Marriland

            The sky was blue and dotted with clouds, sunlight peeking through here and there. A light breeze caused the grass to brush against Sage’s feet as he crouched before a makeshift grave marker. He ran a finger across the stone, eyes following the words he’d read hundreds of times in the past few hours: “Here lies Jasmine. Yet another of Sage’s partners, you went the farthest, only to ultimately give your life so Sage and the rest of the team could carry on. You’ll always remain in our dreams, happily waddling.”            When he’d first seen the gravestone, he’d been angry, almost en