Young Writers Society

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.” - Abraham Lincoln

The year is 2020, and the world has been burned alive. Sudden illness has struck all across the globe, a Fever burning people alive, but that’s just the beginning. Different people will tell you different things about the fever: some will say they felt like they were being burned alive, some will say it felt like their heads were being split open from the inside out. Some don’t even remember the symptoms of the Fever, even though they were awake for it. In one week, the entire world was burned alive by this Fever, and from the ashes, super humans rose. These super humans gained abilities while others perished in the Fever, burning up from impossibly high temperatures.

The year is 2021. One year since the Fever hit the globe. One year since all the nations crumbled away. People are uncertain about what to do with the collapse of governments all around the world. In order to counter this, people began forming groups that grew from groups into gangs. Some prefer the term "Factions." Some of these “Factions” are built on religion or other things; corrupt and righteous leaders have risen from the ashes of the world and took hold of cities or even entire countries.

This is where you come in. Nothing has been clean cut ever since you got your abilities. You see, you have the power to do whatever you want, whenever you want it. Do you use these powers to do as you wish, or try and help stale the corruption and chaos these Factions bring? This is a world where there is no clean cut decision, everything has a price, and everyone pays it.

Rules
- Normal YWS rules apply, Mods do check the threads every now and again.
- I reserve the right to tell you to change your post as many times I must.
- Romance is allowed, but nothing too graphic.
- No explicit swearing.
- No godmodding, trolling, etc... Violation of this will result in immediate banning and replacement of your character.
- I will ask you to use the "Create a Character" section to post your profile and not the actual thread here.
- You are not to post Out Of Character (OOC) posts for this thread. If you wish, do so in the DT but not here. I will have them removed. If you have a problems/comments/questions, contact me via Instant Messaging, Private Messaging, or the DT.

Character Template:

Code: Select all

    [b]Age:[/b]
    [b]Gender:[/b]
    [b]Appearance:[/b] (Pictures are welcome, but no anime. If there is a picture, then put details that are not seen in the picture.)
    [b]Personality:[/b]
    [b]History:[/b] (Before/after the fever.)
    [b]Abilities:[/b] (Only two, one major, one minor.)
    [b]Other:[/b] (Anything I’ve forgot)


Author’s Note:
I'm looking for radical profiles, well fleshed out characters, corrupt and righteous together. All profiles won't be approved until March 6th, 2014. However, I will reject any profiles I feel do not meet character criteria or simply were half assed and barely any effort put into it. The planned starting date is March 7th, 2014.

Genesis Ballard - Smoke Tower

I snap my fingers and a small fire appeared the nerves in my fingers so burned and shut down from the constant burns that I barely feel it anymore. I throw the small flame into the metal barrel of garbage to help keep the air how I like it, heavy with smoke and easily breathable for me. Once I'm sure the fire won't grow out of control and will produce the smoke I like, I start walking down the long flight of stairs to check for suicides.

I normally stayed on the higher floors of my tower because of the nightly intruders that sometimes occur when someone has a point to prove. They normally die on the lower floors, but sometimes they break windows to let the smoke out and thus giving them air to breath. I've only ever had one person climb the tower and challenge me at the top, but he was already half dead because in the higher floors I've nailed the windows shut.

I've had a few run in's with the local faction leader, she was an annoying woman to deal with. But after the burn I gave her, only suicides come into my domain now, after my sweep of the lower floors I come to the ground floor. My stomach growls at me for food, I ate the last of what I had the night before and now it's time to raid the local factions food supplies. Just enough to keep me going for a few days while I make a trip out to raid another factions food supplies.

I make my way to the garage where I kept a fully fueled SUV to bring back a large amount of supplies. I check my equipment, cigerettes? check. Dagger? check. Can of fuel? check. Time to go raid the local factions food supplies.

With a little work from my run ins with the local faction leader, I found that they keep a warehouse full of canned goods and whatnot, it would be a good haul if I could get in without the guards knowing. In my tower, I kept a room of growing vegitables cleaned of smoke so it didn't kill the plants. But nothing was ripe, so this raid was nessessary for me to at least have a meal a day.

By time I had arrived the sun had set and now it was dark out, no lights were on since most electricty was unreliable these days. It was still around, but normally would go out at any moment, which is why I walked down the stairs of my tower and not used the elevator. If I was lucky, it would be to dark to be seen and I could take bag of stuff back to the tower. At least, that's what I hoped.

Ellie Harris | Tree house Camp



I lay on my back against the hard wood floor below me. I sigh looking down from the high ledge to Azzie, the most annoying kid you will ever meet.

"Ellie!" She yelled throwing up a rock and hitting me softly in the nose.

I sighed and climbed down the ladder to the ten year old child sighing.

"Ellie, there's a ghost coming!" Azzie said jumping an pointing towards the woods.

"For the millionth time, there are no such thing as ghosts. Now go back to target practice with Tommy." I replied motioning towards the teenage boy shooting arrows into a nearby tree.

Azzie moaned and trudged over to Tommy and picked up the small bow off the forest floor. I climbed back up onto the tree house platform and closed my eyes trying to finally get some rest. Then I heard a scream.

I looked over the edge to find a dead Tommy and Azzie struggling against a tall man's grip. I scooted back and into a small cardboard barrier I had cut inside the tree. The cardboard concealed my body just before the tall man came up the tree house Azzie still struggling against his grip.

"Let me go!" She screamed trashing out against him.

His teeth gleamed as he dropped her off the 20 foot edge. Thump. Azzie was dead. I was stuck inside my cardboard barrier begging silently for the man to leave.

It soon became night and the man had fallen asleep across what used to be my bed. My grip tightened around my dagger as I slowly turned off my paper vision and crawled out of the barrier. I silently hopped over to man and down the ladder running into the forest. I ran faster and soon found my self once again alone in the middle of a trading post.

I shuffled through the crowd and into a small tavern pulling up my hood to conceal my identity. I sat in a back table bringing out a small map crossing out what used to be my tree house home. I leaned back into my chair tracing the map for safe places. None, all the towns and cities had been crossed off my list as being unsafe.

I was right back at the beginning again.

All I ever seem to do is hunt, I thought to myself, as I wound my way through the thick of the forest. Had I been anyone else would have been totally lost, but I knew this place. He recognized the trees here; young firs. I recognize each hillock and mound, distinctive shapes of trees (theres that one that looks like an upside down wine glass) and different roosting patches. I knew that about five furlongs to the right there was an open cast abandoned quarry, and that if I turned left I would eventually get to a small trout pool. Most importantly, I knew that, by continuing forward, I would get to the best spot for hunting deer.
The problem with hunting deer, I thought to myself, is that only the best shot will surfice. There is nothing worse than stalking a trail of blood when the deer you have partially killed has bolted. It doesn't help that it is so tricky to make perfectly straight arrows.
I suddenly broke into a one man traveling jig. It was a favorite of mine, due to the incredibly catchy tune it was set to; A traditional Celtic piece called King of Fairies. And I almost ran into an arrow half buried in the ground. The arrow was not one of mine, it was too short for a start. It looked like it had been fired from the right, so I decided to investigate. I didn't want anything in my forest I didn't know about. Then I saw the bodys. Two corpses, lying side by side, surrounded by a cloud of flies. The sight made me recoil. It was... wrong. This shouldn't be here. Or anywhere. Pulling myself together I saw a treehouse above them. A small bow lay on the ground. And a hasty trail had been cleared through the foliage. Instantly my tracking senses surveyed the scene. The person had been in a hurry, and had been small and light, which suggested a girl, but that was only a guess. Whoever it was it was easy enough to follow, and if I was right I lead to a small trading post a few miles hence. I set of at a leisurely jog, enjoying the fact he wasn't hunting. When I arrived at the trading post it was obvious where they had gone. The only place to go was a small ramshackle tavern. I entered it, where I was met by a small crowd of locals. A bar keep. A withered drunkard. And a large bear like man with a tattoo of an elephant on his arm. And a small dejected girl of about twenty in the corner, hunched over a map looking worried. It didn't take alot of working out to guess which was the one I was looking for. The girl was scratched and her clothes muddy from the forest run, and she looked exhausted. I went and sat next to her.
"Hello. I am from the forest. I wondered if you needed any help."
The girl looks up, and I realize how strange I look and sound. And am.

Alice Wright

tap tap tap.

A bony figure was crouched on top of a dirty black futon placed in the exact center of a windowless room. The walls had seen its days with water damage, and it emitted a particular smell of mildew, a faint wafting of urine in the far corner, and something resembling an old house filled with moth eaten books and mouse droppings. Mysterious stains pocked the rough carpet, and exactly one thin grey blanket rested, rumpled, at the crossed feet of the figure.

The figure's joints and ribs were a little too obvious through the faint blue long-sleeved shirt. The knobs were noticeable leading up to the back of the girl's head, and the girl's hands appeared very similar to the delicate detail in a spider's web. Dark, thickly mussed hair tumbled over the girl's face, and a failing rubber band intermingled in the neglected locks. She was sitting in a fetal position.

tap tap tap.

The girl reached up and scratched underneath the clammy pressure of the heavily built silvery metal headphones that encircled the top of her head with the edge of the pencil she held, which had been vastly abused by nervous teeth and picking fingers. Tap tap tap, went the pencil as she struck it against the equally abused notebook. Neat cursive was scrawled onto the first two lines, but then suddenly faltered into a mess of scribble marks, and half down the page heavy lead had been macerated into a psychotic mess of jagged lines. Hands shaking, she tried again, but after three poor words her hand jerked to the right and off of the page.

... what was that so hungry could I eat this when are they handing the rations out this smells weird oh I miss him so much where did she go again I'd be better if I went by myself stop talking to me oh God save me from this Hell why couldn't I have died with my family It'll be better if I go to another Faction she scares me...

Her eyes pressed together, and she quickly pushed up her glasses. Someone was heading down the one dim hallway to her stark room. She chose it for the simple reason of its smell; it was repugnant enough that few people lingered close, and that kept her in a stagnant peace. Her nose had adapted to the smell, as most as it could, but she had asked some of the others that dealt with her to scavenge for some air fresheners, which she would occasionally press to her nose. She didn't know the reason why this particular part of the building was so horrible, though she saw evidence every now and then of barbaric stains that must have happened during the initial panic. People did unspeakable things in the face of uncertainty and death.

She waited, her head bowed to the door, until it opened and a relatively familiar dangling frame appeared, his shirt pulled over his nose and his features in obvious disdain. He snorted into his collar and jerked his head down the corridor.

"It smells like a fucking shit piss down here. Hurry up, IQ."

She slid off of the futon and padded after him with obvious reluctance. Her living quarters consisted of more than the small room she slept in; three other doors, all equally wrecked and unappealing, were open for her to wander through. Besides those rooms, it was an unimplied rule that she was not allowed to leave that corridor without one of Luther's dogs following closely behind.

She was led outside, the first time in approximate days that she had seen the color green. But it was not pleasant at all. Her hands remained pressed down on the sides of her headphones, unable to process a complete thought of her own even when she stepped into the pathetic shack thrown together in the center of the circle of buildings that held as the Capitol of this particular dictatorial Faction.

The shack contained only two rooms; she was in the biggest one, and two more of Luther's dogs stood inside, including the man himself. No one was sure of Luther's background, not even his dogs were, which only threw more caution to the already thick wind. The thirty year old man was bald, with thick red skin and a permanent condescending scowl across his brow with inhospitable raw eyes that she used to think only existed in an author's words. His frame is huge but hunched, and a cane rests at his side. His crippled condition used to muddle Alice's mind with what she saw in appearance and what she had learned from watching him. He continued to strike fear in her, the man who owned her and every being under the boundaries of this Faction.

Two of the dogs held her elbows loosely and navigated her towards the other room. The only reason she was brought outside was for the rare outings she got when she went to the outer parts of the Faction when Luther wanted to find a certain someone, or for when this happened; someone was caught, either an outsider or a betrayer, was questioned and efficiently killed where everyone could see. That was how Luther worked. He'd snuff out any and all information possible, fed their starving mouths with hope of redemption, and cut them down and made an example of them for everyone else. But he never showed his face in public.

Alice's hands still gripped the headphones. The two dogs filed in before her, blocking her view of the prisoner, and she felt herself gradually growing more nervous. She hated taking off her headphones.

She took a step inside, glancing from the prisoner to the dogs. She moved her hand to rest on the chair fixated facing the tied up prisoner and slid into it. Very reluctantly, she lifted her heavy headphones off of her ears, resting them around her neck. She looked up.

The flood of thoughts made her flinch.

Xais

He woke with a silenced gasp, eyes flashing open in urging panic. A branch slapped him in the face as he thrashed around in the tree fork, after a few moments and several tiny lacerations, he calmed down considerably enough to realize what he had just witness was nothing but the remnants of a nightmare. Brushing the fir bunch wearily away from his face, shy rays of golden sunlight danced upon his pale features and he realized with a start, that this was in fact. Not morning at all, feeling extremely disorientated, Xais pushed a stray strand of hair out of his face when he abruptly noticed the sudden change in atmosphere on the forest. Of course, he hasn't been in her long enough to know its mood but there was a much much more ominous feeling to it than it had the night before. And there were a new presence here, perhaps it was that trampling noise he had heard the night before. Whomever it was wondered round on hopeless circles, he had been too lazy to see who it was. But now, it seems it is inevitable.

Jumping off the fork of the fir tree with a natural grace only one so used to this motion can have, Xais landed soundlessly on the forest ground. He tilted his head up to the sky, and sniffed softly. Just north west of him it seems, the boy's lips quirked into a quick smile and vanished quite literally into the shadows. The shadows were a comforting place, void of the voices of the outside world and silence embraced him in a soft membrane of ease. He flickered in and out of odd places, a hollowed log, a small stream, at one time, he stopped atop a hill and wondered about whom these strangers might be before moving on again.

For quite some time, he merely walked out in the open for the weather was pleasant at this time of the time. It was indeed so, how the strong metallic smell of blood caught him off guard, he doubled back in wordless shock before examining the bodies for a few moments. His lips tightened in a grimace and started again as soft voices came from just a mere meter up. He listened to what appeared to be the voice of a female and male.

How interesting..., he thought with a half-grim and half-amused smile.

Keater Reed

"I don't know how I can ever repay you."

Reed snapped himself out of his daydream and smiled at the boy sitting directly across from him. In between the two was a roaring fire, seemingly unnecessary considering the sun perched high and bright in the sky, but very important nonetheless. Reed put his hands close to the flames, trying to warm them up again. Two days after diving into the lake and he was still cold as ice.

"Don't even think about it, just throw me another berry."

The boy tossed a blueberry and Reed caught it in his mouth. Over the past year he'd gotten very well at catching foods people tossed to him. Usually, that was the only way he could eat something that wasn't burned to a crisp. Now, with his powers extinguished, he just couldn't be bothered to get them for himself.

"I could have drowned..."

"But you didn't, thank God."

Reed was out scouting for food and supplies when he saw a figure in a lake, struggling to keep their head above water. He knew what jumping in would do to his body, but he couldn't live with himself if he just let someone die knowing he could have helped them. He'd only just woke up a few minutes ago.

After while they both descended into silence again. Since Reed was awake, the boy was preparing to leave. Reed would have been happy to let him stay, but he knew having others around him would be dangerous. He'd be getting his powers back soon and had to get back to a safe place. In the end, all of them got sent away. Thirty minutes later the boy was gone off in the other direction and Reed was making his way East, looking for a nice clear area to set up camp.

--

Apparently, East was a horrible decision. He was barely able to take in the large building before he was being ambushed by two guys. He thought to fight back but when he felt his temper rising, and along with it the temperature of his skin - now only warm, as if he had a bad fever - he stopped. There was no reason for anyone to get hurt, he thought, over a misunderstanding. His hands were bound behind his back with thick rope and inside the building he was lead.

The cell they placed him in was small and dark, and the more time passed the more nervous he got. After ten minutes of waiting the rope around his arms started to burn and smoke. Frantically, he struggled to calm his nerves, but the more the thought about his situation, the more he wished he would have fought back. Thirty minutes passed and the pants he was wearing started to get little burn holes in them.

After a while he heard movement, the sound of someone sitting down, and muffled music.

"Hello?"

When the person didn't reply Reed's thoughts began to race.

Oh God, I'm going to die here. I should have went West instead. What if these are the guys that hurt that little boy. If they attacked him for no reason and they have me tied up then God knows... Hell. The ropes are starting to burn... It won't be long before I'm back to full again what am I gonna do. No one needs to get hurt.

"Just let me go," he pleaded. "I don't want to hurt none of y'all."

Ellie Harris


"Hello. I am from the forest. I wondered if you needed any help."

My head shot up to see a figure hovering over my small shape smiling with his salt and pepper hair tangled and unkempt. I scooted father away from him as he took the opportunity to sit with me. He took my map from my hands and traced his finger along the river line right up to where the tree house is.

"This was you." He asked.

I nodded and pulled the map back and threaded my fingers into my hair trying to focus. Finally I got a thought.

"The hospital," I whispered to myself smiling.

"Excuse me?"

"The hospital, I was there on a run the other day. Its not occupied. Thank you for your time sir, please feel free to follow."

I swung my bag over my shoulder placing my map inside my back pocket as I did.

"You are going to the hospital, now?" The forest man asked following me out of the tavern.

"Yup," I replied.

The forest man shook his head and ran back into the woods calling. "I will be back girl!"

I shook my head and walked into the city twirling my knife in between my fingers. I finally found the small hospital and heaved the door open with a loud creek. It was large and empty inside, perfect. I ran through the halls checking every room for anybody who may have already made it their home, but gladly, it was now mine.

I found a small room upstairs containing only a drawer, a bed, a few knives, and a large couch. I closed the door of the room and started unpacking. My weapons went into the drawer along with any food or water I had. My map went onto the couch along with my bag and I found my self placed onto the bed.

"Girl?" I heard a familiar voice sound from down stairs.

"Upstairs," I called back noting it was the forest man who had come.

After the creek of the door sounded I was greeted by the forest mans smiling face.

"By the way, call me Ellie." I said holding out my hand.

"Elm." He replied, "I will be in the room that is downstairs."

I waved my hand to indicate it was okay and he scurried off. I had found my self a new teammate.

Elm, The hospital ground floor.
I didn't know why I was in this hospital. The air around me felt alien, and it smelled of cleaning fluid and lemon scented chemicals. The answer was clear; I had followed the girl. To protect her? Heaven knows I coundn't do that, not against anyone powerful enough to break down the double locked hospital doors. (There was a simple Yale lock already, but I had inserted two brackets to the double doors and secured them with a plank of oak wood.) Then to be safer with her? No. The safest place on this mad earth that I knew was in the forest, and I guessed the girl wasn't the best fighter either. I suppose that because she had come into my forest, I felt responsible. But I don't feel responsible.
I was loath to admit it, but I guess I was lonely.

Lying on the tree branch and watching the sunrise has become one of my most favoured activities. It’s the best way to wake up; out in the open, masked by the trees while still having enough space to observe the surroundings. I’ve never fell out of the trees I have slept in, balance seems to be an all-time thing for me now days… Although, what animal I got this from I do not know, there are many with near perfect balance.

I rose to a sitting position and swung my legs around the side of the branch. Today I was going to have to move on from my wonderful tree, an oak if I’m not mistaken. Just last night a few of the thinkers had wandered a little too close for comfort and I didn’t want my presence being sensed. The thinkers, cleverly dubbed so by me, are one of the smaller factions around these parts. They all seem to have majored in some form of mind ability, the most common being varying forms of telepathy. Psychic navigators were the most trouble, and I already knew a few of them resided within the faction.

Putting all thoughts of faction nonsense behind me, I jumped down from the branch and landed in a crouched position. Cats, you’ve got to love them. Big or small, they’re all awesome jumpers.

I shrugged off my jacket and shoved it in my backpack, it was a hot morning and black leather doesn’t mix well with the sun. After checking I had my few possessions in my bag, I slung it over my shoulders. “Big knife, check…” I patted my pocket. “Small knife, check…” I sighed and looked back up to the branches I had made my home for the last week. I rested my hand on the tree trunk for a moment then set off East.

Alice Wright

"Just let me go," a heavy southern accent pleaded. "I don't want to hurt none of y'all."

"Oh God, I'm going to die here. I should have went West instead. What if these are the guys that hurt that little boy. If they attacked him for no reason and they have me tied up then God knows... Hell. The ropes are starting to burn... It won't be long before I'm back to full again... What am I gonna do? No one needs to get hurt..."

Alice's skin felt slightly tingly, as if there was a flame near. She felt her armpits begin to dampen with the sudden warmth of the room, but she couldn't fathom why. She blinked slowly, her hands shaking where she clenched them in her lap. She wanted to know what was wrong with her hands, and why her head hurt so much. However, her mind was a jumble of foreign thoughts, and there was no room for her own reasoning and protests.

The guy in front of her was bound and cloth had been wrapped over his eyes, but it was now smoldering. He was roughly around her age, which she didn't know how she could tell- she couldn't remember her own. A shock of bright blonde hair flopped to the side of his head, cut unprofessionally and at an awkward angle. Alice flinched as an unusually loud thought appeared from a distance, as if the culprit was right next to her ear, scattering her growing suspicion of the man in front of her until she was left, confused, wondering what she was trying to think about.

"What were you planning when you attempted to break onto our ground?" The dog said next to her. Alice wanted to scoot away from him; his mind was a place that made the hairs on her neck rise. It was dark and sadistic, and told her things that made her sick. The other dog was only slightly better.

"I- I wasn't plannin' nothin', I swear." He said. The smell of something burning hinted at the air. Alice thought she saw steam lift from his cheeks, but she soon forgot about it.

"Were you looking for food? Territory? Who are you working for?" The dog pressed.

"N- No one. I ain't working for nobody!"

"Why were you trespassing?"

"I wasn't-"

"Don't lie. We'll know the difference." As in, Alice would know the truth whether or not he spoke it.

"I-I told you already. It was an accident. I didn't know." Alice was sweltering now; her clothes were beginning to cling to her, and she felt her lips go dry. Luther's goons were finally looking alarmed, and the one who was doing the questioning stepped forward.

"Don't you fucking try-" His threat dissolved into a penetrating scream when he moved to slap the prisoner, and his hand burst into blisters and flaming skin. He stumbled away, gripping his arm and shouting, and Alice gripped her head, sensing the pain he was in, since it was so loud.

The room exploded in noise, both inside and out, and oh did it hurt. Alice clawed at her neck until she gripped her headphones and pressed them into her ears, her head throbbing with the beginnings of a powerful migraine. She peeked up and saw that all of the prisoner's bindings had been burned off, and he was standing, backing up into the corner of the room. The walls began to sizzle.

Reed

"Stop! Stop, don't come any closer. Please!"

He might as well have been speaking Latin because no one in the room seemed to head his warning. The man that slapped him was crumbled down in a far corner, cradling his blistered burned hand and staring at Reed, a promise of murder if he only know how. The other was seeming to make up his mind as to if he should approach Reed or not. The girl just watched. Things lulled into a tense silence before everything erupted into action.

The man launched forward just as Reed made a break for the door. The both crashed into each other, causing them both to crumble to the floor. Reed landed on top of the guy, and while on his way down, smashed his head on the wall. His world plummeted into a mess of disorientation. Only barely could he head the panicked screams or feel a weakening body try and push his away. The smell of burning clothes and flesh filled his nose, brought him back to reality.

"Get off of me! Get the fuck off!"

Clumsily, Reed rolled over and scrambled to his feet. His eyes skimmed the body writing on the floor, covered in flames, and the sight stopped him in his retreat. He backed into the wall, eyes wide. His heart pounded against the walls of his rib cage, his lungs labored for air, and his stomach lurched but he swallowed back the rising vomit. Reed met the eyes of girl still watching in her chair. His brain scrambled to form an apology, but his legs had a different idea and rushed him out the door.

He paused in the door frame only momentarily to mumble an "I'm sorry", as if that meant anything.

Jack

"What are you?"
Silence meets my words.
"Alright, I see how it is. Who are you?"
More silence.
I scowl.
"Why aren't you speaking?"
Still no response. The strange, four legged creature just stares at me, black eyes blinking. It's mangled body and sooty grey fur reminds me of a cat, but I'm unsure. Half it's face is burnt off, and I'd honestly say this creature could be defective.
Maybe you should leave it alone, Jake, my golden retriever cross Labrador suggests, his tail resting on my thigh, his back to the creature.
My scowl deepens. I take my hands away from the creature's face and it runs away. My blue eyes drift to the back of Jake's head, and he begins to fidget. My smile is slightly evil, and satisfied, because I'm making him squirm.
"You scared it away," I whine.
I did no such thing, Jake snaps.
"Yeah, you always say that," I look away just as Jake turns his head to look at me. "Come on, let's keep going."
I get up and Jake whines. Giving him a warning look, I start walking toward the nearest place that smells like civilisation. My senses are sharp, and the smell of burnt out buildings and bodies hurts my nose, and the smoke hurts my eyes. But it's very dull here, the skies covered by yellow clouds. If it rains, Jake and I are surely dead.
"Hey Jake, I wonder what we'll find in the next town. Hopefully the next one isn't a total mess like this one," I look at the creamy coloured dog, and he looks at me, brown eyes shining, and just walks on.
We pass more of those mangled creatures, but Jake gives me a look and a growl that deters me from trying to speak to any of them. We keep walking until we reach a forest. The yellow clouds disappeared a while ago, and my senses seem to sigh on their own as I step into the cleaner air and take a deep breath. It's brighter here, though, but that's ok. I stop at a large tree with a hollow in it, and sit down. Jake sits down beside me and rests his tail on my thigh.
Well? He begins. What are you going to do now?
I rub my face with my hands in frustration. "I don't know. First of all we need food, and then we need to find a place we can live. Or stay, at least, until I can figure out what to do next," I tell him, trying to smile.
Both out heads snap to the side, faces pressed into the faint breeze, carrying the scent of some sort of animal. My stomach grumbles and my mouth begins to salivate. The smell is agonising, almost giving me a headache, it's that good. From the look on Jake's face, I'm sure I can safely say the same for him.
I'd say maybe deer, though I could be wrong, he says, not looking at me.
I nod, and before I can say anything, Jake darts off. normally, I'd be ok with my dog just running off, but soon after he ran off, my nose twitched, and I moved my face slightly to the left, and picked up another smell. This one is undoubtedly a carnivorous creature, and probably hunting the deer.
"Bloody hell, Jake," I quietly snarl and jump up, chasing after him.
My booted feet make little noise on the forest floor as I follow Jake's trail. He's taken a right, sharp turn, which ended abruptly into a double back and a straight flight through a clearing, passed and over a large rock, and down a rocky slope. It's hard for me to keep up with him, but I know he's only a couple of minutes ahead of me by his scent. I'm just glad it isn't a couple of hours ahead.
Stopping beside a tree, I bend over to catch my breath, one hand on the trunk, and get the strangest, tingling sensation that I'm being watched. I hate that feeling, It sends shivers up my spine. Because of my heightened senses, I get the feeling a lot too.
"Jake, Gods damn it, where are you?" I yell in a hoarse whisper.
A growl is the response I get, but it isn't Jake's growl. Jake sounds like a puppy telling you to give him back his toy. This growl sounds like a wolf telling you to get out of her territory.
Slowly yet casually, I straighten and turn to face the large, steel grey wolf standing between two large trees behind me. She has a height advantage, and this scares me. I freeze my limbs and focus on my senses.
I have a few rules when I come across an animal that can actually kill me. Number one rule is; Never try to show them down. Number two rule is; Always use your senses to learn as much as you can.
The she-wolf growls again, but this time it's more of a questioning growl. That's good. I lower my gaze slightly so I'm not staring into her cold, orange gaze, and make a whining sound in my throat. Jake told me that if I do that, any canine will see me as more of a sub then a threat. I hate undermining my dignity, but it's better than the she-wolf taking me as a threat and killing me.
After some time, the she-wolf starts to walk over to me. I keep my gaze below her eyes, but tense my muscles, in case I need to run. Another growl reaches me, more questioning than the last.
"I mean no harm," I whisper.
The she-wolf freezes and growls again. I raise my eyes slightly, but I don't let them meet her gaze. The she-wolf looks confused, probably as to why she could understand me. She trots over to me and starts sniffing me.
It doesn't smell like any prey I've come across, her thoughts tell me. I've never seen this creature before. What is it?
"I'm a human," I answer.
The she-wolf jumps back, a surprised growl leaving her throat. Number three rule; after you've heard the creature's thoughts, make yourself their size, and show no fear.
I bend down and look directly into the she-wolf's eyes for a mere second before I lower them again. The she-wolf walks over to me and sniffs my knee, which is where her nose had been when I'd heard her thoughts.
You're a human, she states, as if to clarify. I nod. And you can understand me? How do you know the codes of the pack? She asks, her voice taking on an edge.
"I ... don't know of any pack codes," I answer honestly. "I follow my own codes. My companion, Jake, taught me some things that I added to my code."
Jake? The she-wolf looks me up and down. Is he another human>
"No," I shake my head. "He is a canine."
My ears pick up a sound behind me, and I turn my head to find Jake trotting toward me. He spots the she-wolf and gives me a curious look. I beckon him over, giving the she-wolf a reassuring look.
"This is Jake," I tell her.
The she-wolf takes her nose from my knee and sniffs Jake, walking around him, as he stands there, eyes on the ground. The she-wolf makes Jake - a powerful looking dog - seem like a puppy. She has pale grey fur with muscular limbs, and she's much taller than Jake, probably standing at my hip height. She has black rings around her eyes and on the tips of her ears, and black lips. As she looks at Jake and lifts her top lip to bare her fangs at him, I get a good look at the maw full of razor sharp, white fangs. I shudder.
The she-wolf walks back to me and presses her nose to my knee. He is safe to be around, as are you. You both aren't threats, she tells me, and I feel relieved. What are you doing in this territory?
I look at Jake, and then back at the she-wolf. "We're just passing through," I say. "And looking for a town where humans are to stay for a little."
The she-wolf considers me for a moment. I'm Tsi'shava, she says. I'll find you a place to stay, if you wish.
"Yes please Tsi'shava," I smile. "I'm Jack, by the way."
Tsi'shava seems to smile. Jack and Jake? That is a strange combination of words.
I smile wider. "Yeah ... yeah it is."
Tsi'shava beckons us to follow, and Jake and I follow the pale grey she-wolf through the forest until we reach a large cave mouth full of other wolves. Twelve Dark grey and black faces turn to stare at us all, and I swallow hard.
We stop in front of the cave mouth, and Jake presses his body to me so he can tell me what's going on. Tsi'shava walks forward, and growls, barks and whines are exchanged. I look at Jake, who stares at the wolves before answering.
Tsi'shava is arguing that we're no threat, and we need a place to stay, he says. The largest wolf, the black male, doesn't want us around. He sees me as a potential threat and would rather bite out my throat. I think Tsi'shava is his daughter, but she seems to have quite a lot of authority. Maybe she's a healer of some kind?
I watch the wolves with narrowed eyes. Suddenly, there is silence, and Tsi'shava starts to growl and bark. "What's she saying?" I ask.
Hang on ... Jake listens until Tsi'shava stops her growls. She says that we're allowed to stay, and any wolf that challenges her will not live. She isn't giving us a permanent home, but she is insisting that we'll bring good luck to the pack. I don't think she understands that we'll be leaving tomorrow.
"Will we?" I look at Jake pleadingly.
Jake looks up at me, his large brown eyes boring into mine. Before he can say anything, I feel Tsi'shava's nose on my knee.
You're allowed to stay, but you can't stay with the pack, she tells me.
I smile. "That's ok," I say. "We'll be gone before you know it anyway."
Tsi'shava turns her orange eyes on me. You can stay as long as you wish, she says with finality, which makes it sound like a command. Come, I will show you where you will be staying.
Tsi'shava leads Jake and I to a smaller cave beside a stream, and we go inside, sitting down on the dirt floor, Jake's tail on my thigh. Tsi'shava sees this and does the same. I smile at the pungent smell of herbs and spices in the cave, as well as a few other scents I don't recognise. One smell that is strongest, however, I learn quickly is Tsi'shava's scent. It reminds me of my mother's apple pie with a tinge of spices.
I tend to the wolves that are ill, Tsi'shava tells us. I'm also the prophet. I make sure there are no bad omens around to affect the hunting.
"Are all wolves this superstitious?" I ask her, intrigued.
She smiles, a baring of her fangs, and a warm glow in her orange eyes. Oh yes, very. We like to make sure we have a good chance of living, even if it looks like we're going to die.
That made no sense at all. I nod as though I understood, however. "And who was the male wolf you were arguing with?" I then ask.
Tsi'shava looks at Jake and I with a guilty look. Devi'tsoa is Pack Leader, but I have a little more authority over him. Which is why I was able to challenge the Pack without getting shunned.
Well then ... "So we can stay here?"
Tsi'shava nods. As long as you like.
Well, I don't think we'll be leaving tomorrow, that's for sure.

Xais- Birds suck 

Xais was confused, and rightly so. He had absolutely no idea where he was, he was following two people and .....

What?

Bewildered, his hand flew to his hair in a strange attempt to calm himself and begun to observe his surroundings. He was in a forest, and ribbons of sunlight streamed through the thick canopy overhead. Judging by the cool temperature, it was probably autumn. Yet the closeness of the canopy blocked out any chance of seeing what time of the day it was. Sighing wearily, he walked a few meters until he found a suitable tree to climb on and scrambled agilely up the smooth bark. Midway up, he noticed a rather unpleasant stiffness in his hair and paused. One foot hooked around a branch, he rubbed a few strands of hair between his fingers. 

Was that yolk on his head? Egg yolk? What on earth...

He scowled down at the slimy liquid on his fingers and shook his head, bemused and annoyed at that fact that there was egg in his hair! And he had spent so long to keep it clean ad well. 

Honestly, out of all the things to fall from the sky. An egg. A raw egg. Why couldn't it be food or some other pleasant things. Huffing indignantly, he scaled the remaining length and   Crouched at the tree top. Scanning the vast expand of tree tops that spanned for as far as he could see. 

"Oh, how troublesome." He muttered, annoyed as he tried to find an opening or an exit or something that would signal to him where this was. Yet lost amidst his musing, he once again failed to miss the giant hawk swooping down at him. Giant claws raked one side of his face and he fell off the tree with a strangled scream and tumbled into the nearest shadow in a desperate attempt to escape the cawing hawk. 

And tumbled quite ungraciously on top of a traveling girl with a small backpack. As she left out a muffled 'oof'. He rolled off her swiftly and offered an apologetic grin. 

"Hi." 

Lys- Somewhere east with Xais

The woods are filled with trees; they cover the skyline so thoroughly and cast multiple shadows across the pathway. Well, I say pathway, it’s more of a muddy trail that hikers may have used while walking a dog.

I often spend my days like this, wandering through the woods looking for another tree within a safe distance from any factions. It’s actually quite surprising at just how many factions there really are, even if very small.
Despite the faction size, avoiding them is always the best tactic; I like to think I’ve gotten quite good at avoiding them too.

Just a few short minutes later I was swept off my feet, literally. Hit by a falling object and I fall flat to the ground.

I wince at the impact and roll over to see a guy grinning at me. “Hi.” He says, still grinning.

I stand up so I can get a clearer look at him; he’s about my age and the same height. I look at him and watch the grin fade away. I look around to see where he could have come from… did he fall from a tree? Or… I roll my eyes. “You’re one of them. For Christ sakes you’re one of them.”

“I’m a what?” He says, raising an eyebrow.
“You’re a Jumper.” I say. I straighten my clothes and adjust my backpack then carry on walking, leaving him behind.

Sadly, footsteps head my way. “I’m a Jumper? What’s that supposed to mean?” I scowl at him.

“It means you travel, somehow. Whether it’s your average Jumping, like falling into a random place anywhere you feel like or whether you travelled through the trees, I don’t know; but you’re a Jumper and you fell on me. Not the best way to start things, is it?”

“Damn, you’re good. I’m a Shadow Walker.” I stopped and turned to look at him. He extends his hand. “Xais.” I look at him and frown.

“Lys.” I turn and carry on walking east. “You can either follow or disappear again. I don’t care as long as you don’t belong to a faction.” I call over my shoulder.
* * *

After another hour of walking I stop in front of a tree. I’m unfamiliar with the species, but it looks good enough for a few nights. Xais walks up and stands next to me.

“We’ve stopped, why?” He asks.

“This is home for the next few days.” He looks at me like I’m mad.

“That thing doesn’t have any branches for 10 feet!”

I smirk. “So?” I crouch low to the ground and imagine the long legs of a cat, their sharp claws and the strong muscles in their legs. I extend my limbs and clear a 12 feet jump, landing with perfect balance, and standing straight up on a thick branch. Xais looks up at me and rolls his eyes.

“And how am I supposed to get up there?”

“Maybe if you prove you’re not an ass, I might help you.”

“I seem like an ass?” He mocks hurt.

“I can feel the satisfaction you get from tormenting and your sarcastic ways. So yes, you seem like an ass to me.” I scowl again. “So, you prove you’re not and maybe we can get along to some degree.” I settle back into the branch and relax, watching the skyline for the fading sun.