Avalon 1.6 Freedom part 2 of 4

September 23, 2025August 30, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

The morning stayed gray and overcast and the travelers were not in the best of spirits. Alexis spent much of the morning arguing with her father.

“I’m telling you it was a man on horseback, and horses have not been tamed yet or I am sure Shengi god would have given us some.”

“So, one man got ahead of the game. That proves nothing.”

“But he was in armor.”

“But it was dark.”

“The moon was close enough to full, and he had a lance besides.”

“Maybe it was a spear that just looked like a lance. All I am saying is the Knights of the Lance arrived mysteriously on Avalon and the innumerable isles when Lydia brought in that legion of demons. God bless her, she could not help it. But there has not been a sighting of a Knight of the Lance for a thousand years. You have never seen one. I have never seen one. I am just saying you might be mistaken,” Mingus sounded firm and tried to end the conversation there.

“You are just saying you don’t believe me.” Alexis was not going to let him get in the last word.

By the time they all stopped for lunch, no one felt in the mood to speak. Even so, the matter between Mingus and Alexis remained heated, and only settled a bit when Boston overheard the argument.

“I saw a knight, too,” she said. “It was on the ridge of the Ophir, by Ranear’s village three time zones back.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Lockhart asked.

“Because when I looked a second time, it wasn’t there. I thought I had to be imagining things.”

Lieutenant Harper inched closer at that point and spoke up softly. “I saw it.” Every eye turned to her. “All the way back on the first day when we were looking down on the plains of Shinar and the Tower of Babel. I caught the glint of light in my binoculars. When I looked close it looked like a knight in armor on horseback. He rode away over the tower hill.” Lockhart just stared at her. “Like Boston,” she defended herself. “I thought I just imagined it.”

Captain Decker jumped and raised his rifle. He held it tight and sweated. “Did you hear that?”

“I’ve been seeing things out of the corner of my eyes all morning,” Roland admitted.

“Me, too. Seeing and hearing things.” Lincoln looked around but saw nothing out of the ordinary.

“Now that you mention it,” Mingus looked up. “The atmosphere here is a bit like standing on the edge of the land of the dead.”

Lincoln looked at the elder elf and frowned. “I wish you hadn’t mentioned it.” The silence came after that, and they packed up lunch early.

Doctor Procter led them to the edge of a cliff and said they had to climb down. Lockhart had everyone spread out along the ledge to look for an easier way down. He felt certain someone would get hurt in the climb. Boston thought to go back the way they had come and circle around. Sure enough, she found an easy way to the bottom.

“Hey!” She hollered back up to the top.

“Where the Hell did you go?” Lockhart yelled back. “We thought you were hurt somewhere or who knows what?” He sounded very parental, worried about his child. He seemed happy to see her safe, but quickly scolded her.

Boston explained how to get down, and Lockhart took a good look at Doctor Procter. The half-elf looked disappointed. Lockhart said nothing.

After that, Doctor Procter led them to a stream, swollen by the rain to where it raged more like a small river. It rushed down the mountainside. It did not seem so wide or deep, but it made rapids, and the rocks looked wet and slick. Lockhart could only imagine a twisted ankle if not a broken leg.

Everyone spread out again to look for a better way across. Roland followed Boston’s lead this time and went beyond the allotted time and distance. They found where the river turned one hundred and eighty degrees and saw they could continue on their path down the mountain without having to cross the water at all. When they reported back, Roland spoke innocently.

“If we had crossed the stream here we would have had to cross it again a few thousand yards down the mountain.” This time Lockhart disguised nothing in his stare at Doctor Procter. The doctor spoke amiably.

“I only follow the direction on the amulet. It doesn’t have a setting to help us avoid obstacles.” All the same, Lockhart caught the sense of cursing that came to Doctor Procter’s lips. It began to look to Lockhart like the good doctor wanted them injured for some reason, or worse.

An hour later, about three hours before sundown, if they would recognize sundown when it came, the whole atmosphere around them turned from dark and gloomy to seriously oppressive. They were all jumpy by then and hearing noises and catching things in the corners of their vision. Nothing happened, though, until something fluttered up and said “Hi.” Decker’s gun went off and the fluttering thing vanished.

“Wait. Fairy. Miss fairy.” Boston called out. “We won’t harm you.” She whipped around on Captain Decker and let lose her anger. “If you harmed her you will pay for it.” The look on Captain Decker’s face said he was sorry, that he could not help it, but words were beyond him. Another half-hour down the path and they heard the words before they saw a thing.

“Hello. Is it safe? Xiang sent me to fetch you, but I don’t want more bang-bang scary noises. It is scary enough as it is.”

Several voices answered, but Boston’s voice carried above the others. “It’s safe, miss fairy. No one will hurt you. My name is Boston.” The fairy flew up to Boston’s face and hovered for a moment to examine the girl.

“My name is Blossom,” she said before she fluttered up to examine the others. She gave the elder elf a bow, smiled for Roland, did not appear to even acknowledge Doctor Procter, and returned to Boston again at the end.

“You can sit on my shoulder while we walk if you like,” Boston suggested.

Blossom wrinkled her nose. “You have done this before,” she said.

“Twice,” Boston admitted, and the fairy settled down for a visit. With that, they had good guidance, and everyone felt their spirits lift a little in the presence of the fairy, except perhaps Doctor Procter, who slipped to the rear to walk beside Captain Decker. The captain felt guilty about firing at the poor fairy. He did not know that the chances of hitting a fairy were astronomically slim, even for a marksman.

After another half-hour, they came upon four men in a clearing. One of the men looked up. “Ah, there you are,” he said, before he turned to one of the others. “Go tell the people to hurry up. This is a good place for the night and now that my friends have arrived, we can start making camp.” While two of the men trotted off, the travelers simply stared at this familiar face before Alexis got it.

“Keng?”

Captain Decker looked at Alexis with great curiosity. “He can’t still be alive, can he?”

“Get with the program, Decker.” Lieutenant Harper frowned. “Sir,” she added to be safe.

“It’s all right, Katie.” Keng smiled for them all. “I was just getting ready to leave. The village is not far behind.”

“You’re older,” Alexis said.

“I’m older than I was when I died,” Keng responded. “I guess that sounds a little strange.”

“From you?” Lockhart shook his head.

“Mind if I write that one down?” Lincoln asked.

Keng just broadened his grin and retrieved the crutch the other man had been holding. “See you,” he said, and went away. A woman took his place and several people gasped, except Mingus who merely nodded.

“Keng and Xiang are genetic reflections,” he said. When the others did not appear to understand, he added, “They share the exact same genetic code altered only for male and female. They are like identical twins of the opposite sex.”

Alexis hit her father to quiet him. That was not why they gasped. Xiang arrived bent over. Her spine appeared bent, like it cracked, though it had not yet broken. One knee looked like it had been shattered and healed badly, and her ribs came wrapped and caked with dried blood, like she had a wound that would not close. Above all, her face seemed twisted. It looked raw, as if the flesh itself had been beaten off her.

Avalon 1.6 Freedom part 1 of 4

September 22, 2025August 30, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

After 4320 BC in the Mountains of Southern China. Kairos 13: Xiang

Recording …

The hard rain pelted them. It tried to move them downhill, like flood waters from a broken dam. The travelers had to stop and take the time to adjust their fairy weave clothing, to make slickers with hoods and boots to resist the water. They trudged forward only to have Lockhart drag them to the nearby cliffs. The time was close enough to sundown that he felt it not worth forcing them through that downpour. He decided the sooner they found some shelter, the better.

Lockhart thrilled to discover a cave in the side of the cliffs, as he hoped. An overhang would not have served nearly as well the way the wind whipped around. What made him pause, and made them all pause, was the fact that there already appeared to be a campfire burning in the cave. They could see the light and smell the meat cooking.

“Our path is this way.” Doctor Procter pointed away from the cave.

“Forget that,” Boston said, and she walked boldly into the light. The others followed and were surprised to find a single man sitting there. A whole deer roasted away, and it smelled delicious.

“Come in. Come in.” The man said, and they all thought he seemed a very young man. “Get yourselves dry and warm by the fire.

“Thank you.” Lockhart said it before Alexis could. “It is pretty rough out there.”

“Well,” the man grinned at some internal thought. “The rain was overdue and there is a place of soft dirt some five-days march from here. With luck, it may come loose and slide to the bottom, and maybe bring some boulders with it.”

“That’s an odd thought,” Lieutenant Harper noted, while she checked her rifle.

“When can we expect the rest of your group?” Captain Decker wondered.

“Just me,” the young man said. “This deer is for you. We were expecting you, and when you came through, I rushed here. I hope you don’t mind.”

“No. Not at all. Great.” They all said.

“Thank you very much.” Alexis got to say it after all. “I’m Alexis.”

“I know who you are,” the young man interrupted. “I am Shengi, god of the mountain, or I should say mountains.”

They all paused at various points in disrobing and did not know what to say until Boston spoke. “You’re not a hundred yet, are you?”

Shengi looked up at her. He could have easily been offended, but instead he smiled. “Is it that obvious young Mary Riley but everyone calls me Boston?”

“No.” Boston shook her head and returned his smile. Then she turned to the others and explained. “A god isn’t considered fully mature until he is at least a hundred-years-old.”

“Oh.” People went back to taking off their wet things and inching toward the fire. It not only rained torrents, it was a cold rain on the mountain. Lincoln had a thought.

“What did you mean when you said “we” were expecting you?”

Shengi stood and invited Lockhart and Lieutenant Harper to take his place. “Xiang,” he said. “She said you had not come in her whole life and had to come soon.”

“The Kairos,” Boston said, having read some about her in the database.

Shengi nodded. “But not official for several more lifetimes.”

“Why soon?” Lincoln still sounded suspicious.

“Because she is dying,” Shengi turned his back on them, but it took no insight to know he fought tears at the thought. When he turned back, he had a word for Alexis. “And you are not permitted to heal her.”

Alexis looked down at the fire.

“And why is she dying?” Lockhart thought to ask.

“Because I screwed up,” Shengi said, and Roland gasped at the thought. “Do not be surprised, good elf. It is more common than you think. But here, I am responsible for events.” He knelt by the fire, began to cut pieces of the deer, and passed them out. There were vegetables as well, roasted, but not burnt, and Alexis quickly made some bread to complete the meal while Shengi explained.

“My cousin and I devised a plan to advance the people in civilization. Her land is good land by the river, the one Xiang calls the Lancang. We started by devising a competition between the people. It escalated to a struggle. We helped our own far more than we should. At last, we became the ones in competition, and I would not lose to her.” Shengi clearly stiffened his upper lip before he finished. “Xiang is leading two thirds of her people to safety over the mountain. They will enter the safe lands of the Whirlwind that she calls Laos. The other third of the people are demon possessed and hungry for blood, to steal, kill and destroy.”

“That is what demons do,” Alexis said. She went to church regularly since becoming human.

Shengi sighed. “I am responsible for the infestation of demons, and once the matter with Xiang is settled, I will spend the next several hundred years cleaning up my mess.”

“We are responsible.” They heard another voice, and a woman stepped out of the dark. She appeared beautiful beyond words and because of that, they all knew she was a goddess. “I am not going to let you take all the fallout from this.” Shengi looked up at the woman with gratitude. She bent down and kissed him gently, smack on the lips. “We have to stick together, we do.” Shengi just nodded, and then Lockhart, Lincoln, and Roland all spoke at more or less the same time.

“Nagi.” They had met the woman back in the days of Keng.

Nagi looked around for the first time and then turned her back on them all, the way Shengi had. “What is this feeling?” she asked. Everyone stayed quiet as Nagi let out a little gasp. “It is shame. I feel ashamed of what I did. I have never felt that feeling before.” She spun around, but instead of the anger they feared, she also sported a look of gratitude as Shengi had shown just moments before.

“You have done nothing to be ashamed of,” Shengi said.

“But you don’t know all I have done,” Nagi responded. “These people do not know the details, but I feel ashamed in any case.” She paused and lowered her eyes. “I would say I am sorry, but the gods are not supposed to say that, if you follow me.”

“If I thought it safe, I would give you a hug,” Boston said, and Nagi gladly stepped over and hugged her.

“But now, Shengi and I must go.”

“I think you make a fine couple.” Alexis said, having read the look Nagi gave to the young man. “Don’t you think so, father?”

“Lovely,” Mingus said.

Nagi returned a knowing smile to Alexis. “But then, you are older than I am. You should know about such things.”

“Wait,” Captain Decker got their attention since he felt sure their interview was over. “This looks more like a tunnel than a cave. May I ask what is back there?”

“Trolls,” Shengi admitted. “But I have set a hedge for the night. They will not bother you.”

“Great.” Lincoln said, but he said no more as Shengi and Nagi vanished before their eyes.

“What is great about trolls?” Roland asked. Clearly, he did not like having trolls around.

“I was being sarcastic,” Lincoln admitted. “With trolls behind us and demon possessed people ahead of us I doubt I’ll get much sleep.”

“Poor baby,” Alexis slipped her arm around Lincoln’s waist. “I’ll protect you.”

Doctor Procter chose that moment to come in out of the rain and dark. “It is really coming down out there and no sign of a let-up,” he said as he took off his wet things.

The others just stared at him since none of them realized he had not already come into the cave. Mingus verbalized the thought.

“And you were where?”

“Just checking the distance and direction for the morning. I wasn’t getting a good reading inside the cave for some reason.”

“But you just got over being sick,” Alexis worried.

“But I am over,” Doctor Procter said, as he came up to the fire. “Dead animal. Good, I’m starving.” No one said a word in response.

************************

Once again we have a FOUR part episode so it will conclude on Thursday

Don’t miss it.

Avalon 1.5 Little Packages part 4 of 4

September 18, 2025July 27, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Godus came running back and shouted, even as the sounds of barking and growling reached their ears. “Hurry,” Godus yelled. “The dogs are into the sheep.” He turned and ran back toward the stream.

“Everybody! Come and help,” Dallah yelled, and followed her husband. The travelers followed Reneus, except for Alexis who thought to stay and keep an eye on Doctor Procter. Guns came out, and Roland got out his bow. The people all came, and so did the imps who were generally faster than the people. The elves were fastest, and Roland had one shot before anyone else arrived.

The imps dove into the herd howling, rolling their eyes, waving their big hands, using glamours to make themselves appear big and frightening. They just about scared the boys and sheep to death. The dogs looked like they wanted no part of it either. When Stonecrusher arrived, the dogs ran, but by then the travelers were near enough.

Lockhart got one with the shotgun. Captain Decker and Lieutenant Harper were a little slower, but both brought a dog to the ground. Three escaped, but they looked like they could not run fast enough, and like they might not stop until they were out of that region altogether.

Dallah was one of the last to arrive. “She is not strong,” Reneus explained.

“She won’t eat,” Mya added.

“Mother,” Andor tugged on her dress and Korah stood beside her little brother, her mouth open.

“Stonecrusher, stand still and keep your mouth closed and your hands to yourself.” Dallah practically whispered the words, but Stonecrusher stopped where he was. “Imps, here, now.” Dallah said, and people gasped as the imps appeared a few feet away. This time the imps all doffed their hats. “Thank you.”

“Our pleasure,” Crusty said, and Dwizzle nodded.

“It was?” Itchy turned to the others before he had something like a revelation. “It was. It really was our pleasure.”

“Were you scared?” Andor asked.

“Well, it’s like this young master—” Itchy started to speak but Crusty interrupted.

“Dwizzle wet himself,” Crusty said and Dwizzle nodded.

“But now what are we going to do with them?” Godus asked when they heard the sound of wailing among the sheep.

Korah recognized the sound and ran toward the cry. The sheep parted to let her through, and her future husband ran right behind her. The young boys in the field stood over their mother but did not know what to do. She cried over a dead sheep, and there was no comforting her.

The dogs only killed one, but the woman’s herd had gotten down to six. Herds that once sported forty or fifty sheep were in a death spiral in that harsh and inhospitable environment.

“Godus, dear.” Dallah turned again to her husband. “Give her one of ours. Make it a good one.”

“But then we will have just six.”

“As she will. Give it to Korah for her new family,” Dallah decided. Godus raised an eyebrow. That was not really playing fair.

“Pardon, lady.” Itchy stepped forward. “Might Stonecrusher have the dead one? That would certainly be a relief for everyone.”

“No,” Dallah said. “Roland, you take the dead sheep for tomorrow and the next day if necessary since you likely won’t find anything between here and the gate. Stonecrusher.” She waited until she had the ogre’s complete attention before she spoke. “You can have the dogs.”

“Mother!” Reneus objected. They had a lot of good meat on those animals, and that would sustain them for some time. But Dallah had not finished speaking.

“Take only the dead dogs and be content. Share one with your impy cousins and go with them to Lord Varuna. He may have new work for you. You are released from your obligation to Dayus.”

“Yes, Lady. Thank you, Lady.” The ogre picked up the dogs one by one and carried all four back into the wilderness without any strain at all.

“Strong sucker,” Captain Decker noted.

“And you imps.” They looked up at Dallah with big eyes. She smiled. “Skat,” she said. “Shoo.” They ran off, happy.

Godus sidled up to his wife and spoke softly. “Any more surprises?”

“A few, but mostly you are looking at them.” She took his hand introduced the travelers. She remembered to say, “Her name is Mary Riley, but everyone calls her Boston.” Then they all went to a wedding.

Dallah cried. Boston cried with her. Alexis only got teary eyed, so Lincoln cried for her. Captain Decker said, “Women.” Captain or not, Katie Harper slapped him in the arm.

The third family in the camp performed the actual ceremony. They also stood as witnesses to the union. It was a lovely ceremony, and surprisingly like modern ceremonies in most parts. But then there came the sacrifice of a sheep. And several moderns looked away when the old man who performed the sacrifice soaked his hands in the sheep’s blood and sprinkled it liberally all over the couple.

Boston kept her mouth shut, but she thought “Ewww,” really loud.

After the wedding, the couple had a place not far from the camp. They had their own fire and sweets and got the prime portion of the sacrificed sheep for their supper. The families, meanwhile, settled in for a party of their own. Korah’s new mother sat beside Dallah for a time, though it made Dallah uncomfortable. Dallah only had one word of advice for the woman.

“Korah has a big, sensitive heart full of love. If you treat her gently and with kindness and encourage her in what she does she will love you forever.” The woman responded in a way which should not have been too surprising given the events of the day.

“Yes, Lady. I will do that very thing.”

By evening, Doctor Procter appeared to be much better. He sat up and ate but thought it best not to go join the celebration. He claimed to be too tired.

Later, when the sun set and most of the camp slept, Alexis stayed up a bit to watch the Doctor. She looked out beneath a moon that appeared just shy of being full, when her eye caught something glisten in the moonlight. She had no idea what it might be until she heard the sound of a horse snort a big gust of breath. The knight came close to the camp, but it did not come into the camp. Alexis stood. Doctor Procter appeared to be asleep, but he began to shiver. Alexis held her breath while the knight reared up, turned, and galloped off into the dark. She immediately woke her father and told him.

“It was a Knight of the Lance. I am sure. It had to be.”

Mingus shook his head. “There haven’t been any Knights of the Lance around for centuries.”

“No,” Alexis argued. “I heard of one a few years ago when Ashtoreth came up into the castle of the Kairos and the Kairos got so sick.”

Mingus nodded. “I heard that too, but never any proof… Just a rumor…”

“But father—”

“Go to bed and sleep. We will be leaving in the morning.”

Alexis looked down and nodded. Maybe she had not seen it. Maybe it had been like a waking dream. Maybe, but she was not sure.

Later in the night, Doctor Procter woke when a lizard crawled across his belly. His hand reached out and grabbed the creature. A harmless little thing, and the Doctor held it and bent it backwards until there came a snap! The Doctor Procter had no reason for doing that. He felt the urge to kill and wanted the pleasure of watching the beast die.

More tears came in the morning as everyone said good-bye. The witness family, the first to leave, took their sheep and headed off to the southeast. Then it came time for Korah and her mother to be parted. “Always respect your husband,” Dallah whispered between the hugs and tears. “And he will love you without ceasing.”

Korah nodded, and shortly they headed off into the north. They said they were going to go as far as the mountains to escape the dead lands. Dallah truly wished them well.

Last of all the travelers headed into the west, and Andor waved until they were out of sight. After they were gone, Andor pointed his fingers at Mya and said, “Bang! Bang!” She just had to chase him. They would be staying where they were for the present. They had the stream and some grass worth eating for their few sheep, but how long they might hold out was anyone’s guess.

Boston was the last to say anything under that blazing sun. “Doesn’t the Kairos ever get born anywhere off the equator? I mean, a little rain might be nice, at least.” Naturally, as they stepped through the gate, they found themselves in a torrent.

************************

Monday

Avalon 1.6 Freedom is another 4-part / 4-post episode, so don’t forget the Thursday post. The travelers get into the middle of a forced migration. The people are fleeing from some in their own village. There is a story there. Until Monday, Happy Reading.

Avalon 1.5 Little Packages part 3 of 4

September 17, 2025August 30, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

“Lockhart! Boston!” Dallah groaned as she got to her feet and waved.

“Mother?” Mya spoke.

“These are the ones I told you might come one day.”

“I had forgotten.” Reneus said, as the travelers came to the water. Dallah had to hug Boston and Alexis, in her wet clothes.

“It is so good to see you. I am so glad you are here.”

“Where can we set down Doctor Procter?” Lockhart asked. He looked exhausted. He and Mingus were taking a turn and the elder elf, in particular, looked unable to go much further.

“Of course.” Dallah stepped close to the half-breed but knew better than to touch him. “How long has he been like this?” she asked.

“This is the second day,” Captain Decker said. He shouldered his rifle and took Mingus’ place.

“Well, come. We must get him to the camp.”

“Mother.” Andor got her attention. “Your imps went ahead of us.”

“Oh dear.” She hurried and everyone hurried to follow. Fortunately, the imps just arrived since they stopped first for an argument.

“We are free now,” Crusty said.

“We’re supposed to go see Lord Varuna,” Dwizzle said.

“Wait a minute!” Itchy bought none of it. “Since when does a thicky bean tell us what to do, especially when our orders come from the king of the gods himself?”

“But I feel free,” Crusty said. “I don’t feel like doing the work of Dayus anymore.”

Dwizzle nodded, but Itchy responded. “That don’t mean anything. Crusty, you don’t ever feel like doing any work.” Dwizzle laughed.

“I’m thinking we could ask Lord Varuna when we find him. He always tells the truth.” Itchy hit him. “Ooowww.”

“You don’t do the thinking, you’ll only hurt yourself worse than before.” Dwizzle put his hand back in his mouth and pouted.

“I think that is a good idea,” Crusty said. Itchy stomped on his foot. “Ooowww.”

“Right now, we got to find Stonecrusher some meat before we become meat.” They could agree on that. With their glamours on, they came right up to the edge of the camp, which was not much to speak of, the huts being barely more than lean-tos with skins on the open side. They were snuggled between some stick trees, and there were only five of them altogether. There could not have been more than twenty people in that camp and barely more than twenty sheep as well.

The sheep were presently in a pen where Dallah’s husband, Godus, and two men had separated the sacrifice from the others. When they were done, the groom had two younger brothers who drove the rest to the stream.

“Not much selection,” Crusty said. The sheep were all scrawny, stunted, and underfed.

“Yeah, but it will do,” Itchy responded.

“Hey, look. Sweets.” Dwizzle pointed to a table by the altar. It sat full of dried fruits and cooked roots and tubers of various kinds.

“Oh, boy!” Crusty shouted, and before Itchy could stop them, they were on the table, they had let their glamours drop, and people screamed, some ran away, and some did not seem sure what to do.

“Hold it right there!” Dallah shouted between breaths. The imps froze in place because Dallah had that in mind. “This is my daughter’s wedding, and you will not mess it up.” She yelled a little, but mostly walked more slowly to the table so she could regain her breath. When she arrived to stare at the imps, she pushed an escaped gray hair back toward the bun on her head before she spoke. “Your hands, empty.” Dwizzle and Crusty put out their hands and she slapped them. The imps made no sound, but both squinted from the sharp, if temporary pain. “Itchy.”

The imp had his hands behind his back. “No.” He shook his head for emphasis.

“You should have been named stubborn,” Dallah said. “Your hand.” She did not ask and Itchy whipped out his hands, empty despite what his mind told him and despite his better judgment. She slapped them both, and Itchy had a hard time putting both in his mouth at once.

“Hey! How do you know our names?” Crusty asked, like the truth of that suddenly caught up to him.

“I know all about you,” Dallah said. “More than I would like to know. Now get off the table and behave, I have to see to my daughter.” Korah was already running into her mother’s arms. She cried, but Dallah brushed Korah’s hair with her hand and said, “Hush, everything will be all right.”

“Mother.” Andor tried to get her attention as Godus came up from the sheep pen.

“Who are you?” Itchy finally removed his hands to ask, and then decided to take turns soaking one hand at a time.

“She is your goddess,” Boston said. “Or she will be one day.” She knew she should not say it because it came out of time context, but she could not help herself.

“What? Don’t we have enough gods and goddesses already?”

“No, no.” Alexis spoke to clarify. Apparently, she could not help herself either. “She will not be another goddess of humans that you have to work for. She will be your goddess; goddess of all the little spirits of the earth.”

“There is no such thing.” Itchy understood.

“There will be,” Alexis responded with a smile toward her brother who frowned. The law said they were not supposed to reveal the future like that.

“Mother.” Andor tried again. Reneus, Lockhart and some of the others looked where Andor looked, but hardly knew what to say.

“But she is old and will die soon,” Crusty protested.

“But she will be reborn,” Mingus stepped up. “And sometimes she will be a god and sometimes a goddess for us all.” He turned to Itchy. “Whether we like it or not.”

“Mother.”

“But lady…” Dwizzle tugged on Dallah’s dress and pointed. “Stonecrusher is hungry.

The ogre came down the path from the stream. He appeared hard to look at because he was so ugly; but not simply a disgusting ugly. He looked mean, mad, and hungry, and now the people had something they could really scream about.

“I’m gonna eat me some people,” Stonecrusher said.

“I’m gonna eat some people,” the ogre said it again, like he was trying to make it into a song. Dallah felt sure no one wanted to hear the ogre sing so she shouted.

“Save your bullets!” Dallah said that before anything else, and Captain Decker and Lieutenant Harper lowered their weapons, if reluctantly. The marines were surprised to see Lockhart, Lincoln, Alexis, and Boston all grinning. Mingus had his hands over his eyes as if he did not want to watch. Roland looked at Boston to be sure she was not too frightened. Besides, it felt too hard to look at the ogre, even for him.

“Your bullets might penetrate and maybe a shotgun slug at close range,” Mingus said. “But most would just bounce off his rock-hard skin and make him mad.”

“Rock-hard head, you mean,” Itchy added.

“That too, I am sure,” Mingus admitted.

Dallah placed Korah in her father’s arms and stepped toward the oncoming terror. Hold it right there!” She had to shout to be heard above the screams, though she knew her little one would hear her no matter what. “Stop walking. Feet, stand still.”

“I’m gonna eat some people,” the ogre repeated himself before he shouted back. “Hey! What happened to my feet?” It was fortunate the commands of the Kairos did not have to be processed through the brain before becoming effective.

“Sit down.” Dallah said, and to the dismay of many of the people, not the least her family, Dallah walked straight toward the thing. As the ogre sat, he asked his question again.

“But what happened to my feet?” Stonecrusher paused while Dallah walked the distance and then the ogre asked a second question. “Why am I sitting?”

“What am I going to do with you?” Dallah asked a rhetorical question in return as she neared. The ogre reached for her. People gasped, but Dallah merely slapped the ogre hand like she had slapped the imp hands. The ogre snatched his hand back and looked at it.

“I thought you said the skin was rock hard.” Lieutenant Harper spoke.

“It is,” Roland answered. “But the Kairos is not hampered by any of it.”

Then the pain got processed and the ogre imitated his little cousins. “Ooowww,” he said in a very loud voice, and he slipped its hand into its mouth.

“Quiet and keep your hands to yourself.” Dallah thought as hard as she could but saw no alternative. “Godus.” She shouted back to the people who had fallen into a hushed silence to watch this spectacle. “We have to give it one of our sheep.”

“We’ve not but seven left,” Godus responded. Being the spouse of the Kairos had its privileges as far as the little ones were concerned. Her family certainly adjusted to the imps fast enough in the stream.

“Well, we will have to have six. You can pick the least of the lot that is left, but we have to feed it something. The poor thing is starving.”

“Somehow, I never imagined an ogre being called a poor thing,” Lincoln said quietly, and Alexis went to take his arm.

Godus handed Korah to her older brother, Reneus, but she already semed fine, had stopped crying, and stared with the rest of them.

Crusty sighed. “I was afraid if she was still mad at us she might feed us to the ogre.” Dwizzle nodded.

“And she could make us walk right into that big mouth without another thought,” Itchy added.

“She would never do that.” Mingus lowered his hands. “Don’t you know how much she loves you?” A small tear came to his eye, and also to Dwizzle’s eye.

“But she is old and will die soon.” Crusty said it again.

“That’s okay,” Itchy decided. “I could live with a god that dies now and then. Then she gets to be a baby again?” Mingus nodded. “So, we get a season of peace when she is young and growing up,” Itchy concluded.

“Or he,” Mingus said.

“That must be weird,” Itchy said.

“Not if you are born that way,” Mingus said.

“Oh yeah. I hadn’t thought of that.”

************************

Don’t forget tomorrow (Thursday) will finish the episode, so…

Avalon 1.5 Little Packages part 2 of 4

September 16, 2025July 27, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Dwizzle, the imp closest to the travelers stood. “Look, females.” He reached out a hand too big for the little body that supported it.

“Careful, Dwizzle,” Itchy spoke from beside the rock. “It may have prrrrikles.”

The hand paused and Alexis pointed her wand. An electrical discharge struck the hand, and Dwizzle snatched his hand back and slipped it into his mouth, a mouth too big for its face. Indeed, the nose, eyes and ears were all oversized.

“She’s a blinking witch,” Crusty said, as he waddled over to the rock to stand beside Itchy.

“I think you may have cooties,” Lockhart told Boston who grinned at the idea.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Lincoln remembered that the imps belonged to the Kairos, even if the Kairos was not yet official. That helped him relax and ask his question. “What are you imps doing out in this forsaken wilderness?”

Itchy looked at the man like he was daft. Crusty spoke. “We got our job, don’t we? Dry the land and make it sand.”

“Yeah, but we’ve been working too hard,” Itchy complained. “We heard there was a party around here.”

“Hey look!” Dwizzle removed his hand from his mouth as he spoke. “This female has bumps.” He reached for Boston’s chest, and she did not hesitate to slap the imp across the cheek, hard.

Dwizzle paused. His eyes got bigger than big. He let out a drawn-out sound. “Ooowww,” and put his good hand to his cheek while his other hand went back into his mouth.

“You better go stand behind your friends before you hurt yourself,” Lincoln suggested. Dwizzle did that while Itchy spoke.

“Surprising sense from one so thick.”

Mingus interrupted any response with his explanation. “He means thick like more body, less spirit. He doesn’t mean stupid.”

“I mean what I mean,” Itchy said, with a stern look at the elder elf, but then Dwizzle had a thought.

“Stonecrusher is hungry, you know. He eats human beans.”

“Is Stonecrusher a troll?” Boston had to ask.

“Nah!” Crusty answered. “He’s just an ogre with a bad temper. Ooowww.” Itchy hit Crusty in the arm.

“He is a great, big ugly giant,” Itchy said. “Terrible and mean and, and hungry for human meat.”

Dwizzle removed his hand for a moment. “Yeah, we thought we could snitch some food from the party.”

“Better than him eatin’ us,” Crusty mumbled and put his fists up in case Itchy had in mind to hit him again.

“When the ogre is fed, you are safe in your bed,” Boston said.

“I remember.” Lockhart patted her on the shoulder.

“That’s very good,” Alexis complimented Boston. “Where did you hear that?”

“Missus Pumpkin,” Boston answered.

“Ahem!” Lincoln coughed and pointed to the imps.

Itchy smiled too big a smile for his face. “Anyway, all you got is elf bread stuff.” The imps made faces of disgust. “How can anyone stomach elf food?”

Everyone paused while the sound of howling and dogs fighting echoed across the barren land. Doctor Procter chose that moment to sit up and yell. The words were nonsense, but then he fell back to his makeshift pillow and grew quiet again.

“You got a sicky.” Crusty pointed.

“What’s a sicky?” Dwizzle asked.

“That there.”

“You’ve never been sick. You don’t know what sick is,” Itchy mocked.

“Do so. I saw a thicky get sicky before.”

“Hey!” Lockhart got their attention again and the imps paused in their own argument to look up at the man. Lockhart smiled, but not as broadly as Itchy had smiled. Itchy shook a finger at the man.

“We gotta watch this one,” he said. “But right now, we gotta go find that party.”

“Right,” Crusty agreed.

“Better than us getting eaten by Stonecrusher,” Dwizzle added.

Roland stood behind them with his bow ready. Captain Decker had his rifle to one side, and they were hemmed in on the other side by the big rock. The rest of the travelers were in front of them so they appeared surrounded, but they moved with surprising speed and slipped around both sides of the Captain knowing better than to test the elf. Captain Decker might have plugged one, but Lockhart spoke quickly.

“Hold your fire.” In a few short seconds, the imps blended back into the landscape and became impossible to see but for the motion of the dust and sand they kicked up.

“A glamour,” Mingus described it. “Not true invisibility.” Everyone else just nodded.

~~~*~~~

Andor got into the water and the first thing Dallah did was judge the depth. It barely came to her son’s knees, which meant it had dried up another two inches or more. Reneus knelt down to fill the water skin. Mya stared at Andor before she made the boy strip down to nothing. Andor did not mind playing in the water. It stayed hot out, and even the shade of the few lively trees that bordered the stream did not help all that much.

Dallah sat slowly in that shade. Her joints ached. “You better do a good job, Andor, or you will have to take a real bath and get scrubbed.”

“Aw, mother.” Andor glanced at Mya.

“Now, come. Your sister is getting married. Do it for her.”

Andor did not mind that so much. He liked his sister, so he began by dumping a double handful of water on his head.

Mya grinned at some impish thought, dropped her dress so she stood in her under things. She stepped into the water with a word that perhaps Andor needed help, and she splashed him. Of course, he splashed her back, and they went at it for a few turns before they turned, without a word, and splashed Reneus. He immediately dropped his wet clothes and put his hand to the water. He turned to look at his mother, but she spoke first.

“Don’t you dare.”

He did not dare, but he had fun with the others while Dallah watched the visitors come in close. She would rather not deal with them at the moment, but nothing in this lifetime went the way she wanted. She watched as the imps came out from beneath their glamour and she put her hand to her ears when Mya screamed and grabbed hold of Reneus.

Dwizzle immediately jumped into the water and began to use his two hands like water shovels. Poor Andor did not stand a chance. Surprisingly, Mya was the first to come to his assistance. Then Crusty joined in, but he splashed Dwizzle by accident. So they splashed each other a few times, and that brought Itchy and Reneus into the fray.

“Wait!” Dallah shouted. Everyone stopped and looked in her direction. “Have your fun as long as no one gets hurt but leave me out of it.” She spoke sternly, and at least Crusty gave a little bow. Dwizzle just opened his jaw and Andor took advantage by splashing Dwizzle in the face to make him swallow some water.

Then it became a free-for-all, and the water went everywhere. Inevitably, Itchy and Crusty teamed up to make a big four-handed wave aimed at Reneus, and Reneus ducked. Dallah got soaked, and again, everyone stopped.

“I would say that is enough,” she said. “Imps, come here.” Dwizzle and Crusty came right away, but she had to sternly add, “You too, Itchy.” The imp came whether he wanted to or not.

“Now, who are you working for?”

Crusty took off his hat, which no one realized he wore, and so Dwizzle followed that example. Itchy chose to be stubborn, and he was the one who answered.

“Dayus, the king of the gods himself.”

“Oh? He got sober enough to give you instructions.” The imps, even Itchy grinned at that, but Reneus and Mya reacted at her blasphemy.

“Mother!”

“Please!” Dallah sighed. “It is a wonder he gets up in the morning and can follow a straight line across the sky.”

“Automatic pilot,” Itchy whispered with a grin.

Dallah nodded. “Now what is your job?”

“To dry the land and make it sand,” Crusty recited. Dwizzle nodded. Itchy had a thought.

“What’s it to you?”

“I think you have done enough of that. The die is cast, as they say. There is no stopping it now.” She paused to examine the three imp faces one at a time before she spoke again. “I release you from your duty to Dayus. I think you should go see Lord Varuna. He may have work for you.”

“Wait a minute. Who are you?”

“Mother,” Reneus interrupted. The travelers were on the horizon.

“Quick, now’s our chance.” Itchy pulled the other imps to the side. They melted back into the landscape and made for the party.

Avalon 1.5 Little Packages part 1 of 4

September 15, 2025August 30, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

After 4364 BC on the Plains of Thera. Kairos 12: Dallah

Recording …

“Another one.” Alexis pointed. Lieutenant Harper trained her rifle in the general direction, but it was hard to pinpoint, whatever it was, since it kept going invisible. They were the color of the sand, the main part of the landscape. The rest of the scenery was not much to look at. The trees, what there were of them, seemed just sticks, short, stunted, and dry, like they baked too long in the oven. The clumps of grass that stubbornly refused to give up looked burnt yellow and brown. The sun felt relentless.

A dog howled in the distance, but Alexis shook her head. “They aren’t dogs,” she said. “What we are seeing,” she clarified.

“A mirage in this heat?” Lincoln wiped the sweat from Alexis’ brow. The sun itself appeared to be sweating from its own heat.

“Not a mirage,” Lockhart answered. “With mirages you see things. All we are seeing is occasional movement and glimpses of figures that vanish in the heat.”

“And not enough of glimpses to make out shape and size,” Roland added.

Lockhart and Captain Decker set down the stretcher. Doctor Procter kept mumbling that he would be all right, but Alexis was not so sure. Lincoln needed to take a turn carrying the stretcher, and Roland, though it would be his second turn. Mingus said he would be there to help if needed.

Poor Doctor Procter stayed delirious most of the time. The only time he came awake was when someone reached for him. Then his words sounded clear and sharp. “Don’t touch me.” And they got spoken with such vehemence, no one dared to disobey.

“At least it is not the bokarus,” Boston pointed out. “There is only one bokarus.”

“This is no terrain for a bokarus,” Mingus assured them.

“Or ghouls,” Alexis said. “If they sent out a second group after the first stopped reporting, they would not be nearly this far along yet.”

“Whatever it is, it is a wild one.” Roland suggested, as he sipped some water. Lockhart had already started watching their water supply, carefully. No telling how long it might be in that environment before they found more water. Captain Decker also seemed to have gotten the idea, but neither said a word.

“Wild ones, I think.” Mingus responded. He gave them the impression that he might be seeing a bit more than the others, but he did not let on yet about what he was seeing or thinking.

Alexis bent down toward Doctor Procter. The man sat straight up. “Don’t!” Alexis paused.

“It is just some water.”

Doctor Procter reached for the cup, carefully, to not touch the woman. He drank greedily and when he handed the empty cup back so she could take it by the handle, he added a word. “Don’t let anyone else drink from that cup.” His words were stern as he began to shake his head. He closed his eyes, fell back, and mumbled “no, no, no.”

~~~*~~~

Dallah walked out from the camp. She needed some alone time. Her daughter, Korah would be married in the afternoon and in her world, the mother-in-law made all the arrangements, not the mother. She supposed that was only right since Korah would go and live with her husband and his family. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law needed to form a relationship to carry them through the rest of their lives—hopefully a good one. To be sure, she had a wonderful time when Mya married her son, Reneus. Still, she had to think about it.

Dallah had too many cultures in her head. She imagined it might be best if she did not think about it at all, but lately she could not seem to help it. She turned forty-three or forty-four years old. She was not sure, but at her age, and given her life circumstances, there seemed little for her to do but sit and think.

Godus, her husband, stayed away for days at a time. He always came home with food for the fire, but the absences were hard. Her nine-year-old, Andor, the love of her old age kept the sheep, what remained of them. Her son, Reneus, stubbornly tried to bring grain out of the soil. Mya had taken over most of the cooking and cleaning duties for the family, and Dallah had no complaints, but it gave her too much time to think and worry.

Somehow, she made an enemy of the sun god Dayus when she was a child. She could not imagine anything she said or did. Dayus simply did not want her to be born in his world. His advisors warned against killing her outright as a child, but that did not stop him from ruining the world around her, thus killing her slowly. They moved and migrated and moved again to greener pastures, only to find those pastures dry up under the incessant sun. The people swore the rains would come again. They can’t stay away forever. But Dallah knew it was more complicated than that.

She had no doubt Korah would move away with her new family once the marriage was consummated. Dallah would cry but pray for her. Korah would do well away from Dallah and the ruination that surrounded her life. She might even be happy.

Dallah looked up at the sun and squinted. “Is it enough?” she asked. “Are you satisfied?” She knew the sun god was not yet satisfied. After all, she still lived.

“Mother!” Reneus called. He followed her out into the wilderness. She had an empty water skin with her, but she walked, in no hurry to get to the stream. “Mother. You don’t need to be wandering out here alone.”

“Well, there does not seem much for me to do back in the camp,” Dallah said. “I thought I could fetch some water and at least and make myself useful, somehow.”

Reneus took the water skin from her hands. “No need for that,” he said. “Father is looking for you.”

“Is he?” Dallah looked back once, but she only saw Mya chasing after Andor.

“Mama!” Andor ran up to her. “Help me! Help! Mya is going to make me take a bath.”

Mya arrived with a stern look on her face directed at the boy that hid behind Dallah’s dress.

“There is time for that,” Dallah assured her daughter-in-law. “Reneus and I were headed to the stream. Maybe Andor would like to splash in the water while we are there.” She winked at Mya, who understood what Dallah suggested, but had a strong-willed streak that did not like to be disobeyed by a certain nine-year-old boy. Andor knew the dynamics well. He stuck his tongue out at Mya before he took his mother’s hand.

“Why you.”

Dallah put her hand up to stop them both. “I really came out here to be alone for a while. I don’t mind you coming along, but please keep your thoughts to yourselves. And that goes for you, too.” She poked Reneus in the chest. He backed up in innocence to say, “Me?” But he did not actually say anything out loud.

~~~*~~~

Boston stepped back. Something moved ahead, just around the edge of the rock. “Did you see that?” She turned her head and asked. Captain Decker already moved out into the brush to get an angle on it. Roland made his way quietly around the far side of the rock. Lieutenant Harper had her rifle ready, and Alexis had her wand in her hand. Lincoln and Lockhart had already put Doctor Procter on the ground. Mingus responded.

“Yes,” he said and raised his voice. “And they better all come out of hiding if they know what is good for them!”

A face popped up from the ground, not far from Boston’s feet. She might have stepped on it, but instead she jumped back though it hurt her muscles to move like that. He had not been invisible, but perfectly colored to blend in with the desert floor, and he spoke with a sandy rasp in his voice.

“Look, Itchy, it’s human beans.”

A second came from behind the rock. “Yeah, Dwizzle, and they got elves. ‘bout the worst case of elves I’ve ever seen. What do you think, Crusty?”

A third stepped from behind a skinny tree. No one saw him there but could not imagine why. He looked much fatter than the tree. He clicked his tongue a couple of times before he spoke. “Domesticated elves no less.” He clicked his tongue some more.

“Imps.” Mingus identified the creatures with some disgust in his voice.

************************

FOUR part episode this week so it will conclude with a post on Thursday.

Dom’t miss it.

Avalon 1.4 Sticks and Stones part 6 of 6

September 10, 2025July 27, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Alexis had her wand out by then and barely responded in time before the Balok tried the other weapon. Alexis put up a magical shield and while it deflected the heat ray, the ray was powerful enough to knock her back on her rump. She screamed again while Mingus searched frantically for a weapon that might be effective. He found a big stone.

The Balok pulled in its legs and began to slither forward. It moved fast, but Doctor Procter reacted faster. He had his wand out and managed a magical freeze ray of his own. The Balok shrieked in pain and fell to the ground where it began to whip about. Mingus struggled, mumbled something about the beast keeping still, but finally managed to bring his rock down on the Balok head. He managed a glancing blow at first, but the second and third strikes were more accurate. The Balok head became mush from blow after blow as Mingus pounded it into the dirt. Alexis looked away.

Only moments later, Saphira and Katie ran up. The marine went immediately to make sure the Balok was dead while Saphira put her hands on her knees and caught her breath.

“I’m older than I look,” Saphira said.

Alexis looked. Alexis counted her age as twenty-five, or so, and Katie Harper could not have been that much older; certainly under thirty. Saphira was what? “Maybe thirty-five?” Alexis said.

“In my day, thirty-five is old. I should be fat with a dozen kids to do the running for me.”

“Do you have any children?” Alexis asked, the subject being on her mind.

Saphira nodded but said nothing as they saw Captain Decker in the distance. He walked leaning on Coramel’s sons, and Roland walked quietly beside him. Decker had some frostbite, but nothing serious. Lincoln, Lockhart, and Coramel came last, carrying Boston on a stretcher made from two tree branches and fairy weave. Boston complained even as she giggled.

“Ouch. Stop wiggling. Lockhart, I’m supposed to be pushing you around in a wheelchair, you old man. Ouch, it hurts when I laugh. This is embarrassing.”

Alexis immediately went to her, and they put her down on the edge of the camp where Alexis could spend considerable time healing and knitting Boston’s bones.

~~~*~~~

It turned high noon when they all stopped to eat and rest. Alexis and Boston needed the rest. Doctor Procter said he felt better, but he did not look too well, and he kept his distance with the excuse that he did not want them to catch whatever he had. Lockhart stayed beside Boston the whole time. Her bones were completely restored, but her muscles were sore. She would need some recovery time. Alexis stayed beside Lincoln and hooked her arm through his but said nothing. She just smiled. Mingus watched them and frowned. Roland had his eyes on Lockhart and Boston who were laughing and having a good time.

“Wonders,” Coramel said. “This cooking, this bread, things flying through the sky, serpent people and stick people. The things I have seen.”

“The things you felt.” Saphira spoke in a voice of great concern. She sat down beside the hunter and pressed her hip to his. She took both of his once frostbitten hands in hers and drew them to her chest. She sat in leather armor, but it was the thought that counted. “Are you feeling warm now?”

Coramel slowly grinned. How should he answer that question?

“You have no idea how grateful I am for your help.”

“I am glad,” Coramel said, as he took back his hands. His toes were still itching their way back to life.

“Boys.” Saphira turned on them. “How old are you, anyway?”

“Eighteen summers,” one answered brightly. The other sounded glum.

“Just sixteen.”

Saphira thought for a minute before she decided. “This could work.” Everyone knew what she was thinking, but they all had the good sense not to say anything.

“Lieutenant.” Captain Decker pulled her aside to where they could speak in private. “Are you getting all this?”

“The recorder is working. My pin camera is working. I am sure it will all be there when we get back.”

Captain Decker gritted his teeth. “Any ideas how we can transmit the data we have already collected? There has to be some way out of this zoo.”

Lieutenant Harper just shook her head. His mind simply would not accept the truth. “I’ll keep working on it,” she promised. “Meanwhile, relax. We just saved the human race.”

“Just this time zone full of flakes,” he said.

“Yes sir,” Lieutenant Harper agreed and quickly stepped back to the others. Katie was not sure where she fit in with this group of travelers, misfits, explorers, adventurers, and miracle workers, but she knew the marines were not it. She would never be the same, even if Captain Decker never changed.

Alexis looked again at the stick people. She saw such innocence and goodness in them. Not one of them had a hidden agenda. She was not sure if they knew how to lie. She wanted to be reconciled to them, to say we humans are not so bad. She wanted to wish them luck and say good-bye to the children, only she could not imagine a way to do that. They were withdrawn from the travelers, and Alexis could not blame them.

Alexis stared when the woman appeared. She had to be seven or eight feet tall and she stood between her and the stick people to block her vision. Tiamut, the goddess, growled and she did not look happy.

“You!” She pointed at the humans in the camp. Everyone stood and grabbed their weapons, not that they would have been effective against the goddess. “I could have made good use of those creatures, but you destroyed them all like you destroyed my servants.” She pointed her finger at Saphira but took them all in her gaze.

Tiamut paused. They watched her facial expression turn from anger to clever, and that felt worse. “Come,” she said. Mingus, Roland, Doctor Procter, and Alexis disappeared and reappeared a few feet from the goddess. Alexis was right in front of her, looking up into that terrible face and she felt the shiver travel all the way down her spine to her soul.

Tiamut walked once around Alexis to examine her like a person might examine a prize animal. The others either could not move or did not dare. “You did not begin as a human. How is it you came into this state?”

Alexis felt compelled to answer. “My god changed me so I could be with my husband.”

Tiamut glanced briefly at Doctor Procter. “Better than making more half-breeds,” she said. “But I have a job for you spirits of the trees. I would have you back.” She waved her hand and Alexis transformed back into the elf she had been at birth.

“No.” Saphira heard the word escape her lips and felt something surge out from her deepest insides. A force, linked to the very forces by which all things were made, covered Alexis. Alexis immediately changed back to a human woman, and Tiamut’s anger returned.

“How did you do that?” she yelled. She did not really ask. She waved her hand again, but Alexis stubbornly refused to become an elf. “How are you doing that?” Tiamut’s words became mingled with astonishment.

The goddess Astarte chose that moment to appear at Saphira’s back. She also stood inhumanly tall, more than tall enough to look over Saphira’s head. She placed both of her hands on Saphira’s shoulders in a sign of assurance. Two young men also appeared with Astarte, one on each side. They were twins, though the one to Astarte’s left squinted, like he might need glasses.

Tiamut paused. Her face became so distorted it became hard to make out her facial features. Her mouth opened wide, and the travelers saw pin pricks of light in that deep darkness, like people might see stars in the night sky. A roar of frustration came from that maw, loud enough to make everyone throw their hands to their ears. With a wave of Tiamut’s hand, the ship behind her, all the stick people and their children turned instantly to dust. And Tiamut disappeared.

Astarte leaned forward and whispered in Saphira’s ear. “I’m sorry.” Then she and the twins vanished. Everyone could breathe again, but Alexis was the first to go to tears.

It took some time before they were ready to go. Saphira, Coramel and his sons stayed to help clean up, and Coramel had the lone comment that whole time.

“It is like they never were.”

At last, Saphira turned to Doctor Procter. “What is your direction?”

Doctor Procter’s hands shook, and he kept shaking his head now and then like a man trying to throw off the rain, but he managed to get out the amulet and point. Saphira nodded. She would head the other way.

“I’m sorry you won’t get a chance to see the future Sodom,” she said. “We are headed in the other direction.”

“Eh?” Lockhart wanted to know what she might be thinking.

“We have to check the crash site to be sure there were no survivors.”

“I can’t imagine anything survived that crash,” Captain Decker offered, and Saphira nodded.

“Still—” She started to speak but Boston interrupted.

Boston had gotten to her feet and stared at the big pile of dust that the wind had not yet taken. “All that work for nothing,” she said.

“Not for nothing,” Lockhart assured her.

“Besides, you work for me, remember?” Saphira said.

“Yes, lady.” Boston turned and practiced the curtsey the way she had seen Mirowen the elf curtsey in her overalls. Boston knew she was not as graceful, but Roland at least smiled for her. It would be a while yet before anyone else could smile.

“So, that’s it?” Katie Harper looked to Lockhart who caught her eyes and nodded. Saphira started to already move off into the tall grass, flanked by her men. Katie yelled. “Who was that woman?”

Saphira turned to walk backwards and shouted. “Astarte.”

“And the young twins?”

“Enlil and Enki. Enki needs glasses.” Saphira smiled before she added a last thought. “At least I should sleep well tonight.” Then Saphira and her three men got swallowed up by the grasslands.

************************

Monday

Episode 1.5 Little Packages will be posted in one week but in 4 (four) parts which means there will be a Thursday post! Don’t miss it. Until next week, Happy Reading.

Avalon 1.4 Sticks and Stones part 5 of 6

September 9, 2025July 27, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

“Boston?” That left the three fighters.

“Ready!” The word echoed in the stick ship.

“Zero in on a fighter,” Saphira said, but Katie had already done that.

“Now.” Katie spoke into her wrist communicator, and Boston sent out a plasma pulse. The Balok fighter disintegrated in a crimson ball of fire. Immediately, the two remaining Balok fighters began to move around to avoid being targeted, but Katie and Boston got a second one before the last one dipped below the radar.

Saphira grabbed Katie’s hand and spoke into the wrist communicator. “Lockhart. One fighter landed. Meet us at the front door.”

“Already there,” Lockhart responded. They vacated the stick ship for the firm ground, and a few of the stick people followed them.

The stick leader looked sick. He bobbed up and down a couple of times before he spoke. “You are mad, like the Balok. We did our very best to escape them, but since they found us, it would have been better if we had died than participate in their madness.”

No one knew what to say until Alexis stepped up. “You have the right to live in peace.”

“We have no right to take life,” the leader said, and with that he moved his people away from the travelers.

“I guess we screwed up,” Lincoln said, even as Saphira, Katie and Boston came huffing and puffing down the ramp.

“All right,” Saphira said. “We need to find that ship.”

“They would rather die than be part of the killing.” Alexis summed things up and pointed to the stick people who were keeping their distance. Saphira looked, but she had an alternative view and said so in her own tongue.

“We are protecting my people. We are protecting the human race, even if I am sorry the stick people got in the middle of it. We won’t survive if the Balok come here.” That seemed to satisfy the group. “Now, I want to split us up. Despite the F-whatever-number, single man fighters that are current with your military; most space fighters have two or three occupants. There are too many systems to keep track of. Decker and Roland, you take Coramel’s sons and circle around quietly to approach the fighter on the flank. The rest—where is Mingus?”

“Doctor Procter has taken a fever,” Roland said, and Boston looked at Alexis.

“I do wounds, occasionally help avoid surgery. I don’t do sickness.”

“All right.” Saphira adjusted her thinking. “But still, Alexis, would you stay with your father and Doctor Procter? We should probably leave someone here to watch over the stick people, even if they don’t want our help. Katie and Boston, Coramel, Lincoln and Lockhart. We go straight for the ship.”

“Works for me.” Captain Decker checked his rifle.

“A last thought,” Saphira stopped them all. “We need to kill them. No, there is no alternative, and do not hesitate or they will certainly kill you.”

Roland nodded and led the way into the open fields. They stayed in sight for a time before they dipped down into a gully.

“We go.” Lockhart had judged the time and distance, and they started into the tall grass. There were stubby, non-descript bushes here and there and the occasional tree, but the land held mostly grass to the knees, and sometimes to the waist. They had no way to move quietly, but they spread out and kept their eyes and ears as open as they could. A slim trail of engine smoke still rose into the air in the distance. They headed straight for it.

When they topped a rise, they saw the ship down below, and it looked much larger than they imagined. The grass looked much taller there too, being on the side of a hill where most animals would not bother to graze. All things considered, it should not have come as a surprise when the serpent rose-up and wrapped itself twice around Boston.

Boston screamed and struggled, and that made it hard for the others. They dared not fire at the creature for fear of hitting Boston. The snake kept trying to bite her, but it could not get its head at a good angle. Saphira dropped her bow and waited three seconds for an opening before she brought the butt end of her spear down on the snake’s head. The snake nipped at her, but by then the others were moving.

Lockhart pulled the same stunt with the stock of his shotgun, and the hit appeared to hurt the serpent. Lincoln and Lieutenant Harper still tried to get off a shot, but Coramel came up with a stone between his hands. The snake responded by showing a hand of its own. The hand pealed out from the side of the creature, and it held something. They heard no sound, saw no light, or anything, but Coramel dropped to the ground, stunned and maybe dead.

Then the snake took Boston to the ground while Boston screamed the words, “I can’t breathe.”

Lincoln went to Coramel while Saphira’s next shot with her spear hit the snake in the hand. It dropped the weapon but began to roll down the hill with its captive. Lockhart, Saphira and Lieutenant Harper followed, and when Boston and the creature slowed, Lockhart managed another whack at the creature’s head.

The snake roared from pain and appeared to speak, though no one knew what it said except Saphira. Then it suddenly let go of Boston to slither away in the grass. Saphira, with the snake’s weapon in her hand, went to her knees beside Boston.

When the serpent reached what it no doubt imagined as a safe distance from the primitives, it put its rear legs down and reared up eight feet in the air. It spoke again, more clearly as another hand made itself known, and whether they retained some vestige of the primal tongue of Shinar, or the magic of the Kairos worked overtime, they all managed to catch one distinct word. “Die.”

“Balok!” Lockhart shouted to distract the snake, and Lieutenant Harper’s rifle went off. The creature looked stunned as the bullet tore through its neck. Then Lockhart fired the shotgun and the snakehead shredded. The body fell after a moment.

~~~*~~~

Captain Decker, Roland, and the boys got surprised when the Balok reared-up in front of them. The boys got excited and rushed forward to throw their spears. The Balok easily avoided the stone tips and pulled out a hand and a weapon. To be sure, the hand looked more like seven skinny tentacles than a human hand, and the weapon looked like a small disc but Captain Decker and Roland both saw it.

Roland had his bow out, but he could not get off a shot because of the boys. The Balok clearly recognized the bow as a danger and shot Roland first. Roland froze in place even as Decker yelled.

“Boys! Lie down on the ground. Now!”

One went straight to the dirt. The other knelt and bent down but looked at the captain with questions on his face. It was enough. Captain Decker peeled off three bullets before the Balok shot him and Decker fell. It is likely the Balok would have died shortly. It may have already been dead, but to be sure, Roland shook himself free of his frozen state. He pulled his sword and beheaded the serpent before he turned to see to Decker.

~~~*~~~

Lockhart stepped over to where Boston lay on the ground. She sat up and breathed better, but Saphira thought her ribs were cracked, if a couple were not broken.

“Coramel is fine, but frozen,” Lincoln reported. “His fingers and toes look frostbitten.”

“Frozen?” Lieutenant Harper asked.

“Think like a reptile or amphibian,” Saphira answered. “A heat ray would not be as effective.”

“Lincoln. We need a stretcher,” Lockhart shouted.

“Coramel will be fine in a moment,” Lincoln said. “Oh, you mean—” He patted a groaning, shivering Coramel on the shoulder and got up to search a small stand of nearby trees.

Saphira headed straight for the Balok ship, Katie Harper on her heels.

“Don’t wander off,” Lockhart shouted. Saphira waved, but they ended up closer to the ship than she imagined they would. It would have been too much to ask her not to take a look. When they arrived at the door to the ship, they heard three shots fired not too far away.

“Decker,” Katie said.

“Let’s hope that’s it,” Saphira responded while she examined the outside of the door. It took three hands with pinky fingers and three little sticks to press on the six holes that would have fit a Balok hand very well. The door opened and they could look in if they held their breath. The whole thing smelled like rotten cabbage and decayed meat. Saphira did not have to look for more than a moment before she let out a stream of invectives for the third time. She spun and ran, Katie beside her.

“What?”

“Three,” Saphira said.

~~~*~~~

Alexis spent her time cleaning up the camp and getting things ready to move out. She confessed to herself that being twenty-five again did not necessarily change things. She might be Boston’s age, but she was not wild and free like that girl. She had been a mom too long, and now she had become a grandmother. She liked being a mother and grandmother, and she was good at it, and maybe there was nothing wrong with that. At the same time, though, maybe she did need to let Benjamin get adjusted. She smiled. Poor little Billy, her grandson. He would always be older than his uncle, or maybe his aunt. She had two boys. She decided this time she wanted a girl.

“Daughter.” Mingus startled Alexis.

“Father? How is Doctor Procter?”

“Shivering from fever,” Mingus said. “But he won’t let me so much as touch him. He growls at me every time I try.”

“Growls?”

“He is an old man, far older than his human half should be. Old men growl, haven’t you noticed?”

Alexis looked up into her father’s face. She looked serious at first, but quickly smiled. She reached for his hand. “You don’t growl; you just get grumpy now and then.”

Mingus returned her smile. “I am sorry about the stick people.”

Alexis shifted her gaze to where the stick people were gathering, still repairing their ship, and keeping their distance from the mad humans. “They would rather die than take life,” she said. “What can the human race offer to compare with that?”

Mingus took back his hand and began to take down a tent. “The Kairos was wise all these millennia to keep us from interacting with the human race. Look at me. I have studied human history for centuries and have been corrupted. I sometimes think I must be more human now than elf.”

Alexis said nothing. She screamed. The Balok lifted-up from the grass, only a dozen yards away. It splayed both hands and each held an instrument of some kind. The first, a freeze ray, shot at Mingus, but Mingus easily shrugged it off because of the fires inside of him. He shot back with a ball of flame, and while the Balok backed away from the actual fire, the heat and warmth of the flames appeared to strengthen it.

Avalon 1.4 Sticks and Stones part 4 of 6

September 8, 2025July 27, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Alexis woke in the wee hours just before dawn. She found Saphira and her brother Roland awake. She watched without a word as Captain Decker came to join them. “Not one shot!” She heard the stern command in Saphira’s whisper and Alexis sat up, worried. They looked at her, so she spoke what came to her mind in the night.

“Do you think the stick people might have repaired the damage you did to their systems in the night?”

“We didn’t damage any of their systems,” Saphira responded.

“But you rewired things and changed things. Did they really understand what you were doing and why or did they just watch so they could put it all back after you were gone? I doubt they understand weapons and probably imagine the Balok were mistaken and certainly would not follow them here.”

Saphira finished her thought. “They fled their home world to escape the Balok, but—” Saphira nudged Boston and Katie and instructed them quietly to return to the stick ship and check on their work to make sure it had not been tampered with. Then she hushed Alexis and took Roland and Captain Decker into the dark. Alexis only heard Saphira’s strong whisper once more. “No shooting.”

Boston and Katie stayed visible longer beside the embers of the bonfire, but soon they also disappeared into the dark. Alexis looked to the sky. She knew the sun would be up soon enough, but it was hard to tell how soon. She felt a touch on her shoulder.

“What is going on?” Lincoln asked as he touched and then held her arm. He propped himself up on one elbow.

“I don’t know,” Alexis answered. “Boston and Katie wandered off that way to check on their work and Saphira, Roland and Captain Decker went off that way like they were leaving the camp.”

Lincoln tried to smile. “Don’t worry. I am sure we will find out what is going on soon enough.”

“Why are you awake?” Alexis wondered.

Lincoln’s smile fell away and he let go of her but stayed propped up next to her when he answered. “I guess I don’t need as much sleep as I did when I was old.”

“Is being young again that hard for you?” This came out as a serious question, and Lincoln knew it. He made his serious face before he shook his head. Then he would not look at her.

“I’ll adjust. It is just seeing you young. You are so…” he softened his voice to barely a whisper. “…beautiful.” He paused to cough and clear his throat. “We don’t have to still be married if you don’t want. This is like a new life.”

“Why would I not want to be married?”

“It’s just.” Lincoln had a hard time framing the words. “You could have anyone. Why would you want me?”

“Benjamin!”

“I mean; I know you were not exactly happy those last years.”

“I was happy.”

Lincoln frowned at her. “I got old, complacent, grumpy.”

“You’re not old now.”

Lincoln smiled, but just a little. “Neither are you.” She hugged him. “To be honest, I woke up because you weren’t beside me. I don’t think I could sleep if you were not beside me.”

Alexis tackled him, landed on top of him and grinned mightily. “Even if I don’t have the blood or form anymore, I am still an elf at heart.”

“I remember.” Lincoln got out that much before they kissed.

The sun had started to break the darkness, but they did not care. They also did not hear Mingus mumble, “I think I am going to be sick.”

~~~*~~~

Saphira and Captain Decker came up from one side. The captain no doubt imagined he was protecting the woman, but Saphira wanted to keep an eye on the man to make sure he did not shoot anyone, needlessly. Roland came up from the other side, and she knew whoever it was would not hear the elf, as long as Roland did not have some noisy human by his side.

Captain Decker stopped her with a hand on Saphira’s shoulder. She had already seen the men, or three of them, but she thought to grab Decker’s hand and turn her head to look into his eyes. She paused before she dropped the man’s hand and showed great restraint. “Not a good idea,” she whispered, but now she had her pent-up energy to release.

Saphira stood, her spear ready, and she reverted to her native tongue. “All right you men. Get up and show yourselves.” Saphira spoke loud enough for her voice to carry. Some nearby stick people woke up and looked. “You’re surrounded, so there is no point in trying anything. No one needs to get hurt.”

The men stood, though they held tight to their own spears. Those stick people who noticed got up and scurried away with a sound of alarm and a clapping of hands. The men had been camouflaged, having branches and such attached to their clothing. No telling how long it took them to inch up close to the camp. Decker stood ready, just in case, and in the rising light, Roland showed himself. Roland looked just as ready, but he relaxed a little when the elder of the three men spoke.

“Saphira. What are you doing here?”

“Right now? Hunting fools, Coramel. And who are these two idiots with you?”

“These are my sons,” Coramel said, proudly.

“Are you lacking any brains like your father?” Saphira asked.

“Yes, er, no.”

“We wanted to see the strange creatures.”

Captain Decker tapped Saphira on the shoulder this time. “I take it you know these particular idiots.”

~~~*~~~

Boston and Katie used their lanterns to get back into the ship and found that indeed, the stick people had begun to “fix” things back to the way they had been. They had some work to do. They returned and reported to Lockhart even as the light began to glimmer across the horizon. They took a bit of bread for breakfast and then figured they had better get started rather than wait for Saphira.

Boston felt pretty sure she could redo what the stick people had messed up before the night made the sticks stop working. She did not feel worried, since Martok calculated at their present rate of speed, the Balok would not arrive until mid-afternoon.

“Plasma cannon looks untouched,” Katie said.

“Looks can be deceiving,” Boston countered, as she began to examine the jury-rigged work.

“Well, at least the screen enhancements are still in place,” Katie said, and Boston nodded with a grunt as she followed a circuit line.

“I don’t imagine the stick people are stupid,” Katie continued. “Anything that might help them ward off the stray asteroid or radiation in space would be appreciated.

“I’m sure,” Boston mumbled, but she was not really listening.

Katie nodded. “I guess I’ll have a look at the radar array. Hopefully they left it alone.” She wandered off slowly, but it was not long before Boston heard the words. “What the hell were they thinking?”

~~~*~~~

Saphira brought Coramel and his sons to the others and made them sit and keep still. Alexis got out the bread, so they were content. “And if you so much as touch one of these stick people, I’ll have to kill you,” Saphira said.

“Yes, ma’am.” Coramel grinned.

“Father?” One of his sons questioned what their father meant.

“Son. You must always do what the golden lady says if you expect to be rewarded.”

“Her?” The other son was not shy to point.

“Golden lady?” Lockhart asked.

“I’m expensive,” Saphira said. “Only the best.” Then she thought she had better go check on the work inside the ship.

“Damn!” The word echoed out of everyone’s wrist communicators. “The Balok must have overdrive. They just entered the atmosphere.”

Saphira said something, too, and it came out a bit stronger than “damn.” She grabbed Lincoln and marched to the stick ship.

Once inside, Saphira set Lincoln by the screen array. “If they come in firing, as I expect, you just keep your finger on this button. She checked the damage to the plasma cannon she had built.

“I can fix it,” Boston insisted. “I just need some time. You need to check the microwave chamber.”

Saphira went to do that very thing and did not swear too much. She had it rigged to send out a microwave pulse, but the stick people had started to dismantle it. Besides, by then she started swearing at herself for not anticipating this.

“Bring everyone inside.” The call went out over the wrist communicators. When the Balok ship appeared as a dot in the sky, the stick people did not have to be encouraged. Apparently, they had very good eyes. They scurried toward the ship, clapping and howling. They hardly knew what else to do. Coramel and his sons were reluctant to enter that strange place, but they were given no choice. They stood with the travelers by the open door and watched.

“Strafing run.” Lieutenant Harper recognized the move on her radar.

“Lincoln finger.” That was all Saphira had time to say. She got too busy.

Lincoln pressed his finger as hard as he could against the button, and when the Balok ship came low and let out a blast of its main gun, that energy pulse got repelled. The Balok ship rose-up to what they had to believe was out of range and paused. The Balok Captain, no doubt, had to consider his options.

“It’s overloading,” Lincoln shouted.

“Finger off the button.” Everyone yelled at him, but Lieutenant Harper had to step up and help put out the small electrical fires.

“What are they waiting for?” Lockhart’s words came into the ship over his wrist communicator.

“We are working as fast as we can,” Boston yelled back, having misunderstood the question. “Almost there.” But their homemade weapons were still offline. The Balok had them, only the Balok did not know it.

Saphira connected the last wire as the Balok ship moved. It dropped down in the sky, but not far, and began to disgorge small ships, probably fighters from an open bay. Saphira spoke when the first got launched.

“Set the radar on the mother ship. The pulse is tied to the radar.”

Katie knew that, but this reminded her not to be distracted by the fighters.

When the second fighter got successfully launched, Saphira spoke again. “Ready. Boston?” She had to shout, but Boston answered.

“Almost. Just a minute.”

A third fighter got launched and away before Saphira said, “Go.” To be sure, her fingers were crossed in one hand, while she threw the switch with the other. Theoretically, the microwave pulse should burn out every electrical system on the Balok ship, provided they used electrical systems and provided the Balok screens were not strong enough to ward off Saphira’s strike. Even Martok could ultimately only use what was available to him.

The pulse went out, and for a second, nothing seemed to happen. Saphira had to take her finger off her switch lest she burn out the Stick systems. The Balok ship began to wobble. By the time Saphira joined Katie at the radarscope, the Balok ship started to plummet to the ground. It fell at last like a stone and exploded on impact. Fortunately, not an atomic explosion as Saphira feared it might be, but the explosion looked big enough to assume there were no survivors.

Avalon 1.4 Sticks and Stones part 3 of 6

September 3, 2025July 27, 2025M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Outside the ship, Saphira turned to the group following her. She looked around and there were other stick people inching close. She decided curiosity was a powerful motivator, whatever the species. She spoke. “Boston and Lieutenant Harper. I could use your help.”

“Katie,” Lieutenant Harper said.

Saphira nodded. “I knew that.” She turned to the sticks. “Leader, bring two of your people to show us the way but everyone else please stay outside. We are going to have to concentrate to get any work done.”

The Leader appeared to understand, at least that they wished to see the inside of the ship. Two stick people followed them, but if the leader made a signal to designate who, none of the humans caught it. They followed the sticks into the heart of the ship and Boston’s first words were telling.

“I saw more sophisticated stuff at M. I. T.”

When they got to the scanner, Katie added her voice to the chorus. “This looks like plain ordinary radar.”

“Probably is,” Saphira responded. “Is there a way to push our sight beyond the atmosphere?” Katie shook her head. The stick leader had a question.

“Why do you wish to see beyond the atmosphere?”

“Balok,” she frowned before she explained. “They believe they should be unique in the universe, that everything exists for them alone.”

“But don’t humans have a similar view of creation?” Boston asked.

Saphira nodded. “But the Balok want to make their belief real by exterminating all other forms of intelligent life. Given the Earth, they would probably try to kill everything down to the intelligence level of a dog, just to be safe.”

“I assume there is no talking to them.”

Saphira just shook her head. “I have to go. Martok is the one who needs to get a look at this. One of you, lend me a piece of fairy weave.” Boston separated a piece of her long pants and thought she might live in her shorts in that climate. Saphira formed the fairy weave into shorts herself. She stood, turned her back and left that time and place while Martok came from the far future to fill her space. He dressed with his back turned to Lieutenant Harper and she did not realize Martok was not human until he turned around.

Katie drew her breath in. The excessive hair on Martok’s arms, legs and chest caused her to look close at the hair on his head. It looked more like fur, but it was the eyes that gave Martok away. They looked yellow, like cat’s eyes, or maybe like the eyes of the snake-people they were expecting.

“Hello Boston, dear.” Martok spoke in a deep voice that sounded human enough but seemed odd given his height of barely five feet. Of course, Boston had met Martok before. She simply waved as she wandered off to look around.

“Wait.” One of the stick people spoke to Boston and everyone looked. “That is a microwave chamber, part of the propulsion system and very dangerous.”

“Microwaves? Oh good!” Martok raised his voice and both Katie and Boston caught a better glimpse of the fact that Martok was not human. “Now, the visuals. Leader, where did you lose the Balok?”

“Out where the rocks circle around the star.”

“The Asteroid Belt.” Martok nodded and tore the back off the radar equipment while the leader watched and clapped his hands in dismay.

~~~*~~~

Outside, Alexis turned to the stick person beside her. “Do you have a name?”

“Thet.”

“I’m Alexis.” She smiled and turned to the other one. “And what is your name?”

“Thet.”

Alexis wrinkled her brow. “Your name is Thet and your name is Thet?”

“No, my name is Thet.”

“My name is Thet.”

Alexis looked around, but all Lincoln, Lockhart and Captain Decker could do was shrug. Mingus stepped up.

“That’s what you get, daughter, for having human ears,” Mingus said.

“I like her ears,” Lincoln objected. Alexis looked at Lincoln and the look on her face said, “Do you really?”

“Watch.” Roland stepped up and had his bow in his hands with an arrow on the string. When he let it go, the arrow stayed in his hand while a glowing ball shot up into the sky. When it reached some height, the ball exploded into gold and silver sparkles in a perfect imitation of fireworks. His next shot exploded red and green, and all the little sticks came running, squealing in delight.

Several adult stick people chased the little ones, and the two still with the group moved quickly to intercept them. “No, no.” The stick people shouted. “Do not touch them. Sit. Do not touch.”

One of the Thets returned with a clap of his hands and a word. “Please take no offense. We do not know if the children may have a sickness to which you have no defense.”

“Quite alright,” Alexis responded. “We may have some sickness your people can’t handle as well.” The stick person bowed even as the ship groaned and made a noise much like a bad set of truck brakes. Alexis quickly turned to her wrist communicator, which she had hardly ever used. “Everything all right?”

The word came back, a deep male voice, which they did not expect. “Fine. Boston just got an instant suntan is all.”

“I’m as red as my hair!” Boston complained. The others did not know what to say, so they turned to watch Mingus who presently entertained the kids by juggling balls of fire.

~~~*~~~

Boston had a good sunburn, but Alexis found some aloe in the medical kit and managed to keep her from blistering. Boston explained. “I got too close to the plasma engines, but I think we cooked up some good surprises if the Balok come around here.”

Saphira looked up from where she rested on the ground. “You mean when they come.”

“I think that Martok is brilliant,” Katie said.

Saphira smiled. “Martok says thanks and you’re not so bad yourself.” Lieutenant Harper found her own cheeks redden a bit. She forgot the Kairos remained in close contact with other lifetimes, especially ones recently accessed. She looked to Lockhart for support, but he just smiled like Saphira. Alexis saw something in the way Katie Harper and Robert Lockhart looked at each other and she looked at Lincoln, but he simply looked away.

“Stay out of the sun,” Alexis sniffed and stood to walk off by herself for a time.

That evening, the stick people built a great bonfire, not much different than the one built by Ranear’s Neolithic tribe. Mingus lit this one to their delight. They did not cook their food and only ate what looked like water with some dirt in it. They also hardly needed the warmth in that climate, but they seemed to like the light.

One of the Thets came up to be friendly. At least Alexis thought it was a Thet. It was hard to tell. She also had no idea how to distinguish males from females, and was working on that problem, when Saphira suggested they might be uni sexual. Of course, Saphira went on to explain, in more detail than necessary, how glad she was that humanity had two sexes, and Alexis had to remind herself that in this lifetime the Kairos was a protitute.

“You have a beautiful planet,” Thet began. Alexis looked over and saw the one she thought was the leader sitting between Lockhart and Captain Decker while Lincoln scribbled notes on his pad. “You have many children and much variety.”

“I’m sorry?” Alexis tried to focus in.

“When we first came to the ground, there were many of your children who moved away to make room for us.” Thet sat on the ground. The trunk kept the stick person straight up and down while the legs bent, and the feet set some distance from the body. It gave the stick person the appearance of a three-legged stool, very hard to knock over. Alexis later learned that the stick people slept in this position as well.

“Animals.” Alexis grasped what the stick person said.

“Yes, and such a rich variety. You must be very proud of them.”

“Yes.” Alexis said. She could not bring herself to say, we eat our children. Somehow, she knew that would not be taken well. Fortunately, they shortly heard the sound of drums. They beat out a steady beat. Then something of a cross between an oboe and bagpipes began to play. It sounded dominant and tonic followed by tonic and dominant. As it played on, Alexis wondered if the stick people ever discovered any other notes.

“What the heck is that?” Captain Decker held his ears.

“I think it is music, sir,” Lieutenant Harper responded.

“Catchy tune,” Lockhart quipped.

“I like it,” Boston interrupted.

“Yeah, good luck getting that melody out of your head,” Lincoln added.

The stick people shrieked in delight and sounded much like the children. Soon they had a line of stick people around the bonfire. They moved in a circle, bent near ninety degrees forward and then bent near ninety degrees backward as they moved. It looked like their legs were attached to their trunks by ball joints. All the while, the people waved their bent hands and shouted in delight.

“Now what are they doing?” Decker asked.

“I think it’s dancing, sir.”

Alexis imagined Boston might have liked to join them in the dance, but she had gotten so burnt, she dared not get too close to the fire. She saw the children off to the side. Some of the bigger ones were imitating the adults, like they were practicing. All was well, she thought. These good people were well worth saving. She held on to that thought when she lay down that night and slept in her own space without touching Lincoln at all.

************************

Monday

The travelers prepare for the arrival of the Balok, and try to prevent the stick people from undoing the improvements the travelers made to the stick ship. Until Monday, Happy Reading.