Hours had passed since Isaac and Azrael had left the town of Oasis. The crimsons and golds of the setting sun filled the horizon. A gentle breeze caused the sand to lift up and dance as it fell back down to the ground. It would have been a beautiful sight for Isaac to behold had he not been so distracted. This was not how Isaac had expected things to go. He did not expect to see one man get filled full of lead then get back up as if it were nothing, nor three others get plugged in the head, and he certainly never expected to see a demon get plugged in the head then dragged down into the literal burning pits of hell. As he tilted his gaze to his companion he thought about how he was now some sort of partner with a demigod of death. It was a lot to process. So much so, that Isaac realized he had completely forgotten to stock up on supplies in Oasis. He was completely out of every provision a person would need to traverse the Regal. This was a nightmare, especially because it meant having to actually talk to his companion for the first time since they left the town beyond the most basic of monosyllabic utterances and a collection of grunts. Isaac for the life of him did not know how one begins a conversation with a demigod. Does he start with a thank you and wait for the demigod to say "you're welcome" before confessing to being an idiot? What if Azrael decides to just leave him behind for being a liability? Isaac began to begin to prepare to practice what he would say by biting his lip before fidgeting with his mouth.
A raspy voice startled him, saying, "Just say what you want to say. I won't bite, for heaven's sake."
"Oh, um. Well..."
Azrael sighed. "Fine. Let me help you. How about you start by telling me your name."
"Isaac. Sir."
"Sir? You better mean "Your eminence.""
Fear swept down Isaac's spine like a brushfire. "Your Eminence!"
Laughter erupted from their eminence. "Kid. You really are something. Maybe I won't end up killing you during our little trip after all."
Isaac gulped. He knew that it was meant to be a joke, but there really did seem like a non-zero chance that his murder was how this trip was going to end.
"I know that look," Azrael said, "I've seen it many times before. That's the "there is a non-zero chance that this guy is going to end up murdering me" look. All I can say is, you're not wrong." Azrael gave Isaac a wicked grin that almost sent every hair on Isaac's body up and out like all the hicks claimed porcupines could do. More laughter erupted. "Kid, you are both a hoot and, I do believe, a hollar. I'm not interested in killing you and I'm even less interested in honorifics. Drop the sir nonsense and I believe we will get along just fine."
Wearily, Isaac gave a relieved chuckle. "Good to hear. Say, Azrael. Listen. I have to tell you something. I kind of forgot to stock up for the trip back home."
"Did you now? Seems kind of dumb if you ask me," Azrael responded.
"I don't suppose you would have enough for me at least until we get to the next town?"
"Nope."
"Why not?"
"Turns out I'm dumb too. We'll just have to wait until the next town to eat or drink. Shouldn't be too far into tomorrow."
Isaac sank into his saddle. He had actually run out of food two days before, but managed to make his way into Oasis after promising himself he would find something there, somehow. His stomach panged with hunger.
"Azrael?"
"Yes?"
"So I don't really have any sort of way to pay for any provisions at the moment," Isaac said quietly.
"There it is," Azrael sighed, "I knew it was coming. How long since you've actually eaten?"
"Two days, sir," Isaac answered.
Azrael sighed and rubbed his brow. "I knew it. And stop it with that "sir" nonsense." After a breath he continued, "I can cover you. I should have plenty of chits for the both of us. I got a big bag full here somewhere.
Isaac breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh good. I was worried that the one you left at the bar was all you had."
Isaac would never forget the string of obscenities he heard shouted into the setting sun. Both horses ceased their movements abruptly, catching Isaac by surprise. The breeze stopped and nature held its breath. It was as though all of creation abandoned whatever it was doing in order to take in the longest, loudest, and filthiest series of curse words Isaac would ever hear in his entire life. Isaac recognized most of the curses but also heard many new ones, some he believed had been invented in that very moment. Some seemed to be literally cursed, as Isaac flashed in and out of what appeared to be foreign dimensions of unfathomable beings as Azrael uttered unholy obscenities. Isaac would never forget how two of the words seemed to come to life as he heard them, manifesting before him before wrapping one another in their tendrils and writhing into mutual destruction and oblivion. Finally, the words stopped and time seemed to begin again.
"What city is next?" Azrael grunted.
Isaac was not sure if he was still alive, or in reality. At least for a moment. Finally, his brain miraculously processed the question and spit out the answer procedurally, "Fortune City."
"Damn it. Well," Azrael deliberated. "Okay, I can work with this. Buck up kid. We'll be fine."
Isaac fainted, just barely staying on his horse before Azrael could reach out and grab him. Azrael decided that this seemed just as good a spot as any to settle down for the night. Even though he couldn't die without it, he always felt better when provided with adequate sleep, drink, and food. After setting up camp for the both of them, he sat next to a fire he had made to keep them both warm as the desert heat was replaced with a desert chill now that the sun had finally gone down. As the fire danced, he quietly produced the guitar he had stashed away with his belongings. He quietly tuned the strings before strumming some chords softly and somberly. Soon he began to gently sing into the night air, the sound still carrying into the distance due to the absolute silence of the hour. His voice was low and still maintained its raspiness, but it had a disarming fragility that would catch most by surprise due to its source.
He sang:
O Death, please come take me away,
The ground is dry and cracked,
O Death, please come take me away,
I ain't never coming back.
The air is dry, the sun is hot,
The wind cuts you to the bone,
The air is dry, the sun is hot,
The hearts are hard as stone.
O Death, please come take me away,
The ground is dry and cracked,
O Death, please come take me away,
I ain't never coming back.
The rain won't come, the crops have died,
Nothing will grow out here,
The rain won't come, the crops have died,
My hope's replaced with fear.
O Death, please come take me away,
The ground is dry and cracked,
O Death, please come take me away,
I ain't never coming back.
My love left here not too long ago,
Her body was broken and frail,
My love left here not too long ago,
Her face was ashy and pale.
O Death, please come take me away,
The sun is high above,
O Death, please come take me away,
Reunite me with my love.
The desert was not a cheery place and the music often reflected this. The music was dark and dreary. Each note was hopeless. Some songs even needed to be put on suicide watch. It was really only the places like Fortune City that had any sort of life left to it, even if that life was not exactly wholesome and family friendly. Just having that dream of striking it rich someday because of some lucky hand or spin of the wheel or roll of the dice was all that some people had to keep them going in a world that had made it clear that it did not care about or want them. Azrael hoped that maybe they might just be able to strike it rich, at least enough to get them to Eden Prairie and him finally finished with this whole ordeal.
Hours passed, and the heat once more climbed in tandem with the rising sun. Isaac awoke to the smell of burnt hair. He could see smoke rising from the fire as Azrael hunched down.
"Ah shit! Oh that is not right at all. Shit," Azrael muttered.
Isaac arose from his makeshift bed and moved to the fire, where he saw Azrael holding what looked to be a burnt stick that had been run through what looked like very burnt and charred potato that also seemed to have once been covered in fur.
"I uh, well, I know you haven't eaten in a while and well, I managed to hunt down some food here for you. The problem is I'm great at killing things but not so good at knowing what to do with the corpses afterwards," Azrael said as he offered the furred and burned monstrosity to Isaac.
In Isaac's life, as with all our lives, were moments that, some day in the distant future, he would look back at in absolute horror and disgust. This moment was not one of those, because sometimes the brain is merciful enough to just to lock a memory away in some deep dark vault in the mind and never speak of it again. This was where the memory of eating the charred yet still far too furry body of whatever poor animal Azrael managed to kill ended up in Isaac's mind.
Isaac did not enjoy his meal, but it did give him enough energy to keep him from dying of hunger, not that Isaac did not at least partially wish for the sweet release of death during his dining experience.
"Thanks," Isaac lied, at least partially.
"No problem, kid. Now let's get going," Azrael replied before making his way to the horses. Isaac slowly and dizzyingly stood up before trudging to the horses to join him. Both mounted their steeds, though in Isaac's case it took a few wobbly attempts before he was finally able to make it into position. The two began riding again through the prairie desert as the heat began to rise. They had a few hours to go until they would arrive at Fortune City. Until then they would ride in silence, watching the nature around them and the lay of the land. There was a minimalist beauty to it all. The scarcity of life made every living thing that much more significant to the eye.In the areas where no signs of life could be seen, everything took on an unearthly feeling. Isaac sometimes spotted caves in the far away distance and wondered when the last time human eyes may have looked inside them. It would still be quite another while he reckoned as the two of them rode on.
Finally, the two began to see Fortune City on the horizon, as watched as it grew with each passing minute of riding. They finally began to see people going about their daily business, some carrying things from one place to another, others that were riding horses of their own to destinations near and far. After the ride he had just had with Azrael, Isaac marvelled at just how well humans were able to survive in such a dreary place. It was truly a testament to some sort of indomitable spirit possessed by humanity.
They were almost to the city when Isaac heard Azrael's "Whoa," to Scythe to slow down and then stop. Isaac did the same, despite being confused as to why they were stopping out here, when they were still a few hundred feet away from the city's outskirts.
"Kid, I have to do something before we head inside the city," Azreal stated plainly.
Isaac blinked, "Okay? What exactly do you have to do?"
Azrael replied, "I've got to make it so you can see everything."
Isaac furrowed his brow and cocked his head, "What in the name of hell does that mean? Last time I checked, I didn't need glasses or anything."
Azrael snorted amusedly, "Nah, not for that kind of seeing. You probably don't realize it, but there is a whole 'nother world that you have been living next to all these years. You may have seen traces of it, things that made you think your eyes were playing tricks with you, things that made you think you might have just seen shadow moving and nothing else. Remember when you saw that demon get dragged down after I killed it? That was just a fraction of the strange things that have been going on around you and the rest of the humans 'round here and the only reason you were able to see that was because I called your attention to it. You have been blinded from seeing these things because you and your kind haven't been able to get along with the rest of us unnatural folk. Normally I wouldn't do this, but if you are going to be travelling with me, taking me to this town of yours, you'll need to be able to see everything."
If not for the fact that Isaac had seen all the crazy stuff that had recently happened, he would have dismissed this talk as that of the emotionally disturbed. "Ok," he said with his nerves on low alert, "so how do you do it? Do you have some sort of magic potion or gla-" *SMACK* *THUMP*
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