There was a time,so very long ago, when we meant something. A time when we belonged. When we were loved. When we were cherished. Good times, they were. But they ain't comin' back, no sir. We ain't ever gonna live in peace again. A while ago we could roam the halls 'thought runnin' into danger. Now we risk our lives every time we set foot outa the shadows. That's what we are. Shadows. Ever since the disaster we've been discarded. All of us. Left 'ta die in the wreckage of our lives. No one bothered 'ta help us. Not the so called good and wise pharaoh Ahkmenrah, not ol' Teddy, not even Gigantor. Maybe they didn't know. Or maybe they didn't care. Maybe we weren't worth it.
There ain't peace no more, no sir. All we get is fear and pain and anguish. We're the last survivors, Octy and I, and a small handful of our people. We ain't got nothin' left but each other. We're probably the last same people left. Heck, we're probably the only people who get along in this lawless new home of ours. No one here has respect. Sure, we're the leaders, but they don't listen 'ta us often. Most of them don't even care 'bout our situation. Life ain't the same.
All of us bear the scars of our struggles, both mental and physical wounds. Poor Ockie, he limps with every step now on an ever pained left leg, forever stiff and aching. He sometimes awakens in the night with nightmares of what happened, and what could have happened. I always come runnin' when he screams. I've gotta be there for 'im. I ain't much better off. The ragged mark along my arm's proof of that. And sometimes I see visions of our struggle and fall into a panic which sometimes lasts for days. But when I wake I always see Octy there watchin' over me. He's all I got left.
We gotta stick together, 'cause this world is dangerous. His friendship's the only warmth in this place. We both carry such heavy burdens. Our people need us but refuse us. We're at a loss of what to do. All we can do, is try to survive.
Octy's very ill now. He's always coughing and barely eats. And here alone in the darkness of my room I fear, as I hear his hoarse coughing down the hall, that I'm gonna be plunged alone into darkness as the last light in my life slowly goes out.
I am alone. I, am a shadow.
I sit beside him now crying. He is lying there, slowly dying. There's nothin' I can do. The doctor says he can't save 'im, and no one's got a clue. All I can do is sit and watch the light go out.
It's three days later, and I sit alone. I stare sadly at the dust, blown away by the wind. I stay for a time, drying my eyes. There ain't no one out there 'ta comfort my cries. I'm alone now, in this evil place, the world laughs at my sorrow. I finally leave, walking the beaten path in the debris that was once a great city. Its and his memory will never fade.
My heart aches and my pain is always commencing. But I still see him sometimes. He comes in my dreams. He speaks to me and tells me it's okay. He says he's always there and he'll never leave. That's what he said before he died. Sometimes, when he comes, he tells me of the future. When I am depressed or sad, he tells me 'bout the past. When I'm in need of advice, I hear his voice.
They say I'm crazy. Old Jedediah's a mad man, they say. I ain't mad.
I just want to held on to the memory of a lost brother from the past.
I'll see him again one day. Soon, perhaps, if my time comes. But until then I have 'ta believe he'll never leave me, though the world is so cold. He's still with me though long gone, and he'll never leave.
I just gotta believe.
Perhaps it's time I let it go. I know he ain't commin' back. He's nothin' but a shadow.
A shadow among shadows.
It's been three years since his death. I haven't felt any better. The world is dark and grey, and I live my life out day by day. We still talk, when I'm alone or afraid, which is often. I spend my time in the dark, alone, afraid. I'm afraid to step out of the dark. I can't do this much longer. How long do I have 'ta wait?
It's been fifteen years, and I lay alone on the ground. I'm wounded. I'm dying. The pain is intense. I cry out for help, but no one comes. I am alone and suffering. But I hear a voice. It's familiar. It's comforting. A feel a presence beside me. There is a gentle hand on my shoulder, and I see him kneeling beside me. He has remained unchanged. I close my eyes and drift to sleep. I wake in an unforgiving land. Almost as cold as the first. But this new world of the dead is bearable.
Because I'll always have my friend beside me. And for once, we're no longer the shadows. We're the light.