One Piece (SSW Backstory)

Chapter 1

Saphira POV:

Dark gray skies that never seem to light up, even when the sun is at its highest. Ashes covering everything like a blanket. Dead plants and dried out rivers. A wasteland to call home.

It wasn't always like this. Our small island used to thrive with greens and fresh blue waters, there was sweet fruits and fields of flowers. That was home.

The village we lived in was small but beautiful. Altough the village was small, we weren't poor. We had mines and high selling materials, thanks to our farmers. We had the money, yet we enjoyed the simple things. The village's money was kept for repairs, taxes and necessities. The people were happy there. We were happy.

Our parents were hardworking, but always found time to spend with Silver and me. We were a happy family, as cliché as it was. We had a beautiful home, a lovely garden my mother always takes care of, a barn full of animals that my dad works hard on keeping save and healthy. Our village had a good education center that Silver and I went to. We had everything we need and more, we were content.

It was home, and we were happy. But nothing stays the same.

Our mother gave birth to our baby sister Winifred a few months before the accident. Silver and I was ecstatic to have a new sister, even if we didn't outwardly show it. Winifred was only four months old when everything went to hell. There was a mining accident at one of our biggest mines. There was a big expedition that anyone was welcomed to join, the mining company wanted new recruits and used this event as a way to get applicants to come, and experience what it was like underground and watch how the miners work. The event was quite big, that even visitors from other lands came for the experience. Our dad was one of the participants.

No one really knew what happened that day. All we knew was when a group went down into the mines...they never came back out. They sent a search party on the same day. However, what came back wasn't what anyone expected. A large area of the mine collapsed and only a few made it out, and with it came our end. According to the few survivors, the group stumbled upon a unmarked area and the group guide wanted to investigate it for any dangers. They explained when the guide stepped on the unmarked ground; the ground collapsed into itself and created a massive sink hole. The others weren't quick enough to get away. The sink hole was what caused the collapse of the entire mine, and the deaths of many, our father being one of them.

The news of our father's death brought a blanket of silence over our home. Our mother never left her room after the news, leaving us to take care of Winifred and the house. We weren't mad at her, but we needed her. Things just got worse after that day.

Silver's POV:

I remember it like a fever dream, something that will haunt me for the rest of my days. We were so young when it happened but I remembered every detail. It was a few weeks after the accident that the mayor of our village announced a virus was released into the air. The collapsed of the mines brought with it a sealed virus being released. Doctors and scientists work hard day and night trying to figure out what this virus was, how to stop it and how to cure the infected. The virus didn't just affect the people; it also infected the crops and wild life. Whatever the virus affected, gets horribly sick and dies not long after.

The only signs there were to show you had the virus was constant coughing, high fevers and drowsiness. It was the first time in my young life that I felt dread, when our mother started coughing. The house doctor visited frequently to come check up on her, he also informed that our house was on lockdown because of our mother and we needed to stay inside with her for the chance we can be carrying the virus. Every night, I would lay awake in bed listening to Saphira struggling to get a crying baby Winifred to sleep and my mother's loud coughing from her room. It was a constant struggle every night. Until one day...