The sun had just begun to rise when Zach Heren walked out to the wheat field, stifling a yawn. “Man…why must he want me to be up this early? It was supposed to be an easy day today…just simple weeding and trimming.” Zach shook his head and walked through the field and to the shed. “Oh well, might as well get it done as soon as a can so I can spend most of the day relaxing.”
Zach reached for the door and pulled it towards him. He entered the shed and looked around for the tools. As his eyes glanced across the room, he spotted a shadow leaning against a wall. “Wait…what’s that?”
He crept up to the shadow, seeing the man, still asleep, back against the wall. Zach gasped as he quickly sprinted away from the shed and through the clearing. He soon reached a large house in the center of another clearing. He started to bang on the door. “Boss! Boss! We’ve got a problem!”
Zach continued to bang until the door opened, revealing a middle-aged man. “Zach, what in the world do you think you’re doing?! My family is still sleeping you know!”
Zach ignored the man’s question. “Boss, there’s a man sleeping in the wheat field shed!”
“Wait, what?”
“There is a man sleeping in the shed!”
The man went back into the house, leaving the door open, soon reappearing with a sword in hand. “Show me!”
Zach nodded and directed the man to the shed. The door was still open as they looked inside, the man still sleeping.
The middle-aged man sighed. “Probably a bandit looking for a place to stay the night.” He whispered. “Quietly, go to the side of him and wake him up. My sword will be at his face as soon as he wakes up.”
Zach nodded and quietly tip-toed to the side of the man. The boss was already in front of the man, sword drawn, ready to strike if needed. Zach slowly raised his leg and tapped the man.
The man groaned as he felt something tap his leg. “Hmm?” He slowly opened his eyes, only to see the glint of a sword right in front of his face. “Woah!” The man’s eyes quickly widened and tried to go back to get away from the sword, only for the wall to block his escape. “This is private property young man. You’re trespassing!”
The man’s hand instinctively went to his side; the blade now closer to his face. “Hands where I can see them!”
The man raised his hands in the air. “I-I’m sorry sir…I didn’t mean to trespass. I was only looking for a place to sleep…”
“Well you chose the wrong spot. What’s your name?!”
The man looked at the sword. “I…don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?!”
“I don’t remember my name! Look, all I remember was me waking up in the forest last night with no memories about my past, how I got there, or who I am! I swear I’m not lying to you!”
The boss looked at the man in distrust. “Oh really? Then how did you know to come over here? Are you saying it was just pure luck that you made your way to this place?”
“Well…yes and no. I still remember things like the north star that allowed me to get a sense of direction, and I decided to go east. I came upon a stream and followed the stream down to here, and well…here I am.”
After a few seconds, the boss slowly lowered his sword. “So, what do you plan on doing now?”
“I was planning on leaving when I woke up to find a village somewhere close by. I’m hoping that maybe someone in the village can tell me about myself.”
The boss laughed. “Boy, there’s no village around for about a hundred miles. We’re the only sign of civilization you’ll get for days.”
The man looked confused. “Then…why stay this far out? This is a farm after all right?”
The boss nodded. “Indeed, it is, however, while it may take a few days to get to a village, the soil out here is more fertile, thus making higher quality crops. People are willing to pay more just for our products, thus we get more money.”
“Oh…I see…”
Zach looked at the boss. “So, what are we going to do with him?”
The boss chuckled. “Well lad, it seems like you’re in quite the predicament, but I’ll give you a deal, probably the best one you’ll get. I’ll let you stay here as a farmhand, housing and food provided for you. If you don’t want to, I’ll tell you how to get to the closest village, but it will be at least a three days walk.”
The man looked down, thinking. “If I say yes, I want one other thing: I want you to take me with you whenever you’re going to the village. That way I’ll be able to make some headway as to who I am.”
The boss nodded. “I think I can allow that. So what do you say?”
The boss stuck out his arm. The man nodded and grasped the boss’s hand. “I accept.”
After helping the man up, the boss laughed. “Good! Good! Now, you’ll start today, after we get some food in ya. Zach here will be your trainer. Ask him if you need any help. I have high hopes for you Nathan.”
“Nathan?”
“Oh, you said you didn’t have a name, and you kinda look like a Nathan to me. Do you want me to just call you ‘kid’?”
Nathan shook his head. “No, Nathan is fine. You just surprised me.”
The boss laughed. “Anyways, I’m Wes, your new boss. Follow me, I’ll go get you some breakfast. Zach, I want the field weeded by the time I’m back.”
“Yes sir!”
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