996 years ago, before Ooo.

Smoke and fire fills her lungs. It grabs her and pulls her into the black abyss, taking her away into a limbo of life and nothingness. That is the unconscious fears that awaken and reawaken. Rubble crumbles like a hailstorm around her, blinding and impairing movement. She felt the weight of the world crushing her arms and legs. It hurt so much, even worse than falling over and scraping her knee. Where is my mother? Her thoughts were wrapping themselves around her tightly; muffling her slowly. She wanted her mother by her side again, she wanted to sit on her lap and tell her to make all the pain go away. She wanted her mother to tell her the war never happened, that it was all just a bad dream and that she will wake up happy and with the company she loves so dearly.

As she slipped out of consciousness from the agonizing pain, there was a light. Then a hand that pulled her out from between the concrete pillars. And then there was nothing.

She was only nine years old.

Isn't the sky just glorious? She thought quietly to herself as she drifted through the rotting buildings, feeling light and thoughtful. The sky was a deep emerald, making the buildings glow eerily in the distance, the sun hardly even visible through the venomous haze. She hummed a tune to herself; the one her mother always sang to her before tucking into her warm soft bed, the pillows caressing her as if her mother were holding her gently. There was a tiny sense of vibration beneath her. Gradually, it got worse and worse until she could no long spare a thought to her head. In front of her stood a figure draped in black tattered cloth, as if it had ripped its own shadow away from the ground and forced around its fragile shoulders. Its eyes were empty sockets, apart from a tiny green glow that hovered in the center, almost detached from the eyes that were looking down on Marceline that very moment. She said not a word, for its presence sucked away at her, leaving her a lifeless husk unable to believe what stood in the middle of the deserted wasteland. She closed her eyes, and wished that she imagined it. It isn't real, it isn't real.

Marceline awoke two hours later, wrapped in a thick layer of what felt like plastic wrapping, and lying on cardboard and newspaper. She blinked a few times and observed her surroundings carefully. A large metal box had enclosed her; about the size of a small factory warehouse. There were dents and rusted holes in the walls; cold air rushing through the holes, which months of neglect had eaten away. There were boxes and wrapping piled high, like a small city that was fit for inhabiting young children. There was a rustle in the background, to which startled little Marceline out of her observing thoughts. She looked to her left to find a shadowy figure standing just a little way from where she was lying.

"Oh good, you're awake little one" The shadow whispered softly. It crept carefully over to the frightened child, and placed a cold thin hand on her head. "I rescued you from the rubble" It continued, "it's alright now, I'm here to keep you safe". The shadow revealed itself as a man in his late thirties. His hair was silvery like spiders silk and danced on his shoulders, and he had a distinctively long nose which his round spectacles rested comfortably. His skin was a subtle shade of blue, as if he was cold to the touch. He wore a tattered jacket and mismatched trousers, making him look like he had lived rough for some time. He slowly un wrapped her and helped her stand.

"Who are you?" asked young Marceline quizzically. She became fascinated yet still very frightened of the man kneeling before her. She wanted to run away and hide from him, yet at the same time she wanted to hug him for saving her.

"I am Simon, dear child. And may I ask your name?" He responded politely.

"I'm Marceline, Mr. Simon but my mother always called me Marcy"

"Well little Marcy, it's a pleasure to meet you." His smile was warming despite his chilling appearance. Marceline took much comfort from this. She was finally happy to find someone who could keep her safe after she lost her mother and her father went into hiding.

Simon offered his hand. Marceline, still slightly afraid of him took it gingerly and smiled back.

They sat together in the far corner of the warehouse, and told stories to each other to keep one another company. Marceline spoke of her mother, whom she lost some time ago and her father who was not of a human nature who was in hiding, deep in another dimension. She also spoke of her vampire appearance which fascinated Simon and almost frightened him.

"Your father sounds monstrous!"

"He's nice to me, but he keeps leaving me behind. It gets very lonely without him. And my mother"

Simon thought quickly to try to steer the conversation away, to stop Marceline from crying.

"So, since you are a vampire, what do you like to eat?"

"I like to eat the color red!" She beamed, bearing tiny pointed teeth, which made Simon laugh rather heartily.

"That's sounds wonderful, little Marcy. Now, let me tell you my story. I think you'll find it very interesting. It all started with this crown I found" He pulls out a bright golden crown embellished with deep rubies. It glittered dully in the cloudy sunlight that shone through a large hole in the ceiling. He told her all about its strange powers and how it made his skin turn blue after using it to protect himself from danger whilst fending for himself during the great Mushroom War.

"Wow, Mr. Simon! That's so amazing, I think you are very brave" She patted his knee; the only place she could reach to pat him.

"Well, it's not that exciting. I just do it to keep the bad guys away."

"And what did the bad guys do? Did they try to eat you all up?" She jumped up and pretended to eat a large cardboard box nearby.

"They certainly looked very hungry! Almost as hungry as I am now."

After some laughter, some tears and much gasping in surprise, they had gained an appetite. They needed to find some food supplies.

"Let's find you something to eat, little Marcy" Simon stood up to stretch his legs, helping Marceline up in the process.

"Where will we find food, Mr. Simon?" Marceline looked rather unsure about wandering outside. It could still be unsafe.

"It's ok, Marcy. I'll protect you. There might be a food truck nearby that has food for us. Perhaps we could somehow get to the city just over the hill. There will be heaps of food for us there." They smiled at each other and for the first time since her mother abandoned her, Marcy felt safe.

Simon and Marceline stepped out into the cold restless wind and walked toward the city in the hope of help and a meal, the falling rubble avoiding them as they went.