Land Walker

She plopped down on a barstool in front of Angelina. Taking off her scarf and gloves, I could hear her as she silently cursed seasons. It was so freaking cold up in this bitch. Even Sarah was wearing a long sleeved dress. She slid me a mug of hot chocolate and smiled. It was only early winter- how the heck could it be so chilly so soon? She rubbed her hands together, cupped them and blew into them, hoping by some miracle she would regain the feeling in her fingers.
"So what's new, Kiva?" The young girl sighed before looking up at Angelina and, after taking a swig of the smoldering drink, thought about that for a moment.
"Nothing, really. It's been too cold to do any hunting or work outside without freezing my ass off, so I've been stuck at home for the past couple weeks. And to make things better, I've been stuck on a chapter of my book, and, for the life of me, I can't get past it. Writer's block blows, big time. I've stayed up for like 3 days and still nothing!" Sarah laughed at her predicament and smiled gently.
I would sit in the corner, listening to the entire thing unfold. She really reminded me of the beautiful girl up in our realm. I had been coming down here to get more work exploring in, but for some reason things had gotten really, really cold. It had been explained that seasons were when the temperature and climate down here were to change drastically. Even the desert, that hot barren wasteland, would get a cold spell for a few weeks. I thought about how much my own writer had been stricken by writers block and had to go exploring with me just for inspiration. It was a pain in the ass, but it was a nice thing to see every once in a while. It also made exploring new places in our realm go by really quickly. I enjoyed our conversation, and as much as I enjoyed this one, it was getting ready for me to head out to my next location. I was learning more and more about these people every day, and with that, I was learning how I could help them to survive.

400

These people, scattered and isolated from each other for the most part, existed in small groups all the way up to separate city states and national groups. It was that kind of work that we needed in the heavens. It was a fact that we were united for a common purpose, but we were all equal. We had no leader to lead us forward into the next stages of our progress. The kami’s had become complacent, and I feared more than anything that this complacency was what brought about our demise the first time around. It was still my mission to figure out what happened before the dawn, and to learn about the history that had been plaguing my mind. We had gone through a disaster, which, to my surprise, had me questioning why we hadn’t rebuilt the gates. We had rebuilt must of our society, but the gates had not been recovered. I would have to add that to the list of questions I had to ask when I got back. Right now, my primary priority was figuring out who could take me to the leader of this land. The northern wilds were sparsely inhabited, and even here in this small settlement, the only real thing that kept them going was this tavern. Was it possible for one building to sustain the morale of an entire group of people? Absolutely in every way possible.

251 / 651

Without warning, a crash would come from directly above me. Looking upwards, my attention snapped to the people in the small shop. They all had heard the same thing that I had. The young girl who delivered my drink smiled and apologized for her grandmother. Apparently she was ill, and had begun to lose her memory with age.
“Allow me.”
“thank you priest..”
Why they all thought I was a priest, I didn’t really know. What I did know was that something was wrong and I may be able to take care of it. Following her up the short stairs to the second floor, I would be directed to the first door on the left. Opening the door, I would bring my eyes upon an elderly lady. She digs at the mess, and her fingers are wrinkled and worn. Beside her lay a broken, dark grey doll. Broken pieces of metal, torn fabric, snapped wood lie in a pile beside her, and the dusty light that infiltrates the attic through the single window above her head douses everything in nostalgic sepia.
She was older than any I had seen up to now, and everyone else in her life that she had ever been friends with were probably gone. She let out a cough that has her hacking up blood large chunks of what appeared to be dried blood. There is no longer a healer in this realm for her to see, her condition had become too difficult to heal..

262 / 662

The old lady was rather sad to look at. I had really wondered what humanity, and a short mortal life was. There were spirits who had been looking old, but from what I could tell, we aged differently. Our lives were much longer and while I did enjoy my long one, it was rather depressing to see the bitter taste of time reach upon this lady. I felt rather sorry for her and was wondering what I could really do, but then I figured it out. There was something I could do for her that would allow her to end her life in peace.
“we said we would fly away together…”
Her words crept eerily across the room towards me. Everyone she had probably known had disappeared from this world, leaving her and their dreams to fester and push her into this state of mind. With a gently smile, I walked over to her before taking a single knee.
“Then go and fly…”
She would look up at me and smile before lightly setting the picture down. I would glow white, and the only word out of her mouth was “an angel” The others would not see it, but only her. Her eyes would close before she fell to the side, her pulse disappearing from this world. I felt bad for scaring her to death, but it wasn’t like I was about to stand by and watch her existence slowly fade to nothing. Standing, I would turn and face the girl at the door.
“she has passed from this world, rather peacefully. Be at rest, her spirit is in good hands.”

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