The Ornery Wizard

At the top of a great tree lies a nest.  Nestled within it is a city.  Within that city is a wizard.
            And he is to be much feared.
            Why is that, you ask?
            The story goes like this:
            Once upon a time, the wizard was an old man.  For he was born old, and when the time comes for him to leave his mortal coil, he will be so young he will look all but newly birthed.  But to be born old before all others is to carry a mighty weight—and that is the feeling of orneriness.
            To put it another way, the wizard became annoyed quite easily.
            But because he had yet to gain his reputation, no one knew.
            Along came an unsuspecting boy, who discovered that the wizard had magical powers.  Eager to learn from one so ancient, the boy asked all his questions, one tumbling after the other all at once.
            Needless to say, the wizard turned the boy into a newt.
            Not many days followed before a young man passed his way, seeking a love charm in which to woo his beloved.  The man spent a great deal of time waxing about his fair one’s beauty.
            And so, perhaps it goes without saying, that the wizard turned him into a squirrel.
            A year or two passed, and a middle-aged woman set out to seek the wizard in hopes of him restoring her youth.  This was mostly due to the oncoming aches and pains that had begun to set in and about her body.
            But the wizard, being old himself, and having far more aches and pains without an empathy that grows from experience, dismissed her complaints and turned her into a raven.
            So, these are the small tales as to why he is much feared. 
Let there be two lessons to the reader: first, be wary of one who annoys easily.  He may be a wizard.  And you may shortly be a newt. And second, do not trust a nest atop a tall tree with a city in it; that is probably the one where this wizard lives, and he is not that young yet.

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