Ash drifted down like snow, softly settling upon the rusted metal and rebar.


    Alexander''s boots crunched against the dust-covered ground as he approached the pre-Collapse factory, it''s infrastructure barely holding on. Overhead, steel beams groaned against the wind.


    He adjusted the strap on his scavenger''s bag and kept his pace.


    In his hand was a Geiger counter, flickering green—it was still safe, barely.


    Alexander was young, about 15 years of age. He didn''t look like it though. His body was lean from hunger, littered with dirt and grime. His eyes were sharp, the eyes of someone who had discarded his naiveté.


    He reached his hands into a half-buried panel in the concrete, prying it open with a makeshift crowbar. Inside was a bunch of scrapped data chips, a few old cables and processing units.


    It wasn''t much, but he''d still get a sizeable sum if Reeva didn''t lowball him—again.


    He took what he could and began heading back.


    …..


    Greyreach couldn''t be found on any map. It was simply a small hub established and run by scavengers.


    Alexander approached the gates, his head down, careful not to stare at anybody else. The half-broken good for nothing turret guarded the main entrance, only there to intimidate people from other hubs.


    He could feel stares tracking him as he walked by—some were of recognition, while some were of hostility.


    At the edge of the hub was Reeva, a middle-aged woman with streaks of white in her hair.


    She was leaning on the counter of a small hut. Black market goods and other scraps were scattered on a table within the hut.


    Alexander set his scavenger''s bag on the counter and opened it.


    Reeva scanned the items in the bag, taking them out one by one.


    "This is it?" she asked.


    "Scavenge them yourself if you want anymore." Alexander said, his voice mildly annoyed.


    "I''ll give you twenty creds for these."


    "Forty"


    Reeva snorted, "Fine, thirty creds, take it or leave it."


    "Deal." He snatched the credit chip off the counter and left before Reeva could change her mind about the deal.


    ....


    The hub wasn''t active like it was supposed to. Kids weren''t playing in the mud alleyways, and many of the vendors had either closed shop or left.


    Hushed whispers of a conversation entered Alexander''s ears as he listened in, "… Dead zone''s moving up again. "


    "Cleared zone, my ass. It hasn''t even been a few months since the third breach."


    "Heard another scout team went dark."


    Alexander had heard enough. He resumed his journey back to his home—if you could even call it that.


    ....


    His tiny shack sat on the eastern edges of Greyreach.


    It was small and quiet, just enough to stay out of sight.


    He closed the door behind him and took off his jacket. His shirt clung to him, damp from his sweat.


    He sat cross-legged on the ground, his face tense.


    He placed two fingers on his inner forearm, where an improvised seal of monster''s blood was drawn.


    He took in a deep breath. Circulate the Aether, reverse the flow of Corruption. Do not let them touch, only circling.


    Inside, energy stirred. He slowly threaded the Corruption around his body, careful not to touch his Aether Core. If they touched…


    His hand trembled.


    His jaws clenched; teeth grit.


    Five seconds… Ten seconds... Fifteen.


    Equilibrium.


    The pressure that had been built up released.


    Alexander crumpled down to the floor, breathing a very much needed sigh of relief.


    He was still here. Still in one piece.


    ...


    Later that evening, an unwelcome guest appeared.


    It was Tera. She had known Alexander ever since they were just little children. Their parents had known each other quite well and often helped each other.


    But Alexander had changed ever since the first breach. He''d grown colder, more distant. His shack, which barely accommodated him and his parents, had only one resident now.


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    She stepped in before Alexander could say anything about it. She had black hair, though it looked grayer because of the dust. She wore a jacket that was clearly too beaten up for its own good, but she didn''t mind. Her eyes didn''t miss much as she glanced around.


    "You hear about the border?"


    "Yeah," he said.


    "I''m going tomorrow. Scouting. We need someone who knows the terrain well."


    "Not my problem."


    "But you''ve been near the ridge more than anybody else here."


    "I''ve also stayed alive only because I''ve gone by myself. That''s not a coincidence."


    She sighed, "You should leave this place, before it gets breached."


    Her mouth opened again, clearly wanting to say something, but she stopped herself.


    She turned around and left, leaving the door open behind her.


    Alexander stared at the fading back of Tera, "Damn it."


    ...


    The morning was cold. The clouds overshadowed the sun, bringing the temperature down to shivering degrees.


    Three scouts—including Tera—had assembled near the front gates of Greyreach. They had been studying the terrain of the border between the dead zone and the cleared zone for almost an hour, planning their path.


    Tera tapped the map with her gloved finger, "So, we''ll follow the dried riverbed through sector 7-B, it should be able to cut travel time by a third."


    The older scout, Bren, shook his head, "It''s too dangerous. Whole place stinks of Corruption. We''ll go wide, skirt the east ridge."


    Tera stood her ground, "We can''t. If the dead zone is heating up, then we''d need to save as much time as possible. There''s no telling when it''ll roll us over."


    "Fine. Once we get to the Plateau Overlook, we''ll search for the last scout team. Be careful not to stumble into the Deadzone."


    Tera nodded, "We''ll leave in half an hour, get your gear prepped in the meantime."


    The third scout, a younger boy named Kale shifted his weight to his other leg, "Shouldn''t there be four of us?"


    Tera gazed past him, "He''ll show. Don''t worry."


    Kale, following her gaze—flinched. Alexander was walking towards them, quiet as ever. He carried with him his scavenger''s bag, now equipped with gear.


    The silence weighed heavy until Alexander stopped beside the map and pointed at it, "We''ll cut through the sector."


    Bren grunted, "Guess we''re all in agreement."


    Alexander didn''t respond, his gaze already set on the horizon.


    ...


    The group made their way across the piles of rubble and scraps.


    They followed the riverbed through the shortcut and soon arrived at a small cliffside.


    Beyond it was a wasteland worse than the junkyard they had been living in. The earth fractured. Jutting peaks rose up unevenly, with fragments of metal sticking out from the dirt. There were no signs of any plant life, only collapsed structures that had once been a part of a military facility.


    The air was thin, and the lighting was especially dark.


    Tera spoke up, "Anything?"


    "Movement," Alexander said, "Just by the northern side of the facility."


    Besides them, Bren tightened the straps of his bag, "They weren''t kidding, it feels like the Deadzone is creeping back to this place."


    Tera hissed, "Focus."


    He wasn''t wrong though.


    Alexander furrowed his brows, "It shouldn''t be this quiet."


    He approached some pipes that stuck out the cliffside and crouched down. On it was thick and sticky black substance.


    He dragged his gloved fingers across the blood, examining the substance on his fingers. He frowned. He knew what it was.


    He stood back up, "Monster''s blood. Pretty recent, too."


    Tera''s voice dropped an octave lower, "Then whatever breached the Ridge must be close. We must get to the Plateau Overlook, quick."


    ...


    By midday, they had arrived at the Plateau Overlook. It was a flat stretch of land that also served as an outlook into the Deadzone.


    Bent rebar could be seen peeking out of the ground, possibly part of the camp the previous scout team set up. Scattered gear and blood dotted the ground. There were no bodies.


    On the ground were tracks, mostly human ones—mostly. Claw marks were carved into the earth. And at the edge of the cliff was an imprint. It looked as if a chunk the cliff had been bitten off. The chunk must''ve been roughly twelve to fourteen in diameter.


    Tera knelt beside the imprint, her eyes narrowing, "What the hell leaves an imprint like that?"


    "D-does that matter? We''ve already seen enough. We should just log it and go." Kale said, his voice shaking.


    Alexander slowly walked over to the edge of the cliff.


    If one looked over the horizon, they would be able to see Corruption spread everywhere. The Corruption slowly grew more concentrated the further one looked. Black veins branched across the earth, slowly pulsating as if alive.


    The Corruption had spread closer. Before, they would only see the Corruption if they carefully examined the ground that was a few hundred meters away. Now, it seemed as if it were about to make its way up the cliff edge.


    And then he froze. He chest tightened, the equilibrium between the Aether and Corruption shook.


    "We''re being watched. It''s strong."


    That''s when the roar ripped through the air. Alexander and the others quickly covered their ears, though it still didn''t stop their eardrums from almost bursting.


    Then, there was silence.


    The ground vibrated. Like it was breathing.


    And then it attacked.


    ...


    "Run!" Alexander yelled, pulling Tera up from her kneeling position.


    The group took off running, each person separating into different directions.


    Alexander looked behind him at the monster. It was vaguely quadrupedal; its limbs were unique. Some were large and thick like a hammer, while the others were sinewy. Its skin was a pale gray, with black veins crawling inside it. It was a fallen—a human who had walked the Path of Corruption but had fallen. It was a Hollow, a stage that was equivalent to the Forging stage.


    The monster roared again and began charging towards one of the scouts.


    It''d chosen Tera.


    Its movements were erratic, it''s limbs seemingly flailing around with no sense of direction.


    Tera pushed her legs forward, her mind filled with fear.


    The monster slowly closed the distance between them and, with it''s sinewy limb, lashed at her.


    Tera had no time to think--she instinctively dived to the ground, the arm barely missing her.


    She was down, too slow to get up in time.


    The Fallen didn''t stop. It surged forward, gaining more speed.


    Bren and Kale were too far away to help even if they ran at their full speeds.


    Time slowed to a crawl.


    Alexander saw all of it. He saw how the arm of the Fallen raced towards Tera like a whip. He saw Tera''s face—etched with fear. He saw the way the ground cracked underneath the Fallen''s feet; how Tera''s fingers dug into the ground as she scrambled.


    And then—


    He felt it. Fear, anxiety, but most importantly, rage.


    He didn''t know why, but he felt that he had to save Tera.


    Left with no other choices, he allowed the balance between the Aether and Corruption inside his body he so painstakingly kept be destroyed.


    The Corruption collided with his Aether Core, igniting with an explosion of energy and power that fractured Alexander''s body. Cracks appeared across his body, with bones shattering one by one.


    He only had a few seconds.


    He moved, and in an instant, he arrived in front of the Fallen. He unleashed a flurry of berserk punches that slowly but surely battered the Fallen to death.


    The Fallen roared with rage. It swung down it''s hammer like appendage, creating a deep crater in the ground. Alexander barely dodged it in time, his body screaming in pain.


    He could feel himself on the verge of blacking out. With no time to spare, he leaped towards the Fallen''s head, wrapping his legs around its neck.


    The Fallen tried desperately to force Alexander off, but to no avail.


    Alexander folded his hands together, raised them up, and smashed down with as much force as he can.


    His arms snapped, bending unnaturally, but it had done its job. Accompanying the snap was a guttural crack. The Fallen''s head had been mostly crushed by Alexander.


    The Fallen fell, and Alexander with it.


    He rolled off the Fallen, his body broken and battered. His face carried a slight smile, before he blacked out.