Peon Part IIa: Life would be Simpler if Carriages Lacked Breaks

This is about half of the second part of Peon. I keep delaying on releasing the complete Peon since I've been going back and editing/adding to it. I'm going to start editing and posting it in smaller sections. Enjoy reading.

Peon Part II: Life would be Simpler if Carriages Lacked Breaks

The town was as an amazing site for Peon to see up close as it was from the top of the hill. Townspeople went quickly about their business here and there as a steady traffic of mover drawn carts hauled merchant goods down the main thoroughfare. Peon followed the merchant traffic along the muddy road towards the market at the center of town. As he walked he saw children running between the many mover carts playing or maybe lifting a few items here and there as they occasionally had been known to do. As the path neared the market it became a paved cobblestone street. He saw many more people crossing the path now on their way to and from local shops. A woman was sweeping off the stoop of a little shop off to his right. It was in a nook shoved between the much larger Golgameshe’s Chamber Pots and Alagan’s Wooley Woolerby Rugs. The small sign above the door said Yed’s Assorted Things. Peon took no interest in these stores but noticed the fine quality of the broom the woman was using to sweep the stoop. The handle was made of a sturdy red wood which Peon thought could be from an Yllian tree. Carved in it were beautiful scenes of flying birds and falling leaves. The bristles were tightly packed and wrapped to the handle by a fine red string. As he was about to call out to the woman and ask where he could get such a broom for himself one of the children still playing around the carts bumped into him. Momentarily startled he looked down to see a small brown-eyed child glance up at him then push off and rush into the stream of carts once more. When Peon recovered his composure he turned back to face the stoop only to find that the woman with the finely crafted broom was no longer there. He glanced around him for any sign of her but was disappointed when he could not find her in the mass of carts and people. With a slightly disappointed sigh he continued on his way towards the market to acquire some delicious berries and secretly hoping that he might be able to find one of those brooms there as well. A few short parts of a moon later he reached the market and began perusing the various goods for berries. He saw many interesting things including: glowstone necklaces, a multipole, invisible thread, Salt Coast wine, one merchant was pedaling magic spoons that could shift into forks or maybe it was the other way around. As he continued to search for berries Peon came upon a animal keeper selling rarer fare than one might normally see in such a town. Peon noticed a bird perched on a stand that was changing its colors every few seconds.

“Come closer my friend and have a look at these wondrous creatures. Just make sure not to touch. Some of them can be fairly intolerant at times,” said the keeper as he took a beetle from a bowl he held and dropped it into a cage nearby. Squeaking and squawking sounds emanated from the dense foliage within then the cage shook violently with a few piercing shrieks before going quiet.

“Feeding time,” said the keeper turning to him and smiling broadly.

Peon had read many articles about exotic creatures from his subscription to Palladium magazine and was interested in getting a good look at the selection before him. He approached the keeper’s alcove and peered down at one of the creatures on display. This one was a small lizard lying out across a bed of hot coals. Its scales were a dusty orange color. The lizard did not seem to mind the heat from the coals and even seemed to be enjoying itself. As Peon stared at it intently it raised and cocked its head to the side. Blinking slightly it stared at Peon with a fiery golden eye then turned its head toward him flicking its long wisp of a tongue to taste the air. Peon and the creature stared at each other in this fashion for several more seconds. With a flick of its tongue the lizard shot forth a plume of flame. Being possessed of quick reflexes especially when his life was in mortal danger Peon ducked in time to avoid the majority of the flame. He backpedaled away from the lizard patting franticly at the hair on his head to extinguish the tufts which had caught fire. The keeper looked at the lizard and shaking his head said, “Uh oh looks like somebody has a cold. Maybe we had best put you away for a little while.” The keeper picked up the stand the lizard rested on and moved it to the back of the alcove covering it with a glass bowl. “Every time I bring him here he comes down with something. It must be a bit too drafty even on the coals salamanders prefer lava, you know. If I could just get him some Alchemist’s Fire,” he said turning back to Peon he continuing, “Could I interest you in some of my other creatures. Flick makes a great show item in warmer weather but you wouldn’t want him sitting around your house with a cold. Maybe you’d like a little coo cat? They make excellent pets!”

“Ummm….no, no…no thank you….I’m afraid my house isn’t big enough for another creature.” Responded Peon shakily. With that Peon turned away and continued searching through the market for berries. Peon had no idea how much sense his comment made. Having never seen a coo cat or read of them in Palladium Magazine he would not know that coo cats can grow to a rather large size. In fact, the average fully-grown coo cat could reach a couple times the size of peon’s small house. Coo cats are known for making a distinct cooing sound that is very pleasing for people to hear. Many traders sell kittens to unsuspecting patrons though these traders seldom every trade in the same area again. A trader who returns usually finds an angry mob of villagers complaining of how he sold them cats that ate them out of everything they had. A returning trader may also find that the villagers had found an inventive use for their overly large pets.

One such merchant, by the name of Bartholomew Woodard, sold a number of kittens to the town of Waterman’s Knoll in the fifty-first Moon Year of the Wintry Moon; while passing through on his way to the capital city of Iron Holm. Upon his return voyage in the spring he made a second stop at Waterman’s Knoll with the belief that he could charge whatever he wished for the food stores he possessed. At the marketplace the town’s mayor greeted him and demanded that he make restitution for the expense of feeding the gigantic coo cats. Bartholomew Woodard was not a simple trader but owned a large merchant fleet and had several guards to ensure that he and his precious cargo made it safely to and from his destination. Not afraid of a few angry villagers he refused the mayor’s demands. It came as a complete surprise when the mayor gave him a little smile and then whistled a high-pitched note. What followed was the demise of Bartholomew Woodard and the destruction of a great merchant fleet as two-dozen coo cats rushed out from behind the town’s buildings trampling Woodard and his guards. The cats then proceeded to play in the harbor with Woodard’s fleet. The surprised merchant captains attempted to flee but unlike normal felines coo cats enjoy water. Each ship sank with all hands due to the coo cats pouncing on them as if they were giant floating mice.

It so happens, that while Bartholomew Woodard had been in Iron Holm selling his goods the townspeople of Waterman’s Knoll had been starving to death as the growing coo cats had eaten all their winter stores of food. Having no other choice the townspeople began sending parties to hunt the local forest for any creature that would pass as edible. On one expedition a coo cat had followed one of the hunters out into the forest. The hunter had tracked a small herd of wild woolerby to a clearing and was about to shoot one with his bow and arrow when the coo cat lumbered out of the forest and swatted the woolerby breaking its neck. It then set about to eating its meal as the surprised and frustrated hunter looked on. The hunter stormed out of the bushes he was hiding behind and yelled furiously at the coo cat to get away from his woolerby. The coo cat looked up at the hunter then slowly backed away. The hunter surprised the large beast had listened to him stood there stupidly for a few small parts of a moon. Once he recovered his wits he quickly grabbed the woolerby and dragged it back to town with the coo cat following serenely behind. After returning to town and sharing the woolerby meat with the other townspeople the hunter began to think about the strange way the coo cat had responded to him. An idea occurred to him that it might be possible to train the coo cats to help with hunting. It was soon realized, once a few attempts to train the cats had been made, that they were very intelligent and learned quickly. With the help of the coo cats the village hunted a steady supply of food for the winter and in the spring were able to deliver the merchant Woodard’s comeuppance.

Peon passed more colorful stalls filled with goods as he searched the market for berries. He was extremely glad to be away from the fire breathing lizard and quixotic animal keeper. The crowd was becoming thicker in the section of the market he had just entered. He had to push his way through the throng of people to continue onward, hoping to find what he was looking for at the market’s center. After what seemed like several parts of a moon longer than it was Peon broke out of the crowd of people. Peon stood where he was taking in the wonderful sight he had come here to find. Across from him and the gap in the crowd was a stand covered with every kind of berry imaginable. There were blueberries, red berries, white berries, orange berries, blackberries, multihued berries, and the shapes and sizes varied from tiny to the size of Peon’s fist. It was while standing there struck dumb he had found what he was searching for, that a passing mover cart passed over his foot. Peon let out a bloodcurdling scream and began hopping around wildly. Heads turned in his direction to see what all the commotion was about. The onlookers were perplexed to find a peon holding his foot while hopping up and down in a lane of traffic as a mover cart prepared to make him a useful roadway. While continuing to hop away the reawakened pain in his right foot Peon noticed all the people staring at him and behind him. Curious to find out what was of interest behind him he hopped around and noticed the fast approaching mover cart. Having no intention becoming a new coating of pavement Peon made a large hop to the side and rolled out of the way just in time to avoid the mover cart. Unfortunately, as the mover cart passed leaving Peon unscathed it hit a badly placed pothole and kicked up muddy water drenching him to the bone.
The onlookers laughed at the soaking wet peon still laying in the road holding his foot, and went about their business. Peon climbed to his feet gingerly setting his throbbing right foot on the ground. He decided that he would not let being in pain and soaking wet ruin the moment. He proceeded to hobble toward the merchant stand with the assorted berries. The shopkeeper, an old woman with frizzy white hair and inordinately large spectacles, looked at him giving a slight grimace at the sight of a muddy peon visiting her establishment. But being the successful business woman she was she asked “What can I get for you today, sir? I have this fine collection of berries available here before me and a stock of preserves in back.”

“I’ll have some blackberries, blueberries, red berries, orange berries, and some multihued berries…..ummmm…..make that a double helping of the multihued,” he replied.

The shopkeeper quickly put the berries Peon selected into a complementary basket and extended it toward him. She then asked, “What do you have as payment, sir?”

Peon quickly dug in his pockets for the watch he was carrying and handed it to her smiling. The shopkeeper looked at her hand and scowled then flung the ball of mud Peon had handed her to the ground saying, “I’m afraid mud doesn’t cover the cost of delicious berries such as these.”

Startled, Peon looked at the ground where lay the ball of mud he had mistaken for the watch. “I’m terribly sorry madam I thought that ….well….. it was something else….just a moment….” He said digging through his pockets once again.

But try as he might he could not produce the watch. The shopkeeper a bit miffed at receiving no payment withdrew the basket full of succulent berries saying, “Well, I thought my berries were worth more than mud to you but I can see that I was wrong. Come back when you have something that isn’t dirty. That includes yourself!”

Peon stunned and defeated wandered away aimlessly from the berry stand eventually sinking to the ground. Having come so close to his goal and failed he laid there for many parts of a moon pondering how he could have lost the watch.

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