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Ni Deng
The old gardener stood outside in his simple tan clothes, sweating as he watched his flowers open and close in the twilight. They had been acting this way for the past few days, but each time it happened earlier, and the petals folded and unfolded ever quicker. It was almost enough to make an old man lose his sleep...
Ni Deng was the only one outside to see it, and the only one in the city who'd understand. The flowers screamed without sound, telling all of the impending apocalypse which threatened to come. Of course, it was only a small apocalypse which would come over them. The country as it was now would be almost entirely destroyed, but other nations, and indeed some of the life present here, would remain mostly unaffected. But it was an apocalypse nonetheless.
Today, the plants were moving about so frantically the bald monk knew it would not be long before there would be no more time to act. The future of the land would be decided soon. And he believed he had a duty.
Ni Deng gathered his scarce belongings and quickly set off towards a beleaguered town some distance away. Or rather, he would have set off quickly if he was younger. As night shrouded the roads of wyvern city in a cloak of darkness, the only source of light being the stars above, and of course the lamps burning in several outhouses, a hunched figure could be seen walking the streets, taking one slow, purposeful step after the other. Then the clouds set in, blocking out the starlight, and the old man dissapeared from sight.
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