Lydia waited until she was sure the man was in the other room before she sat back down on the rock hard bed. She was tired. Her body ached like it had been pummelled with stones and the pain was constant. However, Lydia knew had no time for pain. Who ever had saved her would want something, they always do. She would rather have pain than be lying dead on a dusty desert floor being ripped apart by beasts, feeding on her decaying remains. No, pain was better. 

She noticed a mirror hanging on the wall opposite her, shattered in it's left corner like a spiderweb reaching outwards. Lydia limped over to it, but straightened up when she saw her appearance. He shirt was falling apart and her jeans had so many tears in them they were too far gone for repair. Deep, purple bruises covered her thin arms and legs, scratches decorating her shoulders. Her eyes travelled up to her face. Lydia gasped, the ghostly white face in the mirror shocking her. It was hollowed, thin and pale and she couldn't stand it. Her bony hand flew up to her face and she averted her eyes. 

She was alive, but barely. The monsters that had chased her that night would have killed her. Should have killed her. There was no way out. So how did she end up here? A loud shatter came from the other room. Lydia's head flew towards the door, her eyes wide. 

"Sh-Argh-stupid-" The man's voice cried out. Lydia ran out the door and down the thin hallway, having to stop at the end due to her side aching. She glanced back at the room she came from, the light casting shadows in the hallway. Lydia slipped through the hallway door into the next room. 

The man, tall with dark hair, was crouched over the tiles in the kitchen floor, sweeping up shards of glass into a metal trashcan. He glanced up at Lydia when she walked in, frowning up at her.

"Do you need any help?" Lydia began, stumbling towards him. The man scrambled to his feet, attempting to stop Lydia from coming any closer, but stepped in a shard of glass causing him to fall against the bench. He swore under his breath. 

"Oh my god! Are you alright?" Lydia shrieked, pulling him over to a chair. 

"Yes, uh- I'm fine-I just-it'll heal" He grumbled, holding onto his foot. He turned it over, grimacing at the shard of glass that stuck out the underneath of his foot. 

"Everything can heal-that doesn't mean it won't hurt" She fussed, assessing the damage with her eyes. The man grasped onto the shard, his mouth shaking from the pain. He took a deep breath and heaved the large shard out of his foot. He shrieked, a tear forming on his cheek. 

"Do you have any bandages?" Lydia asked. The man's attention turned back to her, hesitating. 

"Yeah-it's in the cabinet over there" He said, pointing towards a cabinet with the shard dripping in blood. Lydia glanced between the man's face and the shard. He quickly realised that he was holding out the shard and with a quick "oh" placed it on the table next to him. Lydia smiled and ran over to the cabinet, her own pain slowing her down. She found it inside a metal tin. 

"Found it" She said, making her way over to the man again. She pulled bandages out of the tin, kneeled down and got to work wrapping his foot.  

"I'm such an idiot" He murmured under his breath. Lydia laughed.

"You and me both" She smiled, her eyes sad. She tied the end of the bandage, sitting back and releasing a breath she didn't know she was holding. 

"I apologise for us having to meet under such-"He paused, wracking his mind for the right word, "odd circumstances." Lydia smiled, standing up. 

"Why am I alive?" She asked abruptly. The man glanced up at her, shaking his head. 

"I don't know" He admitted. "I just..." 

Lydia watched him as he tried to answer. "I shouldn't be alive. Why am I alive?" She asked again. 

"I saw you, against the wall, helpless. About to die. The Malgrins were on you-"

"Is that what they're called? Malgrins?"

"Yes and-"

"What are they?" 

"They're- what do you mean, what are they? Everyone knows what they are. Why else would we all hide from them?"

Lydia looked at him blankly.

"Oh my god. You're not from The State." He said, gobsmacked. 

"The what?" Lydia questioned. 

"My name's Ash. Tell me, what's it like on the other side?" He held his hand out for Lydia to shake, his eyes desperate. Lydia took his hand, shaking it as firmly as she could with her battered up arm. 

"Lydia" She replied, confused. 

Ash got up from his seat, wincing slightly as his foot connected with the ground. 

"Careful-The wound will still be fresh" Lydia grimaced, thinking about her own wounds in her journey. 

"You're not exactly spotless yourself" Ash smirked, looking at her battered arms. Lydia sighed. He was right. She looked like she had been beaten, with scars splattered across her pale skin like paint. Ash peered out the window nearest to them, cursing under his breath. 

"We need to go." He said, glancing back at Lydia, who was watching him with wide eyes. 

"Why?" She asked, her brows furrowing, 

"Don't ask questions. We need to go." Lydia stayed put. "NOW!" He yelled, pulling Lydia towards a large wood door.

"Ow! Ash-where are we going?" Lydia questioned, the door closing behind them.

"Shh" Ash replied "Just shut up for a moment"

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Hey guys, let me know what you think of this chapter, and of Ash. 

Comment your predictions for the next chapter! 

Hope you enjoyed :)

-Mitty284

(Competition with charlithepixie Holly-the-dinosaur and Destielia )