1 Lingering

More than a month had passed since his father had died. Thirty-eight days, to be precise. Thirty-eight days had passed since his father had gotten killed...

"No matter how much I think about it, it still ticks me off..." he muttered. "Guess he's gone for good this time. We weren't that close... but it's oddly annoying."

"Captain, is something the matter?"

"No, I was just reminiscing," he shouted over his shoulder. "Let's go back before it gets too dark, Shono." Despite saying that, the one who'd been called Captain remained still, staring at the city. He found gazing at the crowd of abandoned buildings he'd once called home quite shooting. They were atop one of the taller structures, so the view wasn't half bad either. Especially after a hard day oh work. Despite himself, the Captain sighed.

No one knew how, where, nor why those things had appeared. They called those monsters who'd stripped humanity of all hope Aberrations. There simply was no other way to describe them. The large majority were humanoid beasts, clad either in feathers, fur or scales. In a way, they resembled large, deformed animals. Very few of the creatures made strange, gargling noises and none of them had proved capable of communicating in any way. But they were intelligent. If not for their intellect, humanity wouldn't have had to face its downfall. Most of them were around 3 meters tall... but there were exceptions. Those were basic information. He'd spent three entire years memorizing the Agency's records. How humanity had managed not to perish was beyond his comprehension. The Aberrations had existed for almost 2000 years. Yet they hadn't killed everyone. Children had continued to be born and raised, even in those conditions. Many had died of starvation or disease... and their corpses had served as feasts for the creatures. Barbaric as it was, leaving the corpse of a relative behind was a small price to pay for leaving in one piece. The Aberrations did posses keen senses... But they weren't omniscient beings. Running, hiding, even deceiving the beasts, doing everything they could to live just a bit longer... that was how people had lived for the past 2000 years.

After the creatures had first appeared, it hadn't taken long for society to crumble apart. At first, people had tried to hide underground, stupidly thinking that the creatures didn't possess the ability to... dig. That had been the first mistake. Nothing worked against them. Poison, guns, blades... All useless. Before long, the entirety of the human race had become nomads. Their only option had been to run. The Aberrations had simply been untouchable. Until the Agency's founding, almost 400 years later...

One day, rumors about the dead body of an Aberration having been found had started spreading. And, after a few days, the Agency of Aberration Disposal had made their first announcement. They'd found a way to deal with the creatures. Humanity had regained hope.

The Agency or the AAD... A fancy name given to a group of people who had the skills, weaponry and courage to stand up to the monsters. Their base was located deep into the mountains, one of the few places that were considered somewhat safe. There were three types of people working in the Agency... The scientists, tasked with developing new, hopefully more efficient means to fight the Aberrations, the "teachers" responsible for bestowing knowledge upon the third category... the fighters.

Karabell Ress was one of the most skilled and hardworking fighters the Agency had to offer... and one of the youngest. He'd completed his training on his 18th birthday. One year later, he'd become known as the Captain. Few people knew his name, and even fewer bothered to call him anything other than Captain. He wasn't especially strong physically, but his quick reflexes compensated for his lack of sheer strength. His strong suit, however, was his ability to think quickly. Even if it didn't mean choosing the best course of action, he didn't hesitate when it came to making decisions.

"Shono... why do we fight?" Karabell asked unconsciously.

"I do believe I once asked you the same thing..." the tall man responded. "I am not sure you remember what you told me back then. We fight because we want to. For us, there's no other way to live."

"Right. Of course I remember. That aside... Alice and Een still haven't returned. Heard anything from them?"

Shono hesitated. They still had enough time to find them. The sun still hadn't begun to set. And Karabell knew those two better then anybody. They weren't weak. After all, his squad was considered to be the best in the whole Agency. So why was he feeling so uneasy? Alice was hot-headed. If there was one thing she hated more than relying on others it was avoiding combat, or "running from the creatures that oppressed their people", as she saw it. But Een was her polar opposite. He always approached matters with caution, prioritizing safety. Karabell knew he could rely on him to get Alice out of sticky situations.

He grabbed his weapon, a long spear made from a sturdy yet flexible material, reminiscent of hard rubber. Aside from a few scratches from earlier battles, it was in good shape. Well, the weapon itself was harmless to Aberrations. However, the real weapon was the acid coating the resilient material. They called it acid, but, in reality, it was a potent poison developed by the Agency's scientists. It wasn't dangerous to humans, but once it came into contact with the internal organs of an Aberration, it acted exactly like an acid, dissolving everything in its path.

Spear in hand, Karabell checked the small device strapped to his wrist. The fact that Een hadn't contacted him was more than unsettling. He always kept in touch when scouting a new area, even if nothing major happened.

"Shono, you know what we have to do."

"Go out there, find our teammates, and get back home in time for dinner," the man replied with a mischievous smile.