The Sage plus two others by D.A. Sanford - HTML preview

By D.A.Sanford

Envy, the insidious disease that rots life from the inside out. Like a cancer, it just eats away at you. I know, I have it still. My town, my poor town. It was all but dead. The main street was almost nothing but empty buildings. The last things open are the local grocery store and the remnants of the main employer in this small town. It was only a matter of time until that closes.

One day a couple showed up and announced that they bought that shop and wanted to restore it back to the way it was. They were good to their word. They started to rebuild the base business then expanded.

They took interest in the town and brought back several shops including the restaurant.

They even helped the grocery store. The man, Brad, told us that it was vital to the employees that lived in the town. That was most of them. They were talented and the town rode on their coat tails.

We were even able to be in a position to finally break ground on a new town hall. It was overdue.

The first sign that envy was taking hold was when someone started talking about how they were buying up the town. Soon it would be nothing but theirs.

We have quite a few of other races, mostly goblins. A lot of them were second or third generation residents but that did not matter. Most were working at the plant. They bought all their food locally. Paid their tax’s, they were good citizens. But now they were invading.

His wife was a harpy halfling. For quite a few of these human town’s folk, she was now that half breed. The topper was that her father was a demon lord.

I had been caught up in this. I had a full blown anger with then stealing our town out from under us. They had no right. I called a town meeting, restricted to the human population. Didn’t want the invading races to try to take over the meeting.

We were having the meeting and the subject was that her father was the devil and was going to take our souls when they came in. He raised his hand and voiced the major fears. There was shouting at him. He stood there and told us that he had the solution to our problem.

He was moving to the next town. Then he dropped the bomb.

He not only was moving but the plant was also. He closed up all his holdings in town.

Even went so far as to demand his portion of the grocery store. He had it in the contract that they could demand full payment of their investment. The store had gone into foreclosure.

Then he told us that we were a dead town when he got here and now, he was out of here.

Panic gripped us as we saw all the moving trucks lined up. He and his wife got into their car and the very long caravan of trucks followed them out of town. He had invited all his employees to move with him. All of those goblins sold their houses and moved. Most of the humans also.

The strange thing was that as soon as their houses went on the market, they were sold for the list price. The buyer paid all closing costs. Within a short time, there were empty lots with nothing but grass where the houses once stood.

There were whole streets that were gone. I don’t mean that they were just lawns with a street running through it. Whoever is buying the houses, is pulling up the roads, removing all the electric poles. Nothing but open meadows are taking over the town.

Our partially built town hall went into foreclosure. We could not pay anyone. The bonds went unpaid beyond the grace period. Absolutely no money.

You see, they had made conditions in this town so inviting that other manufacturing plants came here. When the couple left, we had to raise taxes to pay for the bonds we floated. We raised them so high that they left. So did other residents. More meadows.

Finally, the town was dead. The only ones left were the group that were the worst grumblers. That included me. Someone had long since bought up all the empty buildings and the partially built new town hall. They were now gone.

All we did was wallow in our self pity as we drove to that thriving town to get food and our gas.

The town hall was just a meeting place where we all sat and agree that this was all that couple’s fault. One day, a stately gentleman comes into our pity party and tells us that he is here to finish this town. He had bought up our mortgages, you see to keep this cemetery of a town going, we even mortgaged the town properties.

The lawyers with him presented each of us the papers demanding payment in full.

Outside we heard the sound of the wrecking crew’s equipment revving their engines. He has already taken possession of the town hall in bankruptcy proceeding.

We were ushered out and watched as they loaded all the records, boxed up, into a state owned truck for the state archives. Then the hall itself went into a chain of dumpsters then taken to a recycling center. Our homes quickly followed.

On my last trip through, there was only the main road going through the town left. All poles, signs and such were gone. Funny thing is, the only thing left here is the town cemetery on the outskirts of town. All you can see is the rows of granite grave stones and that giant mausoleum.

Brad was right when he told us that this town was dead when he got here, he brought it to life and now it was dead.

Where that town hall was, there is a long drive and you could see that a mansion was being built.

That gentleman saw me looking and came over to me. “You were mayor here, weren’t you?”

“Yes, I was until that bastard killed it.” I was angry.

He ever so calmly looked at me. “He did not kill this town. You let it slip out from under you. Envy of his success is what killed it. You started to envy his success and then went to personal attacks. No” and he poked me in the chest, “your envy killed it. That beautiful woman you insulted, her father owned the corporation that originally tore apart that company in this town. That devil, that you yourself called him, is now turning it over to them. Brad’s way of doing business is the right way. They will grow it into a business that anyplace will welcome.”

Then he hit home. “I’m building this mansion as a wedding gift to my daughter. You see she is going to marry into their family. I, as the demon emperor, want my daughter to have this modest home. One last thing I need to tell you. It is a historical fact that the town’s founder’s mausoleum, in that cemetery, is the grandfather of that devil you feared. May the rest of your life be haunted by this one hard fact that you let envy drive out the one that would have made this town the major hub of manufacturing in this country. You and your towns people would have been rich beyond your dreams.

Instead, you live in your car. Your wife and children have left you. Now get that rolling home of yours off my land.”

With that, the guards took me to my car and followed me out.

Envy. He is right. Envy is the reason I am homeless and living out of my car. I am trying to get south before winter sets in. I am not eating every day. Money for the gas. Envy is gone from me. Survival has taken its place. I think I will change my name, get new papers and apply to one of their companies for a janitor’s position.”