It had been three months since the demons had been defeated, and for a while people had lived cautiously, doubting that it might finally be over. They had assumed more gates would open, or that groups of demons would emerge and devour them. But nothing had come. Mass and Cullen had led numerous missions to seek out the enemy, but the enemy was nowhere to be found. The war was over. Mankind was saved.
It had barely survived.
Less than ten thousand people had survived in Portsmouth, leaving the city feeling empty. People were finally able to mourn and feel sorry for themselves, which was why what Mass was doing was so important. He was building a tomorrow. He was creating hope.
The Urban Vampires had put down their weapons and picked up tools. Today, they were building a wooden fence around a field north of the city. The ground was hard and the work was harder.
The population had moved away from the docks and were now living on the coast to the north-west of the city. There were lovely houses for people to live in, and spaces to walk and breathe. Nobody missed the paved ruins that had once kept them safe.
The new wooden fence was necessary to house the twenty-nine cows that the Urban Vampires had managed to rustle during the previous weeks. With the demons gone, wildlife was easier to spot, and cows, pigs, and chickens roamed everywhere.
“Oi,” Frank shouted, “get your fingers out your shitter and help us set this pole. Bloody moron.”
Mass chuckled again. He was due a break, so he headed over to the old tractor where people liked to sit and catch a breather. They all agreed that its over-stuffed foam seat was the comfiest thing in existence.
When he reached the tractor, he found Smithy and Addy. They were snogging each other’s faces off like teenagers. Mass grimaced. “Seriously, you two. If Frank catches you, you’re both dead.”
Smithy broke away from the kiss but kept both his hands on Addy’s waist. “I will fight any man for the right to love my woman.”
Addy rolled her eyes. “Frank would eat you for breakfast.”
Smithy grinned at her lecherously. “Why don’t I eat you for breakfast.”
Addy shoved him away, a smile on her face. “Okay, I’m going back to work. Good to see you, Mass. We playing poker later?”
“Klein will put out a warrant for our arrest if we don’t go.”
Addy laughed. “We’re still using the old church, right?”
“Yeah, Klein seems to find it amusing to gamble there for some reason. He hasn’t got any less strange.”
“Strange is good.”
Addy left and Smithy went to follow, but Mass put his hand out and stopped him. “Stay and chill for a while. If Frank comes, I’ll protect you.”
Smithy shrugged and leant against the old tractor’s massive back tyre. “Sounds good to me, man. All this work is too much like hard work for me. I think I might open a nightclub or something. I’ll just kick back with a drink while the DJ plays.”
Mass chuckled. “Luckily, there’s an opening for just about every business you can name right now.”
“Record unemployment, right? What a world we live in.”
Mass folded his arms and leant on the tyre next to Smithy. “You and Addy seem to be moving pretty fast. It’s going good, yeah?”
Smithy beamed, no cheekiness in his smile, only genuine happiness. “So good, man. I love that woman. Toughest bird I know.”
“Don’t let her hear you call her that.”
“No way. She scares me even more than Frank. Anyway, big man, how are you?”
Mass nodded. “I’m all right, yeah.”
“Wow, you sound delirious with joy.”
“No, it’s not that. I’m happy. Of course I am. I can’t believe we made it. It’s just…” He shook his head and sighed. “I suppose I don’t know where I fit in now. Before the demons invaded, I was nothing. Now they’ve gone, I’m worried I’ll go back to being nothing.”
“Are you soft in the head? You helped save the world. There’s no going back to being nothing after that.”
Mass shrugged. “I never did a thing with my life before. One year of fighting doesn’t change who I am.”
“We were all different people before because the world was different. It controlled us and kept us down. Only people like Thomas did well in the old world, but tomorrow is up to us. You really think the fighting is over? No way, man. The battles ahead are going to be even bigger than those behind us. We get to help shape mankind. You honestly saying you don’t want to be part of that?”
Mass looked over at the two dozen men busily working to erect a fence. They were working hard to make things better, not just for themselves but for each other. How long would they hold on to that? How long before mankind turned selfish again?
“I guess the least we can do is try, right? Who knows what good we might do.”
“Exactly. Don’t forget to find a little happiness for yourself too, while you’re at it? You earned it, man.”
Mass huffed. “No argument there.”
Someone else walked over to take a break at the tractor. It was Maria, one of the women Mass had helped rescue from Nas’s farm. She’d been helping out for a couple of months now, eager to work hard. When Smithy noticed her coming, he gave Mass a sly wink and started walking away. “Like I said, mate, find a little happiness for yourself. I’ll get out of your hair.”
Mass punched his friend on the arm and then smiled at Maria. Maria smiled back.
Dr Kamiyo felt guilty even for taking an hour to himself, but if he didn’t catch some fresh air and scenery, he would go insane. Hundreds had been injured in the battle with Crimolok, and in the early days many had been lost to shock or infection. Then had ensued a period of dutiful watching and regular treatment to help as many people as
