Chapter 7: No peace for old men

Orion was a young man of 17 living a simple life in the peaceful countryside of the city of Augustine where he helped tend to the family's fields and occasionally sold their farm's goods to the cityfolk. Alongside him was a kind-hearted old man named Cyrus, whom he affectionately referred to as "Old Man Cy." Cyrus, a gentle figure in his late 50s, had been a part of the Augustine community for the past two decades helping the country folk and delivering goods to and from the city via horse carriage.

(Today is delivery day)

"Morning old man."

"How long are you gonna keep calling me that."

"I don't know, how long are you going to be an old man?"

Cyrus lifts a heavy amount of goods and loads them into the carriage.

"I still don't see how you're able to lift that much at your age."

"Looks can be deceiving Orion."

Cyrus sighs.

"You have a lot to learn,lets get a move on while its still daylight."

Cyrus and Orion make a few stops at the local shops finally ending at their biggest delivery star tavern,on their way in the tavern they encounter a rowdy group of drunks who stumble into Cyrus.

"Hey, watch it geezer!"

"You fell into him maybe if you weren't so drunk you'd realize that.

"Your boy better watch his tongue if he wants to keep it."

before Orion could respond Cyrus interjected.

"Orion, let it go. we have business to attend to."

Orion, though reluctant, respected Cyrus's words and chose to withhold his anger and started unloading packages from the stack but at that moment one of the drunks knocked the stack over onto Orion as they were leaving,in retaliation Orion threw a bottle breaking it on the mans head.

"you're dead kid!"

before the man could strike Orion, Cyrus intervined grabbing his arm.

"As you said before he is a boy and if you consider yourself a man you'll deal with me instead."

The man agreed striking Cyrus repeatedly to no avail,surprisingly, Cyrus did not retaliate. Instead, he faced the assailant with a piercing gaze that sent shivers down the drunkard's spine so much so that he stopped his assault allowing Cyrus and Orion to leave.

Confused by Cyrus's passive response, Orion questioned him, wondering why he had allowed himself to be hit without fighting back.

"Cyrus, why did you let him hit you? I don't understand."

In that moment, Cyrus offered a profound insight, his voice filled with wisdom.

"There are times when refraining from physical confrontation becomes a testament to one's true strength. It is in these moments that one can exhibit incredible restraint and wisdom."

Meanwhile, the frightened drunkard, still trembling, whispered to his companion that the old man resembled someone he had seen on a wanted poster.

"I swear, he's the same guy from the wanted poster. That look in his eyes... it's unmistakable, even if he's older now."

Little did Orion know that this simple bar encounter with Old Man Cyrus would become a catalyst for a series of events that would soon challenge his perspective on strength, courage, and his very life forever.