Smallest Advantage

Tyr's Decision

Tyr was sitting by a small stream holding a unique flower. It had red rose pedals with blue tips and a pink center. Holding a well worn leather bound book Tyr read a page with absolute focus.

The page read, {the stem holds a poison that in small doses can heal stomach pains. The sticky solution can be easily stirred into almost any liquid. Taste can be masked by a heavy fruit or mead taste...}. The rest of the page went into specific steps on how to remove and store the flowers liquid.

Tyr pulled a small knife from his pouch that hung off the side of his belt. Inside the pouch he had a few empty glass vials that his father made for his mother. Tyr would often take the vials and fill them with things from his mother's books.

Setting the book aside he held the flower in one hand and the knife in the other. Blinking a couple of times he cleared his vision and slowly slide the knife down the stem. Being careful not too cut all the way through. The sticky solution leaked from the cut in a steady amount. Quickly Tyr put his knife back inside the pouch and held the vial underneath the flower.

The vial filled up after a half minute. The solution gave off a sorta sweet musky smell. From a small distance away the smell disappeared entirely. Tyr found that information to be interesting. 'Maybe when Father is having pains I could sneak this in his drink,' thought Tyr.

Putting the flower back into the ground wouldn't help it. After cutting the stem the flower was going to wither. Tyr didn't want to waste anything so after a quick look inside his pouch he withdrew a small bowl and a small wooden stump.

The bowl and stump were to small for his father or Taylin but they fit his hands perfectly. After many uses the wood was smooth and well worn giving it a soft golden color. Tyr often wondered where his father bought it. Or maybe his father made it. Either way Tyr was grateful.

Setting the flower inside the bowl he grab the stump and with steady hands ground the flower into a paste. A soft sweet smell slowly grew from the bowl. Giving Tyr the impressions of fresh baked pies or sweet breads.

Soon the his work was done and his reward was a slightly more solid liquid from the flower resembling a paste. Grabbing the vial from earlier Tyr poured the paste into it. Almost completely filling it up completely with both the paste and liquid from the stem.

At first nothing happened but then the color inside the vial started to change. At first it was just a solid white color from both the paste and the solution from the stem. With memorizing slowness the color changed to a light blue hue.

Tyr's first impression was too touch and smell it. But his mother's wisdom from her books spoke to him. 'When testing new things it's important to start slowly. Don't touch because poisons can burn you. Don't smell, poisons can enter you. Don't eat, for poisons call kill.'

Smiling to himself Tyr felt his mother's love from her books from home. Even the one he brought with him was beyond precious too him and his family. Tyr had read every book numerous times even falling asleep holding them. Still after so many times he felt the same love surround him.

Wrapping the vial in many shreds of animal fur for safety he placed everything back inside his pouch. Standing up Tyr stretched his cramped muscles. At full extension he sighed deeply enjoying the feeling of his body releasing so much tension.

'I better get home soon,' thought Tyr. He knew that his brother and father didn't like him spending so much time in the woods but he felt closer too his mother that way. He wouldn't be big and strong like Taylin. So metalworking was not likely.

Bending over Tye picked all of his things placing them carefully inside his pouch. Grabbing the leather sling that his father made for him and had attached to his pouch for easy carrying he hauled it onto his left shoulder. After settling his pouch on his right hip he placed one hand on it and heading out of the woods.

The woods around the stream weren't thick but provided enough shade that even during summer heat Tyr often didn't sweat. The underbrush was soft from leaves falling throughout countless season changes. So comfortable in the woods that Tyr wouldn't even wear his shoes. He would prefer letting the ground under his feet guide him.

Game trails made from animals listening too their instincts looking for food provided the best way to travel. Although they twisted and turned in different ways they generally went in a single direction.

Picking the largest trail made from the larger game, Tyr followed it in the general direction of the village below his home. The village had an unofficial name of Sink by the locals. It seemed to be a joke among everyone who lived there but he could not understand it.

Gentle rises in the land gave the trees the illusion of growing atop green waves. Rising and ebbing in unusual ways flowing in no general direction following the timeless needs of the world.

The trees started to thin out after a unusual steep rise. After mounting the final few steps Tyr was greeted with the normal sight of Sink below him. The village was a collection of sturdy wooden homes that numbered nearly a dozen. Nestled between to large steeps hills Sink often had trouble with flooding during the heavy rains but enjoyed cool summer days.

A medium sized dirt road was tracked through the middle of town. By unspoken constant the villagers used it as a divider when building new homes or shacks. Other than the road dividing the village neatly in two the houses were built haphazardly in the valley. Some were built sideways from each other or taller than their neighbors.

Tyr often thought about why the villagers built their homes without thinking how it looked compared to others.

'Maybe it just suited the individual families better,' he thought amusingly to himself.

Looking down at the village his eyes naturally followed the road leading off to his right. It wound up the hill following numerous horse tracks made over the years. Just over the rise Tyr could see a thin plume of smoke rising into the sky.

Smiling to himself Tyr knew his father and Taylin would work well into the evening. Looking back down at the village he made his way down. The trees gave way after a few feet opening up into a sea of grass that was softer on Tyr's feet than the softest fur his family owned.

Walking just a little slower he enjoyed the way his feet seem too play in the grass. His toes wiggled slightly with each step. Tyr loved how nature could be so kind. Wind blowing in his face, life growing all around him, and the warm sun on his back.

He wasn't so young to be naive either. Nature could also destroy. A gentle rain could turn into a fight against knee high water. The warm sun could be so hot it felt as if his skin would melt.

Often times whenever these events would happen Tyr would somehow remain calm. His family called it his special 'Gift'. Tyr just thought anyone could do what he did. He thought things through and followed the logical way to get things done.

Halfway down the hill a small knoll no bigger than a book jetted up into the sky. Two well worn brown leather boots were laying in the grass. Tyr knew his father wanted him too wear them whenever he went into the woods but it felt wrong to him. So he did a unknown compromise with his father and would wear them until this point.

Being careful with his pouch filled with treasures and wisdom Tyr sat in the grass. Slipping his shoes on he always felt a unconscious separation from the world around him. As if he wasn't one with it anymore. 'Just like any other human' he would often say to himself.

The boots were made from deer leather caught by local hunters. His father would work a couple of special jobs once a year to trade for specific items the family needed. Being poor was never a bother for Tyr. So instead he saw a lesson taught too him by his father. 'If money isn't enough then work will be.'

Shaking himself from his thoughts Tyr stood up and grabbed his pouch. Slinging it over his shoulder he hurried the rest of the way into the village the pouch softly bouncing against him.

Part 2 of Tyr's Decision will be coming in a few days