The Oracle was an old woman whose age was undeterminable under the wretched clothes she wore on her frail body. Her hair was black as midnight and her eyes devoid of any color, sunken and withering. Above her own face, she wore a mask, grey as a wolf’s winter coat with cracks running down the sides until one could almost see the darkness poking from beneath.
When Liuk arrived at her den, the door was already ajar and golden sunlight found its way inside the dark cabin. He continued forward and slowly creaked the wooden slab open until pure light painted itself over every shadow in the room. It was only one room where old pickaxes and torches lay askew, and rotten oak pieces haphazardly thrown in corners. Dust caked every surface of every object, even the Oracle herself.
“I’ve expected you coming.” The Oracle’s voice was old, but it spoke the truth that no other mortal could give Liuk. He needed her answers.
“You’re awake?” Liuk closed the door behind him, and they were both shrouded in the darkness of the room. Dust and cobwebs floated in the air.
“Sit and close your eyes with me.”
Liuk knew better than to question the authority of the wise Oracle. He obeyed her command without question, and slowly found an open space on the floor to make room for comfort. The stone floor was icy, and cracks made it so he could feel grass and weeds growing between the crevices. As he traced his fingers against the stony pavement, he was jolted awake by the cold waters of the sea wetting his skin. The room smelled of salt and death.
When Liuk arrived at her den, the door was already ajar and golden sunlight found its way inside the dark cabin. He continued forward and slowly creaked the wooden slab open until pure light painted itself over every shadow in the room. It was only one room where old pickaxes and torches lay askew, and rotten oak pieces haphazardly thrown in corners. Dust caked every surface of every object, even the Oracle herself.
“I’ve expected you coming.” The Oracle’s voice was old, but it spoke the truth that no other mortal could give Liuk. He needed her answers.
“You’re awake?” Liuk closed the door behind him, and they were both shrouded in the darkness of the room. Dust and cobwebs floated in the air.
“Sit and close your eyes with me.”
Liuk knew better than to question the authority of the wise Oracle. He obeyed her command without question, and slowly found an open space on the floor to make room for comfort. The stone floor was icy, and cracks made it so he could feel grass and weeds growing between the crevices. As he traced his fingers against the stony pavement, he was jolted awake by the cold waters of the sea wetting his skin. The room smelled of salt and death.
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