Happy Monday!
Stacy Overby (@dontpanic2011) takes her eighth #SwiftFicFriday win!
Check out her story below and congratulate her on Twitter 🙂
Heart of the Land
The old man gestured toward the four children, beckoning them to where his sat near the fire. Flickering light deepened the shadows in his already dark wrinkled skin.
“Let me tell you a story of our land.” His voice rose barely above a whisper, drawing the children in closer around his mat in the sand.
“Tell us the story of the water, grandfather.” The oldest girl settled herself last.
“Please.” A small boy in the middle added.
The old man smiled. “The time of abundant water?”
The children nodded with enthusiasm as they riveted their attention to their elder. The old man looked up at the parents in the background.
“Once our land was not the hard, hot waste it is now. From trees taller than the wagons to green grass covering the ground, it lived and breathed as we do now. And the lifeblood of the land were the rivers. Great streams of water coursed through the now empty channels.”
“Really, grandfather?” The youngest child glanced back at his mother despite aiming the question at the old man.
“Yes, son. And the heart of our land lies to the west two days journey. A place where the rivers all came together, pouring their precious gift into a beautiful, clear, deep lake.”
“But what happened? Where did it all go?” The oldest boy’s tone carried a hint of doubt.
“Greed, which led to hate. Evil men more interested in money and power destroyed all that was good.” The old man leaned close as he spoke. “But they say a day will come when the chosen ones will renew the pact with the land and water will flow freely once more.”
The oldest girl shot a look down the line of children. “Will it be us, grandfather?”
“Maybe, dear girl, maybe.”
Come back on Friday for the next prompt!
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