A sequel to Zia's Days, this time we will look at Zulf's time from the beginning of the Calamity to his time in the Hanging Gardens. Let's begin shall we?
Zulf's Days
I woke up with a horrible hangover; guess I drank too much at my wedding. Should never have done that, can barely remember much of it. I sat up from the couch in my sitting room and stretched my arms, yawning as I smacked my lips, hungering for some breakfast. I stumbled into the kitchen and looked through the pantry and grabbed an apple.
I took a bite from it; it was so juicy, just the way I love apples. Then my gaze went out the window, where I saw the horrors outside. There were Squirts and Gasfellas roaming the streets of the city. Where was the city folk? The Marshalls, the Caels, they were nowhere to be seen. But worse was that the city was in shambles; the buildings were in ruin, the streets had crumbled, and the sky had a strange colored glow.
I ran upstairs to find my wife, and I did. She was in the bedroom, facing the window. I let out a sigh of relief.
"Dear," I said to her. I could not remember her name thanks to my hangover. "Do you know what's going on out there?" There was only silence. I walked over to her. When I saw her, I dropped my apple in shock. She was nothing but stone. I did not understand; how? I thought at first it was a joke played by my friends and her, to get back for my behavior at the wedding, but everything outside convinced me it was not.
I fell to my knees and wept. My newly wed wife was dead. I looked upon her face; she looked so happy. What could have done this? I stood up and faced my wife. I leaned in close and kissed her on her lips. But as soon as I touched her, her body crumbled to ashes. I made a hastily grab as her ashes flew out the window, grabbing only a small clump before they all disappeared into the city. I dumped those ashes into a small pouch and tied it to my waist.
After I did that, I broke down into tears again. Why did my wife die? What could have done this? Have the Gods unleashed their anger upon us? I do not know. I went downstairs and began packing some food into a backpack. I kept wondering if this has happened to others. Did they turn to stone, or are there other survivors like me? I grabbed my old war machete and my Ura sigil from upstairs before I headed for the front door. I paused to look in the sitting room. On an end table sat a picture frame of my wedding night. My wife and I holding each other in our arms as others cheered from behind. I took that picture and folded it into my pocket.
Outside, I wandered through the streets, looking for anybody. All I found was a few Squirts and a mean looking Gasfella. I ran from them back to my house. There, I stayed for a few days. I mostly sat around crying over the loss of my wife. I only wish I could just hold her in my arms and feel her warm embrace for one last time. But that will never happen.
After those few days, I finally set out to search the city. I searched almost half of it looking for anybody. I found nothing, only the stony remains of the people who lived here. I felt so sad at my discoveries. I felt my sadness wash over my entire body; nothing was left. I was alone.
I walked to the airship docks. There, I started up a ship and headed for the Hanging Gardens, where I was married to my now dead wife. When I arrived there, I noticed how gloomy it looked now. Everything was bleak and dead. The plants and the people are dead. Everyone looked so happy even when they are stone.
I passed by Mr. Beckley and his kindly wife. I felt angered that they were together in their final moments, yet my wife and I were not. I left them alone as I walked by a mother and her son feeding a few stony birds. I walked down the steps only to be met by the Tunder brothers, all together, stoned and happy. I buried my face in my hand, holding back my tears. I continued on. I soon met Nordy; he was always feeding birds whenever he could. I knew him well, he was a nice boy. I passed by the Jawsons. I carefully went around them as too not disturb their remains. I found Grady Senior and Grady Junior, they were dead as well. I found a young woman with a basket of bread. Maybe she gonna have a picnic here. Maybe she was going to meet with some friends.
I could not hold it in anymore. I fell to my knees and cried. When I was done, I continued on. My Ura sigil fell from my waist, the knot undone. I paid it no heed, why should I? I went on to the spot where I was married to my wife. The lamp light was still shining. I stood in our spot and wept. I cried to the Gods above, why did they let this happen? I sat in that spot for a day, questioning what to do. Then, I spoke a prayer in the Ura tongue, and took my sword and aimed for my chest. My hand trembled, and then I broke in tears, and dropped my blade to the floor. I could not do it. Why? Why couldn't I end it all when I have nothing left? I stood up and looked to the stars. I just stared, hoping the Gods will give me an answer.
Sure enough, my answer came. I felt a hand on my shoulder and I spun around. In front of me was a young Cael kid; a great Cael hammer on his back and a Breaker's bow to go with it. He held my Ura sigil in his other hand. I wiped the tears from my eyes as he said those words. They were just simple words, but hearing a voice other than my own felt magical to me.
"We have to go. Please."
I went with him to the Bastion. There, I was met by Rucks, who ran the Bastion. The young Cael told him to just call him Kid. I thanked them both, telling them I was overjoyed to find other survivors. My sadness disappeared almost instantly, everything started to look up now. The Kid went to the forge nearby while Rucks looked over a map of Caelondia with a friendly little Squirt. I walked to the edge of the Bastion, just to look over the land before us. Maybe, just maybe, we can find other survivors out there. There's hope now. Now, anything is possible with my new friends.
Hope you enjoyed this story. Remember to leave a review; it really helps me out a lot. Check out my other stories as well. I'll see you next time.