INTERMISSION
The old man sat quietly in his chair as he gazed at th- his village.
As the oldest and most experienced, it was his responsibility to guide the next generations. To inform and protect them from the dangers they were still ignorant of.
Not that they ever listened to him. And it got even worse after those outsiders moved here, especially that…
However, his quiet contemplation was once again interrupted as a boy, still awaiting adulthood, approached him with an ever-present grin.
"You know, if you stopped glaring at people all day, they might actually warm up to you… at some point."
"Pah! Let them do as they please. As if I care." Came the old man's gruff voice. "What do you want kid?"
"Well, last time you said you knew how the sun and moon were made, but never actually told me..." He said in a playfully accusatory tone.
The old man's face visibly brightened at that, ignoring the barb entirely and looking up as the sun's rays peeked between the leaves above him.
Clearing his throat he then began "Ah yes, this is one of my favorites actually, so listen well little one"
"Long, long ago, the world was covered in a veil of darkness. So thick was it that it even covered the sky.
Worse than that, however, it was also home to the vilest abominations you can imagine.
The people of that time were forced to live in constant fear and anguish, dreading the possibility of being found and consumed.
And every day they would mourn, as more and more loved ones, friends and neighbors were lost to these foul creatures. Until! …"
"Every day!? How could they survive like that? Our village would have disappeared in a scant few weeks." The boy interjected.
"Shush!" The old man replied annoyed, "I'm getting there.
Eh-hem… Until! One day a young man with a heart of gold, decided to fight back and rose up against them.
With nothing but his fists and whatever tool he could find, he bravely fought and beat the monsters, driving them away!
Unfortunately, they were as tough as they were wretched and he could never kill them. They would always simply retreat to recuperate and come back stronger and more numerous, while he himself became more and more battered each time.
That is until!..."
"How could one man fight them off, when entire villages couldn't?" The boy interrupted again.
"Quiet!
Anyways. Until! One day a fair maiden happened to be traveling by and there… "
"Ohh, what did she look like? Was she pretty?"
"Why you! If you Interrupt me again, I'm going to kick you out!" the old man threatened.
"We're already outside" the boy replied unthreatened, "Alright, alright, sheesh" but held his hands up placatingly as the old man raised his cane.
Tapping it on the ground he started again "Now then… hmm… right, while staying there she watched as the man valiantly yet fruitlessly fought off the wretched beasts again and again and was moved by his devoted and fearless heart. So, having found her champion, she offered to give him the means to fight against the forces of darkness and in exchange he would devote himself to cleansing the lands of its influence.
The man agreed reluctantly and after bidding his loved ones farewell, left with her.
Then, as they found themselves in the solitude of each other's presence, the maiden gave unto him her very soul, within which the power of fire resided.
Moved by her act of self-sacrifice he vowed once more to rid the world of darkness forever, no matter the sacrifice.
He went on to travel the world, wielding her flames to incinerate any and all abominations he encountered and using her light to drive away the darkness!
Yet, no matter how many beasts they slew, how many people they brought salvation to, it was always just a matter of time before more enemies arrived and undid their hard work. Until!...
The old man threw a warning glance at the boy, who simply smirked and placed a hand over his mouth.
"… they finally managed to find the origin of the darkness and moved to unroot it from the world.
Treading inside a dark and insidious forest, they came face to face with the source, the master of the abyss if you will and challenged it to a fight.
The master, however, was a cowardly and devious creature and refused to fight them. Instead, it hid behind its own spawn and sent them to fight and die In its place.
Undeterred, man and spirit battled and slew any and all who barred their path, never once faltering on their mission.
However, even their bright light was slowly being covered by the never-ending horde of abominations, forcing the maiden spirit to light the forest on fire and use it to fuel the man's own flames.
Trees and grass, birds and deer, even the corpses of their enemies, all were made sacrifices to her flames.
And a violent storm of fire formed around them!
And with every step they took it only grew stronger and fiercer as it furiously clashed against the waves of darkness.
And as they finally revealed the culprit of the world's pain and suffering, the man's own flesh and soul were given as kindling to the flames!
And a massive pillar of molten fire exploded upwards engulfing the entire forest in its merciless flames, as it flew and crashed against the suffocating darkness.
And only for a moment did It waver before it broke through and lit the whole world with its bright and warm light!
And thus, the sun and day were created.
However, the petty and cowardly master refused to accept his defeat and with his final breath cursed the world to bear his beloved darkness once more.
And thus, the moon and night were created as well.
Unfortunately, their souls depleted, the two saviors could do nothing but watch as they fell into a deep and regretful slumber…"
The old man stabbed his cane on the ground forcefully, eliciting a loud clack.
However! one day, when their strength is recovered, they will awaken once more and continue the fight against the darkness, banishing it forever!
That! is how our village could survive so isolated to this day boy. For we still live in their brilliant light!
The abominable creatures are blinded to our existence! Filled with their master's enduring madness, they rush to the ashen desert, unknowingly passing us by!"
"And you wonder why no-one believes you…"
The old man was jolted out of his excitement and raised his cane again as if to strike, but seeing the serious and honest expression on the boy's face, he sighed resignedly and slouched back in his chair, energy gone once more.
"I mean, even if it is true, no-one has ever even seen one of these creatures before, so does it even matter anymore?"
"Well, like I said, we are…"
"Made up of people from across the land, so even if this village really was invisible to them, someone would have seen one at some point before coming here. Heck, I spent most days in the forest, I ought to have seen one by now!"
"…"
"You know, I wasn't kidding earlier, you would be a lot more accepted if you stopped preaching all the time."
"Yes and I would also be more accepted if you damn youngsters actually listened to me and didn't force me to repeat myself all the time!"
"Yeah yeah…" He glanced up at the sky. "Oh man I gotta get going now. Thanks for the story old man." He smiled as he waved a quick farewell and took off running towards the forest.
Watching him leave, the old man sighed again.
He slowly rubbed his aged hands together, 'Thanks for the story huh? I hope it is just a story. Who would want a horde of man-eating, near-unkillable abominations to roam the land free…'
He clenched his cracking hands tightly.
'… yet, I know what I saw…'
More of a shorter chapter this time, although it ended up longer than I intended, both in length and in time it took to write. Who would have guessed. I actually thought of delaying it a little more, since there are some parts I think could be improved, but considering how busy I'll be for the next couple months, it was either now or who knows when. So here it is.
Anyhow.
Originally, I intended for there to never be such drastic pov changes (not happening inside the same "scene" as our duo), but since this is an intermission chapter and I liked the idea of an old man telling folk stories in this world, I wrote it anyway. Though I doubt there will be any more like it for a long while now, if ever, I still am curious what you thought of it.
What else…
Right, happy belated New Year! May it be better than the last at the very least.
Till next time.