- Aug 30, 2020
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The Fifth Season
Warning: mild horror
Author's Notes: A fantasy story I wrote about a world where the seasons are regions on the globe.
Seriously, who lived all the way out here?
It genuinely made her mad to think about as she trudged through crisply layered snow, each booted step landing with a hollow, squeaking sound like breaking through sheets of Styrofoam. Nothing but white and grey wilderness surrounded her on all sides, even the sky was an ugly, dour ash color. The skyline was unfriendly, mountains craggy and protruding like massive broken shards of earth. Every time she walked through their shadows, she shivered. Not because they were imposing or anything but because it was so cold when the sun wasn't shining directly on her.
Wasn't the world hard enough right now? Yet Mr. Sad-About-Summer had to go the extra mile, shutting himself off from the world, making it that much more difficult to get in touch with him. Not for the first time, Maggie reconsidered her options, looking for the easier solution, something else she could do so that she wouldn't have to keep going. Her feet and thighs were killing her from forging a path through the snow. Even if it was thinner here, it was still pretty high and she had been marching, lifting her knees waist-high and clomping with Styrofoam-noises for almost three hours. Every time she thought she might just turn around, she remembered again what awaited her back in the old Summer town, Friendsville, and she released a bitter sigh and kept marching.
He wasn't the only one upset about the loss of the seasons. Everyone was having a rough time dealing. The Earth used to be divided by strict lines of demarcation between different temperature and weather zones: Winter, Fall, Summer, and Spring. Then one day, just out of the blue, where once there was four, there now was one: Winter. The Ghost Winter, as they called it.
The ice and snow and frigid temperatures that used to be restricted to the southernmost band had taken over the entire globe. Spring took the hardest hit, scrambling to harvest the crops that fed the rest of the world as frost, for the very first time, touched the leaves and stems of plants that had known only endless propagation for as long as anyone could remember.
Summer hadn't been prepared either. At least Fall and Spring were somewhat used to inclement weather and knew what a coat and hat were for. When the Ghost Winter hit, Maggie sincerely doubted anyone in Friendsville had ever seen ice that wasn't floating in someone's drink. The poor souls.
A brusque scratching sound echoed through the valley and Maggie stopped, jerking a tense look off to the southeast, her body still and muddy-violet eyes warily searching for the source of the disturbance. At least in Spring, they'd come to terms with the occasional chill before the Ghost Winter and she'd been fitted with thick coat and insulated pants, her head, face, and hands bundled up like a suit of armor against the cold. Other than the burn on her blushed cheeks, the only exposed part of her, she barely felt the freezing temperatures out here during her long hike.
Braving the frigid temperatures now, Maggie pushed her hat up off of her eyebrows and mittened hands shoved the scarf off her thin, bow-like lips, to open her line of vision and see more clearly. Her body and eyes still as a block of ice, she scanned the glittering snow for any signs of movement, ears straining for any sounds while steam frothed the air in front of her with each puff of breath. She'd displaced some of her hair from her hat, dark brown strands sticking to her cheeks and forehead, anxiety changing them, filling the strands with neon orange color as if lit by fire from within. Then the light and color was gone when she was done glowering threateningly at the unknown in the scenery, finally turning to resume her trudging hike.
It was likely nothing. One thing they knew by now: the monsters only came out at night. Even still, as she continued to march, tucking her lips and hair back away, she couldn't help the nervous pattering of her heart as she walked through mountain shadows. It was day...but this was the wilderness and she was left wondering if it were still bright enough there to protect her from the other things the Ghost Winter had brought when it came.
Finally, she turned the bend in the trail and saw the cabin up ahead, a ragged growl of petulant triumph pulled out of her throat. It sat in a wide-spread clearing, smoke curling up from the chimney in a dark, slender finger stroking the sky, smelling of musty deadwood and coconut. It took another 5 minutes to cross the distance but Maggie had started to feel better already having found it and arrived at her destination.
Then...worry set in. There was nothing else around here other than the wooden structure on its platform. Where was the snow plow? They said he had one! That was why she'd come all the way out here! No way were they going to get out of the Sol mountain pass(incorrectly named now, since it was less sunny that it had once been) unless they had a vehicle that could push past the snow.
Either way, this was her last hope and Maggie refused to leave without getting this guy to drive her out inside the cab of a hulking snow plow machine. They'd also said he was depressed, that he wouldn't help her but Maggie was done seeing obstacles. She was a solution-maker!
With her resolve firmly in place, Maggie trudged up to the cabin steps, stomping up the old, creaky wood, mittens clutching the railings as she pulled herself up. And on the elevated porch that curved around the front and left side of the cabin...Maggie stopped. It wasn't fear that halted her this time but the view of the valley from this vantage. Her footprints cut a messy ridge through the otherwise untouched snow from the bend between the trees and all around the mountains bloomed like rocky petals from this centerpoint.
She bet it was beautiful out here when it had been warm. The way Summer was meant to be. And just to add insult to injury, chasing away those pretty daydreams, a churlish wind cut through, slicing across her exposed eyes and cheeks like a spiteful schoolmarm demanding that she focus. With a despondent sigh through her shoulders, Maggie turned from the wintery vista and finally approached the door to the cabin.
He must have been waiting. Had he seen her approach or had it been her heavy boots on the stairs? In any case, she got five rapid knocks in before the door was whipped open and a man stood before her, towering over her and full of defensive scorn. Maggie blinked dark lashes in mild surprise over his sudden appearance but brushed it off in determination.
"You Church?" she asked with a short jerk of her chin at him.
He arched a dark brow. "Me Church," he confirmed, mocking her. "You lost?"
Turned off by his antagonistic demeanor, she decided to go ahead and play the game. "No," she shook her head, pushing her scarf down then resting her mittened hand on her chest. "Me Maggie."
Something broke in his face and momentarily she was surprised again as he cracked a crooked grin, huffing a soft, impatiently amused breath at her. Wow. This guy really was from Summer. There was sunshine in his smile and Maggie felt her breath catch at the sudden warmth filling her just to see it. Then it was gone, like a heartbreaking eclipse, turned back into a condescending sneer, his dark beard and dark hair adding an element of savage gloom to the grim line of his lips. Something poisonous morphed into his expression as he rolled his eyes at her, all of his humor full of nihilism and a cutting edge filtering into his snarky tone.
"Alright then, Maggie, I'm glad we had this chat," he said in a smooth, softly rasping voice.
"Wait!" she shouted, reaching out to stop the door from closing. Thankfully, he was more curious than he was irritated and slowly opened it again with a listening [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse] of his head. "I was told that you know how to drive a snow plow?"
"Yes. And?"
"Well, I need... Wait, do you have it here?" He had her all discombobulated with that stupid, pretty smile of his, even for the brief appearance it'd made, so, she was asking things out of order. "I need it."
He gave her a look of stony consideration then sighed and reached into his jeans pocket. Then he pulled his hand out and offered it to her but when she reached and he opened his fingers, there was nothing. He lightly gasped when she blinked at him and suddenly her expression went flat as he tucked his hands back into his pockets. He was messing with her again! Cripes! What was this guy's issue?
"Does it look like I have a snow plow?" Church asked with a snide note to his voice.
"I thought you were giving me keys," she defended then scoffed and shook her head. "Nevermind, listen, I need you to come with me. I need a plow-driver. I'm sure we can borrow one--"
"There's nothing for you here."
"I need to leave Summer!"
"Lucky you; Summer's gone, kid."
"I'm not a kid!" she sneered, hotly insulted. "I'm 22 years old! I'm a woman, you jerk!" Okay, she was 5'7" but she didn't look young! What the heck?
"Sorry, did I offend you?" he purred glibly.
"Look--Hey!"
She didn't get a chance to say anything to stop him as the door swung closed, slamming solidly in her face. For a second all she could do was gape and glare, too shocked as she realized she'd hiked 8 miles through wilderness and snow for this crap. Then a hideous growl grated out of her throat and she set upon the barrier with her fists and booted feet, pummeling it as a surrogate for his stupid, glum face.
"You're a ridiculous human being!" she shouted, puffs of steaming breath ghosting the air in front of her in her exertion.
Okay, new plan. Obviously, she'd buried the lead a little bit. She should have taken into account the fact that the depressed hermit wasn't going to ask questions, nor was he going to be gung-ho for work or even better, a possible adventure. She'd have to get him where it affected him and he'd already given her a clue.
Leaning close to the door, she released a sigh and called through the wood, "I know how to bring Summer back! I think I know what happened to the seasons!"
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