Dead Town

Because of Bunny, the way there took me twice as long. I feel something swimming in the sand beneath my feet, I'm at the right place. I look around to make sure no one has followed me here, I'm so deep inside the desert I can't see anything at the horizon.

I shove the sword on the sand, not twisting it, just waiting. The entire ground starts rumbling like an earthquake.

The dune of sand I stand on starts collapsing as the mouth of a gargantuan sandstone serpent opens up underneath my feet, jumping in the air after swallowing me whole. I hold my breath as there was nothing besides sand inside the creature.

I'm spat in front of a pair of emerald gates, only after almost an entire breathless hour. I grasp for air, looking at the pile of skeletons I was thrown on top off as if it were a mirror. I cough hoards of sand, and with every step, more grains fall from every bit of my body and armor.

It all is worth it when I hear the sound of sweet music. The laughter, the smells of the most delicious banquets, all begging for me to come see it.

It's been years since I've come here, but every time it feels exactly like the first. I stare hypnotized at the excited townsfolk, dozens of hundreds of mummies, living-dead, elementals, golems... Anything without a soul or a heart or that has once been dead. The view of the floating jade palace above the short crystal houses of the city looked like a dream.

The magic throughout the city called me, even if exhausted, my legs drag me to the gates guarded by mummies. A dazzling golden fountain outside the tall walls was too bright to ignore. I read what the sign kindly says:

'Invisibility wine. Take before you enter.'

"...Cool, they put it out for the mortals. How nice." I smile, going for the mummies that opened and closed the way for my entrance extremely quick.

As soon as the gates slamming echoed through the town, the laughter stops. Every single one of the folks stare at me.

"...NEWCOMER!"

The crowd cheers feverishly as they race towards me. I'm too stunned to move, the screams are no louder than the millions of footsteps. As I'm completely surrounded, I can only comprehend a couple of the things being said:

"Excuse me, my magic carpet was stolen by a group of teenagers over the obelisk! Could--"

"My step-father put me on his last will to receive a fortune. But to find it, I must first solve this riddle."

"I need to deliver a ton of supplies to the eastern gate, but my delivery man is marrying a sweet--"

"There's talk around the taverns about a strange man giving strange coins to unsuspecting children."

I try to squirm through them so I could reach the palace, but all of them walk along my steps and I still can't see a single damn thing.

"This girl... I'm in deep love! But I do not possess the courage to tell her how I feel, would you deliver her this letter?"

"I have leads to the last location of Captain Copper, the orange buccaneer, if you can cover the price, of course."

"Guys... I think it's lovely but I'm not actually a newcomer, I'm just visiting."

"Visiting? VISITING?" The salesman screams. "HOW DID YOU LEAVE?"

"Ta'Kakekth obliges your presence, Hero of Corp." A loud voice kills the sound.

The entire town, the streets and the houses, everything goes deadly silent after the very first words of the dark haired lamia on top of the palace.

Every single being in the crowd around me carefully back away, going inside of their houses and completely disappearing from my sight. The lack of music or any noise at all was unsettling.

"...Thanks, dears. Hope we can catch up another time." I chuckle, the silence stays just as uncomfortable if not worse.

I look at the familiar lady that called me as she comes down on a floating translucent jade platform, along three mummies. She was wearing pure gold, from head to tail, difficult to look away, but extremely intimidating. I step onto the platform and it floats back into the palace. Not a single sentence was exchanged for the following uneasy minutes.

After being escorted through the palace, taking my chance to devour de golden walls with my eyes, I notice I've been left completely alone at the end of a corridor. A pair of emerald doors open by themselves once I look at them, revealing a glass observatory behind.

In the very center of the room I spot him, manipulating strings of magic snapping back and forth. A multitude of whispers invite me inside.

With my first step follows a scream from the same voices.

"Kneel before forbidden undying knowledge."

My knees forcefully fall to the floor, bending against my will. I sorrowfully stare at him as the figure of the lich emperor in golden armor covering every inch of his skin becomes more clear. He slowly turns around, and I only notice him lifting a finger at me because in the blink of an eye, my feet start leaving the ground as a dark mist lifts me up, freezing every muscle in my body.

He hovers up to my direction.

"How dare you... To step into my kingdom, to interrupt my researches..."

Chills run through my spine as I hear the eldritch evil direct his words at me.

"...Without bringing any marble crabs?" He finishes talking with the voice of who was surely smiling underneath the helmet.

"...Do you have spare set of pants? You really could have just asked for the crabs."

"You brought them?" He asks in shock as the mist dissipates and I fall onto the floor.

"Of course I did, you think I'm a monster?" I open my chest plate and a pile of sand and crabs fall onto the floor.

"I didn't think you'd remember about it!" Kakekth sways his hand in the air, forming a magical circle and summoning instantly a molten sandstone golem.

As the flying sands around the room gather as one, the remaining hoards of grains Hero brought with himself bring the crabs to inside a rock bowl in the square hole inside the golem's chest, who starts to turn bright red with heat.

"Never do that again, okay? Please, I beg you." I say chuckling, finally feeling truly welcomed somewhere.  "You can just hug me and say you missed me."

The ancient emperor hugs me without missing a beat.

"How could you possibly believe I was angry at you? If anything, I'm angry you haven't called first." He laughs walking back to the golem. "I would have made you a feast, tidy the house and change into something a little more presentable."

I've never seen him wearing anything other than the armor, like it was actually part of his body. And the house, was always impeccable.

"You're... Usually the one that visits me, so I wasn't sure if it was okay to come by."

"Come whenever you need me my child." He's probably smiling under the golden helmet. "So, what brings you to me?"

"...The ancient dragon has resurfaced, and I've completely missed my chance at it. It's now dead, and I can't continue the research."

"The legendary stone dragon? Oh, it would be useless. It's power alone is not enough for the thing you seek. It was a nice lead, but far from the answer itself."

"...So I'm back to square one?"

"Yeah." He nods.

I sigh, miserably.

"Why do you waste so much time trying to make the mortals last forever? Aren't zombies good enough." He questions, confused.

I take a deep breath.

"I... I don't know exactly. Besides not wanting it to fall... On the wrong hands... I just never planned on destroying villages and all that fun stuff my family always did. I always wanted to help, since I was very little."

"I see, you didn't come here for advice on the dragon did you... You came here to vent. I saw it from the moment you got in, you're so depressed you look like you're ACTUALLY dead."

I stare at him in disappointment.

"Don't worry my child, we're here now. Why don't you open up about what's going on? Let's talk." He says tapping leg.

I stare at the golem, sweating like I was out in the sun.

"...I'll pass."

The golem dings like a receptionists bell.

"Ooh, finally." The golem opens a little door in Kakekth's helmet and starts feeding him the crabs, one by one.

"...Take the golem out."

"What?" He says munching. "He doesn't even have ears."

"Take the golem away." I say quickly, not trying to repeat myself again.

Ta'kakekth looks at me confused, but them rolls his eyes in a sigh. He takes the bowl of crabs out the golem.

"Shoo, shoo."

The stone creature walks away.

I take a tremendously huge deep breath. All my of thoughts only can scream a single thing inside my head, a single name I desperately need to talk about... But have no courage to, even now.

"I'm thinking of..." I take another deep, trembling breath. "H-how... How can I be sure I'm really immortal, you know?" I ask nervously, completely changing what I was going to say last second. "I haven't died yet."

My frown comes back again.

"I can't die. There's not a single reality you can find where it is possible for me to die. I've been alive for longer than this planet and I'll be here to see the beginning of a new universe."

"...Not... That kind of immortal." I say creeped out and shaking in disgust."

"Oh." He stops eating his crabs. "No, you are. You most definitely are."

I smile.

"Finally, good news." I say with my hands on my face, so tired I could pass out.

"So you should stop looking for that dragon, and start trying to figure out what the hell happened to you and how. It's surely more promising."

My eyes shine.

"Y-yes, sir." I say finally actually excited as I felt I was finally going somewhere.

"...As I said, the dragon really wasn't much... But I'm glad it's dead. Now no one can use it's powers... You're the only hope that I know of."

"Understood. Thank you so much Kekekth, really."

"However..." He stands up and turns around, walking back to his books while holding the bow. "When you do feel like talking about what you really meant to talk about... I'm here." He says looking at me over his shoulder.

I blush, flattered for a second, but completely irritated on the next.

"...I have... No idea what you're talking about..." I say angered, but knowing just looking funny at him could get me in trouble.

"I can see you don't." He walks over, places a hand on top of my head while staring down at me, then offers me the bowl. "Crabs?"

I was still embarrassed.

"...I was thinking more of a ride home? I'm sorry, I hate eating. I never do it."

Kakaketh smiles.

"Of course."

Another flying platform comes by as the walls open for it's entrance. I get on top of it and I say.

"Thank you. Really... I'll think of what you said." I say as the platform drifts away.

"Or, maybe what you need is to think less of it."

"What?" I scream at the distance, barely hearing him.

"Hold your breath!" The demonic whispers come back to taunt me.

"What--"

I hear a whistle, and then the giant serpent jumps from inside the desert and swallows me whole. The last thing I see is the old emperor waving at me.

I wonder if I should have told him I don't want to fight Hiro anymore.