Mara: That’s not fair.
Across the schoolyard, Tommy has all the cards again.
Not some.
Most.
Almost all.
Yet he keeps asking for more.
Chibi watches the trading circle.
Children bargain.
Argue.
Count.
Compare.
Nobody seems to be having much fun.
Mara: He already has enough.
Chibi shrugs.
Chibi: Apparently not.
The summer afternoon is perfect.
Warm sunlight.
Blue skies.
School is over.
The whole town feels alive.
Yet something feels wrong.
Last summer everyone shared.
This summer everyone counts.
Who has more cards.
Who has more marbles.
Who has more prizes.
Who wins.
Always who wins.
Later, Mara and Chibi walk to the creek.
Usually children come here to play.
Today they find arguments.
Not games.
Arguments.
Who found the best fishing spot.
Who deserves what.
Who owns which part of the bank.
Mara frowns.
Mara: Since when do people own parts of the creek?
Nobody answers.
Because nobody remembers.
The idea simply appeared.
Like a weed.
The children leave and follow the hidden path to the old orchard.
The place beyond town.
The place where summer still feels different.
The orchard remains beautiful.
Heavy fruit hangs from every branch.
Golden light fills the trees.
The wind moves softly through the leaves.
An apple falls beside Mara.
Nobody charges for it.
Nobody claims ownership.
Nobody demands a trade.
It simply falls.
A gift.
Mara picks it up.
Mara: Trees are nicer than people.
Chibi laughs.
Then stops.
Because he isn’t completely sure she’s joking.
Near one of the old trees Mara notices something carved into the bark.
Ancient initials.
Old names.
Children who came here long ago.
Beneath them a message.
Almost worn away.
She brushes away the dirt.
Two words appear.
BE THANKFUL
Silence.
The orchard sways gently around them.
Fruit hangs everywhere.
Enough for everyone.
More than enough.
Yet the town keeps arguing.
Competing.
Comparing.
Mara: Why?
The leaves whisper overhead.
Chibi looks back toward town.
Toward the festival.
Toward the prizes.
Toward the endless competition.
Finally:
Chibi: Maybe they forgot.
Mara: Forgot what?
The summer wind moves through the orchard.
Chibi: How much they already have.
The sun begins setting beyond the hills.
Golden light floods the trees.
For a moment everything feels whole again.
Simple.
Peaceful.
The way summer should feel.
But beyond the orchard,
the town keeps counting.
And somewhere in the growing shadows,
something listens.
Because gratitude makes poor soil.
But envy?
Envy grows almost anywhere.
🜍 Month 6 · Pulp Cthulhu Noir
🜍 Week 3 — The Game Nobody Wins
🜍 When gratitude dies, hunger takes its place.
If you remember what this felt like —
you already know the game.
The better card.
The bigger prize.
The feeling that winning somehow stopped being enough.
Step back into it.
Or keep counting what everyone else has.
👉 https://startplaying.games/gm/dunchan
Want to go deeper?
Then leave the playground.
Follow the old orchard paths.
Find the forgotten carvings.
Listen to the places that still remember what abundance means.
The dossiers are waiting.
The game is still being played.
👉 https://www.patreon.com/c/mythveilchronicles_bydunchanhuntergames