Stew For a Crew

Stew for a Crew

A lone handcart trekked along a muddy road. A lone large man trailed along. Cloths white illuminated from the sun beating down on him. To one side of the road was a forest with trees stretching toward the sky larger than any castle one has ever built in human, elf or dwarven realms. To the other side was a hilly plain stretching beyond the horizon.

The road south is a dangerous one. Muddy and fraught with bandits. It’s the only road to the land of the human-elf empire. To the west is the feral forest of beasts containing minotaurs, trolls, and other vicious creatures, and to the east is the doomed deserts of the genie where many lose their way and are swept up by the sandstorms that can peel the flesh away from the bodies of those who dare travel there. Only a sliver of arid land was safe to travel between the icy tundra of the dwarves up north and the civilized plains to the south.

Night came revealing the subtle beauty of the sky above this hostile land. Stars shining bright in many colors red white, blue, yellow. Stars of the different planes of existence stretching into the unknown above. A New day breaks and the light of the morning sun tears away that beauty into a blue sky. A New day brings a new journey and new challenges, Some more deadly than others.

“Aye, look what we have here, a man alone with nothing to protect him but his cooking knife” A snooty high pitch voice broke the morning peace.

The man dressed in white sat at a cutting board cutting vegetables prepping his morning breakfast before he continued his journey. Approaching the man on all sides of his camp a crew of bandits dressed in rough leathers tied together with simple twine and rope.

Sniff

“Have you come to join me for breakfast?” The man gladly said as he continued to cut his vegetables. “I always appreciate the company”

“I don’t think you understand your situation” one of the bandits stepped in front of the man and with his rough rusted Axe slammed it down on the man’s cooking board just inches away from the man’s hands.

The man stopped dicing and looked up at the bandit in front of him. Sniff, “you stink go wash up before breakfast, we wouldn’t want your smell to spoil breakfast”

A boisterous laugh left the bandit’s mouth. “Ha, he says I stink” the bandit looked around at his fellows, swinging his arms in the air motioning his fellows to laugh with him. “Well Mr Cook, your body will stink more than me soon enough” he stooped his head down meeting eyes with the man, daring the man to make a move.

The man smiled “Your breakfast will be done shortly” breaking eye contact, the man snatched up the vegetables and threw them in a boiling pot of water he had over the morning campfire. Turning back to the bandit before him, the man grabbed something from his pocket and threw it at the bandit. crushed mint. A great on the go deodorant for travelers.

The wet leaves splattered on the bandits’ clothes. The bandit looked down, startled to see the herbs on him and smelled the fine aroma of something that wasn’t the smell of human feces.

Angrily looking back at the man the bandit quaked “oh you didn’t…. I’m going to kill you!” The bandit pulled up his Axe and swiftly swung his weapon at the man but was met with the man grappling his wrist holding the axe coming to a sudden stop. A stammer from all the fellow bandits shook the air as they witnessed such a display of strength by stopping a swinging axe so easily.

“Your food isn’t done yet. Save your enthusiasm for after you have tasted your food”.

The bandit in awe at the strength of this white approned man backed away, breaking away from the man’s clutches. “Ehgmm” the bandit looked around at his fellows, fear set in on his fellows as they looked at the man now standing tall over them. They had not noticed the man’s size when he was crouched over his cutting board but now that he was standing before them, they beheld a 8ft tall human or was it a half giant? The bandit about to give a snarky comment held it back not wanting to anger this beast of a man looming taller than he was. Now just realizing what the man said the bandit peeped. “My food?”

“Yes, your food” the man motioned to the side where a giant pot of boiling stew lay. “Made just for you…” kneeling back down over his cutting board, the man pulled out from a bag a cut of pork and began to chop. “and if your friends here want to step up and enjoy, it will be ready shortly”

The gang of bandits approached sitting on the ground around the man and the pot while the man continued to prepare what smelled to be a delicate meat flavored potato stew. Only a couple minutes passed in silence before the bandits started whispering amongst themselves until one spoke up “So Mr… Cook, where are you from?”

Finishing with the meat and adding it to the stew the man replied “From the East Plains” The bandits continue to murmur amongst themselves theorizing what such a large man would be doing on the north road since he was from a place that would be several months’ journey away. A land that was full of Large Folk. Giants, or by their scholarly name; Goliaths, Other large creatures also dwelled in the East plains; Mammoths and Wyverns all dwelled in the East Plains. People tend to leave Giant folk alone just out of fear of their size and brute muscle. But this man before them was not as giant as the stories they heard from their childhood.

One of the bandits daring himself to tease the man said “If you’re from the east then why are you so small? Aren’t East Folk supposed to be as large as a house?” the other bandits snickered.

“Oh yes, I am small…” The Man’s face which was smiling and welcoming before, started to melt into a pale emotionless grit. A Giant would normally bask in their size and brute force but this man was nowhere close to what his kin were revered for.

The bandits seeing this change in his face started to worry. Though this man was no size of a normal giant he was still a force to be reckoned with for their mere human strength.

The Man continued, “But small as I am, my real strength lies in the creations I make”. Recalling his passions the man’s face returned back to its soft state as he drew in his breath. sniff. “Well Give it a couple minutes and it will be ready, I have to finish packing before I head off.”

The bandits debated with one another, they never let someone simply leave without them taking as much as they could from their prey, but this man was perplexing to them and was leaving them stumped as to what to do.

The bandit with the Axe finally spoke up after gaining enough confidence from his failed confrontation, “If you want we could use a good chef in our gang here” the bandit said feeling smart in his proposal thinking having even a half giant would add great value to their gang.

“Sadly I can’t stay, I have run out of my favorite seasoning and I need to restock my supply” The man continue to pack up his cutting board and bed roll onto his hand cart then paused as if remembering something “but, I have made a promise to make a meal for a friend up north, So I imagine I will come back through here again”

“So will you join us then? maybe… be our chef?”

“Maybe. When I return, I could be your chef for one more meal” replied the man.

The bandits started to stir in excitement. They could smell the stew’s aroma filling their noses and started scavenging for anything they could use to eat with.

The man smiled “Seems your noses have not failed you. Your food is”. Sniff. “done”.

The Bandits started feasting, gobbling down the stew until there was nothing left. Not even their newly proclaimed chef got a sip. Seeing their joy in eating his food, their new Chef took no offense. Everyone was filled and you could hear a sigh of full stomachs breath through the gang of bandits.

Grabbing the empty pot and placing it into his kart, Chef started on his way

The Axe bandit got up quickly and shouted at the man before he could get away “Hey! You better come back to feed us again! And What was your name?”

“You can just call me Chef!” Chef shouted back with a big smile on his face. Glad to have had happy customers, it was all he needed to fill his stomach for breakfast.

“And you can call me Evelon! Everyone, give a big thank you to Chef!”. In unison all the bandits stood up and shouted “Thank You Chef!” Then they all slumped to the ground holding their bellies in delight as they had never been this full since their mothers fed them their last meal before their homes were ransacked leading them to their lives today.