Free The Wind and the Void by Ryan Kirk Page A

seen them last, he recognized the inhabitants of the village he was nearing. As near as he could tell, everyone in the village was on the road that morning. As the villagers began to pass, several of them recognized him, and they called a stop to the procession. Their greetings were friendly as one of the village elders shuffled up to Ryuu.
    "Young man, it has been a very long time since you have visited our village. It is a pleasure to meet you again, although a shame in such trying times." The old man looked around. "Where is your father?"
    Ryuu stared at the ground. "I am sorry I've not had the chance to tell you. My father passed away just over two cycles ago."
    "I am very sorry to hear that. Your father was a great man, and brought much healing to my people. We will always be grateful for him. What sends you south today?"
    Ryuu studied the old man, but there was no hint of guile in his demeanor. "I have received summons from a village farther south. I'm trying to carry on my father's work as best I can, and there are still those who need aid."
    The old man shook his head. "Have you not heard?"
    Ryuu gave the old man a quizzical look. "Heard what?"
    The elder looked around, as though the very mention of what he was about to say would bring the demons from their hiding place. "It is a hard time. Villages to the south are disappearing. They are burned, and the inhabitants either disappear or are killed. Always, one survivor is left, one person to tell the story. The stories I have heard would chill your blood. With the war going on, there is no protection anymore. That is why we are on the road. We are going to New Haven, to tell our story and seek shelter until these horrors have been laid to rest."
    Ryuu shook his head. "I have heard rumors, but I did not think they were true."
    The old man nodded. "I once thought the same, but I've heard too much, and my people are scared. This is the only way to keep them safe."
    Ryuu and the elder talked for a little longer, but Ryuu could see the villagers were eager to be traveling. With good conditions, it would still take them five or six days to reach New Haven from where they stood. Every moment seemed precious to them. Ryuu received many invitations to join them, but he begged their leave, and before long they were behind him, continuing their long, slow march to their new sanctuary.
    As the day wore on, Ryuu encountered more and more people traveling towards New Haven. He didn't again encounter an entire village, but the number of people he saw could have filled many of the villages he knew. Ryuu estimated he had passed at least a hundred that day alone.
    That night, Ryuu made camp with another small group of travelers, four families that reminded him eerily of the group he had been traveling with so long ago when Shigeru found him. Their story was no different than anyone else's. They had heard the rumors, and one of the men claimed to have met one of the survivors. Once the children were sound asleep the man related what he had heard first-hand from the survivor.
    According to the survivor, they never expected their fate. One day everything in the village had been fine. The harvest had been good and the people were content. They went to bed unsuspecting, and many of them never woke up again. Bodies were pinned to walls and the village was painted red with blood.
    Ryuu looked from traveler to traveler as the story was told and he could see that each believed completely in the story. That night he had trouble falling asleep, not because of fear or the story he had heard, but because of curiosity. There was no doubt in his mind something was happening to the south, but the stories he was hearing were grotesque, almost beyond comprehension.
    The next day was more of the same. If anything, there were even more travelers on the road than there had been the day before. A mass exodus was occurring from the far reaches of the Southern Kingdom, but Ryuu saw no response from the military