Lonely Man In The Desert


Lonely Man In The Desert


Lonely Man In The Desert

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“I will not be a part of this,” she said, her voice quiet and cold. “You have no right to make me do anything.” She turned away from him, but he grabbed hold of her arm roughly before she could escape into the forest again. He pulled her back around so that they were facing each other once more. His eyes glittered with anger in the moonlight as he stared at her, his hands still tight on her arms.

The wind blew softly through the trees behind them, carrying their voices out across the desert sands. It was almost like they weren’t there; as if both of them had become ghosts haunting an empty landscape.

“Please don’t leave us alone here,” he begged her quietly, his face twisted up with pain and fear and desperation. “There are things you need to know about your father’s death—things I can tell you only now because my brother has gone missing. If we stay together, then maybe I’ll find him alive somewhere… or perhaps I can help you track down whoever did this to him. Please…”

She shook her head slowly, pulling herself free of his grip. Her lips trembled slightly as she looked at him sadly, tears running silently down her cheeks. There was something wrong about what he’d told her earlier tonight: the fact that he hadn’t been able to tell anyone else about it until now, for one thing.

And yet… she couldn’t quite put her finger on why. Perhaps she was just too tired to think clearly anymore. Or perhaps she simply didn’t want to believe any of it. After all, this man seemed so utterly desperate to convince her. Did that mean he really believed everything he said? Wasn’t he just trying to manipulate her somehow…?

“No,” she whispered finally. Tears spilled over her cheeks, leaving wet trails in the dust beneath her feet. “I’m sorry, but I cannot go anywhere near where those men were killed. You’re wasting your time asking me to come along with you.”

He nodded unhappily, turning away from her as he began walking toward the edge of the forest. But then, after a moment, he stopped short and looked back at her. He reached out tentatively and took hold of her hand as gently as possible.

“What is your name?” he asked her quietly. “My brother called you ‘the Lonely One.’ Is that true?”

Her heart skipped a beat when she saw how much pain was in his eyes. For some reason, though, she felt compelled to answer him honestly. So she drew in a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and answered him without hesitation.

“Yes,” she replied. “That’s exactly who I am.”

***

A FEW HOURS LATER, THE two travelers sat side by side on top of a small hill overlooking the vast desert. They watched the sun rise above the horizon far off to the east, its rays reaching down to touch the earth below them. A cool breeze blew between them, rustling the leaves of the few scattered trees nearby.

It was early morning, and the air held the faintest hint of autumn. The sky overhead was clear and blue, dotted only occasionally with tiny white clouds drifting lazily through the open space. Beyond the distant mountains, the first hints of dawn peeked out from behind the horizon, painting the world around them in gold and silver.

They were sitting close enough together that their legs touched underneath the blanket that covered them both, although neither of them made any attempt to move away from the other. Their bodies lay pressed against one another, skin to skin, sharing warmth even while wrapped up tightly within layers of clothing.

For a long time, they merely gazed silently at the rising sun. Neither of them spoke. Then, finally, the girl glanced over at him. She smiled warmly at him, and he returned her smile. Slowly, hesitantly, he leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the cheek.

Neither one of them moved for several moments afterward. Finally, however, he withdrew himself from her embrace and stood up. He walked over to the edge of the hilltop and looked down at the ground far below.

“This is as high as I dare climb,” he explained quietly. “If I tried to get higher than this, I might fall and break my neck. Just looking down makes me dizzy.”

The girl sighed, gazing at him thoughtfully. She knew full well how dangerous the journey ahead would be. Still, she found herself unwilling to let him go. When she realized that he wasn’t going to try climbing any farther, she reluctantly got to her feet as well. Together, they started down the gentle slope of the hillside. As they descended, the sunlight gradually warmed their faces.

After a while, he turned to look back at her once more. His expression was serious, and she could see the sadness in his eyes.

“You should probably turn around now,” he suggested. “We’ve already passed the point of no return. We can’t go back now.”

She stared straight into his eyes.

“Just promise me you won’t run away again,” he added quietly. “Promise me that you will keep moving forward, even if it means putting yourself in danger every day. Promise me you’ll never give up, no matter what happens.”

His voice broke slightly as he finished speaking.

“I know you don’t understand right now, but…”

Suddenly, a loud clap echoed across the hillsides. Startled, the girl spun around. To her surprise, there was nothing behind her but empty grassland. Even the hill upon which they had been standing moments before was gone.

“What happened?” she gasped.

He shook his head slowly and pointed toward the south.

“Look over there,” he said softly.

When she did so, she saw something strange: a large, dark shadow cast over the land below. It was like a giant wall of blackness stretching out into the distance, blocking all sight of the sun itself. There was also a low rumble, almost too quiet to hear.

“Is…is that thunder?” she asked nervously.

“Yeah, I think it must be,” he replied. “But not just any kind of storm. This looks like an earthquake or maybe a volcanic eruption—something big and destructive.”

Then, suddenly, the ground beneath their feet began shaking violently. Both of them fell backward onto the hard-packed dirt, struggling to stay upright. After a brief struggle, they managed to scramble to their feet.

“Stay calm!” he shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her along. “Let’s hurry back to the bottom of these hills! You need to hide inside those rocks until we’re sure it’s safe to come out again!”

Together, they ran as fast as they could. The ground continued to shake underfoot, threatening to knock them off balance at every step. Soon, however, they reached the base of the small hill where they had spent the night. The girl quickly scrambled behind a cluster of boulders, hoping to find some shelter.

As soon as she did, the tremors stopped entirely. For a moment, the girl waited anxiously, listening carefully for any signs of movement. But after a minute or two, she relaxed somewhat. Apparently, whatever it was, it hadn’t followed them here.

Slowly, the girl crawled out from behind the rock. With trembling hands, she pulled herself up and peered cautiously around the side. At last, her eyes widened in shock.

There, lying directly in front of her, was a massive crater. A huge circular hole gaped in the earth, surrounded by jagged edges and broken fragments of stone. The entire area appeared to have been completely destroyed; it seemed impossible that anything could ever grow there again.

“Oh, no…” she whispered.

Beneath her feet, the ground trembled once more. In fact, it felt as though the whole world was quaking with fear.

***

A few days later, the girl awoke early in the morning. Her body ached terribly, and she could barely move. Still, she forced herself to rise from the bed and begin preparing breakfast. Once she finished that task, she went outside to check on the horses, who had been left to graze nearby.

Her heart sank when she looked down at the animals. They were both dead. Their bodies lay sprawled in the tall grass, motionless and lifeless. Blood stained the ground around them, and the stench of death hung heavy in the air. All three of the horses had died within the span of only a few hours.

“Why?!” she cried. “How could this happen? What did we do wrong?! Why didn’t anyone warn us about this!?”

She buried the corpses in one corner of the field, then returned home. She sat alone in the kitchen, staring blankly into space. When she finally realized how late it was, she hurried upstairs to change.

That evening, she met with the other villagers to discuss what needed to be done next. Everyone agreed that they would hold a funeral service for the animals the following afternoon.

Meanwhile, the man who had brought the girl to the village stood silently beside her. He listened intently to everything being discussed, nodding occasionally. Then, when everyone else had left, he spoke up.

“You’ve been through quite a lot lately,” he told her. “It’s understandable if you feel overwhelmed.”

The girl nodded, looking down at the floor.

“Yes,” she murmured, “but I can’t stop thinking about what happened to my horse. How could something like this happen all of a sudden? We didn’t cause it, and we couldn’t prevent it. So why is God punishing us like this?”

For several long seconds, the man remained silent. Finally, he shrugged.

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “Maybe it’s because your father never made peace with his past. Maybe he still blames himself for things that happened years ago. Or maybe it has nothing to do with him at all. Who knows?”

“No, I’m certain it does,” she insisted. “My father always believed that the world is full of sin and evil. That’s why he wanted me to live far away from civilization. And now look what’s happening to our farm.”

“Well, perhaps that’s true,” the man said. “Or maybe it isn’t. I really don’t understand what’s going on myself. If I did, I’d probably already have figured out a way to fix it.”

He turned toward her.

“Whatever happens, I promise you that I will help you get through this,” he added. “So please believe in me. Just trust me enough to let go of your anger and pain for a while so that you can think clearly.”

After saying this, he walked over to the door and opened it. As he stepped outside, the girl watched him leave. Then, slowly, she began to cry.

***

Several weeks passed before the girl found the strength to return to her work. Although her mind was clouded with worry, she knew that she must keep moving forward.

One day, a stranger came to visit the village. His name was Dazai, and he lived in another town not too far away. After hearing about the recent events, he offered to lend them some money, which they gratefully accepted. However, the man also warned the villagers against spending their funds recklessly.

“If you buy new tools and equipment, you’ll end up wasting even more time than you are right now,” he explained. “But if you use the money to hire someone to plow the fields, harvest the crops, and sell them to the market, you should make back most of your investment. You can save the rest until winter comes when you might need extra supplies for the cold season.”

Although the villagers didn’t fully comprehend what he meant by these words, they thanked him nonetheless and promised to follow his advice. The next morning, they hired an experienced farmer named Munechika to tend to the land.

As the months passed, the weather grew colder. Snow fell on the mountains surrounding the valley, and the temperature dropped significantly below freezing. One night, the sky darkened ominously, and a fierce blizzard raged across the countryside.

When the snowstorm finally abated, the villagers returned to their homes. But as soon as they entered the warmth of their houses, the sound of crying children reached their ears. It seemed that many of the younger residents had been frightened during the storm and had fallen ill. Some of them were coughing violently; others vomited uncontrollably.

By the time spring arrived, half of the village’s population had become sick. Many people lost their appetites, and those who managed to eat anything felt nauseous afterward. Others suffered from severe headaches or fever. Soon after, some of the patients began vomiting blood.

“This is no ordinary illness,” the doctor announced. “We’re dealing with something much worse. This disease is spreading rapidly, and there’s nothing we can do to stop it.”

At first, the villagers panicked. They feared that the sickness was contagious, but the doctor assured them that it wasn’t. Still, he advised the afflicted to avoid contact with each other whenever possible and to wash thoroughly every day.

Finally, one month later, the epidemic ended. By that point, almost everyone in the village had succumbed to the mysterious ailment. Only a few dozen survivors remained, including the girl.

Over the course of the following days, the remaining villagers buried their dead. When they finished burying the last body, the girl stood alone on top of the hill overlooking the cemetery. She gazed into the distance, where the sun was setting behind the distant mountains. Her thoughts drifted to the fateful day when she had left home.

She remembered how terrified she had been that morning, running through the forest in search of safety. All around her, she heard the sounds of animals screaming in agony. At the same time, she could see strange figures lurking in the shadows. Their eyes glowed red like embers, and their skin looked pale and translucent.

The girl thought back to the moment when she had met the man in the cave. He had told her that the creatures stalking the woods weren’t real. In fact, he claimed that she herself was part of a nightmare that only existed inside her head.

Now, standing atop the hill above the graveyard, she wondered whether he had lied to her. Perhaps everything that had happened since then—the deaths, the sickness, the fire—had all been a figment of her imagination. Maybe none of it actually took place at all.

Suddenly, the girl realized that she couldn’t remember anything about her life prior to the outbreak. Even though she knew that she had once lived here, she suddenly had no idea why she had come to live in this remote mountain village.

For some reason, she had decided to abandon the city and move deep into the wilderness. But what exactly had driven her to make such a drastic decision? And what would have motivated her to stay so long without ever returning to civilization?

Unsure of what else to do, the girl sat down beside the gravesite and began to weep.

***

A week later, the girl woke up early in the morning. The first thing that caught her attention was the smell of fresh-baked bread wafting from the kitchen. A short while earlier, the baker had delivered a large basket filled with freshly baked loaves.

After eating breakfast, she went outside to check on the horses. As usual, the beasts were grazing peacefully near the riverbank. The girl smiled and said hello to them, but they paid her no heed. Instead, they continued munching away at the grass beneath their hooves.

“I wonder if I’m still dreaming?” the girl muttered aloud. Then she turned toward the house and noticed that several men were working in the garden. Two of them were digging holes, while another pair of workers carried buckets of water from the well.

“What are you doing out here?” the girl asked.

One of the laborers replied, “Working.”

“But it’s already noon!”

“That’s right,” the worker said. “You’ve slept for most of the day.”

“Oh…” the girl responded quietly. After a moment, she added, “Thank goodness.”

The girl watched the men work until the sun set over the horizon. Once darkness descended, she climbed onto one of the horses and rode off into the woods.

As she traveled deeper into the countryside, the girl saw more and more people living along the road. Most of them appeared to be traveling merchants or peddlers. Several of them stopped to stare curiously at the young woman riding by. One of them even shouted, “Hey! Is that a ghost?!”

Without looking back, the girl replied, “No, I just don’t look human.”

Several minutes later, the girl came upon an old man sitting under a tree. He was staring at his feet, which were resting on a pile of dirty rags. Without a word, the girl dismounted her horse and walked over to him.

“Hello,” she said. “Can I help you?”

The old man didn’t respond. His face was twisted with pain, as though he was suffering from severe stomach cramps.

“Are you okay?” the girl asked.

Still, the man did not reply. Eventually, however, he lifted his head and stared silently at the girl. It seemed that he recognized her somehow.

Then the old man spoke: “It’s been three years… Since my wife passed away. Three whole years…”

His voice trembled as he struggled to hold back tears. Then he lowered his gaze again and returned to gazing at his feet.

“Why are you crying, Grandpa?” the girl asked gently.

Again, the old man refused to answer.

After a moment, the girl recalled something that had happened during the previous night. During dinner, she had overheard the two cooks talking in hushed tones. Apparently, one of them had gone missing after delivering the food to the dining hall. When pressed further, the other cook admitted that he hadn’t seen the man in days.

The End

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