Interitum

Chapter 5

When we walked outside, I stopped and caught my breath. It was so beautiful! We were at the the top of a hill that surrounded a small town in the valley. The surrounding mountains were green, the sky was blue, and there was a crystal clear river running through the valley. The town in the valley had no big buildings, but small houses that were all very similar. The air was warm, but not uncomfortable, and very easy to breathe as there was no pollution.
Luke and Ansley were walking down a cobblestone walkway that led into the town. They had already gotten pretty far ahead of me while I was observing my surroundings. I ran to catch up with them so I wouldn't get left behind. Luke and Ansley stopped at a bridge that crossed the river to look out at the town below us. Luke gestured to it and said, "Welcome to Interitum."
"Interitum?"
"It means 'afterlife' in Latin. It's the name of our town. Our home." He continued to look out at the town for a moment then turned to me and said, "People don't get their own house until they're 18. Until then, you can either choose to stay with someone who's willing to have you, or you'll be assigned somewhere to stay. I assume you're not 18?"
I nodded, and Ansley immediately looked at me with her big blue eyes and asked, "Will you stay with us? Pleeeeaase? I've never had a big sister before."
I glanced at Luke who was chuckling quietly to himself. He saw me looking and said, "My parents have agreed to let you stay, if you would like to of course."
"Yes, that would be great, thank you." I said. Ansley smiled and started skipping down the path to the village. "I've got a big sister! I've got a big sister!"
Luke laughed again and said as we followed, "You'll have to forgive her, she's very young and grew up in a family of boys."
"How many people are in your family?" I asked.
"I've got three brothers and Ansley. One older brother and two younger. What about you?"
I thought about it, but I still couldn't remember. I felt like screaming. I was so frustrated!
Luke must have seen how upset I was, because he said, "It's normal for people not to remember anything but their name for a few days after waking up, don't worry."
"But most people aren't in a coma for 7 weeks." I said bitterly.
"Yes, well, you were the unique case," he said hesitantly.
"Do you know why that happened to me?" I asked, desperate for answers.
Luke paused a moment, then said, "I have a hunch, but now is not the time to try to explain it."
"And why is that?"
Another pause. "Because I don't want to overwhelm you."
We walked in silence into the town, and Ansley led us down multiple streets until we stopped in front of a house that had a plaque that said "Miller: House fire: 1849" in black lettering.
"Your family died in a house fire?" I asked, half of me actually interested, the other half just wanting to break the silence.
"Yes; the same fire burnt down a third of my city. We've all been here ever since." He shrugged.
"But wait... 1849. That would make you..."
"179, yes," he said smirking.
"But you don't look that old."
"That is because time passes differently here. On Earth, 168 years have passed since the fire that killed my family. But here, it has only been 4 years. I was 12 when I died. Ansley was only 18 months. My father tried to get us all out, but he couldn't. He only managed to get my older brother out in time. My brother was 16. He survived, and we haven't seen him since." Luke looked solemn.
"I... I'm so sorry. But he has to be dead, right? 168 years... I don't think it's possible for someone to live that long. Which would mean he's here, right?"
Luke shook his head. "There are more places in this afterlife then here. He's probably in one of them."
I refused to accept this as the end of it. "Then why don't you go look for him? You should be able to spend the afterlife with your family, even if you're separated for a while."
"No, you don't understand. You are not allowed to leave this place. Ever."
This sent a jolt through me. Ever? "Why not?"
He shook has head again. "I don't know, it's just the rules. There's a rumor that someone tried to leave and it destroyed him. He's supposedly never been the same again. They say he lives up on one of these mountains in a cave, but no one dares to go try to find him. They say he's insane."
"But that's just a rumor," I argued.
"But what if it's true?" He looked at me pointedly. I didn't know what to say. After a minute, he said, "Come inside, I'll introduce you to my mother. She's very nice, don't worry." He stepped through the door and I followed.