1. Introduction (Sector 13)

He set her on the ground and she stood on her own two feet. Her long brown ponytails were now a slightly singed mess as were her clothes, the pink dress and shoes set. She shivered, her adrenaline making her shake. She needed to calm down, process what happened, what was happening.
This young man had saved her life. His hair was black and unkempt. His eyes were the most beautiful blue; the pupils were slitted when she first saw him, but since they had arrived at this underground bunker, they had gone back to what could be considered normal.
In all honesty, she wanted him to hold her. She felt comforted by his presence; he stayed right at her side as the others stared, close, but not too close. He was now the only thing she knew in this world and she just wanted him to make her feel safe.
Of course, he scared her as well. Earlier, the way he had used the sword, skillfully and without a second thought, as well as the large gun he had on the sling, she had reason to be frightened. Even now, he was covered in blood, but he didn’t seem to take notice of it.
“You brought back an Outsider!” one of them yelled.
“She was alone.”
“Is that an excuse? It’s pathetic.” This woman seemed awfully frustrated with him, “What if she’s infected?”
“Then have her checked.”
“Seph, you know better than this. No one from outside is supposed to get into the sector.”
“She has nothing else. Should I have left her there to die and fall prey to those monsters?”
The woman quieted down. She wasn’t going to argue with that comment. How would she?
“You did fine, Seph.” A man told him. He had red hair and icy blue eyes. He seemed older than this boy named Seph, experienced. “You made a decision in the midst of a battlefield to save a civilian. You even kept her alive. Were there others?”
“Yes, sir,” Seph answered. She assumed that this man outranked him. What about the woman? Did he have to answer to her as well?
“Alive?”
“No, sir, the others were slaughtered by the time I arrived, sir.”
The young girl whimpered. Slaughtered? How could anyone speak so neutrally?
“Hm?” he glanced down at her.
“Seph, could you soften your way of speaking a bit? There is a young one in the room,” the man said lowly. Seph apologized and the girl grabbed his hand. He flinched, unsure how to react. The man laughed, “And it would seem that she has taken quite a liking to you!”
He blushed, “Commander…”
Commander finished his laugh and looked at the girl, “What is your name, little one?”
She hid slightly behind Seph, “Cherimi, sir,”
“Ah, a lovely name for a lovely young girl,” he smiled, “Would you like to stay here, Cherimi?”
“Sir!” the woman shouted again, “You know well that she cannot stay here! No one from the surface is—“
“Lieutenant, I know the rules, but I believe they can be bent under these circumstances.”
“Lt. Oaux, this girl has nowhere else to go, no one else to go to. What do you want to do? Put her outside and see what bites?” someone else questioned. Cherimi noted his dark hair and green eyes.
“I just—“
“Enough!” Commander silenced them. He sighed, “Seph,”
“Sir?”
“What do you think we should do now? You made the decision to save her. Now what?”
Seph looked down at her as she stared up at him. What was the point of saving her life if they just put her back on the surface again? He knelt down to her, “Cherimi,”
She blushed at the way he spoke her name, “Yes?” she responded shyly.
“Do you want to go back to the surface? We can take you to one of the larger cities where it’s safe.”
She shook her head, “I wanna stay with you, Seph.”
He frowned and sighed, “Alright.” He stood up, “I guess that’s your answer, Commander.”
Commander laughed again, “Honestly, Seph, can’t you smile? You’ve made a friend!” He held his hand out to Cherimi, “Everyone around here calls me Commander, but you can call me Ruu.”
“Okay, Mister Ruu.”
He smiled, “How polite. And this sorry-looking young lad is Lt. Seph. Go ahead, introduce yourself properly to the young lady; I know you haven’t.”
Seph became a little flustered. He bowed, “Seph Terä, ma’am,”
Terä? The Blade?
“Formal, as always.”