Blood

Chapter Thirty Nine: The Silence of the Wasteland

Ethan’s feet crunched against the scorched earth as he wandered aimlessly, his mind a tangled mess of confusion and dread. The air was thick with ash, and the once-thriving cities that dotted the landscape were now nothing more than ruins—hollowed-out shells of what they used to be. Skyscrapers lay in jagged heaps, their windows shattered, their steel beams twisted and broken. Streets that once bustled with life were now silent, the pavement cracked and weathered by years of neglect. The world, once full of promise and possibility, now felt desolate.

He passed the remains of schools, their playgrounds deserted, their classrooms empty. The ghosts of the past seemed to linger in the air, but there was no sign of life. No children running, no laughter echoing through the halls. It was as if everything had been erased, wiped clean from existence.

His breath hitched in his chest, and his heart ached as he called out for them.

“Dad! Ava!” His voice was hoarse, but the sound barely carried across the wind, which only whispered back, indifferent.

Ethan clenched his fists, his heart sinking lower with each passing second. He tried again, but this time, he reached deep inside himself, tapping into the strange ability he’d learned from the others—the high-pitched sound, sharp and piercing, the one that only vampires could hear. He let it rip from his throat, his voice echoing across the wasteland, hoping that someone, anyone, would hear it. The noise cut through the empty air like a blade.

But nothing.

Not a flicker of response. Not even a faint stir of movement in the distance.

He collapsed to his knees, his hands trembling as he dug them into the ground for support. His chest tightened, his breath shallow as a sob broke from him. The emptiness swallowed him whole.

“What’s the point…” he whispered, his voice barely audible over the wind. “What’s the point of being a guardian if there’s no world to guard?”

The words hung in the air, the weight of them pressing down on him, suffocating him. He had devoted his life to protecting others, to ensuring that the balance of the world remained intact. But now? Now there was nothing. Only death and silence.

Ethan staggered to his feet, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, and began walking again, aimlessly, desperate for some shred of hope. He found himself at the remains of a crumbling building, a forgotten stall where goods had once been sold. The roof had caved in, the walls were half-fallen, but it was shelter. He crawled inside, curling up in the dark corner and closing his eyes. The cold gnawed at his bones, but it was nothing compared to the numbness that had taken over his heart.

What had happened here? How had everything gone so wrong?

The questions spun in his mind, over and over again, but there were no answers. Just the deafening silence of a world that no longer cared.

---

As sleep claimed him, a strange sensation overtook him. The air shifted, thickening, and his surroundings blurred as though reality itself was distorting. And then, there was a voice.

A low, ethereal sound that seemed to vibrate through the very air around him. He wasn’t sure if it was a dream, but the figure before him was undeniable. Tall, cloaked in darkness, its features indistinguishable, but there was a presence to it, something powerful, ancient. Ethan couldn’t look away, though the urge to run was strong.

“You’re the guardian,” the figure said, its voice reverberating through his chest.

Ethan’s breath caught in his throat. “I… I am,” he stammered, unsure of what it meant. "But how can I be? There’s nothing left to guard.”