He stood still in an almost endless fog
The world around him was colorless and was just shifting throughout different shades of black and grey. The mist curled around his ankles like savage snakes, thick and endless, stretching in every direction. He could barely see his own hands, let alone where his feet laid.
But ahead was a woman made of light.
Her light pulsed gently, like a heartbeat. She illuminated the darkness and beckoned for him to come to her, She reached out to him, her hand glowing softly, her fingertips beckoning him closer. No words. Just a feeling. He approached her while reaching out a hand.
Just a few more steps...
Her hand was almost in reach.
"Jacob!"
His eyes snapped open as he lay in the tangled blanket that smelled of old linen and warm straw.
"Jacob, come on everyone's waiting for you." A young girl around the age of 14 projected her voice from the doorway, sharp and commanding. "Roll call's starting. Elder Marrow's already in the foyer."
Jacob groaned and sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "That stupid dream again" he muttered to himself.
The girl stood in the doorway with her arms crossed. Her long red hair swung behind. She was still in her nightshirt but was the first one up.
"You look like you saw a ghost, Did you have that dream again?" she said.
"Yeah… maybe I did." Jacob said, stretching his arms.
She sighed. "Well, how about you start dreaming about breakfast for once?" She said
"I wish I could Anrita." Jacob said to himself as she was making her way downstairs. Other children were already lined up on the stone floor of the foyer. The old wooden walls creaked in the morning chill. A woman who seemed battle toned and sharp stood at the head of the orphanage that the children reside in, her long gray coat draped over one shoulder. Her face was weathered but strong, like it had seen wars impossible to describe.
"Good morning everyone" she said, her voice carrying authority and warmth. "Today, I'll let two of you come with me to the town market. Supplies are running low, and I'll need extra hands to carry things back."
Before she could even continue, several children shot their hands into the air.
"Pick me! I'll carry the flour!"
"I can lift more than him!"
"Oy, I didn't go last time, it's my turn!"
As more of children were begging, screaming for them to have a chance to to be picked to accompany her, Jacob kept his eyes low, hands at his sides. He didn't want to go. He just wanted to stay at the orphanage, he hated the loudness. He enjoyed the peace and solitude. But then he felt a sharp nudge in his ribs.
He turned and saw Anrita grinning.
Before he even noticed she raised his hand.
"Jacob volunteers," she said brightly.
The woman looked at him, then at her, and gave a curious glare. "Very well. Anrita and Jacob. Grab your coats. We leave shortly."
A hush fell over part of the group, followed immediately by a few loud groans.
"Him? He hardly even goes out to the garden!"
"I saw it! He didn't even put his hand up!"
"Jacob gets picked and I don't? That's just unfair!"
Jacob glared at Anrita as they stepped out of line.
"What was that for huh?"
You spend too much time hiding in your room reading those books all day" Anrita said, bumping his shoulder. "Besides, you need the fresh air every once and awhile"
He sighed but didn't argue.
Some part of him was still thinking about that dream.
That woman of light.
"Come on Jacob, let's go get our coats" Anrita said "we don't want Marrow waiting for us"
A few minutes pass by and all three of them were on their way down to the town in no time. Jacob walked incredibly close to Marrow, Anrita skipping a few steps ahead like she was leading the way even though everyone knew Marrow always led.
"I must say, Jacob," she said, glancing down at him. "It's rare to see you out of the Haven. Especially without being dragged."
Jacob rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah… I guess I just… felt confident today."
Anrita burst into laughter up ahead, almost tripping herself up. She turned around, smirking, barely able to keep in her laughter. "Brave?" she teased. "You know most people don't need bravery to step outside their home right?"
Jacob shot her a glare. "I take it back."
Marrow chuckled. "Now now. Bravery is a rare gem in this world. Best you hold on to it. Especially if it's starting to show itself."
They passed the outer fields, where a few villagers were already hard at work tending to morning chores. One old man raised a hand in greeting.
"Morning, Marrow!"
"Morning, Bram," she called back.
A woman herding chickens waved them over with a vibrant smile. "Going into town, are you? Make sure to stop by the baker. I set aside that sweet bread you like."
Marrow smiled warmly. "You spoil me, Agnes."
Anrita whispered to Jacob as they walked on, "She has so many fan's. I swear half the town's in love with her."
"Well she did take care of that beast that was near the town last year."
"Beasts? Aren't those just made up monsters?" Anrita said with curiosity and confusion.
"Apparently not. I've read a few books about them, and I honestly think they are real" Jacob said with a slight hint of worry in his voice
They continued walking, the village beginning to take shape ahead stone houses with mossy roofs, winding cobbled lanes, and shopkeepers setting up their stalls. A flock of pigeons took off from a bell tower as a boy chased them away with a stick, laughing.
"Oh, I almost forgot!" Anrita said suddenly, sliding closer to Jacob. "Someone's got a birthday coming up, doesn't he?"
Jacob groaned. "Don't start"
"You'll be twelve soon!" she said in mock awe, pressing her palms to her cheeks. "Such a big boy now. Soon we'll have to start calling you Master Jacob."
Marrow only smiled. "Twelve already, hmm? Time moves faster than it used to."
They reached the town square, bustling now with merchants and townsfolk. The scent of fresh bread and fish filled the air. Children ran past playing tag, and a cart rolled by stacked high with different sorts of fruits and vegetables.
Marrow turned to them both. "I've got somethings to handle with an old friend of mine here. You two can look around just don't wander too far got it?."
Anrita saluted. "Yes ma'am!"
Jacob nodded quietly, his eyes already drifting
Marrow patted him once on the shoulder. "Stay close to her. She may be a pest, but she's a loyal one."
"Hey!" Anrita said, but Marrow had already turned down the road, her coat swaying behind her.
The sun peeked through scattered clouds, casting a golden hue over the town below. Anrita, always at ease in the crowd, strolled beside Jacob with her hands behind her head.
"You know," she said casually, "if you keep coming down here, people might start thinking you have a social life."
Jacob gave her a sideways glance. "Keep talking and I'll vanish again for another two months."
They both laughed as they looked around the towns marketplace.
"Let's talk to a few people," Anrita said, dragging him along. "You need to learn how to be... you know, normal."
"I am normal."
"Haha whatever you say."
They stopped at a vegetable cart where a woman waved them over. "Well, bless me," she smiled. "Is that Anrita? And is that little Jacob? Out in the daylight? Are the walls of the Haven crumbling already?"
Anrita laughed. "He's trying this new thing called fresh air. I'm helping him out"
Jacob rolled his eyes, but the woman handed them each an apple with a warm chuckle. "Tell Elder Marrow I said hello."
They wandered further down, weaving through the crowd until the forge came into view. Jacob slowed his pace as they approached the blacksmith's shop. The rhythmic pounding of metal grew louder, sharper. Inside, a broad-shouldered man in a soot-covered apron stood at an anvil, sparks flying with each strike.
"Hey, Mister Greve," Anrita called.
The man looked up, wiping his brow and froze when he saw Jacob. His eyes widened behind a pair of cracked goggles. "Well I'll be… is that Jacob walking among the living?"
Jacob shifted awkwardly. "Just helping with errands."
Greve set his hammer down and leaned on the anvil, grinning. "I was startin' to think you were just a myth. Thought Marrow was raising a ghost up in that church."
Jacob scratched the back of his neck. "I just… like the quietness, I guess."
The man laughed wholeheartedly "ain't nothing wrong with quietness, just as long as you come out time to time"
Jacob glanced at some of the swords that hung on the back wall of the shop and the man noticed.
"Tell you what jacob, if you ever want to learn the blade, come by. I'll vouch for you. Got a feeling you'll need more than silence in the days ahead."
The day drifted by faster than either of them expected. In the blink of an eye the sun had fallen. The town's lanterns began to flicker to life, casting warm pools of light across the darkened roads.
"Come on Jacob let's go meet up with Marrow." Anrita said hurriedly.
Marrow joined them near the market's edge, her arms full of tied parcels and cloth sacks. "Let's not dawdle. Night walks quicker than we do."
The trio began their journey back to the Haven until Marrow stopped dead in her tracks
What is it?" Anrita whispered.
Marrow's eyes scanned the terrain. "Quiet."
A low growl came from somewhere ahead, deep and wet, like a breath forced through torn lungs. Jacob's heart sank into his stomach.
From the shadows just beyond the path, something shifted.
A shape emerged, twisted, hunched, and snarling. It stood on all fours, but it was no wolf. Its limbs were too long, its mouth too wide, and its eyes... empty.
Marrow's eyes narrowed. "A beast?" she muttered. "But this far out? So close to the Haven?"
She unslung a blade from her hip in one fluid motion. The weapon sparked to life as arcs of electricity ran up its length, casting flashes of white-blue light across the darkened path. The metal hummed with raw energy.
"Run," Marrow said, voice sharp and calm. "Get back to the Haven. Now."
"But-" Jacob started.
"Now!" she barked.
Without another word, Anrita grabbed Jacobs hand and they ran, hearts pounding, the sounds of battle beginning to roar behind them. The sizzle of voltage striking flesh, the snarls and shrieks, the crack of trees splitting under force.
Marrow moved like lightning herself, blade carving through the beast's flesh with elegant precision. Sparks flew as steel met claw. For a moment, she had the upper hand until the beast lunged with a wild, feral burst of speed and slammed her against a tree.
Her sword flew from her hand.
Pain ran through her entire body as she gasped and rolled to her knees, scrambling for her weapon.
The beast reared back, mouth wide with laid out with razor sharp teeth, ready to crush her skull between its jaws.
Then
A thunderous crack.
The beast's head exploded mid-snarl, fragments of bone and blood spraying the leaves.
Its lifeless body hit the ground with a thud.
Footsteps approached from the trees, calm and heavy.
A tall figure stepped into the clearing, shrouded in a long, dark coat, his right arm gleaming with reinforced plating and tubing. Steam hissed softly from the mechanical seams of his shoulder. He held a smoking rifle in one hand, and his face riddled with scars, was calm but firm.
"How sloppy of you, Marrow," he said dryly. "Letting your guard down like that...."