‘There’s nothing wrong with you, there’s a lot wrong with the world you live in…’, a single phrase but one so true reverberated and grew in intensity within the depths of Dmitry’s mind. Engraving itself into the walls of his brain as what trailed it came in great succession. Images of conflict, famine, discrimination, corruption, and hate proceeded to flash forth in great abandon as he stood there indulged in it’s contents. It was all there and all so vivid as he entered a state where time seemingly halted for him. He thought of man and there many irreconcilable conflicts. He thought of the wars produced from their long forgotten feuds. He thought of the masses of people ignorant to the world around them and those on it. And he thought of the affection he so desperately craved.

He stood there dazed as numerous thoughts whipped past him at immeasurable speeds. Emotions of hatred, pain, suffering, and unfathomable rage coating them with their irrepressible existence as they outlined their edges. They contorted Dmitry’s being as he processed the many distinct and various sensations that stemmed forth from them. Immersed in their tight and narrow grasp. But before he could even begin to comprehend the profound meanings concealed beneath their bare surface he was abruptly smashed face first into an array of lights that glared at him with a energetic glow. They flashed indiscriminately against his pupils as he flickered his eyes open in disdain. Various people gazed at him with fear as it slivered through the frail cracks of their minds. Trembling in his presence as they turned deathly pale.

*Lone Raider*

“S-shit, they’re just like the rumors!”

“I-I don’t wanna die….”

Their instincts seized control as they each proceeded to act. Some, driven by the fear that fueled them ran. Reaching the outer expanses of the crater before departing from the scene. Other’s stood there petrified by the fear that now coursed through their being as it ran rampant through their mind. And the small few that ignored both the instinct to flee or to fear ran at the Sentinel with a blood crazed rage. Intent on shedding blood using what little resolve and determination they had left. A sole man equipped with a sword in each hand ran at it with a small smile of desperation plastered along his face as he anticipated the blood that would come forth.

‘Please just Die! Die! DIE!’

He slashed at the Sentinel’s torso with a flick of his wrist as it curved towards his neck. It met air as his face turned from one of battle to one of utter confusion. He watched as it leaned to the right. Curving beneath the blades that sliced through the air with such speed as it simultaneously grabbed his wrist. It snapped against the pressure of the Sentinel’s grasp as he let out a pain filled scream. Tears abruptly leaked from the rims of his eyes as he blinked subsequently. Trying to find the Sentinel’s whereabouts through the translucent tears that blurred his view. But before he could even react he felt a cold metallic sensation come into contact with his chest.

“W-Wha-”

Gunfire pierced throughout the area as it echoed into the ears of those nearby. The sound of the man’s guttural wails came after as he choked on the crimson blood that surged into his throat. He looked up as he saw the deep blue visor of the figure before him be reflected back at him.

“Well, look’s I’m out of ammo. This will have to do…”

The man on the verge of death was confused by the Sentinel’s remark as he was dropped to the floor. He let out a small cry as he hit the ground. Subsequently followed by the dry sounds of the man coughing as he gasped for air. Screams cut out as he heard the deathly wails of the others enter the sky. Turning his head he glimpsed towards the sole figure of the Sentinel, one of the ‘Angels of Death’. He heard rumors… they were both elegant like an angel whilst brutal like a reaper. They were calculating and robotic, similar to that of a machine. Soldiers produced for war that were never even heard of, well, until a few years ago that was...

The raider turned from the slaughter to the blue murky skies. A relieved sigh escaping from between his lips and guttural wails.

‘Well…’, he thought, ‘At least this living nightmare can finally be brought to an end...’

Images of his life and those he had met. The many stupid decisions he had made and the regret that built up within him drowned him as he once more gasped for breath. And as sudden as he was given life. It was taken.

*Dmitry*

The figure held a sword adorned in blood as it slid down the blade, dripping to the ground. He walked past the countless bodies that plagued his path as he set his sights on the four people before him. They stood backed against a wall of rubble as they held onto their weapons as they would with their lives. Each person held the expressions of fear, confusion, rage, and regret. Glaring at Dmitry as they raised their weapons high with what resolve they had. They began to waver as they awaited his inevitable onslaught.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Dmitry hesitated as he looked to the four. Thoughts of how he could spare them crossed his mind for the briefest of times before being disrupted. They were overruled by the thoughts of how they would only cause more death as he began to grow conflicted inside. He stared at them with confusion in his eyes as he contemplated on the thought. But not shortly after it was cleansed from his mind. He took a deep breath as he raised his sword in hand.

He glared at them with an unwavering resolve to kill as he strode towards them. They in reply looked to each other as they murmured words under their breath. Looking to Dmitry with contempt and determination before rushing at him. Intent on greeting him with a barrage of strikes. They yelled battlecries filled with resolve and the faintest hints of fear as they rushed on.

Dmitry looked to them with what could be interpreted as pity as the distance between them decreased. Spears, swords, magic, and a many more weapons sped towards him as he kept moving on towards the group. The faint sounds of the earth trembling beneath him caused alarms to be set off as earth like magic stemmed forth from where he stood. He side stepped it as he entered the path of a spear that pierced at him at undefiable speeds. He parried it with the hilt of his sword as he pivoted on his foot. Crouching towards the ground as he kicked at the heels of the spearman. Dmitry slid his sword beneath the spearman as gravity skewered him on it’s sharp blade. He regurgitated blood as Dmitry grabbed for the man’s spear.

He heard the sound of a person to his left as he glanced towards them. Obscuring his vision was the sight of a greatsword shrouded in yellow light. It cleaved towards Dmitry as he rolled from his crouch into a sprint. He rushed towards the man with the greatsword as he dodged the large blow. It carved into the ground as he struggled to tug it forth from the earth’s grasp, looking up to see a spear speeding towards him. He scrunched up his face in fear as it drilled a hole through the left side of his face. Gray matter, blood, and viscera coated the man’s body as he dropped to the ground with a thud. The sounds of blood spurting out from his corpse just barely audible as Dmitry heard the sound of something parting the air behind him.

He pivoted on his feet as the sensation of a blade slashing against his armour caught him off guard. He staggered backwards as the sight of two people facing him head on greeted him. One had a sword in his right and dagger in his left whilst the other held a staff. The man holding both a sword and dagger harassed Dmitry with an assault of strikes as he in response proceeded to back away. The strikes met air as the mage behind the swordsman continued to chant spells. Earthen roots appeared at the base of Dmitry's feet as he leaped away from them with vigilance. Distancing himself from the mage and swordsman.

He came into contact with the ground that was behind him as he sunk into what seemed to be a type of quicksand conjured by the mage. Dmitry swore as he acted quickly, grasping onto a rock nearby as he used it to pull himself to safety. He glimpsed up to see a swordsman in front of him as he slashed a sword against Dmitry’s torso and shoved a dagger that aimed to pierce through Dmitry’s jaw. It left scratches against his armour as the blunt force travelled along his body. He shrugged it off as he began to back away. Quickly remembering the quicksand behind him. He agilely grasped onto the swordsman in front of him as he used the man as a means to support himself.

The swordsman staggered and voiced out a scream of surprise as Dmitry fixed his posture. The man murmured faintly in fear as he smashed the hilt of his sword against Dmitry’s cranium. Piercing the dagger against Dmitry’s armour as it was slowly chipped away. Fear grew rampant in his eyes as a desperate need to escape surfaced to mind. Dmitry having had enough looked to the swordsman for the last time before abruptly pulling the man to himself. He sidestepped as the momentum brought the swordsman into the quicksand as he was slowly engulfed by it, as was his screams.

Dmitry sighed in relief as he looked around his surroundings for any weapons. Sadly there seemed to be nothing as he was left disappointed inside. Instead he scanned his surroundings in search for a mage as he realised the bastard was gone. He released a breath between his lips as he looked to the aftermath of the little skirmish. Five corpses out of the six lay dead, strewn along the cold barren ground as they coated it with a darkened crimson fluid. Gore was needlessly splayed along the ground as it accompanied the bodies of the dead.

Dmitry proceeded to walk towards them as he looted their bodies in search of anything useful. He was however left unsatisfied as he picked up only a battle worn sword and parrying dagger from the ground. He looked to them as he tried to holster them at his hips. Luckily they were pulled in by a magnetic force as they were glued to his sides. The dagger positioned next to the pistol on his left whilst the sword was on his right. Silence soon pervaded the area as he alone was left in this desolate landscape. He continued to move on as he was gradually brought back from his blood crazed self. Realising the damage he had done and the aftermath of his actions.

He slowly began to show a face of disbelief as he remembered what had happened. What he had done. Thoughts of regret and lamenting over the dead came in from one ear and out the other as he took deep exasperated breaths. They proceeded to calm him down as he recollected the broken pieces of his psych. Repeatedly proving within his mind that he was in the right….

‘It wasn’t my fault… It was theirs… I am not in the wrong… I am not… They were bad people… bad…’

He went on for minutes as he slowly came to terms with the scenario. Adapting to the new experience and environment around him. He then went into thought as he began to consider what to do.

‘I lost my rifle and ammo… let's find them for a start’

Dmitry scoured through the surrounding rubble and corpses in search for his belongings as he walked over them and the like. Soon discovering a bag of ammo and a rifle sheltered underneath a large piece of concrete. It had broken off from an aged building nearby due to the previous battle with the bear. He lifted up the large piece of rubble and moved it to the side as he pulled out the bag and rifle.

‘Fuck… the bag is practically torn to shreds and the rifle is now junk as well… shit.’

He glanced up from the mess before deciding to find a replacement for the bag and instead find the shotgun that had went adrift. He strode through the ruins of buildings as he went around in an attempt of finding them. On his way for a replacement for his bag he came across his shotgun strewn along some rubble. Luckily it was in just a good condition as he had left it as he held it at the ready. Afterwards minutes passed before somewhere along the way he came across a small cellar. It was evident through the cracks of an aged buildings foundation as he could barely discern the barely lit room. He moved closer as his curiosity grew.

‘Maybe there’s something of use in here…’

He looked around at the foundation of the building before deciding to widen the opening through brute force. He speculated it should be fine afterwards as he readied his fist. He threw a punch at the wall consisting of bricks as it crumbled away to his well placed blow. The sound of the wall collapsing into the interior of the cellar was welcomed as he went through the opening. Touching the side of his helmet as his surroundings were coated in a luminescent green that spread along the walls. Outlining the many objects that were positioned there.

Multiple shelves lined with supplies varying from food to clothes occupied his vision as the appearance of bags also took his attention. Everything else seemed to had been deteriorated of sorts due to time or radiation as he smiled in glee.

‘This would do nicely for now…’