Voice; @Lucky

[mindofathief]

Hello? I just got into the Graveyard. The front gate's unlocked. It's not dangerous from what I've seen so far, and the graves are pretty neat to look at. I think the spirits are coming here with offerings. Can't say if that's true, but it's not entirely abandoned.

Oh, and I found a keypad on one of the tombs! There's something written on the tomb, but I don't know what language it's in. It could be a hint?

[He takes a photo of a metal grave with the following bit of poetry written on it:

¡Quién sostiene las luces que cruzan en la sombra
de esta mi densa soledad tan rara!

Comments

[mindofathief]

Just past the pawnshop. [Towards the direction of the hospital, he doesn't add.] Not to far off, actually.

[callada]

[Ah, right - the map Will had provided to the network.]

Glad you got out there. Was it safe enough? The spirits seem all right?

[mindofathief]

I didn't see any in the graveyard.

But if they're not putting the flowers there, who else would it be?

[callada]

Oh, don't know. I expect it's them. Not sure why. I just was wondering if you ran into any that were the more hostile type. With the area so close to the main part of town, it's good to hear it wasn't full of trouble.

[mindofathief]

Usually you'd see zombies or living graves after sundown, but it's surprisingly safe. I guess there's no reason for spirits to hang out there if death isn't important to them.

[callada]

Usually?

[Really? Is that a normal thing where Duster comes from? Damn.]

Glad it's not like that here. We have enough trouble as it is.

[mindofathief]

Usually.

...Do graveyards in your worlds have different things?

[callada]

Not many people get buried in graveyards where I'm from. We have markers, though. The bodies are sent out to sea. We don't have space to put everyone in the ground.

[If there are graveyards with zombies, he's sure never been to one. Zombies aren't real, anyway, right?]

[mindofathief]

[If they did, they'd probably throw killer parties.]

Oh.

That would keep the town safe.

That's the first time I heard of a sea burial.

[callada]

When you're not surrounded by the ocean everywhere you go, it probably doesn't make sense to bury your dead that way.

[Is his body somewhere in the depths now? One with the creatures of the sea, the water and the sand? Or was he overlooked, covered by the snow as it fell that night? He'll probably never know, and he's not sure he really wants to speculate. That's a pretty morbid line of thought.]

It varies in my world anyway. Lots of different islands, so sea burial is common but some probably cremate people. Important people might get actual burials some places, I dunno. Point is, even if zombies could rise up from graves where I come from, they wouldn't have much of a chance to do it.

[mindofathief]

[He can see a world of islands. Islands make sense. Giant landmasses with no known sea boundary are unnerving. Only the ocean should be endless.]

Sounds like you guys have a lot of people in your world.

[Imagine having so many that space becomes an issue.]

[callada]

Maybe. Doesn't sound like it's as many as Earth from what I've heard. It's mostly we just don't have a lot of land.

[Shrug. It's normal enough to him. Sea burial isn't just a practical consideration, it's also a spiritual one for a lot of people. Everyone's lives are connected to the sea. It only makes sense to return to it and give back what they borrowed for a little while.]

Different here, obviously. I'll have to go have a look at it sometime.

[mindofathief]

More than what was left on mine, either way.

[Was that how his world ended? Were there so many cemeteries that there was no where else to live? Was there anyone left to bury all of the dead?]

It's safe in here, at least. We could use it as a meeting place if we need to.

[callada]

Meeting in a graveyard?

[He sounds skeptical only because that's not the sort of thing he'd expect most people to want. For a large group, it's not ideal - the light of the bonfire, or the relative comfort of the school are probably better settings.

But for one on one meetings somewhere quiet and less likely to be noticed, it's actually not a bad idea.]

I can think of a lot of better places, but don't let me stop you.