Chapter 3

Ethan panicked when the lights began to dim and flicker, for he knew that if the ancient machine were to fail, the town of Black-Rock would perish along with most of its inhabitants. His anxiousness subsided when the lights became stable and returned to their usual luminance. Ethan still felt uneasy and thus he exited his home to examine the machine only to find Anya cornered by a mob of angry townsfolk. Upon seeing this, Ethan quickly rushed to Anya.

“What’s going on here?!” Ethan exclaimed as he ran. He placed himself between Anya and the mob, holding his daughter closely behind him. The frightened Anya remained silent and tightly gripped onto Ethan’s clothes.

“What’s going on is that your daughter NEARLY KILLED US ALL!” An enraged man roared.

“Take responsibility for her actions!” Another man soon added.

“Discipline her! How can you call yourself the town head if you can barely control your own child?!” Insults and rage were directed towards him from all directions. Ethan swiftly apologized to appease the aggravated crowd.

“I apologize for my daughter’s actions.” Ethan bowed his head, “I’ll make sure she’s properly disciplined.” Without a moment of delay, Ethan grabbed Anya’s arm and pushed through the crowd, making their way home. Ethan closed the door behind them and turned to face Anya.

“Daddy… I jus – “

“NO EXCUSES!” Ethan seized Anya, arching her body over a nearby chair.

With all his might, Ethan began to strike Anya.

Anya let out a painful cry and continued to bawl more furiously with each additional lash.

Witnessing his daughter in this state caused his heart to ache, but he knew that if he had stopped now, Anya would not have learned her lesson. The beating continued for a full minute before Ethan finally ran out of will. Anya immediately dashed into the bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Guilt began to bubble as he noticed his pulsating hand. Ethan approached the bedroom door.

“Anya, please come out.” The man pleaded as he knocked, “Daddy’s sorry for hitting you, but what you did put us all in danger.”

Anya did not respond, but audible whimpering could be heard.

That was one of the few moments Ethan had fully lost control to his temper and he deeply regretted it.

“Anya… Please…” Sorrow filled his voice, for he had hurt the last person he had left in this world.

The door opened.

Anya, still sniffling, drooped her head, avoiding her father’s eyes. Ethan lowered himself on one knee and laid his hands on Anya’s shoulders.

“Why did you do it, Anya?”

After a brief moment, Anya began to speak.

“I…” Constant sniffling plagued her sentences, “just… wanted to… make the… machine… happy… so… it would eat less.”

Ethan didn’t understand Anya’s reasoning.

“If it… ate less... then… we could trade more… coal… and nobody… would… go hungry…”

Grasping his daughter’s intentions, Ethan embraced Anya in his arms. The truth was that he hated this town. The inhabitants gossiped behind his back to no end, and the other children ostracized his beloved daughter. He had seen the spiteful gazes that Hailey and Stephan threw his way. Despite all that, he had a duty left to him by his late wife.

“Daddy…” Anya’s sniffling ceased while in her father’s embrace. “Do the machines from the big towns really not eat anything?”

“Where did you hear that from?”

“From Mommy’s journal! She said that the cities are big and filled with lights. So many lights that you won’t ever have to be in the dark!” All sadness disappeared from Anya’s voice and was replaced with excitement.

“Is Anya afraid of the dark?” Ethan relaxed his embrace to face his child.

Anya shook her head. A dejected expression surfaced and she looked to the side. “It just makes me feel… alone…”

Ethan finally realized Anya’s loneliness. After inheriting the position of the town head, he spent most of his time managing and negotiating trade treaties, completely neglecting his daughter.

“Would Anya like to go to the big city?” Ethan asked with a smile.

Excited, Anya’s face filled with glee.

“Really, Daddy?!”

Ethan tightened his embrace.

“Daddy will make it happen…”

***

“It’s all my fault...” Anya muttered to herself, “if only I hadn’t said those selfish things...”

The girl huddled herself next to the pillaged carriage. Infront of her were the mementos left by her mother and her father’s lifeless body. Anya was all alone in this world. Only a small fire scraped together by some coal and scraps from broken wooden crates kept her from being engulfed by the darkness.

Anya wanted to hate her uncle, to vilify him, however, she just couldn’t bring herself to. After all, her father had betrayed the town in an attempt to fulfill her own greed. She held the revolver to her head. Anya’s hands shook as she struggled to pull the trigger. The round was not aligned with the barrel in her previous attempt, but now that it was, Anya simply could not put an end to her life. Her fear of death prevailed over her desire to die. Anya lowered the gun.

“I’m a coward.” The girl rubbed her eyes with her arm, wiping away tears that had fallen.

It had been hours since her world came crashing down. The Raiders led by her uncle had stripped the caravan of anything useful: food, water, ammunition, and coal. It was a miracle that Anya could still manage a flame. Her stomach growled continuously. Afraid to wander into the encroaching darkness, Anya simply stayed put. Her eyelids became heavy, for the previous events had taken their toll. Surrendering to the drowsiness, Anya yearned for relief from this atrocious nightmare.

…

EEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII! Her eyes jolted open. A chill crawled up Anya’s spine as the high-pitched screech emanated from nearby.

EEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIII! Another screech followed from another direction.

Anya froze, frightened of what was to come, seized the nearby revolver and hid under the carriage.

EEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII! The noises approached with each additional shriek. Trembling, Anya searched for any approaching creatures.

CLUNK

Anya jumped at the sudden commotion. Something had landed on top of the carriage.

EEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!

The sharp noise deafened her ears, however, Anya remained silent.

From the edge of darkness, distorted humanoid creatures crawled into her field of view; the dying fire exposed its paleness. The figure’s body hung close to the ground, its elbows poked high into the air while its legs bent in the wrong direction. A large deflated sac protruded from its back. Anya immediately recalled Declan’s warnings, the creature before her was a crawler.

Another crawler arrived at the scene, both of them seemed to be searching for something. One of the creatures dug through the pile of burnt bodies before showing disinterest and moving on to her father’s corpse. It protracted its head near her father’s neck, sinking its jaws into his flesh. The sack inflated with every gulp. The other crawler approached and initiated its feast as well. Anya watched helplessly as the monsters before her slowly devoured her father. She knew she was weak; unimaginable dread filled her as she imagined her fate if she were to be discovered.

EEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!

The noise came from behind and before Anya could turn her head, the creature had already grabbed onto her leg. Her heart sank as she was forcibly dragged from under the carriage. While still holding onto the revolver, Anya desperately clawed at the stone ground. She couldn’t help but cry out in agony as her fingers began to bleed whilst the nails separated from the skin. The creature flipped Anya on her back, looming over her. Strips of her bloodied flesh dangled from her fingertips as Anya pointed the revolver at the creature.

Click.

Anya’s eyes widened as she noticed the gun did not fire. She frantically pulled the trigger again and again.

Click.

Click.

Click.

BANG.

Finally, the hammer struck the primer, igniting the gunpowder. The creature yelled in pain as the bullet penetrated its neck, splattering viscous blood all over Anya’s upper body. Recoil from the revolver dislocated one of Anya’s shoulders, causing her to lose all her strength in her right arm. Now seemingly furious, the creature dragged Anya toward the others. Friction from the uneven ground scraped off the exposed skin that it came in contact with. Anya desperately screamed for help, but no one came to her rescue and she was out of options.

The creatures set Anya near her father’s half-eaten remains. Most of Ethan’s skull was now exposed along with the stump of his detached arm. The crawler latched each of its limbs onto Anya’s, restraining her. With the fire crackling nearby, the creature’s featureless face could be seen. Purple and red veins were visible through its semi-translucent husk. It lacked eyes, instead replaced with large gaping holes for nostrils. It opened its mouth, exposing a perfect set of human teeth. The tongue unraveled itself and began to convulse. Suddenly, without hesitation, the creature clenched its jaw, severing its own tongue. The saliva-drenched tongue fell onto her chest, continuing to squirm. Slowly, the creature hovered its head over Anya’s. Anya spotted blood seeping from between the tiny gaps between its teeth. She turned her head sideways to avoid the oncoming fluid only to have her head reoriented by a pair of cold and rough claws. The second crawler forced its leathery fingers into Anya’s mouth and pried it open.

“N-no no no n-no no!” Anya murmured while attempting to break free from the creature's grip. The crawler above her loosened its jaw, allowing the thick red goop to descend into her mouth. With all her might, Anya attempted to close her throat to no avail. As if it had a mind of its own, the blob crawled into Anya’s esophagus, forcing her windpipe closed. Then, acute pain commenced from all the places the blob had been. The creatures released Anya from their grasp and observed her. With her quaking hands, Anya frantically clawed at her throat, wanting to remove the substance from her body. The excruciating pain intensified, spreading throughout her body as if eating her from the inside. Anya could no longer breathe, her eyes rolled back as she lost consciousness.