Tried to keep you close to me
But life got in between
Tried to square not being there
But think that I should have been
Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes
Hold back the river, so I
Can stop for a minute and see where you hide
Hold back the river, hold back
Hold back the River - James bay
Hector led Miguel, Todd, and Dante away from the bustling, brighter area of the Land of the Dead into a rougher darker part near a waterfront.
"Hey, Todd?" Miguel spoke up
"Yeah?" Todd answered
"How do you know who Frida Kahlo is?"
"Oh, my mother works at a Vineyard that hosts weddings. One couple was from Latin America and my mother oversaw and helped plan the wedding." Todd explained "The newlyweds loved it so much they gave her a basket of goodies from Latin America. One of them was a booklet of Frida's artwork, and the rest is history"
"Hmm neat" Miguel whispered
Hector then spoke up "So Casco, you're not Mexican, is that right?"
"That's correct" Todd answered
Hector seemed very surprised by that "So where are you from? Australia?"
Todd stopped walking and beckoned for Hector to come closer. Todd then brought him into a shoulder hug "I'm going to put you in the goddamn ground if you call me Australian again, You understand me?" Todd whispered in his ear, Hector just nodded so fast his vertebrae began to rattle.
(PS: I have nothing against Australians, I love you Australia)
Todd let him go and spoke in a more friendly tone "No, I'm from New Zealand"
"Where?" Hector said in a dumbfounded voice
Todd glared at him before reaching for his phone and pulled up the map that displayed the Ice Breaker's tour locations. He then showed it to Miguel and Hector. He pointed to the three lonely islands of New Zealand in the South Pacific Ocean, quite a way away from Mexico.
"I live around here" Todd pointed to the South Island. Hector and Miguel were quite surprised at just how far from home he was. "But anyway we should move on, we got till sunrise lads" Todd put away his phone and Hector continued forward.
They came to the crudely made wooden walkway. Miguel examined his hand that was now completely skeletal. Todd looked in shock "Can I see that?" Todd then grabbed his hand and looked at it, seeing the exposed bones on someone who's still alive made him cringe. Although had their lives not have been in danger, Todd would think it looked cool.
Miguel turned to Todd "Take off your gloves" he asked. Todd took off his gloves and saw his hands were still normal.
Hector turned to Miguel "So Miguel why the heck do you want to be a musician?" he asked
"Because my Great Great Grandfather was a musician" He answered truthfully
"Why? so you can spend your life performing like a monkey for strangers?" Hector shot back "Ugh! no thanks!"
Miguel shot him a glare, while Todd just looked at him with wonder.
"What do you know?" Miguel whispered under his breath. Todd on the other hand just wondered what happened to Hector that would cause him to answer like that. "How far is this guitar anyway?" Miguel asked
"Calm down Muchacho, we're nearly there" Hector then jumped down a ledge. Todd and Miguel ran to the edge in worry. But Hector quickly reassembled himself "Come on Chamacos!"
Todd gently grabbed onto the ledge with his fingertips before dropping down, performing a safety roll before springing up to his feet. Miguel meanwhile just walked down the stairs next to the ledge. They all came to a small town of cheaply made shacks with other withered skeletons. Like Hector, their clothes were old and torn and their bones were yellowed and fractured. A small group of them huddled around a burning trash can.
One of them looked up and saw Hector "Aye! Cousin Hector! You're back"
"Aye! These guys!" Hector responded clicking finger guns at them while running forward.
Todd and Miguel just exchanged glances before following.
"So are these people your family?" Miguel asked
Hector's happy expression faltered slightly "In some way. We are the ones with no photos, no ofrendas, no family to go home to, nearly forgotten" He explained "So we just call each other "cousin" or "Tío" or whatever"
Todd and Miguel fell silent at his painfully blunt words.
The trio then came across three lady skeletons playing cards on a wooden crate.
One of them looked up and saw Hector "Hector!" she called out to him.
"Tía Chelo! Hey!" Hector then showed the ladies a bottle of champagne he had picked up earlier. One of the ladies eagerly took the bottle and quickly popped it open before pouring the contents into some glasses. "Muchas gracias!" one of them said gratefully.
"Hey, save me some!" Hector playfully smirked, he then picked up a nearby bottle of tequila and two shot glasses. "Is Chicharron about?"
Tía Chelo pointed behind Todd at a small shack "He's in the bungalow, but I don't think he's in the mood for visitors"
Hector just put on a smug smirk as he stepped over to the shack in question "Ahh, who doesn't want a visit from Cousin Hector?" he teased as he held open the curtain for Miguel, Todd, and Dante. He motioned them to enter.
The inside of the shack was dark and cramped, with various piles of junk piled up to the ceiling. Todd quickly glanced around and saw items like old vinyl records and magazines.
'Probably the only items this skeleton can call their own...' Todd thought with sorrow.
Meanwhile, Hector put the shot glasses and tequila on a nearby crate, Todd, Miguel, and Dante maneuvered to a somewhat empty spot to sit down, Miguel sat on a crate and Todd sat down on the floor with his back resting on a wooden beam with Dante laying beside him.
Hector sat beside the hammock filled up with junk and removed an old dusty hat, revealing an old, grumpy skeleton. "Buenas noches, Chicharron" Hector greeted with his signature smirk.
Chicharron just rolled his eyes and turned away "I don't want to see your stupid face, Hector!"
"Aww, come on" Hector urged, whilst filling up the shot glasses "It's Día De Los Muertos! I just thought I should bring you a little offering"
"Go away!" Chicharron spat whilst turning away
"I would Cheech" Hector sat beside the hammock "But the thing is me and my friends, Miguel and ... uhh" He turned to Todd, snapping his fingers
Todd just rolled his eyes before answering "Todd"
"...Todd!" Hector quickly resumed "really need to borrow your guitar" He finished with a cheeky smile.
Chicharron almost instantly sat up and wrapped his arms around his guitar "My Guitar?"
"Yes," Hector said hesitantly
"My prized, beloved guitar?" Chicharron questioned again
"I promise we'll bring it right back" Hector encouraged
"Oh? like that time you promised to bring back my van?"
"uh..."
"or my mini-fridge?!"
"Uh about that..."
"Or my good napkins?!"
Hector rubbed the back of his neck "Well..."
"My lasso?! My femur?!" Chicharron then held up his leg showing that a hammer was holding his leg in place.
"What!" Todd suddenly spoke up causing everyone to look at him "What did you need his - " Todd then thought about it for a moment before holding his hand up "Y'know what I don't want to know" Todd said quickly
Hector went back to try to calm the skeleton down "No not like those ti-"
But then Hector was then grabbed by his red ascot and pulled close to Chicharron's face "What did you do with my femur you fu-" a golden flourish pulsed through Chicharron's bones causing him to fall back into his hammock, Hector quickly caught him and set him down gently.
Todd and Miguel's eyes widened in shock at what they just saw.
Hector looked at his friend with concern "You okay mi amigo?"
"I'm-" Chicharron said softly "I'm f-fading Hector, I can feel it..." he then glanced down at his guitar "I couldn't ply this if I wanted to..." he looked up at Hector with pleading eyes "You play me something"
Hector was slightly taken back by Chicharron's request "You know I don't play anymore. The guitar is for the kid" he motioned to Miguel.
"If you want it, you have to earn it," Chicharron said firmly
Hector let out a deep breath, realizing that there wasn't much of a choice hector reached for the guitar "Only for you Amigo" Hector began to tune the guitar and then sat down on the hammock. "Any requests?"
"You know my favorite" Chicharron sighed before closing his eyes
Hector then began to play a soft tune much to Todd and Miguel's surprise. Hector didn't tell them he could play the guitar. Hector then began to sing.
"Well, everyone knows Juanita,
Her eyes each a different colour,
Her teeth stick out, and her chin goes in,
And her..."
Hector paused and turned to Todd and Miguel for a brief moment before continuing.
"...Knuckles, drag on the floor"
Chicharron then glared up at him "Those aren't the words" he snapped
"There are children present," Hector said while nodding at them, he then continued
"Her hair is like a brier,
she stands in a bow-legged stance,
and if I weren't so ugly,
She'd possibly give me a chance"
Hector then finished with a soft flourish.
"Wow!" Todd said under his breath, he and Miguel were impressed at his small performance.
Chicharron let out a small chuckle "Brings back memories, gracias" he said while taking off his hat and placing it on his chest before closing his eyes.
A golden glow then came over his bones. Todd and Miguel exchanged shocked glances, while Hector looked down in sadness. Todd heard Dante whimper slightly, he gently scratched his ears to calm him.
Chicharron's bones then turned into golden particles before fading away in the night. Hector stood up and raised his shot of tequila before drinking it, he then placed the empty glass upside down next to the full shot.
Reading the mood, Todd slowly stood up and removed his hood and carefully removed his helmet, and placed his helmet on his heart before kneeling down and bowing his head in respect. It just felt like the right thing to do.
"Wait what happened?" Miguel asked
He has been forgotten" Hector explained "When there's no one in the living world who remembers you, you disappear from this world. We call it "The Final Death"
"W-Where did he go?" Miguel stuttered
Hector shook his head "No one knows"
Meanwhile, Todd's breath got stuck in his throat at those words: "You disappear from this world". He then thought back to what the clerk had said earlier in the night:
"Well because he is not Mexican, his soul isn't compatible with the Land of the Dead, meaning, (if this paper is to be believed) when the sun rises he will disappear from this world"
"Hold on!, Hold on!" Todd raised his finger "What do you mean "disappear?"
"Well to grossly oversimplify, you will
...Die."
'NO!' Todd mentally screamed to himself 'Don't think about that! Of course, we will get out of here by sunrise!' he attepted to reason with himself. He wanted to believe that but, his gut told him to be realistic: this CAN happen to him in the same way Miguel and Himself will escape the land of the dead. Todd slowly stood up and replaced his helmet and pulled the hood back over his helmet.
He then saw Hector shake off his emotions and tried to lighten the dim mood "But hey! It happens to everyone eventually" he said whilst giving the guitar to Miguel, he then looked over to Todd "You okay, Casco?"
Todd flinched slightly and rubbed the back of his neck "Yeah, yeah I'm fine"
Hector gave Todd a reassuring smile (That made Todd feel slightly better) before turning back to Miguel "Come on, de la Cruzito. You got a contest to win" He said as he opened the curtain for himself, Miguel, and Dante.
After they passed through Todd took a step to the curtain before an excruciating pain came across his heart. Todd immediately clenched his chest before dropping onto his knees, his teeth clenched as he fell onto his back. His eyes for a moment glowed gold before a painful golden flourish pulsed through his body. He laid there on the floor as the pain slowly died down, he slowly sat up as he tried to get his breathing under control.
Todd wasn't being forgotten by anyone in the living world he knew that much, but it was almost like...
The Land of the Dead was forgetting him.
"Casco?" a voice came from outside "Are you coming?"
Todd stood up as fast as he could before answering "Yeah! I'm coming!"
Todd stumbled to the curtain but before he left he looked at the shot glasses one full and one empty he then turned to the hammock. Todd put his hand on his heart and tipped his helmet one last time.
"I felt your pain" Todd said softly "and it scares me"
Todd then left, after all his friend has a contest to win.
Wow, this chapter was a lot more emotional to write than I thought, But I really hope you enjoyed it!
Cheers for reading, muchachos! I will catch you later!