Everything was in flames. The houses, the trees, the people…

I staggered, reeling at the sight. The Faded could not have launched an attack on this scale, not alone! Faded couldn’t even get near light, let alone fire, as they were creatures of darkness. I clutched at the tree beside me, head spinning. Who could have done this? Who would create an alliance with the corrupted, unless they were corrupted themselves? An ember, striking me on the cheek, interrupted my train of thought. The fires were spreading now, igniting the forest. The silvery moonlight was overrun with smoke and golden flames. I shrank back as the willow I had been grasping so tightly just a moment ago became a bonfire before my eyes. I clutched at my chest, willing my heart to slow. I couldn’t afford to panic now.

As my mother always told me, ‘The first to panic is the first to perish. Keep your head high, small one, and be confident in your own actions.’ She also said, ‘ Don’t be stupid,’ but I decided to ignore the latter for the moment.

Acting on instincts alone, I darted around the burning willow and straight towards the center of the town, and the cause of the fire. A stupid idea, in hindsight, but at the moment, stupid ideas were all I had. As I ran, I took in the tragedy of my surroundings. Abandoned homes, flames lapping at the doorways, market stands in heaps of char, trees lit up like matchsticks. I skidded to a halt in the town square, staring up at the statue of what I assumed to be the town’s founder. It seemed to be made of pure nickel, which was strange, because it was melting. Like butter. Nickel, I recalled, has a melting point of roughly 1,000 degrees above the temperature of fire, so it shouldn’t be melting in the first place. But it was, great globs of it sliding down the sides of the pedestal. No normal flame should be able to do that.

I snapped my gaze from it. I couldn’t just stand there, staring, till the cows came home, whatever that means. I had to do something. I continued sprinting throughout the once-beautiful village, searching for something I could do to help.

That’s when I heard it, a rasping, monotone voice, coming from the stables to my left.

“Come now, child, it will only hurt for a moment… maybe.” There should have been some emotion to the voice, malice, maybe, a hint of crazed amusement, perhaps. But there was nothing, no emotion, no humanity in the phrase. I snuck over to the stables and pressed myself against the wall, curious. It sounded as if the thing speaking had been drained of everything, leaving nothing but-

I sucked in a surprised breath. If the Faded inside heard it, they gave no sign. The monster had finished speaking, and I could hear pained whimpers issuing from the corner of the stall. I remembered what the Faded had said. There was a kid in there.

The whimpers soon turned to screams, ripping, guttural screams, tearing through my heart, my very Self. I peeked up over the edge of the door, taking in the scene within. The Faded was a young woman, dark, stringy hair falling below her waist, her skin ashy. She had probably once been beautiful, but no longer. She didn’t look as if she belonged in this realm. Or any realm. The Faded Ones were a virus, but the world wasn’t healing anytime soon. I glanced toward the corner. There, lying among the alfalfa scattered on the ground, was a boy. He looked to be my age, maybe two or three years older. Then I realized that his age didn’t matter. Not if he was going to die.