Amidral: No Promises Exist

The Past

It was a warm day on the east coast. An old vansh slept under the shade of an apple tree on top of a small hill. From there, the village of Moch, one of many divisions of the tribe, was easily visible. The breeze blew gently and warmly from the ocean, a few kilometers away. The summer was beautiful, and the bright blue sky contrasted with the emerald region, creating a vivid visual display of colors. The apple tree's leaves danced as they let small rays of sunlight filter through. The old man's white beard and age-spotted pale skin reflected tiny patches of light and shadow. The wind was soft, but a stronger gust moved the branches, and the opportunistic sunlight settled on his heavy, wrinkled eyelids. It was enough to wake him up and reveal a pair of very light pink eyes. His expression of surprise, still half-asleep, watched the leaves shaking above him, unconsciously gasping very slowly. The peace of that afternoon was quiet enough for him to hear the accelerated beats of his startled heart.

"It was just a nightmare," he whispered.

In the distance, the laughter and shouts of approaching children began to overpower the still-present beats beneath his skin.

"Old Tash! Old Tash!"

"Are you sure he's around here?"

They continued calling, and he blinked as he came out of his thoughts.

"I'm here, I'm here!" he said, rising with the support of his cane. Standing up, he saw three children in the distance, each turning their head in different directions.

"There he is! Old Tash!"

The children ran up the hill.

"Hehehe, what's going on? Why so energetic?" Wrinkles decorated the corners of his eyes, more noticeable as he laughed in a weak attempt to expel air.

"Well..." —a short, dark-haired boy, his clothes like those of the other two, stained with blue and red, said. A copper-haired girl with curly hair tied in two buns gave a small push to the dark-haired boy.

"Thanks to Henry, we had some problems with the jelly shop owned by Rich's parents," he pointed to the third, the tallest of the three, with messy brown hair.

"Enough with the detours, let's get this done already!"

"... so you threw a cupboard full of berry jelly jars," the old man speculated.

"How did you know?" Henry asked.

"It's not too hard to figure out. After all, you're covered in sweets everywhere, and everyone knows they smell stronger than a bUGAtsu stable—well, in the sense that it's a strong smell," the children looked at each other.

"W...well, the thing is, our parents sent us to you," Lena said.

"Why me?" Tash asked.

"Well, you have a flower garden to sell flowers in the square, right? We have to help you, I mean, since you're quite old..." Rich was interrupted by a shove from Lena.

"Let's get to the point! We have to help you with whatever you need, at least until it gets dark," Henry said.

"I understand... Follow me, children," the old man turned around, and they descended the hill. Old Tash's house was a couple of minutes from the nearest street corner in the village. Like many other elderly people's homes, it was a wooden cabin isolated from the rest. As they got closer, the children were surprised to see that, unlike other times, the garden was completely devoid of flowers.

"... Old Tom... What happened to the flowers?" Lena asked.

"Yes... Did you forget to plant them this year?" Rich added.