I - Black Jade

The woods were dark at night, dark and dry. Rains were infrequent in the black forests, and the dense buildup of leaves and branches along the earth would leave little chance that errant fire could sputter out.

The stars above were barely visible through the thick canopy, the leaves held up by tall, thin trunks of solid oak and beech. When it was dark, and one stood at the base of these great trees, one's hand could scarcely be seen just centimeters from one's face.

The woods were dark, but they were not quiet. Rustling animals trampled heavily through the underbrush. Rodents skittered in the trees. Insects chirped loudly. Nocturnal birds flew overhead, spying down through the foliage for easy prey. The unquiet was what Daiyu liked most about the forests, so much so that she had decided to move further into the depths of them, a few dozen kilometers from the nearest settlement.

She never saw other people out here. She would wake early, to begin heating water for drinking. She had forsaken coffee since the move to the deep woods, now she foraged for herbs to boil down into tea. It was bitter, but refreshing. She rarely ate breakfast, and would instead spend the morning taking in nature on her doorstep, or minding menial tasks around the area. She might have clothes to clean, or perhaps her generator was on the fritz again. Living alone was busy work, but she had known that when she made the move.

The majority of the day was spent out in the woods. She would pack a lunch for herself, and begin the daily hike between her traps to check for prey. She carried a rifle with her, in case the odd wild boar gave her trouble. She was an adept hunter, but the trip between her traps was unsuitable for carrying large game, only occasionally did she go out looking for wild deer to shoot, and even that was unpleasant. The noise of the gunfire scared away the wildlife, and could allow others to pinpoint her location.

She would spend her evenings in the cabin. After supper, she would read or just go straight to bed, especially if she anticipated an early morning. She had a radio, but it was usually kept shut off.

Life was hard, but the isolation had its benefits. Out here, she was free of the conflicts of the Risen and their enemies. The great battles, the fire, the death and resurrection. The Fallen sometimes passed overhead, in their sky faring, patchwork ships, but they had never bothered her. Out here, hiding was part of living, and Daiyu was content.

Her family lived in Eaton, a small settlement on the edge of the black forests, and the closest settlement to her. It was a quaint village, built in a small valley amid rolling hills and rocky mountains. It was unsubstantial, with less than one hundred residents, and a dozen or so buildings scattered around the valley. It had been quiet for a long time, passing under the eyes of nearby Warlords and Fallen alike, though its isolated nature in the valley meant game was sparse, and food was near constantly dwindling.

Daiyu had finally moved out after it had been discovered. A group of Risen Iron Lords, led by a man named Dryden, had taken up residence in Eaton, promising food in return for use of the village as a stronghold. Lord Dryden valued its strategic position in his ongoing conflict with a neighboring warlord, the Red Man. The Lords he brought with him were loud and brash, and though they did bring food, they ate far more than their share. Daiyu had been planning the move for a long time, but the arrival of the Iron Lords was the last push she needed.

The village hunter and trapper, Judson, had helped her prepare. He taught her how to shoot a gun, skin a boar, navigate in the dark, and so on. He usually had more luck than most tracking down grazing animals nearby to feed the people, but each day the herds dwindled in number, and food around the village became fiercely rationed. Parents often went without food for their children. Daiyu's parents were no different. She had a younger sister, Yu, who ate better than most in the village. Yu cried when Daiyu decided to leave, but Daiyu couldn't stay.

The two, Judson and Daiyu, had been out hunting the day before she left.

"Them Risen," Judson said, low and rough, "they've brought death to the village."

"They brought food, Judson. Mom and Dad haven't looked this healthy in months."

Judson coughed, his breath steaming the air. "Daiyu, girl, you haven't lived long. Not as long as me. These Risen looks like us, but they're killers. They kill themselves, they kill each other, and they kill nice folk like you or me without even meaning to."

He pulled the trigger. A deer cried out and died, shot straight through the neck.

Daiyu kept quiet. She was twenty-two at the time, and this was the first in all her years the Risen had come to Eaton.

As they cut through the brush to retrieve the kill, she said, "They'll only be here for a few more months, maybe less, maybe weeks. They just gotta kill that one man, and they'll be gone."

Judson hefted the carcass onto their sled. "You don't get it, girl. They don't fucking die. They keep coming back, over and over again. Like a ball of snow rolling down a hill, they get huge and flatten everything. All the good folk, they flatten. Like us."

He continued, "It's a good thing you're leaving. Get away from all this while you can. Take Yu with you."

"My parents won't let me," Daiyu pushed the sled over broken branches and rotting leaves, carving through the foliage like a caterpillar eating its way through a leaf, "they say I'm crazy to go out there, alone. And Yu's only nine. She's not used to the deep woods."

Judson frowned, "Push harder. You two kids need to get as far away from this mess as you can. Those iron wolves brought death here, you'll see. Sure, they brought food, but they brought death."

Daiyu had left the next morning, pushing her supplies on the sled Judson had given her. He had taught her how to fell the sturdiest trees, how to lay a foundation. How to debark and dry the logs for use in construction. She labored for weeks, living in a small tent she had brought with her, but she eventually cut a small home out of the deep woods. She packed up her tent, and moved inside. Its insulation left much to be desired, but not so much different from her abode back in Eaton. It was cozy.

That day, she had packed up a selection of game onto her sled, as well as other supplies and the tent. She was making the monthly journey back to Eaton, to share her hunt with the rest. The Iron Lords had overstayed their food reserves, and once again supplies were dwindling. She had talked to her family over the radio. Things were tense. The Lords were continuing to hunt the Red Man, but had failed to make headway. His gangs of marauders prowled the highlands, but he himself was elusive. The worst news came about Judson. He had tried to escape in the night, and had managed to survive alone for a few days, but had been captured by the Red Man and his brigands.

When she last spoke to her family, they said the Red Man was to ride into town the next morning. Judson was to be returned, and the Iron Lords claimed they would attempt to broker a shaky peace with the Red Man. She hadn't brought her radio with her on the journey back, too much weight. It was two days' travel to Eaton, and she couldn't afford to move slowly. She hoped to be met with good news when she got there.

She made camp on the first night. She pitched her tent, and boiled some small bird over the fire for dinner. The sounds of the forest surrounded her, even on the sparse path she traveled. Huge trees towered over her, blotting out the clear night sky. She tried to go to sleep, but she was restless. The Red Man and his men were set to arrive tomorrow morning, when she would still be a day's travel from Eaton. Anything could happen. She stared at the ceiling in her tent, at the coarse, woven fabrics she had mended together to create this temporary shelter. The words of Judson rang like bells in her ears.

They've brought death to the village.

They'll flatten us all.

She slept fitfully, tossing and turning as the words reverberated in her skull. The Iron Lords claimed to be different from the common Warlords who terrorized the lands. They chose to advocate peace, and they adhered to a strict Iron Code. They could not kill Ghosts, nor lightless humans. She had met Lord Dryden, and he had assured her of this point.

"The Iron Lords are a noble people," he said, the ram's horns on his helmet glistening in the sun, "we fight to protect the pitiable lightless, such as yourself."

She hadn't liked him. His words were hollow. His armor and heavy furs were marked with cuts and burns from the brutality of battle. For a man advocating peace, he spent a lot of time in the midst of war.

She woke up late the next morning, her head throbbing. The night had not been kind to her. She packed her things in a hurry, eager to reach Eaton before nightfall. The negotiations could have been happening at this very moment, so she had no time to lose.

She pushed the sled over the ground, sliding over rocks and small brambles. It carried all of her necessary supplies for a trip in the black forest. It had the game she had chosen to bring to the village, her rifle, given to her by Judson, a small cache of ammunition, and her sleeping and eating supplies.

She pushed on throughout the day, tantalized by the resolution of the conflict in her village. Anything could have happened. Was Judson okay? Was her family okay? Would the Iron Lords depart Eaton? Would the Red Man leave them in peace?

It was almost dusk now, and she had made good time. The woods were thinning out, and the dense underbrush had become more walkable. She was nearly back. She brought her eyes up from the ground, where they monitored the path of the sled, and looked forward, hoping to see a reflection off of a window, or a familiar shingled roof. She saw light. She stopped, squinting her eyes to get a better look. Light shined through the trees.

Daiyu dropped the handles of her sled and sprinted forward, leaving it behind. She pumped her legs hard to push her up the gentle slope that lay between her and the village. Her boots made heavy crunching sounds as they slammed into the ground, crushing twigs and leaves underfoot. The trees thinned out, terminating on the edge of the clearing.

Eaton burned before her.

The sky was orange, and filled with dark smoke. The buildings were mostly demolished, a few still raging with unnatural flame. The ground was a sea of dark rubble, charred wood and burnt metal. Corpses littered the valley, young and old. Some were unrecognizable, others wore the basic clothing of the villagers, and yet more wore the battle attire of the Risen and Iron Lords.

Daiyu stood in shock, her eyes wide, the smoke in the air burning them, but she could not blink. Tears began to flow down her dirty cheeks, unclean from her travel through the forests.

She ran down the slope into the village, past once familiar buildings and homes of friends and neighbors. She ran through the town square, past burning corpses, and to the far end of town. She found her house, and fell to her knees. It was a smoking, empty, ruin. An unrecognizable corpse littered the entryway, and further in, her father could be seen, his chest riddled with bullet wounds, his simple clothing dyed red with blood.

Daiyu sobbed, her body shaking with each heaving motion. She lay sprawled out on the ground, facing the sky, crying out like a wounded beast. Judson had been right. The Risen had brought death to Eaton.

Her vision swam. She saw her family on the day she departed, both stern and loving, both regretful of their daughter's withdrawal, and accepting. She had embraced her sister Yu before setting off into the woods, pushing her supplies on a homemade sled. She saw Judson, the night before she left. His words hung in her ears. His warnings, left unattended. She saw visions of her childhood, of running through the woods with the other children, of eating dinner with her family, her sister only a few years old. She saw her first hunt with Judson. She had only been fifteen, but he let her hold his gun. The cold steel pressed against her was a sensation she would never forget, and it came back to her now.

She lay there for half an hour, odd shapes and dreamlike hallucinations passing through her field of vision. Each squeeze of her eyelids cycling through different scenes. She saw her sister melting into wax, she saw a great boar rampaging, its huge nostrils spewing flame as it went. A flaming corpse from the middle of town had stood up. It walked slowly, with a heavy limp, and gradually disappeared into the sparse forest on the edge of town. She blinked, but the corpse lingered, before it fully disappeared into the woods, still aflame.

Daiyu squinted her eyes, her vision hazy with tears. She sat with her legs bent upward, her head pressed between them, looking down at the red earth. She felt nauseous. With great effort, she stood up, and began to walk to the center of town. As she walked, she heard quick footfalls approaching her. She spun around, and saw an older man running down the sloping hill towards her. For a second, she vainly wished it would be Judson, but her hopes were dashed.

Germaine had been a neighbor of her family. He was a solitary man, who had only moved into Eaton a few years prior. He had been a sort of uncle for her, second to Judson. He approached her with wide eyes. A mix of surprise and absolute desolation.

He said, "Daiyu… I'm so sorry," he licked his lips, "the negotiations fell through."

Daiyu fought back the knot in her throat and responded, "I-I saw my p-pa-parents in their house. Is…" A thought occurred to her. She hoped, wildly hoped, that her sister had survived. "Is Yu a-alive?"

Germaine scratched his head. He had been fond of Yu, and she him. She often visited him when their parents were working and Daiyu was out with Judson.

"I just finished burying her, sister. I was coming back for your parents." He wiped his brow with a piece of scorched cloth. "I forgot you were gonna head in today."

Daiyu's eyes once again filled with tears, and she went to Germaine and embraced him. Eaton was gone. Her family was gone. Judson was gone.

"What happened, Germaine?" She spoke quietly, her arms wrapped around his dingy green trench coat

Germaine returned her embrace, and recounted the events of that morning:

"The Red Man rode in on a floating machine, with a posse of local Risen Warlords with him, all armed to the teeth. They brought Judson back, and he was fine, they didn't hurt him or nothing. They just wanted to know where the Iron Lords where, and they told us it was no use playing dumb, cause they saw one of the Lords' Ghosts out on the highlands. Then, Judson grabbed one of their weapons and killed one of 'em. They cut him down real quick, and the Iron Lords, who were watching, opened fire. After that, it was chaos. Neither side gave notice to all the people they were gunning down. Dryden eventually came into town himself, and when he and the Red Man fought, the fire started, which killed everybody else."

The two stood over Judson's body, which lay in a shallow grave the two had dug. He had multiple deep lacerations on his torso, though they had seemingly been cauterized, which Daiyu thought odd. His was the last in a long row of graves of the townspeople who hadn't been burned to ash.

Daiyu looked down at him. "At least they're dead. Those sons of bitches paid for this."

Germaine answered simply, "Dryden survived."

Daiyu nearly threw up. A wave of nausea washed over her as she struggled to stay standing. Dryden had led them. He had brought the Lords into the town and he had been the one to burn it down, along with the Red Man.

Germaine kept talking, "I was able to record some of the fight. Enough to get Dryden stripped of his titles for involving civilians in combat." He turned to Daiyu, "I'm going to make the journey to the Iron Temple, to bring this evidence to Lord Felwinter himself."

Daiyu said to him, "I'm going with you."

"No. You can't."

"Why?! Germaine, these people murdered my FAMILY!"

"I know, sister. I know. But it's a long journey, especially with the world as shitty as it is. It's gonna be years of walking, of fighting. I've been a traveler for a long time, I'm used to it. You need to live on."

Daiyu slumped, defeated. She looked back at Judson in his grave. "I'll finish burying him."

"Thanks, Daiyu. I'm going down into the village."

As Daiyu got to work, Germaine walked to the center of town. A set of smoldering footprints led off into the woods, left by the shambling, flaming corpse Daiyu had seen. She had thought it a vision, but Germaine saw it, too.

Someone else had survived. A Risen, cloaked in their own solar Light. One of the men responsible for the destruction of the village. Germaine looked into the darkness of the forest. Night had fallen, and the smoke shrouded the stars. The dying embers of Eaton were the only light in kilometers.

Germaine shivered. The night air was cool. Eaton had been destroyed, and two of the perpetrators were still out there. The fire within them still burned on.

Germaine looked down at his feet. The ground was littered with embers, one of the closest raged, cloaked in flame.

He snuffed it out with a single drag of his boot.