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\n\nA gold stone lay on the ground, \n\nAnd very soon, it would be found. \n\nThe forest trail began to sound. \n\nA scribe en route was wandering down. \n\nA single sunbeam glanced over the stone \n\nAnd blinded the scribe as he thumbed through his tome. \n\nHe pushed through the brush, grabbed up the stone\n\nAnd stared as its crimson lettering shone. \n\nThe cryptic writing upon the stone \n\nWas not a language he'd ever known.\n\nThe scribe was a poor man but with this new treasure \n\nHe knew he could provide for his wife forever.\n\nHe would have time to teach, write for himself, \n\nHelp his whole village to prosper in health.\n\nOf all the dreams that welled in his chest \n\nThe thought of having children seemed best.\n\nPacking the stone, he started back home \n\nBut he did not know that he wasn't alone.\n\nTwo boys above, sat in a tree, \n\nSilent and thrilled, they held back their glee.\n\nThey hurried to town and told all their friends.\n\nWord of the stone had started to spread. \n\n

\n\nThen, one evening, asleep in his cabin, \n\nSomething terrible began to happen. \n\nA pounding sound shook the scribe's little wood door. \n\nOut the window was someone he'd not seen before. \n\nA fierce-looking man with cold eyes like a shark, \n\nHe shouted commands, his voice like a bark. \n\n\"Open this door, Satoshi, the scribe. \n\nMy name is Arepo. I will come inside.\" \n\nSatoshi opened the door and procured a blade. \n\nHe was taken aback but was not afraid. \n\n\"I've heard, in the village, you found a gold stone, \n\nIn the east forest, near to my home. \n\nYou know the truth, as well as do I. \n\nThe gleaming gold stone should truly be mine. \n\nNow give it to me, or I'll break all your bones.\n\nGive it up now, and I'll leave you alone.\" \n\nSatoshi, the scribe, reached down to his side, \n\nDrew out the stone, and he cast it aside,\n\n\"The stone is mine, thief. No one would contest, \n\nBut it's clear that your strength isn't something to test. \n\nThe stone is now yours, but not by my choice, \n\nNow listen to wisdom and heed my voice. \n\nTheft will always lead to regret, \n\nFor an object stolen is a spiritual debt. \n\nYou gain my gold, but with it, a curse \n\nYou can never know what it's truly worth.\" \n\nThe man snatched the stone off the ground with such force, \n\nHe shook the whole house and scared his own horse. \n\nHe gazed at that crimson writing on gold, \n\nAnd knew the stone was some magic of old. \n\n\"I have long thought that this kingdom should taper. \n\nThis stone came to me because of God's favor. \n\nOur kingdom is wicked, foolish, and odd. \n\nThat's how I know that this stone is from God. \n\nThe people will see this, and they'll make me king. \n\nDespite what you think, I will do the right thing.\" \n\nArepo noticed Satoshi's fair wife, \n\nShe peeked from her hiding to observe the sharp strife. \n\n\"This scribe cannot give you the life of your dreams. \n\nIf you ever desire to leave and be free, \n\nCome to the castle and live with me.\" \n\nArepo bowed and began to depart\n\nWith the stone in his hand and hope in his heart.\n\n

\n\nThe two children who told of Satoshi's great find,\n\nRealized that they had put him in a bind. \n\nThey meant no harm by telling the tale.\n\nSatoshi was kind. They felt they had failed. \n\nThey went to his cabin the very next day \n\nExpecting Satoshi to be in dismay. \n\nSatoshi was glad to see the two boys. \n\nHe offered to carve them some new wooden toys. \n\nThey cried at his kindness and turned to go 'way. \n\nHe was concerned, and he told them to stay. \n\n\"What is it, my friends, that would cause you to cry. \n\nI won't let you leave without telling me why.\" \n\n\"It's our fault that your stone was stolen away.\n\nWe told all our friends after you left that day.\" \n\n\"Oh, little ones, don't think of me. \n\nAll that I truly love is free. \n\nNatural beauty, a meal, loved ones, a song; \n\nLife's true treasures can't be stolen for long. \n\nEven without a coin to my name, \n\nI make what I need with my hands and my brain. \n\nMoney does not make a meaningful life. \n\nBelieve it or not, it will often bring strife. \n\nGreat piles of gold always bring dragons, \n\nFriends become scarce, and so do one's passions. \n\nA vibrant life, pure soul, and good friends, \n\nThieves gain none of these things in the end. \n\nI sleep like a babe every night, \n\nBut now Arepo must sleep with a knife. \n\nI've had no loss. In fact, my hopes doubled. \n\nIt's that crimson lettering that's causing me trouble. \n\nI wrote it all down, for I love to write. \n\nI've never seen a language the like.\" \n\nHe showed them his scroll, mostly for fun \n\nBut the children could read it, either the one! \n\n\"That is impossible, my young friends. \n\nI'm a master of words, and I'm at my end.\" \n\n\"We can both read it, clear as the day \n\nAsk us in separate; we'll tell you the same.\" \n\n\"That won't be needed, go on my friends. \n\nTell me what's written. Please don't pretend.\" \n\n\"This stone was enchanted by the Greatest of Mages. \n\nPassed through the gate at the top of Mount Aegis. \n\nHidden from merchants, priests, and sages \n\nAs a guide to land free from theft or invasions. \n\nIt is obscure to those who would take it, \n\nRevealing itself to those able to make it. \n\nThis cypher will guide you to that strange land. \n\nPass through the gate, but leave what's in hand.\" \n\nSatoshi knew then that the gold he had tossed \n\nWas only a vessel for knowledge t'was lost. \n\nHe set his resolve that very same day \n\nTo go to this place and pass through the gate. \n\n

\n\nArepo became mighty; he ruled for ages. \n\nThe stone gave power over peasants and patrons. \n\nHe had fastened the stone to a staff and ruled all, \n\nFrom ocean to ocean, never to fall.\n\nEven Satoshi's precious wife, \n\nHad left him to be with Arepo for life.\n\nThe stone had more power than he could imagine. \n\nHe cherished and studied its magic with passion. \n\nCourts of wise men, prophets, and sages \n\nCouldn't decipher the magic stone phrases.\n\nHe fashioned the stone from his staff to a crown. \n\nIts power was fame, known the world 'round.\n\nArepo brought peace but insisted with patience \n\nThat all of the people give homage with payments.\n\nThe king's court was so grand the fees drained from the fiefdom. \n\nThe people had peace, but the king took their freedom. \n\nTill one fateful day, his power declined. \n\nAll of the poor had stopped paying their fines.\\\n\\\nHe went out to find them, to punish them all. \n\nIn many villages, there was no one at all.\n\nHe began to hear whispers among all his pages, \n\nMany had fled to a different nation.\n\n\"Who could steal half my kingdom in such little time? \n\nDon't they know that my rule is divine?\" \n\nAt night, he was restless, and to his surprise, \n\nCame nightmares of Satoshi's haunting eyes. \n\n\"This is the doing of Satoshi. I feel it inside. \n\nMore than my people, it's him I must find.\"\n\n

\n\nArepo summoned the people of the desert,\n\nThey were the most feared trackers ever.\n\nArepo sent them to the kingdom's corners\n\nAnd offered a bounty for Satoshi, the reformer.\n\nWhile they never found the scorned scribe,\n\nThey tracked the path that he took to hide.\n\nThey drew Arepo an expert map to the Black Gate of the Immortal.\n\nThey wouldn't cross that strange gate, for a spell was upon the portal.\n\nArepo began planning a great expedition. \n\nThere was no stopping his inquisition.\n\nHe needed more funds from his dwindling population. \n\nIf he couldn't get taxes, he'd just have to make them.\n\nHe used the stone to replicate gold coins, \n\nHe gathered a band that made a great noise.\n\nWith armies and journeymen, women, and cases \n\nHe made his way over to scale up Mount Aegis.\n\nThe rivers were wide, and the mountains were tall. \n\nThe plains were vast, from winter to fall. \n\nDay by day, Arepo's army would shrink. \n\n\"This isn't a problem,\" Arepo would think. \n\nHe made more gold to double their wages \n\nSurely, they'd stay now. The pay was outrageous.\n\n

\n\nArepo's army continued to leave. \n\nBy the time they arrived, their party was three. \n\nOne zealot believing without the king's power, \n\nThere couldn't be peace, not for an hour. \n\nA priest believed that the stone was divine, \n\nGiven by God to his chosen ally. \n\nThe gate had a spell, and they couldn't pass by \n\nWithout leaving their greatest possession beside. \n\nArepo knew what he must leave behind. \n\nHe hid his crown in some rocks nearby. \n\nThe priest hesitated at the gates' mystic border, \n\nHis greatest possession was an amulet of his order. \n\nHe would not remove it and risk his grand rank. \n\nHe turned back at the magical gate. \n\nThe zealot, a dagger, a gift from the king \n\nHe wouldn't cross over defenseless, you see. \n\nSo Arepo alone passed through the gate \n\nReady for whatever he would find in wait.\n\n

\n\nArepo gazed out at this alien land \n\nAnd marveled at what he could not understand. \n\nThere were no castles, banners, or steeples. \n\nAbout their business were disparate peoples. \n\nBeggars, slaves, tradesmen, magicians \n\nWorked together with no inhibitions. \n\nThe shelters were hidden all around. \n\nThere seemed no central city or town. \n\nMarvelous, truly creative, and colorful, \n\nEven the simplest cabins were wonderful. \n\nAll of the people were skilled but quite odd. \n\nHe learned that the name of this place was Karkon.\n\n

\n\nArepo was hungry and needed provisions. \n\nHe had brought gold to complete his mission. \n\nWhen he found merchants with food and lodging \n\nThey laughed at his gold and sent him walking. \n\nIn the land of Karkon, they use Edom to trade, \n\nA blue crystal stone that smelled of the rain. \n\nIt couldn't be made with magic or tricks. \n\nWhen it was stolen, it shrank to a blip. \n\nWillingly given, Edom must be.\n\nNot one bit was given for free. \n\nIt weighed but an ounce and was quite hard to earn. \n\nA way to create it, Arepo could not learn. \n\nEdom had been made by hermit mages. \n\nThat cultivated their magic through ages. \n\nThey were called the Sons of Light. \n\nDespite their might, they did not fight. \n\nThey captured lightning with practice and patience, \n\nTransmuted the light into something to trade with. \n\nThe land was transformed by what they had made. \n\nHonest work was the only way to a day's wage. \n\nGovernments could not confiscate from their patrons. \n\nWar had to be funded by people's own wages. \n\nViolence helped little in taking from others \n\nSo all work together, one with another. \n\nAll did contribute, and with less corruption \n\nThey built and they built, almost no interruption.\n\n

\n\nSo Arepo worked on a farm for some time.\n\nHe knew he'd need Edom if Satoshi he'd find.\n\n

\n\nHe learned in Karkon that there was no king, \n\nBut there was a clairvoyant who knew many things. \n\nHe lived in a grove, known for despair. \n\nArepo set out to meet him there.\n\nWhen Arepo found him, he was chilled to the bone. \n\nThe wise man lived like a dog all alone.\n\nHe was cloaked in wool, with eyes of red. \n\nArepo approached with a great deal of dread. \n\n\"My name-\"\n\n\"You are Arepo. I know who you are. \n\nI know you have traveled exceptionally far. \n\nYou come in search of Satoshi, the scribe. \n\nHe's a man that the lowly can't find. \n\nHe is the keeper, the keeper of gates. \n\nIf you plan to catch him, then it is up to the fates.\" \n\n\"Surely you know the place that he stays. \n\nPlease, do not send me away in dismay.\"\n\n\"To go to Satoshi would take you a lifetime, \n\nBut you dare to ask twice, so I'll give you a lifeline. \n\nIf you are sincere, and you call him by name \n\nHe may appear despite your great shame.\" \\\n\\\nArepo departed deeper into the grove. \n\nHe schemed and thought through all magic he'd known.\n\n

\n\nHe searched that vast land, and several a time, \n\nGot near, but Satoshi he never could find. \n\nAfter some years, his spirit was broken. \n\nHe remembered the words the clairvoyant had spoken. \n\nHe whispered, \"Satoshi\", at last understanding \n\nSatoshi's magic he had no hope of matching. \n\nAs sure as the clairvoyant had told him before \n\nA gate had appeared, like a mystical door. \n\nIt was silent as death, and from this strange portal \n\nSatoshi stepped forth, looking less like a mortal. \n\nArepo wept as Satoshi stood by. \n\n\"Teach me your ways; do not cast me aside. \n\nThe first time we met, I took what was yours, \n\nYou toppled my kingdom with such little force.\" \n\nSatoshi looked down with a placid gaze. \n\n\"I cannot teach you the power of gates. \n\nIt was gifted to me by one greater than I, \n\nBut I can show you what you cannot find. \n\nIf you are ready, follow me through this gate.\n\nI will take you to your kingdom of late.\"\n\n

\n\nThe two passed through to Arepo's old kingdom.\n\nArepo looked up to see who would greet them. \n\nThe land was now laden with gold all around; \n\nGolden buildings, gold even lay on the ground.\n\nAlmost too magnificent for the eye to behold, \n\nIt occurred to Arepo that this was all of his gold.\n\nThe gold he had stockpiled, the gold that he made, \n\nSo abundant they used it for cobblestone pave.\n\nThe city was silent, abandoned by all. \n\nThere was no bustling or presence at all.\n\nThere was no music or food scent in the air. \n\nThere was no culture, market, or fair.\n\nGold was all that this grand city now had. \n\nThe people thought there'd be nothing to add.\n\nAll became rich, but with no one to work, \n\nIt became a golden prison for the mad to lurk. \n\n\"I did nothing at all after crossing your borders, \n\nIt was your cursed gold that brought about this order. \n\nThe power you gained from that mystical stone, \n\nGave you all things but left you alone. \n\nIt gave you no meaning, for you searched for me, \n\nInstead of pursuing what could make you free. \n\nFirstly, you must learn to love all others, \n\nAll things you have, have come from another. \n\nSecondly, you must understand your purpose, \n\nWithout a purpose, all power is worthless. \n\nLastly, with unwavering stoic resolve, \n\nMaster your skill until it serves all.\" \n\nThey passed through the portal, back to the journey's start \n\nWith nothing in hand and gold in their hearts.\n\n

\n\nArepo felt free now from power and fear. \n\nTrinkets and gold brought him no cheer.\n\nLeaving his stone in the crook of Mount Aegis,\n\nHe pursued inner power, true and courageous.\n\nKnown by many as \"Arepo the Might\",\n\nHe use his great strength to build something right.\n\nBuilding upon a foundation of gold,\n\nHe couldn't have imagined what would unfold.\n\nHe found his wife and brought her to Karkon,\n\nHe restored many things that he once thought were gone.\n\nHe found a small village and lived a pure life, \n\nDiligent, patient, avoiding vain strife. \n\nHe worked, and he worked until one fateful day, \n\nHe discovered work that felt like play. \n\nHe became a grandmaster, a maker of clocks. \n\nSo great was his work it left others in shock. \n\nHis clocks were so masterful they could conjure odd spells, \n\nSome could turn back time itself. \n\nYet, with this new power, he made no great play \n\nTo conquer the world, he left it this way. \n\nIn the end, Arepo discovered true wealth \n\nWas not gold or power, but life, family, and health.","created_at",1734897994,"id","cfc3798e099193d4cc8514e39b1ba2f9ba5f686029b87adc6d5dc5ec77e406d3","kind",30023,"pubkey","85cd42e2a083d3321beda0bdf8c8d3c2246c792d6af4dba1a0cb07610e6f2173","sig","188f83d9685fe831237554ed5a09f38148b54cba46ae15668abd966aabef1e3402be6f68c4babae2eb30f677c83f70e411e6c690f17b3cf942ceb4c38fde3d3c","tags",[28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,43,44],[64,65],[62,63],[49,61],[49,60],[49,59],[49,58],[49,57],[49,56],[49,12],[49,55],[49,54],[49,53],[49,52],[49,51],[49,50],[47,48],[45,46],"d","Pleb-Tales-Guidestone-n4qryj","published_at","1734897994","t","#digitalart","#literature","#zap","#writing","#poetry","#artwork","#diy","#photography","#art","#mythology","#philosophy","#bitcoin","summary","A Bitcoin Parable","title","Pleb Tales: Guidestone"]