In The Millennial World

21

Finally..... it was over.
The chaos, the shouting, the relentless storm of hostility
It was utterly exhausting.
Dealing with a mob of furious people had drained every ounce of energy I had.
We managed to escape the crowd but barely....
It wasn't by luck.. or by chance
Nor.. was it some orchestrated distraction or act of fate.

No.. it was desperation, sheer willpower, and a fight for survival.
The crowd wasn't welcoming.
Far from it—they were angry
Livid... as if the very air around them had ignited into a wildfire fueled by hatred.
And for what?
Their rage seemed almost irrational, yet...
There was something deeper beneath it with something unspoken.
It was as if they despised something about us, something they couldn't name..

Something they couldn't understand but instinctively feared.
Panting from the chase
It wasn't merely a coincidence
There had to be a deeper cause behind how terrible things had become.

We found a nearby cave and decided to take shelter inside
A place where we could finally rest up without the constant worry of anything or anyone getting in our way.
I gently set Kisara down beside a large, flat rock to let her rest
Her breath was shallow
Her body trembling like she needed air or some fresh water to drink from
She needed to rest after all that running and so do I..
After all...
Her pale blue-white hair clung to her face, damp from sweat..
And... her eyes fluttered weakly as she tried to stay conscious.

The scene weighed heavy on my mind.
Why were the villagers so enraged?
What has happened to provoke such hatred?
It was as if their collective anger wasn't directed at us specifically but at something far greater...
A fear that is deeply rooted in prejudice that had festered for years.

I glanced at Kisara...
Her fragile form leaning against the rock.
She looked like she carried the burden of centuries in her slight frame.,,
A target for blame she didn't deserve.
I wanted to say something to comfort her, but the words caught in my throat.
The truth was, I didn't have the answers either.

The atmosphere still buzzed with tension...
As if the echo of the mob's anger lingered in the air.
It wasn't just exhausting
It was heartbreaking.
For a moment, I closed my eyes and exhaled, trying to make sense of it all.

What could cause such deep-seated hatred? What could drive people to attack so blindly, so ruthlessly?
And more importantly... how could I protect Kisara from it?
And.. what's all the hate coming from..
Rage? Despair? Hell?

I stepped out of the cave
The crisp air was brushing against my skin as I made my way through the sparse trees nearby.
I gathered pieces of wood scattered across the ground..
Each step crunching softly against the dry earth.
Once I had enough
I returned to the cave and carefully arranged the wood into a small pile of junk

Using two sticks
I struck them together with focus and determination
The friction was sparkling with tiny embers. Soon, flames sprang to life casting a warm flickering glow that filled the cave.
The warmth seeped into the cold air making the space feel inviting
It was almost cozy...
Despite everything that had happened so far

As I sat by the fire....
Watching it crackle and dance
My mind wandered.
The angry crowds, the chaos, meeting new faces..
It was all overwhelming.
This day felt like a part of some endless journey..
One with no clear destination.
It was strange, almost surreal...

Yet... it felt like it was only the beginning.

The starting line seemed endless..
Stretching far into the horizon with no finish line in sight.
A journey that promised no rest..
No reprieve just the persistent to pull forward.

How long had I been gone?
For so long, it seem too long.
The more I thought about it
The more unease crept in
Like a shadow inching in closer.
There was this nagging feeling
An overwhelming sense that something was about to happen.
Something I couldn't name or prepare for.

I tried to brush it off to convince myself it was just paranoia..
A figment of overthinking.
But.. the worry wouldn't let go.
It clung to me like a whisper I couldn't quite hear teasing the edges of my mind.

Was I forgetting something?
No—worse than forgetting.
It felt like I was missing something deeply important...
A piece of myself or my world that had been left behind.

I shook my head trying to banish the thoughts. Maybe I was just hallucinating letting my mind go spiral into places it didn't need to go. I needed to stop this.
I needed clarity.
But the harder I tried
The more the feeling lingered, heavy and unyielding.

And now...
As I looked at Kisara
I couldn't help but wonder..
How am I supposed to understand how things could have unfolded?
How they might have gone?
When I don't even have the answers myself?

What am I supposed to do...
Now that everything feels like it's falling apart?
I feel lost... like..
I can't hold onto anything anymore.

I feel... hopeless

I'm drowning...
I'm losing it all...