I stand in the middle of... well, what used to be a village. Now, it's nothing more than an empty, desolate place. No one is here.
As I glance down at the ground, my breath catches. A footprint. It matches Father's!
He's alive?!
My heart races as I sprint toward it, staring at the distinct grey impression in the dirt. I look around desperately.
"Father! You can come out!" I shout into the silence.
No response.
"Dad..." I mutter, my voice softer, barely above a whisper. I squint, gripping the map he left behind tightly in my hand.
While scanning the area, something catches my eye—a movement behind the trees. My chest tightens as I notice a group of villagers emerging from the shadows. The natives.
"Oh, hell—" I gasp, cutting myself off. Quickly, I dive into the bushes and hold my breath, remaining completely still.
The villagers approach the center of the abandoned village, malice in their eyes and spears gripped tightly in their hands. One of them, a young man, shouts angrily.
"This is what happens when we let the white man into our home!"
An older man, shorter and carrying himself with authority, silences him with a sharp glare.
"Enough. Now isn't the time to be smug about being right," he says curtly, turning away.
"You're running away from this, aren't you? Coward!" the young man snaps, his voice growing louder. "We can't live like this! Winter's coming, and the foreigner's radio said it'll be a cold front for a whole month!"
Sweat drips down the older man's brow as he grips his spear tighter. Tension crackles in the air as the younger man assumes a battle stance.
Then—
Whup-whup-whup-whup.
A rhythmic, vibrating sound grows louder and louder overhead. I dart my gaze upward to see a helicopter descending toward the village. The door swings open, revealing a bald man in a pristine white suit. He waves down at the villagers with a bright, almost unnerving smile.
The man leaps gracefully from the helicopter, landing with a flourish. "HELLO, NATIVES! WHITE SAVIOR HERE!" he declares theatrically, raising his hands in mock surrender as the villagers point their spears at him.
The elder motions for the others to lower their weapons. "What have you come here for?" he asks cautiously.
"I'm here to help, my good sir," the bald man replies with an exaggerated grin. "Of course, you'll need to scratch my back too."
The elder narrows his eyes. "What do you mean?"
"Who was the man that lived here?" the bald man asks directly, his tone suddenly sharp.
The elder hesitates before responding. "...Restin Shaden. He came to this village to escape some... trouble. Didn't say much more than that."
"RESTIN SHADEN?! You let someone who is running away from somethin in?! You let him in?! LOOK WHAT HE DID!" the young man shouts furiously, gesturing at the ruins.
"He gave us supplies for years! Seeds for our crops! It wasn't—"
The bald man claps his hands together, cutting them off. "What information do you have about him? Shaden. Anything at all."
Something about his tone feels off, fake. I stay hidden, watching.
After a moment, a boy rushes over, clutching some mail and a DVD. "I stole this from his... his box thing!" he says nervously, handing them over.
Our mailbox?! My Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn DVD?! I nearly lose it. I've been waiting for that, you little—
The bald man tosses the DVD aside, conveniently near where I'm hiding. I grit my teeth but remain still.
As the man examines the mail, he suddenly lights up with excitement. "This is from Xún Mèng Yàn! HA! I've got you now!" he exclaims triumphantly. "Alright, folks, I'll help you rebuild your little village. And yes, I know how it looks. THANK YOU, JESUS, FOR GOOGLE MAPS! Bahaha—" He pauses mid-laugh, his expression darkening.
"Tell me," he says, his voice lower. "Does Restin Shaden have any children?"
My stomach drops.
The elder hesitates before shaking his head. "No. Not as far as I know, sir."
But a boy blurts out from the back of the crowd, "YES, HE DOES! AND HE'S A DEVIL!" the boy runs in and its the boy who started the fire still beated up with his mother behind him
The bald man tilts his head, intrigued. "He's a devil? Why would you say that?" his radio transmitter statics and a arrogant powerful young voice speaks "EXPLAIN"
"He... he summoned a demon! I saw him! He was in some kind of trance, and the thing—it was above him!" the boy stammers, his voice trembling.
The bald man claps again, smiling wide. "Alright, we've got a deal! Let's work together, eh?" He extends a hand to the elder, who hesitates but eventually shakes it.
I use their distraction to slip away into the darkness.
As I run, clutching the map, I spot something glinting nearby—a purple laptop, crushed and bloodied. I pick it up carefully, shuddering at the sight.
Far behind me, the bald man examines the ground. He spots two footprints: one large and one smaller. His gaze shifts toward the forest, his expression dead serious.
I press forward, my heart pounding. "I need new clothes," I mutter to myself, shivering. "And I have to fix this laptop. I need to figure out what's happening—no, what happened."