And so he said with a great voice:
"My ship has come, and soon shall I return to His embrace;
For the seas call unto me that I must embark soon,
Though empty and bleak is the mist that is the future,
He shall light our lanterns still.
For He shall gift unto Man the ashes of the Stars that which lay now in our Eyes and our Nerves,
May our Acuity be as unpredictable and everchanging as the dancing of the Stars;
For He shall gift unto Man the stillness of the Moon that which feeds the Mind and the Spirit,
In trepidation shall the moonlight give way unto Wisdom and Reflection;
For He shall gift unto Man the passion of the Sun that which sets our Hearts ablaze and bestows upon our Bones its resilience,
Let our Body be forged and tempered with the heat of Ardour."
- Excerpt from Memoirs of Kaloch, 4th Vol.
***
Rotting garbage, accompanied with a damp, pungent smell.
The only sounds to be heard were the whirring of flies of which made for a strikingly sickly melody.
The cold stone floor was uneven, with little cracks that could be found here and there, liquid sources of unknown origin would fill these spaces and form what could only be aptly called ponds of maladies.
In this narrow space, where light was to be scorned, and where the shadows took root and thrived, sat a lone boy.
The boy seemed to be around the age of 11 with messy and unkempt blonde hair, and pale skin.
He wore some torn and dirty clothes, which by all accounts should be considered rags, to cover his small frame; a small pocket watch could be seen hanging around his neck, made with what looked like rusted material.
He looked to be in the midst of a deep, inner reflection of some sort, his hazy blue eyes shone with a faint luster. An oddity in this afflicted space.
He stared longingly at the piece of moldy bread of which he had just found after the baker had thrown it away in a nearby trash can. The young boy wondered if he should save it for tomorrow or eat it right now to satiate his ever persistent hunger.
Before he could come to make a decision, he heard the sound of footsteps.
It was coming closer to the alleyway.
The soft sound of wood hitting against stone rang, a pause was made in between each step, forming a graceful and slow stride. To walk with such ease in this desolate space could only indicate that one held confidence in oneself.
This could prove to be a threat to the boy.
Alerted, the boy tried to hide the piece of moldy bread underneath his "shirt", fearing that the unknown individual might take away his only source of sustenance for the day.
Soon the footsteps came to a halt, bracing himself, the boy looked at where the source of the footsteps came from. What he saw was an Old Man, with short grey hair, wearing a white robe, sandals, and what appeared to be a cane.
The Old Man simply looked the boy before laying down next to him in the alleyway.
Panicking, the boy quickly tried to get up and leave, fearing that the Old Man had plans to steal his piece of bread... or beat him up and then steal his bread. He hurriedly put the bread underneath his "shirt".
The Old Man seemed confused at first, but soon he had grasped the situation at hand.
Nodding to himself, the Old Man looked back at the boy in the eye and said, "How about a trade?" in a calm manner.
The boy was surprised, and after a brief moment of contemplation, he took the piece of bread out of his shirt, he then pointed at it with his other hand, then at the Old Man. After which he out-stretched his other hand with an open palm, to indicate that it was empty, and then pointed back at the Old Man.
The Old Man nodded, "You will receive your due, do not fret. But since we have encountered each other, this may be fate in action, so may this old man ask what is your name?"
The boy simply shrugged, then shook his head — he was never given a name.
The Old Man was surprised, "Really? Well, young man, you can just call me Senex."
The boy nodded, he then proceeded to tear in half the piece of bread and gave the half with the least mold in it to the Old Man, who nodded and smiled in appreciation "Thank you," he said, "in return, You will have my blessing."
The boy was confused, not knowing what a "buh-les-sing" was, but still, he politely nodded his head. He may, however, have felt a bit conned.
The Old Man, not knowing or not caring of the dissatisfaction growing on the boy's face, started to speak. However, the words weren't words the boy understood, they were strange words. Something compelled the boy to let the Old Man finish this unnerving speech.
A voice soon came out of the old man's mouth, it was slightly different, however.
"You shall now be known as Finn."
Everything turned black.
"O' Eminent Stars above,
Let this child find joy in your lustrous dance, so that he too shall dance for you,
Be thou his Teacher and his Witness;
Good luck, and may you have the heart to seek what lies beyond.
May Vidigm guide you."
An unknown amount of time had passed, the boy—Finn had awoken.