Ged

Thwack.

In the fields of a vegetable farm, a boy worked tirelessly severing broccoli heads from their stem.

His stature was small, with a head of green bushy hair. A knife gripped firmly in his hand, he wiped a droplet of sweat from his brow.

"Ged, the broccoli heads you are cutting are too small! I've told you numerous times only cut them if they bigger than the palm of your hand" scolded Ross, the owner of the farm.

Thwack. Ged moved to cut another stem of broccoli.

Ross smacked the wheel of the tractor in frustration. "BIGGER THAN PALM OF YOUR HAND." He yelled out.

Ross was an older man, fit with a deep tan and a robust build. He sat atop a loud, red tractor, fuming with anger. He pointed emphatically to the palm of his hand to drive home his message to the boy cutting broccoli below.

Trailing behind the tractor was a platform holding a basin filled with freshly picked broccoli. Overseeing the basin was Ged's sister, Brit, a tall young woman with a fair complexion and fiery red hair.

Attached to the platform was a conveyor belt that transported broccoli from the ground to the basin.

"Boy, are you listening to me? It is EXTREMELY important that you follow my instructions," Ross continued to yell.

His words, however, were largely drowned out by the tractor's noisy engine and the boys ignorance to his surroundings.

"I wonder what meat tastes like," Ged thought, his mind drifting as he continued to cut several more broccoli stems with his knife.

Thwack, Thwack, Thwack.

"TOO FUCKING SMALL!!! WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING???"

The tractor screeched to a halt as Ross pulled violently on the parking brake. Swiftly taking the keys out of the ignition, he leapt out of the driver's seat, and with his hand raised he sprinted over to Ged...

Smack.

"Useless child. How many times do we have to go over this?"

"Give me that knife." Ross commanded.

Ged, snapping back to reality, handed over his knife. He grumbled with frustration as he rubbed the back of his head in pain.

Ross gripped hold of Ged's knife approaching a nearby broccoli plant and skillfully severed its stem.

"Look, Ged. No smaller than this," he emphasized, handing the broccoli over for Ged to inspect.

"We can't go any smaller than this. If we deliver shit quality produce, the government might shut down our farm."

Ross moved in close, squatting so that he was face to face with Ged, handing back Ged his knife.

"You need to focus. Quit losing track of what needs to be done," he advised sternly.

Ged nodded with understanding but internally he cursed the actions of the farm owner.

Not dwelling on it further, Ross walked back to start up the tractor and finish up the morning's work.

In what seemed to be a form of retribution, when Ross turned the keys in the ignition, no movement came from the vehicle.

After a few fruitless attempts, Ross closed his eyes in silent frustration. Then, grabbing a large metal crank from the passenger side, he approached the front of the tractor to attempt to do a manual startup.

Attaching the crank to the front, he gave a few forceful cranks, and the engine started up fine. However, as Ross was removing the crank, it sputtered and died.

Ross' eyes twitched in anger.

Once again, he cranked the engine. However, unlike the previous attempt that held some promise, this time the engine barely made a sound.

Furious, Ross yanked the crank off the front of the tractor.

Sensing the danger of Ross's temper, Brit hopped off the platform and moved far away from the tractor.

Gripping the crank in his hands, Ross swung at the metal tractor with powerful force.

CLANK.

The tractor went flying, a noticeable dent now marring its side. The platform toppled over, spilling broccoli all over the fields.

The two children stood still, their gazes fixed on the now lifeless tractor.

"What are you two standing around for?" Ross spoke furiously, "we still have a lot of work to do."

"I'm going back to the house for a bit. Go grab some buckets and start moving today's produce to the shed. Don't forget today we are supposed to go to market."

Ross didn't waste any more time. Dropping the crank on the ground, he began walking back towards the distant farmhouse.

Once Ross had moved some distance away Ged and Brit went to check out the now-defunct tractor.

"Wow, I've never seen him that angry. After the tractor, I thought he might go after you next," Brit remarked, approaching a frowning Ged.

"I'd like to see him try. It's just another typical performance from Raging Ross. The dumb bastard is always yelling at me over everything I do," Ged retorted with a flush of frustration

Brit laughed, teasing, "Because you keep screwing up, dumbass."

Ged grimaced, his face turning red, and replied, "Whatever, let's go get the buckets. I want to finish this quickly."

Walking swiftly, the two made their way to the storage shed. Picking up cleaned-out paint buckets, they began the tedious task of manually ferrying the broccoli from the fields.

After two hours, they had unloaded the final bit of broccoli, but Ross was still nowhere to be found.

Ged, in the meantime, was taking a break, lounging between two discarded tires.

Brit had already moved on to the next task—packing and weighing the produce. Ged looked over at Brit, irritated by his sister's diligence.

"Why don't we take a break?" Ged protested. "Ross hasn't come back yet, and he only said to move the produce. Let's wait before starting on any more work."

"No chance. I'm not going to wait around with you just to face discipline later when he returns. Come on and help," replied Brit sternly.

Ged reluctantly got up from his resting spot, walked over, and began to help out with little enthusiasm.

"I don't like it here." Ged complained. "I don't like Ross, and I don't like being a farmhand."

"I know it's not great work, here. He may be a bit strict, but Ross has been the best owner we've worked with so far." Brit replied.

Ged frowned at Brit's stifling words. "But its boring out here."

"I am tired of eating stale bread and rice twice a day, I want to eat meat. Bundy told me he tried some once and it was greatest thing he's ever tasted."

"Also there is no one else to talk to in this stupid place. How am I supposed to meet my future wife when we are surrounded by several kilometers of farmland?"

"Ged, your thirteen years old. You really don't need to worry about these kinds of things."

Ged pouted. "Well, what about you? Is there anything you want to do in the future?"

Brit put down the tools she was working with.

"I haven't thought much about it. I am happy with what we have right now." She finally replied.

Ged frowned, deciding not to press further. The two went back to work diligently packing boxes with various vegetables, organizing them into stacked towers.

After some time, Ross finally showed up. He observed the two children working before giving a nod and joining in to help pack the remaining boxes.

Despite not finishing their harvest, the weeks haul were enough to fulfill the orders from the market.

Using his superhuman strength Ross loaded the towers of vegetables onto a platform attached to the back of a pickup truck, leaving Ged to look on in awe.

Ross spoke flatly, "We need to hurry."

The three tied down the boxes with string and a tarp, before all three squeezed into to the front of the truck.

Without a word the truck rolled down the farmhouse driveway on its way to the market warehouse.

The journey, though lengthy, was uneventful. Vast stretches of farmland, with little variation in scenery, did little to make the time pass.

Ged broke the silence of the trip to ask. "Ross? How did you get so strong?"

Ross let out a sleight smile. "It's a workout routine I do. If you are up for it someday I'll teach it to you."

Ged was about to agree to Ross' offer when an extraordinary moment occurred where a massive black dragon flew overhead, shaking the entire truck.

"Wow a dragon!" Ged said excitedly. "That's so cool."

Brit and Ged stared at the distant dragon with great fascination, in contrast a worried look appeared on Ross' face.

Finally after several hours of driving amidst what appeared to be endless fields a large, unmarked white building came into view.

The truck pulled up to the side of the building where a loading platform was stationed. Two burly men, dressed in casual clothing and each holding clipboards, stood on this platform. One sported a large twirly mustache, while the other had his face hidden underneath a mask.

Ross rolled down his window and began to chat with the mustached man.

"Here for inspection," Ross announced to the two men.

He then reached into his shirt pocket pulling out a folded piece of paper handing it over to the two men. After briefly examining the paper's contents, the mustached man folded it in half and passed it to his partner.

"Go and help unload." Ross instructed to Ged and Brit.

The two promptly got out of the truck making their way to the back to start undoing the knots securing the produce.

The man with the mustache smiled at Ross inquiring, "Any incidents to report on the farm?"

"Yes, my tractor," he replied. "It stopped working this morning during harvest."

The mustached man made a note on his clipboard.

"Can you show me your written report of what happened with this tractor."

Ross swallowed nervously.

Reaching into his second shirt pocket he pulled out another piece of paper over to the man.

The man with the mustache gazed over the contents of the paper, letting out a deep sigh.

"Ross, you're timeliness for deliveries is admirable. You get along well with the neighboring farmers, and you even took it upon yourself to foster those two troublesome children."

"I truly admire and appreciate everything you have done," the man spoke genuinely.

The mustached man then signed the piece of paper in a grand gesture of a scribble before handing it back to Ross.

"But I think you could do with a change of pace," the mustached man spoke softly. "Please do take care of yourself in the future."

Ross looked over the contents of the letter, his eyes despondently digesting its contents.

A mounting anxiety built up within Ross.

He desperately pleaded with the two inspectors. "No, please. Is there any way to change this? I-I can fix the tractor with my own money. There is no need to get a new one."

He held out the piece of paper in desperation, hoping the inspectors would take it and change its contents.

"I'm sorry, but this is how it must be," the mustache man spoke apologetically.

Ross massaged his face, trying to pull himself together. "How much longer do I have?"

The mustached man spoke candidly, "Expect sooner, rather than later."

With that, the two inspectors said their goodbyes, walking away from Ross and the truck.

Ross sat alone in his truck, contemplating his next course of action.

Strengthening his resolve, he exited the truck to lend Ged and Brit a hand with the final stage of unloading.

After the produce was weighed and inspected, a group of strange featureless green men carried the boxes away and into the white unmarked building.

Once the final box was taken away, Ross and the children got back into the truck and drove back home.

Unlike the car ride there, the ride back was eerily quiet, with Ross rarely engaging in conversation with the two kids.

The truck pulled into the driveway, the day already turning into night.

"You kids fend for yourselves for dinner tonight. I'm retiring early," Ross announced, his face displaying a hint of disturbed paleness.

After entering the house without another word, Ross vanished upstairs into his bedroom.

"Do you think Ross is alright?" Brit asked Ged.

"I'm sure he's fine," Ged replied.

An hour passed. The children had long finished their supper and each retired to their respective rooms for the night.

Under the cover of night, a black dragon soared through the skies. It encircled a broccoli field before descending beside a toppled red tractor. From the dragon's back, two individuals jumped off.