Chapter Two: A Whole Old World

[Kunanaki]

The Stranger was not awake. Well, to be fair it was doubtful that Awake was the right word. The Stranger was currently alive and whole and mentally dead. At least to any trained medical eye. The body was not yet decaying as it were, but where was the will to live?

In a tiny ember internally, beyond the ghostly whispers of reality, lay the spark of him. It was currently centered in a tiny thought bubble that would not die. An image of a necklace that contained a stogie stored inside of a .50 caliber hallowed and hollowed round. There was a debt to be paid for such a thing. The price of failure could be the nascent ember of future success. After all, Mistakes were only mistakes if you learned nothing from them.

A shaky hand lifted up to grasp at throat, choking and coughing. It was quiet here. There had been noises not that long ago. The mind was blurred and stuttering. Sparks of information was bubbling up, filling the mind. A hand snaking to face, to the stubble that was growing upon the lines of a strangers chin. Calloused hands rubbing weather beaten flesh. Whoever he was, he was not a Soft man. That was good information. The strength in the limbs faltered, lack of proper meals in the stomach making a showing. A low growl bubbled from the throat and chest. Pushing aside comforts and seeking to remove any impediments to him sitting up properly, the Stranger had Awoken.