Morning. It had been another restless night for me. Good thing that I didn't need sleep like I used to.

It had been quiet for the past few weeks. None of us had come across any new survivors, so the small group I'd led did our best do continue rebuilding the land around us—restoring power, growing plants and crops, that sorta thing. Occasionally, I would spend time with a friend of mine, and play him in a game or two; a lot more often, I found myself preferring to spend it alone, doing my best to keep my mind from racing back to the events of four years ago. Physical exertion helped with that some, along with the anxiety… and I'd been exerting myself a lot lately. Aside from the chaos in my mind, life was peaceful and uneventful… and that was just the way I liked it.

This morning was different, because there was something coming towards our ruined village that I hadn't seen in a while: someone new.

My mind immediately started racing, and I had to take a moment to remember my breathing exercises, and assess the situation. I wasn't worried for myself. I was a superweapon that survived the end of the Komato/Tasen War; I'd be fine. I was worried for the people I protected, and what a new face could bring to our community. There weren't too many people that tried causing trouble—the state of the world being as close to a post-apocalyptic wasteland as you could get, and all—but they still existed, wanting to steal from us, or cause the people I protected some other fresh hell. This newcomer was most likely civil, but you could never be certain. The most I could do is diffuse the situation if they were hostile, and keep an eye on them in case they were suspicious.

"Uhm, hi," I said, trying to instill as much confidence in my voice as I could. "I'm Iji, and I'm this village's representative. So… what brings you to us?"

I always felt so awkward while doing these. At least I could say that the other person usually felt just as awkward as I did.