Introduction
#1 of Earth
Finally, it's here! ... This seemed like a fitting introduction to the story...
The sound of his voice was terrifying to hear, calling down the streets and begging for residence. I wanted so badly to hide, and yet the boards on the windows and my young daughter crying as softly as she could- still audible throughout the house- were undeniable signs of life. Naturally the fool came walking up onto our porch and rang the doorbell, an old gesture that added to the creeping realization in my mind that he's a naïve and childish fool.
I grabbed the hunting rifle off the table and pointed it at the door, "Go away! We're just trying to survive!"
He sounded relieved as he spoke, "Oh thank god... I just wanna know everyone is!"
"Where do you think they are? Didn't you see the corpses up and down the streets in Seattle?"
"No, I didn't even go to Seattle- wait, what corpses?! Why are ther-"
I'd lowered the rifle and was opening the door before he could finish his sentence. Admittedly, seeing his attire alone helped me realize he somehow hadn't been around when the world had seemingly ended. He was wearing a childish costume, probably of some fantasy creature in thick, heavy, golden and brass armor. He had a strange sword at his belt with knobs on the handle and two, long, thin poles for a blade. His face had glowing rings and lines on it, and I could tell just by looking at the girth of his shoulders that he couldn't be older than twenty. "You really don't know what happened?"
"No... I've been gone for so long, I barely even remember where my old home was." As he spoke, he drifted off into thought, his eyes tearing up a little and his shoulders slouching.
"Kid, look, I don't know what happened to you, but what happened here is the kind of thing that makes it pretty hard to trust anyone, especially when they're wearing armor and have some stupid sword."
He glared at me when I mentioned the sword, "Stupid? People have died trying to get this sword, and people have died to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. Good people. Somehow more people than I've seen here."
"Oh. You're one of those fucking magic users, aren't you?"
His eyes widened when I mentioned the word, "Magic? How do you... Wait, I don't understand, is that what all the wreckage is? And, that doesn't fit, this is the surface, nobody knows about magic up here."
"Surface? You mean to tell me that you've been underwater this whole time?"
"This changes everything... I have to find my friends, they're incompetent, they'll kill themselves trying to use it-"
I set my hand on his shoulder, "Woah, kid, slow down. I think you need a bit of catching up. You can't just go out there on your own, nobody's gonna help you and your friends are probably gonna try to kill you for your armor, assuming they're not already dead."
"I... What happened?"
"Come on in, it's a long story." I stepped aside to let him in, and he cautiously entered the house I grew up in. I led him down the hall to the dining room and had him set his sword on the table before taking him upstairs to the guest room and forcing him to take off all his armor, including the costume. I left for twenty seconds to grab him some of my old clothes that hadn't fit me since college. I went back to the guest room and opened the door to hand them to him, myself astonished by the shape and appearance of his body.
I handed him the clothes more relaxed to see him tattooed in rainbows and glowing spots. The only unsettling part being that he was a little confused when he saw the clothes I handed him before seemingly remembering how to wear them. I watched him put them on, and got him a belt when he asked for one. Afterwards, I took him back downstairs to the living room and had him sit opposite me in the room. My wife came in and sat down next to me, holding our daughter on her lap.
Something about the look on the kid's face made it clear he didn't understand what was going on, "So, kid, what's your name?"
"Uh- Fyodor Iverson. I... Can I use your phone?"
"Phones are down, nobody's maintaining the lines, and with all that's gone on, I'd be surprised if any of them worked."
"Oh..."
"So... I'd really like to tell you how all this happened, but I don't think I can do that without knowing what happened to you."
"Uh... A lot of stuff happened. Pretty long story, I don't think-"
"I got until our food supply runs out, and that won't be for another month or so. Spill it."
"Oh, okay... Where to begin... Oh, I know-"