The Supplier and his Wagon of Wonders

What is never there when you're prepared, but comes when least expected?

What has four wheels, nine flags, four legs, and two horns intersected?

What rings and squawks and lows and chimes as it goes fro and to?

What has, for coin, or trade, or task, the perfect thing for you?

The answer to this riddle isn't some mythical being who has lived since the dawn of Calderon, but a curious cross horned ox, pulling an even more curious old man riding in, more curious still, a wagon full of what the man likes to call "odds and ends". The cross horned ox is a blueish bovine creature who's horns wrap around to the front of its head crossing over each other to from an "X". The man (although many suspect the strange individual has more than just human blood running through his veins) is a mysterious old character who dons a faded red hood which obscures everything in shadow besides his long pointy nose. He goes by no name and when asked says he is simply "a supplier". Because of that, many have dubbed him "Old Man Plier".

The wagon itself is the most difficult to describe, with its flags flying from the top at odd angles, its bells attached at random to various parts, adding to the din caused by the sound of a cheerful music box within and the wild colorful squawking birds (among other wild animals) in cages hanging from the sides. Sometimes a mischievous or well-meaning child unlatches a cage and sets a fluttering bird free. The bird bursts forth and circles above the wagon, enjoying its newfound freedom until it tires of it and returns to its cage. Rumor is that the Supplier is a wizard, and each bird is a cursed thief who attempted to rob the wagon. It is said that after seven years of staying with the wagon they shall be returned to their true forms, which is why they stay close to it. The right wall of the wagon pivots out like a sideways door to become a roof of sorts over the now revealed rectangular opening, from which Old Man Plier vends his wares.

To ask what is sold from the Wagon of Wonders is a simple thing to do. To answer the question is no simple thing at all. The answer can be anything from weapons and armor to books and maps, from jewelry and clothes to medicine and elixirs, from unique animals to own or eat, to mysterious fossils and artifacts, the origin of these items ranging from the furthest reaches of Calderon to the next town over. The wagon itself is said to be larger on the inside than on the outside, being able to house such an array of items, although the only person who has ever been inside is the supplier himself.

If something catches your eye, be sure to acquire it. Odds are, another of its kind will not be sold again. Don't have enough coin to pay for it? The Supplier is a flexible fellow. He will instead ask for a favor, like brushing his ox, or repairing or repainting a part of his wagon, or feeding his wide array of many caged animals. He may also propose a trade. He will ask a man for a livestock he hadn't been able to feed in exchange for corn seeds and garden tools. Or a woman for the necklace that she has been coveting for a needle and basket of colorful yarn and thread. He may even give some shiny glass marbles to a wide-eyed child, and in return accept the stuffed doll that the child's parents had been trying to pry away for years. No matter how confusing the trade may seem to the customers, the supplier has his reasons, and more often than not, the customer will feel very satisfied with the transaction, if not immediately after, then in the following days.

When the wagon of wonders is wanted most, it's nowhere to be found,

But on the day you least expect, it's sure to be around,

So when you hear it drawing near, a bird's squawk or oxen's low,

Be sure to buy the thing you needed and didn't even know