They called me freak and fled. I realized, it was not prejudice, it was fear. They constantly had bloody noses, and not from being struck. I had no choice, I gently sedated them and checked them. It's good I did, they were not long for this world. Now, they will be able to grow up into an adult. -- Anon Guest
[AN: This prompt was rearranged from being freeform poetry for space reasons.]
Life should never have settled in this place, but the people here had their reasons. Wealth. It overrides sense for a great many. The rare gemstones drew them in, and then they stayed to gather more. Naturally, the economy was rigged so that once they came in, they couldn't afford to leave. The plants they knew how to farm could not grow in the arid soil. The potable water was miles underneath them. So they dug rare gemstones to pay for food, water, and shelter, and thus lived in misery.
And thus, also, lived not very long.
As a traveling physician, I noticed in a handful of days. The town had no old people. They didn't live far past their forties. Nosebleeds were common to the point of being an everyday ailment. People had nose slings to get through their day without getting blood on everything. Some of them fancied them up to make them decorative.
When I could see them, of course. I was used to that kind of fear. I was not only a physician, I am a Hellkin. Having a demon driving a wagon into a town is usually seen as a bad omen. Mending a few animals' ailments helped me become approachable. I proved myself worthy by short-term remedies as I searched for a long-term solution to the overall issue.
Dry air. Lack of vitamin C in their diets. Perhaps even a lack of yeast nutrients. They would be more indebted if they had to import the supply. At least yeast could be farmed. Finding local sources that could also be farmed with minimal effort was going to be an issue.
Getting the people here to trust whatever I found might be a larger one.
One trouble at a time.
I was already prepared for desert temperatures. A devil like me is rarely bothered by the heat. The horse, however, needed shade. I overpaid for stable space and water, not even bothering with being Teufel Taxed. I just put the gold on the counter and told them what I was paying for. Maybe my generosity would work in my favour.
I could hope.
The heat didn't bother me, but the sun could still bake my brains. Hats and Hellkin didn't always mesh well. If one wanted to protect themselves from the brutal sun, it took something ridiculous, or something clever, or both. My hat was both. Made to let the horns poke through, but also to stay on once it was put on. There were straps and buttons, and ties. It looked ridiculous, it was ridiculous, but it also kept the sun from baking my brains in my skull.
If it's stupid and it works, say the wise, it's not that stupid.
However, roaming around the near-barren wilderness had to look stupid. So too did dangling an iron nail on a piece of string while muttering to myself. But that's what I do to dowse whatever I was looking for.
A means to obtain dietary vitamin C that these people could farm. Preferably with minimal effort.
The trick was not to watch the swing of the string, but the way the point of the nail was leading me. This way. That way. Making sure each step I took was steady and sure. It helped to have hooves. Mine could purchase in most situations, but it never hurt to look out for sinkholes or unstable ground.
There. In a hollow in a cliff like a nesting rock dove. A succulent that was a ripe red like... well... like a demon's skin. The whole thing was no bigger than a baby's fist. I scooped it into a terrarium for study. I'd need a lot more, but now I knew where they grew.
First step, done.
Maybe a dozen more to go.
[Photo by Michelle Tresemer on Unsplash]
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