Page 27 of Rhaz's Redemption
Bright light seeped in from behind my closed eye, and sand brushed over me from the wind. I sat up and rubbed my head where Gil had struck me. There was no pain in the afterlife, but the memory of the wound still lingered, and habits are hard to break even after death. The pain I’d feel after I wake up in the land of the living? That was a different story entirely.
Time worked differently here, I’d figured that much out from the times I’d visited. I also knew I’d wake up in a desert and have to walk half a day’s journey through the sand toward the city of souls. Almost no time would pass back on Valo Primewhile I was here which had its benefits and drawbacks. I groaned at the thought of waking up to see Dameron standing over me. I’d still be tied up and at his mercy, but that would be a problem for later. Right now I had an appointment with an angel who I knew would be waiting for me at the entrance to the city. If there was one benefit to being dead, even briefly, it was seeing her.
I got to my feet and brushed the sand off my clothes. The sun was high in the sky which meant if I started walking now, the it would be setting by the time I reached the city gate. From here, I could see the spire of the tower that was located in the center of the city. It looked so small from this distance but I knew the longer I walked the bigger it’d become.
“Time to get moving,” I said to no one but myself, or at least that’s what I thought.
“Where am I?” A child’s voice met my ears and I couldn’t stop the sinking feeling I felt in my gut. I’d always walked this journey alone. I knew others must also be journeying through these desert sands, but I never imagined I’d meet someone along the way.
I turned to see a young sirret male with dark blue skin, black curly hair, proud horns that sprouted from his forehead, and big brown eyes that were filled with worry as he surveyed his surroundings.
“Where’s the lake?” he asked, and I slowly walked toward the young boy with what I hoped was a warm smile on my face.
“I don’t un-un-understand,” he stammered as tears streamed down his face. “I was swimming at the lake. Momma told me not to go without her, but it was such a hot day. I figured it’d be alright if I went alone just this one time.”
He looked up at me with glossy eyes and asked, “D-do you think she’ll be mad at me when she finds out I went swimming alone?”
I got down on one knee in front of the boy and patted him on the shoulder. “No, I don’t think she’ll be mad. Are you a strong swimmer?”
The boy frowned and looked down at his bare feet. “No,” he confessed. “Papa is teaching me. I wanted to practice on my own and I was doing a good job of it until I accidentally swam too far from the shore.”
“What happened after that?” I found myself holding my breath even though I already knew how this story was going to end. He was in the afterlife and there’s only one way a person could get here.
“I tried to swim back but the current was too strong. Then my arms got tired and I kept slipping below the surface of the water.”
He looked up at me with his big brown eyes and asked, “Did you pull me out of the water?” He looked around at the desert sand again then asked. “Why did you carry me here?”
“What’s your name?” I avoided his question. I didn’t think he was ready to know the truth just yet and I had half a day to prepare him for the reality he was about to face.
“I’m Bhaz. What’s your name?”
I smiled down at young Bhaz, surprised that our names were so similar. “I’m Rhaz.”
“Ha!” Bhaz let out a chuckle. “Bhaz and Rhaz!”
His smile quickly faded however, when he took in the sight of the desert surrounding us once again.
“What’s that over there?” He asked, pointing to the spire.
“I don’t know,” I lied. “Should we find out together?”
The reassurance of not being left alone in this strange place seemed to lift Bhaz’s spirit and he beamed up at me with a smile.
“Like an adventure?”
“Yes, like an adventure,” I nodded.
I began our journey by taking the first step toward the tall building in the distance and Bhaz followed shortly after. It didn’t take long for the sietling to slide his hand into mine and I was surprised by the strange familiarity of it, as if I’d held this child’s hand a thousand times before.
“Is this okay?” He asked as he caught me staring down at our joined hands.
“I’ll allow it.” I kept my tone gruff to hide the emotion that was seeking to seep out into my voice.
The emotions I was feeling as I walked hand-in-hand with Bhaz were nearly overwhelming, but I couldn’t put a name to a single one. It was as if my soul knew him even though I did not, and my eyes burned to cry tears but I didn’t know why.
We walked for many miles like this, and eventually I was able to get my wayward emotions under control.
“Will my parents be waiting for me in the city?”
