The scenery changes with the addition of stone statues.

Statues of man and beast are built with varying sizes.

Some have alters with spent candles and incense.

Those who prayed to the stones wanted some extra good fortune.

As the statue density plateaus, our feet hit granite.

The sounds of chanting carries as we enter the temple's domain.

As if knowing of our arrival, a bald man comes out from the walled-off establishment.

"Welcome, challengers."

The man bows in greeting, and I feel somewhat self-conscious. I return an awkward display of respect.

"Come," he motions with his hands. "You can rest for the journey ahead. Our god will see you when you are ready."

The monk's eyes briefly pass over Samantha. His thoughts are unreadable. But, I have my suspicion.

We follow the man as he takes us to a courtyard, and I am surprised by the sight.

Dozens of people have set up their bedrolls and are busy performing their daily activities.

Not one pays any mind to the addition of 2 new challengers.

"Why," I look to our guide, "didn't we see anyone at the first temple? Or even on the trail?"

He smiles his understanding.

"Despite appearances, it is rare for challengers to take up the trial. Those that you see are mostly those who have failed to reach the third temple."

I am uncertain about my chances of succeeding in this gauntlet.

As absorbed as I am in the pilgrimage, I remember my purpose.

"Did you see an old man come through here?"

The man is silent for a moment.

"Yes."

Some excitement wells up from within me.

"Is he still here?"

The guide looks confused for a moment before saying. "No. He left shortly after arriving."

I sigh with dissatisfaction.

"But," the monk says, "your purpose in coming here must be the blessing of our god. You can enter at your discretion. Our god is..." He hesitates. "Well, you'll understand when you meet him."

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My eyebrow rises in suspicion.

He shows us to an open place to camp and departs.

I look to my companion, "We should get some rest."

She looks tired, her head already sagging.

Sleep comes easily. But, the noise of the other patrons of this establishment is never-ending.

We all sleep in our own time. Leading to many being busy with their affairs at all times.

Still, I sleep comfortably before rising to find Samantha already awake. Her black eyes staring off into space.

"What's wrong?" My question stirs her from her thoughts before she looks at me.

It dawns on me that I haven't seen a single black-eyed challenger other than Samantha.

"I..." she says with some remorse. "I will wait for you to see the god."

I bite my lip.

I want to take her with me. But, given the reaction of the first deity, it would likely hurt her to be with me as I approach the next.

There's little that I can say or do for her.

With a sigh, I turn to make myself a meal.

While handling some dried meat, the blue snake coils around my forearm. It's a head above my wrist.

Rather than snatch the snack, the serpent looks to me.

I can't help but chuckle as I take a goodly sized hunk of meat and offer it to the creature.

Wide jaws wrap around the food and it disappears back into my sleeve.

After preparing myself, I walk towards the temple proper.

As I pass, monks bow their heads in greeting.

The wooden structure before me has massive pillars that hold up a high roof.

No guards are watching the entrance. I imagine there to be few threats that a god needs to fear.

My footsteps echo as I find myself at the center of the temple.

From the ceiling, something falls with a wet sound.

I'm perplexed by what I see.

Despite the grandness of the temple, the thing before me is little larger than a medium-sized dog.

It's like a slime with the opacity of meat jelly.

"Who are you?"

The question is asked innocently.

"I'm Will."

The creature begins chattering, "Will, you make the third Will come to me for a blessing. Don't you find the blessings weird? I mean, who made us gods? You know what I'm talking about. How did you die?"

Before I can respond to its question, the meat jelly continues talking.

"I remember the first time I met someone who died. It was all so new. How many broke the gate? 3 of course. Land of snakes, huh? Why would anyone want to come here? Why are you here? Why? Why? Why?"

The thing never ceases to stop talking.

I go through stages as I listen to the god—first interest, then anger, then boredom and anxiety.

"The blessing..." I insist.

"Blessing?" The thing asks. "What blessing?"

Resigned to listening to the god jabber, I try to get the scatterbrained jelly back on course.

But, it takes some time before the creature finally grants its blessing.

"Thank you," I say hastily before making my escape.

"What? Why are you leaving? We just got started."

I put such thoughts behind me as I find Samantha.

"You got it?" She wonders.

"Of course."

The first blessing didn't affect me. But this one has left a warmth that spreads through my body. I feel better than I've felt since I died.

"Are we moving on?"

I nod my head before collecting my belongings.

The monks' prayers bid us goodbye on our continuing journey.

Samantha dooesn't express it. But she is depressed.

"Is there any way to get rid of the legacy?" I ask.

She looks at me, and I almost feel she'll say yes.

But she doesn't.

"No," she broods for a moment. "Removing the legacy would kill me."

We continue walking along the path, and I return to the vigilance this world demands.

Trees loom over the sides of the path we follow, and every so often, the foliage stirs.

What I call days pass by. Marked by sleeping and rising, our journey carries on.

One day, for the first time, rain falls from the sky.

Fat drops of water land on us, and we're forced to find cover under one of the more waterproof trees.

The water washes the land while Samantha and I watch on.

I think about how, in life, I spent so much time watching T.V. To watch the rain fall would have bored me.

But now, it's a fascinating sight.

"Does it rain often?"

Samantha shakes her head.

We rest for a long time, waiting for the rain to stop.

Inevitably, it does, and we march on through the somewhat muddy trail.