Two months had passed since the coming of the Empire. The Cobbler had been saddened to see that Susant had left Nyima with the princess and the army, but he knew that the boy had finally found his purpose.
Not long after the armies of the Empire had left Nyima, stories of the boy who had become the lightning, and the princess who had the voice of the Buddha spread like wildfire through the many countries of the world.
Then he began to hear talk of other things. Stranger things. Older things. Things once long forgotten. They were only whispers at first, something the Cobbler would faintly overhear on the streets of Nyima, but he still remembered the first time he heard them, clear as day. Someone had spoken of a monastery.
Then one day, he was sitting in the orphanage with the children, reminiscing with them of Susant, when a random man on the streets ran up to them, and without trying to catch his breath, spoke.
"The Emperor has renounced their hold of all countries and returned their freedom! They also say that, after their freedom was returned, the Emperor stepped down from the throne, and there are many whispers that the young princess Song will become the new Empress!"
The Cobbler laughed in his heart at the responses of the children.
"But when is Susee coming home?" They whined. "He promised us a story!"
Children were such beautiful and simple creatures.
***
That night, the Cobbler sat before his golden statue with tears in his eyes. As he held his hands up in prayer, he felt filled with love for his son, who had not only changed the world, but found his true purpose.
"Thank you, oh, Ancient One," said the Cobbler. "You have healed me of my pain, and although it is still a bit quiet here without Susant, I no longer feel the ache of loneliness in my heart. For that, I am, and will be eternally, grateful."
In his dreams that night, the Cobbler saw two hooded figures riding upon a beautiful horse toward the gates of Kingdom. Wrapped around the neck of one of the figures was a great red shawl, billowing out with the wind.
***
The next morning, the Cobbler awoke at dawn and put on his boots. For the first time since he had opened his business, the Cobbler closed the shop for the day. He walked toward the gates of Kingdom and waited, his eyes never wandering far. Just as dusk was settling in, he felt that, perhaps, it had just been a dream.
Knowing that patience was a virtue and that he would, one day, see his son again, he stood up and began to walk home. But after taking no more than three steps, he felt the winds change. Turning around, he smiled as the silhouette of a horse took form on the horizon.
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The Monastery
FantasyThe Monastery is the story of a prince raised by a cobbler. Set in a world where an Empire has been enslaving country after country for centuries, it follows the tale of young Susant, a boy born into the last free country in the world, his journey w...
