Old Man's word

 "Kath, my legs are really starting to hurt. Any chance we can take a break?" Sashe whimpers as they keep hiking through the city. How long has it been? Kath estimates it's been about 6 hours since they left that shelter. They hadn't seen a person, or even an animal in hours. Luckily throughout the past few years hand pumped wells for water had been added along the city. Without those both Sashe and Kath would've been long dead by now. "Yeah let's just find a spot." After 30 minutes of searching Kath decided it was best for them to rest in a rundown subway station. Many bandits and savages lived down there now, but most of them didn't have a gun.

 The subway system hadn't run in two and a half years. As Kath and Sashe walked down the cement steps they saw only moss, vines, and roots covering the cement walls. As they listened closer they heard voices coming from an old abandoned shop that was right outside the subway platform. Kath motioned for Sashe to stay by the end of the steps as he snuck up to the door of the room. Sashe was terrified that Kath would get caught, or even worse they would pull a gun on him and kill him. As uncommon as they were it seemed like this group were quite large, somebody was bound to be carrying something. Kath was however stoic as ever. His heart was probably still. Kath looked into the room and saw a group of three sitting down, laughing and playing cards? Even Kath was a bit bewildered by this strange sight. How could they be so happy in such a dreadful world?

 "Hey there boy," a voice came from right behind Kath. Sashe let out a yelp as the man appeared but Kath just turned and straightened himself. "So you need something?" Kath said, his face was stoic but his posture mad him seem horrifying. As if he was the size of a building. The man, an older man with a greying, bushy beard shot out a small, gruff, laugh. "Oh, no boy I don't want to hurt you, I need you." The man as Kath just realized was holding an acoustic guitar. "You see my friend, the sould of the world is in your hands and your hands alone. The flying lights, they told me so. You must believe there is no other way to continue." The man looked worried and anxious. "Sorry, I'm not the one you're looking for." Kath then paced into the room to see the boys playing cards.

 The 3 boys sat at a round wooden bar height table gambling their food rations in a game of poker. They paid no heed to the outside world, they didn't even notice Kath walk in and watch them.

 Kath stalked the cards carefully. No matter what two cards each boy had, only one ever won the game. He was cheating and had an exact deck of the cards on his lap. When the others weren't looking he'd switch his hand out and take the pot. "Deal me a round." Kath sat at the table with his and Sashe's last food rations. "You got it boss," the cheater replied. Eight cards went out, five more put into the river. Food rations were bet, four cards were switched out. Two men fold as they see their hands have nothing. Two players bet 3 cans of soup, a can of beans, and a pound of 'synthesized meat.' The old man watches from outside the room, he is talking to someone and only half paying attention to the game.

 Kath lays down his cards, so does the cheater. "Ha pocket aces I win." He smiles triumphantly "You don't win, I have a royal flush." The boy's face goes pale as Kath lays down his cards. A king and Ace of hearts. "No wait, what, this can't be!" The boy watches as Kath pockets all of his newly earned food and leaves.

 Sashe is shocked as she sees Kath go into that room instead of coming to get her, so she goes to deal with things herself. As she walks up to the doorway the old man comes over to meet her. "Hello madam, are you perhaps a friend of that man who is now playing poker?" Sashe who was weirded out by this responded by saying, "well I suppose maybe I am. In truth I don't know." The old man chuckles, "oh I can promise you, you're his friend." He then started to strum his guitar in a soft and sad way befitting of the saddest melody. While he strummed he spoke. "I often used to think there was no beginning or end to this cruel and unforgiving world. But after a while I realized this was false. For the world is happiness, the world is sadness. A story begins the same day a story ends. But some people are too resilliant to new idea that they don't realize they're making history as we speak." As the old man said that he looked over to Kath who was packing up a lot of food into his bag. "I believe he can do something great." The man stated as Kath started walking over to them. The man stopped talking but continued plucking a melody. The eerie silence of the world slowly faded out as Sashe was entranced into the music. The moss of the walls seemed to grow truly alive, the walls didn't seem so jagged and cracked. Kath didn't seem so empty and dead, instead he seemed happy. She'd never seen him happy before. "That's what could be." The old man then jumped down onto the old and rusted railroad tracks. Sashe watched as he walked into the dark abyss of the tunnels beyond.

 Kath wasn't smiling, the world was really greying as they spoke, and tomorrow wasn't certain. But one thing was certain, Sashe felt a little bit better now because maybe, there might just be a sliver of hope.

 That night the world felt just a touch warmer. The flowers sprouted just a touch more, the fireflies danced through the sky lighting all there was to see. A shooting star crossed through the night. Kath and Sashe continued their travels west. The fireflies danced through the night for it was the first beautiful melody they had heard in years. Little did they know, it was just the beginning.