The Frozen

Ashes
By: Conall Keohane
 Part I: The Past 2227 - 2234

The world is cold, a frozen wasteland with small dots of civilization poking
through the snow. We did not always live in this eternal winter at one point we had
seasons, in some places it never snowed at all. Not anymore, now we move snow
almost every week, and the temperature is never warm enough to take off your coat.
But we were happy, no, content, we were content because we had each other we and
had what we needed, life was not bad or particularly hard. It all changed about 20 years
ago I remember that day it was a warmish sunny day almost warm enough to take off
our coats and many people were out we were planning a festival for the warm season,
or. I could smell the cold air I could see my brother Tom learning to ride a horse for the
first time, and that's when it happened, and the first thing was the noise of a loud siren
blaring from above and the smell of gasoline, we all looked up and gasped. That was
the day everything changed, but not for the better. That night I watched my village burn
and smelled the ash from the fires.

They were called the “Overlords” the iron monsters that came from the sky, they
came and destroyed anything and anyone who stood in their path decimating village
after village full of people, ash filled the skies, death-filled our hearts, and just as we
thought that It couldn’t get any worse and we felt like would all die they spoke, they
spoke in there loud blaring voice with no emotion or consideration they told people that
to survive they would have to live in the detainment camps the Overlords provided us.
At first, we fought back but we could not stop the giant monsters of metal, and even
after a 7-year long war against them we lost and thousands entered the camps and we
slowly began to die, not just from the camp’s cramped and horrible conditions and the
overpowering smell of decay but also from the lack of hope and the lack of compassion
we had for one another. Crime, starvation, disease, and corruption took many lives
before people with the last spark of hope decided to break free and find ways to leave
the camps with others to find a way to come back for others someday. One of those
people was me, before I left everyone I cared about behind to die.

In the story of that day, it is said that we defended ourselves valiantly but in
reality, it was the opposite, we never did much. Bows, guns, and rocks are useless
against them the overlords are just too big and strong to be destroyed and thousands
died often for nothing. I lived by surviving at any cost, even betraying others to get food
or to avoid overlords. I also help free people to feel even on the bad-good scale. Out of
all the betrayals and backstabbings that I have done, after all the people I have left
behind I only have one regret, my brother Tom.

It was a stormy day rain beat down on the snow-covered slope; the smell of
burning flesh and bone on our unwashed clothes filled the air along with the sound of
howling winds. We were making good progress after we had escaped the camp with 3
others. My brother was not built for long hikes in bad weather and was trailing behind
us. I was right beside him helping him up the treacherous terrain.

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“I can’t believe that we got away. That was … like you were a ninja man.”
“Yeah,” my brother said breathlessly
We were all tired but we pushed on not wanting to be caught anywhere near the camp
that we had just escaped from. That was when it all fell apart. We watched as suddenly
whoever was in the front disappeared beneath a giant iron fist. It was an overlord a
giant machine that looked like a human it’s red glowing eyes shined through the mist
that surrounded us. I was the first to react grabbing Tom’s shoulder and yanking him
backward away from the machine.
“Let's go while it’s distracted with them!”
But my brother is the person, he was running towards the others, he probably thought
he could save them or something. I ran forwards time seemed too slow as he
approached the machine, what happened next I will never forget. I ran down that
mountain alone and I never saw Tom again.

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 Part II: The Present 2240

I sat at the bar drinking my memories away nowadays I couldn’t bear to step near
those camps after Tom died, it would just bring back his dying memory.
“Lost another group didn’t you.”
Samuel, I knew the man from the years I had spent in the free village, he was a friend.
“Yeah someone tried to go back for something, the metal monsters were all over us
before we made it 2 miles.”
I had watched them all die under metal fists and beams of fire, it weighed me down
heavily because it reminded me of what had happened 6 years ago with Tom.
“Well,” said Samuel. “I have good news, Brian made it back with 12 people, 12! All good
and well.”
I knew Brian as well, he was considered magic by most for his numberless success and
the legend that he had killed an overlord, I didn’t put much stock in those stories they
were probably just wishful thinking because, in reality, the guy was a prick, always
saying I was a coward and that he was the best bla bla bla.
“Yeah has he told the whole world yet.”
“Don’t be mean he means well.” Samuel started.
“No, no, he probably wants a public meeting so he can get a medal and make a speech
about his awesomeness.”
“He’s not like that, anyway I had actual good news for you if you could just shut up and
listen.”
I stopped and he gave me a “see how easy that was” look and sat down next to me.
“One of the people he saved said that they, they knew your brother.”
I sat their sort of dumbstruck not quite realizing what he had just said.
“What?”
“I said, your brother might still be alive.”
As I spoke I was getting up and ran out of the door and putting on my coat.
He tried to grab my arm to stop me.
“You can’t go out now, the overlords will be on alert!”
I pulled away from his grip staring him down.
“I have lived for 6 years believing he was dead, if he still lives I am going after him and
you can either help me or stay behind.”
He stepped back and noded
“I wish you luck.”
I quickly packed everything I needed to make the long hard journey to the camp. It took
little time for I had done this many times before and I was soon putting the village
behind me. I was finally atoning for what I had done all that time ago.

It was a cold and stormy night when I arrived at the outskirts of the camp the rain
beat down and the wind howled loudly in my ears. The camp was huge, several miles in
diameter with walls made of concrete topped with barbed wire. Several overlords were
present these had several legs and arms with strange devices all over that's function
eluded us all. I knew the way in, it was an old sewer grate built in a time long forgotten,
It took me only a few seconds to find the grate and lift it, the smell of death and disease
hit me right in my face so hard I almost choked on it.

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“Well, that's just perfect.” I sarcastically told myself.
The sewer was almost filled with water and grime but that hardly stopped me from
jumping in. It only took me a few minutes to find the grate that opened up the camp. The
sunlight hit my face as well as the horrible smell of the camp, after getting up I looked
around, conditions at the camps were nigh unlivable with rudimentary wooden buildings
and cramped conditions where disease spread like wildfire, It was made to kill us,
slowly. I felt the despair all around me as I looked around walking between the wooden
structures. Trying to fit in because unfortunately, some thought that the overlords were
benevolent and tried to turn people like me in. I kept my head down and headed off in a
random direction to find someone who I could trust to tell me where Tom was.

It didn’t take long for I found a group of people talking about someone who gave
away food and was an all-around happy risk-taking person. I smiled to myself knowing
that only one person on the planet would give freely to others right now: Tom. I asked
them where this generous person was and they told me where to find him and I followed
their directions to a very small wooden shack in the middle of the camp. I slowly walked
towards the door and I felt tension I was so close I remembered everything from his
good humor to what I thought was his death. I closed the distance to the door slowly
trembling, hoping.

He did not expect to be almost trampled by his brother with hugs and hellos.
Instead of a cold greeting, he seemed overjoyed to see me.
“I missed you brother after I fell off of that cliff I thought I was a goner but as you can
see I survived.”
I stood there hugging him back.
“H-how.” I stammered, “why did it take so long.”
He stepped back.
“That's what you have to say.” “The truth was I didn’t want to see you after what you did.
But now, I need your help.”
He looked me in the eyes and I could see something new in them a strength I had never
seen before.
“What do you need help with.”
He spoke, slowly and deliberately.
“It started 3 weeks ago, the overlords came in they started destroying other camps, they
killed everyone except one he came here to warn us, I need your help to free everyone,
everyone.”
Everyone! I thought.
“That would take weeks maybe months! And by judging by what you said we don’t have
that kind of time!”
He sighed.
“You are thinking of sneaking out a couple at a time, I’m thinking more on the lines of
everyone, tonight. I need your help to find the sewer entrance”
I looked at him like he was joking but I could tell he was not. There was only one
question.
“How?”

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 Part III: The Present and Beyond 2240 - Unknown
His plan had its faults but all in all, it was pretty good he planned to make use of
the overlord's immense size to sneak past them and into the wilderness. He had
organized the people into groups and had given them different times to go into the
sewers and sneak under the massive overlords and then run into the nearby canyon. It
was risky but I watched the people here how the people stumbled around starving, and
dying. I knew I had to do something even if it meant there was no going back.

That night the cold air blew hard and snow fell hard on the earth. The darkness
flooded everything as we had to light to lift it and people relied on the lights projected
from the overlords to tell where they were, but in the air, there was a sense of hope, a
longing to return to homelands and safe havens spoken of only in stories and legends. I
saw their backs straighten and their eyes filled with determination when Tom was
around them. He must have been a true leader to these people to have this effect on
them. The first group of people began to run towards the sewer entrance then the next
one and then the one after that.

“So, it has begun,” I muttered to myself.

The first groups covered the distance between the sewer exit and the nearby
valley quickly with the shroud of darkness protecting them from sight. I watched with
growing excitement as hundreds of people went unseen beneath the giant machines
group after group. I went with the last group and it seemed that we would all make it
without error. I probably head it first, the loud wailing shriek that I had heard so long ago
when the machines had first come. I turned to look and almost fell back with fear, this
overlord was huge, supported by 4 large legs with 4 similarly huge arms ending with
different weapons. The titanic monster had spotted us and its form was lit by an
occasional lighting bolt from the sky. People panicked some just stood where they were
and looked at the monster whilst others ran from it deeper into the valley. I ran with
them, ran like I always did away from danger oblivious to others who needed my help, I
ran for my life, not for theirs. Tom caught up to me in my mad attempt to escape the
monster behind us. He grabbed my shoulder and turned me around.
“Look.” he pointed at the crowds of people running from the overlord
“It will kill them all if we don’t do something.”
As he spoke the overlord started firing lances of flame at the people gathered
around it I watched whole crowds turn to ash right before my eyes the smell of ash and
heat was overpowering. I turned around and looked at Tom.
“I can’t.” “I don’t want to die.” I pleaded
He did not react with hatred or sadness just acceptance.
“Then go, but you will remember this day for the rest of your life. You can’t escape the
past.”

5
 Saying that he turned and started to climb the valley face with 2 other people, I
turned away and started to once again start running. I did look back once but I could not
face the death behind me. An explosion knocked me off of my feet I landed on my back,
and I looked around trying to figure out what had just happened. The machine had shot
at me it was moving through the valley at startling speed on its 4 legs. Tom was doing
something near the top of the valley that the machine was unaware of for the moment.
That soon changed, the meatal monster must have been clued off by something
but moments later its head twirled towards Tom and his compatriots a lance of flame hit
the rocks near my brother's location, rock and snow alike were blasted away falling to
the valley floor. I watched it all from where I stood. This time instead of running away I
ran towards where I had last seen my brother I scaled the cliff quickly filled with
adrenaline I could still hear the cries of the people below but instead of ignoring them I
instead listened and felt, it gave me courage.
It gave me the strength to climb the wet cliff face when I had reached the place
where the earth was scorched I saw the bodies of the people who had followed my
brother I could smell burnt flesh and ash, but what I also saw shocked me. Tom was
hunched over a device near the edge of the cliff, he was trying to reach something. I
hurried over to him crying.
“I’m sorry. I should have been here for you, I shouldn’t of run away.”
He looked up at me his hand went to my shoulder his grip weak.
“I knew you had it in you, don’t be ashamed you can still do something important.”
I tried to pick him up to get him to safety
“You’ve lost a lot of blood we need to get you out of here.”
He pushed my hand away and when he spoke his voice was almost gone.
“My time is done, I can’t go on, but you can the device I am using needs to be activated
the button on the right the yellow one push it save them.”
I watched him die, for the second time his last breath telling me to save the
people he had cared for, that he had fought with for almost 6 years. I looked at the
button he had mentioned I watched the machine kill more and more people I leaned
forwards, I pushed the button.

People watched the machine with horror it seemed unstoppable, some threw
rocks others ran but it mattered not nothing stopped it, but then the people looked up as
a booming explosion rocked the valley the people watched as the explosion loosed
huge boulders and smaller rocks that grew and grew and slammed into the Iron
monster.
At first, it seemed that it had done nothing but after a few seconds one of the
giant legs snapped, and more large rocks slammed into it almost burying it, the machine
gave one last loud siren call before collapsing beneath the avalanche. The people
cheered in triumph.
It would be days later that they discovered that Tom and his brother had died in
the explosion they joined the free villages and declared the site of the dead Overlord a
monument to all free people of earth and to this day it stands as a testament to human
resolve, heroism, and survival, Tom and his brother are considered heroes to all
humans and their story is shared and passed down from generation to generation giving
hope to all who would come after them.