A tale of Poker Flat

 

Hark, a tale of Poker Flat, a settlement most unholy, where fortune's wheel spins ever 'gainst the virtuous. 'Tis the year of our Lord, 1850, and on the twenty-third of November, a day most dire, did the town cast out certain souls deemed unfit.

Enter Master John Oakhurst, a gambler of cool demeanor, who with philosophic heart accepts his fate. He is joined by "The Duchess," a woman of ill-repute, and "Mother Shipton," of like profession, and "Uncle Billy," a sot and a thief, all banished from the town's confines.

These outcasts, with heavy hearts, set forth upon a journey o'er the mountains high. Their destination, Sandy Bar, a place yet untouched by Poker Flat’s strange virtue. The way is long and steep, and winter's breath doth chill the very bones.

• They encounter a youth named Tom Simson, a lad of innocence, who has absconded with a maid, Piney Woods, escaping the constraints of their respective guardians. This pair of innocents joins the outcasts, and together they seek a haven from the biting cold.
• A cabin they find, a refuge from the storm, and here they gather around the fire to rest. But alas, the snow does fall, trapping them within its icy grip, and their provisions dwindle with each passing day.
• Oakhurst, with the gambler's heart, maintains his calm. He shares his horse with the Duchess, showing a grace beyond her station. But Mother Shipton, with a heavy heart, resents this gesture.
• As the days turn into nights, these outcasts, through song, jest, and stories, find a way to endure the cold. Yet, death stalks them as the snow falls and their supplies run low. Mother Shipton, in an act of unforeseen charity, starves herself to provide for young Piney Woods.
• Oakhurst, ever the stoic, finds solace in a game of chance but then sees the cards as a symbol of life, where fortune is ever-changing. Yet, he knows also that the game must one day end.
• In the end, Oakhurst, facing the icy grip of death, meets his end beneath the pines. He had sought to change but destiny was set. This strange company of souls did find a way to see a better path but the world did not allow it.

Thus, this tale concludes with the outcasts of Poker Flat meeting their fate in the wild, where virtue and vice are but shadows cast upon the snow. A tragic end for those cast out of society who sought redemption but could not escape the forces aligned against them.