Oblivion

Chapter 1

        Summer was always the hardest.

It caused the earth to dry and the plants to whither and die. The town of Everlost was no exception. The one thing that appeared to be the only thing that could survive the blaring sun was rocks and dirt, but people can't  live on sun-bleached rocks and bone dry dirt. It's been like this long before I was born, ever since the great fire that burned everything to the ground and killed so many people nearly a hundred-fifty years ago. The stories on how humans walked the earth again became twisted and changed, until altogether the story was lost and no one really cared how humans walked the earth or survived the fire, just that they were there now and surviving is all that mattered.     

        For me, I could care less about how we survived just as long as my family and I survived the long summer. My family consisted of only me and my sickly father, my mother had died during child birth and the child- my brother- had died two days later. Once my father fell ill it was up to me, his only daughter, to look after the farm.

       I dug at the dry ground, the back of my neck was shinning with sweat and grime. I was chipping at the ground in search for water, out well was all dried up and I wasn't about to risk the life of one of our plow-horses to travel to Everlost to pay for water. I pushed the shovel into the ground near the hole before i started to dig with my hands; feeling for wet dirt only to come up with burning sand. Damn, another day without water! There's barely enough to give to the horses, much left the crops! I was debating the trip to Everlost, wrinkling my nose in disdain. I was so stuck in my thoughts I almost didn't hear the feeble voice calling for me from inside the house.

      "Addieca! Addieca, come here please!" I heard my father call for me and fearing the worst I left the shovel where it was and sprinted back to the house.

       My dad was standing at our dust covered dinning table with a thing, moth-eaten blanket wrapped around his boney figure. I didn't want to admit it but he looked like a walking corpse, his skin was hanging from his bones, he was pale, and his hair was thinning and every time I brushed it hair would come out in clumps. He was only thirty-five but he looks like he's sixty.

       "Dad what are you doing out of bed? Come on, I'll help you." I took hold of his arm and started to pull him back to his room, but he just shook me off.

      "No, I'm tired of sitting all day. I want to go outside ad help around the house, I know you can't do it all by yourself." and he started for the door, but I was quicker than him.

      "No, dad you have to go back to bed and get better. I can handle the farm by myself." I said, rubbing his arms before pushing him gently back to his room, but again he pulled away.

     "Addieca, you're seventeen years old, you should be going to school learning all the skills you'll need to survive in this world."

I snorted, "They can't teach me anything I don't already know."

Dad smiled at me softly, "I don't doubt that. But even even your mother and I had friends when we were young. And your mother and I were friends when we were your age."

     I knew what he was implying and I rolled my eyes, "I don't need friends and a certainly don't need to get married. Not at this time." I mumbled the last part to myself. Everyone knew how foolish it was to have children, one more mouth to feed and less water to spare, but people still have kids.

Dad smiled again, "That's what your mother said and them we had you and she loved you like no other. You'll understand when you're older." he fell silent, obviously thinking about mom; he started coughing, bending over the table.

     I was quick to help him, " Come on Dad let's get you back to bed."
This time his didn't pull away, he let me lead him back to his bed. Through the dry, gasping coughs he said, "water," when I laid him gently onto his bed. Running to the sink I foolishly turned the handles letting out nearly all of our water onto the floor and down the drain, what little water was left in the tanks that was stored under the house I brought to my Dad, who sounded like he was hacking up a lung.

I rubbed his shoulder and handed him the cup, "Come on Dad drink, it's the last of the storage water." He took a sip and tried to hand it back to  me but I just handed it back to him. Now I'll have to go to Everlost to get water. I thought with a heavy sigh watching as my dad take another drink of the water only to cough and spit if back onto the floor.

      Once he had finally stopped his coughing fit I had helped him back to his bed, I looked around the house with a heavy sigh. Everything was in shambles, the floor had a layer of dirt on it an inch thick and dust covered everything. I pulled myself up a chair and rested my head in my hands. It would take me a whole day to get to Everlost by foot and a lot can happen in a day, but it would only take me a couple hours on horse back. A lot can happen in a couple hours too. I thought miserably. I didn't want to leave my dad and I couldn't risk one of the two work horses we had. The idea of taking my dad along with me crossed my mind but it was quickly eliminated when I heard him break into another coughing fit. I couldn't risk that either. With a growing sigh I came to my only option, I couldn't leave him hear unattended for a day and I didn't like the thought of leaving him here for a couple hours, but that seemed to be my only option. I heard the tell-tale signs that my dad was heaving up most of his breakfast of thin bread and oats; I ran back to help him. I'll just have to go tomorrow.

        I started my way to Everlost early so I could get back early to take care of my father. I had chosen one of the stronger of the two horses. I packed what little money and food we had and started. It was always cooler in the morning then it was in the afternoon. My father's farm grew crops to sell in Everlost until he fell ill, leaving the responsibility to me to plant, harvest, and sell the crops.

      I was only out for an hour when the sun started to burn my flesh. The horse was already huffing and sweating through the makeshift saddle. I didn't have any water to give to the horse or for me to drink either.

       "Don't worry old girl only another hour or two till we're in Everlost." I patted the mare's shoulder and sigh quietly to myself, my throat already felt dry. I just wish that hour would pass by a little faster.

*New story ! Hope you like it! Leave a like or a comment if you did!*