Boom!!
Thunder roared and the winds wailed harshly. The sky darkened, threatening to release rain upon the lands. And soon, rain started pouring... at first it started with a drizzle, then gradually more and more accumulated splattering across the lands.
The once sandy path, received rain after so long without it, immediately nourishing the land, a sense of vitality returning.
Clatter! clatter!
At this moment sounds of a pony's hooves were heard. The pony's hooves hit the now muddy ground, trudging the path slowly and tired on the count of the goods in its back, and walking beside the pony was a man.
This was an old man with a bushy beard, wearing a worn-out cloak, and hat that was now soaking wet. The man had a pipeweed in his mouth and although it was raining, he was diligently blowing out puffs of smoke, while humming a tone.
The falling rain didn't seem to disrupt his mood, his beard and boots wet and his spirits were as high as ever. As he stepped on the mud, his thoughts were wandering in other places. He unconsciously swiped the branches that were on his way, sometimes patting the pony, his thoughts still wandering about.
'Three weeks in the city and all I've managed to acquire are six silver starlings to my name...I fear when I reach home, I'll have to hear Mary's nagging scoldings again... Aish!! can't an old man get a break in this life...*sigh* I suppose I'll deal with the situation as it comes.'
Slosh! Slosh!
The old man, due to his lack of attention stepped in some deep mud, his boots sinking in almost causing him to fall forward, but he quickly grabbed on the reins on his pony, immediately causing the pony to neigh, and almost dropping the goods...
"Bloodydamn!...the hell, that almost had me - uh-...ow! my back! my back!..."
The Old man quickly regained his momentum but at the cost of his back, he wasn't as he used to be, with his body aging somethings couldn't be performed as well. Sadly, it's been a problem plaguing his life...
'Maybe that's why my old lady is always mad, I can't seem to perform like I used to- Bah! what I'm I thinking, it's this damn road that's the problem.
Come to think of it I wouldn't be in this situation if those damn guards don't keep charging me for everytime I return to the town after a trip. Six cinders that's a whole six cinders, it's all for the development of the town they said, a patriotic contribution for the proud residents they insisted...I call Bullshit!
I, John will not accept such exploitation, No, non, nem, nein. Over my dead body!!! Puff! Puff!... Luckily There's an alternative path and if I can't use the main road freely then I'll use my own personalized road... but the sufferings I endure probably no one can empathize with this old man, nevermind! nevermind, a man must be strong and move forward diligently hahaha, I won't give in even if it kills me.'
The old man consoled himself, he had no choice... talking to himself is what makes life a little easier for him. At this moment, the rains had gotten much heavier, and the pony was getting tired. The old man had good observation skills and decided to wait out the rain to lessen so he can continue with his journey home.
So, he found a tall tree with many branches and leaves and took shade under it. Tying the pony to a small stump he wiggled a little bit to shake off some of that rainy and muddy slump off his clothes. It was almost high noon, but it was cold and dark out.
Old John had heard passing stories about this forest from people from the town that at night there's usually monsters that would feed on unsuspecting humans, but he just treated these rumors as the fanciful tales spun by drunkards seeking free ale.
'I've maneuvered the terrain of this forest my entire life, what monsters are there? Hmm perhaps the ol' Misty Lake has those monsters but not this forest, this is practically home ground. Hehe, the raving of tavern fools, can't escape them no matter what.'
John leaned against the tree bark, as he reminisced some things on his mind, with the pitter patter of the rain accompanied by a cooling cold as a soothing background, suddenly he felt that things were peaceful.
He cast a long side-eyed glance on Rusty who was now looking a little downtrodden and John's heart ached with sympathy; he suddenly felt that he needed to cheer up this proud pony and so he slowly approached it.
The unsuspecting pony that had its head down, its locks soaking wet and its hide muddy, far from its usual proud brown hide, the pony felt miserable but what could it do? it was at the mercy of its foolish master.
John patted the wet back of the pony, memories flashing by about his time with it and let out a small sigh!
"Rusty, you beautiful steed, you've accompanied this old man through highs and lows, in sickness and in health, through tough times and tough terrains, yet you remain steady, now enduring this rain..tsk! tsk!, just for this when we get home, I'll prepare an extra bowl of oats and carrots that much you deserve..."
Puff! Puff!
'Now wait a minute, how much are oats again....mmh was it five cinders or ten?' Old man John considered the situation in between his puffs and he thought, oats are really expensive, his finances might not be able to afford such a luxury!
"You know what, scratch that, I'll prepare an extra bowl of carrots instead, forget the oats, I hear they're not good for ponies anyway."
Neigh! Neigh!
The pony, hearing this neighed and snorted in protest, waving its head feeling betrayed.
"This...what! You don't like it? Well, I say take what is provided and do not object for you cannot carve your own cup from bone already swallowed, how long will I have to teach you these things you old Rust buck." John merely looked on with his hands behind his back with a holier than though expression on his face and a hidden surprise in his heart about his pony's attitude.
The pony was resigned, this old man, such a cheapskate he was a real penny pincher!
BOOM! BOOM! ZAP! ZAP!
Suddenly there was a flash of light, and a bolt of thick lightning struck a nearby path felling a few trees in front of them startling both John and Rusty, with Rusty standing with its hooves on end ready to make a break for it, the goods spilling behind it!
"Woah!, careful boy!...down, I said down...easy! easy!,..look its not going to hurt you, calm down now! Calm down!"
Old John quickly took control of the situation, calming Rusty and tightening his reins on the stump it was tethered to. John then became active, doing the difficult task of picking up the goods spilled all over the place from the sacks. His back paying the price.
The goods old john had gone to trade off were highly perishable flora collected from the damp, shaded peaks and valleys around Misty Town. Old John was not specialized or anything like that, it's just that he had heard rumors that the demand for these plants was high. And he, being an opportunistic man, decided to trust the word of a few drinkers over common sense.
Save to say that decision bit right straight in his gorydamn! The first sack contained the following flora: Moon-glow Cap, which is actually a specialty fungi. These rare, luminous mushrooms are prized by a very small group of master alchemists and high-end guild chefs for their unusual color-changing properties and brief but intense flavor profile.
In addition to that, it has an extremely high perishability index. They lose their glowing property (and most of their value) within ten days of being picked. If they don't sell quickly to the few established buyers, they spoil and must be brought back for low-grade drying. This in itself was tough for Old John to manage but he kept deluding himself anyway.... always chasing the bag.
The second sack contained a specialty dye material known as Weeping Moss. It was a damp, spongy moss used by a handful of royal dyers and fine paper makers to create a coveted, deep indigo pigment. And as you might have guessed, the dyers' demand is seasonal, and only a tiny quantity is needed for a year's supply.
Old John ended up bringing too much and the few buyers he found were already stocked for the season. Hence he ended up scoring only a few silver starlings, a paltry sum if you considered his expenses...
...
Old John, after getting everything in order and waiting for a while, looked towards the place that was struck by lightning. At this point in time the rains had receded by a lot and only a drizzle remained, he could continue with his journey but the lightning flash caught his attention.
He unsheathed Rusty and whilst holding the reins he moved towards the location of interest. He could see from a distance that the Lightning bolt had created a small crater and so he was curious about what it could be. Although he was also terrified of encountering something dangerous, the allure of a lucky encounter still kept his fears at bay.
Afterall in his youthful days he had heard stories of individuals unexpectedly acquiring strange objects through dangerous encounters, these objects tended to be highly valued and the individuals that obtained those strange objects quickly ascended to the heavens becoming wealthy and influential.
Old John had such fantasies spiraling in his mind; however, this time, he was bound to be disappointed. As he approached the crater, his heart quickened with anticipation and his stomach churned with both fear and excitement. His hands tightened around Rusty's ropes and his steps slowed down, becoming measured.
When he finally reached the crater's edge, he steadied his heart and he craned his neck over to look.
As he was looking, suddenly his eyes constricted and his mouth stood agape with shock and fear and confusion. His heart skipped a beat and he slipped and fell backwards, letting go of Rusty's ropes.
While sitted on his bottom, he raised his arms to his head clutching his old, soaked hat and said in a mumbling, trembling tone....
" Good Gracious me...!!!"