Post by Nathan Saniti on May 23, 2016 17:01:04 GMT -5
The Seeds of Life - Chapter Three
Nathan felt ill, not a physical kind of sickness - he hadn't experienced that in eons, it seemed. Nor was it infection coursing through his veins from the severe wounds he received just a few short weeks ago. No, this was an emotional calamity.
The burdens of his life were playing catch-up in spades. The Icemann Invitational Tournament. St. Jury. Brenna Gordon. Dan Fierce. Murdoc. Grimm. Absinthe. The list seemed never-ending.
Then there were the Cultists that were once focused exclusively upon him, now eyeing Kelli as a way to get to him. Thank the heavens for Brenna Gordon. Had it not been for the ebony haired damsel guarding Kelli's back, Nathan could possibly have suffered another great loss.
"And what of Miss Gordon?" queried Nathan within. Would she harbor ill feelings towards Nathan since he was unable to come to his beloved's rescue? He was unsure, but the noble woman should be properly thanked for her efforts. "Besides," his internal monologue continued as he returned to his beloved home of Witzend. "She could prove invaluable in the defeat of these upstart Cultists. Better to have her on our side regardless of our competitive inclinations at Living a Legacy."
Now there was the very real and tremendously dangerous threat of the Four Horsemen running amok on Earth. It had been long foretold, but it soured Nathan's stomach that he may be partially responsible for their unleashing. The destruction of the Earth realm and its inhabitants would have a butterfly effect on the other worlds, should they not be prepared for it. And there were far too many of them in existence for Nathan to effectively forewarn them.
Then another thought struck him. If a doorway to all that is created is housed within the Impossible Staircase at Witzend, would some of those portals cease to be if there were no one left to believe in them? Even in all of his years, Nathan hadn't explored every realm. The placards on some doors were written in languages that Nathan knew nothing about. As such, he kept to the ones in mortal languages. Would they continue to exist if humanity were eradicated?
That thought only brought him lower. He needed Kelli. He needed her right now. He needed her positivity, her energetic happiness, her infectious wit and sarcasm, her smell, the feel of her skin against his, all of it. She was his pick-me-up. And he was nowhere in sight when she'd needed him.
Lower.
Then there was the enigmatic conundrum that was his initial Living a Legacy opponent; Dan Fierce. Nathan was far from homophobic. Sexual lines were drawn by men with fear of sexuality. He was not one of those men. Nathan was secure in the fact that Mr. Fierce would likely not want anything to do with him, nor vice versa. This was a competition, not a 1960's Woodstock nudist free-for-all.
Nathan shook his head. Why did his brain insist upon focusing on the pay-per-view? He admittedly enjoyed the brief solace the distraction garnered, but there were larger problems at hand. It had become less of an entertaining past time to be in PCW and more of a hunger for the combat without the unnecessary use of bloodshed, though even the Faithful had witnessed plenty of life essence spilt at Nathan's hands.
"How did it get this way?" he thought. All he wanted was whimsical adventures with his best rabbit friend...
"You weren't there then, either," a voice in his head reminded.
Lower still.
"He died because you weren't there." That nagging, unrelenting voice jabbed and twisted the knife deeper and further. "It's only a matter of time before Kelli..."
"NO!" Nathan shouted aloud, his eyes wide with horror. His heart palpitated at the very thought of his beloved coming to harm. "All of this keeps running in a full circle, an endless loop, a mindless wheel from which I cannot dismount." Nathan fell to his knees, clasping the sides of his head.
There it is. Rock bottom. At least for now.
"I've done everything asked of me, walked every path laid out before me, battled every enemy appointed, yet the lines in the sand keep getting drawn deeper, the enemies far more dangerous and numerous." He bent down, pounding his fist on the checkerboard linoleum that lined his halls. "When may I rest and enjoy my happiness with the one I love?"
"Relax. You are only given what you can handle, even if things look hopeless at times."
"What am I to do?" Nathan peered around, desperate to find the source of the voice.
"Be a positive influence. Remember what happened when you were lead down a dark path. When you came to the light, you reaped what you had sown. Now sow the seeds that will save the universe and you will save yourself."
"Who are you?" Nathan remained unsure if he was imagining the voice or not. It taunted him, yet reassured him.
"I am all. The axis of the Universe. All you need to be aware of is that the natural wobble of things has gone askew and you, Nathan Saniti are charged with setting things back in line. Beyond that, my identity is of no importance right now."
A bright glowing pocket of light appeared beside him. Its luminescence grew until Nathan had to avert his eyes. As quickly as it had appeared, the light popped out of existence. In its place was a somewhat familiar looking amulet. It had the same appearance as the dastardly contraption he had used to collect the Seven Deadly Sins, only the star was obsidian on an ivory background instead of the reverse.
Nathan examined the trinket, turning it this way and that. "Am I to collect the Seeds of Life in this bauble?" The voice had fallen silent. He placed the amulet in his pocket, unsure if he'd ever truly know just what it would be used for. Only thyme would tell. And right now thyme was busy healing his wounds. It would be far too exhausted afterwards to spin a yarn, much less season a story.
