Tantalus.

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 Tantalus felt the burning of the sun on his neck, and the burn of blisters on his feet. With each step he felt sand shift in his boot as he trudged through the desert towards Shafter. There were stories of new machines like the automobiles back east that could cover his several hour trek in a matter of minutes, but Hell would freeze over before one of those machines could survive the dust and sand of the Texan desert. So until that day came, Tantalus kept up his march back home.

The silhouette of the cyanide mill stood far above the surrounding homes and sagebrush as it puffed out it's white smoke. Turning crude ore to fine silver and gold that would be exported to cities like London, Moscow, and Beijing. Men came to Shafter with nothing, and left with pockets filled with silver and sweat across their brow. Tantalus made sure of that. For decades Tantalus had served as the mayor of the town, and as long as he could help it, that wasn't going to change any time soon. Which is why he was in such a hurry tonight.

The governor of the entire state, James Ferguson, was coming for a visit, and if Tantalus was to survive he needed to be more than welcoming to him. Mr.Ferguson had been impeached once, but that hadn't stopped him from running a shadow governorship for close to half a decade, and he had taken care of anyone who seemingly insulted him while he did it. Whether they had tried to slander his name, brought him bad food, or even simply looked at his wife for too long, Mr.Ferguson made sure they couldn't live in Texas much long after. Despite that Tantalus had decided to invite him to Shafter for dinner.

Tantalus stormed into his home. Giving a quick glance through his home already on the verge of hysterics,

"Boy! Where are you?"
"Just over here Father!"

Tantalus' son moved to the entryway from the dining room with a filthy apron and messy denim.

"What else do you need?"

"What do we have?"

"The table is prepared, and I got extra drinks like you requested..."

The teenager went on to list everything he had prepared for the dinner. He had done everything he could to meet his Father's exacting specifications, but he couldn't do the impossible.

"...but there weren't any cattle like you asked."

It looked like Tantalus had just had an aneurysm, and he spun fast enough to give himself whiplash to compliment that blown blood vessel. He was without words struggling to string enough letters together to properly convey his frustration.

"B-but the meat!"

The boy's voice was barely a croak, "There isn't any left! The ranchers have already started driving their cattle up north again, and there ain't another cow this side of the Colorado!"

Tantalus could only muster a single howl as he stomped up and down the stairs. The boards bending as if they'd snap under his fury.

"There will be fresh meat when the governor arrives boy! I can promise that much!"

He couldn't help but feel weak at the knees as he listened to his Father scream down the halls of their home. A pit growing in his stomach as he felt something dark fall upon the household.

Everyone couldn't help but turn their heads as they watched a carriage kick up dust as it rolled down what the locals dared to call a road. No one could remember the last time anything this ornate had rolled into town, and everyone took notice of it. Just how Mr.Ferguson liked it. If the governor of Texas was rolling into this grubby town of silver miners he was gonna make sure everyone knew about it. The carriage stopped only a few feet from Tantalus' home as he stepped off the porch to meet him.

"Governor! You're early."

"I would have hated to keep you waiting, Tantalus. I hope you don't mind that I've brought a few associates?"

There was always a right way and a wrong way to answer a question from Ferguson, and Tantalus could tell the difference.

"Not at all sir! We've set the table for extra guests anyway."

Ferguson gave a nod as he stepped into the house. From the carriage came his wife, and close to the entire executive body of Texas.

They spent hours sitting in Tantalus' parlor smoking and trading stories of new laws and far away wars, but a man can not live on nicotine alone. They were all ushered to the dining room for dinner. The halls echoing with boisterous laughter that came from all in the party save for one man.

Ferguson sat at the table with an uncanny feeling of apprehension spreading from him to the rest of his associates.

"Tantalus, didn't you write to me about your son? Where is he?"

"Oh yes, you must excuse him. He is out for the night helping with some ranchers near the Rio Grande, but please we shouldn't be worrying about him. The steaks have arrived."

The eyes of the room turned to the host while a few only picked at their meals. Ferguson looking over the food over with a scowl.

"These steaks seem more like veal?"
"Alas, it was all I could find so late in the season-"

Tantalus' words were interrupted by Ferguson's wife as she gagged deeply. Spitting out the remains of Tantalus' son.

They were gone within the hour, and the orders to apprehend the cannibal were passed down to the National Guard within the day, but the mob got to him first. When the soldiers arrived they saw Tantalus' arm outstretched. Reaching for the fruit only barely out of reach as he stood half frozen in a creek too shallow to drink from. Ringing in his ears was the curse that Shafter, the town he had dedicated his entire life to build, would soon be nothing but dust. 

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