1 Into the Tower of Ancients

(Perspective of Kit342)

I live in what should be a simple world, with a simple life, and simple people that all live happily together in harmony, smiling and laughing and dancing in beautiful, peaceful, prosperous lands.

The key word to notice here is "should". Because the world I live in is far from simple, far from peaceful, and far from good.

Today, I will no longer be a word and a number.

Today, I will no longer be Kit342.

Today, I will no longer be a nobody.

I walk down what seems like an endless path of stone, down the path that thousands before me have traversed and I wonder if they felt as nervous as I do right now. A shiver runs up my back as the sound of footfalls grow closer and I turn my head just a bit to take a peek at who might be on this trail with me.

"Heya, Kit!!" I come to a dead halt at the sound of the familiar voice and spin around, smiling as I see my best friend jogging towards me, his shaggy brown hair bouncing across his face barely concealing his piercing green eyes. "Kit, wait up! It's my birthday too ya know!!"

With my arms crossed and my hip popped to the side I smirk at him playfully and shout, "What took you so long then?"

Then in sarcastic shock I jest, "Unless you actually LIKED being the seven hundred and eighty fourth Cap?"

Cap laughs and pokes me in the gut as he finally reaches my side and we turn and continue our walk together.

"Hey! Don't pick on my brethren like that! Us Caps are gonna rise up and start our own army one day, I'm tellin' ya! You just wait."

"Pfft-! Uh huh, sure." I humor him and let out a small burst of laughter before we both fall into silence, our eyes forward, locked on The Tower.

I keep glancing up at Cap then back down at our feet as we walk. He's quite a bit taller than me, reaching about six foot one, while little old me is down here at only five foot four.

Still, for some reason today we walk in perfect unison, as if we were soldiers marching into battle. In a way, I guess the stress of this whole day alone is one.

Always the savior of awkward moments, Cap speaks up, his eyes still forward, "So. What do you think you'll get from the Second Ancient? A Relic, a Blessing, or a Curse?" He says the word curse as if he were trying to frighten a child, wiggling his fingers at me and I punch him in the shoulder.

For a few minutes I just keep walking and staring at my own feet, my amused smile slowly fading into a frown.

"I don't know." I say finally and after a few more steps continue, "I guess any sort of gift is better than having nothing."

We continue to walk with brief moments of silence, apart from the chirping of birds and the hush of the breeze through the great oak trees that line both sides of the path.

"Well," Cap breaks the silence once again, stretching both arms up into the air and lacing his fingers together behind his head, "Personally, I just hope I get something useful so I can settle down and live a comfortable life without having to worry about Lord Hot-Heads' dog hunting me down."

I pale at the thought of being chased down by War. The merciless executioner who cuts down innocent people just because our "All- Powerful Ruler" deems them "useless to the wellbeing of society".

"Yeah...me too." I reply as I shiver and try to shake the thought of him, or I should say it, from my head.

"That thing is a monster, honestly. And that stupid bastard shouldn't use him to strike fear in people. It's no way to rule at all. It's corrupt..." Cap goes on a rant the rest of the walk until we finally approach the steps of The Tower.

I clench my hands into fists and dig my fingernails into my sweaty palms.

This is it. This is where I'll be given my destiny, my future, my life. Now all that's left to do is open this door.

For a moment we both stare at the door, both of us clearly feeling Power in it's purest form emanating from every single component it's made from.

Until Cap turns towards me and grips one of my tiny clenched fists in both of his big coarse hands. I turn to face bright emerald green eyes and the most serious face I've ever seen him display.

"Kit342. I want you to know that no matter what happens to us in there, no matter what you come out with, good or bad, we will face it together. I will always be by your side."

I put my other hand over both of his and smile up at him, feeling a little better about everything, even if it's just for a moment, and wishing we could stay right here for eternity.

But sadly, we don't live in a simple world. I don't get to have a simple life. I get to have my life decided for me.

So I opened the door.

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