The old man chiseled and chiseled. He paid close attention to make sure he didn’t make a mistake. One false fall of the hammer would certainly result in failure, not to mention the intense physical pain. If he missed, he wasn’t sure if he would have to strength to make it home after losing that much blood. And even if he made it home, his wife would be so enraged at the destruction of her prized possession, that she would kill him herself.

He must succeed. It would be the last gift that he could give her. He knew this was going to be the last trip to the top of the mountain. His old age and sickness would not allow for another journey to the top. He had to make sure everything was perfect for his wife. He had to go to the top of the mountain for the best marble stone in the land. His wife would not accept anything less than perfection. This is what made the old man love her for all of these years. She pushed him further and further, if not for her, he never would have gone on all the adventures, seen all the world, or met all the fascinating people. She was his everything. He had to make this final dying gift flawless. She needed to remember this part of him forever.

He continued to chisel and chisel until finally he looked at the slab of stone, removed the template and tucked it away safely, then looked at his creation. It was beautiful. It made the old man shed a single beautiful tear down his exquisite face. He knew that his wife would love it.

“She might even love it more than me,” he chuckled to himself.

He carefully wrapped up the carving in some cloth and tucked it away in his bag. He looked down to the treeline and saw his markhor chewing on something strange. He walked to his mountain goat standing under the juniper tree and as he approached, the old man saw a snake hanging out of his markhors mouth. This put a smile on the old man’s face.

“Just like always,” he said as he stroked the side of the markhors face.

The goats bottom jaw moved from side to side as he chewed on the snake. The tail of the snake still twitched slightly as it was hanging from the goat's mouth. The chewing along with the snake’s venom inside its head caused a foam to be produced that dripped to the ground. The old man took a ceramic vial from his pouch and scooped up the foam. When he stood up, he looked at his markhor, his friend, and remembered all the places they had been.

He remembered all the times his markhor was there to save him. The old man remembered when his father had brought the goat home. His father had found the goat at the top of the mountain, near where they were standing now, above where the trees grow. His father had told him that the goat was wandering around all alone when he found him. The old man never believed that story, but he loved the goat so much that he did not care. He loved that goat since he first saw him. The old man remembered seeing him for the first time. A little baby kid that could barely walk on it’s own. It was just a baby but already looked like an old man. The goat had a dark grey fur and stood only a foot off the ground, but had a beard that was dragged along the dirt. It looked so strange seeing a goat with a beard dragging on the ground. But the beard wasn’t the strangest thing about the goat. It was his horns. Those corkscrew like horns that were tightly curled and pointing straight in the air. They looked magnificent and were just as tall as the baby kid. So the old man’s father brought home a goat that was a foot tall with a foot long beard and foot long corkscrew horns. It was quite a sight for a little boy.

The old man still remembers his father walking up with the goat and saying,

“Listen Ludus, this is a present for you, but you must take care of this goat all on your own, I will not help you.”

This was the first time that Ludus’ father had ever given him any responsibility. He took it very seriously and never forgot that day. Ludus named his goat Peter. Now all these years later, Ludus looked at Peter and he was no longer that little kid he saw on that day. Peter was now an old man along with Ludus. Peter was now over seven feet tall, with a seven foot beard that dragged lightly along the ground. And now his beautiful horns were something to be awed and feared. They now stood seven feet tall on top of his head and the tips of those curls were nearly fifteen feet off the ground. He was a wonder and Ludus loved him. At his old age, Ludus had to build a rope ladder just to mount him anymore. Ludus did not care, he wanted his last adventure to be with his most trusted friend.

Ludus looked at Peter chewing the snake. He smiled and said, “Let’s get to the bottom of the mountain, so I may give my beloved her gift.”

The goat responded by kneeling on the ground so the old man could climb up his side. Ludus adjusted himself into the harness that he invented until he was comfortable and headed through the forest down the mountain.

Ludus loved to be this high on the mountain, none of his neighbors from the village below came this high. It was too difficult to traverse the terrain, unless you had a mountain goat. This was Ludus and Peter’s domain. It was quiet and peaceful.

He and his goat continued down the mountain, until Ludus heard a strange noise. He brought Peter to a halt to listen more closely. It sounded as if someone else was chiseling stone.

“Who could that be?” Ludus thought to himself.

He turned Peter to the right to investigate the noise further. They continued for a few hundred yards following the noise until they heard a man scream. As soon as the mountain goat heard the scream, he bolted towards the sound. They came upon Ludus’ neighbor Bob from the village below lying on his back fighting off a jackal that was on top him snapping at poor Bob. Bob fought back valiantly but was becoming weary and could not fight off the jackal for too much longer. Ludus and Peter charged towards the battle. Peter ran full speed and bowed his head towards the jackal. Peter swung his massive horns towards the jackal, knocking it off of Bob. Ludus then lept off the back of the goat with the nimbleness he had as a young man, and in mid air pulled out the only weapon he had, his chisel. He was falling towards the jackal the and as he landed on the beast, he drove his chisel through its skull, killing it instantly.

Ludus turned towards Bob, “Dammit Bob, what are you doing this high on the mountain? You know it’s dangerous to be up here alone.”

“I know Ludus,” said Bob “But, I was working on my cart and didn’t want anyone to know about it.”

Ludus looked at this cart that Bob was working on so secretly. It seemed to be some type of stone table, but instead of legs it was resting on some weird round objects.

“No wonder you wanted to hide it from everyone, it looks like a piece of shit table” said Ludus. “I doubt it can even stay in one place, with those round things as legs.”

Bob’s face flushed red with embarrassment. “I...I...It’s not a table, and those aren’t legs, I call them wheels.”

“Wheels?” Ludus asked, feigning ignorance because he knew the importance of Bob’s work.

“Yes, wheels,” answered Bob. “They can roll, so it’s like a table that can move and carry things. I call it a cart and it’s almost finished.”

“Seems like a dumb idea, but I’ll leave you be.” Said Ludus, knowing that the insult would push Bob to finish the project.

Anger came over Bob’s face. “Well Ludus,” said Bob, “I don’t see you working on anything, so yeah, why don’t you just leave me to my work while you go sit lazily with your wife.”

Ludus grinned slightly and said “Very well.”

He once again mounted Peter and started heading down the mountain towards the village. They continued down the mountainside through the oak and pine trees that he had come to know so well. Ludus’ mind began to wander towards his childhood and the first time he ascended the mountain. His father had brought him to very top when he was just a young boy, even before he had Peter. He could remember the first time he reached the peak and looked out over the vast expanse that was the unknown world. He had never felt so small but also had never felt so amazed. Amazed at how large the world beyond was, and how little he had seen in his village. It was that day that he promised himself one day he would climb every mountain top, see every ravine, drink from every river, see the world. Now at the end of his life he began to think of how much of his childhood dream did he actually accomplish. He was not even close to seeing everything that he had dreamed but he knew that he came pretty damn close and that was the only satisfaction he needed.

As Ludus was reminiscing, Peter abruptly came to a halt. The markhor began to carefully sniff the ground. Ludus immediately knew something was wrong and listened carefully. The woods were silent except for a faint whimper coming from the left. Ludus tugged the reins towards the sound to investigate. As Ludus got closer he could hear the whimper get louder and could now tell that the whimper was a child crying. He looked ahead and saw a boy from his village sitting on the ground crying and clutching his leg. Ludus dismounted from his goat and went over to the boy.

“Luke, are you okay?” Ludus asked the boy.

Luke could barely get the words out through all of the tears. “T..th...s...the snakes.”

“Let me see,” said Ludus.

Luke moved his hand to let Ludus see the wound. Ludus saw the two red eyes of the bite staring back at him. The bite was just beginning to bruise and if Ludus arrived any later the poison would have spread too far and the boy would have been beyond saving. He removed the ceramic vial from his pouch and scooped out a fingerful of the contents. He then rubbed the strange substance onto the bite. The swelling immediately started going down and Luke stopped crying. The pain subsided.

“Have they reached the village yet?” asked Ludus.

“I don’t know,” said Luke “I was just up here playing when one of the snakes slithered out of the bush and bit me, then it just left.”

Realization hit Ludus. The snakes rarely attacked for sport, they should have eaten the boy, not just bite him and leave. They were looking for someone. And Ludus knew who that person was.

“It’s okay Luke, you’re safe now. The antidote is already destroying the poison in your blood, you should be able to walk now. You must go up the mountain and find Bob. Stay with him until I come find you. Do you understand?”

“Yes.” Said the boy.

Luke stood up and found that his leg could now support him and began to walk up the mountain. Ludus walked over to Peter and rubbed the side of his head. “He’s back.” Ludus said to his friend. Peter knelt to allow Ludus to mount him and then the goat sprinted full speed down the mountain towards the village. No other creature on earth could have reached the bottom of the mountain any quicker than Peter. It was a spectacle to see the goat move through the trees and over the rocks with such grace and speed and power. But to Ludus, it felt like a lifetime to reach the village. When he got closer to the village he began to see the lesser snakes on the outskirts. Their standard formation. Peter stomped the ones that he could and Ludus began to hear the screams from the village. He needed to hurry, he was running out of time. Finally, he saw the village and snakes were becoming bigger as he got closer to his house. Peter ran through the village and Ludus saw some of the villagers being attacked but there was no time to save them. He had to get to him. If he could kill him this time, the lesser ranks would disperse without their leader. He needed to cut off the head of the snake of the snakes. Peter turned the corner and Ludus could see the doorway to his house just as the massive tail slithered inside. Ludus had to get inside, he had to save his wife and his village. He had pushed Peter to his his limit on their descent but he pushed him one last time to reach the doorway. Peter ran up to house and Ludus jumped off and ran into his home.

“Mary!” he screamed.

Then Ludus saw him. The master snake slithered around the room. The sheer size of the master snake was enough to strike fear into any man. His head was the same size as Peter’s, if not bigger. It was as thick as a tree and had to be over thirty feet long. Each of its fangs was the same size as the Ludus’ chisel. It filled the entire house and had its tail wrapped around Mary. She tried to scream, but the tail around her neck only allowed a muffled groan to escape.

“Ludus,” hissed the snake, “Do you remember the last time we met?” Ludus stared silently.

“You came to my home,” continued the snake, “You entered my domain, and destroyed my love.”

“Something like you could never know love, you are a depraved and despicable demon of the earth.” Said Ludus, with a bite to his words.

“Ahh, but someone they call the Shepherd of Time should know more than this.” “Fuck sheep, I am no shepherd.”

“So you still play the ignorance game I see. You would have not killed her if you truly believed that I could not love, or if you did not see that love for yourself,” said the snake.

“Stop this mindless talk, is that why you are here? For revenge for killing that stupid snake all those years ago?”

Ludus could see the muscle under the scales move ever so slightly as the snake began to maneuver his head towards Mary. The moment the eyes of the snake left him, Ludus made the slightest gesture to Peter, who was still waiting outside the door. And he gripped the only weapon he had, his chisel. The snake moved his head directly in front of Mary, and while he stared into her eyes, he hissed, “Yess. With one squeeze I can take her from you while you watch and you will know my pain.”

The snake turned his head to face Ludus. Ludus then moved faster than any man of his age should. With a blur of his arm, threw his chisel with chilling velocity and deadly accuracy. At nearly the exact moment, Peter charged through the house and knocked down almost the whole wall. The chisel flew through the air and struck the master snake directly in his right eye. The snake hissed a sound of pure agony and anger that could be heard throughout the ravine. In his pain, his tail loosened its grip on Mary just as Peter swiped away the tail with his horns and scooped up Mary in one fluid motion, and continued to charge out the other side of the house, breaking down the other wall. Ludus turned and ran outside the door just as the house collapsed on top of the snake. Ludus looked past the wreckage and saw Peter running off with Mary, she was safe.

He stared into the rubble, waiting. After a few moments, there was movement underneath the wood and the master snake stuck his head out of the wreckage and Ludus could see the chisel sticking out of his right eye with a stream of blood coming down the side of his face. Ludus looked into the one eye that remained and could see the pure hate and evil in that eye. Ludus remained unwavering, even though he knew he had nothing left to fight with, he had no weapons, Peter was taking Mary to the safehouse, everyone from the village had ran off, he was alone. He was no match for the snake in one on one combat, even if the creature was injured. His last thought was that he couldn’t even give Mary her gift. It was still in his pouch, it would die with him and she would never know.

The two of them, Ludus and the snake, stared for another moment, then the snake slowly slithered his way out of the rubble of the house. The snake moved towards Ludus with slow and deliberate motions, barely making a sound. Ludus could sense the anger and the confidence in the snake. Ludus remained still, trying to think of something. Nothing.

The snake moved closer ever so slowly, when Ludus heard a slight rustle of the trees coming from his left. He looked to the left without moving his head, and looked at the side of the mountain.

Ludus returned his gaze to the snake, dropped to his knees, and said, “Please Violo, you win, just let me live so I can return to my wife.”

Ludus dropped his head to ground and continued to beg as an arrogant pride came over Violo.

“So Ludus, you finally admit your weakness. I am actually proud of you for that. But do not think for one moment that I will spare you of all you have done to me and my kind. I will make sure your death is slow and painful. I will eat you whole and alive and let you digest for months.”

Ludus then brought his head up and fell backwards. He began to crawl away from Violo hastily. He crawled toward a tree and held on to it like it was the last thing he would ever hold on to.

“Please, Violo! Please!” Ludus said as tears began to stream down his face.

Violo didn’t move but watched the fearful Ludus hold on to the tree and cry like a little bitch. Violo basked in his satisfaction as he once again moved slowly towards Ludus to finish him.

Just as Violo approached Ludus, Ludus screamed, “Wait! She’s still alive!”

Violo’s head drew back slightly.

“This can’t be true,” said the snake.

Ludus’ expression changed to happiness and laughed and said. “You’re right, it’s not true you dumb, blind motherfucker who can’t hear or see your death coming from a mile away.”

Just as Ludus said this, Violo turned his head to the right and saw the stone cart just as it hit him. The size and thickness of the snake nearly stopped the cart in its tracks. But it caused the cart the flip forward, throwing the two passengers forward and on to the ground. The cart flipped over directly on Violo and crushed his skull. His tail began to thrash violently as all the life seeped out of him.

Ludus ran to check on Bob and Luke, who were laying on the ground.

“Are you okay?” He asked them.

“Am I okay?” Luke asked excitedly. “That was the most fun I ever had. I’m gonna ride this cart thing down the mountain everyday.”

Ludus and Bob both laughed.

“Good luck getting it back up the mountain,” said Bob.

“Well Bob, I guess this whole wheel invention of yours really paid off, thank you.” Ludus said appreciatively. Bob and Luke walked back to their homes and families.

Ludus looked over and saw Peter approaching with mary on his back. Peter walked up and slowly knelt to the ground. Ludus went over and helped Mary dismount off the massive goat.

“Mary, are you alright?” asked the concerned Ludus.

“Yes, I’m fine. But where were you? I was all alone when Violo stormed into the house. I called for you but you weren’t there.”

“I’m sorry my dear, I’m sorry I wasn’t here when that beast came. But I had to go to the top of the mountain to get you a gift. I know I’m not going to be here for much longer, so I wanted to make you a gift to remember me by.”

“Ludus, there is nothing that can happen that will ever make me forget you, I don’t need some gift to help me remember.”

“I know you will never forget me but there is a part of me that I think you will miss and will enjoy having a reminder.”

“What are you talking about Ludus?” She asked.

“This.” Said Ludus as he pulled out the stone tablet from his pouch.

“Oh my god! It’s the second most beautiful thing I have ever seen, besides the real thing. I don’t know how to thank you.” Mary began to cry and wrapped her arms around Ludus tighter than she ever had before. When Ludus was finally released from her embrace, he said, “You are very welcome. And it is called a dick pic, and it’s the first one in history. And if you really want to thank me, you can do that thing with your mouth again.” Mary smiled and winked.