These is the story of the old river's life. He told me before he went into eternal slumber. He was my friend, and I would like to give his story out to the world, so that he can become the legend he so desparately wanted to be.
"I was once a young, young spring. I call myself 'spring' due to a lack of a better term. Honestly, I was just a pool of water fed by a small stream from the ground that came from my source. I was small, but I was content. At least I was alive, I thought. I was permanently connected to my source unlike those seasonal rivers that suffer a constant cycle of death and undeath. Death was never something I ever want to go through. I was (and still am) a coward at heart.
"Do not judge me falsely due to my immense size and awe-inspiring level of water that flows through the path I forged out of cold, hard rock. I fear death. I have lived for many hundreds of thousands of years, but that does not make me immortal. Even though I am a great river, there will be one day when my source will be gone and the only thing that will be left of me will be dried rocks and carvings in the earth that will also one day fade, leaving no memory of my great existence.
"Back to the topic. I was a young spring, a newly created on the steep mountain slopes. I was young, and like all young creatures I was confident of my ability. The world had not shown me its unforgiving hands and I, in turn naively revealed my untouched cheeks, ready to be slapped mercilessly. I thought it was a matter of time before I covered the earth. Mustering all the strength I had (which wasn't that much, I was about a cupful of water at best), I shouted, 'this world will soon be my footstool!' And in my imagination I could almost hear an echo resembling my voice on one of the closest mountain peaks. I was proud of myself. I, the great spring, had made the heavens tremble with his loud roar!Suddenly, my entire being vibrated as a hoarse chuckle came from under the ground.
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"I could only hold tight and hope for the best. I could feel my connection to my source straining, so I focused my entire consciousness on reinforcing the pathway. I was determined not to die! How could I, a great spring, fade away before my legend began? There was absolutely no room for failure! After a while, the hoarse sound stopped, and the ground went still once more.
'Are you the one that would make the world his footstool?' came a voice. It was soft,but rough and had the general appeal of two coins rubbing against each other. I stopped focusing on the connection to my source. It was relatively stable anyway, due to my obvious strength. I spread out my consciousness, searching for the source of that voice. Who dared usurp me just before my legend begun!? Suddenly, I discovered an old well, lined with weathered rocks and rotting wood. It was a large well, and I could feel the immensity of the water held within. But I was young with a delusion of being heaven's promised river, and I thought I was unrivaled among water beings. I was wrong. Very wrong"