When he came upon the gold light, he felt an awe creep up from the bottom of him to the top. It shook him to the core. It was a pillar of light, stretching out endlessly from the ground into the skies.
It was distinct from the grains of black sand that painted the area, and one could argue well that it washed away their absence of color. Even those that ate light reflected the light's brilliance.
And as Epim looked at the light, he realized it was his choice to embrace it or simply admire it. He could be like the desert, simply bask in its proximity. And he could go on as Carus, a permanent testament to its brilliance. He could tell all the other wanderers of its tale, and perhaps learn more of it from their mouths. Perhaps it would bring a new epoch to the desert that never changed, it could set in motion a changing of the meaning of eternity.
But that was all speculation, and Epim knew it well. He believed he was at least smart enough to understand that,
Still, he looked back at the desert behind him one last time. He took in the idea that he may never see the place again, and that what it had given him was truly his now. And he examined the dim light that followed him dutifully, and his heart felt more sure of the unseen connection he had with the place than ever before.
He offered his hand to the light, hoping to carry it with him and shield it from the golden light’s oppressiveness. The light floated, landing on his hand but for a moment, until it sunk into his flesh and followed his arm, not stopping until it found its home in his heart. It stayed there, filling him with not great strength, but an acceptance of what was. And it knew, and he knew, that as long it was in heart it would shine for as long as it could, and he would protect it the best he could. And he looked out to the desert again, and yelled.
“Goodbye! Thank you, for your gifts! Thank you!” A heartfelt shout from the very depths of his soul, he screamed the words out to the world with as much force as he could muster. And when the tears fell down his cheeks, he did not wipe them away. He turned around, and walked into the light, where his tears dried and joined the skin of his face.
Epim was accustomed to the feeling of the light, for it was familiar to the dragon’s flame from the crater which was already long ago. He felt it surround him, replacing his ground. He floated in the ether, not knowing if he was moving or not, but being surrounded by an endless sea of energy.
He closed his eyes, and if he were to be believed it would be the first time he had since he came to the place. He felt a great rest take over him, and his body drifted to sleep. In the last moments, in the dim consciousness, he was more aware now of the passage of time than ever before.
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Although he was in the void of comfort, he still knew that his body moved. Through an invisible river that only its inhabitants could know, he was being taken on a journey longer and farther than any he thought was possible. But unlike his time in the sands, not once would he awake to see his surroundings.
And so he never got to see the endless sea of stars, or the snakes that slithered through space so simply. He never saw the beautiful collisions and interactions that were laced with meaning, but never spoken of. He hadn’t gotten to see even the river’s dumbfoundment as it knew not which shape to take.
His body was simply a vessel, and although it had been there for so many endless oddities and amazements, not once would it speak, it would simply live as it always had and carry out what it did.
And so time passed further, and finally the man felt a gentle pressure upon his eyes, Almost forcing him to open them. He half expected when he opened them to see someone gripping them open with their fingers, but when his eyes did finally open all he was delivered was an endless sight of blue.
The man somehow knew in the moment he opened his eyes he had been underwater, and the coldness of the water struck him. He shivered and shook, and pushed himself upwards towards the surface. His feet kicked, unused to the thickness of water, but they knew of their position and performed their job admirably.
And when his head broke the surface, the sight around him resonated within him. An endless black sky with dots of light covering it like paint, green trees and grass surrounding the water he found himself in. And in the sky hung the crescent moon.
The man would have been obsessive over it, but he was dealt a great shock. Over in the water, he could see the Shade just as him. It had surfaced from the water, and the curiosity the thing had towards its surroundings was obvious.
The shade’s gold antler’s dripped with water, and its eyes were enthralled by the green grass, the glow of the moon, and the darkness brought by the absence of light.
Epim thought to call over with joy, until something burst out from the water slightly to his side. It did so with prodigious speed, and launched into the sky, the water dancing over Epim.
His eyes examined wings of an ephemeral nature, they didn’t flap and they simply marked the back. The wings were see through, except for a skeletal boning that framed them. Blonde hair and red eyes, the thing above the man had its hands on its hips. A laugh from the gut echoed out. “Ha! I’ve escaped the bitch, and what a world to see!”
The water captured light in ways Epim had never seen before. The droplets framed the figure in front of him, giving the wings a sense of realness as they splashed against them.
And although there was a torrent of thought that came over him, and Epim truly didn’t understand how to communicate his feelings, words escaped from his lips before he could even think. In the place he knew nothing of, he spoke to the Fairy lit by the moon.
“Your name, What’s your name?”