Chapter 35

William was afraid of remembering. Scared of remainders. This place had many names. Dead Zone, Hell Zone, or Pointless Zone were popular choices, but many people called it simpler: The Zone. A place where the people couldn't find the reason and where Walkers would come for no wide-scale hope. It would be personal. It was the war or quick death.

Why were they going through it then? There were ways to go ahead in better angles, going around as if fearing a plague. North was much safer, so William glanced at Luke again but he was still napping.

In the following time of anxiety, nothing happened. Darks in the Zone were no small matter, and William was sure they should've noticed a noisy helicopter going over this place even if wars were happening, or Walkers were in sight.

William was sure there was a deadly silence in this Zone otherwise. No green was obvious. Apart from Darks and their nests, any forests or natural powers were long obsolete and seized. Corruption captured everything, going deeper and deeper, wasting lives and itself.

William wasn't sure if this was one vista of the apocalyptic nukes, or if this was a former battlefield where Walkers and Darks fought for their lives a long time ago. It was hard to tell, for history was deep, and his guessed not enough. William no longer believed in everything he had ever known.

A lot of things were forgotten but lost in a loss. It will take centuries or millennia for the earth to heal. And that was only if all Darks in the Zone would perish. Then, the Corruption would slowly decay and get lost. Walkers could help out with it by their own steps and uses, but could they fix this nation-worth of Madness?

The Zone was no place for humanity, for the brewing Darks nested inside the earth, hidden in the Fogs, waiting, lingering, and getting stronger. William couldn't even image how; he couldn't see reason in this and their sickening reality.

Luke is right. This destruction isn't what I've seen. I know it well from the atmosphere, bellows, and my heart. It clenches me. People chose to ignore it for a good reason, yet what is it for Walkers? This... That isn't everything, but it could be that. The whole world is full of such Zones. William thought to himself so Luke wouldn't give him any lectures.

A couple more minutes into it, he had enough, turning and speaking to Luke who he was sure would listen. “Where exactly is the Federation? I paid attention to the sun, but my map memory is terrible. Are we reaching the former United States? Why not go over the ocean already?”

“Is that your guess, demand, or certainty?” Luke asked without opening his eyes.

“Are we... going to some branch of the Federation?”

“You know some interesting things, for a brat from Outside. What else do you know and don't tell? By the way, I am not blaming you, questioning you, or finding it wrong in any way. There exist no improper secrets between us, Walkers. Only good reminders.”

He paused for a moment. “I know what I could see,” William accepted the reality. He had many opportunities to hear Walker talk, and some stories were still a good way to see bits of truth, even if they could be exaggerated. Be it in death or because they were friendly, it was worth seeing Walkers out when destruction came. Many regular people were the same and many stories spread like that.

“Very well, William. Where are we heading?”

“Federation. You said it.”

“Where are we going right now?”

“I mean... was I wrong? USA?” William frowned and didn't like how Luke tested him. “The USA was destroyed dozens of years ago but its scattered places are still alive. The Federation has its origins and roots, and some are alive like outer divisions. Since it is not that long, and because of the sun, we should be heading to New York City, or former Maine State, unless I'm wrong.” William assumed after he observed the ground and heard Luke's words.

“Who knows what is right, or why it is false? Maybe the sight I've mentioned is yet to come, yet the Zone came and you were awfully silent. I said what I said. If you feel tired from watching, I can talk about your father and what I promised. Are you tired of hearing about him, afraid of it, or seeing his shadows in pain? I doubt that.” Luke opened his eyes to see William's turned head.

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William didn't turn toward agitation. He only grunted and refused him. If he was testing him first, he would see the ground sooner.

In the following hour, the Zone prevailed, and watching it was dreadful. That went on until something large came over the horizon. Water, followed by... colossal bits of the past and much broader water.

William had seen it only from the ancient pictures. From a distance, it was once a utopia of old humanity. A jungle made of concrete, a web of underground subways, and buildings rising to the sky like trees and nests for people. New York City and the ocean aside—going over the distant horizon—was a great picture that came into William's eyes.

Luke was correct once again.

It was so much worse than the Zone.

There were craters everywhere, changing water and buildings. A lot of them. The old splendor of architecture turned one with Corruption, sizzling Miasma, Fogs, or greenery that turned darker colors. Thick vines were seen everywhere, and... trees. Countless Dark Trees were straight out of some horror, and those were considerably rare.

“What the fuck am I watching!?” William barely heard of them before. A tree? “Is it a Dark? It is like a forest. A jungle overflowing to... concrete jungle. It is so big... yet... in one piece, still standing.” William was lost for words. Many buildings did stand still, even if shattered and in pieces, seized by the vines, or forced to remain like that with other means. A lot of things were hard to see from a distance, and encompassing darkness and soft or dark Fogs spread around the ground and many large skyscrapers.

Due to safety protocols, Luke couldn't possibly lower this helicopter down and was more than two thousand feet above the ground. Even if he could, doing something more was a suicide.

“Yes and no,” Luke replied, hiding some emotions. “Those trees are like tools. Takers of life, Emblems, Darks and so much worse. They are no nests. They are more like an egg. Energy collective. Drills. Suits for Darks. Uses. New things.”

Luke didn't want to see New York City ever again. Apart from the sheer scope of Corruption and utter destruction, the majority of the former metropolis was still noticeable. William couldn't imagine its depth, or how many Darks were below. He counted hundreds of possible nests in many visions and styles, and numerous stories and legends switched his brain from turmoil to confusion.

This place was supposedly long destroyed, yet regardless of that collapse or nukes until the bitter end, it still became their nest.

It wasn't known to the public. Many believed that the efforts of nukes worked and dealt a fatal blow to all parties, albeit they couldn't be correct, nor travel to see the truth. They had to trust Walkers. Now, many years later, the Darks were pests that kept living even in places people couldn't. It was an inescapable reality.

This place was no longer what it used to be, or perhaps nukes hadn't worked in the slightest. Taking this metropolis back was not feasible. Not only it would be a pain to manage, let alone fight for, but the years made this place completely overrun in many layers like a natural and infested maze.

For Walkers, this place was a dangerous place where many special Darks lurked, slept, or waited, growing, or fighting it out among themselves. It was both a great option and one of the biggest large-scale nest networks in this hemisphere.

William watched it from safety, far away from some great interest, since he was protected. This city was renowned in this continent, and it was right there before his eyes, and far gone from the idyllic ancient pictures.

“It goes without saying,” Luke said, “that you won't talk much about it in the future Outside. Why? What is the public opinion to us? Are we powerless? Can we do or change anything about it? What is perception? Giving false hope doesn't sound that bad all of a sudden.”

“It is real...” William mumbled and scratched his hand, forgetting about the gravity of the situation and where he was standing. With fascination and a creeping itch and glow hiding under his clothes, he kept watching until his eyes spotted a shadow.

A large building stood like a needle protruding from a cloth. It was sharp and tall, far away from the helicopter's trajectory but still going for at least two thousand feet into the sky. Surrounded by gray Fog similar to mist, the atmosphere and visibility turned from passable to awful.

Eyes watched him. The building did, or was it something hiding behind it, or inside? William lost feelings in his arms and legs, yet he somehow jolted from the window and fell to his ass. He saw something... different from the rest of this city. It was something hidden, persuasive, and watchful. Was it glowing? Were there a pair or many eyes, or was it something so terrifying akin to a bad dream?

The skyscraper itself stood still, silent and devoid of movement or emotions.

Soundlessly, William figured he couldn't talk. Huh? A being? There was something. I swear. Dark?! Someone or something saw him. Those curious eyes. That weight and impression. It felt and made him small like an insignificant ant and it managed to jolt his Emblem and completely halt the painful noise and agitation. His emotions too.

William clasped his hand and heart alike, realizing he was sweating and trembling. It was almost unnatural, and he couldn't find his breath.

“Are you good?” Luke asked, eyeing him with half an eye as he napped, or tried to.

William could not understand what it was about. It was like a jolt, blink, and then, shocking instinct and crisp noise filled his mind, body, and no emotion. Still, whatever it was, it caused him to fall to the ground and tremble in fear and make him escape. Nothing else. Luke wasn't too alarmed; he knew how to keep his cool in any unavoidable, strange, or bad situation, and William didn't know what happened or what this even meant.

“What the hell was that? Was that a person or Dark hiding there? We are so far, yet I felt it, and it felt me back. What sort of thing... cause this sort of shit?” William spoke, finally finding his voice. Unsure if he should feel fearful, his feelings were like boiling and freezing water at the same time.