June, week 4; 6 months after The Start of The End

The Golden Stag never liked fog. It was claustrophobic; an ominous dome of swirling grey, constantly threatening to crush him. Since childhood his dreams had been haunted by figures in the haze, leaping at him from just out of sight, grasping him with pale hands.

The Land of Mists was his every nightmare. Within moments he had lost sight of the trees, swallowed by the blanket of cloud. The air was cold and damp, the droplets soaking through his clothing. Relying on a compass and an old military map he managed to make some progress, but it was slow going. Before The Start of The End such a journey would take only two days, but he anticipated twice that now. The old road had been completely destroyed, and he constantly tripped over rocks and rubble. The irony of this was not lost on him; he had given the order to destroy the highway.

Around The Stag the fog seemed to continuously glow, emanating a soft light that came from no specific direction. Strange cries echoed through the clouds, barely muffled by the mists. Occasionally he spotted small animals; squirrels and rabbits darting alone through the blur. Besides this, the land was quiet .

After a few hours he paused at a small outcropping, catching his breath while he ate a protein bar. He unclipped the water bottle from his bag and took a sip, the liquid laced with the taste of metal. He grimaced, and clipped it back to his pack.

THUMP.

The ground shook with the sound, as something massive stepped nearby. The Stag froze and glanced about, seeing nothing in the mist.

THUMP.

This step was closer, somewhere behind The Stag and to his left. Small pebbles on the ground skittered, bouncing lightly from the impact.

THUMP.

The Stag could feel the vibrations from each step in his bones, shaking his core. A few rocks tumbled down from a small cliff next to him, with the step just out of sight to his right. The Stag saw a slight swirling in the mist, before finally looking up.

The clouds parted above, and he saw an utter impossibility. The creature defied logic and explanation, simultaneously wondrous and horrifying. His jaw dropped, as he was paralyzed in bewilderment.

THUMP.

It walked on six massive segmented legs, each thick as the oldest redwoods. They stretched high into the sky, hundreds of feet above him, meeting a body cobbled of a multitude of parts. It’s knees bent backwards as it raised a leg slowly.

THUMP.

Its limbs met its body at massive insectoid joints, though it appeared like no insect he knew. Its form was long and massive, shaped similarly to that of a salamander. Three curved tusks protruded from what The Stag assumed was its head, though it was so far above that details were fuzzy.

THUMP.

Underneath and around the creatures body The Stag could make out tentacles, writhing in a hideous mass. They were of many lengths and sizes, with a few stretching outward for miles. One suddenly reached down to snatch something from the ground, and he heard the cry of an unknown beast.

THUMP.

The creature groaned, a booming sound that traveled across the landscape. It rose what it had grabbed to its head, the dead beast disappearing from sight. It moaned once more, with a sound almost musical.

WOOSH!

The Stag started slightly as a massive shape moved overhead, placing him momentarily in shadow. A single leg passed above, crossing hundreds of feet in one motion.

THUMP.

It came down fifty feet ahead of him, swirling up the mists as it landed. The ground was rocky and scarce; just right of the leg the skeleton of a large animal lay picked clean.

THUMP.

The Stag continued to watch as the creature moved off into the distance. A flock of birds seemed to follow behind, silently gliding in its wake. While it appeared slow it covered distance rapidly, guided by its massive legs. As it disappeared The Stag swallowed the last of his protein bar, stashing the wrapper in a small baggie. Getting up, he placed it in his pack and walked forwards, approaching where the foot had stepped. He stumbled a few times, before finding himself suddenly at the giant skeleton.

The ribs alone were nearly as tall as he was, with massive legs splayed to one side. The creature had once been a large cat, possibly a tiger or lion. It was larger than any he'd ever seen, and looked as if it could consume a man in one bite. The bones were strangely patterned, with faint black spirals etched into them. Bite marks and scratches cut them in multiple places, while its head appeared to have been shattered. Within its chest a single bullet shined: a large armor piercing round designed to be used against vehicles. The Stag shuddered, then looked towards where the massive creature had walked.

Buzz, Buzz.

A vibration broke him from his reverie, coming from his jacket pocket. He reached into it and wrapped his hand around the cold shape of a smartphone. His face furrowed with suspicion, and he slowly pulled it out. The phone was his; its screen lightly cracked where it had been damaged in the rescue. His hand shook slightly; he had thought it lost long ago, and had definitely not packed it. He shivered and glanced around, looking for a God or spirit.

Buzz, Buzz.

The Phone vibrated in his hand, and The Stag jumped. He fumbled with it for a moment - nearly dropping it - before looking at the blank screen. He pressed a button on its side, and it lit up. The phone unlocked, recognizing his face, and he saw a single notification on his messages folder. He pressed it, seeing a line of text from an unknown number. His blood froze.

<You’re being followed.>

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

No one knows where The Mist came from, or how it remains. It rolled in from the ocean overnight, covering the landscape mere hours after the Undead fell. The Land of Mists stretches thousands of miles, laying between the primeval forests that have consumed the greatest of the cities of man. It's inhabited by only the smartest, fastest, or fiercest of beasts, with reports of massive animals the likes of which the world has not seen in millions of years. There are rumors that some of the Undead still walk within the swirling grey, hunting for revenge against those who caused their mortal lives to end. No known safe routes exist through the clouds, and many have disappeared trying to find one. It is a cold, damp, mysterious realm, with no rulers or laws. Only ghosts, Gods, and monsters.

Episode 16 takes place 6 months after The Start of The End.