Chapter Two, NEVERMORE!:



The survivor came to a stop near a town. He had traveled long through dense foliage and streams. In his journey, he has already faced many challenges... Forests teaming with mutated life and rough terrain. It was hard to think that this area had once been so different, back to a time when humans were the dominate life on this planet. It has been too long for the survivor to remember clearly what such a time was like, he was born at it's end. But this town, it made him feel nostalgic of those times. As he caught his breath, the survivor walked to the crudely cut hardwood gate, and knocked. After several minutes, a man came to answer his call. This man was tall, rough looking. His shoulders broader than the survivors legs were long. This man's muscles almost looked like stone, he has obviously been hardened by this life. As the survivor looked up, he saw the man's face. It was like the man was carved from the same wood as the gate, but with fur added. If the survivor didn't know any better, he would have thought this man was a wooden carving. This... man, spoke. The sound grating against the survivor's ears, the man asked, "Where have you come from, Traveler? You seem lost." The survivor responded in a calm voice, "I have traveled far across this land. May I be granted access to your town?". The man stared at the survivor for what seemed like an eternity, after which he spoke again with a slight smile on his face, "You shall be welcome here, friend. Welcome to the Raven's Moon, I am chieftain Willowhawk."

As the survivor entered the settlement, he was amazed to find that this was no ordinary settlement. The buildings had been built both high in the trees, as well as on the floor of the forest. He was amazed to find armor smiths, weapon smiths, Fishmongers selling their wares. This settlement was thriving in the harsh forest! It's streets bustling with life! People from far and wide gathered here for trade, social events, and much more. The survivor had only heard of populations this dense in large settlements long ago. He remembered stories told to him in his childhood of "cities", where automated carts carried people across vast distances... this settlement was a city! The survivor was awestruck, he was given new hope, both in humanities ingenuity and determination, and that he was on the right track. If settlements such as this existed, there must be others that may be larger. But for now, he wanted to explore this settlement...

Wondering the streets, the survivor saw something that caught his eye. A man and a woman were arguing. Typically, this wouldn't be that interesting, there are arguments all the time. What was surprising, however, was that the woman was wearing warrior armor, and brandishing a large pickaxe against the man, who was wearing what seemed like... grass? The man had a small blade, and seemed no match for the woman fully clad in bones and leather. The survivor was intrigued, he watched from the shadows as the action unfolded before him... The man was yelling at the woman and went to slash at her with his blade. The woman, unphased, grabbed the man's arm mid-swing and proceeded to open a can of Whoop Grass on him. She threw the man over her shoulder, breaking his wrist as he landed. As the man screamed out from the pain of just having his wrist broken, and probably a little from the humiliation of getting a beat down by a woman... The woman cracked her pickaxes blunt edge across his faced, rendering him unconscious. The woman then looked in the survivor's direction. The survivor was impressed. He walked towards this warrior-maiden, careful not to appear threatening. She just stood there, poker-faced, as this stranger from a distant land walked towards her. As the survivor reached the warrior-maiden, before he could speak a word, she spoke to him, "I have not seen your face here before, stranger. Is there something I can help you with?". Her voice was different than many of the people here, her hair a dark brunette. She was, as everyone else in this land, hardened by work and nature. She was about the survivor's size, her hair was short and unkempt, and her face was dirty and sun burnt. After a pause to think, the survivor spoke, "I was just wondering through, when I saw what you did... if it's not too much trouble, what's your name?". She only said one word, "Brynhildr", and walked away.

The survivor met up with Willowhawk once more, to arrange a place to stay temporarily. The chieftain showed him to an older home in the back of the settlement. It was on the ground, crudely made, and didn't offer much in terms of creature comforts; but it was better than sleeping on the cold, hard ground one more night... After getting settled in, and making the building look more homely, the survivor wondered around the market for the remainder of the day. Night came swiftly, as the survivor was caught up in all the activities around the settlement. As the darkness descended upon the settlement, a bonfire was held in honor of the prosperity of the tribe. The survivor was invited by a strange man, and decided to attend. During the bonfire, the survivor saw the warrior-maiden. He walked up to her, and asked, "Hello again. Why did you leave so suddenly when we met?". She responded, "I'm sorry, I'm not really the 'social type', especially with strangers...". "Well, maybe we should get to know each other then.", the survivor said, with a smile. And get to know each other they did, as they talked, and shared stories until the bonfire ended. They bid farewell for the time being, and parted ways. The survivor retired to his chamber for a good night's sleep that he had not had for a long time... It was late. Very late. The man had been woken up from he slumber by a rapping, rapping on his chamber door. "Tis a visitor," he muttered, "tapping on my chamber door - only this, and nothing more.". The survivor stood up, and waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Slowly, he dragged himself to the door, and turned the rough wooden handle... As the door opened, there stood Brynhildr. The survivor asked, "Brynhilder, what brings you here this late at night?", she only said, "This.", as she embraced the man, and then pecked him on the lips.

And nothing more... The warrior-maiden stole away to the night, presumably back to where she lived, as the man stood there, dumb-struck. As the cold night air flowed around him, the man felt many emotions and thoughts rush through his mind at once, unsure what exactly just happened. After an unknown period of time, the survivor finally shut the door, and wandered back to bed. He would have to talk to her in the morning about this.