10 years ago, in the Northeast Province

"What's the matter? Why are you still up, Erdem?"

"Hey, mom. I can't sleep, so I'm watching over the cattle."

"You know Benning already has that covered, right?" The senior dog cocked an ear towards us and wagged his tail twice upon the mention of his name.

"I know, but Benning is one, and the night beasts are many. I can ride Benning to battle and drive the night beasts away. I'm strong now." I grabbed a wooden stick about my arm's length and flexed an arm as I tried to convince my mom. She just smiled, ever so sweetly.

"Go to sleep, Erdem. Me and Benning got this." She flexed an arm of her own. I pouted my protest. "Now, now. If you don't go to sleep now, you'll get tired and become sickly. Rich families don't like that. You want to go to a rich family, right?"

"I don't want to leave my siblings." I stammered.

"You can meet each other when all of you have a place and a rich family to return to, to call home."

"But this is home. We have a house, we have cattle and chicken and... and gross vegetables, and plants with pretty flowers. We have Benning, my siblings, and we have you, mom."

Mom smiled softly and I saw tears in her eyes. Back then, I can't understand why she is crying. We had a perfect life.

"Do you want a bedtime story?" Mom offered. I nodded.

"Once upon a time, in a not so distant past, the world was covered with changing lights. The earth was trembling, explosions filled the sky, the world was torn assunder." She placed a blanket over me. "At that time of uncertainty and chaos, stood out from the lights in the sky was the light. The divine light from The Maker..."

I felt very tired. I closed my eyes, but I wasn't going to sleep. I'm just going to listen while I rest my heavy eyelids, then the world faded to black

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***

I woke up to the sound of screams and smell of fire and smoke. I immediately got up from my bed and went looking for mother.

"Mom?! Where are you?!" I heard screaming to the left, towards the front door.

"Please! Take anything! Just don't hurt us! Please!"

That was mom's voice! "Mom!" I sprinted towards her.

I saw three large men surrounding mom. I can't make out their faces because of the dancing shadows caused by the fire everwhere, but I can see they were wearing identical clothing or uniform, and that all three of them were holding axes, one of which is dripping blood. The reason was not far from them. A head. A dog's head, few paces away from it's body. Benning. A glance to the leg of the man holding the bloody axe showed some blood dripping from it. The senior dog didn't go down without a fight.

Mom was on her knees, fear painted on her face. The men began circling her.

"Mom!" I screamed. All four of them turned their attention towards me.

"Erdem! Run! Get away from here!" Mom screamed to me.

"Oi, you!" the man with the bloody axe pointed at one of his companions, "I thought you said all of the brats were taken care of?!"

"Yeah. Looks like I missed one." concurred the man pointed at.

Mother looked horrified. "What... what have you done to the children?!" Mom got up and proceeded to attack one of the men but she was thrown back to the floor with a backhand. Blood ran down from her lips.

"Mom!" I shouted again. I looked frantically around for anything that I could use against the intruders. I spotted in a corner a half-charred wood with embers still on it. I grabbed it and winced and dropped it as the embers singed my hands. I picked it up again. If it singed me, it will also singe them. "Get away from mom!" I cried as I charged forward.

THWACK

I was forcefully dropped to the ground as a hard pole struck me right in the face. I looked back and saw the third axeman, the one who hasn't uttered a word yet all this time, looming before me. I got up and felt something warm on the left side of my face. I touched it and looked at my hand. It was bloody. I was bleeding profusely right on my left temple. I grabbed my stick again and stood defiantly.

"Make sure to burn that one right to the bone. Do it right, not like this imbecile over here. No witnesses." the man with the bloody axe instructed.

"No!"

"Do not worry, woman. You will join him soon enough. After we have our fun with you, that is! Hahaha!" the other axeman sneered. He then touched mother on the shoulder, but mom shoved it away and sprang onto her feet. She then lunged for the man with his back turned on her, the one before me, then kicked forward towards his groin. "Run, Erdem! Do not return here!"

"Gaah! You stupid harlot!" the man fell down holding his crotch.

"That's it!" the man with the bloody axe pulled mom away and pinned her to the ground. The other man bore a gruesome expression as a bright red Willpower glowed in his fist.

"Run, Erdem! Just run!" mom screamed again as she squirmed under the the weight of her attacker as her clothes were being ripped open. I was really hesitant to run but the man with the glowing Willpower began to chase after me.

"Do not bother with the kid. Have you seen the amount of blood gushing from his face? He's a goner." the man violating mom barked. "Hehehe, you hear that, woman?" he taunted mom. "He's not gonna last long." he said as he licked my fully nude mother in the neck.

"No..." Mother began crying, too tired to even resist. My tears began to fall as I quietly sobbed in the corner I'm hiding in. I heard weapons and clothes fall to the floor.

Reluctantly, I quietly crept out from my hiding place. My face a gooey mess of blood, sweat, tears, dirt, and snot. I turned my back on the sounds of crying, moaning, and laughter, and wandered aimlessly through the night.