immediately find it super easy to breathe, but I don''t remove any of my protective gear. You don''t survive the apocalypse for decades by not being paranoid. As amazing as this place is, I don''t trust it. I will keep my protective stuff on until I am certain that it is safe here.


    While I sit I mess with my detection equipment and find nothing anomalous as far as I can tell. Just to be safe I recalibrate them and still find nothing. Across my lap, I keep my SA58 rifle at the ready, just in case. While sitting, to my delight and slight horror a herd of elk walk by, grazing as if I weren''t there. I stay quiet keeping in mind they haven''t seen a human in a while. I watch the creatures until they leave my sight, and only then do I put my equipment on my belt and begin trekking once again, rifle in hand.


    I move carefully through forests, peering around every tree worried there is some terrible monster awaiting me there, but every time there is nothing, the worst thing I come across is a herd of bison who pay me no mind and I let them pass before I continue forward.


    I walk by clear water streams, something I appreciate deeply as I fill my canteen, but I put a purification tablet in it for a few hours before I even attempt to sip at it. I watch trout jump out of the water after bugs fluttering around. During this hike, I notice I have a smile on my face the whole time... it''s a good feeling to be in a place like this. I watch the fish for a while as it has been so long since I''ve seen a fish, most waterways being too choked with ash or radioactive for them to exist.


    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    I keep moving into the valley, deeper into the caldera of Yellowstone heading for the center of the apocalypse. The sun begins to set so I find a sturdy pine tree and after tying a rope around it I attach spikes to my boots and begin climbing the tree. I get to a bunch of sturdy branches and tie myself to the trunk on a slack line. Using some sturdy tarps and more rope I make a nest for myself up in the tree. I remove my pack and set it next to me, keeping my rifle within arms reach. From my pack I get another tarp and set up a tent over the top of my nest giving me shelter in the event of rain... or what it usually is for, an ashfall.


    I sip on my freshly purified water and grimace at the taste of the purification chemicals, but the water isn''t lumpy with ash, so that''s a great feeling to simply guzzle down the clear liquid. After every drink I replace my mask before taking a breath, still not certain of the safety of the air. From my bag, I produce a lump of dried and cured meat. I rub it in my hands for a while until the tough fibers are worked down to be less tough, I still have all my teeth, but at my age and after everything a softer meal is probably a better choice. I chew and swallow the meat, its pork-like taste followed by an indescribable bitterness. It reminds me of the starving times, but I''m fairly certain the creature I took it from wasn''t human despite the superficial looks.


    I finish my meal and drink but have a decision to make, but it''s quickly decided as I pull out the completely sealed bottle of Coors beer I managed to find. My only real vice is my love of drink, but mushroom wine and "beer" is nothing compared to the taste of one from before the ash. I am saving the beer for a special occasion but I''ve decided this is one, as I probably won''t be around to enjoy it after tomorrow...


    I don''t remember where I heard the rumor. It might''ve been another fake one created by the similarity of our situation to the S.T.A.L.K.E.R game but a few years ago near St.Louis I heard that the center crater from the Yellowstone eruption contained an anomaly that can grant wishes... actually now that I think about it, it is a video game reference, but I had nothing better to do so I began my journey to this place, not like I had many other options because I am at the end of my life.


    About a year ago in one of the few remaining settlements I had a doctor give me a checkup and during bloodwork, it was found I most likely have some form of bone or blood cancer. The Doctor informed me that it looked to be early stages by their estimation, but in this apocalyptic world, there are no treatment options. This revitalized my journey to the Yellowstone volcano, if not to get a wish, then at the very least to do something before I pass. Now after seeing this place of green... I may get a wish.


    I finish my beer and replace my mask before I lie back to try and sleep. These old bones require lots of rest after that climb...


    The radio on my hip squelches suddenly and begins to buzz with static. I wake up immediately and turn it off while grabbing my rifle and flicking the safety off. While normally the radio is used to detect anomalies it can also be used to detect other things, and anomalies don''t move.


    I slowly remove my upper tarp so I can attempt to see around me in the moonlit night, something I am not used to. I can only hear the sounds of the forest, wolves howling, elk yodeling, and some distant grunts that sound like bison. Then I hear what sounds like wind blowing the leaves and sticks of the forest floor, but there is no wind. It is still. I peer around the tree I am in and notice a huge black shape moving through the trees, snaking and flowing like a living shadow. The wind-flowing sound is its movements over the dead leaves on the forest floor. It flows around my tree and I can see the shadows seemingly flow from a central location at the front, like the head of a snake. It begins circling my tree and those surrounding me slowly and deliberately as it knows I am nearby. The radio is both of our notifications.


    Some demons can be located with radios as they seem to produce radio static and sometimes quick pulses that sound as if someone is trying to reach you on the other end. They can''t seem to control this at all, but many have learned that the sound of radio static is like a dinner-bell, if they are the kind that needs to eat.


    I get a feeling like someone running an ice cube down my spine and mentally prepare myself for what is next,


    "Where are you human? I cannot see, let me know where you are."


    A voice as smooth as silk and filled with what sounds like pure concern fills my head as it is one of the demons with some form of psychic abilities or whatever it is they use. These are the worst kind and are generally referred to as "greater demons" as they are quite intelligent and quite malicious and dangerous. These guys are the worst because they are rarely susceptible to standard methods of killing, are usually very powerful, and of course, are as smart as humans. These ones hate humanity for some reason and they show it through action. Speaking to me is a method used to lure me out, and the worst part is that it''s hard not to respond.


    While mind control is non-existent as far as we ashwalkers have figured out the tone of voice they use makes you feel almost bad for not listening to any command or request given. Not through some hypnotic way, but in a similar way when you are disobeying your parents. You feel guilty not responding or not telling the truth. Lucky for me I''m a crotchety old man so I am quite resistant to this sway, but that doesn''t mean I am not scared shitless right now as I keep my rifle trained on the front of the demon. It then speaks again,


    "I am only trying to help. This place is so far from where humans normally live, isn''t it? Aren''t you lonely without others around? I can accompany you to your destination. I can promise you safety."


    I stay silent, keeping my breathing as quiet as possible before it starts only circling my tree. I pray silently, mouthing words of salvation. While these demons are not the kind from any bible, sometimes prayer does seem to work, or maybe just coincidence, but I''ve seen it both work and not work so it doesn''t hurt to try in a situation like this, especially when I am so close to my final goal.


    I stop circling and even without eyes I know it is staring at me and I squeeze the trigger once.


    The night is illuminated for a moment as the 308 round leaves the barrel, for a moment the demon''s shadows are lifted and I don''t linger on what I saw because there are no words or true descriptions of a being so vile, to think on it would only serve to drive me insane. The deafening crack of the rifle causes the world to go silent for a moment and the demon recoils maybe not in pain, but in fear of the light, I would assume. I use this moment to cut my slackline and put my pack back on. With the grace of a fat, aging cat I clamber down the tree and begin sprinting away as the demon chases me at a leisurely pace. I squeeze another round off causing it to back away for another short while as I head downhill, hopefully toward the crater.


    I run for a while, catching my breath momentarily when I get far ahead of the demon but I feel myself losing this race for survival, and I know it is playing with me. It could easily catch me at any time, but I think it''s enjoying the chase. I don''t think it was lying that there are no humans here, so it wishes to enjoy the one it has caught.


    I stumble out of a wooded ridge gasping for breath and coughing my lungs out when I see a red glow in the distance. My eyes follow the light and I see the raised lips of a crater, there it is the center... and possibly a wish... with a goal in sight I continue my run as I replace the empty magazine in my rifle, the sound of rushing wind getting closer.


    I climb the lip of the crater but surprisingly I don''t feel any heat as would be expected to be coming from a boiling volcano. I can see the shadows slowly make their way up the hill, hesitant of the red light of the lava. I pull myself over the lip expecting something... but all I see is a boiling lake of lava that doesn''t feel hot to me for some reason. I stand on the edge and also notice the edges of the crater are green, all the way up to the lava which makes no sense... none of this makes sense. I back down into the crater emptying my magazine into the demon doing nothing. I stand at the edge where the grass meets the lava and still feel no heat. I hope the light will protect me but the demon approaches, discarding its shadows.


    The being seemingly composed of tangled thorns and glaring red eyes stares at me and somehow I can tell it is smiling warmly. Not in a cruel or predatory manner, but with genuine care, even though it has no visible mouth. I feel the ice once more and it says,


    "Congratulations you made it this far. To where it all began, to where it all ended. Is it everything you hoped for?"


    I laugh and respond,


    "I dunno, I was told I''d get my wish granted here."


    The demon pauses and responds with sadness in its voice,


    "Ah... humans have always been the kind to hope for salvation. I am sorry to tell you, but there is none here. The only wish you may have granted is one for a swift death... I can guarantee that as you have been most fun. It would be too cruel even for me to torment you."


    I laugh and ask,


    "So before that... what''s with this lava? Why ain''t it hot?"


    This gives pause to the demon and it eventually answers as it slowly begins encircling me with its... tendrils? Vines? Arms? I don''t know it just encircles me in whatever it''s made of,


    "I am surprised you see it as lava because that isn''t what it is. The human mind is quite interesting I do say. I have no idea what it is either but it is the reason this place is green and full of life and why the ash cannot enter here."


    I nod and watch as the world around me becomes the demon. I begin to accept my fate but remember one little tool I have left. From my bag, the M61 fragmentation grenade I found inside a downed C-130 years ago is produced. I yank the pin, flip the clip, and toss it into the air with my last words,


    "Well... it''s been a good run..."


    As the blast goes off a long tendril jets toward my chest and a bright flash blinds me. My last thoughts are,


    "Frags don''t produce that much light..."


    My eyes open, staring at a featureless white ceiling... and panic immediately sets in...