You Can Never Go Home Again

They say you can never go home again; there's alot of truth to that I suppose.

It's been quite some time since I've set foot in the Ciudad de Monstruos. I've been lost in your world. It can be quite seductive. & there's so many wonderful places to hide...

Nothing is as I remember it. Imagine, if you will, the wildest party you've ever been privy to? & the strangest place you've ever traveled to or explored? Someplace full of mysteries & wonder? Think about walking through a flea market or a bazaar--all the unusual people you meet...Think about the old men who tell you war stories at the pub, & a trip to the circus...

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to dance intoxicated through the streets of New Orleans? Just let the sounds of the city--the music of the night --entrance you?

I implore you--try --if only for a moment. You'll almost have an idea of what the Ciudad de Monstruos once was....In all it's glory.

The streets were once full of music. Throbbing, pulsing music. Creatures pounding handcrafted drums & strumming stringed instruments that require more than two arms to make them sing.

Torches that never burnt out lined the cobblestone streets--but they burn no more.

The music is silent.

No one is dancing--the streets are empty.

......


We crossed the threshold--we four--into the Monster City. There was no one there to greet us--not even the Enforcer Behemoths. No one. Where has everyone gone?

Monsters, by nature, are proud. We fight--we don't vanish. What could have scared them all so?

The streets are coated in a soft dusting of ash. Half of the buildings have burned to the ground --the other half lie abandoned.

There are no answers here. Only more questions.

But once there was a man who had all the answers. & if he didn't have them--he knew how to get them.

We called him Father Wolfsbane.

....


-"Justin, do you remember Father Wolfsbane?"

-"The crazy old bastard who fancied himself a wizard? Talked to spirits & saw the future in cards & tea leaves?"

-"He wasn't crazy. He saw things. Like me."

-"Not like you--Torrent. No one's like you"

-"I think we should find him...."

-"What makes you think he's even still here, Tor? Seems like everyone's vacated..."

-"Well, do you have a better idea?" I ask him, with a scowl. Tony & Gabriel wait on the sidelines, awaiting our cue as to where we're headed.

As Justin has no better plan, we decide to head for the outskirts of the city...toward the Olde Oak Glade. Amongst a copse of trees that reach to the heavens, Father Wolfsbane once resided in a small, hidden shack.

At least--that's where he was last I'd checked. & the Olde Ones are nothing if not creatures of habit.

Hopefully, my memories serve me well...