After Apocalypse

Chapter 1: The Blue Kingdom

The Blue Kingdom was but one of many settlements scattered across the forgotten land where those who wanted nothing to do with the Messiah had made their homes. The forgotten land once had a name and so did her people, but like all else they had been forgotten amidst the chaos brought about by the outbreak. Things such as ethnicity or cultural differences were of no consequence because only one distinction was relevant, that between the dead and the living. Because of these circumstances, the Blue Kingdom was made up of a variety of cultures and ethnic backgrounds that had somehow melded into one over the settlement's lifespan. One thing did however distinguish the natives of the forgotten land from others and that was their dark skin tone which gracefully soaked in the warm rays of the sun as they went about their daily lives. The Blue Kingdom's name came as a result of its altitude. The village was built atop a mountain range overlooking a vast landscape filled with forests and large open spaces on the southern side, where they would occasionally take their livestock to graze. However, something else could be found on the Northern side of the mountain range. The menacing Wanderers roamed the mountain side. Unable to scale its steep cliffs, they spent their days clawing at the rocks in an attempt to scale them but all they did was scrape their rotting fingers against them, painting them red with their own blood in the process. It was for this very reason that the founders of the Blue Kingdom had chosen that specific location. The mountain made it difficult for hordes of the undead to storm the village all at once and the village defences only needed to be fortified in certain areas where the Wanderers or any other enemy could climb to the top and attack the village.

The mountains were so high that those who lived in the village felt as though all they needed to do was jump and the sky would be within their grasp, hence it was called the Blue Kingdom. All was relatively peaceful in the village and so far they had been able to successfully ward off any attacks of the Wanderers without suffering a single casualty. Of course, like all other settlements they had enlisted the aid of a military guild - the Kuena Regiment. From time to time, members of the guild would come to the village to collect their payment in the form of crops or livestock and leave behind a handful of guards to protect the village. Although there was relative peace in the village, every now and then there would be a ruckus and at the centre of it would always be two individuals, Edith and Ethan, who were ten year old twins. There weren't many others who were around their age as many were fearful of raising children during such troubling times. The twins had no parents but they lived with an old man named Mkhize. The villagers did not know much about him and the twins or where they had come from. He arrived in the Blue Kingdom in the year 481 AA with the two infants in hand seeking refuge. After having a talk with the village elders he was granted a patch of land on which he could build a home for himself and the twins. Over time he exhibited superior knowledge in science and agriculture and helped with everything from making the land more fertile to forging tools and weapons to defend the village, and even developed a bio gas system so the villagers could cook in the comfort of their own homesteads and keep warm during the harsh winters atop the mountains. He became a highly revered individual in the village because of all his work. The twins also looked up to him and hoped to someday match or even surpass his achievements. They had always been curious about his life before coming to the village but he was never forthcoming on that particular subject.

He had taken it upon himself to teach the twins how to read and write from the moment they uttered their very first words. They showed a lot of aptitude and before long he was teaching them about physics, chemistry and biology. They also made time to read books on history and various other subject matters. Most of these books were about the world before the dead began to hunt down the living and it was because of them that they dreamed of returning the world to what it once was, or at least something similar. This was a goal they were prepared to sacrifice everything for.