To the place I belong
{In dedication to "Country Roads, Take me Home" - it now isn't just a country song or a sign of death and destruction... it now can be something else... almost Heaven.}
- To the place I belong -
And so released from my duties I was. For a time being, certain I was It will call for me and I would have to abandon everything to get on the ship. Else I wold be tied like a sheep and thrown aboard so the journey can continue once more - withal, in this time of scavenging of niceties, I hadn't a clue to really do. To do what I would humour, oh I hadn't a clue what hobby I was in love with. For my hobby was my job, the prospects of finding the paranormal long died whence I learned how loose "normal" was thanks to It tasking me to go to many galaxies for many a debts. But going home? I hadn't a mountain mama or tata to look for - as far as I was concerned, I was flung to the opposite side of the universe, plus I was no góral anyhow. Oh should I stare and wait to be picked up when they feel like doing so? An interesting prospect if I wasn't a stranger to intense action and still recovering from a blood lust in my new octopoid body.
What was there to do in this lush green landscape dotted with brown barks, ocean skies with white puffs and melodies of all sorts of animals? So I twisted my neck to spot any oddity I could play with, time wasn't going to run ahead of me - it would take some sweet time to relax and take a calm stroll when given the chance. Then... so beholden to me was a gravel path, stretching seemingly far beyond what was a series of what had been beholden to me mixed in with sharp peaks blanketed in white paint. At that moment, a notification in my HUD began dancing about - whence I focused my attention at it, it wished to play music for me, for which I gently declined but set up a random music to play minutes later. So with nothing really else to do, I began a slow and calming trek on these... country roads. Oh, these roads so familiar to my country roads back home - my mind began playing a silent plea for these country roads to take me home, to the place I belong.
Yet I hadn't seen even one cottage nor a tilled land in sight, so I tuned out that internal white noise to hear more of nature's melodies. Marching still, I began hearing the crunch of the gravel, the taste of misty moonshine passing through the filter and birds chirping my Motherland's song - my mask began warning me to open the eye ports so the rivulets of grief can escape and not cloud my vision. Oh my memories gathered around her, my Motherland - a place that was almost Heaven. Oh how she tormented me for not remembering her in my blood lust across the galaxies in this universe - but she hushed herself and began her mental caressing, saying her calming words that I was no sinner and forgiving my dedication to my new hobby in life... And so finally played the delayed song - singing the infectious tune:
"Country roads, take me home... To the place! I BELONG!"
I couldn't resist, I let the white noise play louder - oh I hear the voice now calling me. Oh my Motherland, I want to come home yet I am stuck in a place that mocks you! The chirps, the cricket operas and the mucking of the many forest critters - all reminding me of my home far away! Yet I stopped in my tracks and began cycling my weaponry, scanning the environment for any threats - oh what humans call intuition I call simply fast counter-intuition, this song never played lest danger stalked around the corner. My HUD went to overdrive freaking out about a potentially huge enemy hoard coming to swarm me, with any weapon they fancied and from any stratagem they wished to pester me with. I was ready to calculate the strategy to rip and tear the enemy threat - yet none came. So I shifted my look towards the sky, yet no ærial vehicles dare to pester the sky and the sky only dared a few grey clouds here and there. Finally sensing the gravel and dirt below my feet, my Richter scale couldn't pick up even a micro-earthquake happening below ground.
There I stood stupefied, and yet I walked. Towards wherever this country road would take me - teardrops began forming in my eyes. The sign of Country Roads, betrayed by a peaceful intervention? Oh how can living beings play a song so beautiful and then twist it to such deadly occasions - so maybe I found something almost Heaven today. Looking around, life here is definitely older than the trees yet younger than the mountains... Then in the distance I heard human-esque weepings and cheering, so began the thunderous steps of my boots to see the occasion and maybe get connected with some folk. After connecting my sight with the people, I saw people of various ages of this farming community doing many a things: couples of all types began kissing and caressing each other, the kids crying tears of joy and dancing with their friends and siblings, miners raising their jugs of moonshine and gulping it all, the dogs barking like in celebration and here I was standing in astonishment. The song still played, loud and proud all throughout. Yet the song not even reaching halfway through, I began tearing up and the tears began pouring away from my eye ports which had to open once more. Sometime throughout this cathartic dance of bodies, a young farming lass grabbed my hands and dragged me into the crowd - screaming:
"Hey army stranger, come on and dance! You deaf, just dance! We get to live, for the end is nigh! You heard Country Roads played throughout the forest, no?... Just this one time, everybody lives."
I locked up, but soon broke the stance as I began my realization... Yet oh I danced with her, and I began seeing the other people dancing about - they were many a species here than what I imagined, all not humans. Which made me felt that I stumbled into Pooh's world, oh how could nobody be happy of this momentous occasion? Truly 'twas a celebration alright - for Country Roads no longer meant death and destruction but a calling for the good-life and the future. Oh even if this wasn't home, I still had gotten a feeling - a feeling I should've been born. Yesterday, yesterday! Oh country roads, you took me to the place I belong - not to a place of red rum and suffering. Oh how couldn't I realize that all the times you were playing, that you weren't secretly a call for a better future in times of despair for any group. Sure you were in the most perilous of times, yet you meant well to be a secret yearning for the hopeless who had no other recourse - but I give gratitude to you now for playing and not leading death to this place. My weary and rugged body, even if new, had to still acclimate to my spirit from a body I was so ripped from...
Soon the people began slowing down and simply... just be. At any a case, I turned to the young farming lass, oh she emanated a beautiful and genuine smile I hadn't seen in ages - reminding me of lil' grand-kids smiles all those years back before I turned a hermit and then into this. I then placed my squid hands on my gas-mask and sobbed, the memories haunted me - yet her hand was placed on my shoulder, she simply asked why I sobbed in a time of celebration. I wished to lie, yet instead I blurted to her that this place resembled in appearance every way like my Motherland. She only simply stated that 'tis okay to be sad sometimes, but questioned me further she did - to which I replied with my name and my home address. Methinks she had died for a second before she grabbed my head and stared deep into my eyes, my eyes merely gazing back at her. She then took off her red head scarf and gave it to me, asking:
"If your voice ain't lying to my memory and if you really are of the Motherland, then tie back on my head scarf."
I then took my time tying back the head scarf, taking care of every fold and knot - 'til it resembled that of a lady farmer's head scarf, my mind raced at the fact the fabric was Polish in kind and the accents oh so close to the Southern-western regions. She then grabbed my hands and squeezed them hard, for which she began dragging me somewhere - I still was racing through my mind, as soon the streets became familiar to me again and I then took the lead in dragging her to where she wanted to go. The routes began mapping on really well, all the little short cuts still existent and even easier to access - finally we reached the old farming estate and she began skipping home, I couldn't resist and skipped along with her as fun overrides any sense of formality. Soon I saw people pouring out of the house, for which I slowed my skipping yet she continuing on - thinking before I entered into the scene, I feel as if she was one of my grand kids with all the skipping and talking. Which soon the oldest male came out and asked who I was, the voice awfully familiar to my oldest son that I soon blurted out:
"Mój Shemek!"
"Tata!"
The whole family racing to meet me as I rushed to hug each and every one of them. Now was a time to rest, reacquainting myself and settling down for a bit can come tomorrow - by then I can learn all about what had happened since I left and became a hermit to... whatever body I truly manifest in right now. But truly now, these country roads took me home to the place I belong. Not to death, but to a good-life - yet I know my time here is on a clock, but I can break their hearts a bit after the passions have calmed down. Now, I look upon the valleys of farmland and rows of houses centered inside of such - I no longer was long gone away from home. Long after the still moment, we all entered the house and everybody resumed their functions - somebody had to take care of something that had to be done. Yet I was granted no job but to rest and lie down, to think of what had transpired and plot out how'd I explain this excuse of a mess that was me. Looking about, I saw a fireplace and rested cozily in there - I then thought of reading a book and text scrolled through my HUD of many books to read, and I took the time to select a few books I read in my downtime.
As I rested on the comfy armchair, I noticed three lil' kids and I beckoned them to come to me and sit on my laps. Soon they scrambled over and rested on my laps, for which I squeezed them tightly and played around with them - only which a Jadek can do to keep the lil' ones active and cheerful. But our game had stopped and we rested by the fireplace, soon which one had asked why I'd look like an octopoid and they not - I told directly that I had my body replaced, I was in no good health and to do my recent job I had to be in this body. They in turn pestered me on, but I calmly kept explaining as I favored the inquisitive and curious mind for the universe is still in such times that a curious mind truly can profit still. But finally they stopped asking and we returned to staring at the fire, what lil' bonding I can do in my current husk, I had to do. I wished I wouldn't leave this green and blue marble I call Earth, but yet I still have some tasks to complete so It can repay Its debts and I still anyways had a universe to explore.
But feeling the need to move, I asked the lil' ones to go and pester someone else - yet I realized what had been pressing me hard into the armchair all this time, they all slept and snored on me like the lil' buggers they are. However, how could I find fault in these little beans? Decidedly, I re-positioned them so they could feel better during sleep, said dobranoc to them and soon I heard Country Roads playing in my gas-mask - I only lowered the volume and felt my heavy eyes closing, and I resisted not the urge. Soon my field of vision darkened and all noise around me drowned to a deafening quiet, my HUD silently stopped playing and turned itself off - a rest was in due order and well deserved I am to take one where I pleased.