Kairos

Avalon 2.8 Flight

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            So the Pendratti want the travelers for some unknown “experiments,” but there is a Gott-Druk presence on the planet as well, and they don’t appear to be Pendratti friends, especially after they find Elder Stow with the travelers.  Before hostilities can break out, however, a young dragon interrupts everyone.  This suggests there are Agdaline around as well.  It also suggests things are heating up.

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            Once they returned to the elders on the hill who appeared to be unmoved, eyes staring, mouths open exactly as they last saw them, and Otapec praised and hugged his children for being good, and Maya collected Kuican to sit in her lap, Otapec finally got around to the introductions.

            “This is Lincoln, the one who knows more than you can imagine.  He is the one in search of his wife – a trail that is not easy to follow.  Beside him are his friends and fellow travelers.  The one with fire red hair is Mary Riley that everyone calls Boston.  In truth, though, she is the witch, Little Fire.  Her betrothed is the spirit of the earth, Roland.  The Gott-Druk is Elder Stow, pledged to be good in my hearing.”  Otapec paused only a second to stare at the Gott-Druk.  “He is like the others, from the far future and trying to get home.  The one with the yellow hair is Katie.  She is an elect, one in a million, and could have beaten Shushak in a fair fight.”  Maya smiled.  The elders gasped.  They knew who Shushak was.  Otapec turned to Katie.  “Of course, Shushak did not fight fair.  And by the way, if you are tired of the Marines you can come to work for me.”

            Katie smiled.  She knew she had to be invited.  “I would like that.”

            “Of course that means Lockhart will be your boss.”

            Katie paused and looked at Lockhart before she responded.  “I would not mind.”

            Otapec went on.  “Captain Decker you know.  But what you do not know is he is Farsight, the man of the eagle.”  Otapec turned to Lockhart.  “He cannot really see what is ahead, especially through the trees or behind the rocks, but he should have the skies covered.”  Lockhart nodded as Otapec introduced him last.  “And the leader of this migration back to the future is Quetzalcoatl, the man of the feathered serpent.  Note the beard and scruffy look.”

            “Quetzalcoatl?”  Katie asked.

            “Mesoamerican feathered serpent god,” Lincoln explained.

            “I know that.  But Quetzalcoatl?”

            Otapec nodded.  “I just figured that out.  Though he goes away, he will come again.”

            “Clever,” Lockhart said and did not object.  He turned instead to Boston.  “Hey Little Fire.”  He waited.  “Boston.”

            “Sir?”  Boston whipped her head to look.  She was busy holding Roland’s hand.

            “Why don’t you light the bonfire?”

            “Good idea,” Otapec said as he sought a seat next to Maya.  That was not easy to do.  Ixchel had squeezed between her mother and Katie.  Kuican was wiggling in his mother’s lap.  Only Chac was being good, but that was because he wanted to see Boston light the big fire.

            “Just think about it as a done deal,” Roland encouraged, but Boston was a bit miffed by his words.  She was starting to think of herself as beyond the beginner stage, even if not very far beyond.  And perhaps like a growing child, she wanted to do it herself.  She pulled out her wand and focused for a second before one wave of the wand sent a torrent of flame toward the piled wood.  It was enough to singe the end of her own wand.  Chac appropriately said, “Wow!”  Roland had something else to say.

            “I would mention that it helps if you calm your spirit first, but you would probably be mad at me for saying it.”  In the empathy that the little spirits of the earth generally show, he caught her unhappiness with not being allowed to do it herself.

            Boston looked at the elf, her brow furrowed.  But then she lifted herself with her toes and put her lips on his.  Chac appropriately said, “Eww,” and returned to sit with the others.

            That night it was deer and corn, and everyone was happy.  Katie asked if Lockhart named his dragon pet.

            “Puff,” he said.  “I was going to name it Bob but that name is already taken.”  He took Katie’s hand.  Boston and Roland were holding hands as well.

            “Opi,” Maya took Otapec’s hand and placed it to her belly.

            “It’s too early for there to be any movement,” Otapec said.

            “Who said I wanted you to feel the baby?”

            “Hey,” Lincoln interrupted.  He was into the database and ignoring the lovers lest he become morose about his missing wife.  “It says you are taking these people to Veracruz.”

            “That general area,” Otapec said as he slowly took his hand back.  “These Shemsu are the remnants of Qito’s people who fled north the last time the Agdaline were in town.  They will increase in numbers over the next 1500 years, and without much intermarriage with the natives, but by then they will form the foundation of the Olmec culture.”

            Lincoln switched off the database and spoke.  “Fifteen hundred years, maybe, but I can’t imagine they will still be pure blooded in four thousand years.”

            “They won’t,” Otapec admitted.  “But there will be enough to build the pyramids so well known in the Yucatan and Guatemala as well as the stone structures in Mexico.”

            “You mean the Mayan pyramids?”  Boston asked.

            Maya looked at Otapec.  “My own people?”  She looked shocked and thrilled by the idea.

            “Shh!”  Otapec scolded Boston.

            “And the feathered serpent?”  Lockhart asked.

            “Prominent, with Decker’s helmeted marine head.”  Otapec smiled.  Decker did not flinch.  “After all, it was all they could see for five hundred years.”

            “The colossal heads!” Katie shouted her revelation, though she did not intend to shout.

            “Incoming.”  This time Decker and Elder Stow spoke at the same time, and everyone stopped to watch.  Eleven perfect and spherical lights came down below the clouds and wound their way slowly across the horizon.  It was impossible for the people to know how big those ships were, but the travelers had seen them on the ground and knew in the vastness of space, while the Agdaline slept in their cryogenic chambers, they carried dragons who roamed the halls and guarded the sleepers against intruders.

            “They will park near the scout ship, the ship Puff came from,” Otapec said as he slipped his arm around his wife.

            “Pendratti, my people and now Agdaline,” Elder Stow said.  “Looks like things are getting complicated.”

            “Looks like,” Otapec agreed.

###

            In the early morning just before the sun broke above the horizon, Lockhart’s sleep was rudely interrupted by the sound of a siren.  Elder Stow had sensors on the horizon, just in case.  Captain Decker was also up and rousing the travelers.  Opi and Maya were already helping the people get up and ready to flee.  This did not appear to be a visit.  These were one and two man fighter ships.

            Maya must have waved her hand.  The fires all went out and the tents were all packed and ready to go in an eye blink.  Lockhart found himself lying on the dew filled grass.  “I guess I might as well get up,” he said, and he saw the people streaming toward the far woods.

            “Boston,” Lockhart yelled when he caught up.  “A glamour would be nice to make them think they are hitting the target.”

            Boston looked at Roland.  Roland shook his head.  “Even our magic combined could not conjure something like that.”

            “Good idea,” Otapec said as he and Maya ran up.  Maya waved her hand and the camp appeared on the hillside just like it was before dawn.

            “The people images will replay the last hour and react naturally when attacked.  They will run for the woods everywhere except this direction, and some will appear to die when hit.”  She smiled at her own good thinking. Roland and Boston could only stare, mouths open at how easy such a thing was for a goddess.

            The people moved through the jungle, but Lockhart, Decker, Katie and Otapec stayed by the edge to watch.  The fighters were sleek and swift, and they knew how to dive bomb.

            “Not Balok,” Decker said, though he knew the Balok were no more.  “Certainly not Agdaline,” he added.  There were some explosions as the fighters shot some air-to-ground missiles.  They were not content to let their laser-like weapons set the tents and field on fire.

            “What is that?”  Katie pointed.  It was small but coming on fast.

            “Puff,” Lockhart saw.  “No.  Get away from there.”  He raised his voice but he knew the dragon would not hear him.

            Puff fried the first fighter, though he took a laser shot to the middle.  One of the fighters turned and managed another prolonged shot at the tail.  Despite all the fire-proof feathers, Puff clearly felt it.  His back quarter was fried.  He squirmed like a worm caught in the sun, and in this way he collided with the third fighter.  That fighter plummeted to the ground and exploded while Puff rushed off, terribly burnt and bleeding.

            “Will he survive?”  Katie asked.

            “I don’t know.”  Otapec could only shake his head while the last of the fighters shot for home.  “I expected a Pendratti reaction but not this quickly, only –“  He let his voice go silent while he put a hand to his chin.

            “Only what?”  Lockhart asked.

            “Only they were not Pendratti fighters.  They were Sevarese.  That makes four species right here, right now.  If the Elenar and Bluebloods show up we could have a full scale war break out, and that would not be good.”

            “What can we do?”  Katie asked.

            “Help the people reach the Coatzacoalcos River and settle there.  Let Boston and Roland and Decker, you take one side of the migration.  Lockhart, you, Katie and Lincoln take the other.  Tell Elder Stow to monitor the skies, and remind Maya she needs to keep her screen like a dome over the people when you cross open ground.  There are some native tribes between here and there, and while I don’t expect hostilities, you never know.  Some firepower to guard the flanks will be most useful.”

            “What will you be doing?”  Katie asked.

            “I will be trying to send people off planet before a real war breaks out and goes nuclear.”  Suddenly, Otapec was no longer standing there.  It was another lifetime of the Kairos, but they were not sure exactly who as he vanished immediately.

###

Avalon 2.8:  The Journey … Next Time

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Avalon 2.8 Visitors

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            The travelers get Captain Decker back, even if they are still chasing Lincoln’s wife, Alexis, and her father Mingus.  What is more they appeared to have landed in a friendly group of natives.  Ordinary travelers might expect to relax and rest, but they know this is a lifetime of the Kairos where trouble and danger are the norm.  Besides, there are walking and talking reptiles out there, somewhere.

###

            After the awakening, Katie kept one eye on Decker.  The others seemed unconcerned.  They stepped over to Otapec’s fire and told stories and laughed, but Lieutenant Harper felt she needed one eye on her Captain.  He had been out of it for a long time. 

            The man said little after he awoke, but then Decker was a person of few words so that was no surprise.  He saw to his horse, the one that was tied to him by the Kairos – the one he named after Colonel Weber.  Decker was all business with the horse, but Katie imagined if the horse had been a dog it would have licked his face.  After that, Decker hardly paid any attention to Elder Stow, as if having the Gott-Druk around was no big deal.  He also did not appear surprised to hear that Alexis and her father Mingus were missing again.

            “The more things change,” he spoke in clichés and sat by the fire to meditate.  That was the oddest thing of all.  Katie had no idea the hard boiled Navy Seal even knew what meditation was.

            “People.”  Otapec got everyone’s attention.  The elders of the natives and the Shemsu were approaching and it was time for introductions.  To no one’s surprise, the elders all bowed to Maya first of all though she blushed and turned her eyes to her Opi.  Otapec just smiled for her and opened his mouth when Decker finally had something to say.

            “Incoming,” and he added, “The more things change.”  Fortunately, he did not finish that cliché.  He could not as the sound of retro rockets echoed across the field.  A shuttle was coming in for a landing.

            Everyone grabbed their weapons while Maya strictly charged Chac and Ixchel to keep Kuican in the circle of the elders.  When they were ready, Otapec lead the troop down the hill to see the visitors, and he whispered in Maya’s ear as they went.

            “No!”  Maya spoke as if she was shocked to hear what Otapec suggested, but she said no more.

            They had to stand and wait for a while. 

            “System shut down,” Lincoln suggested.

            “Scanning the area for hostiles,” Lockhart offered.

            “Only us,” Decker quipped and gave his rifle the quick once over to be sure it had not been damaged in his five hundred year absence. 

            Finally the hatch of the shuttle came down and six Pendratti came out from the inside.  The four that looked military escorted the two the travelers had met in the jungle.  They young one was still juggling some sort of equipment.  The older gray one was smiling again.

            “And see?”  The gray one spoke.  “Here are exactly the ones we are looking for.  This matter should be resolved easily enough.  Bring them inside.”

            The young one smiled this time and showed all of his sharp teeth while he fiddled with some controls on his equipment.  Lockhart, Lincoln, Katie and Boston all stiffened.  They began to move toward the ramp and Maya reacted.

            “No!”  She shouted and gave a curious look to her husband who stood quietly, arms folded, watching.  The connection with whatever had the travelers in its grasp broke instantly, and the people stopped moving.  Boston and Lincoln backed up a step.

            Elder Stow and Decker had something else in mind, but Decker was quicker.  He put several bullets in that piece of equipment, and fortunately he was a good enough shot not to harm the Pendratti holding it.  The startled Pendratti dropped it and it shattered against the shuttle ramp.  The gray one frowned, but the guards all drew their weapons.  One overreacted or panicked and pulled the trigger.  A blast of some kind struck a screen a few feet in front of the travelers where it was completely stopped.  Maya looked at Opi, again.

            “My husband is so smart,” she said softly before all words were silenced by the roar of a second, smaller shuttle that rocketed to a landing less than a hundred feet from the Pendratti shuttle.  No one was surprised when three Gott-Druk emerged holding tight to weapons of their own.

            Elder Stow stepped forward before the guns started firing and he shouted as loud as he could.  “I said these people are under my protection.”  He looked at the elder Pendratti.  “And the reason I repeat myself is because you seem to have trouble with your hearing.”  That appeared to make the Pendratti elder angry, but the Gott-Druk who saw him and heard him relaxed a little.

            All this while, Otapec stood still and said nothing.  Maya looked at him again and started to ask a question.  “Should I –“

            “Yes.”  Otapec interrupted.  “Keep it right where it is.” Otapec heard something and he knew what kind of creature made such a sound.  Even as Elder Stow threw his hands up and the Pendratti and Gott-Druk sounded ready to get into a great argument, a five foot wide head stuck out from the trees right between the two ships and two arguing parties.  A roar was followed by a burst of flame.

            Both Pendratti and Gott-Druk darted for the safety of their ships.  The fire headed straight for the travelers but was stopped by Maya’s screen which she kept in place as instructed. Still, the travelers all stepped back except for Lockhart who curiously stepped forward.

            “Do no harm!  No Fire!”  Lockhart yelled in the Agdaline language which he dredged up from some back corner of his mind.  “No harm.  No fire.”

            The worm inched out from the trees and Katie remarked, “Why it is still full of feathers like a baby.”

            “Baby,” Lockhart said the word in the Agdaline language and repeated himself once more.  “No fire, baby.  No harm.”  The dragon dropped its chin to the ground and then slowly slithered forward as Otapec finally spoke.

            “This kind doesn’t have much in the way of legs or arms.  It truly is more worm-like.”

            “But aren’t feathers dangerous for fire breathers?”  Katie asked.

            “Not real feathers despite the look and feel.  They are more like asbestos, fire-proof and toxic if taken in large doses, by the way.”

            “But I thought the Agdaline ejected the adults in space before landing.”  Boston looked at Otapec who crossed his arms again as he spoke to her. 

            “They trap one or two in the airlock to release when they set down just in case their reception is not so friendly.”  He stepped up to his wife and kissed the back of her neck.  She wiggled, but was occupied with something.

            The worm reached Lockhart who repeated the word, “Baby.”  He reached out his hand and Maya’s shield gave way at the hand so Lockhart could stroke the dragon’s nose.  The dragon purred, a deep, throbbing sound.  It was not the lyrical song of the babies, but only because this one was larger and more mature.   

            Otapec whispered in Maya’s ear and she spoke.  “Find deer.  Eat deer.” Maya said, and Lincoln looked back toward the horses.

            “I hope it knows what deer is.”

            “Go.”  Lockhart said.  “Fly.”  He looked at Otapec who nodded.  They might not have much in the way of legs and arms, but there was nothing wrong with their wings.  The dragon rose up in a bit of a whirlwind and flew off without looking back.  After that, the Pendratti were the first to leave.  The Gott-Druk followed.

            “Well!”  Captain Decker said as he shouldered his rifle.  “I guess you will all have to tell me what I missed after all.”  He stared for a moment at Elder Stow before he stared more deliberately at Lieutenant Harper.

###

Avalon 2.8 Flight … Next Time

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Avalon 2.8: Encounters

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After 3498 BC, somewhere between Guatemala and the Yucatan.  Kairos life 28:  Otapec.

Recording…

            The jungle they traveled through was not too thick at ground level, but the canopy above cast their journey into shadows, and there were other, deeper shadows moving among the trees.  Roland and Boston thought it best to stop and watch as the shadows stopped with them.  Lincoln, who was not paying attention would have run into them, but his horse knew better.  Elder Stow watched Lincoln’s horse buck as it stopped and he laughed.  The Gott-Druk had not laughed much since joining the group, but he was learning. 

            “What’s up?”  Lockhart’s voice spoke softly from the rear.  Katie got busy retrieving her rifle.

            “Not men,” Roland said.  “I do not recognize the scent.”

            “Let me try,” Boston said.  She was all excited because in the last time zone, when she was under the spell of the genii, she did all sorts of magic that she never imagined she was capable of doing.  She pulled out the leg bone of a doe that Roland was helping her carefully shape into a proper wand, and she focused.  The tree branch lifted and they saw two reptiles, clothed and standing upright like ordinary people, and they were arguing.

            “But are they tagged?”  Everyone heard that because the gray reptile raised his voice.

            “Yes, sir.  Yes, but can’t we find a way to bring one of them now?  The supreme one would be most pleased.”

            “There will be time for experimentation later.”

            “But sir.”

            “No!  We haven’t the room nor the capacity.”  He turned toward the travelers and saw the branch lifted.  “We have been seen,” he said and stepped out to face them all.  The one with the electronic equipment followed, and Boston was glad because she could not have held up the branch much longer.

            “Can we help you?”  Lockhart said, or hoped that was what he said.  The language of these reptiles was all tongue slurps and guttural growls.  The human tongue and vocal chords were not designed to make those sounds.  Of course, thanks to the gift of the Kairos, they heard the whole conversation like it was in English, but being able to respond was another matter.

            “Remarkable.”  The gray one stepped up.  “It is almost as if this one is trying to speak.”

            “Sir,” the other interrupted.  “My equipment is unable to get a lock on this one.”  He referred to Roland, the elf, but before the gray one could respond, Elder Stow pushed up between Lockhart and Boston.

            “These are under my protection,” he said in his own Gott-Druk language.  The gray one squinted and put something like an ear bud in one ear.  He tapped the box on his belt. 

            “Ah, yes,” he said.  “One of the lesser helpers against the Balok all those years ago.”

            “From the lesser ship that followed us?” The other suggested, but it was like a question.  The gray one made a face, stuck out his tongue and snarled which Katie interpreted as he did not care if he was or wasn’t.

            “I said, these are under my protection,” Elder Stow repeated himself.

            “Yes, I heard.”  He turned to his colleague.  “Notice how the less intelligent feel the need to repeat what has already been plainly stated.”

            “I wonder if these beasts have a form of communication.”  The other pointed at the horses.

            “Worth finding out,” the gray one responded.  “Beasts of burden, certainly, and the first we have seen in this unsophisticated place.”

            Lockhart tried again, this time in the Gott-Druk tongue.  “Can we help you?”

            Again, the gray one turned to the other, and this time he showed his great rows of very sharp teeth.  Katie and Boston both imagined it was a reptile kind of smile.  Lincoln was not so sure.  “You see?”  The gray one spoke.  “They are capable of learning.  This world might not be the total waste we imagined.  It would take a great deal of time and energy, but the natives can be trained.”

            “We need to get this information to the supreme one,” the other said with a hint of excitement.

            “Quite right,” the gray one agreed and placed a claw on the shoulder of his companion.  They turned their backs on the travelers and stepped back into the trees.  A moment later, something like a real flying saucer, though a very small one like a scout ship lifted into the sky.

            “That was weird.”  Lockhart said what everyone felt.

            “This way.”  Boston had the amulet out and pointed their direction.  They had to dismount and walk the horses because the jungle got thick again.

###

            On a small hill in a wild meadow there were a number of shelters which one might call tents if one wanted to be kind.  There were also a number of camp fires, children running free, women cooking and men lazing about.  It might have been a scene from anywhere at any point in history, and certainly fit 3450 BC Central America, but for two things.  Half of these people looked more African than Native American.  They were dark skinned and had none of the expected slightly Asian look about them.  Then also they carried a stone sarcophagus with them and with no visible means to move it.  How it came to be in that meadow, no scientist in our day could ever explain.

            One woman, beautiful and young looked up from the meat in the fire when her middle-aged, gray haired man came up to her.  She kissed him because she wanted to.  He kissed her because he loved her.

            “Your friends are near,” the woman said.

            “Then perhaps we should go and greet them,” the man responded, but the woman shook her head and made him sit down and share the meal.  When they were done, she took his arm and walked him to the meadow’s edge as six horses emerged from the jungle.

            “Hey, Lockhart.”  The man waved.

            “Otapec?”  Lincoln asked.  He had the database out and was trying to read.  It was something he had not really been able to do in the jungle.  Otapec nodded and smiled until the woman tugged on his sleeve.

            “Opi, aren’t you going to introduce me to your friends.”

            Otapec patted the woman’s hand, gently and introduced the travelers.  Lastly he introduced his wife, Maya.

            “Hello Maya.”  Boston said.  “My real name is Mary Riley, but everyone just calls me Boston.”

            Maya did not respond as expected.  In fact she reminded the travelers of the reptiles in the jungle as she turned and spoke only to Otapec.  “You are right, she is a dear one.”

            “Come,”  Otapec waved for everyone to follow.  He turned to walk and the travelers dismounted and fell in line.  Otapec spoke up.  “Maya has made a treat for the horses, and then I have a surprise for you as well.”

            Katie looked at Lockhart, but all he could do was shrug.

###

Avalon 2.8:  Revivals … Next Time

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Avalon 2.7: Mindless

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            Beltain.  There is an image the travelers don’t want to repeat.  She is rough and bawdy, but still the Kairos on the inside.  She is quick to point out that Katie (the elect) and Boston (the Spell Caster) are not the ones the women are looking for to complete their Amazon council, but then I would guess the great and terrible power lurking on the horizon decided not to lurk anymore.

###

            “What happened?”  Boston shouted her question though the whining sound had subsided.

            The Sybil spoke.  “The other camps are in rebellion.  They think we are saving the best of the meat for ourselves and not being fair in the sharing.  They plan to attack us after the sunset delivery.”

            “Oktapi must be warned,” Katie said as she picked up a nearby spear.  All of the weapons from the future had vanished, and the travelers never noticed.  What is more, their fairy weave clothing was shaped to match the local clothing, and the travelers thought nothing odd about that, either.

            “Oktapi and his people can take care of themselves, but I will tell him when I meet him.  We cannot count on his help or the help of his people.  He would just as soon we all die, but I will ask all the same.”  Beltain tipped her head to Katie.  “Majesty,” she said.

            “Thank you Priestess,” Katie responded before she went into queen mode.  “Lockhart and Lincoln, gather the men, young and old.  Lockhart take the south.  Lincoln take the north.  You must defend the perimeter for as long as you can, but if they break through, fall back to our line.  Star, gather the women.  With our smaller numbers we will hold the reserve post.”

            “The women are not going to like that,” Star admitted.  She already had her bow off her shoulder and an arrow in her hand.

            “The decision has been made,” Katie said in a voice which also said she did not care if the women liked it or not.  “Our place is to defend the children and the fut… fut…”

            “Future.”  Old woman Hannah said it because Katie seemed to have trouble with the word.

            “Hannah.”  Katie turned to the woman.  “Gather the rest of the women in the center with the children.  Your words and stories will have to be strong tonight to keep the children calm and safe.”

            “What about me?”  Boston stepped up.

            “I want you in the center, but not with the children.  It would be best if you could get up high enough to see the edges of the camp.  I do not yet know where your power may be needed, but if you start in the west and we need you in the east it may be too late by the time you get there.”

            “I will find a way,” Boston said.  “But what of the healer?”  

            “Here I am!”  A woman shouted and ran up to them.

            “Alexis, you need to stay near Boston at the center.  If there are wounded, we will bring them to you.  If there are many, we will probably retreat to you in the center.”

            “Pray to the gods there are no wounded,” Alexis said with a glance at Beltain.

            “Amen,” Beltain said, though the word caused the others to start.  It sounded odd.

            “Move it!”  Katie knew they would have to worry about that later.  The sun was already touching the horizon.

###

            Roland looked up when they sky over the camps clouded over.  His good elf ears barely discerned the shrill sound through Elder Stow’s screen.  He was surprised when Gnumma came to stand beside him and the carcass of the beast to look out over the darkening camps.

            “The Djinn.” Gnumma named the cloud.  “But what game is he playing?”

            Roland could only shrug and worry about Boston and his friends.  The greatness of the Genii prevented him from knowing anything for certain and the power was almost unimaginable.  “This one is as close to being one of the gods as a greater spirit can get.”

            “We will find out soon enough,” Gnumma said and walked away again so Roland could finish his grisly work.

            Roland got a steak sizzling on the stone Elder Stow heated with his sonic device.  He was not much of a meat eater and neither was the Gott-Druk.  He imagined the gnome was a strict vegetarian, but they had to eat something and the Elder was also not a big fan of elf crackers.

            “I guess the Djin has no interest in us,” Roland said at last to make conversation.  The gnome was altogether too quiet and Elder Stow seemed glued to looking at his screen device.

            “An elf, a gnome and an old one?  What would he want with us?”

            “Hey!  I’m not that old.”  Elder Stow objected but never looked up.

            “Okay,” Roland surrendered.  “What is so fascinating about your screening device.”

            “Eh?”  The Gott-Druk looked up briefly before he looked again at the box.  “Something came through the screen some time ago.  I have been tracking it.”

            “What?  Where?”  Roland stood and Gnumma sat up straight and looked around.

            “Right here.”  They heard the voice before they saw Mingus walk into the light.

            “Father?” 

            Mingus came to sit and spoke right up.  “I would not say the djin is disinterested in us, exactly.  He covered all the camps but just did not bother to stretch it out this far.  I was almost taken.  Only my mind magic allowed me to hold out until I was out from under.”

            “Alexis?”  Roland asked right away.

            “Completely taken.  She thinks she is an Amazon healer, of all things.”

            “Katie Harper is an elect,” Roland said to catch his father up with more recent events.  “And Boston has shown some magical ability.”

            “Really?  Katie doesn’t surprise me.  I thought there was something about her.  But who would have thought that frivolous little red-head would ever amount to anything.”

            “Father!  Boston is the most brilliant, beautiful and capable person I know.”  Roland was miffed.  Mingus rubbed his chin.

            “So it has gone that far already,” he said.

            “Elder Stow,” The Gott-Druk introduced himself again and nodded his head.  “Yes it has, and I say that as a disinterested outsider.”  The elder stared at Mingus because of what happened the last time they met, but he said nothing so Mingus said nothing.

            Gnumma was obviously not following much of the conversation, primarily because his mind seemed focused elsewhere.  “I wonder what is happening in the camps,” he interjected.

            Every head turned though they could hardly see through the encroaching dark.  Mingus picked up the tale.

            “Well, as I understand it they have a huntress, a wise woman and a Sybil already.  It was the Sybil that found us and saw right through my glamours.  Now with an elect to be their queen, a woman of magic and poor Alexis as their healer, they have the foundation for a real Amazon tribe.”  It was hard to tell, but Mingus appeared to not think much of Amazon tribes.

            “All they need is a priestess,” Roland said.

            “Beltain.”  Mingus and Gnumma both spoke at once.

            “The Kairos?  How can the Kairos be taken in by the spell?”

            Mingus got fatherly.  “Son, the Kairos in this life is simply a human being like any other.  As such, she is subject to the full limitations of the breed.”

            “She is mere mud and blood.”  Gnumma gently stroked his beard. 

            “Then we need to save her.”  Roland got excited again.

            “I have already discussed this with Oktapi.  Yours is mind magic?”

            Mingus nodded slowly.  “I have some skill, but nothing to counter the power of the Djin.”

            “But with my help and your son.  Let me tell you what I was thinking which I did not share with Oktapi.”

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Avalon 2.7:  The Trenches … Next Time

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Avalon 2.7: The Way of the Migrants

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            Precautions are good, but to be sure, as wary as the gnomes are of these strange horse riding travelers, so the travelers are of the many tribal campsites scattered across the grassland.  They want to find the Kairos, but are careful to enter that mass of humanity armed, just in case.

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            The first camp the travelers came to had an old man waiting for them.  They had been seen, though they did nothing to hide.  As they marched down the hill, they took a good look around at what they could see of the camp and were surprised and not surprised.  The camp was full of people in many family groups to be sure, but also full of animals.  There were oxen with the wagons which looked full of grain, sheep and plenty of goats running around in small groups, birds in wooden cages that might one day be called pigeons and chickens and a few strange looking cows in the midst of the domesticated donkeys.  There were also children everywhere which were also running around in small groups.  It looked like sheer chaos, but the travelers imagined there was some sense to it.

            “I can see the way they came,” Katie said and pointed to the distance before they got too far down the hill.  There was a wide swath of the grassland that had been crushed and torn and eaten by the animals all along the way.

            “Hamites,” Lincoln pointed in another direction to where a different camp appeared to be filled with black Africans.

            Katie whipped her head around to look and Lockhart could not resist a comment.  “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

            “My doctorate was in ancient cultures and technologies.  Walking into one of these early, massive migrations is a bit like walking into a candy shop.”

            “Just don’t let it distract you,” Boston said.  She had on her determined face.

            “Ah, the other Doctor heard from,” Lincoln mumbled.

            Boston let her frown come to her face.  “My doctorate in engineering, specifically electrical engineering is not going to be much help here.  When we get back, I might want a better look at Elder Stow’s screen maker, but for now I am focusing on my redneck.”

            “Massachusetts redneck.”  Lockhart pointed out.

            “Hey, we have rednecks in Massachusetts too, and rodeos.”

            “You know the last words of the redneck just before he committed accidental suicide?”  Lockhart asked.

            “What?”  Boston looked at the man, her frown still showed.

            “Hey!  Watch this!”

            Katie and Lincoln found it funny, but then they arrived where the old man was waiting, leaning heavily on his staff.  Several younger men also began to gather from the other side, and they carried spears and at least one had a copper knife.

            “Arameans?”  Lockhart said the word like a question.

            The old man turned his head so they could not see his face, but the young men behind saw.  He turned back and began to point toward various other camps as he spoke.  “Jakonites, Amorites, Sabateans,”  He was listing the nearby camps like he was thinking about it and maybe not sure where the Arameans were, or even if they existed.

            “Beltain.”  Katie cut him off.

            The old man looked at her before he lowered his eyes and waved his hand behind him.  The young men that gathered began to go back to whatever they had been doing, and the old man lifted his eyes and pointed near and then pointed further as if to suggest the Aramean camp was two camps away. 

            “Beltain sleeps in the distance and watches over us all.”  The old man said and turned and walked away.  The travelers walked around the outskirts of the camp to avoid any incidents.  They skirted the next camp over as well, though there were plenty of armed young men who watched them.  When they arrived at what they hoped was Beltain’s people, they stepped just inside the camp perimeter where Lockhart made them stop and wait.

            A young man as big as Lockhart came rushing up, with several other young men who hustled up behind.  Older men, women and children also appeared to stop what they were doing to watch.

            “Beltain?”  Lockhart tried again.

            “You have not been called to see her,” the young man growled.  The threat in his voice was clear.  “This is not your place.  Go back to your own kind.”

            “We need to see Beltain,” Lockhart was not put off.  “We are old friends and only wish to say hello.”

            “No one calls the lady.  She calls you as she pleases.”

            An older man stepped up next to the big man and spoke.  “The game is not plentiful in this area, but you will get your fair share with the rest.”

            “Now, go.”  The big man spoke again.  “Or I will be forced to make you go.”

            “Boston.”  Katie moved quickly.  She handed Boston her rifle and tied down the pistol at her side.  She stepped forward, but Lockhart grabbed her arm to stop her.  Katie spoke in English so the locals would not understand.  “Look, if he beats me it is no shame since he only beat a woman.  But if I beat him, we may get to see Beltain without anyone getting killed.”

            “I can live with that,” Boston said and stepped in front of Lockhart so he could not interfere.

            “Besides,” Katie finished her thought as she extracted her arm.  “Being one of the elect has to count for something.”  She turned to the big man who was watching the exchange with a dumb expression worthy of an ogre.  Katie returned to speaking the local tongue.  “So make me leave,” she said.  “If you can, we will all leave in peace.  If you cannot, you will take us to Beltain.”  She put her hands to her hips and waited. 

            The man thought for a moment before he jumped, his fist hooked through the air in what he imagined was a sucker punch.  Katie easily leaned back, caught the man’s arm and shoved, and added only her left foot to the man’s rump at the last.  The man flew several feet and landed on his face.  The young men started to shout, but it was like teenagers shouting “Fight!  Fight!”  They made no move to interfere.

            The big man got up, roared and rushed at Katie with both hands outstretched.  Katie started to roll to her back. The big man’s arms went over her head as she grabbed the man’s tunic.  She threw her foot into the man’s crotch, and when she reached her back she threw the man over her head.  Again, he flew several feet,, but this time he landed with a thump and a cloud of dust on his back.  He did not get up as quickly this time.

            When he did, he saw Katie standing again, unfazed, with her hands again on her hips, waiting.  The man was wary.  He moved just out of reach to her side so she had to turn to continue to face him.  When the man made nearly a complete circle, he stepped in and jabbed with his left hand while his right came from below in an uppercut.

            Katie avoided the jab and caught the man’s uppercut in her hand.  That completely stopped the man in mid punch, and since he was not pulling his punches, he had to have strained his muscles badly.  But clearly she was the stronger, and as she squeezed the man’s hand he moaned and went to his knees.  She easily punched him on the jaw with her free hand as she let go of his hand and he fell to the dirt too dizzy to get up again. 

            That was when a fat, middle-aged woman came barreling in, yelling at everyone to get back.   The people all complied and the travelers wondered if this could be Beltain.  That illusion was dispelled when the woman went to her knees in front of Katie.

            “Elect,” the woman said.

            Katie hesitated and put her hand out to the woman as if sensing something.  “Sybil,” she said at last.  “Please stand up.  I am no Amazon Queen.”

            “But you are,” the Sybil insisted.  “Though you have no tribe except the child of magic, you are.  Zoe herself has spoken.”  The woman drew in her breath.  “You have seen Zoe.  You have been with her.”  The woman began to cry, but the travelers knew they were tears of surprise, amazement and joy at the sight of Katie and Zoe together.

            “But why were you so late in coming?”  Boston stepped up.

            “It is the terrible power that is coming to fall upon us all.  It has been that I can hardly see anything else.”

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Avalon 2.7:  Mind Your Matters … Next Time

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Avalon 2.7: Horses first

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            Gnomes in ancient times were not the garden variety.  They tended the vast herds of many breeds that roamed the ancient grasslands, worldwide.  And they would have set the traveler’s horses free if they were not gifts of the Kairos.  So maybe they will watch the travelers and see exactly what kinds of friends of the Kairos they really are.

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            By the time the travelers arrived, the thousands of people migrating east were settling down for the night in a number of clearly separated camps.  “Different tribal groups,” Katie suggested.  Lockhart simply nodded and thought it was wise to keep their camp separate as well.  They backed up a hill about a quarter mile to pitch their tents.

            “Especially for the sake of the horses,” he said.  “Some of these people might see the horse flesh as an easy supper.”

            “I was thinking the same,” Elder Stow spoke up.  “But I may have a solution.”  He handed everyone a small disc taken from a little pack on his belt.  He gave Lockhart and Katie three extra discs with the word, “For the Kairos and whomever she might want to bring.”  Then he set the main device from that little pouch in the center of the camp and turned it on.  It showed by a little red light that it was activated.  “A simple screen will isolate this area.  The horses will not be able to wander off and no person without a disc will be able to enter in.”

            “Like a dome of force?”  Boston asked.  “How big?”

            “A sphere,” Elder Stow said.  “On some planets things come from below.  But above the surface, for practical purposes, it will be like a dome.  I have set it to short of a quarter mile, and that will give the horses plenty of grazing room without endangering them.”

            “Electric fence.”  Lincoln nodded.  “Like for dogs.”

            “But two-way,” Boston said.  “Also keeping things out.”

            “What of our supper?”  Roland asked, and Elder Stow gave a second disc to Roland.

            “To tag the meat if necessary.  Plants and dead animals will not be a problem, and to be honest, I don’t know how the screen will affect your kind.  You, and those like the gnomes may be able to pass in and out without trouble.”

            Roland spoke honestly enough.  “In this life and in this world we have physical form just like humans.  Magic might make a temporary hole in your screen easily enough but it would require magic.  The disc simplifies things.”

            “The magic works easily enough.”  They all heard the voice and looked every way for the speaker.  “Even the little witch might manage it.”  A gnome appeared in their midst and introduced himself.  “Oktapi has decided to keep an eye on you for a time to better judge your intentions and see to your horses.  My name is Gnumma.”  Gnumma sat on the grass, and might have disappeared altogether if his wheat colored hair and beard did not have some gray in it.  “I have dealt with creatures of mud and blood before, so I was chosen to watch.  I felt your concern to keep the horses safe and that encouraged me to show myself.  Also, I brought this lame one to sustain you.”  He looked at Roland.  “No need to hunt,” he said.  “You will forgive me if I do not watch you butcher it.”

            “Mud and blood?”  Boston asked.

            “We are dust, and to dust we will return,” Lincoln answered.  “And the life is in the blood.”

            Boston looked at Roland, but he shook his head.  “Even we who are the littlest spirits of the earth are spiritual creatures.  The bodies we wear, though completely real, are more like clothing than an essential part of our nature.”

            “And can you change your clothing?”  Boston wondered.

            “No.  Yes.  Maybe.  It is very hard to do and a glamour is easy and works as well.  Some lesser spirits and certainly the greater spirits can change their form easily enough.  Of course, the gods can appear any way they choose, but all of them tend to find an agreeable form and settle in.”

            “They all have a natural form given at their making and that is the form to which they return time and again.”  Gnumma nodded.

            Lockhart also nodded and determined this gnome posed no threat.  “Horses first,” he said, and the group got busy setting the horses free to graze while the sun was still up.  The tents went up after that, and the fire got built, such as they could.  There was not much wood.  There was no wooded areas in sight and even the bushes, though some were big and thick, were not numerous.  Fortunately, there were acceptable rocks around and Elder Stow was able to use his sonic device to heat a big one to cooking temperature.

            “Forgive me,” Roland apologized to the gnome who nodded his forgiveness before Roland went to kill and cut up the poor donkey with the broken leg.

            Gnumma looked up at Lockhart who was cradling his shotgun.  “I have had dealings with your kind before, and once it was agreeable.  After all, as I told my chief, our goddess in this life is a mortal female.”

            “And it is time for us to find her,” Lockhart told the gnome.  “Roland, you and Elder Stow need to stay here and fix supper.  Stow, I will see if there are any fruits and vegetables among the migrants.”

            Elder Stow gave Lockhart a funny look, like he was continually surprised by these humans.  “Thank you,” he said.

            Katie and Lincoln walked up with their rifles ready.  Boston shouted.  “Wait a minute!”  She jumped up, took a brief look at Roland, eyed the Gott-Druk and the gnome and came to a decision.  “I’m coming.”  She ran to fetch her belt which she put together in the last time zone where there was a war going on.  She had her Beretta on one hip and her big hunting knife on her other hip.  She made her fairy weave running shoes into something more like Katie’s army boots.  She left her shorts alone since it was so hot and Katie was still in shorts, but she made her T-top a bit larger so as not to show her shape quite so well.  When she ran back out of the tent, she found the others patiently waiting, but they turned when they saw her and started toward the nearest camp.

            Lincoln had the database out when they came to a place where they could look down on the camps.  “Aramean,” he said to identify Beltain’s tribe.  Then he put the database away to get a good grip on his rifle, just in case.

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Avalon 2.7:  The Way of the Migrants … Next Time

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