I walk out reaching for her, she seems so familiar to me. Her sincere smile, her warm arms stretching out and the sense of safety I so desire. Like a fireplace, I felt at ease again. My eyes start to realize I wandered away from the fire again into the cold, standing before the mysterious silhouette and looking down to its soul.
"Why did you do it?" her soft voice whispering to my ear
"I could not control the strings. It played a melody which I didn't want to play. My hands were struck by the fine line of strings, it cut me, not letting me swing them after my will."
She stood there silent again, tears falling down her cheeks.
"I'm so..." she disappeared, and I was there alone in the storm.
"Fotia? Is there someone?" Mina yelling from the cave in.
I disagreed and went back to rest. I never want to be lone again, I'm so afraid.
Fotia's eyes blackened, Mina's eyelids fell, both lost souls rest in a cave alone under droplets of water from the stalactites.
The morning air is freezingly calm, and the blue light rays shine directly onto their faces, walking down the canyon.
"I just love snow too much. Did you ever make a snow angel? I loved to make those, it reminds me of the old bedtime stories of the gracious angel."
At this pace we'll arrive in about 3 hours by the river. I wonder why the device doesn't display any more information than geographical data. It seems the area has weak signal coverage or some sort of blockade. Could it be an occupation?
"When we cross the river, we may never return. All my life I felt like I was hunted down, never having enough space for freedom. I'm starting to question my purpose. I don't want to believe that my purpose is to always run. Why did God give me these troubles?"
Its right-hand point to the blue sun and Fotia squats down writing on the snow with jagged letters.
"Why ask someone who doesn't answer back?"
"Doesn't it concern you?"
"No."
In the few clouds, a long bulky silhouette casts a shadow on their conversation written on snow. Mina immediately gazes above seeing a flying white train.
"Oh wow! I heard of these from my city. The gernosian flying train culture. I always wanted to ride on these!"
Fotia stares blankly at the Hover-train flying among the clouds.
I remember. I was in of these, but when was it? She hold me in her arms, I still call back in my memories.
The sun high above their heads reaches the river Hermon's crossing.
Hermon's crossing the river where St. Joseph walked across, written like in the book. Who would have guessed I would walk the same pilgrimage today, but how ironic for not having the same belief he had.
The river flows violently on the other side and calmly on the mountain side. It's formed out of two distant small rivers with different currents joining up to one major one flowing across the land of Nafas.It marks the divide of the cold Hermon ravine and the scorching Sinai desert .Along the river multiple Shoes dangle of the tree branches above the water down the stream.
"I heard of this tradition in the book. "...as the pilgrims reached the river made of past tears, they drunk out of it, seeing through the eyes of every soul. Their souls felt touched, weeping in joy, joining the river of Hermon...". Every shoe, belonged to someone. We are standing right here in this place, but at another time a few steps near us, someone else was standing here, thinking about the same thought as us perhaps."
She bends down to the river taking a sip out of it, contemplating i her thoughts for few minutes. And crossing the river Hermon, with Fotia following close behind.
"Alright here we go."
Fotia wades through the river onto the other side, eyeing into the distance seeing how the cold snow slowly disappears into multiple small dunes. The sun shines across the barren desert and unbareable heat sweeps across them. Wandering under the scorching blue sun, they forget the distance they have already traversed. Hours fly away, untill they spot a small campfire in the distance with a figure standing beside it.
"A fellow wanderer!" excitingly they hurry. Though they thought they would find shelter from the coming cold of the night, they miscalculated their step, perhaps.
The man nervously jumps back, facing them,
"Hey, you two are there! Get your damn hands up in the air!" a deep raspy voice shouts at them both, holding a rusted lever action rifle towards Fotia.
Fotia tries to calm him, setting the man with the black Akubra hat in immediate shock, triggering a shot against Fotia's right leg, ricocheting immediately into the sand.
"Oh, dear lord, what are you made of? Please don't take me with you."
The rays of sunlight hitting Fotia let the man stand in the shadow, his eyes startled and his body shaken up by the unavoidable presence of these two. Her blue eyes gazing intensely through her mask, breaking his will to fight. The sheer size of Fotia, intimidating his whole soul.
"I mean no harm, I'm so sorry." He shouts in fear, bowing down his head to the sand.
Fotia lowers, and Mina descends from the shoulder onto the scorching sand. Her hand reaches out to his right shoulder, still bowing down to both with his head on the sand.
"Don't fear us, we mean no harm to you. We're just wanderers." She affirms him in a peaceful voice.
His head looks up to Mina, soothed by the words he hardly stood up again.
"Bartus is my name. What are your names travelers?"
"Mina and my friend Fotia" she answers hesitantly
"Where are you both headed to? Or is it just an old-style pilgrimage?"
"Ghaya", I said to him as his pupil contract watering intensely down his face
"I advise you not to travel there. The people have gone crazy, It's not even about freedom anymore, It's about pure chaos. The revolt attracted a whole fleet of a Karanos mercenary fleet, trying to put a stop to the turmoil."
So, it is still going on, I see. And The Karanos are present there too, they probably sent the knight after me. I wonder how many from their order have the task to capture me. It is Nova Roma all again indeed.
Do I look that terrifying to everyone?
"Do you guys want some sand bread? I'll gladly invite you."
Mina's eyes dilate.
"No no, no need for that."
"Oh, come on, take it as a gift"
"Alright we are in then." she slightly smirks under her mask