I can’t give my sons a proper goodbye but I can at least give these people the rest they deserve. Standing up I look to the nearest corpse. Someone hugging what might be two kids hiding behind the statue away from the crater. In front of it stands a wood golem dressed like a mage. Everything but its robes is charred bck. Looking around I find nothing I can use to dig, so I use my hands.

  The ground is ashy yet hard, almost like brittle rock. Even so I dig, using my hands as best I can. After spending I don't know how long digging, I make a hole big enough to fit the three. Gently, temporarily separating them I move the three bodies to the hole, putting the children together with the one hugging them. Next to them, I make a hole for the golem and put it as close as I can, guarding them long after death.

  After burying them I move to the nearest house, finding the corpse of a lizardfolk towering above the corpses of two children, a dead cat standing in front of the two kids. Just like before the corpses are charred bck, leaving them almost unrecognizable. Roughly, I push the lizard aside, giving it a kick right as it falls down. After looking at the kids one st time I dig another hole outside.

  Ignoring as the sun rises and falls I go from house to house burying everybody I find. Sometimes I find a couple holding each other close. Sometimes I find the elderly holding their pets. Sometimes I find people praying alone. Eventually I start to find dead golems. People who gave up their body to become what was supposed to be immortal.

  I find golems lying dead after a good fight. I find golems propping themselves against the front door of their homes. I find golems with people. I find couples dead. I find families gone. I find pets love sting eternity as they lie with their owners. I find parents' selflessness timeless as they protect their children with their bodies. I find lovers moments long after death.

  Even as the moon rises and snow falls again and again I continue to move, starting with the crater. As I move out the ground becomes harder, less brittle. Even so I dig. Ignoring it as the summer heat becomes a winters biting chill I dig. I dig and I dig and I dig.

  Has it been years?

  By the end of it the ruins remain, but, at least now it looks more at peace. Remnants of war remain but the people are buried, all that's left is the remnants of enemy soldiers id down, their weapons pced aside them. The buildings have fallen and the people sleep but the sun rises all the same. Finally, after losing count of the times winter and summer have passed i've id every corpse to rest, even giving the monsters that put my son's kingdom down to rest.

  From the crater I walked all the way to the city outskirts along the way, finding a massive forest encircling the area. The red trees are as rge as two small houses and the azure canopies seem to cover the sky, the roots as rge as two men. After hesitating a bit I enter the forest. Thankfully, there’s plenty of space between the trees, almost enough for a line of ten men to walk through.

  As I walk thin lines of sunshine peer through the trees canopies, illuminating the light brown dirt making it harder to trip on the smaller roots peering through the small piles of loose leaves. Time passes as I travel, occasionally stopping to look at one of the many multicolored flower patches and berry bushes sprawled across randomly. Eventually the sun falls, the flowers and bushes begin to glow in gold and silver lights. Suddenly, I hear a voice appear behind me.

  “Well now that’s a surprise. With a soul like that you can only be Oliver’s father. I never expected it but it looks like he succeeded.”

  Turning around violently I see…something? It’s not human, more like a goblin and elf mix. Its skin seems to be coated in dirt. No, at least its arms and legs are made of dirt. Maybe it’s as tall as a ten year old? But its face is aged, resembling more of an old man’s. Its nose is long and sharp, its fingers thin and spindly, and its skin rough. Right as I try to get a better look at it, it seems to teleport directly in front of me.

  “So what's your name?”

  Remembering old stories of the fae I stay silent, doing my best to suppress the wild fmes of curiosity towards how he knows my son

  “Smart one, aren’t you? Well that’s fine, would you like to know more about Oliver mister other worlder?”

  “Yes please.”

  “Tell me more about yourself first then I will gdly answer any questions you may have.”

  Out of nowhere I feel a stinging sensation in my head, my body feeling like lead immediately after.

  “I’m pretty boring. There’s not a lot interesting about me except maybe my childhood, I had a pretty bad life but I managed to make it out and get a decent one near the end despite my mistakes.”

  “Bad how?”

  I feel like I need to answer.

  “Well my mom used to hit me a lot. She would get high and then look at me. My dad used to beat her, thankfully she left him when I was three but I guess I grew up to look like him. She didn’t like that. Thankfully I met my wife. Her parents took me in after we got together as boyfriend and girlfriend. She was one of my greatest happiness.”

  My head…god it hurts. My throat’s starting to hurt too. What am I saying?

  “I see. I’m sorry you had to go through that. You said you made mistakes, can you tell me what your biggest one is? At least in your opinion.”

  Suddenly a long forgotten memory sms into my brain, breaking the wall that was holding it back.

  It hurts to remember.

  One night, when I was thirteen me and my mom got into another argument. I can’t remember what it was about, I just remember that it happened. She started screaming at me, so I stayed quiet but that just made her more mad. She started hitting me with the belt and breaking pstic hangers over my arms. Eventually, she pushed me all the way to the front door, my little brother hiding in his room with the door locked silently crying under his bnket. Hopefully she focuses only on me.

  You're just like him, she'd scream.

  You're destined to abuse those dumb enough to love you she’d scream.

  None of this would’ve happened if you just did what I said she'd scream.

  It was so upsetting

  But more than anything it was scary and painful.

  I stayed quiet but that seemed to make her even angrier, so she started screaming at me to curse at her, to hit her. I know you want to, she screamed. Even so I remained silent, just enduring on the floor with my arms covering my face. No matter what I did she would be angry so I did nothing but let it hurt. At least, I usually did but this time…I lost it. After screaming and hitting me for so long I got tired of the pain, so I stood up and I punched her once. I screamed and I cried till I saw her face.

  She was horrified of me.

  I…I hit her.

  I proved her right.

  I really am some monster.

  My throat felt swollen, my head felt like it was spinning, and my body felt so heavy. Looking at me with pure horror she put on a weak smile and pointed. “You really are just like him.” It was so painful. It doesn’t matter how much she hit me or how long. I just…I’m a monster. I’m just like my father. It…it all hurts so much. My head, my heart, and my throat. Suddenly, the tears stop as I stare at her. Two words come to mind, reminding me how much of a failure I am.

  “I’m sorry.”

  I spent the night crying to myself, holding my head as thoughts kept cycling. It would've been better to stay quiet. She was right. She was always right and I'm so awful. I…I’ll only ever hurt people, maybe it’s better I’m…i’m not around.

  I need to die.

  “Now now, please calm down.”

  Huh? Where am I? What happened? Oh yeah I was in that forest…what the hell led me down that thought path?

  “That was me. I’m sorry, I felt I needed to test you before I let you go. Thankfully you passed.”

  “You…I went through that for some test? Are you serious? You better have a good reason. Wait, let me go where? And how do you know my son?”

  Right as i finish speaking the flowers and bushes around me start to wiggle. The flowers rise and turn into small people like creatures, their petals turning into clothes and their leafs into wings. Meanwhile, the bushes turn into various sheep-like creatures, their legs and head made of twisting roots and branches more resembling wolves. Cautiously they approach me, almost touching me before the goblin-like man gres them down.

  “Forgive them, the children are just curious. I can answer one question, any more and you’ll have to answer one of mine.”

  Remembering what happened, hesitation fills my head, fading away the next second. What should I ask? I can ask where he intends to send me but then I’ll miss out on possible information on Oliver. What can he even answer? Fae are tricky, I have to be especially careful. After a few minutes I decide.

  “Can you please take me to wherever I can learn more about my son.”

  A small smirk lines his face.

  “Sure, just keep walking towards the sun and you’ll arrive within a day.”

  Suddenly reality starts to shift and warp, like a fresh oil painting being brushed randomly. The trees fade as sandy dunes overtake the ground, the night becoming brighter as the sun rises. Within a minute I find myself in the middle of nowhere in an unknown dessert. I mean technically he sent me where I asked, I just need to get to the exact spot. And so with a heavy sigh I look to the sun and start to follow.

  I need to know more. I need to learn about my son, no matter what…I’ll do better. I will.

  Spoopytagedie