Virgil sat for two days while the strange grass around him died in the heat. At night he slept on the ground and in the daytime he sat once again. At some point, he remembered not when, he unhitched the horses from the wagon and hobbled them. When he drank the last of the water from his canteen they had crowded close, pitiful with dehydration. It was only his sympathy for the horses that got him up and moving again.
“The smoke from the fire rose straight into the air, up to the cold and indifferent stars that twinkled down on one man's problems from so impossibly far away.”
“The terrible longing washed out of him and into the fire. It rose into the smoke, and the smoke, like water finding the easiest path to the sea, found the quickest path to his desire.”
Beautiful prose. I loved it!
Where is this place Virgil has found? Can’t wait to read more to find out!
I assume that's the same place that the old War Chief Goyaate and his raiders visited when they wanted to find out how to go 'where the white man could not follow'. Though when I went back to chapter 8 to remind myself of the particulars, the person there wasn't described as an old shaman, just someone defined as No One.
That makes sense. I actually thought the old shaman might have been called No One. In chapter 8 the person seemed to be 'woken up' by the visitors, so I thought that maybe they'd woken up some more and changed accordingly, thus warranting a different description. Though at first I thought it was the same old shaman who taught Virgil that tracking magic.
"Hunh, a town called Nowhere.” Title drop! Quick question; did you know what the title of this story was going to be from the beginning, or did it come to you over time?
I had the title, but I thought they were going to rename Grantham after it jumped. But this way seemed more fun and natural so...
“The smoke from the fire rose straight into the air, up to the cold and indifferent stars that twinkled down on one man's problems from so impossibly far away.”
“The terrible longing washed out of him and into the fire. It rose into the smoke, and the smoke, like water finding the easiest path to the sea, found the quickest path to his desire.”
Beautiful prose. I loved it!
Where is this place Virgil has found? Can’t wait to read more to find out!
I assume that's the same place that the old War Chief Goyaate and his raiders visited when they wanted to find out how to go 'where the white man could not follow'. Though when I went back to chapter 8 to remind myself of the particulars, the person there wasn't described as an old shaman, just someone defined as No One.
Are you accusing me of making this up as I go along? :-)
Whatever it is appears as different things to different people.
That makes sense. I actually thought the old shaman might have been called No One. In chapter 8 the person seemed to be 'woken up' by the visitors, so I thought that maybe they'd woken up some more and changed accordingly, thus warranting a different description. Though at first I thought it was the same old shaman who taught Virgil that tracking magic.
"Hunh, a town called Nowhere.” Title drop! Quick question; did you know what the title of this story was going to be from the beginning, or did it come to you over time?