Chapter Text
A single, tan sash across her midsection, tattered, bloodied, and burned.
A red beret on the blistering skull, and a pair of spectacles that have long since slipped off her nose in the chaos.
The smell of burning flesh invaded everyone's noses as a newly-turned zombie shuffled forward.
A few blocks away stood a single villager, frozen in time. She watched the undead creature inch closer, making no attempt to move or run away.
A lifetime of experiences flashed over her eyes, almost blinding her in grief.
She couldn't breathe.
Couldn't move.
Couldn't call out for help, couldn't…
Couldn't do anything.
A part of her wanted to stay frozen forever.
Let the zombie close the distance and invite her to the other side.
Maybe that would stop the pain, maybe it would make it last forever.
Who's to say?
The walking corpse reached out its blistering arms, covered in melting flesh in the sun.
And for a moment, Nil reached back. She leaned towards her mother, ever so tempted to close the distance.
She wanted to join her, she NEEDED to-
Her train of thought was cut short with a sudden jerk backwards. Two hands, one tan and one gray, wrapped around each of her forearms and yanked her frozen body away from the rotting one.
Nil stumbled and fell, watching the zombie's pursuit come to a halt. Its legs crumpled underneath it, and the smoke slowly started to rise from the reeking pile of ashes and sludge on the ground, signifying its end.
Her chest was heaving, but she felt like no air was getting into her body.
Everything hurt, but she couldn't feel a thing.
So she opted to just. Sit there.
In the grass, feeling every blade of grass against her hands while her saviors stood guard.
"Huff. Hoo boy that was. A little too close for comfort, eh?" Steve chuckled. She patted the green-clad villager's head to comfort her, but her words fell on deaf ears.
The. The Hero.
They saved the village countless times.
Where was she this time… why…
Why wasn't she… why couldn't she…
This is the HERO'S fault!
She led a zombie into the village, they were so careful before,
but her carelessness got everyone… no she can't even say it.
No, stop. It wasn't the Hero's fault, it was an accident.
But if the Hero was never here, the zombie would haven't had the chance to… ugh.
Nil put her hands on her head to stop the barrage of thoughts, each one feeling like an arrow to her skull. A strained groan escaped her as the full weight of the current situation hit her like a ravager, but she never broke eye contact with the village below. Steve gave her a sidelong glance, with an almost pitying expression on their face.
"Hey I'm… I'm really sorry about all this. It really was an accident, I wouldn't have purposely done. This."
She gestured to the bloody massacre in front of them, the piles of ashes and burnt houses scattered along the plains.
Nil could feel the bile rising in her throat, so she broke her gaze from the battlefield and focused on her sandals instead.
Her other savior remained silent throughout the whole ordeal. Blood and chaos were secondhand nature to the illager, and none of what she was seeing was new. However, comforting someone that was dealing with the ramifications of another's actions? Now THAT was out of her wheelhouse. She doubted she would do a worse job than Steve, but she chose not to gamble on that.
The Hero also seemed to notice that her attempts of comfort were in vain, so she decided to rely on something she was good at. Crafting.
"S-so… I'm assuming you aren't going to stay here anymore. Not really safe considering all the. Wreckage." She coughed awkwardly into her hand, but pushed forward. "How about I get you some things to help you two out? I could get you some sleeping bags, maybe get some materials for a golem, some food wouldn't hurt either…"
She trailed off, seemingly lost in thought, but her words seemed to break the Villager (well, ex-villager) out of her thoughts. Help you TWO out? She couldn't possibly mean…
She turned her head to the other side and sure enough, the Illager held the same confused expression on her face. Steve noticed the two pairs of eyes, so she put her hands up in a defensive motion.
"I mean… it only makes sense for you two to stick together? YOU jumped into an active zombie siege for her, and I haven't seen YOU lift your finger to do a day's work since I came to this village. Not sure how you'd fare in the wilderness by yourself, but I could be wrong."
You could almost see the cogs turning in both of their heads as they processed this information.
Steve, all things considered, was right.
The Illager had no-one to turn to, and the Villager was completely out of her element.
It only made sense for the two to team up… if only for a short while.
The Hero broke into a huge grin as she saw them come to the same conclusion as her. "Great! I'll go grab you guys some stuff, wait here!"
Steve dashed off into the distance, likely to one of her many bases, and left the duo to sit with the carnage. The zombie siege had taken place in the early morning, but came to a screeching halt once the sun had crested the horizon. Sunlight had washed over the land and burned the remaining undead. By mid-day, the two remaining survivors had been equipped with various supplies to help them out in the world, along with a single iron golem. The golem and Illager eyed each other warily, but made no attempt to flatten the other. Small victories, Polly thought bitterly.
Nil walked over and tapped her knuckles on the golem's massive arm, and the construct obediently lowered its arm for her to step up.
It raised her up to shoulder height, and she perched herself delicately on top.
Polly, having no such trust in the construct, opted to walk alongside them instead.
The trio warily eyed the treeline, unsure of what their future held as Steve walked in between them.
"Hey. I'm… I'm going to fix this. I'm not sure how quiet yet, but I will fix this. I promise."
Her tone almost had a hint of anguish in it, but overcame it with a steely resolve.
Polly looked up to gauge her counterpart's reaction, and saw that she was fiercely avoiding eye contact with everyone, and staring directly at the forest. The Illager adopted the same mindset, and purposefully avoided The Hero's gaze as well, and stared forward. Steve sighed at the lack of response and stepped aside, letting the group begin their journey.
She watched them leave, chuckling slightly at the size difference of the enormous golem and its two commanders, as she turned around to wander aimlessly throughout the now-burnt village. Steve had been telling the truth; the siege was a complete accident, and she never meant for it to happen. Of course, apologies and pity don't bring back the dead. Science and research do, and that was precisely what she intended on doing. Studying as hard as possible, raiding as many libraries as she could. Whatever it took, she would make sure this never happened again.
Steve casted a sidelong glance to one of the more intact houses. Hmm… it seems that a few villagers had barricaded themselves inside, but that didn't stop the infection from spreading. She walked up to the door and put her hand on it as she peered through the window. A single villager was moaning in the corner, a shell of its former person. She couldn't see any other details other than a loose headband slung over its rotting skull, and she shuddered at the gruesome sight.
"I'll fix this. I'll cure you. One way or another, I WILL make this right. I promise."
The zombie groaned in response.