Ahndrian Archives

Alice looked out over the edge of the roof. She’d come this way many times, but pieces of the collapsed building were breaking away after her repeated jumps over the years. That being said, she didn’t understand that. Not until today. Except for a brief period of her life, Alice had learned everything on her own. She was only sixteen, but she was exceptional in many ways.

As she looked over the edge of the roof one last time, she saw the broken pieces that had fallen from up high. It took her a moment to make the association, but when she did, everything made sense to her.

She back tracked everywhere she could remember to gather supplies. Just two hours passed, and she managed to configure a makeshift reinforcement for the rooftop path, using metal cables, strong debris, and sheet metal found in the wreckage of the ruined city she called home.

She wiped the sweat off her forehead and looked up at the sun. It was still only midday. She wasn’t certain what the hours in a day were, but she’d gotten better at tracking her daylight. It was more of a feeling for her. The only things she tracked were days. That was something Harriet taught her. So, she could remember the day she was born into this world. It was something the Dwellers and Roamers celebrated, so Harriet wanted Alice to be able to celebrate too.

Since then, almost everything she did revolved around the Dwellers. She enjoyed watching them. She envied them. She envied their communities. Dweller settlements existed all over the ruined city. About two dozen towns, ranging from small, medium, and large. Traveling outside of a settlement’s territory was dangerous. The larger a settlement wanted to expand, the more resources it would need to drive the gangs and thieves out of the unclaimed areas of the city. People worked together to build themselves up, but as large as the city was, resources were still limited. Which meant groups were always looking for ways to keep control.

Alice was the only one who seemed to be on her own. So, she watched all of them. In the eight years that she had been in the ruined city, she had traversed more of it than anyone ever had. She knew how to hide away and sneak up on anyone and anything whenever she wanted. From time to time, she stole produce from food carts or nabbed some fresh fabric when she outgrew hers or tore it up during her excursions. Thanks to Harriet, by the time Alice was 10, she never got caught.

Now Alice did everything she could to learn more about dwellers. From time to time, she strolled through a township, but kept her head down so she wouldn’t have to speak to anyone.

She learned a lot from them. She enjoyed it. Almost as much as she enjoyed finding relics of the old city. Learning new things was what got her out into the city every day. Nothing excited her more than answers.

That’s what she was looking for today. The reason she’s up on the rooftop. Alice’s central home was a cornucopia of items she found while scouring the city.

Some of them were simple— auto locking chains, smartphones, a hoverboard smashed into entirely too small pieces, and her personal favorite, her electric pistol. Other things felt more complicated to her— a busted holographic display, most of the pieces to a motorcycle, and an old book that Alice picked her name from.

She’d learned a lot since she woke up in the city. She was always excited to learn more. Fixing the relics was the only thing she did outside of exploring the city. When she learned how to fix and use her pistol, the technology of the old city fascinated her. She found everything she could after that. the simple things she mostly fixed. The rest, she was still looking for pieces that seemed like they would work, or she had it set to the side, hoping to get back to it when she understood more.

So, she explored. Alice gathered up her bag and leapt off the platform she made. She landed on the opposite rooftop, sliding down the collapsed half of the roof and into the pile of tattered blankets and pillows she placed there. She hopped to her feet and ducked into the alleyway heading towards the next settlement.

Alice moved into an empty building after she walked a few blocks up and peeked around the corner, waiting. She snarled when she saw the red labels on the sleeves of the two men walking past her. Alice didn’t know the names of the gangs, but she knew their colors and she knew their labels.

She hated the way they smelled anytime she was near them. The stench of blood and anger always made her uneasy. The gangs always reeked of it.

Once they were gone, she slipped out of the building and up the fire escape in the next alley. After leaping across a few more gaps, she was finally in the territory for the Zeta township. She scaled the side of the burnt tower and peered down into the town.

She always loved coming to Zeta. They were always so lively. For better or worse, people seemed happy. Though the present night was filled with a certain weight. Like that of a funeral march.

Alice raced up to the rooftops to escape the cloud of unease that had gathered below. When she got to the top of the nearest building, she sat back and took a deep breath.

Below her she could see two people about the same age as her. She could always see well at night, but she had trouble making out more than rough details. All she could tell was that one was male, and the other was female— and a strange, strong scent emanated from the boy.

Alice leapt to the closest building and ducked behind the ledge. When she looked back up, the girl was gone, and the boy was climbing into a small vent opening. Alice couldn’t get a good look inside without getting too close, so she waited.

After a few minutes, the boy walked out of the front carrying what looked like a sword, a bow, and a quiver of arrows thrown over his shoulder. He stopped out front and glanced around. Alice ducked when he looked towards her.

She kept on the buildings until the two of them reached the edge of the city. They stood at the edge that even Alice had never dared to cross. The line between the ruined city and the dense forest surrounding it. Alice might not have known as much as everyone else, but she knew what was in the forest.

It was the first thing she ever saw. On the day she opened her eyes. The day most people called being born into this world, she saw the beasts for the first time.

All at once, she opened her eyes and bore witness to the beasts devouring a truck full of heavily armored men and women.

Their skin was black as coal, but it had a sheen to it like it was wet or shiny. Every one of the bones pressed up against the thick skin that was wrapped so tightly around their frames it looked like it would collapse inwards at any moment. The beasts were sickening. Their hollow eyes were the thing of nightmares They were the only thing Alice had ever been afraid of. To witness the agony a bite or scratch from one of the beasts causes dwellers... was enough to turn anyone’s stomach.

Alice’s breathing got heavy as she remembered in vivid detail everything, she saw that day. It wasn’t just her oldest memory; it was her clearest.

Alice finally managed to calm down her breathing and focus. By the time she realized how lost in her thoughts she had been, the two of them had already vanished into the forest. It was growing faint, but Alice could still pick up the strange scent. She looked back out at the forest and took a deep breath before jumping from the rooftop and out into the forest.