Kairos

Avalon 1.11 Dance the Night Away part 1 of 5

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

After 4086 BC in the Italian Peninsula. Kairos 18: Kartesh of the Shemsu

Recording …

“It says here Kartesh originally came from Egypt.” Lincoln summarized the information from the database as they walked. “It says she genetically altered the Shemsu people for the sake of the Agdaline, whoever they are, and had her people spread around the globe. It doesn’t explain. I could look up Shemsu and Agdaline.”

“No, finish about Kartesh.”

Lincoln nodded. “The gods collectively decided that she needed to be responsible for her work and made her a lesser goddess over the Shemsu. Then they moved her to Rhodes to protect her from the god Set.”

“Sounds complicated,” Captain Decker said.

“Real life usually is,” Alexis countered.

“Anyway, hey! It says in this lifetime, the gods collectively first recognized her as the Kairos and formally invested her with her little ones.”

“Little ones?” Lieutenant Harper asked.

“Us,” Mingus answered. “This is the life when she became our goddess, or god as the case may be.”

“But wait,” Lockhart interrupted. “You just said in this life she got made goddess over the Shemsu people.”

Lincoln nodded. “That, too. Maybe that is why they made her an actual goddess, lesser goddess anyway.”

“Sounds complicated,” Captain Decker repeated himself.

“Real life usually is,” Alexis gave the same response.

“Hold on,” Boston interrupted. “I need to stop for a bit.” She rested several days after her ordeal in Faya’s time, but she was still far from perfectly healed. Now, she felt exhausted, and ached everywhere from having walked all day.

Lockhart looked at the sky and thought they should all stop for the night. “Make camp,” he said. “We have a long way to go tomorrow and the next day as well. No reason to push it.”

Roland stayed near Boston the whole time with plenty of cursory looks toward his father. Lockhart, Alexis, and Katie thought it was cute. Lincoln had no opinion. Captain Decker did not appear to notice. Whether Mingus noticed or not, no one could say.

Roland found the hunting good and came back with a better notion of where they might be. “North of what will one day be Rome,” he said. “We spent the day moving through the seven hills, and the Tiber River is not far.”

After that, they had supper and went early to bed. For the supper, Alexis found a real treat. There were more ripe grapes on the nearby vines than they could possibly eat. Before bed, Lockhart went back to two on watch through the night. Everyone knew the easy days of Faya’s mountain village and sleeping in were over.

Roland and Captain Decker took the wee hours. They would wake Boston and Katie just before dawn, though Roland said he would take Boston’s turn.

“Suit yourself.” The captain did not argue. He went to one side of the camp while Roland went to the other. An hour went by, and the moon finally rose, the tiniest sliver just past new.

No wolf, Roland gladly thought, just before he heard a fascinating sound in the distance. It sounded a bit like the wind whistling in the trees, but it gradually grew louder and more sustained.  He strained his ears and all at once, he realized the whistling changed pitch and tone. Someone was making music.

Roland stood and moved a short way into the woods. He definitely heard music, and like the best music of the little ones, he recognized that it had a magical, hypnotic quality. As he thought about it, his eyes opened wide. He spun and ran to the camp, but too late. Lockhart, Decker and Lincoln had abandoned everything in camp and were running off. Katie Harper paused to change her fairy weave from military style to the sheerest, see-through nightgown that barely came below her hips and otherwise showed her as naked. Alexis rose a bit behind but danced off with Katie into the woods before Roland could stop her.

Boston fought her stiffness and tried to get up and join them. She looked to be in pain. Roland thought the pain might be helping her. He tackled her. She fought back. “Father!” Roland yelled.  Mingus sat up and shook his head, trying hard to clear it.

“Father!” The music started to strengthen and came nearer.

“Son?” Mingus appeared to break free of the spell for the moment. He quickly gauged Roland’s struggle and put his hand to Boston’s forehead. She passed out as he spoke. “Quick. We must get away from here before we get caught up in the dance. Hurry.”

They had to struggle to walk, dragging and carrying Boston between them. Mingus shook his head several times as they went, and Roland agreed with him, but his mind stayed occupied with saving Boston. The music decreased slowly in volume as they added distance. It seemed amazing to Roland how one simple set of pipes could carry for so many miles. But then, it became no longer one simple set of pipes. Other musicians started to join in.

Boston woke and struggled for a moment before she realized she was trapped. She kept her mouth shut and dragged her feet until the pain made her feet move again. By then the creatures that streamed by to join the dance fascinated her. She saw fauns, shy goat legged people with small horns adorning their ruddy faced heads. The fauns tried to move through the trees, but they could not help being seen. She saw dwarfs, or perhaps they were gnomes. They were quite small, and cute. Some of the last were the greatest of all. They were Centaurs, majestic and stately creatures, that galloped toward the music.

The music became faint by then and Boston spoke up. “I’m fine,” she said calmly. Mingus and Roland stopped and eyed each other. They let go, and Boston made a dash for it, but the elves were much too fast for her. They grabbed the arms and lifted her off the ground as they turned her back to the path.

“Let me go,” she struggled, but again she soon gave it up. It hurt too much to struggle. Then they saw the last of the centaurs. He looked old, with gray hair around his hooves and on his head. He kept shaking his head, much like Mingus, and Mingus had a thought. There was no telling what lay ahead, and they could use an ally.

“You can fight it,” he told the Centaur. “You can win against it.” The centaur stopped and looked at them with eyes that said he did not grasp what they were saying.

“Come with us. This way.” Mingus said, and they began to drag Boston further from the music.

“But—” the Centaur pointed in the direction the other had galloped.

“This way. Short cut,” Mingus lied like an elf.

The centaur slowly turned and followed.

Avalon, season 7 ready to buy

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

 

***To buy this book Click Here

Avalon Season 7 Introduction

The travelers came to Avalon in the Second Heavens to be transported instantly through the Heart of Time to the beginning of history. They went on a rescue mission, but things did not go as planned. The Kairos, the Storyteller, had to jump into the void before history to become lost in eternity. In order to get home, the travelers must return the slow way. They follow the Amulet of Avalon that points the way from one time gate to the next, and cross dangerous time zones that center around the many lives of the Kairos, the Traveler in time, the Watcher over history, a person who never lives a quiet life.

They have unlimited vitamins and elf crackers for their health, and unlimited bullets, which are needed far too often. They ride mustangs brought back from the old west and wear fairy weave clothing that they can shape and change with a word in order to blend into the local culture.  By a special gift of the Kairos, they can understand and be understood no matter the local language. Inevitably, they have to deal with thieves and brigands, armies and empires, gods and monsters, spirits and creatures, space aliens and the great unknown. They try hard not to disturb history along the way. That is not easy when they have to fight for their lives.

To be sure, all they want is to get home in one piece, but they are not the only ones lost in time. Some people lost in time might want to follow them, or even go with them. But some people are not so friendly, and not everything lost in time is a person. Some want to fight the travelers. Some want to hunt them.

~~~*~~~

Season Seven finds the travelers face to face with a monster who would like nothing better than to literally frighten the travelers to death in order to feast on their souls. The wraith, a refugee from the land of the dead, has followed in the background since 3600 BC, waiting for the time of dissolution, when the gods go away. Now, the travelers step over the line into the AD, the common era, and the wraith feels it is her chance. She will have a few surprises for the travelers, who will have to fight to stay alive.

CAST

Robert Lockhart, a former police officer, now assistant director of the Men in Black. He was in charge of the rescue mission that left from 2010 in the common era and went to the beginning of history. He is now charged with leading this expedition through time, though he has no idea how he is going to get everyone home alive.

Major Katherine Harper-Lockhart (Katie), a marine and an elect—a one-in-a-million warrior woman, whose doctorate is in ancient and medieval cultures and technologies. She is torn between her duty to the marines and her desire to be part of this larger universe she is discovering, though since she married Robert, her path seems set. She carries the prototype amulet once used to kidnap Alexis.

Boston (Mary Riley), a Massachusetts redneck hunter, rodeo rider, and technological genius who finished her PhD in electrical engineering at age 23. She carries the Amulet of Avalon, a sophisticated combination electronic GPS and magical device that shows the way from one time gate to the next. She became an elf to marry Roland; but now Roland has disappeared, and may be dead, though she insists the Kairos managed to grab him at the last minute and brought him back into the future.

Benjamin Lincoln, a former C. I. A. office geek who keeps the database and a record of their journey. He tends to worry and is not the bravest soul, but sometimes that is an asset. His wife, Alexis, was kidnapped by her own father Mingus and dragged back to the beginning of history. This prompted the rescue mission which got everyone stuck in the past with the time gates in the time zones as the only option to get home—the long way around, as they say.

Alexis Lincoln, an elf, Roland’s sister, who became human to marry Benjamin. She retained her healing magic when she became human, but magic has its limits. For example, it could not make her father happy with her choices. She was the one who got kidnapped and dragged into the deep past where she needed to be rescued.

Elder Stow, a space traveling, technologically advanced Gott-Druk (Neanderthal) from the future who got thrown back into the past. He is forced, at first, to make a truce with these ‘humans’ to join them in their journey. He has since adjusted to the idea, and believes it is his only chance to get back to the future.

Sukki, a Gott-Druk from the before time, taken off planet to a new world at the time of the flood. She joined a small group determined to return to Earth. She is the sole survivor after thousands of years in cryogenic sleep. The travelers take her with them, knowing she cannot survive in the past, and she is learning that these travelers are now her new family.

Colonel Decker, a former navy seal, now a marine special operations officer who will do all he can to keep everyone alive, even if it means shooting his way back to the twenty-first century. He is a skeptic who does not believe half of what they experience. An African-American, he got gifted in the deep past by his eagle totem, and can see beyond normal vision

That makes 8: Two married couples, one ancient young woman, one Gott-Druk, one Marine Colonel, and one Elf.

And introducing:

Tony (Anthony) Carter, Graduate Student in Antiquities in Latin and Greek. He got pulled into the past from 1905 and lived seven years with Professor Fleming and a few classmates in the days of Julius Caesar. He joined the travelers because it seemed his only chance to get back home. No one has spelled it out that he will likely get home in time for World War One, but he suspects.

Nanette Jones, also from 1905. An African American who worked as Professor Fleming’s Administrative Assistant. She only willingly left the professor when the professor got diagnosed with cancer. She has magic, rooted in telekinesis, when the Other Earth phases in and leaks magic energy into our universe. A brilliant woman, she is in love with Colonel Decker, thanks to Aphrodite. The Colonel, however, is resisting the goddess. He was married once before and is reluctant to make that same mistake twice, as he sees it.

Plus, as always,

The Kairos. But that is a different person in each time zone.

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

MONDAY

Avalon 1.11: The Travelers arrive near Rome and get caught up in Pan’s dance with the satyrs and nymphs. Boston, Roland, and Mingus escape and have to figure out how to set their friends free before they dance themselves to death. Monday. Happy Reading

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Avalon 1.10 Kidnapped part 5 of 5

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

The boat floundered a little in the water. Bruten sat in the back, but he seemed loathe to set down the amulet in order to paddle. He felt a little afraid to put the amulet around his neck, but in the end, he did that in order to keep himself from drifting into the shore.

As soon as the boat stabilized, Faya came down in slow circles while her friends continued to circle above. She landed on the bow, out of reach of the paddle. Bruten stared at the owl and for some reason he did not dare do anything. When Faya changed back into a woman, Bruten shouted his fear and surprise.

“The red hair. I thought. But you cannot.” He dropped the paddle and fell to his face. “Please, mercy.”

Faya spoke without emotion. “These Neolithic days are brutal, and you have certainly shown your worst. Now it will end.”

“Please do not kill me.” Bruten’s voice shook from his fear.

Faya simply stretched out her hand and the amulet vacated Bruten’s neck and flew to her. For some reason, and it may have been an unconscious reaction, Bruten made a grab for the amulet in mid-air. It moved too quick for him, but Faya lost all sense of mercy with that.

Bruten snatched his hand back with equal speed and begged again. “I am sorry. Please let me live.” Faya heard no sincerity in the man’s apology. And she spoke.

“You were driven out of your own village for raping and killing a young woman. You did the same in the village where you traded, and while you tried to cover your tracks, you were found out and had to flee for your lives. Now you have tried the same with my friend. It is clear to me if you did not learn after the first or second time, you will not learn after the third. You are a danger to yourself and others and in this age, there is only one remedy.”

Bruten did not exactly listen. He muttered, “Please, please, please and mercy.”

Faya raised her voice to unearthly proportions. “Bokarus!” The word echoed off the water, sounded through the forests, spread across the plains, and bounced off the mountains, and the bokarus responded. It came in ghost fashion and stared at Faya who called it to come. “I have need of the boat,” Faya spoke in a normal voice. “You may have the man to satisfy your hunger and thirst but then leave my friends alone and stop following them.”

The bokarus circled the boat twice and twice flew up to Faya’s face, as if considering the proposition. It said nothing, but Bruten found himself standing and shoved over into the water. He had no time to scream before his mouth filled with water.

Faya called to her friends who came down to listen. “Bears,” she said, and the birds became bears and plopped into the water. She handed the rope to the lead bear with a word. You must bring this upriver to the place where I will be waiting. With that, she resumed her owl form and grasped the amulet in her claw. She took off into the wind and arrived back with Raini and Roland about the same time Boston showed up.

Faya landed when the unicorn stopped and kept its distance, pawing at the ground. Boston kissed the beast behind the ear and slipped off. She did not appear strong enough yet to stand, but she was awake enough to motion that she would be all right.

Faya resumed her female form and smiled for the unicorn, though she knew better than to approach the beast. It would have nothing to do with her or Raini, being mothers as they were. The unicorn did dip one leg as it had back in the days of Keng when it bowed to the goddess, Nagi. But then it turned and raced off into the distance and disappeared in the dark.

Roland ran forward, picked Boston’s head off the ground, and held her gently. She looked up at him and smiled since it did not hurt too much to do that. He looked ready to cry, but she really felt much better. She felt fairly sure her ribs were healed, and she no longer had that concussion. She imagined her nose might be fixed as well, though it felt like she still had the black eyes and plenty of bruises. Most important, she no longer bled everywhere, even if the wounds were not completely healed.

“I knew you would come,” Boston said through her smile. Roland said nothing so she nudged him from behind and he bent closer until their lips met. Faya and Raini just watched, and Raini smiled like Boston.

“There, that’s better,” Raini said.

“Poor Mingus,” Faya responded. “And you leave my children alone.”

Raini looked ready to protest but changed her mind. “And mine,” she said. “There is nothing a child hates worse than having her mother fix her up with someone.”

“Don’t I know it,” Faya said, and the two women hugged again like sisters and waited for the boat to arrive. They would need it to get Boston across the river. Faya had imagined she might carry the girl across in bear form, but she had no way of gauging how badly Boston might still be hurt, and she could not surround the girl with healing power as she carried her the way the unicorn did.

~~~*~~~

Roland and the Were made a stretcher for Boston and all of them took turns carrying it back up to the mountain village. When they arrived, Faya found her husband, a big man, telling dirty jokes to Koren, Lockhart, Mingus, Lincoln and Captain Decker—and they were all laughing, and drinking beer. Alexis and Katie Harper escaped to the children with whom they appeared to be getting along well.

They were by the upper wall, the one that divided the village from the plateau, as much to keep the villagers from infringing on the highlands, as a barrier to the wolves and others. It was the place where the villagers and the Were sometimes met to discuss matters of mutual concern. There were two campfires lit that night, and two guards to watch during the wolf moon.

“Boston!” Alexis, the first to notice, jumped up to help her friend. She guided the stretcher to a place between the two fires where Boston could stay warm in the chill spring night, and so she could have plenty of light to examine her.

“Alexis.” Faya spoke sternly after she thanked her friends and allowed them to run back up to the plateau. “You will only check her internal organs and for broken bones or a concussion. Her cuts and bruises must heal on their own, in the old-fashioned way.”

“Yes, Lady,” Alexis said, humbly. Faya’s voice sounded so commanding. Alexis hardly knew what else to say. The Kairos spoke, and Alexis had been an elf far longer than she had been a mortal woman. Also, though not an actual goddess, this was a demi-goddess and more than worthy of respect for her father’s sake. With that, she got to work, and Faya turned to Raini.

“If I let her, she will drain herself to exhaustion trying to heal every nook and cranny by her art.”

“I see that,” Raini said. “She is very full of love, though sometimes it interferes with her good sense.”

“Very true,” Lincoln nodded to the women and went to kneel beside his wife.

Raini watched them and sighed.

Faya turned toward her husband; a stern look on her face.

“Don’t worry, dear. Nurse and Bain are both with the children. I expect by the time we get home they will just about stop laughing. You know good old Bain.” He grinned for her, a real pleading bit of a grin.

Faya slowly let the smile cross her lips. “Don’t stay out late,” she said. “Children.” She clapped. “Back to the heights and then back to the hunt.”

The boys jumped up. “Yea!” The girls were a bit less enthusiastic. They were enjoying the adult conversation with Alexis and Katie, especially the fifteen-year-old. But when Faya returned to red owl form, they followed suit and soon all disappeared in the sky.

“Well,” Faya’s husband spoke softly. “She is a keeper, for sure. I knew that when I first saw her.”

“How many children have you got, if you don’t mind my asking,” Lockhart got curious.

“Eight, working on nine.”

“Oh, you poor man,” Mingus commiserated and Captain Decker agreed with him.

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

Tomorrow

Avalon 7 reveal. Don’t miss it.

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Avalon 1.10 Kidnapped part 4 of 5

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

It did not take long, before a wolf came back with five more wolves in tow. The big one appeared to be a red wolf instead of brown, gray or black. It looked covered in red fur, but they did not get a good look in the night because the minute it spied the strangers it transformed from wolf to woman. That transformation happened very fast, but it looked smooth and painless and appeared fascinating to watch.

“Lockhart.” The woman, Faya, recognized him right away. “What is the trouble?”

Lockhart could not answer. Faya had long, flaming red hair, and indeed had a beauty and projected a desirability, something like the goddess Innan, and certainly made of the same stuff. She glowed much stronger than Raini, like she had swallowed a piece of the full moon and it kept escaping through her every poor. She made some effort to tone things down, but by then Mingus stepped up to answer.

“We met three men when we came into this time zone, and they kindly guided us to your mountain village. But when we arrived and became occupied at the gate, they grabbed Boston and went back into the wild. No one noticed for some time as we waited for your cousin Raini to arrive. By the time we realized Boston was missing, they had an hour or so head start. Raini and Roland have followed after them. Master Koren was kind enough to bring us here so we might find you.”

“Children, show yourselves.” Faya did not wait to hear more. She clapped her hands and the four wolves that came with her transformed into two beautiful young women and two fine looking young men. The eldest and youngest were the girls, the eldest being perhaps twenty-three, or Boston’s age. She clearly took after her mother, red hair and all, though not so strong. They guessed the youngest, maybe fifteen, took after her father.

“Children. You must go with Uncle Koren and escort our friends back to the village.” Faya turned to the travelers. “It is not safe for you on the plateau. The night is still young, but as the night wears on and the moon rises, the blood lust of the wolf will increase and anything that is not of the Were will not be safe.”

“Mother!” One of the boys, likely the elder wanted to protest.

“Go.” Mother was not going to argue.

“Scout.” She turned to the wolf who brought her. “Fly back to the tower and tell my beast we are seeking the one taken and pray we find her before it is too late. The rest of you, I ask you to forego the wolf for a time on this one night. I need the eyes of the owl and the raven in the dark.” Every one of the wolves that were present transformed directly from wolf to bird—and birds that were bigger than any bird ought to be. One took off for the tower, even as Faya herself became a red owl. Then her flock headed into the sky to be lost in the darkness as Faya’s eldest daughter spoke.

“This way,” she said, and smiled a most attractive smile.

“Yes,” Koren said with a look around at the trees. “I have found it is best to listen to Faya.”

“Beast?” Alexis caught the word and wondered about it.

“Of course,” Lincoln nudged her. “Beauty always marries the beast.”

~~~*~~~

Roland and Raini came to the river and paused. “I thought we would catch that werewolf,” Raini said, with a quick look around.

“It must have run a different route. We were not following the wolf,” Roland said.

“Yes, but I imagined the wolf would pick up the spoor of the three men and young woman. I thought we might follow the wolf straight to them.”

“After you, it might have felt safer going after a deer,” Roland said, not really in the conversation. He examined the bank of the river and came to a conclusion. “They have a boat.”

“I don’t see it across the river,” Raini said, as she extended her senses to take in the far side.

“They may have pulled it up on the bank and covered it with branches and leaves to make it hard to find,” Roland suggested.

“But that would imply they are intelligent.”

Roland almost smiled. “Not intelligent, but clever, perhaps.”

Raini returned the smile to the elf and then some. “So, when are you going to tell this girl that you love her?” Roland paused to look at the woman. “I can’t help it,” she apologized. “My mother’s blood shows me things about love that others cannot see.”

Roland bowed his head to the demi-goddess before he responded with a word. “Never.”

“Oh, that would not do at all.” Raini played with him now.

Roland took a second to explain about his sister Alexis and Lincoln, and how they ended up so far back in time. “I could never do that to my father.”

“Give love a chance,” Raini encouraged. “Your father is grown and can handle more than you think.” With that, she raced across the top of the water, hardly getting her feet wet in the process. After a moment, Roland did the same.

~~~*~~~

Thag held the boat while Bruten shoved Boston to the shore. “Grogor. You and Thag need to cover the boat with branches so it is not seen.” He shoved Boston and kept shoving her to keep her feet moving up the small hill. He only paused when he imagined a great splash on the other side of the river. He looked but saw nothing in the dark and finally decided he was being paranoid.

By the time they started down the other side of the little hill, Thag and Grogor had caught up.

Boston saw a flat rock at the bottom of the hill, something like a stone of sacrifice. When they got close, Boston thought she saw some dried blood on the stone. She also thought that now she would add her blood as well. She already bled from any number of places and felt weak because of it. Bruten made her sit on the rock and hit her several times, just because he could. She became dizzy and fell back. Her head struck the stone as she fell, but it felt no harder than Bruten’s fist. Boston went unconscious for a time.

“Now we will take the source of her power,” Bruten said, and they pulled off Boston’s clothes, starting with her top. Bruten immediately took the amulet from around her neck and stepped into the clear to get a good look at it in the moonlight. Thag and Grogor finished undressing Boston and got excited. Thag only paused and turned away when he thought he heard something.

“Father. I want her. Can I take her, Father? I want her. Please father.” The young man could hardly contain himself.

“What was that?” Thag spoke at the same time and took two steps back the way they had come.

Bruten ignored them both, his eyes focused on the amulet as if staring at it might suddenly make him understand it. “Yes, son.” He spoke without thinking.

“No, please. Help me.” Boston said weakly, as the young man got close and slapped both hands to her breasts. He appeared to stop. He turned away before he could do anything else, and Boston could not focus well enough to see what was happening.

Grogor faced his father. He floated a foot off the ground; a horn stuck right through his middle where it made a big hole in his chest. “Father,” he managed the word and Bruten looked on in horror as the unicorn tossed Grogor from his horn with a flip of its head. Grogor crashed into a bush like a rag doll. No one imagined he was still alive.

Thag might have done something then, but he became occupied by the snarling, drooling creature that came down the hill. The unicorn backed up to protect Boston, while the werewolf paused to take in the scene. Thag panicked as the fear took him, and he turned and ran off into the wilderness. Bruten kept perfectly still and watched. The werewolf continued to stare at the unicorn for a moment. Then once again, whether by some inner knowledge that it was outmatched, or because it saw Thag as easier prey, it ran after the man. Again, no one imagined that the wolf would not catch the man.

When the unicorn turned again to look, Bruten had started to climb the hill as fast as he could, making for the boat. The unicorn let the man go and turned to Boston. It used its horn to toss Boston’s clothes back to her chest. The fairy weave clothing reformed around Boston’s body.  It covered her in a dress from neck to ankles, and with long sleeves. She had ballet slippers on her feet but hardly felt aware enough to notice any of it. Then the unicorn got down in front, and Boston slipped off the rock and on to the unicorn’s back. It started out at a gentle walk and carried her along the riverbank. All the while, the virtue of the creature seeped into Boston and began to heal her life as well as her body.

~~~*~~~

Faya arrived where Raini and Roland were searching and frustrated. “They had to take her downriver,” Raini said, as Faya landed. “Faya!” Raini recognized her even in bird form. Faya quickly transformed back into a woman so she could hug her cousin who was really more like her sister.

“Boston?” Roland’s worry came out in the word, as he dipped his head in honor of the two deim-goddesses.

“She is safe. I have seen her from above. She will be here shortly, only the one man has escaped in his boat and I must go after him.”

Roland relaxed and Raini smiled. “The good elf has pursued her with his whole heart,” she said. Both Roland and Faya looked at the woman. Raini apologized again. “I can’t help it.”

Faya just smiled, returned to her red owl form, and took to the air.

Avalon 1.10 Kidnapped part 3 of 5

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Roland and Raini stopped to check the prints in the soil. Roland sniffed the air. Raini glowed a little and let all her senses range beyond human range.

“They have been here,” Raini said.

Roland merely nodded. He felt certain as well, but presently he looked around his feet. He saw a light for a brief moment. It did not look like a fairy light. It might have been a glow bug of some kind, but he felt sure there was something.

“What?” Raini wondered.

Roland shifted his foot and shifted a leaf with it. He picked it up. He found Boston’s wrist communicator left open and glowing in the night. He examined the wrist strap and Raini made the pronouncement.

“Torn from her wrist. No doubt painfully.”

Again, Roland merely nodded as he lifted his head. Something else prowled nearby.

“Up!” Roland shouted, and he scrambled up the nearest tree as only an elf can. The wolf growled and leapt, but too slow. Raini also went up, but she went straight up into the air, about six or seven feet, where she hovered and the glow around her increased. Her eyes lit up and a light came from them that looked hot as fire. The wolf’s back got singed and it leapt back into the forest and ran, like it knew when it was overmatched.

“Faya is much better at that than I am,” Raini said, as she floated back to the earth and Roland climbed down.

“I thought you did that very well, m’lady.” Roland understood that Raini was not a goddess, but she had to be a half-goddess to be sure, and worthy of all respect.

“But what was that?”

“A werewolf. The future kind. A poor diseased human driven mad by the transformation its body is not designed to make. It has been following us, through several time zones.”

Raini nodded this time. “So now we have to find your friend to protect her from more than just three dead men.”

The leaves stirred as the two figures ran so fast, they appeared to vanish.

~~~*~~~

Bruten leaned over the side of the bank. “Good, it is still here. Quick, get in.” A crude boat had been tied to a root with some of Bruten’s primitive rope.

They struggled to get Boston into the boat, but two more punches to her face and a punch to her kidneys brought her to her knees, and then she got tossed in. Boston felt sure her nose had broken, and probably a couple of ribs got cracked, at least. She hurt everywhere but felt better when she did not move at all. She thought instead how glad she was to have Thag’s hands off her, even if it was only a temporary condition.

Bruten sat beside Boston in the middle, and he held her rope tight to be sure she had no thoughts of jumping overboard.  Grogor sat in the stern with one paddle. Thag took the paddle in the bow. The boat was not exactly a canoe, but it functioned like one, and it took no time to cast off and reach the middle of the softly flowing water.

Thag had a thought now that he was unable to exercise his lust. “But we are at the big bend in the river. The current will take us closer to the high country and the mountain village before we turn toward the Great Blue River.

“Yes,” Bruten said with a wicked grin. “So even if they follow us to the riverbank, they will think we crossed over and should waste hours trying to pick up our trail on the other side. They will never guess we moved downstream, especially since it will take us partly back the way we came.”

“They don’t know we have a boat,” Grogor understood.

“But tonight is the wolf moon,” Thag protested.

“Easy, Thag. We are not going to the High Country. We are not going anywhere near the wolves. We will keep to the river and go to the side away from the wolves when we come to the big bend.”

Thag shivered. He found an emotion to replace his lust for the moment. Fear. Clearly, he wanted no part of the wolves.

“When we pull back to the shore, can I have her, father? I really like her. I want her really bad.” Grogor was obviously not as afraid.

~~~*~~~

They all heard the howl. It got answered several times over. “Here.” Koren came to a stop. “We will not have long to wait.”

“Decker. Keep your rifle on your shoulder no matter what, is that clear?” Lockhart wanted to take no chances.

“Understood,” The captain responded, but he made sure his knife remained handy all the same.

Lieutenant Harper talked, because she could not stand the wait, and Alexis agreed with her. “So why is your village protected by such a wall. Are you at war?”

“No longer,” Koren said. “Years ago, some say for a hundred years the whole world was at war. The gods were at war, you see, and we fought for our gods.”

“The gods were at war?” Lincoln asked. He did not get that far in reading the database.

“The gods of the Vanir and the Aesgard fought because of the witch no one wanted, the witch they could not get rid of.”

“Which side were you on?” Captain Decker asked.

“We served Queen Nerthus,” Koren answered. “Specifically, her two grandchildren by Njord, god of the sea, Vry of light and fertility and Vrya of love and war.”

“Njord, Fry and Freja,” Lincoln clarified.

“You fought for Aesgard? Weren’t they in Aesgard?” Lockhart guessed.

“Not originally,” Lieutenant Harper interjected before Koren could speak. “Originally, they were of the Vanir. They went to Aesgard with their father as ambassadors of the peace while Odin picked some pretty poor ambassadors to go to the Vanir.”

“Yes,” Koren confirmed. “The peace made by Faya, but once we were all at war. Once we lived in the north. Faya and I were both conceived there. We were losing, so we ran to this place. Faya and I were both born here on the same day. We are birth twins, being born on the same day. That was forty-six years ago.”

“I would not have guessed you were that old,” Lockhart said. Koren smiled.

“My wife, Raini keeps me young.”

They heard the howls again. They sounded closer, but not on them yet.

“Tell me about Raini.” Alexis asked to keep the conversation going. She did not want to think too hard about what might be coming. “How is it that she can run with the elves?” Elves could race at supernatural speed, like a fairy in flight, though hardly as fast as a fairy. Alexis understood perfectly when Raini said Lockhart and Captain Decker could not keep up.

“My wife,” Koren said, as he turned to Alexis with a broad grin on his face. “She is the daughter of Vrya, goddess of love and war. I am the most fortunate of men having her love to wife.”

“And she is cousin to Faya?” Lockhart started piecing it together.

Koren nodded. “Faya’s father is Vry, god of light and fertility, and even at forty-six years she remains a beauty beyond compare among mortal women.”

“I don’t know,” Captain Decker said. “I have seen the Princess.”

“As have I,” Koren said. “She is certainly beautiful. But Faya is a beauty to rival the gods.”

“Think Innan in human form,” Mingus suggested, as the wolves arrived.

Seven in the pack arrived snarling and drooling at the group. They paused only when they saw Koren in the lead. Koren held up his hands to be sure he had their attention, and he spoke plainly. “These are friends of Faya, the queen. Please, we must find her. One of her friends has been taken and is in need of rescue. Find Faya, please.”

One wolf barked and bounded into the woods. One wolf stayed where it paced, to block the forward progress of the group. Five wolves stepped forward to sniff the travelers. They walked around Koren and ignored the elf but gave the humans the once over.

“They may smell the fairy weave in your clothes,” Mingus said. “That may stand in your favor.”

Lockhart, Captain Decker, and Lieutenant Harper stood at attention and kept as still as they could. Alexis pulled her hands up to her chin but otherwise practiced calming thoughts as the wolf butted its nose up to her thigh. Lincoln shut his eyes, gritted his teeth, and tried hard to think of anything he could other than being surrounded by wolves. One growled at Captain Decker, but the captain wisely made no response.

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

MONDAY

Roland and Raini need to rescue Boston before the worst happens. The rest of the travelers need to find Faya to see if she may help. Until Monday, Happy Reading.

 

*

Avalon 1.10 Kidnapped part 2 of 5

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

 In the morning, the three goons were anxious to get moving. Bruten said it would take a full day, or two if they did not get moving. Boston confirmed that they were about seventy-five miles or so from the next gate, so they hurried.

All through the day, Lincoln and Lieutenant Harper pointed out where the trail their guides followed turned out better than following the straight line given by the amulet. When they came to a cliff they would have had to climb, but the three guided them a half-mile to a sheltered trail that led gently up the side. Captain Decker finally told Lincoln and the lieutenant to shut up, and at least Lieutenant Harper said, “Yes, sir.”

The sun got very low in the sky by the time they reached the foot of the mountain. They stood at the top of a small hill, in an open field where they had a fair view. Bruten explained as he pointed up the mountainside.

“You see? Real mountains. Not like the hills we have walked through. They say beyond the mountaintop is a high country, much higher than the land we have been on. No one goes there. There are stories.”

Grogor interrupted. “The Were people live there. The stories say they can appear as a bear, and once as an eagle. They say when the moon turns full, they hunt as wolves.”

“Stories to frighten children,” Bruten interjected.

“But Bruten,” Thag had something to say. “Tonight, the moon will be full.”

Bruten slapped the big man on the arm. “Child,” he said.

“What is that?” Alexis wondered.

“Transylvanian Plateau,” Lincoln answered, but that was not what she pointed at.

“A wall of trees,” Roland answered. “I would say our fort.”

“Yes,” Bruten smiled and nodded for the elf. “Your eyes are like the eagle. That is the way up, blocked by the great wall. Behind it is much flat land and the village, and they say a way to the high country that does not have to climb the mountain peak.”

“You don’t know?” Lockhart got suspicious.

Bruten paused before he answered. “We trade, skins and such, but only at the village gate. We have never gone past the wall.” If it was a lie, it was skillful.

“We best move if we expect to get there before dark,” Captain Decker said, and they started down the other side of the hill.

It got dark by the time they arrived, but just twilight dark. The land appeared covered with spring, and the light stayed long in the sky. If it had been winter, they never would have made it. As it was, the men at the gate were hesitant about letting them in. They told them to go away and come back in the morning. Lockhart figured he had nothing to lose.

“We have an important message for Faya, and it cannot wait until morning.” He pulled Roland to the front so they could get a good look at the elf.

“A message from the gods?” one of the guards asked.

“It cannot wait until morning,” Lockhart simply repeated those words and with that they were let in but told to remain by the gate until the elders could come. They waited, and sat, and waited some more until Captain Decker made a confession.

“I wish you brought a deck of cards, too.”

Then they waited some more, until at last they were approached, not by village elders, but by a lone woman, a beauty of the first rank.

“Faya?” Alexis said.

“No. Hair is all wrong,” Lincoln answered.

“I am—”

“Wait, wait. Don’t tell me.” Lincoln had the database out and announced the woman’s name. “Raini. She is Faya’s younger cousin.” The woman smiled and then several men came up to join her.

“And you are?”

“Robert Lockhart, Ma’am. Ben and Alexis Lincoln, Captain Decker, and Lieutenant Harper.”

“Military,” the woman interrupted. “And with weapons I have never seen before. I can see they are formidable.”

“Yes, and Roland and Mingus are friends. Mingus is father to both Roland and Alexis.”

“Yes, the elves,” Raini said. Both had removed their hats out of respect for the Lady and though this was no goddess, they all felt she was not far from the designation. “Welcome to our homes.”

“And Boston,” Lockhart paused. “Boston?” He raised his voice. “Where has that girl gotten to?”

“Where are Moe, Larry, and Curly?” Alexis wondered, referring to their three trail guides. Katie Harper thought to speak into her wrist communicator.

“Boston. Are you there? Where are you?”

The answer came back. “Help! I’ve been kidnapped. Bruten and ow!” The voice cut off.

 “It’s damn Captain Hog all over again!” Alexis got upset. Normally, she never swore.

“Worse, I would guess,” Mingus said. “You were relatively safe with Hog. No telling what they will do to Boston.”

“Can you get a geo-position?” Captain Decker asked.

“No, sir.” Lieutenant Harper answered. “No satellites.”

“I will find her,” Roland insisted. Captain Decker already started checking his weapons.

Raini came back from wherever she had run decked out in bow and arrows, spear, and a long copper knife. She came dressed in leather reminiscent of the leather Saphira wore. The man beside her talked quietly.

“I am ready,” she said, when she arrived. “This is my husband, Koren. He will take you to the plateau to find Faya.”

“I am going to find Boston,” Roland said, and Raini smiled at him.

“I am sure you will, young elf.”

“I’m coming,” Captain Decker and Lockhart spoke together.

“No,” Raini turned to them with a firm word. “You would never keep up. You are both fine men, I am sure, and Captain, I know you are a true warrior, but we will be moving faster than an ordinary human can follow. We must if we expect to catch them before the worst happens.”

“Gentlemen, and ladies,” Koren got their attention, but only for a second. They all felt the wind, and Raini and Roland were gone.

~~~*~~~

Boston stopped screaming some time earlier. As soon as they were far enough away from the village, Bruten beat her so badly she became dizzy and imagined she had a concussion. Her hands got tied behind her back and they made her walk. She tried to go limp and refuse to go forward, but they just dragged her over rocks and through the bushes. It became less painful to keep stumbling forward.

Thag kept a hand on her rope. He kept his other hand on her person and touched her everywhere. He seemed to have a particular fondness for her left breast. She kicked him, but he just laughed. Her only respite came when Grogor complained.

“Thag,” Bruten spoke, but did not slacken the pace. “Wait until we are far enough away. You will get your turn.”

“Father,” Grogor also spoke. “I want to go first. Can I have the first turn?”

“We’ll see,” Bruten said. Thag said nothing. He just kept fondling her.

~~~*~~~

Koren explained. “The highland belongs to the Were people. The rule is no weapons. You must keep yours put away. Whatever happens, do not kill any of the animals. The Were people are the men, women, and animals. Some of the animals may be children.”

The others did not exactly understand, so Lincoln spoke up. “I read about the Were in the database. They are not exactly human—not from this earth, though no one knows where they originated. They are shape shifters, able to take on not just the form, but also the characteristics of the animals. If you see a deer or bear or hawk, there is no way of knowing if it is a natural animal or a Were person in that form.”

“Yes,” Koren said. “And when the moon is full like it is, they run with the wolves. It is the strongest of all the animal forms they take and the most possessive of their minds. They become wolves which is why it is generally the worst possible time to go up to the highland.”

“The database suggests they may have had some dog-like form on their native world,” Lincoln added.

Koren shrugged. “The main thing,” he said. “Is to keep your weapons put away, and no matter what happens, do not injure any of the animals we may meet. If you do, they will kill us all.”

With that word, they came to an upper meadow and walked silently in the night under the light of the moon, their ears open for any sound. Lockhart and Mingus followed Koren. Lincoln and Alexis took the middle. Captain Decker and Lieutenant Harper brought up the rear as they had at first back in the days of the twins, Pan, and Iris, but this time they kept their rifles safely shouldered.

They entered a forest on the other side of the meadow and Lockhart had a question.

“How far is it to the home of the Were?”

“Half the night,” Koren answered. “But don’t worry. The wolves will find us long before then.”

Avalon 1.10 Kidnapped part 1 of 5

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

After 4146BC near the Transylvania Plateau. Kairos 17: Faya (Beauty).

Recording …

The boat came out of the time gate on a broad and slow-moving river. The water looked blue and fresh, and even the marines were glad to be away from the sea, the salt, and the storm.

“I’m guessing a tributary of the Danube,” Lincoln said.

“I’m guessing we should pull to shore,” Captain Decker said. The boat suddenly creaked and snapped and looked to be rotting beneath their feet.

“The wood,” Alexis said. “It aged fifty years in a second.” She pulled out her wand and magically plugged a leak that appeared in the bottom of the boat. “Hurry.”

Lockhart, Lincoln, Roland, and the captain pulled on the oars as hard as they could. Lockhart drafted a bit deep in his haste and the oar snapped. They had a spare, but they were at the shore by then. Unfortunately, the riverbank seemed a small cliff some six feet high, and there did not appear to be an easy way up.

The boat cracked along a seam. Captain Decker donned his backpack and leapt for the top. He grabbed on to a tree root where the tree grew close to the water and with some wiggle and struggle, he managed to pull himself up.

Meanwhile Lockhart, Lincoln and Roland shoved oars into the soft bank. They floated ten feet downriver from the captain’s position, but it kept them from drifting further in the current.

“Catch.” They heard Captain Decker’s voice though he was out of their line of sight. A rope fell to the deck even as the boat began to sink. Alexis scurried up the line, followed by Mingus and Katie Harper. Boston started to throw all their backpacks up to the ledge while she got wet up to the knees.

“Lincoln, go.” Lockhart said. He and Roland had the outer oars pressed into the soft mud. Lincoln in the center did not help much to hold them in place, so he scrambled up the line.

“Boston, hurry.” Roland said as he and Lockhart struggled to keep the boat from swinging wildly in the current.

“Got it all,” Boston announced even as the bottom gave out beneath her feet. She went straight under the water.

Roland thought fast and dove after her. He held on to the rope as he went. Lockhart lost control of the remains of the craft even as a far more primitive rope came down and he grabbed on for his life. The boat beneath his feet broke apart, but he hung there for a moment with his eyes on the river. Roland came up a second later with the rope wrapped around Boston. She came hacking and gagging from swallowing too much water. Roland said one thing.

“Bokarus.”

Lockhart found himself pulled up and shouted with all his strength. “Bokarus!”

Alexis and Mingus quickly hung their heads over the side. There did not seem like much Mingus could do with his fire against the water, but Alexis grabbed him to draw on his strength as well as her own and had out her elm wand. She took a shot at Boston and her brother, and the rope they clung to began to shorten and pulled them with it. At once, Boston and Roland lifted in the air. They saw a big hand reach up from the water to grab them, but it missed, and the others were quickly able to draw them to the land.

They all heard the scream. They saw the bokarus rise out of the river. It circled them in its rage and frustration. The river rose, but the six-foot bank proved too high to overcome, and with a final scream, the bokarus flew back beneath the waves.

Boston got to her knees to cough and spit. “I’m fine, I’m fine,” she said, as Roland hovered over her. Mingus and Alexis joined them on the grass. Alexis especially looked drained, like she might have looked after running a marathon.

“I was afraid we lost you,” Alexis said.

“The bokarus had a good hold on her,” Roland nodded.

 “Come, girl,” Mingus helped Boston to her feet and he and Roland walked her a bit before they let her sit down. “All appears to be in working order,” Mingus concluded.

Lockhart thanked the three men who helped them. Bruten was the father and Grogor the son. Thag was the big, ugly one with less than a dozen teeth.

Captain Decker stood, Lieutenant Harper beside him, and both were rifle ready. The captain spoke. “I thought Thag was a character from the Far Side.”

“It fits, sir.”

“Knock it off,” Lockhart said, as he judged the position of the sun and checked his watch. “Make camp.” They did that, and their three new friends did so as well. They strung their rope between two trees and made a lean-to to sleep in. Their eyes got big when Mingus magically started the fire, but not any bigger than watching Roland fawn over Boston.

Lockhart, Captain Decker, and Mingus made the camp when Roland headed out on the hunt. Katie Harper spent the next hour checking all their equipment after the salty sea, all that rain, the river water, and the final flight through the air. Meanwhile, Lincoln and Alexis kept watch on their new friends.

“Red hair,” Bruten pointed to his fellows.

“Young.” Thag said.

“I heard,” Grogor looked at the older men. “She looks young.”

“I heard also,” Bruten agreed.

Alexis and Lincoln listened, but the conversation sounded like code.

“And magic.” Thag pointed toward Alexis.

“Flying through the air,” Bruten said with a shake of his head.

“But the Were fly through the air,” Grogor countered.

“Yes, but they become like the birds of the air to fly. This one flies without wings.”

“And the yellow hair woman warrior to watch over her,” Grogor added.

“And the dark one of death,” Bruten agreed.

“Very pretty,” Thag interrupted, with a look at Alexis.

“Don’t look at me,” Alexis said. “I am married.”

The men gave Lincoln a cursory smile and continued with their conversation. “The elves care for her, like they say,” Bruten said.

“Must be,” Grogor agreed.

“Yes,” Thag concluded.

Lincoln tugged on Alexis’ shoulder. She looked at him, but he shrugged. Something did not feel right to him, and she trusted his sense about such things, but he would have to verbalize it to truly grasp it, whatever it was. He groped for the words by asking a question.

“So, Bruten, what are you three doing out here in the wilderness?”

“We hunt.” Bruten gave the short answer but said no more as Roland came back with a deer. He set the deer down by the fire and went to check on Boston while the three hunters nudged each other. It was not clear, though, if they were pointing at the deer or at Boston and the elf’s rapt attention to the girl.

“Lockhart,” Roland called once Boston assured him that she felt fine. Lockhart looked up from where Captain Decker and Mingus were doing a hatchet job on the deer. “I found the Gott-Druk boat about a mile downriver,” Roland said. Everyone stopped to listen. “Empty.”

~~~*~~~

Bruten, Grogor and Thag had no redeeming qualities whatsoever. They were rude, uncouth, unclean, stank and were prone to make noises, some of which also stank. Alexis referred to them as Neolithic rednecks. Boston called that an insult to all true rednecks while the women moved to the other side of the fire, and then some.

Lockhart, Captain Decker, and Lincoln tried to stay on the friendly side of the fire. Curiously, neither Mingus nor Roland seemed offended by any of it. “I thought that was normal human behavior,” Mingus said later, and with a straight face. Roland admitted he put up some kind of magical shield that protected his eyes, ears, and nose from the worst of it.

The travelers were all inclined to make for their tents early that evening and paused only for a minute when Bruten asked where they were headed come the morning.

“North, generally.” Lockhart had already decided to not give out any more information than necessary, and apparently, the others came to the same conclusion.

Bruten nodded, though certainly he had no idea which direction was north, or what north was for that matter. “You are headed for the fortress people on the side of the mountains. We are, too. We know the way. We will take you.”

“Boston,” Lockhart called, and she glanced at her amulet. She tried not to make a show of it. Grogor and Thag sat up straighter when the redhead came close.

“We are going—” Boston started to speak, but Bruten interrupted.

“That way,” Bruten pointed, and he pointed exactly on target. “We know the land and the people there. We will take you.”

Lockhart was not the only one to wonder what these three might expect in return, and it took some courage on his part to say it, but he said, “We can go together.”

“The red hair knows the way,” Grogor said to his father.

“Well, of course she knows the way,” Bruten shoved the boy. Thag laughed and showed off all his teeth. Boston thought there might only be nine altogether.

“Well, goodnight,” Lockhart smiled and shoved Boston behind him to scoot her off to her tent. As he came to his own tent, he found Lincoln, armed and ready.

“First watch. Wake you in three hours?” Lockhart glanced back at the three by the fire and then responded.

“Watch out for anything in orange.”

Lincoln nodded. “And the werewolf, and the bokarus, and the ghouls.” He wandered back to the fire.

“The hair is right, but she is too young,” Bruten said.

“A daughter?” Thag suggested.

“Must be,” Grogor said.

Lincoln shook his head. It had to be in code.

No one and nothing bothered the travelers in the night, and the three rednecks slept and snored all night long, hard as it was for the others to hear. It did have the virtue of keeping the guards awake.

Avalon 1.9 The Elders part 4 of 4

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

“I was wondering why you kept staring at the thing,” Lockhart said.

“What are you reading?” Boston and Alexis asked together.

“David Copperfield,” Lincoln answered.

“Not some science fiction like Lord of the Rings or something?” Captain Decker wondered.

Lincoln shook his head. “I prefer realistic fiction.”

“Yeah,” Lockhart said. “But I have found that realism is not necessarily realistic.”

“I can see that,” Katie said.

“Storm coming up fast.” Roland still looked behind, to keep an eye on their follower. The wind shifted to blow from the stern and while a good blow might have tempted them to try running with the wind, these clouds looked very dark.

“Lieutenant. Help me get the sail down.” Captain Decker ordered.

“Lincoln, you and I need to hold the rudder,” Lockhart said.

“Father!” Alexis stepped forward to bring down their makeshift jib, but Mingus stared at the clouds. The lead cloud had a face, and one that did not look happy.

“Djin!”

“Probably unhappy that we keep killing his lesser cousins,” Roland suggested.

“The ghouls,” Mingus explained to the Captain and Lieutenant who paused in uncertainty.

Mingus shook his head and went to help Alexis. Everything got taken down and tied by the time the storm hit, including the crew, and good thing. The first strike snapped the rudder and nearly capsized the boat. Katie and Lincoln would have been washed overboard if they were not secured.

The storm pounded them, but Mingus, Alexis, and Roland combined enough magic to keep them from being turned over or broken apart. The waves rose twenty and thirty feet above them, but they moved like the proverbial cork on the water, rising up one mountain and free falling down the other side. The others bailed. They had to.

The ship spun around, first one way and then the other until they had no sense of direction at all. The only thing they could count on was the amulet, but Boston felt afraid to get it out for fear it might be washed overboard. She clutched it with her hand over her shirt and kept it tight between her breasts. She jumped with every new stroke of lightning but never let go.

Roland heard the scream first and looked up into the black sky. Mingus had to squeeze his son’s hand to bring his concentration back to task. The face of the Djin, still in cloud form, came down like a dive-bomber and buzzed the boat just above their heads.

“Focus,” Mingus roared against the storm and the thunder.

Alexis knew better than to look. Lincoln would have to scream for her, and he did. Boston also closed her eyes. Katie Harper and Captain Decker tried to concentrate on bailing. Lockhart growled.

The scream came a second time, this time from the other side. But when it reached the ship, Lockhart held up an oar in its face. The cloud face broke apart on the oar, but it simply reformed on the other side, and as it rose again into the storm, they heard the laughter—a real cackle of amusement. It toyed with them. They knew it, and the Djin knew it, too.

The scream came a third time, but this time before it reached the ship it pulled up and let out a very different sound. It disappeared in the clouds and an old man appeared in the ship, or so it seemed.

The man glowed, not with the awesome light of the gods, but like a lantern or perhaps a lighthouse in the storm. He showed a warm and welcoming glow, the kind ships always looked for in the dark of the night. The ship itself seemed to broaden, so the man could sit comfortably in their midst. No one knew quite what to say, as the rain softened, and the water calmed around them. Outside of their little bubble, the storm still raged in its full ferocity, but within the bubble, all became calm and quiet.

“I must say,” the old man spoke first. “When Odelion asked me to keep an eye on your progress, I hardly expected it to be a request worthy of note. Now I see what he meant.”

“I don’t think he knows about the Djin,” Katie said, honestly.

“A bit more powerful than its cousins,” Lincoln added, as he set down his hat, the only thing he could find to bail with.

“Like a Bokarus on steroids,” Lockhart said, and the man smiled and spoke again.

“When the wind comes up from the coast of, what does he call it? Oh yes, Africa, it often brings storms. Many a good fisherman has been blown to other shores by such storms and many, sadly, have been lost.

“Lost?” Boston wondered. “Couldn’t you help them?”

The man shook his head. “No, dear Boston. I can help you because you don’t belong here in the first place, but for those who are, what is the word, native?” He shook his head again.

“It is the two commandments even the gods must follow,” Alexis spoke up. “One is that men die, and two is that even the gods must not change rule number one.”

“A fair statement, elf daughter.” The man nodded his head. “Now Boston, dear, where is this time gate of yours?”

Boston paused. The man called her dear twice, and she never felt so special in her life. She just wanted to smile forever, but she remembered. “Oh.” She pulled out the amulet and pointed. “Only five miles. That storm certainly ate up the distance.”

“Very good,” the man said, and the ship, the whole bubble, which included the water immediately beneath the ship, rose-up into the storm and raced to the spot. “Sadly, perhaps, I cannot go with you to explore this other world. I will get there all in good time.”

“What do you mean you cannot?” Roland sounded confused.

“A fair restriction,” the man said. “Sometimes we must restrict ourselves and each other. When these gates were established, it was decided to bar all who were native to the time, even the gods. Perhaps especially the gods. I see though with some, such as yourselves, exceptions have been made. That is the decision of the source.”

“The—” Katie started to say something, but the man raised his hand and cut off her thoughts.

“I have said enough on that score and really only have one last thing to say. Captain Decker,” the man turned to the marine. “It will do you no good to continue to berate yourself and think of failure. All turned out well in the end, didn’t it?”

The captain got surprised by the words, but he nodded.

“There, so it would be best to put it out of your mind. Oh, but I see something else is bothering you. About young Odelion?”

Captain Decker looked straight at the man in the boat as he answered. “The poor man has four wives.” He shook his head and disguised nothing about the way he felt. He imagined that to be torture. The man in the boat smiled at first, but as he thought about it, he began to laugh. The laughter was contagious. Very soon everyone laughed, even those among them who did not find the captain’s attitude particularly funny. They could not help it.

“Well, you may find one or two surprises for you up ahead, but for now, you are here.” The man spoke again after a while. “Now all of you who don’t belong here need to go through the gate.” He vanished before Lockhart could speak.

“You don’t mean the Gott-Druk, too.”

“Or the werewolf.” Lincoln remembered.

“I just hope the Djin is of this time-period,” Roland said, as he picked up an oar. They were going to have to row through the gate that Boston said should be right in front of them.

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

MONDAY

The Travelers try to get to the Were people on the Transylvanian plateau, but one gets sidetracked in episode 10, Kidnapped. See you Monday. Happy Reading,

*

Avalon 1.9 The Elders part 3 of 4

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

Odelion found Decker sitting in the chief’s chair by the council rock. Of course, Captain Decker would have no way of knowing it was supposed to be a sacred seat, like a throne of sorts. Odelion did not mind. He just took Balamine’s seat.

“Are you all right?” he asked. Captain Decker spoke but he did not look at Odelion.

“Why did you bring me on this mission? I nearly killed everyone.”

“A-ha! So you admit that lady Alice and Glen and I are all the same person.”

“It would be kind of hard not to admit that at this point.”

Odelion waited before he spoke in case the captain had something more to say. “You are here because of your military background. You are a marine, you have been with the seals, done specialized missions in the field and have the training in both strategy and tactics that may be needed to get everyone home safe and in one piece.”

“But that is why I almost killed everyone. And I could have.”

“But you didn’t, and now that glamour will be much harder for another ghoul to get away with. You are experienced, and with such experience comes a natural resistance.”

“Small comfort.”

Odelion stood, but he had one more thing to say. “Take as much time as you need, only remember your crew needs you, too.”

Captain Decker nodded before he asked his question. “So why are you up?”

Odelion smiled a very broad smile. “I have four wives. You don’t think I get any real sleep, do you?”

Captain Decker nodded but said no more as Odelion walked off.

Roland came back to the hut at the same time. “Ghoul scouts come in threes when they are searching for something,” he said. “And seven in the force to follow.”

“That is two,” Mingus counted. “Anenki’s and Odelion’s.” No one had to say there was another one out there, somewhere, and seven to follow after that.

~~~*~~~

In the morning, Odelion took them straight to the docks. “This is modeled after the ships of the Aristopholas in the south. They regularly make trips to trade in North Africa, so it should be seaworthy for as far as you are going.”

“Look out for the Gott-Druk in the orange jumpsuit,” Lockhart reminded Odelion. “He looked to have a sophistication of devices that your present-day Gott-Druk do not possess. He and his crew called your Gott-Druk weapons primitive.”

“You really think he does not belong here?”

Lockhart looked around before he nodded. “We all think it, and he may yet tip the balance of the coming conflict.”

Odelion nodded. “I will watch. My wild men are out even now on the edge of the village, watching. That was how we knew of the attack in advance.”

“Technology is good,” Captain Decker said, with a look at Lieutenant Harper. “But there is no substitute for a good pair of eyes.”

Odelion just nodded again and he and his wives said good-bye. “I have asked that Oceanus watch over you in your journey,” Odelion added at the last, and he waved while the travelers shoved off. No one saw a small fishing boat with a good sail pull up its own anchor and drift into the wake of the bigger ship. No one noticed, so no one saw that the boat appeared to be empty.

~~~*~~~

The land began to fall away behind the travelers, slowly. They had to row against the wind. The ship, as the marines called it, was just big enough for the eight of them. The rowers sat on two benches, side by side. Lockhart and Captain Decker sat toward the bow, Roland and Lincoln toward the stern. They each had an oar and had very little room between them as they tried to row in unison.

Alexis and Mingus sat on the two benches in the bow where they stowed some of their packs. They had a fairy weave tent and spare oar between them and they were trying to rework the plain flat sail into a sufficient fore and aft style where they could tack in the contrary wind.

Boston and Katie were in the stern on the simple oar that acted as a rudder. They had pulled it up to let the rowers work, so there really was little for them to do other than watch where they were going and watch where they had been. The craft did seem big enough, so they did not worry about standing up, but Captain Decker also pointed out that they only had a short, built-in keel, so there was a chance of tipping over if they were not careful.

Boston kept her eyes on the amulet and kept them generally headed in the right direction. She ignored Lincoln when he complained he could not possibly row twenty miles. Katie watched the land recede and the waves roll. After a while, she thought she saw something different. She reached down to her pack, which got stored in the stern, and retrieved her binoculars. After a look, she handed the glasses to Boston.

“What is that? There,” she asked.

“Another ship,” Boston confirmed. She looked without the glasses and then tried the binoculars again. “It is beyond twenty-twenty sight, but with these…” She paused before she finished her thought. “I would say it is following us.”

“Yes,” Katie confirmed when she got the binoculars back. “Only I can’t see anyone in it.”

“Oars up,” Alexis spoke from up in the front. Whatever she and her father had concocted was ready for a trial. Some of the concoction had been magical. Boston and Katie both expected that. Most of it, though, looked like simple technology. They managed to adjust the square sail rigging to give more side-to-side action so it could be used for more than just downwind sailing. Then with the oar and fairy weave, they made a jib which they erected in the bow.

“Not very strong,” Mingus admitted. “We might not go much faster than the oars, but that is just as well. We don’t want to roll.”

“I have grown the keel a little,” Alexis added. “But there are limits.”

The oars came up and if anything, the ship slowed down, but it continued its forward progress, and the men were glad to think they did not have to row the whole way.

“Roland.” Boston called the elf, having thought of his hunter’s eyes. “Come look at this.” They reached for each other and held one another at the elbows to carefully traded places.

As soon as Roland got to the rear he announced, “Another boat, following us.” Boston concluded that the elf eyes were better than twenty-twenty. She had guessed as much. When Roland took the binoculars for a closer look, he said something they did not want to hear. “Gott-Druk at the helm. One in orange.” He returned the binoculars. “Cloaked. Invisible to human eyes, but not so sophisticated as to prevent my seeing.”

The click they heard came from Captain Decker, attaching the scope to his rifle.

“Hold,” Lockhart said.  “He is staying beyond normal human sight. He probably doesn’t imagine he has been seen. We are too vulnerable at sea. As long as he keeps his distance, we can ignore him.”

“I am sniper trained,” Decker said.

“But he is invisible to your eyes,” Roland reiterated.

“Besides, return fire given the weaponry that is probably at his disposal would blow the ship out from beneath us.”

“At least,” Katie agreed.

“We just ignore him?” Lincoln asked.

“For now.” Lockhart nodded. “If he follows us through the time gate, we can probably set a better trap further on.”

“Agreed.” Captain Decker unattached his scope.

Then they sat until the silence became complete.

They sat for a long time with nothing to look at but the sea and each other.

“Hats,” Alexis insisted early on. “We are getting much too much sun.”

They sat and listened to the water splash against the sides of the boat.

“I wish I brought a deck of cards,” Lockhart said.

The Mediterranean smelled especially strong of salt and brine.

Boston fingered her khaki shorts made from that marvelous fairy weave. She began to change the color, tried stripes, dots and flower prints before she changed them back to khaki. That entertained everyone for a few minutes.

The sea looked as endless as the time.

“This database is interesting,” Lincoln said. “Did you know there are whole novels downloaded?” Several hands shot out and slapped Lincoln hard enough to almost make him drop the handheld.

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

THURSDAY

The episode will conclude tomorrow. They are being followed by an invisible man. Good luck with that…

*

Avalon 1.9 The Elders part 2 of 4

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

The Gott-Druk spread out as they removed the mukluks and began to climb the little hill. Lockhart simply said “fire,” and the Gott-Druk began to fall. Two of the orange men and four of the six Gott-Druk from the space plane went down before anyone returned fire. The last two from the plane each got off a shot. The travelers had to duck and flatten themselves to the ground. One tree got set on fire. Luckily, no one got hurt, though they all felt the heat.

Then the last two Gott-Druk from the plane fell. They were brought downed by weapons similar to their own heat rays. That fire came from the top of the hill and some men stood on that hilltop when it was over.

“Lincoln, Roland and Decker only,” Lockhart said as he stood. “The rest of you stay hidden.”  The men stepped free of the trees and Captain Decker spoke softly.

“We missed the orange leader.”

“I noticed,” Lockhart responded quietly, which inspired Lincoln to count the Gott-Druk dead. Lockhart raised his hand and waved to the men on the hill. “Elenar,” he shouted.

At least one man there waved back. “Lockhart!”

~~~*~~~

“My wives,” Odelion introduced them. “Philias is my cook and also likes to eat I might add.” She looked plump but seemed very warm and welcoming.

“Balamine is my worker bee.” In contrast with Philias, Balamine looked to be in great shape, if perhaps too skinny. “Her goal is to open the first spa and gym on the island.”

“Oh? Good for you,” the others said before Odelion said, “Just kidding.”

“I’m the one who stands between this too large family and starvation,” Balamine said with a smile for the travelers and a hard look for Odelion.

“Memseti,” Odelion moved on to the African woman. “She is my Barbie doll but with a brain. She sees to the children. It would be chaos without her. And then…” he paused. “Where is my first wife? Where is Asterasine?”

“Here I am.” The woman came in from the outside carrying a woven basket full of fresh picked flowers. “Just to freshen the home for your friends.” She put the basket in the corner before anyone realized she was missing her left arm from the elbow down.

“Gott-Druk,” Odelion referred to the missing limb. He gave Asterasine a kiss before he sat down on the floor. When he sat, the others sat. There were soft skins spread around the dirt floor for that purpose. In many ways that made it feel more like they were in a tent than a home, but there were several rooms at the back for the children so it seemed something like a house as well.

“But now the Elenar have left,” Lincoln said, casually. “What will you do if the Gott-Druk return in force?”

“As far as it goes, they were right,” Lockhart added. “Your sticks and stones are no match for their energy weapons.”

“Radiation weapons,” Odelion said. “And I know it. We will leave the island when they come. We will sail to Crete, Sicily, Southern Spain, and North Africa. We will begin again.”

“But the Elenar—” Alexis started to speak but stopped when Odelion held up his hand.

“They have not gone far, and they are watching. When the Gott-Druk come in force, they will return to do battle. Sadly, my people would never survive such a battle. We must leave or die.”

“Such a pessimist,” Philias shook her head as she brought in a great tray of fish and vegetables. Memseti followed with the first bread they had seen, albeit, unleavened. “We will live and be happy.” Philias gave Odelion a kiss and sighed and smiled at the man. Memseti followed suit but lingered a bit on Odelion’s lips.

“But right now, we must also feed the children.” Memseti followed Philias out the door.

Balamine came in after the other two left. She carried clay cups and a big jug of very weak fermented beer. “You must eat and sleep. Rest is important for your good health.”

“Listen to yourself,” Odelion pointed at her. Balamine looked at him and rolled her eyes, but this time she smiled for him.

“But now, for us.” Boston spoke over the fish. “Our way looks like it is over the water.”

Odelion nodded. “I have a boat in mind that will carry you all, that is, if you trust my late Neolithic craftsmen.”

Several of the travelers looked around the room. Lincoln spoke up.

“I don’t see as we have much choice.”

~~~*~~~

Lockhart set guards in the night to watch for the Gott-Druk. He felt especially concerned about the behavior and comments of the ones in the orange jumpsuits. He guessed they were from the future and tossed into the past like them, and everyone agreed with that conclusion. “There is no telling the capabilities in terms of advanced equipment they might have with them,” he concluded.

That night people slept well enough despite everything. They were learning to sleep when they could. The night stayed warm and the sky, clear, when Captain Decker took the watch. He looked to the moon and felt decidedly glad it was not full. He watched the stars and felt equally glad that none of them moved. All calm, he thought right before he felt the splitting headache. He squinted and put a hand to his head. When he looked again, he had a shock.

The sleepers in the room had all become ghouls. He looked where Boston and Lieutenant Harper slept. He saw only ghouls. They looked like female ghouls and he never imagined such a thing. Something in his mind said they needed to be killed. It said they all turned into ghouls because they were asleep and unable to resist. It said the only reason he did not get turned was because he was awake. He believed what his head told him, but at the same time, his military mind did not cease to work. He felt too exposed where he was, so he got up quietly to first move behind cover.

“Captain Decker, close your eyes.” The captain heard the words and recognized the voice.

“Mister Mingus?”

“Exactly. The real ghoul has cast a glamour. I see it, too. None of our friends have become ghouls. It is an illusion.”

Captain Decker paused. “How do I know you are not lying to me?”

“Man, close your eyes. Just listen to my voice. The Kairos is hunting the ghoul right now.”

Two of the sleepers stirred. Lockhart turned because he just laid down, and Boston, because she was a light sleeper.

“Decker?” Boston’s voice that came out of that ghoul mouth. “What is it?” That time the voice had a ghoulish sound to it. Captain Decker raised his rifle, but he did not pull the trigger. He slammed his eyes shut.

“Keep your eyes closed. And don’t trust your ears. The humans can be made to sound like ghouls. I have enough magic to cut through that part of the illusion. You must trust me.”

“Sir.” Captain Decker said and sweated because he came very close to killing everyone.

“Keep talking,” one of the ghouls said, but it sounded enough like Lockhart, so Captain Decker did not open his eyes.

“The ghoul had to come to the surface and get close to affect the glamour,” Mingus continued. “Roland is with Odelion. It can’t be far away. They will get it. Trust me.”

“How can I trust you? Maybe everyone has turned into ghouls. You may be the illusion trying to disarm me.”

“No one has touched you. Don’t touch him.” Alexis was up and about to do that very thing. She backed off. “Listen, captain. If they were real ghouls, they would have you on the ground already and be feasting off your soul.” Mingus paused. “Hurry up,” he said the words through what sounded like gritted teeth. He started running out of things to say to keep the captain distracted.

“It’s a trick,” Captain Decker said. “It has to be a trick.” He got ready to open his eyes when they all heard an unearthly scream. They heard a voice a moment later. It sounded like a human voice.

“All clear.”

Mingus came in from the outside. He had been speaking through the doorway with his back to the outside wall. “All clear,” he repeated the words but still kept back from touching the captain. Captain Decker opened his eyes, slowly. Everyone looked human again. What is more, the voice in his head appeared to be gone. He set his rifle on the floor where he stood and walked out into the night.

“No.” Lockhart prevented anyone from following him.