NEW: footfall to footfall

 

In the dim light there was a movement - footsteps, as if from nowhere, followed him closely. Nathaniel stopped, turned, and of course the pathway was empty, it was always seemingly empty.

These were dangerous pathways for the living, he knew it - and they, the dead and dying, knew it well. And yet... and yet here he was, walking the pathway across the empty moor - hills brooding before him, the quiet village behind him.

He continued to walk through the growing darkness, and the steps behind, instantly matched his steps - footfall to footfall.

So Nathaniel walked the moor, a living, pulsing creature shining brightly with an essence only known to the living, and followed closely by a creature that gave out nothing - no pulse, no light, no life. But the dead and dying are not purely a negative, a void in the landscape, they have yearnings, needs, cravings - and what Nathaniel had, what he purposefully flaunted to his follower, was his living light, and that - as always, was his followers goal.