Chapter 2: The Strangers
Danny gripped the piece of bread firmly in his hands
He still hadn’t eaten anything
He feared that if he turned his gaze away, something would happen
The man with grey hair took notice of this
"You can eat it."
Danny raised his eyes to look at him
The man gave a slight nod
"It’s yours."
Danny carefully broke off a piece and put it into his mouth
His eyes went wide
It was nothing out of the ordinary
Merely bread
Dry and a little hard
Yet to Danny, it was the best thing he had ever tasted
He swallowed that piece and took another
Then one more
"Slow down," one of the men said
Danny paid him no attention
His stomach rumbled in complaint, but he continued eating
The grey-haired man simply observed in silence
"How long has he been sitting out there?"
"Judging by his state?" one of the men remarked. "Not for long."
A different man shook his head
"The village we saw burning was likely his."
Danny ceased eating, his hands gripping the bread more tightly
The men observed him as he halted, the grey-haired man glancing toward the one who had spoken
"That’s enough."
The man bowed his head
"I’m sorry."
Danny stared downward, unwilling to hear any more about it
He had no wish to think about it
Yet thoughts flooded his mind as memories of the fire, the screams, his mother’s voice and his house collapsing bore down on him
Danny pressed his eyes shut
"Don’t dwell on it," the grey-haired man said.
Danny opened his eyes as the man regarded him
"You’ll only cause yourself pain."
Danny couldn’t comprehend how he was supposed to not think about it
How could he possibly avoid thinking about his world being destroyed?
The grey-haired man stood there.
"What’s your name?"
Danny wavered.
He had hardly spoken since escaping.
"Dannies."
The men glanced at one another.
"Dannies?"
"Yes."
The man examined him briefly.
"That’s an unusual name."
Danny turned his gaze away.
"My mother gave it to me."
The man nodded.
"I see."
He didn’t press the matter and turned to the others.
"We’re leaving."
One of the men appeared surprised.
"Already?"
"We’ve lingered here long enough."
"And the boy?"
The man with grey hair turned his gaze to Danny
"He is coming along with us."
Danny raised his head
"Where to?"
"To the settlement."
"Which settlement?"
The man gestured toward the deeper part of the forest
"Fort Haven."
Danny had never heard that name before
"What is it?"
"A place where people are still alive."
That was all Danny needed, and he got to his feet
The men started walking and he trailed after them, keeping to the middle of the group
He couldn’t tell if they were guarding him or making sure he wouldn’t bolt, but either way he stayed close
Now and then, the man with the crossbow would look back
"What are you keeping an eye out for?" Danny asked.
"Monsters."
Danny’s pace slowed
"Are there monsters in this place?"
The man turned his eyes toward him
"All around us."
Danny gulped
He had believed the forest to be safe
But it wasn’t
Nothing ever was
They kept walking, and before long, Danny spotted odd marks cut into the wood
Strange patterns of white lines and circles covered the bark
"What are those things?"
The grey-haired man traced the direction of his stare
"Wards."
"Wards?"
"They ward off monsters."
Danny fixed his eyes on the symbol
"In what way?"
The man paused before replying
"Echo energy."
Danny turned to the man
"And what is that?"
The man cast a quick look at him
"You really don’t know?"
Danny shook his head
The man appeared taken aback
His expression then grew gentler
"True. You’re still just a child."
He turned back and kept on walking
"Echoes are the powers that awakened humans have."
Danny recalled having heard that word before
His mother had mentioned it to him once
"That some people are born with the ability to fight monsters."
"But I don’t have one," Danny said.
"You can’t be sure of that yet."
Danny raised his eyes to the man
"What are you saying?"
The man halted and turned around
For the first time, Danny noticed something odd about his eyes
They gave off a faint glow
A pale blue light shimmered across his pupils
Danny staggered backward, and the light in the man’s eyes faded back to normal.
"Did you see that?"
Danny gave a nod.
"That is what’s called an Echo."
Danny just stared.
The man stretched out his hand, and a small flame materialized above it.
Danny’s mouth fell open a little.
The flame danced between the man’s fingers before vanishing.
"Fire?"
The man grinned.
"Something along those lines."
Danny fixed his gaze on his own hand.
For a brief moment, he pictured himself wielding something just like it.
Something strong enough to shield his mother.
Something strong enough to halt the monsters.
Something strong enough to rescue his village.
Then reality struck him, and he recalled that his mother was gone.
His village was gone too.
The fire in his mind died out, and Danny bowed his head.
The grey-haired man took notice of this.
"You’ll figure it out soon enough."
"Figure out what?"
"why the monsters fear people like us."
Danny raised his gaze to him
"Do they?"
The man’s face shifted
"Yes."
He looked away
"But only once we’re strong enough."
They continued walking for another hour until the snow began to thin
Then Danny caught sight of lights
Hundreds of them
His eyes went wide
Past the trees rose an enormous wall that stretched farther than the eye could see
Torches burned along the top of the wall as people kept watch from the towers
Weapons pointed toward the dark forest beyond the great barrier
Danny halted
"That’s..."
"Fort Haven," said the grey-haired man.
Danny stared
He had never laid eyes on something so large
A massive gate stood at the center of the wall, with a crowd of people gathered around it
They carried swords, some were clad in armor, and others held peculiar weapons that Danny did not recognize
When they got close to the gate, a guard lifted his hand
"Who goes there?"
The man with grey hair walked forward
"Patrol unit seven."
The guard glanced at the men behind him, then at Danny, who had come to a stop
"Who’s the kid?"
"Survivor."
The guard’s face shifted
"From where?"
The grey-haired man replied in a low voice
"Ravenfall."
Silence
The guard turned his eyes to Danny
"Ravenfall was destroyed?"
"Yes."
The guard brought his weapon down
"Open the gate."
The massive doors creaked open with a metallic groan
Danny gazed in wonder at the inhabitants of the city
Children, families, merchants, and soldiers—all of them were present
For the first time since his village was destroyed by fire, Danny had witnessed genuine life
People conversed, dined, strolled, and laughed
He couldn’t comprehend how anyone could find reason to laugh
How could they possibly be joyful when the world was in such a state
Yet he trailed the others into the sprawling settlement
As soon as he stepped through the gate, he glanced back
Behind him, the trees stood in darkness
Beyond those trees lay the village where Danny had once lived
He lingered, staring toward the wall for a long while before finally turning away
He was unaware of it then, but that would be the final time he would ever lay eyes on his village
They led him to a modest building close to the center of the settlement
A woman with brown hair examined his injuries
"Sit."
Danny took a seat while the woman tended to the cuts on his hands
He winced
"Sorry."
The woman grinned
"This will only hurt for a second."
She wrapped a cloth around his palm, then raised her eyes to the grey-haired man
"Where did you come across him?"
"Just outside the forest."
Her hands went still
"The forest?"
He gave a nod, and the woman turned her gaze to Danny
Her face grew sorrowful
"How many made it out alive?"
The grey-haired man stayed silent
The woman grasped what that meant
"He’s the only one?"
"Yes."
Danny fixed his eyes on the floor
The woman rested a hand softly on his shoulder
"You’re safe here."
Danny gave no reply
He had heard those words before
Yet this time, he wanted to believe them
Later that night, Danny lay down on a small bed.
The room was warm, and beside him sat food, with a blanket draped over his body.
For the first time in what seemed like an eternity, he found himself alone
He gazed up at the ceiling
His eyes gradually shutting
At last.