Chapter 2

“What in the hell? What in the actual f...”

Caden stood up quickly. He knew he was impaled in the chest by the side rail of the highway interchange. And yet, here he was standing upright with no cuts. None. Even his shirt looked as if he was wearing it for the first time, as if brand new. With a realization, he felt his spine. No cracks, no broken or displace disks. His legs were perfectly capable of keeping him standing. Hell, they were toned now with proper amounts of muscle that would take a runner years to gain. They felt energized, his whole body felt energized as if he was back in his early twenties. His dark cargo pants looked pristine as well.

Caden looked around to take in his surroundings. “Weird, the air is a lot cleaner than I remember it being.” he thought. Caden wondered if he is in heaven after all, far away from the sorrow of the world. The early sun lit up the sky with a slight pinkish hue. The clouds scattered in the sky, distorting the light into rays. He was in a small clearing, and the grass around him was green and overgrown. They smelt fresh, probably due to possible rainy weather earlier. He could see the birds flying everywhere and the chirping sounds made the sky lively.

Caden’s training kicked in and he looked around for a direction, anything, he could use to get somewhere less vulnerable. His elite military training was one of the many things that stuck with him long after he left the military. His time in the military as an engineer first in the Marines and then in covert operations meant that he was trained to be a human weapon, used in cooperation with other assets to destroy nations that just wanted the independence to be free in their own cultural beliefs. The horrors he and his men caused to those nations were all in the interest of the mighty United States of America. His actions leading to starvation, civil wars, and hideous crime had always been a heavy burden in his heart. A burden that he can’t share and will always carry all so that Uncle Sam can control the world.

Caden decided to walk while staying in the shadows of the trees. He could see some rabbits hopping about in the distance. “Could be a good meal in the circumstance.” he thought. But the sun still slowly rising from the horizon would allow him to cover more distance than if it were overhead. Feeling energized and not particularly hungry, it would be better to start the trip and catch something on the way. As he was deciding on what to do, a reflection from behind the grass caught the corner of his eye. He got down and moved the grass to the side only to find his phone, watch, and charger. Caden couldn’t believe it. “I didn’t think I would need my phone in heaven. What am I gonna use it for, long distance, possible interstellar calls? Interdimensional calls? Wait, where even is heaven located?” He picked up his watch and put it around his wrist. Then he wrapped the charger wire into a neat coil and put it and the adapter in his left cargo pocket. He checked his phone for scratches but couldn’t find any, not even the ones that should be there since his phone was being held by the dashboard car phone holder. He pressed the power button once and found the phone was working just fine. Except for the 4G LTE signals. “Thank God. I would have racked up an enormous bill if I got signals here ... wherever here is.” He dropped the phone in the left pocket of his pant and checked the ground once more before standing back up. Deciding not to hunt for now, he continued walking west to avoid the sun in his eyes.

Caden had been walking for 30 minutes when he found a dirt path that was muddy due to rain. He could see tracks the size of a bicycle tire, equally apart, embossed into the mud along with hoof prints of an animal. The road itself wasn’t very wide and could be roughly measured at two or two and a half meters. Caden decided to follow the path from within the shadows of the tree. He was unarmed and found it best to avoid contact in an open area. After all, who knows what kind of people live around here and it would be best to find out when he reaches a town or a city. “If this was heaven, I should have been in complete bliss. But every passing moment feels like I am on Earth. But why would someone be riding a horse-pulled cart? This isn’t the eighteenth century.” Caden continued to walk for thirty more minutes before coming up to an intersection. He saw a wooden post standing face high and wooden boards nailed to it with writings on them. The board pointing straight forward said ‘Duskholm’, and the one pointing to the path heading right said ‘Saltwick’. Another board pointing to the way he came from said ‘Tupking’. “Why do these name sound so medieval?”

If he continued the path, he would keep going straight. He could go left, and that option seemed just as good as the first one and the last one, going back. In the end, Caden decided to keep going forward to Duskholm and then find out what options he would have for the near future.

It was close to early noon when he reached the outskirts of Duskholm. It was a genuine shock to Caden. The beautiful landscape wasn’t what shocked him, it was the sight of houses that resembled the ones that Caden had seen history books about Roman Republic. Dirt roads lead weaved around houses with no particularly planned design. From his vantage, he could see there was only one main road, seemingly made from stone or rock, that went from the middle of the town and led to a big building. It could be the townhall or a giant manor. There were people walking about their business. Farmers carrying crop produce in carts pulled by horses and some people were riding horses. The common sight was that everyone was wearing clothes that resembled early Middle Ages.