The Grand Highway stretches out endlessly into the horizon. This vast sprawling path before me cuts through the scant foliage of the savannah and winds in direction like an unrelenting river. I take out a small pipe, and inhale the smoke of the tobacco, letting it fill my lungs and my throat before exhaling. I enjoy the faint buzz, as I lay on my back to stare out into the passing clouds. I have been traveling on the Grand Highway for a long, long while. I possess in my leather knapsack limited rations, roughly a hundred gold pieces, and a single change of clothes. I am many miles away from home. No, not home, I am away from the Rosevalor Manor. Home now is where I make it. Stixios’ parting words rang in my head, echoing over and over. The mountains. Should I follow the path he suggested? No. I left because I am better than all of those dysfunctional weaklings that my family are, I left because…

A great pain stabs my heart as I insult the house of my forebears. Even in the sanctuary of my own mind, doing so wounds more than a sword through the chest. The paralyzing poison of guilt follows this blade of my shame. I left behind my little sister. My mother. Two people who cared for me the most in this world, and now I am all alone, walking half starved down this unrelenting path to a vague horizon. Was Stixios right, am I truly just grieving through rage? 

I drop my bag, and find the nearest rock. These emotions building up inside of me need a release. Now. 

I yell, and slam my fist into the stone with all of my might.  

A clearing in the forest of lush evergreen trees wrapped in frost. The air was so cold that I felt my teeth chatter against my will. Extended palms lift me into the air and sit me upon his back. 

I retract my fist, and punch it again. 

Father was so much bigger than me, standing like a monolith and I in his shadow. His presence was warmth and certainty. Even playing in the scary forest felt safe. He was warm and safe. Mother with a newborn babe in her arms waving at me. 

I pummel my fists over, and over into this rock, until it is left a pile of rubble.

Rays of sun lined my vision like the golden gates of paradise in contrast with the edges of the memory tinged in the fires of my all consuming rage. 

I pant heavily, as blood pours from my bruised hands. The pain stings, and overcomes any and all thoughts that infiltrated my mind earlier. I take a deep breath. The pain gives me focus. All of these intrusive thoughts need to be buried. Killed. To keep looking back would obscure the path ahead.

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And so I walk. Day soon blends into night. My rations dwindle as this trek expands into another day with no end in sight. Hunger heightens my senses, while sweat from my brow sting my eyes under the unforgiving sun. 

When I can, I hunt for food. Most of my quarry are smaller animals, like red rabbits and the occasional dodo bird. As I continue walking down this path, the olive trees of the savannah become more and more sparse, as does my quarry. They shrink in size, until all I could find on my hunts were grubs under a rock, hardly enough to sate my hunger for a night. Eventually, the savannah is no more, replaced by sand and large colorful rocks that jutted out of the sand. I stare in awe at the beauty of these barren wastes. 

It is so…different from my surroundings back home. 

Here, I know that life would no longer be easy. Gone were the plentiful meals and easy hunts. Now, my prey would be whatever can endure these barren wastes.  

As I continue my hike, the hunger became so great that I knew that I needed to kill something, or become a meal for carrions. I venture into the sandy dunes, off of the beaten path. Here, I see hundreds of reeds jutting out of the ground, and smelled moisture in the air. Water! Pushing past the sharp reeds, I made my way to the small oasis. The water was fresh and sweet, and tasted better than any meal that the Rosevalor cooks could conjure in a hundred years. As I shovel this water into my mouth, I hear a loud roar. 

Suddenly, a giant hairless bear emerges from the reeds, and brings down a mighty claw. I leap away as fast as I can, narrowly dodging the ravenous animal’s assault. 

For as long as I’ll live, I will never forget what that monster looked like. It is definitely a bear, but replacing fur was a thick black leather and rows upon rows of teeth. It unleashes a horrifying roar, and lunges at me. 

I hold my hands out instinctively and grab the jaws of the beast as it falls on top of me. It roars again, and I see every row of its jagged teeth. Slime drips down my face and stings my eyes. Is this the end?

No. I roar back at the beast and strengthen my grip on its jaw. Its teeth rip through my palms. Still roaring, I continue holding open the leather bear’s mouth. Eventually I see tears and cracks through its leathery skin at the mandible.

 The pain is blinding. It roars more ferociously, and brings up its claw and slashes at my arms and shoulders. 

I refuse to give in. I will not die here! Roaring back into the face of this monster, I pour all of my strength into prying open its mouth. Streams of black blood trickle down the sides of its face. 

Our screams echo around the oasis in unison, neither of us giving the other the satisfaction of needing to gasp for air first. 

Then suddenly- I rip open the bear’s jaw. Its blood spills out and it falls off of me. I regain my balance, and take my opportunity to stomp at its head. I stomp over and over. 

“AHHH!!” The howl comes out hoarse and strained. “DIE! DIE! DIE!”

I stumble backwards, and look down at the leatherbear. Its head is completely caved in. 

I breathe a sigh of relief. I start to walk away, but then the pain of each slash and my hands hit me all at once. I fall over, and feel blood trickle out of my body. My consciousness fades and blurs. 

Before the darkness takes me, I see the vague outline of a figure approach. Then-