Lapis wrinkled her nose at the earthy mess before her eyes. She had found a wild strawberry bush and attempted to uproot it… but… she’s pretty sure she yanked off its upper half in the process.
“It’d be simple and easy.” How to Survive in the Wilderness 101 Tips claimed. “It’d be fun.”
Clearly uprooting plants took a lot more finesse than she had initially anticipated as so far, every plant she’s tried to take back to their camp, have all lost their heads.
“Have mercy, your majesty!” Her younger twin sister, Lazuli pleaded contempt dripping from her eyes as she simply plucked fruits and flowers she found, bundling them up with the hem of her dress.
Lapis was beginning to feel sorry for the plants but seeing her sister’s stupid face made her sympathy fade and she threw a corpse at her instead.
“Don’t get mad when you’ve never had the talent.” Her sister walked back to their tent unfazed.
Lapis made a face.
Okay, so maybe she was a bit too optimistic about procuring resources once they left the capital.
But everything would work out soon, she just knew it.
Even though they lost their jeep in quicksand and nearly sunk to their deaths, it was for the best.
They’d be harder to track on foot. Thankfully, the only thing they were able to save was the bag containing their tents and some tools.
Lapis shook her trusty hammer chisel and wandered around the area.
The landmarks of abandoned diners and parks told her what this place must’ve been once. A pitstop for cars and nothing else. Sand, rock and the occasional patch of green, not to mention there was a narrow stream wrapping itself around the area.
At the very least, they would have fish to eat. But…the twins hated fish. Particularly the raw taste, with the seasonings they lost they’d be in for some misery, but they’d live.
Just as she had hoped her day was rather productive, even if it took all her energy. She found chrysanthemum, daisies, two frogs, two crystals and a time capsule buried in the sand. Inside was an antique toy,
In the end, the best haul of all was an isolated cupcake stall with a tiny garden of carrots, lemons, sage and flowers beyond waiting to be picked.
“Are you with the Worldwide Guild?” She asked the clerk as she inspected the stall. She had read before that the WWG had issued a new mandate to provide trade centers in poverty-stricken areas, but she had yet to see any building structures other than a tiny house across the street from them and the ruins of a diner.
The stall itself was far too immaculate and in new condition to be anything but WWG’s handiwork. But oddly enough she didn’t see any runes etched into the structure. Was the booth an artifice itself?
“That is correct!” The clerk was chipper, Lapis couldn’t tell whether it’s because she looked like she had money or because she had probably yet to see a resident here in years.
Her Old Man only had nasty things about WWG, but truth was it was the only godsend for the poor. Which unfortunately was her. She never thought she’d see the day she’d be so hard pressed to go against her Father’s programming to run away much less buy something from a food stall.
“I’d like to sell something.”
–
Lapis shared her findings with her sister and they sold all their finds.
Lapis ended up with $134 dollars and Lazuli eighty-five, twenty-five of which she spent on some pasta.
It was never a contest, but Lapis couldn’t help feeling smug about her results. She ordered ten-dollar fish tacos to call it a night.
PB CONVENIENCE 