Mirella stood on the ramparts, shivering as a cold wind blew right through her thin clothing, chilling her to the bone.
Not so long ago, the winters grasp wouldn't have bothered her. Inside her families small shack she could count on a fire, and warm food, perhaps even a hot cup of soup to keep her going on such a winters night.
But the last winter had been harsh to the village. The harshness of last winter had caused many of the villages crops to fail, forcing the village to trade further than usual for to stock up for this winter.
But that was the least of it… As the last winter dragged on the Village had to deal with others who were facing the effects of the harsh winter. It began with a few of the brain going missing, or a fisherman not returning… growing into travelling traders being attacked and killed on their trading routes… and ended last February with a nearby village, Portage going up in flames.
The few survivors who made it to Fearman told of inhuman looking creatures who communicated in what was seemingly an ungodly language… Creatures who arrived on the largest ships that the survivors had ever seen.
Mirella, a girl of sixteen would not have ordinarily have been called to stand watch, Watch was a duty expected only of males over 21; but the elders surmised that the growing problems that Fearman's farms had seen would have probably affected others too, causing the monsters to roam their way… Monsters they had to be ready for.
The town had little to spare for comforts such as warm clothing. All resources that could be spared went into ensuring the town had enough to eat, and would have a chance if the monsters returned.
Mirella hoped that day would never come. She had never fired a gun, and the town had no ammunition to spare to teach her.