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XVII.



My companion, Malefic, stayed his tongue for my tale

And soon the sun returns to its home under the horizon.

Under a blanket of stars, an astral quilt of beauty,

We make our nightly camp on the cooling sands.

Nestling at the curve of a dune’s base,

I settle my head, propped against the rise in the terrain,

With my companion taking his slumber nearby.

For me, however, sleep shall not arrive this night.



XVIII.



Under the warmth of the new days

The two of us travel on, leaving behind the beach

And coming to a vast desert, sprawled out over the east.

From here on out, our course goes no longer south

But returns to it’s original locale in the eastern skies.

Malefic is hesitant, uncertain of the unknown land before us:

“Our path resumes in this barren, deserted land?”

I reply with action rather than word, and continue into the sun.



XIX.



Such a shift in climate has been drastic to us,

For we are plagued with dehydration and weariness.

The constant beam of the sun, magnified by such clear skies,

Pulses down upon our backs and heads,

Tearing into our flesh, burning and cracking.

Only at night is this part of the journey a comfort,

The cool, gentle winds gliding over our bodies with ease;

The calm caress of a lover, or sadistic breath of Death.



XX.



My homeland was a beautiful, prosperous country

And my childhood was fueled by such exquisite scenery.

I was born under the name of Sean Hederlund,

A typical male name in the land of Apheria;

Males were to have names of the passed-on times,

While females possessed the names of our goddesses and heroines.

In this land, I was educated through the years by my father,

The ruler of the lands and highest in the King’s Court.



XXI.



Our skins crack and peel away under the constant solar harassment,

A reminder of our presence in such unforgiving terrain.

The desert has been a hell on earth for the two of us,

Yet, it seems that we have found our way to its end.

The sands slowly fade from beneath our feet,

Progressing from dry grains to moist grasses.

Once more my path takes me into the plains;

We rest this night in cool serenity.



XXII.



The grasslands were a welcome change to Malefic and I,

For the sun no longer beats down so fiercely,

And the skies send forth rain showers come twilight.

The problems of dehydration and exhaustion,

The two elements with grips on our throats,

Have faded away into the grey of our minds,

Now just a blissfully distant memory.

Our pains are further away; the Valley lies closer.



XXIII.



“Andvari, how do we pass this?” Malefic inquires,

His eyes focused on the sudden void in the earth.

“Malefic, I know not,” I reply, sighing.

After a long and trying journey,

Through woods, grasses, hells,

I’ve made it to the destination of this quest.

Lying below my companion and I, sprawled for miles,

Is the dip in the earth known as the Valley of Despair.



XXIV.



Katla’s passing, her loss in the fight with inner-decay,

Sent me forth on pursuing the dreams that had plagued me.

I saw on ethereal plains the Valley,

Laid out for my mortal eyes to gaze upon;

It was after this vision that I sought my father for guidance.

It was this meeting that spurned my leaving of Apheria,

Setting my back to my home and moving into a world unknown.

The gods called for me, and I went, under the sigil of homeland.