As the work fell easily into the familiar rhythm of gardening Lutum's eyes kept flashing to the West. As if looking at something he shouldn't he'd force them back towards the rich black soil as his darkening finger would plunge another hole. Row after row the steps of his feet the panting of Cedes' breath created a sort of beat.
"Do you hear that Lutum? That song, just as the Earth below us has a rhythm so do we when we join it in the sacred art of sewing. Our breath, our steps, our hearts all syncing to the song of life. It has been playing long before you and I were born and it will continue long after I am gone."
Lutum could still hear his father's words as clear as day in his wondering mind. He could still recall his side parted brown hair blowing in the wind. His strong wrinkled fingers pushing into the soil watching as his father's arm would raise and lower towards the dirt like a piston in an engine. The longer he worked the more his arms would become covered in earth. It wasn't long before his father's arm started to look more like part of the plants and less like his own. The veins in his forearm would flex, those intricate patters pumping blood harder and harder as he labored. Grapevine arms, that's what Lutum always thought of them as. Covered in hair and swinging in the wind. His father's bright white smile as he would turn his head to meet eyes with his beloved son.
"Another row done," His smile would say as the bones of his jaw motioned up and down, the skin of his face stretched tightly over them. Lutum looked down at his arm, "Ossis' arm" he said with a pant as he finished another row. My father's arm has become my own, or is it the other way around? As the sun ceaselessly climbed higher the tiny silver needles of ice began to disappear. Sweat started to collect on the back of his neck and around his forehead. Lutum stopped for a moment shook his hair back out of his face raised his chin. "Whew how you doing old girl?" With the same tilted grin Ossis use to give him. Cedes licked her nose and let out an exhausted prolonged snort. As Lutum pulled his hair behind his head into a bun tying it firmly he pushed his chin into the dog's ear laughing. "Isn't this the best day of the year?!"
It wasn't long before Lutum and Cedes weren't the only two in the city awake. The surrounding districts began their slow grind. The trots of horse shoes could be heard from the north as people traveled toward their trades. The scrap yard west of Lutum was clanging and rattling louder each minute. Across the river to the East the sun had made it completely over the buildings of the industrial district. Lutum didn't mind the noise it was a reminder why he does what he does. Purpose being pulled back into his thoughts always outweighed the tragically unmelodious sounds of the city.
"Just as these plants didn't plan on being eaten so our friends in the city didn't plan on their stomachs getting hungry. Everyone has to eat Lutum don't ask me why but rather...ask me how." Ossis would tell his son with a grin. "The people of our city didn't ask to get hungry why should they pay a price for the remedy? Our produce is freely offered in combination of the dirt rain and sun and so it shall be freely offered from our hands which have grown by the same means."
Again Lutum's eyes pulled West this time he allowed them to hang there for a moment. Just beyond the scrap yard were the gravel grounds. And beyond that, the Shadow lands. Darker than any night stretching further than anyone knew the Shadow lands. He raised his old mug to his lips but as he tipped it all the way back his tongue received no morning bean brew. Setting the cup down with a soft grace his work continued tirelessly. The hours flew by Lutum stopped once once at noon for his lunch. The same as it was everyday. He would pace down past the cellar doors open a jar of whichever harvest was next on the shelf. Walking back up the steps feeling the boards flex beneath him Lutum would look up towards the light of day. He imagined himself as a sprout pushing its way past the shell through the soil and finally at the final step, the surface.
In the middle of the garden district there stood a massive chestnut tree. It could be seen from anywhere in the city. It was by far the tallest structure. The tree was older than anyone could possibly know. That is where Lutum preferred his lunch everyday. Resting under its massive limbs working itself closer to the sun Lutum enjoyed the shade. The tree had yet to bloom for the season but under the right limb at just the right time of day and the tree still served as a perfect parasol. He pulled out a wooden spoon cracked the seal of the jar and began to dig in. Cedes sat patiently by his side. When the jar was half full he turned it over to Cedes to finish the job.
After the meal Lutum went back to work in the Southwest corner. As the sun began to approach the Shadow lands Lutum heard the sound of hoofs approaching the garden. "You're still working?!" a voice shouted from on top of the horse.
"I need to finish this corner today is..."
"Today is the first day of spring yeah yeah we all know thanks to you."
A tall curly dark haired man hopped off of the horse and tied it to the nearest post. He walked over to Lutum surveying his work with his brown eyes.
"Looks finished to me lets grab some mead at a pub"
"You always want to go to the Gut. don't you ever get tired of the same old routine each night?"
"Lutum, you're one to give lessons on breaking habits. You'd die if you tried to break your routine."
"Totally different. My routine has purpose. A cause."
"Am I about to hear Ossis' speech about the good citizens of Terraporum not paying for the "remedy of their hunger" again? hurry up let's get some drinks today's work is done I've got my denarii in my pocket and it's begging to turn to booze!"
"I haven't even set out tonight's pick up for Coramare to deliver tomorrow morning."
"Lutum, no one eats your food. Everyone buys the stuff from the market you know the sugary salty stuff, tastes better and it's a lot easier. LET'S GO! You haven't seen another human all day it would be good for you to at least be around people."
"People eat my harvests Doceo. If you really want me to go downtown I'd have to get the boat out..."
"Oh my deus! Just ride with me, horses are so much faster! Everything you do has to be so complicated. You could just sell the rest of the garden land and move closer too you know."
Lutum stood up wiped his brow and stepped towards Doceo
"I'm not using an animal to make my life easier and I'm surely not selling the earth my father has worked his whole life."
"Calm it down preacher, It's just been a long day. They had me swinging a hammer and that is some terrible work. Fine take your boat I'll see you there when the sun comes up."
"Doceo I'm not going. I have to be up tomorrow to work on the next corner of the land. Each day I miss is a day of sun wasted."
"Seriously Lutum, you're going to make me drink alone again?"
"You'll hardly be alone I'm sure."
"Fine I guess you won't get to meet the new girl in town..." Doceo started to smirk as that sentence finished.
"Are you trying to convince me to go to this pub... or yourself? Definitely not interested in spending another evening watching you flirt with a woman while I end up being the one drinking alone."
"You won't find me talking to her. She made it pretty clear to me last night she didn't want anything to do with me. The nerve of her assuming I just wanted sex."
Lutum couldn't help but laugh at that comment
"HA that is exactly what you were trying to do I'm sure! You're just upset she called you out. She does sound like my kind of girl."
Doceo offended, crossed his arms following Lutum towards his house.
"I don't just want sex..."
Lutum kept walking
"Never the mind, I don't need this, I ride all the way down to this empty part of town to extend an invitation to a night of fun and possibly new love and you insult me?"
Lutum started to feel a bit guilty Doceo's words began to wear him thin. He stopped at the porch of his house and turned, "Who's the new girl?"
"I don't know I just noticed her last night. I tried to introduce myself but she wasn't having it. She was sitting at the bar next to Vasilias the whole night."
"Vasilias? what was she doing next to that drunk?"
"I don't know but Vasilias loved a new set of ears to talk to. Lutum are you in or not tonight? I'm getting thirsty!"
"I already gave you my answer. I need to prep for the pick up and I smell worse than Cedes. I'm in for the night. Go have fun and tell Attentess I said hi."
"I'm not going to hook up with her tonight...whatever you're missing out. I'll swing by to try again tomorrow. You're drinking with me at least one night this week."
Doceo untied his horse and swung around on top of it. With a kick of his heels he was off towards the lights of the city.
"Do you hear that Lutum? That song, just as the Earth below us has a rhythm so do we when we join it in the sacred art of sewing. Our breath, our steps, our hearts all syncing to the song of life. It has been playing long before you and I were born and it will continue long after I am gone."
Lutum could still hear his father's words as clear as day in his wondering mind. He could still recall his side parted brown hair blowing in the wind. His strong wrinkled fingers pushing into the soil watching as his father's arm would raise and lower towards the dirt like a piston in an engine. The longer he worked the more his arms would become covered in earth. It wasn't long before his father's arm started to look more like part of the plants and less like his own. The veins in his forearm would flex, those intricate patters pumping blood harder and harder as he labored. Grapevine arms, that's what Lutum always thought of them as. Covered in hair and swinging in the wind. His father's bright white smile as he would turn his head to meet eyes with his beloved son.
"Another row done," His smile would say as the bones of his jaw motioned up and down, the skin of his face stretched tightly over them. Lutum looked down at his arm, "Ossis' arm" he said with a pant as he finished another row. My father's arm has become my own, or is it the other way around? As the sun ceaselessly climbed higher the tiny silver needles of ice began to disappear. Sweat started to collect on the back of his neck and around his forehead. Lutum stopped for a moment shook his hair back out of his face raised his chin. "Whew how you doing old girl?" With the same tilted grin Ossis use to give him. Cedes licked her nose and let out an exhausted prolonged snort. As Lutum pulled his hair behind his head into a bun tying it firmly he pushed his chin into the dog's ear laughing. "Isn't this the best day of the year?!"
It wasn't long before Lutum and Cedes weren't the only two in the city awake. The surrounding districts began their slow grind. The trots of horse shoes could be heard from the north as people traveled toward their trades. The scrap yard west of Lutum was clanging and rattling louder each minute. Across the river to the East the sun had made it completely over the buildings of the industrial district. Lutum didn't mind the noise it was a reminder why he does what he does. Purpose being pulled back into his thoughts always outweighed the tragically unmelodious sounds of the city.
"Just as these plants didn't plan on being eaten so our friends in the city didn't plan on their stomachs getting hungry. Everyone has to eat Lutum don't ask me why but rather...ask me how." Ossis would tell his son with a grin. "The people of our city didn't ask to get hungry why should they pay a price for the remedy? Our produce is freely offered in combination of the dirt rain and sun and so it shall be freely offered from our hands which have grown by the same means."
Again Lutum's eyes pulled West this time he allowed them to hang there for a moment. Just beyond the scrap yard were the gravel grounds. And beyond that, the Shadow lands. Darker than any night stretching further than anyone knew the Shadow lands. He raised his old mug to his lips but as he tipped it all the way back his tongue received no morning bean brew. Setting the cup down with a soft grace his work continued tirelessly. The hours flew by Lutum stopped once once at noon for his lunch. The same as it was everyday. He would pace down past the cellar doors open a jar of whichever harvest was next on the shelf. Walking back up the steps feeling the boards flex beneath him Lutum would look up towards the light of day. He imagined himself as a sprout pushing its way past the shell through the soil and finally at the final step, the surface.
In the middle of the garden district there stood a massive chestnut tree. It could be seen from anywhere in the city. It was by far the tallest structure. The tree was older than anyone could possibly know. That is where Lutum preferred his lunch everyday. Resting under its massive limbs working itself closer to the sun Lutum enjoyed the shade. The tree had yet to bloom for the season but under the right limb at just the right time of day and the tree still served as a perfect parasol. He pulled out a wooden spoon cracked the seal of the jar and began to dig in. Cedes sat patiently by his side. When the jar was half full he turned it over to Cedes to finish the job.
After the meal Lutum went back to work in the Southwest corner. As the sun began to approach the Shadow lands Lutum heard the sound of hoofs approaching the garden. "You're still working?!" a voice shouted from on top of the horse.
"I need to finish this corner today is..."
"Today is the first day of spring yeah yeah we all know thanks to you."
A tall curly dark haired man hopped off of the horse and tied it to the nearest post. He walked over to Lutum surveying his work with his brown eyes.
"Looks finished to me lets grab some mead at a pub"
"You always want to go to the Gut. don't you ever get tired of the same old routine each night?"
"Lutum, you're one to give lessons on breaking habits. You'd die if you tried to break your routine."
"Totally different. My routine has purpose. A cause."
"Am I about to hear Ossis' speech about the good citizens of Terraporum not paying for the "remedy of their hunger" again? hurry up let's get some drinks today's work is done I've got my denarii in my pocket and it's begging to turn to booze!"
"I haven't even set out tonight's pick up for Coramare to deliver tomorrow morning."
"Lutum, no one eats your food. Everyone buys the stuff from the market you know the sugary salty stuff, tastes better and it's a lot easier. LET'S GO! You haven't seen another human all day it would be good for you to at least be around people."
"People eat my harvests Doceo. If you really want me to go downtown I'd have to get the boat out..."
"Oh my deus! Just ride with me, horses are so much faster! Everything you do has to be so complicated. You could just sell the rest of the garden land and move closer too you know."
Lutum stood up wiped his brow and stepped towards Doceo
"I'm not using an animal to make my life easier and I'm surely not selling the earth my father has worked his whole life."
"Calm it down preacher, It's just been a long day. They had me swinging a hammer and that is some terrible work. Fine take your boat I'll see you there when the sun comes up."
"Doceo I'm not going. I have to be up tomorrow to work on the next corner of the land. Each day I miss is a day of sun wasted."
"Seriously Lutum, you're going to make me drink alone again?"
"You'll hardly be alone I'm sure."
"Fine I guess you won't get to meet the new girl in town..." Doceo started to smirk as that sentence finished.
"Are you trying to convince me to go to this pub... or yourself? Definitely not interested in spending another evening watching you flirt with a woman while I end up being the one drinking alone."
"You won't find me talking to her. She made it pretty clear to me last night she didn't want anything to do with me. The nerve of her assuming I just wanted sex."
Lutum couldn't help but laugh at that comment
"HA that is exactly what you were trying to do I'm sure! You're just upset she called you out. She does sound like my kind of girl."
Doceo offended, crossed his arms following Lutum towards his house.
"I don't just want sex..."
Lutum kept walking
"Never the mind, I don't need this, I ride all the way down to this empty part of town to extend an invitation to a night of fun and possibly new love and you insult me?"
Lutum started to feel a bit guilty Doceo's words began to wear him thin. He stopped at the porch of his house and turned, "Who's the new girl?"
"I don't know I just noticed her last night. I tried to introduce myself but she wasn't having it. She was sitting at the bar next to Vasilias the whole night."
"Vasilias? what was she doing next to that drunk?"
"I don't know but Vasilias loved a new set of ears to talk to. Lutum are you in or not tonight? I'm getting thirsty!"
"I already gave you my answer. I need to prep for the pick up and I smell worse than Cedes. I'm in for the night. Go have fun and tell Attentess I said hi."
"I'm not going to hook up with her tonight...whatever you're missing out. I'll swing by to try again tomorrow. You're drinking with me at least one night this week."
Doceo untied his horse and swung around on top of it. With a kick of his heels he was off towards the lights of the city.