It
was a beautiful early Summer day. The sun was shining and there was not a cloud
to be seen; perfect for a stroll along the river.
I liked it there, it was so quiet and one
could ponder over life or just think about nothing at all. There were park
benches every now and then, usually occupied by some mother with a buggy or
older people that would feed the gulls or ducks to pass time. Every so often
you would find a couple picnicking or men fishing off the banks. A kayak, boat,
or barge would pass once in awhile.
Yeah it was nice there on the river.
I
had strolled along for quite some time taking notice to the gulls gliding about
and the ducks drifting along on the water. It had begun to get darker. I looked
to the sky. Still not a cloud to be seen, and the sun was at about 2 O'clock.
Yet it was dark as dusk. I found that strange, but didn't let it bother me. I
continued my stroll. It was after all still a nice day. I came upon a young
boy; maybe 5 years old. He was alone and looked lost. He was whining, calling
for his mother, looking in all directions. I felt sad for him and I too looked
around. I seen no one but the boy. I tried to calm him down and asked him his
name.
He
answered, "I don't know."
I asked him where he last seen his mother.
He
said, "I'm not sure."
By this time I was confused but the boy was
obviously lost. I asked him what his mother looked like.
He
answered, "I don't remember."
Now I was irritated and again looked around
to see if I could find anyone that might help. When I looked back to the boy he
was gone. He must have been flink because I didn't see a sign of him anywhere.
I
thought about making my way back but decided that I wanted to have a coffee at
the cafe' not all to far away. So I set off again. A short distance along the
way I ran across two men fishing.
I shouted," Hey guys caught anything?" I didn't really care it
was just out of nonsense that I even asked.
One of the men shouted back, "Only thing I've caught is a case of
the ass and probably my death of cold."
I
found that peculiar as it was a rather warm day. Then I seen an elderly lady
sitting on a bench and decided a short sit would be nice. I walked over and
noticed she was picking a loaf of bread and tossing the bits to the ground. I
was certain she was feeding the gulls until I noticed the birds were black from
head to toe. She was feeding a bunch of ravens. I couldn't remember ever seeing
raven around here so that was a first. I asked politely if I could have the
seat next to her. She just nicked her head not making a tone. I took a seat and
watched as she fed the ravens, that would hop around pecking the bits of bread.
I tried to start a little small talk but was answered the same silence. The
only one besides me that wanted to talk were the ravens that would caw whenever
I asked a question. They would eye me; sizing me up and caw. I felt
uncomfortable so I wish a good day and continued my way to the cafe'.
A
little further down the way I saw an old man with a cane, walking seemingly in
place. I asked if I could help him.
He answered, "Son we hasten all too much and still we waste so much
time. It is all just energy lost. I'll keep it slow. If I'm late I'll still be
early enough."
I
could see the cafe' then and walked over to it. I was just taking a seat
viewing the river when I noticed a crowd of people standing at at a pier. I
couldn't remember having ever seen a pier there before. I looked around the
crowd and seen the little boy from before. There was a woman kneeling down in
front of him, hugging him. I guessed it was his mother. Then I spotted the old
man, and the fishers. Then I spotted the elderly woman that was feeding the
ravens. All the people I had stumbled upon on my stroll were there waiting for
something.
A
strange fog had begun to build over the river and move towards them. I could
hear a creaking of wooden planks as the strange fog neared and dissipated and
an old barge docked on the pier where they were waiting.
In
that second I felt a tug at my shoulder, then
everything went fast. I was dragged to my feet and with blurring speed
down the path I had walked.
The sun burned my eyes it was suddenly a
bright day again. I found myself lying on the ground and a woman was giving me
CPR.
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