As the Fool scrambled up a ravine heading towards the light at the top, he came to a defensive wall. He climbed over and found a man with a bandage on his head holding a staff defensively while several heads were affixed on pointed staffs behind him. The man wore a bright yellow, blue, and red uniform. The Fool’s stomach turned cold with fear.
Who dares to trespass? The man said, You will become one of the others that have crossed me.
I am a simple traveler, the Fool responded, I am just heading towards that light.
You are already at the light, the man responded confusing the Fool.
I was injured, the man responded, so I destroyed everyone that I know for revenge.
The Fool didn’t want to provoke the man with the weapon, for he obviously can kill. He did think that the man overreacted to a bonk on the head, but this wasn’t his battle. The light called to him from on top of the hill in the still black night, but he needed to pass this man first.
I know what you are thinking, the man said to the Fool, that I overreacted, that I should have asked for an apology, or just hit the one man over the head and make the two of us equal.
The Fool did think all of those things but didn’t respond outwardly.
I did try all of those things, the man went on, he didn’t apologize, they didn’t stop laughing, he didn’t stop making staffs for future attacks, he was just silent and didn’t pick a side, and he was related to the one who attacked me. I had to respond this way so that this will never happen again.
The Fool thought about international diplomacy in the world of man and how this sounds like their follies.
I am so tired, the man said feeling his bandaged head, I am so tired and so alone. The man slid to the ground with his back to the wall. A gentle breeze moved all the heads’ hair and beards. A circle of crows began descending seeing that the man wasn’t standing there anymore.
I will go now, the Fool said, I wish you the very best luck.
The man just waved at the Fool in a dismissive way while sitting there with a scowl. There was death all around him as a warning to not get close to this man.