Chapter 17: All Just to Never Starve Again
"Haaa… this is life!"
The young man's sigh echoed like an insult against the silence of that makeshift shelter. His face was smeared with dry mud, his hair sticky with moisture, and yet… he was smiling. A foolish smile, almost childlike.
The reason: in his hands was a cold beer.
He lifted it, half-empty, and muttered under his breath:"By the way… I'm still underage. Could you not tell anyone?"
The blush on his cheeks was obvious. The alcohol was already reaching him—something Richard noticed with a raised eyebrow of confusion."…Was that even possible?" he thought.
An Awakened couldn't get drunk. The body burned toxins before they could take effect. He himself hadn't felt intoxicated in years. But he remembered what it was like: that sweet emptiness, that temporary oblivion. A disconnection that, for a few hours, stole the weight of the world from his shoulders.
He missed it.
"Good times…" he murmured, barely audible, while picking up another can from the floor.
"Did you say something?" asked the young man, turning his head with curiosity.
Richard glanced at him. Something in his face made him stop cold. That half-idiotic expression, that ignorant smile… it was far too familiar. A face anyone else would forget in seconds—except him.
"By the way…" Richard spoke calmly, taking another sip of his drink. "What's your name?"
The boy scratched the back of his neck nervously before smiling."Right… I forgot to introduce myself. My bad."
He straightened up, exaggerating every gesture as if he were performing on a stage."My name's James. Your friend and neighbor… James."
He extended his hand in a far too enthusiastic handshake.
Richard stared at him in silence. That punchable face, that soul-irritating smile. Of course, he remembered him. How the hell could he forget?
God of war. God of thunder. James.
The young man noticed the fixed stare and stepped back, raising his hands in mock surrender."I know I'm very handsome… but I don't like men."
Richard narrowed his eyes. Not even twenty minutes had passed, and he already wanted to beat him until his own mother wouldn't recognize him.
"You're still alive… I wouldn't have bet a single coin on you."
Without warning, he threw an arm over James's shoulder. James stiffened instantly, caught off guard."Brother… what kind of death wish is that?"
He tried to pull away, but Richard only tightened his grip. That strength had nothing friendly about it. It was a reminder: he could crush him at any moment.
The boy, resigned, lifted another can of beer as if in a desperate toast."If I'm going to wake up abused by this lunatic… I'd rather not remember it. Save me, good alcohol!"
A single tear escaped.
Richard shoved him away roughly."Get lost, freak!"
A flash of anger crossed his eyes. Now, he remembered perfectly why he had fled his hometown: James. That damned lunatic had insisted on a "blood brother pact." And now, like a plague, he had returned.
Richard sighed. The end of the world was full of monsters. And he just had to run into the most annoying of them all.
* * *
James sat upright on the improvised blanket, as if he had finally accepted that he had no escape."Fine, no more jokes…" he muttered.
Richard had given him food and water. James knew that nothing was free in this world. And it had nothing to do with the fact of being anchored to the ground by strange symbols that glowed with a faint radiance, running from the soles of his feet all the way through the rest of his body.
He let out a resigned sigh."Ask the question."
His eyes locked onto Richard, who observed him with the calm of an executioner before the beheading. The crow on his shoulder gave him an unsettling air, as if he had stepped straight out of some old Norse myth. He only lacked one eye to fully fit the role of the god who loved mead.
Richard cleared his throat."From the direction you were coming… you must have come out of Los Angeles, right?"
James looked at him, confused, and then nodded slowly."Yes… why do you ask that?"
Richard tilted his head. His voice came out firm, without hesitation."I want to know how the city is now."
He paused briefly, and then, almost in a rush, fired more words:"Is it true that it became an impenetrable fortress? What changes were made?"
His tone demanded answers.James fell silent for a few seconds, pensive. The rain kept pounding on the tin roof, marking an uncomfortable rhythm, as if it were counting the seconds of his reply.
"You asked a lot all at once…" he finally said, shrugging his shoulders. "But, to answer your questions… I escaped from there after the earthquake, so I didn't see everything."
He tried to scratch the back of his neck."When I left, the military was shooting at everything that moved. And… people with powers started appearing, everywhere."
He stopped for a moment."The last thing I heard was from a friend who decided to stay. He told me that the Awakened began expelling people from the city center. They wanted to clear it out to build something big."
He lifted his eyes to Richard."A military base. Nobody knows how they did it… but they built it in less than a week."
* * *
"You really have a nice shelter… can I stay here?" James asked, trying to sound casual.
But his eyes betrayed him. They scanned every corner of the place with a curiosity that was impossible to hide: the improvised spikes on the windows, the reinforced concrete walls, the defenses that looked solid… though clearly built in a hurry. Everything about him screamed street survivor.
Richard watched him in silence for a few seconds before cutting the illusion short.
"Stop looking around. I'll give you some supplies… and then you'll leave."His tone left no room for negotiation."That was the deal."
He turned, pulling out the key he always carried around his neck. The metal jingled softly against his chest. He pushed open the outer doors, which creaked heavily as they swung open.
Ethan was there, waiting for them. The man was busy maintaining his weapons.
He wanted to ask about Rebecca, but Ethan interrupted."And who's this kid?"
James smiled nervously, trying to raise his hand in an improvised greeting. "I…"
Richard cut him off before he could say more."This is James. I'll give him some supplies… and then he'll leave."
Ethan raised an eyebrow. First, he looked at Richard, then at the newcomer, and then back at Richard."So… he's leaving?"
The silence stretched too long. James swallowed hard."Well…" he began, scratching the back of his neck, "it's not like I want to bother. I'm just saying that—"
"No." Richard cut him off coldly.
It was already enough that, out of old friendship, he was willing to give him supplies.
James blinked, surprised. He looked to Ethan, searching for some humanity, but the man stayed quiet. He didn't know James, and with his wife and daughter here, he couldn't risk it.
Ethan finally spoke."He doesn't seem like a bad kid. But…" he tilted his head, fixing his gaze on James, "we're also guests here. Richard's the one who decides things."
James forced an awkward laugh."Relax… I would've done the same."
Richard looked at him with a hint of hesitation in his eyes. His words echoed in his memory.
In his past life, James had been a good friend. Or at least the closest thing to one. Not because he had any extraordinary virtues… but because he had always been weaker than Richard. Back then, he was like a younger brother.
But what guaranteed that he had only been good because he couldn't do anything against him?
Now… the shine in his eyes gave him away. He had Awakened. Maybe he wasn't stronger than Richard, but strong enough to become the second Awakened in the shelter.
Richard clenched his jaw. What would happen if one day he wasn't there? If James stayed behind with Emma, with Rebecca, with Ethan? Could he trust that this old friend, now with power, wouldn't take what wasn't his?
The caw of Luna, perched on his shoulder, broke through the tension, as if the bird could sense the doubt forming in his mind.
Richard looked away for an instant.
The world had changed. In this new order, friendship was nothing more than a luxury that came at a high price.
Rebecca's scream shattered the calm, bursting through the air like glass breaking:"Everyone, come! Something's happening to Emma!"
Richard's head snapped toward the sound. His chest tightened violently. His feet reacted before his mind, pushing off the ground with a speed that carried him across the yard. In just a few seconds, he reached Rebecca, who was waving her arms desperately in front of a half-open door.
"What's wrong with her?" he demanded, his voice edged with worry, as he followed her inside.
Ethan was right behind them."I'm coming!" he shouted.
James watched from a few steps back. He hesitated. For a moment, he thought of staying there, in the doorway, and waiting. Why should the girl matter to him? But then he clenched his teeth.
"Well… guess I have no choice but to follow."
He quickened his pace behind Ethan, as if he could carve out a place among them by sheer force of steps. Each thud of his boots against the floor was a reminder: he didn't want to be alone again. He didn't want to go back to Los Angeles, where the Awakened had turned everyone else into garbage.
He sighed bitterly."Life's tough for a loner like me…" he muttered, though no one was close enough to hear.