The Zero Hour | #Wattys2016

Chapter 15 - Goodbye (Part 2)

The night chill came swiftly the moment the sun disappeared beneath the horizon. Amadeus shivered as he pulled his Izenth wolf skin tightly over his frame, moving in closer to the camp fire to keep warm. Rei and Izumi kept busy, feeding the flame which was burning strongly, pushing back the icy darkness hovering in the night air.

Only One seemed to be unaffected by the change in temperature. He also happened to be blissfully oblivious to their disgust at his choice of food. He whistled happily as he scrapped a large piece of deadwood with his rocky fists, shaping a makeshift skewer. As the fire grew to a healthy size, he pierced the sand worm like giant marshmallow and held it to roast over the flame.

The pasty white skin of the sand worm gradually charred into a golden brown. One broke off pieces and distributed them to the less than enthusiastic group. The piece of cooked meat warmed up Amadeus' hands soothingly as he turned it over in his hands, looking suspiciously at it. His stomach rumbled loudly, reminding him that he had not eaten anything since the night before.

Torn between hunger and disgust, he pulled back the sand worm's outer shell and hesitantly took a tiny bite. He was pleasantly surprised that the sand worm was indeed tender and juicy with a crispy texture. The flavor spread over his tongue as he took another larger bite. He looked over at Rei and Izumi who were both devouring their own pieces of meat. As large as the sand worm was, they quickly finished it until only its outer carapace was left.

Patting his stomach, Rei let out a satisfied sigh. "It looks like your pet does have his uses after all Amadeus," he laughed teasingly.

"One is happy that master's friends like One's cooking," One beamed with pride as he licked off the last bits of sand worm from his fingers. "Sand worm natural juices keep flavor inside strong and outside crispy!"

Amadeus yawned. The huge meal had made his eyelids heavy and body sluggish.

"Look, we can see the Jagged Peaks from here." Rei pointed towards the silhouette of a distant mountain range. "We're almost there," he grinned.

Amadeus could make out tiny lights that dotted the peak of the highest mountain on the mountain range. It looked like the Avianath did indeed stay on that mountain. They were so close – the legendary Avianath Exiles. I wonder if Uthaes made it too, maybe I'll see him there.

"Alright, we should get some rest; we have an early start tomorrow. We'll break the night into four watches – one for each of us. I'll take the first watch," Rei said. His words were music to Amadeus' ears. It was time to rest!

Amadeus chose the spot next to Izumi beside the campfire and lay down next to her. They lay there in silence for a moment.

"The stars are pretty tonight," a familiar voice whispered. Amadeus turned to see Izumi's pretty face being illuminated by the fiery hearth. She was looking at the stars and seemed to be deep in thought. He glanced up and saw One already snoring loudly and Rei was kneeling next to the fire; his eyes patrolling the surroundings.

"Yes there are," he replied with a contented smile, laying back down and crossing his hands over the back of his head.

"Every time I look at the stars I wonder, why are we here? You know what I mean? Like, what is our purpose in life?"

Amadeus thought about it in silence for a moment before he answered. "You know, sometimes I do think about that back at the commoner camp. We sleep in tents so we look at the stars often. I really think we are here to learn."

"Learn what?"

"Learn to love others. The world is filled with selfishness. I think it takes time for people to learn to care for other people. I know it took a long time for me."