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I oversee another destroyed city, My eyes slowly travel over the empty areas that once were streets, parks, plaza’s. The wreckage is evident. But you can see after years nature is taking over.
In the beginning of the war when you heard a sudden sound you knew that it was danger. That you had to duck, hide or run the hell away.
Now a sudden sound usually means a bird, or a bunny that got scared from your presence.
Well not your. My presence, I am the only humanoid alive.
This used to be a thriving city, you can see that from the high buildings that once stood here. Most of the lived areas on this planet were thriving, a lot of economy. Not so much political struggles. That came later.
Lets start from the beginning, I was raised by my mom, a powerful strong woman. She handled her own as a single mom. She raised me. She worked and she had time to teach me all she knew.
If she hadn’t I might have not survived.
Mom was one of the highest regarded instructors, she knew fighting styles she knew weapons. And she had such grace. Weightless as a bird, graceful as a feline. And ferocious as drake.
Speaking of which, I’m hungry. Pulling out a bit of dried meat I check it first. Last time a batch had gone bad probably moisture and I got sick for a while.
Even if I’m the only humanoid left alive. I don’t want to be incapacitated due to food poisoning.
I hear the neighing of Sleipnir, he is my friend. A Bicornic-horse. They were bred specially for battle. Although we were a very advanced people. We trusted still a lot on our companionship with animals. We had big cities we lived in and the outside of the cities we didn’t come. That was for the wild.
But that changed in the war.
Walking down I check the perimeter. Step by step. Stop, point gun, turn, check and move.
I don’t know why. It is hammered into my being.
The main cities were the first to go. More people there. Then the smaller cities. The worker places.
It spread like a wildfire. Good thing the animals weren’t affected.
Arriving downstairs I see Sleipnir inching nervously patting his neck I check around. Yeah I can smell it. Predators around it has that certain stench.
Inhaling the air I taste it. They must be close. I raise myself upon Sleipnir and calmly we move away. I do ready my guns though. Checking my battery packs I see that I have one and a half extra battery pack. I’m sure I’ll manage with that.
Looking at my mom’s picture pressing a kiss against it we move.
Hours go by I think the predators are waiting for us to stop and make camp.
With the removal of the humanoids the wild became smarter. Humanoids those that survived the war were quickly dangling lower on the food chain.
But I don’t need rest that often.
The sun starting be high in the sky. We used to have a blue sky but due pollution it is now a dirty greenish look. The sun burns hot and vicious I’ve shaven off my hair I think at the beginning of the war the polluted air would leave residue in your hair which would make you sick. I kind of like it now, less maintenance. Mom loved my dark hair though.
The war called for the blowing up of energy cores apparently It destroyed a lot of the areas. People died horrible gruesome deaths.
Once I was partially caught in a blast but I.. well got better.
Mom said the same went for my father. Never met him, he left before I was born. Mom never really spoke about my father. I don’t know why. She was never open about it. I just at a point didn’t ask anymore.
It was just me and her.
Now it is just me and Sleipnir.
I move for a full day. When the dawn hits I decide it is far enough and Sleipnir needs a moment to not carry me around. The batteries are full enough. I think I can permit myself a warm meal. I barely do that but sometimes I do.
And I kept track well enough and I know I do. It is my birthday today. I saved a can of ravioli for myself. I don’t know how they do it but that stuff lasts. It is not how mom made it but hey it will do.
Letting Sleipnir drink from a safe water stream nearby and graze around a bit I start to heat up the can with a little energycooker.
A little bird flutters by it might have a nest here. Ah what the hell. Grabbing my drawing things I start to sketch it. I do that now and then when I know it is safe enough. Sketch the creatures around. The picture of my mom was one of the last drawings I made before the war. Fucking war.
Just proves of the greed and jealousy. The fact that they couldn’t share… means we didn’t deserve it anyway.
Sketching the small bird I whistle to it. Oh how I wish I had my flutes. They are all destroyed. They were still at home with mom.
Our city was the first to fall, since we had the energy source. It was a revolutionary thing. Clean preputium power source. The city was willing to share. But the paranoia hit. The mistrust. Then the first bombing. The first killings, the massacres followed. It went so quick within 5 years our whole society was gone. The survivors tried to make something out of it. But most didn’t respect nature anymore as they should. Underestimating it.
Some went sick. Didn’t know where to look for a cure. They died.
Children didn’t get born anymore. Why would you want to raise a child in this?
And I’ve now taken I think 40 years.
Looking down on my leg.. yeah 40 years. I make every year an incision in my leg and put a cleaned colored stone under my skin. Fixating it for a few days makes it stay there. That way I can count. It happened that my calendars got lost. Or destroyed. My leg if that gets taken away I am probably dead anyway.
Mom always said I barely got hurt and if I did I was okey in no time.
Top graduate of my class.
Climbed the ranks quickly.
Became an instructor for the young ones. Since I could still reach them before they would be given up upon. And sne dto do manual labour. They would then forever dangle on the lowest ranks or just rot away in prison as criminals. I gave these young people a chance. Motivated them. Make them see to fight the good fight so to say.
And now. 40 years later. That would make me. 72 years according to my counts.
The little bird fluttering away startled me. My food is warm but I have the feeling I have to leave now.
With a soft clicking I call Sleipnir to me. He obeys. He always does. I calmly pack my things I don’t want to lose these things. Can’t just replace them anymore.
Sleipnir and I both freeze yeah we recognize that sound. Fucking drakes. They normally don’t come to this area.
I just throw my stuff in the bags now and jump on Sleipnirs back..loading my guns I click the instructions to Sleipnir, I didn’t had to. He knows what I want. I turn in the saddle locking my legs in place and I wait for those glimmering eyes to show up.
There they are. One pair. Two…four pair.. fuck it is a horde of them. I start shooting between the eyes. These drakes have a bone plate which is lose near their nose ten centimeters down their eyes.
If I hit that they are stunned, if I am lucky they get knocked out. If I keep shooting I might breach it and kill them. But I don’t have the luxury for that.
I load and shoot. Moving tactically between the pairs of eyes.
The battle took long and all my battery packs. The drakes got a few bites and claw marks on me. I was bleeding so was Sleipnir. I bandaged Sleipnir and just cauterized my wounds. The pain is bad. But Sleipnir can still move. And I am allowed on his back still. So I lay down. For a moment. And hope we don’t get killed.
I hear a bird sing a song and I softly humm myself to sleep. A little song I always hummed. Mom didn’t like it when I came up with it. But it reminds me of better days.