Saun 10 720
Goku tried to keep his pacing up and the miles slowly vanished from his journey. It was not until the afternoon that he came to be at the very edge of what appeared to be a narrow cavernous area. A luscious river flowed underneath the caverns which would lead to a valley if Goku’s eyes were not deceiving him. The caverns were formed by a thousand branches off of the river that was forceful enough to dictate its own path depending on the time of year. The land was like putty to be shaped to the river’s desire. Goku shuddered in awe when he felt a strange rumble that was often associated with being there. Rocks centuries old crumbling at a moment’s whim was the source of the vibration. His very soul seemed to quiver with the rumbling. He was fully aware that he was but an ant in this world that could be killed at any moment by mother nature.
Goku felt like he ought to camp out in a brush and watch the stars but he had other matters to attend to. He had his sword with him which begged to be used. He thought, “You could do with some practice and the brush could use some adjustments.”
Goku took the only stance that he knew from his one lesson that he’d taken for swordsmanship. The only thing he had gleamed from that lesson was the proper way to draw his blade so that was what he would start with. He drew it, or tried to except the whole sword didn’t want to come out. The physics of his arm and the positioning of the sheath made it impossible for him to draw it all the way. “That’s a first,” he thought amusedly while shoving the blade back into its container. He then had to wiggle the sheath so that it was positioned further backwards. Only then was he able to draw the sword fully and hold it in front of him.
The thought of actually cutting something with the sword was a frightening one indeed. Goku gulped and tried to just pick a spot to whack at. He stared at a wall of branches in front of him. “I suppose it doesn’t matter where I hit if it’s all the same,” he said.
“Hya!” he shouted as he brought the sword back over his shoulder like it were a bat and he swung with all his strength which sure enough sliced right through the jumble of thin branches but instead of slicing at an angle the sword got caught and his blow was directed downwards. It was not a bad first try had it not resulted in Goku tumbling into the brush and having to claw his way back out.
“Maybe trying to cut something was a little more than I should have started with,” He said when he noticed that his sword was lodged into the ground. He yanked on it to remove it and held it up to inspect it to see if it had been bent at all from the force. It looked alright by his untrained eye.
Goku spent the next half hour practicing various slashes, none of which were particularly practical but he wanted to get a feel of the blade that he rarely used. He wanted to be a little more comfortable next time he went to a lesson so that he would not have to stand around sheathing his blade for the whole time… again. Goku was sweaty by the end of his training and he felt like he made good use of his time in this picturesque scenery that was right out of a dream. “This is a nice change of pace. This is so peaceful unlike my other dreamy adventures. No predators either? This may be my favorite of all time.”
Goku noticed that the temperature had noticeably dropped once he finished up and was no longer hot from his training. He continued his journey in this dreamy land. He wanted to see some unique wildlife but he saw very little wildlife at all. He followed a trail that perhaps the animals learned to stay away from. The trail had him travel across an outcropping made of slate that went right up against the river that sent water splashing up into the air and out onto moss covered cliffs.
Before Goku lay the valley he had seen earlier. It was very much exposed and looking out at it was almost like looking at a map. The very bottom of the waterfalls were at least a mile below him, that’s how high up he seemed to be. His gut feeling told him to go to the only sign of civilized life which was a town just around another set of waterfalls. There were many brown colored buildings clumped together that stuck out like a sore thumb amidst all this majestic natural beauty. The smoke that was visible even from great distances away cared not for the wild life around it. The trees that normally would have taken the place of the town were mostly hacked away or burned purposefully.
Goku held out his finger and started comparing it to the heights of various landmarks. From such a great distance the sizes of entire farms rivaled only the tip of his finger. “That’s got to be days and days away from here,” Goku said. Just thinking about making it over there made him tired. “But I have to…” he said without really understanding why he had to get there. A more disciplined man would have set his mind to the task and completed it no matter what. However Goku was put off by the difficulty of the journey and decided to settle on something a little easier. He rested and looked for any other signs of life. The town had been easy to spot but Goku had to spend a good half hour before he spotted a stretch of sandy land that was much closer that had an array of huts on their premises.
“That will do for a good resting spot at least. With any luck there will be food there.”
Goku left his place of reprieve and began his journey down the winding trail. He felt his stomach churn at the sight of the descent. When he finally got to the end of the descending trial the sun had begun to rise again which covered the land with colors that seemed unnatural to Goku. Purple and green skies blurred in with hints of grey.
“The huts… I’ve made it,” he said when the lights of the huts shimmered nearby. The huts were tall and cast odd shaped shadows that almost seemed to dance with the swaying of the wind. Goku was glad he was able to make it to one of the only civilizations he could see so that he could feel some sense of security.
“Welcome boy,” said an old man who was the only person Goku could see from the edge of the town.
“Just passing through. I may need to take shelter here for a while and gather some supplies,” Goku said back.
The man leaned back in his rocking chair and started speaking again, very slowly and deliberately as if he wanted to take up as much time as possible. “You and everyone else that comes by here. Our settlement is very secluded from other towns and we are surrounded by an unforgiving wilderness if you venture off the trails. Only a select few come through our town, mostly traders and hunters. What sort are you?”
“The sort who’s lost and is just following the trail to see where it leads,” Goku said. The quietness of the town was setting him off. He heard nothing but the whistling of the wind and the words that were spoken. He looked for any sort of building that wasn’t made out of straw. He could not see any, definitely none made of log or any roofed with shingles.
“You wouldn’t by chance be one of the adventurers hired to deal with an evil spirit would you?” The old man asked eying Goku’s sword. “If ye are you should probably turn back around. Dozens have made the journey and I’ve yet to see a single one make it back through our town.”
“Evil spirit you say?” Goku asked. “can’t say I’m after anything of that sort. Tell me more.”
“Forget I ever said anything,” the elder said with a smile. “Now come, eat, rest. If you’ve money we have supplies for your journey.” He was happy that he wouldn’t have to see another man meet their demise but it was a bittersweet feeling because if the spirit was not vanquished soon then these lands would surely come to an end.
Goku wanted to know more of the spirit but he supposed it did not matter. He was happy to have finally reached a checkpoint in his journey. He could finally sit back with a nice drink and enjoy some more of the beautiful scenery while planning the rest of his journey.
