When Dawn Dies Down

To Break the Broken

It was eight in the morning when Irwin snuck back to his home. His parents were completely unaware of his missing.
After the talk with Nameless last night, his burden had gone away, for Nameless was alive and he got over everything.
He silently unlocked the door and walked down the stairs,
"Mom," He asked, "what's for breakfast?"
"One pancake, that's all." His mother replied with a sigh, "Go thank Nameless for it, or whatever they call him. He burnt the wheat and the tomatoes and everything. He burnt them all. We got nothing left in the warehouse anymore. Gotta go easy on food. I swear they need to slaughter that guy when they find him. Skin him and shoot him."
A sudden fear struck Irwin. They are crazy. It ain't him. I swear it ain't him.
"But how are you so sure it's him? You all ain't got no proof. Just saying." Irwin controlled his anger.
"I can feel it. My guts have been telling me it's him. E'er since he came, things had gone wrong. And nothing's happening before he came. He is the reason."
Irwin wanted to protect him, but said nothing. They're gonna call me a criminal. And they'll know I've been with him.
He went out of the house to breathe in some fresh air. And the first thing that came to his eyes had triggered him. It was a poster on a wall.

WANTED
DEAD OR ALIVE

"Nameless"
A thin man with pale white skin
Charged for murder, vandalism and arson

For any valid clues or reports, reward $50
For catching him, reward $250

For a moment, Irwin stood there, stunned. Then he turned around. There was no one earby. So he went ahead and ripped the poster off the wall with his shaking hands. He did nothing to deserve this. I'm gonna tell him.
He hid the poster in his pocket and went to the town center. People were gathering up like flies, great in amount and super noisy. He could overhear some of their words.
"We need to get the guy, as soon as possible. We can't leave that menace hanging. He's gonna destroy this town. He's gonna can us all. For real."
"He's the bad guy! I'm so sure. He's hiding cuz he's afraid of getting caught. He's a coward."
"He got my dog in his stomach. If I see him I swear I'll peel'im!"
"Man, I'ont know 'bout all these. I mean they got no proof but everyone's sayin' it's him. I guess he really did something bad to get the town hatin' him like this."
"Our town used to be so fine. I mean it's so peaceful and perfect n' all. But e'er since he came it was no more. He killed a few and left, now he's back to get us again. The town was already broken, but still he had to break it again and again."
Enough of this. Irwin thought to himself and covered his ears. I'm going to tell him. I'm going to prove to everyone it ain't him. I'm gonna get him the life he deserved. No more hiding, no more hating, no more misunderstanding.
So he ran, away from the center, deep into the woods, passing the chirping birds, across the aquamarine stream, and straight to the lone barn on the horizon.
He knocked on the door and came in. Nameless wasn't standing behind the desk. It was a women,
"Hi," She smiled and asked, "what may I help you with?"
"Hi," Irwin readied himself and replied, "have you seen a skinny pale guy who's wearing a ragged gray shirt? He works here."
The woman pointed her fingers to the back of the barn, "Oh, you mean Ralph? Yeah, he's back in the rye fields picking bugs. He's a diligent worker, I've ne'er seen no one like this before."
Irwin thanked her and left for the rye. Ralph.
He saw a lone man standing in the rye field. He was standing shaking and weak, yet determined.
He walked forward and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Nameless. No, Ralph." He smiled.
"They told you, huh?" Nameless chuckled, "Well, it's not that much of a big deal. So, what are you doing here now? I believe you just went back."
The smile on Irwin's face died down. "Everyone hates you. They think you did all the bad things. The crops were burnt last night. They blamed it on you. They never even see you doing such things. But everyone hates you. They are putting you on Wanted posters. They are so damn sure you are the criminal. But I know you ain't. I know you're a good guy." He almost cried saying these words. It is not fair. It is so not fair.
Nameless sat down on a big rock at the center of the rye field. "Come, sit with me." He invited Irwin.
Irwin sat down beside him, and Nameless opened his mouth.
"You see, the moment I decided to go to Ranhbniz, I knew they weren't gonna like me. I just didn't anticipate it to be so serious. Some of them, one of them, perhaps, wants me dead." He took a deep breath. "But hey, life is supposed to be like this. It ain't all sunshine and rainbows. To do great things, you have to pay great prices, sacrifice so much. But you just gotta accept it, all the evilness and injustice and stuff, and that's what makes life worth living."
Irwin let out a long-held breath. He was right. But still, it's just so monstrously unfair.
"One day," he said, looking up to the great azure sky, "when I'm old and smart and rich enough, I'm gonna get out of Ranhbniz, to see what it's like out there, outside all those gigantic windy mountains, across the deep rushing river. I really want to do so, I really want to see the things that the world has to offer me. I wanna go to New York, or even China. I want to witness life outside the barricades of Ranhbniz."
"For me," Nameless readjusted his position, "it is to fulfill my father's dream. I want him to rest in peace. But I can't tell you what it is. You'll find out, one day."
So they just sat there, letting the gentle wind run through their hair, listening to the sound of rye being shaked, enjoying the ephemeral tranquility.