Damn it, I thought, peering into the rabbit hole. That was the third time this week the little bugger had tripped the snare. Sigh. Pulling the wire taunt, I reset the snare. I got up and started brushing myself off when a strange glint caught my eye. Whatever it was, was a couple yards away. Curious, I went in for a closer look. It took some time to locate, but eventually, I found it. A small ruby, nestled between two rocks. With some difficulty, I pried it out. It glinted in the afternoon sun. This should fetch me a fair sum, I thought happily. I got up and whistling a tune, started heading back to the town.
"No luck today?", Tim asked as I passed in front of his shop. He was the local butcher, and a friend. I always got the best deals from him. "Sneaky bastard got away clean again", I said. "You don't seem too pissed", observed Tim. "Well, It seems I lucked out". I told him what I'd found in the woods. "You lucky dog". "Well, I should be off". Waving a cheery goodbye, I walked on.
I stopped at the town jeweler, thought for a second and decided not to go in just yet. The jeweler was notorious for downplaying the price an item would fetch. I needed a price I could negotiate around. I felt around my pocket for the gem, wanting to take a quick look at it.
Blind, Terrifying, burning pain. I couldn't think. I couldn't breathe. I drew my hand out from my pocket, attached to it, came the ruby. Slowly, agonizingly, sinking its way into my palm. Through the pain, I saw the curb coming up to meet me. Darkness.
I slowly came to. I was lying face down on the sidewalk. The pain had subsided to a dull throb. I got up weakly and dusted myself off. Inspecting my palm, I saw a dull red hue where the gem had entered, but nothing overtly noticeable. Well, with the gem no longer available, there was no point standing here. I felt weak from the episode, whatever that was. Cursing my luck, I started making my way home.
I was rounding a corner and noticed a guy walking towards me, and instinctively stepped aside. Walking further along, I realized that I hadn't heard him or seen him come around the corner, yet I had somehow noticed him. Putting the thought aside, I entered the apartments and made my way to my room. I sank onto the bed. I was hit by a sudden wave of, for lack of a better term, clarity. I sat bolt upright. It was a sensation like when you stare at a lot of dots for a long time, and they suddenly resembled a horse. The dots were the same, it's just your perception of it that changed. I felt that way about the room. I felt the ripples of the fabric of the bed, twisting and contorting with my movements. I felt the wave of air around me, passing through the empty window and out into the world. I felt the spider spinning its web under the bed.
It hit me. I was perceiving the room. Much more sharply than I ever was. The gem had done something to me, It had given me powers. I now had the ability to perceive in intricate detail, events unfolding around me.
