Blood pours out from the boy's gapping slash wounds, dripping down the floor of the burning facility now littered with mangled corpses of the tribesmen that dared to attack his home. His long tail limped and bloodied, with patches of white fur dyed red, his hand gripping the straight, one of his raptorial legs now twisted in an odd angle, clawed toes broken. Gipping the single-edged sword still covered in blood, he dragged himself toward the bloodied body of a woman in a white lab coat. The boy fell onto his knees, his once silvery haired now covered in blood, draping over his face as grunts and pulls out the arrow still stuck on his shoulder, there were more on his back and legs but he didn't mind, he only wanted to make sure that she's safe.

- Elizabeth... - He called out weakly, shivering breaths escaped from his slightly open mouth full of bloodied fang-like teeth. There was no response, so he dragged himself forward and put his hand on her shoulder. - Elizabeth. - He called out again with his hoarse voice, this time more determined and filled with frustration. - Elizabeth, please, wake up... Please, don't leave me...

- Q-Quetzy... - The wounded woman slightly opened her eyes, beautiful sapphire eyes the shone brightly even when hellish flames were still burning around them, eyes that the boy loved and wanted to cherish. She smiled at him, her son, her beautiful boy, her hand flicked weakly, trying to reach up and caress his cheek, but he body has all but given up. - It's...cold... - She muttered weakly, keeping her eyes open has become such a difficult task that it requires all of her remaining strength.

- Please...don't die... - Quetz pleaded desperately, his amber eyes filled with salty tears. - Don't leave me...

- Quetzy...be strong... - Letting out a defeated sigh along with her last words, Elizabeth closed her eyes, her whole body became cold and lifeless as the facility burns even brighter.

- Elizabeth. Elizabeth! - The lone boy shook his figurative mother to wake her up. She didn't. - Elizabeth! No! I won't let you! Wake up! - Desperate pleadings escaped his mouth as he shakes the lifeless corpse, all the while the fire has surrounded them, threatening to devour them both.

Letting out a painful howl, Quetz was drowned in grief as the roof of the burning building collapses, sending tons of flaming debris down, burying all of them, both the living and the dead.

***

- Gargh!

Quetz let out a terrified cry as he landed onto the wooden floor with his back, he slipped onto all four with a swift motion and looked around frantically, checking his surrounding. The silenced, chilled air of the night greeted his senses and shaking body, cooling off his mind with every shivering breath, ensuring that he's in no danger. The silver haired man stayed in his defensive position for a few more heartbeats, still shaken by his nightmare that has haunted him since his childhood. It's been always easy for Quetz to shrug it off, but this time it's more vivid, more surreal, as if he's been torn from reality and placed there purposely since he met...Haru.

Grabbing the large flask of water, Quetz poured the cold liquid onto his head, washing off the sweats from his silvery hair and naked back, making the python-like patterns of scales on his back glitters in the moonlight reaching down from the holes on the ceiling. He shook his head and stroked his wet hair backward before walking out to the balcony, mumbling inaudible curses under his breaths and rested his arms on the handrails made of driftwoods and bones.

Quetz was right to choose this large hill, from the top of his tree he has a nice view of the surrounding land, close to both the meadows and the ruined city where he can hunt and scavenge for materials. Winter is coming soon this year, the mountain tops have been covered in snow and herds of mammoths, wise animals that they are, have already began moving southward. Filling his lung with the chill air of late autumn, he marveled at the fact that most of the trees were still quiet green, with only a handful have just now shedding their golden leaves. It was to be expected, he thought, life here response very rapidly to changes, with tree retracting all nutrients and shed leaves days before snowing, a remnant of human's ingenuity. But the more Quetz thought about the ruins and their former inhabitants, the more he was reminded about her.

- Goddammit... - He cursed, ruffling his silvery hair, his mind buzzed by visions of the past and of that human boy. Haru, the name rang through Quetz's brain, he seemed somewhat...familiar.

His thought was cut short as the tree vibrated violently, making Quetz struggles to stay balanced. He gripped at the handrails and looked down, horrified at the scene of a large ground sloth that was using the tree as a back scratcher. The three meters tall beast stood on its hind legs, leaning its entire body against the tree and rubbed furiously while flailing its tongue out of its mouth from the pleasure.

- Get off you damn sloth! This is my house! Not your back scratcher! - The host of the house yelled down in futile, the sloth closed its eyes and continued rubbing much to Quetz's frustration.

Rolling his eyes, Quetz staggered back into his house and came back with a long bow and a quiver filled with arrows. Anchoring his claws into the wooden floor, the silver haired man bent over the balcony with his bow, pulling the string back and released. The arrow shrieked as it pierced through the air before planting itself into the sloth shoulder with a sharp sound. The beast roared in pain and dropped on all four, colossal hooked claws swung around blindly to attack whatever it was that's just hurt it, a futile attempt as its blows fell into thin air. Wounded and frustrated, the giant sloth disgruntledly walked back into the forest, unknowingly leaving trails of blood behind for predators to pick up.

- Damn sloths keep using my tree at a back scratcher...why don't you just do something about it? - Quetz cursed as he walks inside, but no sooner has he taken three steps did the tree start shaking again. - What now!? - He roared and walked out to look down, but there was nothing at the root of the tree.

It wasn't only his house that was shaking, this entire part of the forest and the meadows beyond were suffering from an earthquake. The tremor stopped as suddenly as it's began, causing the sounds of panic animals a moment ago were drowned out now fill the air as they stampede for safety. The panic was short lived, the animals soon return to their rest as they felt no more violent tremors coming from the ground.

Clinging to the handrails, Quetz cursed his luck and walked inside, jerking his head backward as he sees the mess that has been made. His workshop where he crafted his tools and weapon littered with small parts. Journals and parchment sheets littered the floor, with some ruined completely by the spilled ink. But worse of all, his pots of herbs and bottles of medicine have fallen from their shelves, in their places was mashed up herbs and wet dirt mixed together in an unrecognizable mess on the floor.

- Great... - Quetz rubbed his face and walked inside, planning on salvaging the things still remained intact and replace the irreplaceable.

But as he starts to clean up a mess, the silver haired male notices something odd. A bracelet of small, smooth gemstones and bones, fit only to an infant's wrist. Quetz placed the trinket on his paw and caressed it his fingers, trying to recall whose its owner was. He sat down, retracing his memories about this small piece of jewelry, he remembered making it for one of the twin orphans he found in the forest that was his old home. He remembered taking it away from that same infant when he was forced to give it to a friend of his to take care of. A frail boy, with snowy white hair and beautiful violet eyes.

- Runty?

Quetz's amber eyes widened as he recalls the pair of twins he found, the other twin, a girl with the same features as her brother, was still living in his old forest when he left. He remembers now, his loyal friend told him that he couldn't care for the boy who he playfully named Runty, that the frail child needed the gentle hand of fellow human, unlike his sister. And so Quetz gave the boy to an old friend, a chieftain of a coastal tribe, hoping that he'd receive better cares.

Another tremor shook the ground, causing Quetz to drops the trinket before subsiding. He bent down and picked up the bracelet, but as he did, he noticed what it's landed on, a map of the land, with a large mountain near the sea marked with a big red X, noted with a single word by its side. A word that filled Quetz with terror as he whispered:

- Volcano...

***

Leaves crunches beneath the footsteps of the two boys as they make their ways through the forest, making the small animals on the game trail they're on scatter into the undergrowth. The white haired boy rubbed his tired eyes, trying to keep up to his brother who was waiting patiently on the trail with only a spear for protection. After leaving the village, Haru and Loi made landfall on a forested beach before sleeping for only a few hours and began the walking with the coming of dawn. Though their sleeps were short and nightmares ridden, both of them were still rested enough to walk through the dense forest of the lowlands, still wet because of the rains.

But as they move further inland, the terrain and vegetation changed drastically. Soft, muddy ground soon turned firm and dry with taller trees like oaks, spruces and pines replacing dense undergrowth, banyans and other rainforest trees. The atmosphere itself was different inland, away from the coastal wetlands and swamps, trees here grow sparsely, making it easier to breathe and lessen the feeling of being suffocated. It's also much brighter here, with rays of golden sunlight dotted the brightly illuminated forest floor covered in dry grass and flowers that were next to impossible to find near their village.

- Everyone must be having lunch back at the village by now. - The tanned boy said as he looks at the sky, though still a bit gloomy and obstructed through the canopies, he could still see the sun shining brightly above them.

- Or thanking the ancestors that I've gone missing again. - Haru replied and adjusted his backpack, disheartened by his own comment.

- Oh, don't be so gloomy Haru. - Loi smiled and turned around, walking backward on the trail as he tries to cheer his brother up. - Those people are just stupid, Mitsuki and I have been living with you for nearly fifteen years, nothing happened to us.

- But...your parents... - Haru lowered his face, he still remembers the days when people brought them the news, how they secretly eyed him.

- Hey! Hey! - Loi walked up to his brother and held the smaller boy by his shoulders. - You don't think about that, ok? You have nothing to do with their fates! Just because you have white hair, purple eyes and a bit frail don't mean you're some sort of evil spirit, ok?

- Ok. - Haru smiled and sniffled before continuing. - People don't like it when I tie my hair into a ponytail for some reasons. - The white haired boy said and scratched his head, his white hair tied tidily into a small ponytail.

- Well I like it. - Loi said and adjusted his backpack filled with food, water and herbs. - I bet Keto'd fall to his knees when he sees how cute you are with it.

- R-really? - Haru asked with a small smile, raising his hand to shield his eyes from the sun as they moved into a clearing near a river. - You think I'm...cute with it?

- Well...yeah. - Loi scratched his head awkwardly, looking for a something else to turn his attention to. - O-oh look, there's a river, we could rest there for lunch.

Haru smiled softly, knowing full well that his brother was trying to diverse his attention from the compliment but still nodded playfully. The closer they get to the river, the more ruins they encountered, some were covered under so many layers of small vegetation that they thought that they were only large boulders at first. Loi climbed up on top of a large boulder, squinting his eyes to look across the wide yet slow moving river dotted with rocks and ruins. A remnant of a stone bridge lied across the river, connecting the two side with its broken spines, they could cross it with little efforts.

- Kya!

- What?! What's wrong?! - Loi turned his head back as he heard Haru's scream.

- N-nothing, just a rat running past my legs, that's all. - Haru smiled awkwardly, trying to sound as calm as possible.

- Hm...ok, just let me know if you see something ok. - Loi said understandingly as he hops down from one boulder to another, spear still in hand. - Say, this looks like a good place to rest. - The tanned boy said, patting the moss-covered surface of the boulder.

It was a suitable spot for resting, shadows of the nearby trees and the boulders themselves shielded both of them from hungry predators that prowl these forest. Haru draped his cloaked down near the boulder while Loi unpacked his backpack, he has prepared for both of them, small rice balls, breads, meat, dried fish and butter, enough of them for two days but they still need to ration their food. Though their food was bland and dry, the peaceful flow of the river and cool air of late autumn still made a psychological impact on the two boys. Out here, alone in the wilderness, the sounds of nature were pure and unaltered by the squabbling of merchants or the laughter of hunters after a meal and a quick smoke, even the faint falling of a golden leaf was enough to make them shiver.

Taking in a lungful of cool air, Haru took another bite out of his rice ball, letting the smell of fallen leaves mix with the taste of his food as he watches the peaceful movements of the river and all that live in it. He noticed that the shadows of the boulders and the trees have become a bit longer since they sat down, a tiny bit sooner than before, a sign that winter is coming, this year it comes sooner. That means that life would be harder for the entire village, the sea would freeze up, trees would shed their leaves and big games would be harder to catch. They'd have to ration their food even more so than previous years, no doubt many wouldn't last to see spring returns, and they'd blame Haru for all of it.

- Hey. - A poke from Loi pulled the white haired boy from his thoughts.

- Hm? - Haru turned around, cheeks still puffed with rice, making his brother chuckles a bit.

- There's a bridge over there, why don't we gather some more supplies here and set up camp on the other side? - The tanned boy tossed his head at the bridge's general direction before biting off a chunk of bread with butter.

- I don't know. - Haru replies. - The forest on the other side looks a bit denser, it's giving me the heebbie-jeebbies.

- Hm... - A mischievous grin spread on Loi's face. - Remember when you said that you met Keto in a dense forest? What if he's over there right now, waiting for you to return his cloak and give him a big...

- Shut up! - Haru slapped his brother on the shoulder, causing the other male to fall to the ground and laugh loudly.

The river was slow, crystal clears and full of life, salmons, carps, armored fish and even amphibians swam through the cold water, many of them were too large for Loi's spear, which was suited only for small preys. Luckily, the ruined bridged provided ample hiding places for smaller creatures, suitable quarries for the tanned boy to catch. As they cross the broken spine of the bridge, Haru has to wait for Loi who occasionally stops between a large gasp to try and spear a fish or a small amphibian. Before long they've reached the other side, five fish and one small yet fat amphibian hung on the tanned boy's serrated spear while his brother scoffs him for wasting sunlight.

On this side of the river, the trees grew much denser, though not as dense as the lowlands, they're still enough to blot out the waning sunlight as the two boys walk deeper and deeper into the forest. Loi recognized these ruins, this is one of the rarely used paths that lead to the far north of their tribe's territory, to the prairies near the Forbidden Forest, the prairies where Haru was separated from the hunting party. The tanned boy shivered a bit a gust of cold wind swept through the trees, bringing the harrowing breathes of winter from the northern mountain ranges with it. He knew they'll have to set up camp soon, before the last light of the sun disappears under the horizon, it's not safe to travel at night here.

Having reached a small clearing on a hill overseeing the now sparse forest below, Loi planted his spear onto the ground next to a boulder and look at the west. The sun was setting fast, much faster than he's comfortable with, and if the rumors hold true, they should start a fire soon.

- Rai, I'll collect some firewood, you set the barrier ok? - Haru said and put his backpack down.

- Don't go too far ok? - Loi said as he watches his brother walk around the boulder than a bit deeper into the tree lines.

When Haru returned with a bundle of woods in his arms, Loi was sprinkling brown powder around the boulder where they'd set up camp, a hunters' trick he learned from an elder, mixing the right herbs together and it'd become a powerful repellent to wild beasts. Putting the firewood down, the white haired boy began to pile them up into the dugout fire pit surrounded by stones and waited patiently for his brother. He watched as the tanned boy sits down and starts making fire, nervously listening for the sounds of predators that lurk in these woods. The stones in Loi's hands collided, sparks flied out once, twice and fire began to burn in the fire pit, lighting up the surrounding area, making shadows dance on the surface of the boulder like ghosts.

Their dinner was a richer than their lunch, the smell and taste of roasted fish were so good that for a moment the two boys almost forgot that they're in a dangerous place. It wasn't long before Loi regretted catching so many preys, too many for both of them to eat in one sitting and too risky to put it anywhere near their campsite. Picking up a burning stick from the fire, the tanned boy took the remaining fish and the amphibian away from the camp to expose of them, using them as a diversion if any predator came by.

Left alone by the fire pit, Haru took out the journal and flipped through the pages to until Quetz's portrait was in front of his eyes, all the while looking around to check for danger. Though the powder can repel wild beasts, there are other things that lurk in the dark forests of the North, things that the terrified traders from beyond the mountains usually talk about whenever the hunting parties come across them. The boy shivered as such thoughts, for he has seen one such thing long before he met Quetz, he would never forget the sight of that giant tree uplifting its roots to entangle a giant beast, before crushing and stomping it to the ground.

- Welp, I'm done. - Loi walked out from behind the boulder and carefully put the torch back into the fire pit, causing it to light up a bit more. - We should get some sleep, - He said before lying against the boulder and wrapping himself in his cloak like a blanket. - we still have to a long way to go.

- Y-yes. - Haru nodded. - You go ahead and sleep first, I think I'll stay up a bit more.

- Suit yourself then. - Loi let out a large yawn. - Just don't stay up too late, ok?