“One day I shall die,” whispered the old man to his grandchild.
The old man removed a ring from his finger and laced it through a thin leather strip.
Knotting the back of the string, he tied the necklace around the neck of his grandchild.
“When you’re old enough, and when this ring fits, it shall bestow upon you all the charisma I have to give. Until then, fight. Fight so hard your every waking moment feels the grasp of death just around the corner.”
“But I am merely 10,” said the boy. “I don’t understand.”
“You don’t have to,” the old man replied. “Just know that every time the sun sets, it has set forever, and you will never see it set that way again.”
The boy looked deep into his grandfathers gaze.
The grandfather smiled as a shimmer streaked across the boys face.
He laughed. “Now go play.”