The Swordslinger walks through an empty airport. The sun outside peaks through the clouds, the rays a respite from the nearly endless rain. She walks through empty terminals and spaces designed for shops. The stalls are empty, as are the cashiers. Eventually, she leaves the airport and walks to the suburbs. As usual, the only sound is her boots hitting the wet pavements and splashing into puddles. The rain starts to pick up again, soon to blind the sun again, so she walks onto the porch of a house. Even though no one lived there, she wipes her wet boots on the mat in front of the door. It could say "Welcome" but it instead is just brown. No black ink illuminates letters. She walks into the empty house, as the clouds are again beginning to blot out the sun.
There. A shadow. Her heart lifts. She follows where it fled, into an empty living room. As usual, there is nothing there. No furniture, no paintings, only a single slowly spinning fan. There are no switches on the wall. The Swordslinger pulls out her swords and walks around the perimeter of the room. Nothing. Then she looks up. On the ceiling, a shadow hides. It is spread out, reaching into every corner. The Swordslinger tries to reach up to touch it, but it shrinks into a corner. She sits down and begins to sharpen her sword. Eventually, it comes over, curious. She allows it, and it slides over her blade.
"Can you see? Hear?" She talks to it, and it perks up at the noise. It slips from the sword to the wall. It "nods", shrinking and growing. "Can you hear?" The Swordslinger asks again. It "nods" again, bobbing up and down. "Can you see? You seem to understand me. Copy me." The Swordslinger holds up a three-fingered hand. The shadow mimicked her. "You can understand me." She smiles as the shadow rushes up onto her arm, and spins its way across her body. "You can understand me! Oh, finally, someone to talk to!" She stands up, heading outside to the pouring rain. "Let's go!"
