What is This Free Time You Speak Of?

 I have been derelict in my writing duties for the last month.  Well, not so much derelict as much as a looked down and when I looked up again, a month had passed. The last month has been one of those "one step forward, two steps back" situations, and it has just damned near worn me out.

My wife and I have had to admit my mother-in-law to a long-term care facility due to her health. I work in a similar facility, but my facility does not accept Medicare or Medicaid. The place where she is does and the paperwork was incredible. I'd still be willing to bet something is not filled out right.

We spent every weekend since working up until this last one on cleaning out her house. When you have to do something like this, it really makes you look around your own place. I spent a lot of time inventorying and looking at things thinking, "Do I really need to keep that?" or "If I die tomorrow will this thing mean anything or just get tossed?" It's kind of sobering how much unnecessary crap you have when you take that assessment.

That was all on top of the usual car maintenance and repairs I have had.  The $600 Mustang needed brakes.  Well, it needed the brake system overhauled. Two new rotors, two new calipers, a cool new tool to do the back brakes (screw you Ford), and a lot of labor made it all safe again.

I haven't even touched on the shit we're having to do at work thanks to our new friend COVID-19. Nasopharyngeal swabs all around twice a week for the foreseeable future. With my role as HR Director, I'm overseeing the process for 120 employees. 

YAY! 

I honestly would have run screaming from the building before now if it weren't for my amazing staff.

For now, I'm just trying to keep my head above water, but I keep getting weight added to my feet.

Here's hoping the new year will bring with it some breathing room.

Wayne

Tales Around the Supper Table

 

Back in March I put up a snippet of a work in progress for an anthology that was slated for summer release. Took a little longer than anticipated, but it's live on Amazon HERE and available in both e-book and a dead tree version. Below is a snippet from the final version of the story.

You can read the rest of this story and others by Alma TC Boykin, Dorothy Grant, Kathey Grey, Pam Uphoff, JL Curtis, Jonathan LaForce, Peter Grant, Lawdog, John Van Stry, and Monalisa Foster.



     Trip hadn’t contacted his old mentor in over fifty years, but the old phone number was the only non-magical means he had of reaching out to the only person he could think of with the depth of knowledge he needed. Using magic would be a last resort because there was still a faction of hunters who actively looked for blood magic. Using that much magic openly would mean having to go underground again, not to mention endangering his old mentor as well. Trip was relatively happy with his life right now, so he decided to save that as a last resort. He really didn't even know if his old teacher was even alive, but it was all he had at the moment. Trip took a deep breath and dialed the number.

     On the fourth ring the phone was answered by a young girl, "Hacienda Garcia."

     Interesting. The old man hasn’t changed his name.

     "Hey there. My name’s Trip. Is Paulo around?"

     "Yeah. He's out in the back yard. Hang on I’ll get him."

     The sound of the phone rattling on a counter after being dropped came through Trip's earpiece followed by the young girl's voice flipping from English to Spanish. Her voice was as clear as if she were still holding the phone, "Oye! Viejo! El telefono es para ti! Es una hombre llamado Trip!" Trip heard the sound of running feet fading as they got further from the phone as the girl ran back to whatever she was doing before the phone rang.

     Trip heard the sound of an old screen door creaking as it was pulled open. It banged in its frame when the spring pulled it closed. He could hear the stomp of work boots approach across the old hardwood floor. A husky old voice with just a hint of a Spanish accent met Trip's ears, "Trip? How the hell are you? Haven’t heard from you in a lifetime. What brings you back my way?"

     Trip spent the better part of half an hour bringing his old teacher up to speed on what had been going on in his city, " I’ve dug as deep as I can with the resources I have, and I’m no closer to an answer than I was when I started. I hate not knowing what the hell I’m up against, so I figured I’d ask the only other person I know who might have a clue."

     Paulo was quiet for a minute, "Warlock covens usually only have twelve human members with whatever demon they follow as the thirteenth. If this coven has thirteen human warlocks, then you've got a very powerful, almost messianic, figure as their leader. Combine that with the child and the ten others that have been abducted so far, and it sounds like you’ve got a death cult looking to do some apocalypse level shit. I’m not surprised you couldn’t find anything."

     Paulo paused, and Trip heard the sound of a Zippo as the old man was lighting a smoke, "If what I’m thinking is going on, there hasn’t been anyone stupid enough to attempt it since just before the Dark Ages. If it’s what I think it is, they’re gonna need thirteen souls to pull it off. They'll collect and hold the souls of the first twelve in a crystal vessel, and the soul of the innocent child will be the final sacrifice to trigger the magic. Hers will be taken directly by the being they summon. You’d best track them down before they get to thirteen."

     Paulo being nervous spurred Trip to dig deeper, "What are you thinking? I don’t want to walk into this blind."

     "If it’s what I suspect, the leader of the coven is looking to ascend. They’ll gain power on the level of a lesser god and likely unleash Hell...literally. The last time this was tried, the ascended warlock unleashed several demons and set off a wave of cholera that wiped out a big piece of Europe. It would be best for all of us if they were stopped. You up for this?"

     Trip sighed, "Do I have a choice? Thanks for the info. If I pull this off, I may even come out that way for a visit. Say, who's the kid? New apprentice?"

     Paulo chuckled, "Yeah. She's not a blood mage, but just like you she was a scared little kid when she came to me. First in her family to have the gift. She seems to have a kind of earth magic that lets her speak to plants. When her mother's daisies asked her for water, it sort of freaked her out. She's been helping with my orchard and damned if she hasn't helped bring in a bumper crop of peaches. I'll tell you what. You save the world, and I'll make cobbler. Oh, and don't wait so long to call next time, Pendejo."

     Trip couldn't help but smile at the affectionate way Paulo had just called him a dumbass. That'd been Paulo's nickname for him for as long as he could remember, "I'll do my best, Viejo, and for some of your peach cobbler, I'll make sure I win. Talk to you soon."

     "Buena suerte, my friend," Paulo hung up the phone.

     I could use some luck. Trip headed for the shower to get ready to spend the night bar hopping in hopes of finding someone who saw something.

     He came out the front door of his apartment building about half an hour later to find Danny sitting on the ground, leaning against a Fed-Ex drop box on the sidewalk waiting for him. When he saw Trip, he got to his feet, "Another lookout went missing tonight right after dark."

     "Shit! That's twelve. I need to see the place where it happened. Take me there."

     The two of them set out for the site of the last abduction. It was only about four blocks from Trip's apartment building, so it didn't take long to get there. As they walked, Trip let the smallest trickle of power into his senses. He felt the blood on the ground a few steps before Danny stopped and pointed into an alley, "This is where she was. She was the last of the outer perimeter watchers. Hey, are you ok?"

     Trip didn't acknowledge Danny because his focus was completely on the four tiny droplets of blood on the alley floor. He walked over to where they were and went to one knee. He touched one of the drops, and it lifted away from the pavement with his finger like steel stuck to a magnet. He let his power touch the blood and the memories of its last moments in the body it belonged to flooded into Trip's mind.

     In his mind, Trip saw the street in front of them as it looked at sundown. He heard footsteps from behind and felt hands grab clothes. The watcher didn't go peacefully. She had heard them coming and was ready. She lashed out with a hand and scratched the neck of one of her abductors. Trip believed one of the memories must be a delusion; because, it looked like one of the assailants had the head of a snake. The last memory was of being hit by the one she scratched. One of the other assailants put a hand on the watcher's head and she fell unconscious. The magic of the sleep spell left a faint metallic taste in Trip's mouth as he broke his trance.

     Trip spat on the pavement trying to get the coppery taste out of his mouth, "That's just fucking great. Just great."

     Trip nearly spat on Danny's shoe. Danny took a step back from Trip, "Hey! Watch where you spit. What's the matter?"

     "Nothing you can fix kid. Sorry if any of that got on you. I need you to go back to Duke John and tell him to pull his people off of the street until he hears from me. This isn't something you guys can fight. Dammit. I need a drink to get this taste out of my mouth. Maybe someone in that bar over there saw something else, like which way they went. Get moving!"

     Danny took off at a run down the alley and Trip made his way across the street to the bar. He opened the door and was met with a really off-key rendition of Queen's 'Somebody to Love'. He did his best to tune it out as he worked his way through the crowded room. Ugh, karaoke. Just what I needed to make this night perfect. He finally got to the bar, flagged down the bartender, slapped a five-dollar bill on the bar, "Bourbon. Don't care what brand."

     Trip took a mouthful of the rotgut and swished it around in his mouth before swallowing it. After the third time the foul taste of that spell finally faded. Trip ordered a second drink and asked the bartender if he'd seen anything odd happen across the street tonight.

     The bartender thought about it for a second or two, "Yeah. You know what? Now that I think about it, there was a little bit of a scuffle in the alley across the street earlier. Eventually they all got up and walked off together like they were all friends. They got into a black SUV and drove off. I really didn't think too much about it. Hell, people scuffing outside of a bar isn't anything new."

     "They walked away together?"

     "Yeah. Was odd that one of them looked like a homeless person, but we don’t choose our friends, right?"

     Trip sat sipping his bourbon. Walked away. Not a sleep spell then. Mind control maybe? That would explain the nasty aftertaste the magic left in my mouth. All the blood would know was everything went black.

     The next singer started their turn and the first few chords of Shania Twain's 'Still the One' drifted over the room. It wasn't the music that caught Trip's attention, even though he'd always liked that song. It was the voice that came next that would not be ignored. Trip couldn't help but look toward the stage. The singer was not what he expected to see.

     She was tall and lithe with very short cut spiked blonde hair. She was wearing form fitting jeans that were tucked into knee-high, black leather boots. Her shirt was one of those things that looks wrapped on, crossing in the front. The v-shaped neckline ended somewhere between her navel and her breast bone exposing the white skin beneath. He could just make out the lines of a tattoo that could be an oriental dragon, or maybe a snake, that ran inside of her left breast and up over her shoulder. Once he made eye contact it felt like she was singing only for him, and Trip kind of just sat there until she finished.

     After she was finished, she walked straight through the crowd to where Trip was sitting. She smiled at him, "Mind if I sit here?"

     Trip motioned to the stool next to him and she sat down. She waved the bartender over and ordered a beer and another drink for Trip as well. Small talk ensued and the next thing Trip knew he was headed for the door with her on his arm. He knew there was something important he should be doing, but the smell of her and the bourbon in his belly were keeping him from remembering. That funny taste had returned to his mouth too, but that didn't really seem all that important at the moment. The last thing Trip saw before he blacked out completely was a black SUV pulling up to the curb.

To Kill a War Leader is Live

 I uploaded the "final" version to Amazon last night. It is available on KU as well as for purchase as an e-book.  I'm not sure it's got enough meat on its bones to warrant killing trees to make a print version.  Who knows? Link below. Hope you enjoy it.

-Wayne

To Kill a War Leader

The Affairs of Dragons Pt. 6 - Training...Kind Of

 In an effort to avoid cover design, my brain decided it would finish up the current chapter in progress for the next book. It's kind of odd how the mood in the short story For a Child influenced my writing with Tole. Trip, the main character in that piece is very somber and serious. I've had to work to get Tole's snark back. It hasn't been easy, but I'm getting there.

Hope you enjoy it and comments are always welcome.

-Wayne

 

      I sat there inside of a circle I'd drawn in the dirt with my dagger staring at an orcish rune I had also scribed in front of me inside of the circle. Valsh tells me it should help me focus while I try to reach my gift. All it's done so far is give me a fucking headache.

      Every time I stare at it another image jumps into my mind and distracts me. I've never been able to concentrate for very long. I'm just too easily distracted. I'd harnessed that tendency to help build situational awareness, but I've never been able to turn it off. Consequently, my head is fucking killing me from trying.

      "GODDAMIT VALSH! This is just not going to work! Man, I'm just not gonna be able to do this. Every time I just start to concentrate on this rune a crescent moon keeps popping into my mind."

      I stood up and stepped forward to leave the circle and smashed my face into the invisible barrier. Valsh almost fell off of the log he was sitting on when he saw that.

      "Well," he said around choked laughter, "you can obviously raise a circle. You can control the magic in The Bar to get where you want to go...most of the time, so you touch magic whether you believe it or not. Break the circle with your dagger before you break your nose."

      In spite of his confidence in my ability, I wasn't convinced. What he didn't mention was that it had taken me the better part of a morning to be able to raise the circle. The other side of it was that I really wasn't interested in learning this shit. If Valsh was right, I really didn't have a choice. According to him, once that tap is on it doesn't turn off. It would continue to open and eventually drown me if I didn't learn to control the flow. Fuck...my...life.

      "What I do not understand," he continued, "is why the symbol isn't working. It is a meditation technique that has been used for millennia by my people."

      I looked him square in the eye and said, "Maybe that's the problem. You remember how well trying to train me like you'd train a pup worked last time don't you?"

      That brought another round of his raucous laughter as I took my dagger and broke the circle. I picked up a dirt clod and bounced it off his rock head. He stopped laughing for a second and then burst out even louder than before.

      "You are right, of course," he said once he calmed down. "I should have learned then that I cannot teach you using our ways. Try it again, but this time draw the symbol that keeps showing itself to you. I am beginning to think that maybe it is your gift trying to tell you to do it your own way."

      I walked over to my packs and said, "After lunch. I'm starving like I've been working out all morning. I would never have guessed that this shit would be so much fucking work."

      We spent about an hour eating and talking. Food and water helped my headache go away, at least until Valsh started talking about magic and his theories on exactly what was going on with me. That put the pain right back in the old brain bucket.  When I finally gave the “migraine salute” by pinching the bridge of my nose, he stopped talking. That’s when I realized I could feel tension in the air that wasn’t coming from me.

      I looked up to see Valsh sitting stone still and staring behind me. If I didn’t know any better I would have thought he was afraid. Nah, not Valsh. Then I noticed he was chanting under his breath, gathering power to himself.

      “Tole. Do not move if you wish to live,” he said as he rose and unleashed a strike at something behind me.

      Then he sat back down with a look of complete and utter disbelief on his face. Now he was afraid. He was sweating and his hands were shaking, so I drew my daggers and spun.

      Serilla was there in her true form. Something in the way she was moving told me she was getting ready to eat Valsh. I put my daggers away and started walking to her. I heard Valsh trying to move. That was when I realized she had countered what he had thrown at her and locked him right the fuck down. He was completely at her mercy, and I was willing to bet that was a new sensation for him.

      “Valsh. Meet my employer,” I said gesturing to Serilla. “Serilla, this is Valsh. Please don’t eat him.”

      She shimmered into her human form and walked towards me saying, “Are you sure, Killer? I’ve never eaten anything like him before. He might be delicious.” She smiled at me.

      “I’m sure. Why are you here?”

      I heard Valsh draw his first deep breath since this all began as she turned to me and said, “In all truth, I was watching you through the link from our Communion. I could tell you had not moved yet, and then I felt you touch the magic of my world. I did not know what that meant, so I came to make sure you were unharmed. I arrived to find you sitting and talking to that. What is that? It is NOT of my world.”

      I tried really hard not to laugh...I swear. I didn’t do a good job, but I tried. Serilla raised an eyebrow at me, and I got myself under control.

      "That is Valsh," I said with a flourish and a bow. "He is an orc and the shaman to the Deep Valley Tribe of the world called Orta'ahn, and he's one of the very few beings I've met in the multiverse that I consider a friend. We have been through a scrape or two since my first job for him almost...shit...two years ago. Has it been that long, Valsh?"

      "It has indeed," he said as he got to his feet. "What manner of creature are you? I have never been at anyone's mercy like I was just now. It was a truly memorable experience, but not one I would like to repeat."

      Serilla ignored his question and came to sit on the log beside the fire pit in our camp. I offered her something to eat which she declined. She stared at Valsh for a few minutes like she was still unsure whether or not to eat him. I could tell that the scrutiny was making Valsh very uncomfortable. I tried really hard not to laugh when she would shift her body in her seat causing Valsh to twitch a little. I tried hard, but it was just so damned funny.

      "That does not explain why you were drawing on the magic of my world," she said. " I knew you had the ability, but I did not know you had the knowledge to do so."

      "I don't."

      "He does not."

      Valsh and I spoke almost in unison. I turned and shot him the finger, but I smiled while I did it.

      "That would explain why it was so...erratic," Serilla said with a nod. "It was like when a fledgling dragon first touches magic. What you are doing is very dangerous."

      Valsh continued, "That is the purpose of my visit to your world. I had suspected for some time that Tole had the ability to channel magic. I first saw him do it during his first, job I think he calls it, for me. I tested him earlier by feigning an attack on him when he was not expecting it. His reaction to the attack is what caused him to reach out for your world's magic. In the heat of combat, he pulls magic like a magnet and turns it into carnage. It is truly something to behold."

      "Horseshit," I said. "I trained long and hard to become what I am. Magic was not and is not a part of it."

      "No, Killer, you are wrong," Serilla said laying her hand on my leg. "If what I saw in our Communion is any key, magic is a big part of why you are the way you are. It may have been dormant when you were on Terra, but it most definitely is active now. You should learn to use it."

      I put my hand on hers. "I told you I don't want to know what you saw, and I meant it. Still do. As far as magic goes, I'll learn enough to keep it from killing me, but my trust is always gonna be with the fucking steel in my hand."

      Serilla looked me right in the eye and said, "That is most likely for the best. If what I saw in our Communion is true, I do not think either of us is going to be able to teach you how to control your gift. I think you would need to be taught by another like you, but I have never seen anything quite like what I saw when we joined."

      This peaked Valsh's interest. "What is this Communion you keep speaking of? How does it let you have all of this information about Tole? What have you done to him?"

      "It's private man," I said. "She didn't do anything to me that I didn't want done, but suffice it to say that we know each other on a level most people never share. We know who and what each other truly are. If she says you guys can't teach me then you can't."

      Valsh shook his head. "I will not accept that. Your gift is dangerous. If you do not learn to release it, you will die. I cannot allow that to happen when there is something I could do about it."

      "I may have an idea about that," Serilla said as she stood up. "I can teach you a pair of runes that will allow you to safely discharge all of the magic built up in your body. The only problem is that it will drain all of your stored magic...even that in your powered stones. You wouldn't be able to open a portal for a couple of days and your...what did you call it...nuclear warhead won't go off if you are killed. You will, however, be reset to start storing magic again. It's not the best option, but it is the only one we can choose at the moment. We really need to figure out how you came to be what you are."

      I gave her a look that said not to dig any deeper into that right now, so she got us both sticks to write in the dirt with and set about trying to teach the dullest kid in class. Luckily, the runes weren't hard to learn, and the process was simple. I just had to put my feet in water, one hand on each rune, and brace for impact.  Apparently, it's gonna hurt like a bitch. Oh well, life is pain right?

      While we were talking, five men stepped out of the forest into the clearing where I had made camp. From the looks of them they were highwaymen and probably looking for an easy target.

      The largest and obviously the leader of this band of merry men stepped forward. "Well, well, well, look at what we have here fellas. A woman, a tiny little man, and their pet...um whatever it is. They obviously didn't know that there is a tax to travel in our forest. I guess we'll just have to see if they have anything of value...and if not, maybe take a little sport with the woman."

      Serilla could have cooked them where they stood, and I'm pretty sure Valsh could have as well. The two of them exchanged a glance and Valsh acted cowed and slunk over to sit behind Serilla. She just touched her chest with her fingertips and said, "Please don't hurt us." Then she looked at me, and I knew they expected me to handle this. She wanted to see me fight.

      I got up and drew my blades and looking at Serilla said, "Fine. Be that way, but this is gonna cost you extra." She gave me a nod and a smile.

      As I walked towards the men, they all had a look on their faces that told me that they didn't regard me as a threat. Two of them exchanged punches to the shoulder, pointed at me and started to laugh.

      Right, those fuckers die last.

      I ran my threat assessment as I walked across the clearing. They were all taller than me. The smallest was probably four inches taller and at least twenty pounds heavier, and it just went up from there. One of the laughers had a cloudy eye with a scar through it. Right, bad peripheral vision. The rest of them looked relatively healthy.

      As I got closer they broke into a circle around me. I loved it when they do that because it hinders their ability to work as a team. I could feel the adrenaline slam home into my brain and suddenly my opponents' movements looked like they were in slow motion.

      When the circle closed, the leader glanced to his side to say something to one of his men, so I charged him while his head was turned. I had to jump to reach my target, but I put the dagger in my right hand up through his chin and into his brain. Turns out there was one in his head because his eye rolled back and he crumpled to the ground like a rag doll as I landed from my small jump.

      Once both of my feet were on the ground I pivoted right and gut stabbed the next man with the dagger in my left thrusting it up and into his heart. The look of shock on his face matched the expression of so many others in my past.

      I could hear the man to the leader's right charging so I turned and threw the dagger in my right hand. It didn't penetrate his chest, but I didn’t need it to. It caused him to turn his body to avoid being hit, and that opened up the inside of his thigh and that let me put my other dagger into the artery there. I made sure to slice as I withdrew the blade. He stumbled. I shoved him on past me and moved to retrieve my thrown dagger.

      That just left laughing boys who were standing stock still with their mouths wide open. They glanced at each other and turned to run.

      Oh, I don't fucking think so. You don't get to threaten me and run away.

      I set off at a sprint, and the landscape around me blurred as I ran. I caught them both before they'd taken three steps. When the gap between us closed I thrust with both daggers, taking each man in the back just between the fourth and fifth ribs. The pulse from their hearts traveled down my blades tell me the strikes had punctured them. We ran maybe two more steps in unison before they faltered and fell forward.

      I knelt down and wiped my blades on their leather vests and spit on the ground between them. I turned back to see Valsh and Serilla both looking at me like they'd just seen a ghost.

      "See? What did I tell you?" Valsh asked. "Is it not something to behold? That small human definitely has the heart of an orc!"

      "You mean dragon. I felt it. I felt when he touched his gift. I have never seen anyone or anything move that fast." Serilla's words were almost a purr. "Killer, I owe you an apology for trying to talk you into letting me release you from our bargain. Asking you not to be what you are would be like asking the sun not to rise."

      "Whatever," I said. "I'm hungry again though."  I sat down and finished off the rest of the meat on the carcass over the fire. I had to admit though; my headache was gone.

It's "Done"

The quotes around "done" are a warning and a reminder to me that the real work is still ahead. I finished the draft of To Kill a War Leader yesterday. Now I have to go through it all over again and fix all of the terrible grammar and mixed tense sentences and maybe insert and/or remove commas at random.

Then cover design. My hated enemy rears its ugly head again. I honestly think that the dread of cover design is what keeps me from finishing anything. LOL

If all goes to plan I hope to upload it before the end of the month. I do have to fit it all in around work, a short vacation (because holy hell do I need it), and jury duty. 

Did I mention I got tapped for the grand jury? Every other Wednesday from now through the end of the year. Huzzah!

Pray for me.

Wayne

One Problem Down, 999 to Go

      I think I may have finally gained some ground in the ongoing battle with my 89 Mustang . I have been chasing an issue with the engine just falling on its face at around 2k RPM under hard acceleration. At first I thought it was vacuum related. That's why I pulled the dash. I'm not mad I was wrong because of all of the other crap I found hiding there. Specifically the fire looking for a place to happen in the blower fan wiring.

     A lot of online research later, I decided the next thing to tackle was the TFI module. I can't say I'm 100% sure exactly what these things do other than fail and cause problems. I can say that the decision to put something that is sensitive to heat on top on the damned engine was a bad idea. Only took Ford 10 years to realize it. This is the part in question.

        I ordered a relocation kit from McCully Racing and moved it to a cooler location. Of course the 31 year old plastic on the plug disintegrated in my hand, but my local parts store had a replacement in stock. (I damned near had a heart attack when they said they did.)

     Any way. The wiring was relatively easy and now it lives on the inner fender on the passenger side and my car accelerates like the monster it is once again....ok, maybe not monster, but it will get me into traffic in a hurry.

     As for writing, I'm trying. Between work, getting my wife and kids ready to go back to school, and trying to keep everyone's cars on the road, I'm finding I need another 5 or 6 hours in my day. 

     Writing is like a fart. If you try to force it, you're more than likely  just going to get shit.

      Everyone be safe out there.

-Wayne

Twenty Four and Counting

Monday was my 24th wedding anniversary and I was given yet another shining example that I chose well. How did we spend the day you ask? Playing an online game together, and it was her idea.

We've played Everquest 2 off and on since 2003, but since the schools closed in March she's gotten back into it whole hog. We paid for lifetime subscriptions a while back and for some reason I just quit playing. She asked if we could play together since we couldn't really go anywhere and do anything. To be honest, it was really nice.

We were planning to order take out from our favorite local Italian place only to discover that they're closed on Mondays. 

"No problem," I said. "Call option 2."

Closed.

We found a place that was open, so we ordered dinner...we should've made our own.

Oh well, after 24 years we can muddle through a blown dinner plan.

All things considered, it was a really good day.

Now we forge bravely ahead on the road to number 25. That one will be a whole different thing.

Wayne

To Kill a War Leader Pt 12 - Honoring the Fallen

This is the first thing I've written in a while. It's still alittle rough, but I hope you enjoy it. As always, comments are welcome and appreciated.

-Wayne     

   Valsh had kept her preserved while I was gone. Shortly after I came back to his hut, we traveled through a portal back out into the jungle. I built a litter to drag her back to the village. All the while my anger with Na'Guk grew. I dreamt of bathing in his blood. It's not that I was planning on settling down with Shala, or even that I was in love. She was innocent in this and her death was unnecessary. The Green Mountain Tribe were not to blame. We shouldn't have even fucking been there. That's what fueled my fire. Na'Guk was a rabid dog who was only going to get more of his people killed for no goddamned reason.

        I don't think Valsh and I said five words while he was with me. After the litter was made he opened a portal back to his hut and left me alone in the jungle with Shala's body. I was gone for a day, and we had spent most of a day making the litter. I figured dragging her through the jungle would have added at least a half a day to my trip back, so I made camp with plans to leave at sun up. Valsh told me his spell would fade shortly after the sunrise, so I covered her with the hammock she had brought with us to keep the flies off of her. I sat a vigil by the fire, but nothing approached her remains.

        The next morning, I started my hike back to the village pulling the litter behind me. Valsh had put me about a half day's hike out, so by the time I broke the tree line the sun was at mid-day. I heard the call go up from the guards at the wall and Shala's group of huntresses met me half way to the gate. They offered to take up the task of carrying her, but after one look in my eyes, they bowed and moved away.

        I pulled her all of the way through the village to her hut. Once I had her inside, I moved her onto the bedding where we had spent that first night. I knelt beside her until Valsh arrived with another orc. She was old, probably older than Valsh. He touched my shoulder and said, "Tole, this is Manua. She will prepare Shala for her funerial rite. We should go."

        I got to my feet and nodded my head in deference to Manua. She returned the nod and went to sit by Shala's body. When Valsh and I passed through the door, she began to chant and sing. I could hear an occasional break in her voice as she sang. I looked at Valsh with an unspoken question on my face.

        "Huh? Oh, she is Shala's mother. She is singing the tales of Shala's honor and prowess to the gods and will ask they allow her into The Hall. Tradition demands that she sing for a day at least without food or sleep. When she is done, the village will gather for the ceremony and then a feast will be held in Shala's memory. After that is done, I am certain Na'Guk will order the attack take place within the next three or four following days."

        "Never gonna happen," I spat.

        A few steps later a memory pushed its way to the front of my anger. In my mind I saw the dinner in the Great Hall about a week before. Na'Guk had left through a hidden door in the back wall of the room. That needs to be investigated, so I left Valsh's side with a promise that I would be back soon. He gave me a suspicious look, and I simply replied with a smile. Well, I thought I smiled. Valsh looked at my face and said, "Do not do anything stupid."

        "Who? Me? I'm the fucking poster child for rational action," I replied as I broke from his path.

        The Great Hall was used for damned near everything, so it wasn't very heavily guarded. I stepped inside and took a quick visual estimate of its size. The place was about forty feet wide and sixty feet long. I thought it looked bigger than that, so I went back outside and paced it off. Forty feet wide was pretty much dead on, but the outside was closer to seventy.  I walked around behind, but there wasn't anything that looked like a path leading away from the back wall.

        Interesting. Must be a small room in the back.  I'd bet stairs down into a tunnel. Why would an "honor in battle" leader have a bolt hole?  I'll have to check that with Valsh.

        The War Leader's hut was about twenty feet away and at a slight angle. I paced it off, stomping my feet to try and hear if there was any hollow space below me. I didn't hear anything, but a few minutes later one of Na'Guk's guards came around the corner of the hut to see what I was doing. He bowed up and snorted at me. I just smiled, waved, and turned and left for Valsh's hut. I saw him shaking his head as he went back to where he'd been.

        So, there is something down there and apparently it's guarded.  Interesting.

        I made my way back to Valsh's hut running some scenarios for putting Na'Guk in a hole in my mind as I walked. I must've looked pissed because no one stopped me or even spoke to me the entire way across the village. There were even a couple of Na'Guk's guards who side-stepped me as I passed. Maybe having a reputation as a jungle demon wasn’t such a bad thing after all.

        I walked straight into the hut without knocking or even announcing my arrival. I went straight to the keg on the shelf in the back and drew up a mug of that fruity beer he kept on hand. Valsh tried to ask me a question a couple of times, but I waved him off while I drank. After I had taken a couple of good pulls on my drink, I grabbed some cheese off of a plate and sat down on a pillow. I took a bite of cheese and washed it down with the fruit beer. Maybe it was the stress of the last few days or maybe I finally snapped, but a thought that those words just flat don't belong together crossed my mind and kicked over my giggle-box.

        It took me a couple of minutes and another drink or two to be able to shove the madman back into his box in my brain. Once I settled back down, Valsh asked me, "Where did you go? You did not start any trouble with Na'Guk did you?"

        "Relax man. I'm crazy, but I'm not stupid. His day is coming, and it's gonna be soon. Just not today. I do need some information though if you have some time to talk."

        Valsh drew himself a large flagon of beer and grabbed some cheese. He came to sit on a cushion nearby and said, "If it will keep you out of Na'Guk's way, I will talk all day. What do you need to know?"

        I spent a few minutes describing what I discovered about the hidden room in the Great Hall and my theories about the buried tunnel. I told him about the guard coming to see what I was doing and my conclusion that there was a guarded tunnel running to the War Leader's hut from the Great Hall. The whole time Valsh sat nodding.

        "There is a tunnel. Na'Guk had it put in so that he could leave the festivities without having to walk through a crowded room. That was when I first began to suspect that there was something wrong with my War Leader. I suspect there are more secret ways under the village, but as you said, they are guarded. I have not been able to confirm my suspicions. Surely you are not thinking of using them to gain access to his hut?"

        I lowered my mug from my mouth and looked Valsh in the eye. All mirth was gone from my voice, "That is exactly what I am thinking. I can't open a portal, and I can't walk in through the front door.  That leaves sneaking in somehow. I'd be willing to bet that there's one, maybe two guards at most in the tunnel. It would be best if I can find a way past them. If not, I'll make their deaths as silent and as nasty as his. Angry gods sometimes smite anyone in their path. Besides, if they're all gonna commit ritual suicide anyway, what does it matter?"

        The rest of my day was just kind of grey and boring. I drank and slept, if you want to call passing out sleep, and I dreamt. One dream was of the battle against the Green Mountain Tribe. Dozens of Valsh's people lay in the kill zone in front of that cliff with those goddamned poisoned arrows sticking out of their bodies, and Na'Guk ordered more to their deaths. In the dream I snapped and killed him in front of everyone and then was killed myself.

        Another dream was of Shala. She was alive and living her life; because, I had acted sooner and put Na'Guk down before the scouting mission. She and Valsh talked of how I had died attacking him in the Great Hall during the feast. His guards had cut me to pieces, but not before I had put twelve inches of steel through his brain.

        The last dream was of me standing over Na'Guk's body in his hut. His face held a look of shock, and I was covered in his blood. I was panting from the exertion of the things I had done to his body, but I still felt like I hadn't done enough. There would never be enough. I reached into his torso and grabbed his heart...

        Valsh shook me awake. Well he was holding me up in the air by an arm and shaking me. Never a good idea to touch me in my sleep. There was a red welt on the side of his face that was shaped a lot like my right foot. "You kick hard for such a small creature," he said. "You were talking in your sleep, so I thought I should wake you."

        "What time is it?"

        "it is near sun up," he said with a sigh. "There will be food at the cook fire soon. Manua should finish her pleas to the gods by midday, and then we will begin the funeral ceremony. There is work to do first, and you have a role to play. Wash your face and then we will go get some food."

        There was a communal breakfast in the same part of the village where the party had been the night I met Shala. The food was very good and plentiful. The mood, however, was decidedly less festive.

        While I was eating several of the huntresses stopped by and brought me food. One put a wreath of blossoms around my neck. They smelled like shit, but I thanked her. After the last of them had passed by I leaned over to Valsh and asked, "What the fuck was all that?"

        "You were the one with her when she was killed. The wreath is to show that you were close to her. Shala had apparently told her team that she was quite taken with you, but any fool...except the one sitting next to me...could see that. If you are finished eating, there is one more task that falls to you and me. Shala's team of huntresses will have gathered the fuel, but we must assemble and sanctify her funeral pyre."

        It honestly had never occurred to me that they would burn their dead, but after Valsh mentioned the pyre, I realized there was no burial ground in or around the village. Makes sense if you live in a jungle full of predators. Graves would be hard to keep safe from the animals.

        The pyre was not what I expected it to look like. I expected it to look like what I'd seen in the movies. You know. A big pile of logs stood on their end and lashed together to form platform to lay the body on. Then the whole thing is ignited and burns until the fuel is exhausted. Come to find out, if you don't build those just right so that it burns all nice and even, they can and will dump the corpse out of the fire. Then you've got a problem.

        This one was basically a brick enclosed fire pit with steel grating for the deceased to lie on with the fire burning below them. Each brick was engraved in orcish symbols that I'm sure were very significant to their beliefs. Valsh lifted the grate and set it aside, so we could begin to stack the wood. We built several layers of wood laying it in alternating directions. After each layer, Valsh would stop me and he would say a prayer over the wood. Each prayer brought a slight glow from the piles of logs.

        When we were done, Valsh looked at me and said, "Lay your wreath on the top. It will accompany her to the Hall, so her spirit will remember you."

        I laid it out in the center of the wood and left my hand on it while I thought about her. If there are gods on this world that look after the dead, take care of her. If I find out otherwise, you'll answer to me.

        I lifted my hand and Valsh put the grate back over the wood.

        He brushed his hands together to knock the dust from them and said, "The funeral will be at sundown. We should have just enough time to get cleaned up and eat something before it begins."

        I looked at Valsh like he was out of his damned mind. We'd just eaten breakfast. Then I looked at the sky and saw that the sun was well past midday. We'd been stacking that wood for hours and time had slipped away from me. As we turned to leave, Manua stepped around the corner of a hut and walked to us. She laid her hand on my cheek and then went to kneel by the pyre and began to sing again.

        At just after sunset the tribe had gathered around the pyre. From the looks of it they were all there. Valsh had told me that they would be arranged so that those who knew Shala best would be closest and it would spread out from there. He had also told me that there would be no conversation, and man it was creepy how quiet this many orcs can be.

        When we stepped through into the center of the crowd, one of the huntresses handed me a torch. I really didn't want to take it. This should have been the right of one of her friends, but Valsh had told me the other function of the wreath was to designate the "Flame Bearer" who would light the pyre and send her body to the Hall to rejoin her spirit.

        I took the torch and walked to the pyre. There was an opening in the side for the torch to be inserted into the wood pile. It felt like it took a long time for the fire to catch, but once it did, Valsh's magic took hold and the flames leapt into the sky. When they did, the entire village roared as one. The sound of it shook my body.

        I looked to the sky and found myself wishing her a speedy and safe journey. Just remember what I said. I've faced scarier things that an orc god.

        I turned away from the fire to return to Valsh's hut. As I passed through the crowd I felt a tear slide down my cheek for the first time since I buried my wife back on Terra. Huh. That's interesting. Ok Na'Guk. Time to die.

Cars Suck

     In a previous post, I talked about some wiring issues I've been having with my daily driver, a 1989 Mustang GT. Well, I've just about got that mess sorted out, and I even did some preventative maintenance on things that were rusting in the dash as I went.

     I spent WAY too much time trying to repair the printed circuit board on the back of my instrument cluster. Screw you Ford by the way. I know, they were a great idea at the time, but they really don't stand up to time. Luckily National Parts Depot is reproducing them in the aftermarket. They're even making the smaller one that runs the fluid level warning lights. 

     I just wish I knew that before I spent a weekend playing with superglue and copper banding trying to fix shit like this.

     Sorry, I wandered off of why cars suck or at least why mine does. The last time I went to button up some more of the under dash wiring (and holy hell is there a lot of it), I found that my power steering system decided to barf in my driveway for no reason whatsoever. I haven't turned the wheels or started the car or anything. Oh well, just one more thing to straighten out. 

     Some days I have to remind myself how boring it would be if my car didn't need my attention on a regular basis. Other times I dream wistfully about how peaceful life would be if my car didn't need my attention on a regular basis.

To Kill a War Leader Pt 11 - The Green Mountain Tribe

Sorry I've been away so long. The world has gone to shit and apparently it's trying to take me with it. Really just haven't been inspired to write much with all that's going on around me. Even if I had been, I just flat haven't had time. The only thing I've written lately is the short story for the anthology OldNFO is putting together to release in a month or so.

Here's the next chapter in To Kill a War Leader.  It's still rough, but it is what it is. Comments are always welcome.

Thanks and hope everything is five by five wherever you are.

Wayne 

The Green Mountain Tribe

I woke before Shala, so I set out to find something for breakfast. Not too far from camp I came across a camouflaged nest on the ground with four good sized eggs. A few feet away was one of Shala's snares she'd set the night before with what I can only describe as a saber-toothed rabbit caught in it. The thing had inch and a half long claws and every tooth was pointed with serrations along its edge. Even fucking rabbits are predators here.  I love this place!

Once I got back to camp, I stoked our small fire and cooked a small breakfast. Shala gave the appropriate thank you to the jungle for providing for our needs. I just ate. We didn't leave much, but what was left was tossed into the underbrush to allow the jungle its share. Shala buried the fire, and we broke camp.

The rest of the morning we hiked in relative silence and well before midday we reached the edge of a clearing at the base of a cliff. With the exception of the cliff face that had to be a quarter of a mile long, the mountainside was covered in foliage. The cliff only reached about a hundred and fifty feet up the side of the mountain and the entire length of it was topped with a wall made of thick timbers. I could see the simple ladders on the cliff face leading up to a small ledge near sally ports in the wall. The ladders would likely be drawn up or pushed over in the event of attack. 

I'd seen something similar once when I was a child when my family toured the cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde. The only difference was that the Pueblos who lived in the cliffs on Terra didn't use ladders. They had carved out notches for hand and foot holds in the cliff face in a complex pattern that only the members of the tribe knew. When we took the tour, we had to climb ladders and the tour guide told us that researchers still hadn't deciphered the pattern. You'd think you were doing fine on a climb and then suddenly find yourself out of places to climb with.  Couple of people died trying.

The next thing I noticed was that the clearing was not natural. We were standing at the edge of a killing field that was an almost perfect arc that left a two-hundred-yard run from the tree line to the cliff face. That would give the defenders plenty of time to deal with the ladders while raining arrows down on the invaders. I wouldn’t want to be part of an invading force trying to take it. The death toll would be ri-goddamned-diculous.

"There is the home of the Green Mountain Orcs," Shala said pointing to the wall. "You can see why they live in relative peace. Their village is almost impossible to assault with ground fighters and archers would have to fire from above to have any effect on the battle. I do not understand my War Leader's need to go to war with them."

"What about a siege?" I asked.

"What is a siege? I am unfamiliar with that term."

Of course, she didn't know what a siege was. Siege warfare doesn't give warriors the chance to die in glorious hand-to-hand combat.  On the other hand, though, the Green Mountain orcs wouldn't know how to prepare for a siege or defend against one. In less than five minutes I may have just figured out how to kill an entire tribe of orcs. 

I took a deep breath and explained. "A siege is where you basically cut off all of their access to food and water until they surrender or come out to fight. Do you know where they get water and food from? Would it be possible to cut them off? I'd be willing to bet they don't have stores for more than a week or two."

From the look on her face you'd have thought I suggested we eat their young. "There is no honor in that! You would be hurting the young and old most. The weak would die first. That is not how orcs wage war! Do your people actually fight in this way?"

"We did once upon a time," I replied. "The hope is that the warriors will come to the field of battle before their weakest die. Often times those under siege would try to seek help from allies to attack the enemy from the rear to break the siege. The fact that it isn't what you're used to doesn't make the tactic any less effective."

She snorted and said, "Well, it does not matter anyway; because, I have no idea how they supply their village. For all I know they live on the fungi that grow in a cave up there."

"I guess we're sneaking in then," I said. "This is information I have to get to give Na'Guk what he needs to wage his war. Any idea about how to get up there unseen?"

"I was hoping you did. After dark?"

"Definitely," I said as I turned back into the jungle to wait for nightfall. About five yards in a thought occurred to me. "What about from above? I mean we'd have to climb the mountain and scale back down, but I'd bet they don't defend it. Won't be the first time I've dropped in from above on a target."

"That would be better than going home with nothing," Shala replied. "We'll just have to watch out for the beasts that live on the mountain. They are different from what lives beneath. Hopefully the mountain gods are in a mood to protect you and not their followers." She was already moving before she finished her sentence.

We circled the clearing staying well within the tree line until I noticed that we had started walking up a steady incline. We were on what on Terra would likely be a deer or goat path. On Orta'ahn nothing that would qualify as prey would travel the same route routinely. This was most likely beaten into a path by something of a predatory bent, so as we ran, I kept my head on a swivel and my ears tuned to the sounds around us. It wouldn't do anyone any good for either of us to get eaten by something we never saw coming.

It couldn't have been more than a mile of jungle for us to cross to get to the base of the cliff, but it took us the better part of the afternoon to get there. The path continued up the mountain, but Shala stopped short of starting the climb. "What's wrong?" I asked her.

"The protection of my gods ends here. Once we start up, we are in the domain of the mountain gods. They have no love for my people. I do not wish to travel in their realm."

If I didn't know better, I would have said she was afraid. I didn't think gods had anything to do with it, but she believed it wholeheartedly. I guess I could empathize. I had felt trepidation on that last mission on Terra that cost me a couple of my best friends. I tried to talk Morgan out of going and he blew me off. If Shala didn't want to continue on, I wasn't going to make her.

I pulled her forehead down to mine and said, "Shala, I can go on from here without you. You can wait here for me to get back. I'm not worried about gods, and I'm confident that I'm the deadliest thing on this fucking mountain. Besides, you already know what I'm going to tell Na'Guk so if I don't come back you can always take my suggestion to him yourself." 

"No. My War Leader commanded me to see this through, and I will do just that. I don't have to like it , but I will endure it," she said and continued on up the trail.

I had to give her props for courage. She was obviously on edge, but she was also determined. I just hoped that this turned out better for us than it had for my team back in the day. Oh well, the sooner we get this done the sooner I'd be able to end the crazy bastard that sent us here and get on to my next job.

I felt it about half a click up the mountain. There were eyes on us and a sense of danger that I hadn't felt in the jungle settled in on my shoulders making the hair on the back of my neck stand up. We were being stalked. Shala felt it too because she stopped dead in her tracks about two seconds after I felt it. Her head cocked to one side as she listened to the sounds around us. She sniffed the air trying to catch a scent.

A few seconds later I saw her tense as something stepped out onto the path in front of us. It was about the size of a large wolf back on Terra, and it was mostly covered in fur. There were hard scales that ran from the base of its skull down the center of its back to the tail. I'm guessing to protect the spine from attack. It had large ears that were laid back on its head and deep black eyes. Fangs are a given on this world, but the serrated edges were as unnerving as hell when it snarled. It was drooling, so I'm guessing orc was one of its favorite foods. Then again maybe it was just hungry, and we were convenient, like a bean and cheese burrito in a convenience store.

Shala reached to draw her dagger, but I reached out and stopped her. I whispered, "Calm the fuck down. Don't show it aggression yet. Something tells me it wants the fight. Maybe I can calm it down like I do the snakes in the jungle."

I stepped around her and locked eyes with it. I don't know why I did it, but something told me we would not win this one easily. The beast and I stared at one another for what seemed like a long time. Eventually he blinked, and I knew we were no longer in danger. His ears came up, and he cocked his head to one side like he was trying to figure out exactly what I was. Then he gave a snort, turned, and walked back into the underbrush.

"When we get back to my village, remind me to tell you just how stupid that was," she said as she cuffed me in the back of the head. I couldn’t help it.  I laughed and smacked her on the ass.

"I told you I'm the most dangerous thing on the mountain," I said walking past her.

The rest of our climb went smoothly after that and we got to the point where we decided to start climbing down to the opening above the Green Mountain cliff dwelling. It wasn't the easiest thing I'd done lately. The descent was steep enough that we basically lowered ourselves from tree to tree. It was the only way to not fall off the mountain, but it also kicked quite a bit of debris loose to slide down the mountain ahead of us. We just had to hope that shit sliding off of the mountain was a regular enough occurrence that it wouldn't raise any alarms.

Sneaking is best done in the dark, so we settled in to wait until late in the night. It was a moonless night, so all we really had to worry about was the lanterns and torches positioned along the top of the wall. The cliff actually overhung the timber wall which is why archers weren't very useful from below.  No way to lob arrows over the wall, but it did make it pretty easy for me to hang my head over and look down until I found the pattern in the guard patrol. It wasn't hard. I guess they feel pretty confident that they're safe up here. The gap was even big enough for Shala to get through unnoticed.

The place was huge. It had to be home to easily three or four hundred orcs. The cave went back into the mountain about two hundred meters, maybe a little further. All of the structures were either stone or adobe making it next to impossible to burn them out. The water supply was a large cistern cut into the rock in the back of the cave and it was fed by a spring. Not gonna be easy to cut that off with a siege.  I was right about food stores though.  Orcs are primarily carnivores and meat only keeps for so long.  I'd be willing to bet you could effectively starve them out in less than a month, maybe as little as three weeks, but definitely no longer than a month.

I had pretty much all the intel I would need if I was actually going to tell Na'Guk how to wipe out his enemy, but that was never the plan. I had also spent a good part of this time plotting his death, and it was getting close to the time for that to happen. Especially if I wanted to prevent the slaughter of this tribe. Shala knew as much as I did, and she would give it all to her War Leader out of some misguided sense of honor and loyalty, even if she was questioning his wisdom.

"Time to go," I whispered to Shala as we noted the location of the last storage building. "Let's get over that wall before the sun comes up."

"Good idea," she agreed and we started back to the front of the village.

About ten feet from the ladder to the top of the wall Shala stumbled and fell to one knee bending forward like she was suddenly very sleepy. Looking back at her I could see the small arrow protruding from her shoulder and the orcs that were coming towards us warily.

"Shit. This just got interesting. Shala you ok?"

"I felt the arrow, and then I became very weak. I think I am poisoned. Leave me and get what we have learned back to my people."

"Fuck a bunch of that," I said and without really thinking I opened a portal back to my room at The Bar and pulled Shala through letting it snap shut behind me.

I immediately opened a second portal directly into Valsh's house and stepped through calling his name. His head snapped around and without saying a word he crossed my portal and carried her unconscious body back through to Orta'ahn.

"What happened?"  he asked as he examined the arrow still stuck in her back. "This is not very deep. It should not be causing her this much trouble. Where were you when this happened?"

"Poison," I spat. "We were on our way out of the Green Mountain orc's village, and one of their guards got a lucky shot at her back. This is Na'Guk's fault. It's time for him to die Valsh."

Valsh just shook his head and said, "I can see that you are angry, but do not act rashly, Tole. Na'Guk is still very well protected and you have not yet devised a way to get to him unnoticed, have you? Besides, I am going to need time to find a reasonable explanation for how quickly you have returned to the village. Now go away and let me work."

"Fine," I managed to get out around clenched teeth, "but the countdown has started and that mother fucker's days are numbered."  

I went back to The Bar to drink some real liquor and think things out. 

Shala died while I was gone.