169 And again

"Looks deserted," Al mumbled.

War wasn't easy. People died. Lots of people died. And it didn't really matter which side you were on, if you were on the battlefield, you had to kiss your life goodbye. Even if you were just a bystander with nothing to do with the war, as long as you were in the way, you could just lose your life without a second thought.

Perhaps that's why the border towns were so deserted. Some people didn't leave of course. But those were basically just the old generation. They could no longer traverse the long distances and had no real way of surviving in a foreign city with little to no support. Those weren't the only reasons however. A lot of them just didn't want to leave their homeland, their homes. 

"Nothing new," the old man said. "Come, I know a bloke in the west section. Should let us stay the night."

Narrow roads, spacious houses, abandoned shops. The few people that still stayed behind, stayed indoors.