Travelers

Avalon 2.7: Mind Your Matters

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            It looks like the travelers are going to be allowed to see Beltain.  There is a Sybil, a seer in the camp who has said as much.  But then she also talked about a terrible power looming on the horizon.

###

            Lockhart stepped up to Katie and the Sybil.  “I think you better take us to Beltain.”

            The Sybil looked up in surprise and immediately looked again at Katie.

            “He’s the boss,” Katie said, and the Sybil looked very confused for a minute before she seemed to understand something.

            “Of course.”  She spoke as Katie and Boston helped her back to her feet.  “I must remember you come from a very strange world.  This way.”  She started to waddle off.  “But I advise against seeing Beltain right away.  She is very busy right now.”

            When they arrived outside Beltain’s tent, they were met by two women, one maybe eighteen and one that looked closer to eighty.  The eighteen-year-old jumped in front.  “Hi,” she said.  “My name is Asterasine, but everyone calls me Star.”  She shook Boston’s hand and repeated the same phrase for Lockhart as she shook his hand.  Lockhart laughed and looked at Boston. 

            Lincoln at least said, “Nice to meet you.”

            When Star got to Katie, she was smiling and already had her hand out to shake, but the girl stopped still, and after a moment went down on one knee, lowered her head and eyes and said, “Majesty.”

            The Sybil took over.  “Hannah is our wise woman.”  She pointed to the old lady.  “Asterasine is our hunter.  I am as you have named me, the Sybil.  Beltain is our priestess.  All we lacked was a woman of magic, a healer and our Queen to make the Amazon pantheon complete.  And now you have come.”

            “Oh, no –“ Katie started to speak, but Lincoln interrupted.

            “Beltain is the priestess?”

            “What priestess has ever had a greater claim than one who is herself counted among the gods.  Beltain is a holy vessel –“

            This time Lockhart interrupted.  He pushed passed the women and into the tent.  The others followed and everyone froze.  Beltain was naked and giggling.  A naked man was on top of her and moaning.  And the two appeared to be having a wonderful time.  Everyone turned around, but not before the picture was indelibly etched into their minds.

            They heard Beltain speak.  “Damn it. Grogan get off.  We have company.”  There was the sound of shuffling and cloth being tossed here and there before Beltain spoke again.  “Okay.”  They turned again to face her.  “Sorry ladies, you especially Boston.  Lincoln, close your mouth.  Lockhart, how the Hell are you?”

            “Holy vessel?”  Lincoln whispered.

            “I see you have met Star, Hannah and Anath-Isis.”

            “The Sybil?”  Boston asked.

            Beltain nodded while she tugged on her dress.  She was a short, plump woman, not fat like the Sybil but leaning in that direction.  She had long, light brown hair with a few streaks of gray which she took a moment to put up while she eyed them all through very ordinary brown eyes.  In every way she appeared unremarkable, so much so that Lockhart was prompted to ask.

            “How is it you managed to be the one to lead all these thousands on this migration?  I assume this is a migration.”

            “Right,” Beltain said once her hair was in place.  “The Sahara, Arabia, and even Caana are suffering through a dry spell, like for the last thousand years.”  Beltain rolled her eyes.  “The last ten years have been especially bad in Caana.  Blame man-made global warming.”  Beltain smiled, and it was an inviting smile.  “You know, Anenki built some nice permanent settlements around the Tigris and Euphrates in the east.  Then Cophu finally showed up with his Shemsu people.  They turned those settlements into cities, massive stone walls and everything.  Now we, and hundreds of other migrations are going to fill the places up.  My own people call it the land of green and plenty, but most call it Sumer.”

            “Sumer?”  Katie had to ask.

            “The Ubaidian way of saying Shemsu.  Some of the originals still call the land Ubaidai, but even most of them now call it Sumeria.”

            “Wow!”  Lincoln mouthed the word before Katie could.

            “But you –“ Lockhart started to bring them back to his question, but Beltain waved at him to quiet him.

            “So there are cities in Caana, like from Byblos to Sodom.  You have been to the biggest, Jericho.  But they are in no better shape than the countryside.  It was Astarte that first contacted me.  The gods want the migration.  Enlil and Enki want to see the cities in the east fill up.  They are anxious to see real wars start.  I told them that was stupid, but you know how boys can be.”

            “Enki with his glasses.  He did not seem like the warrior type,” Boston said.

            “Yeah, well, I made him the glasses to see but I have no control over what he sees,” Beltain threw her hands to the side like she was washing her hands of the whole thing.  “So anyway, we are not the only groups migrating.  Some went ahead of us.  Many more will follow us over the next hundred years or so.”

            “But you in charge?”  Lockhart would not let go.

            “Easy,” Beltain responded.  “We travel a day and stop for three or four before we travel another day.  When we stop, my little ones bring what they cull from the herds which we then divide between all the groups.  You know, people will follow anyone who feeds them.”

            Lockhart nodded, but Lincoln thought to say something to the man who was standing by, silent.  “Grogan, is it?  Sorry to interrupt you and your wife.”

            Grogan smiled, but Beltain laughed out loud.  “Grogan is not my husband.  I mean, my husband is probably around here somewhere screwing some young tart.  We don’t have that kind of a marriage.” 

            “Oh.”

            “Grogan was third in line.”

            “Oh!”

            “Forget it,” Beltain said with a final grin at Grogan.  “Oktapi should be here soon.  I suppose we should go out to greet him.”

            As they stepped outside, the Sybil nudged Lincoln.  “What priestess has more direct access to such things as Beltain.”

            “I suppose,” Beltain heard and responded.  “But there is nothing more natural in this time and culture than having a priest and priestess in the ruling position.”

            “How about an Amazon Queen?”  Katie whispered to Beltain as they went outside.

            “Oh yes, sorry.”  She turned just outside the door of her tent and spoke to everyone.  “Listen up.  Katie is an elect, and Boston, I suppose, is a woman of magic, but Zoe says they are on special assignment.  Hannah, Star and Anath, they are not the ones you are looking for.  Just wanted to be clear about that.  Beltain turned again and whispered to Katie.  “And I can hardly be my own priestess.”

            “Exactly,” Katie responded in the same soft tones.  “You are Zoe, or at least you were.”

            “Exactly,” Beltain echoed.  “Right now I am not Zoe, I am Beltain, and while I would not mind loving Artemis, Vrya, Astarte and the others, being Zoe’s high priestess would be too weird even for me.  What is that noise?”

            Beltain asked the last because there was a shrill sound in the air that was growing louder by the second.  It sounded at first like the screech of the bokarus, but this was much, much bigger.  People covered their ears, and still the sound grew until no one could think straight.

###

Avalon 2.7:  Mindless … 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.

###

            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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Avalon 2.7: New Blood

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

After 3557, somewhere between the Tigris and the Euphrates.  Kairos life 27:  Beltain.

 

Recording…

 

            The travelers spent the whole day moving west through an unchanging landscape.  It was occasional undulating hills and grass as far as they could see.  There were herds of animals now and then, though no herd was the size of the one they found back when they crossed the grasslands of the Sahara.  Here, there were some that maybe belonged on the Sahara, like the wildebeests, the impala and the few giraffes they saw.  Then again, some of the deer looked like they belonged more on the Indian subcontinent than in what had to be Iraq.  And then there were the elephants.  Roland supposed they might go either way.

            “This is imp and gnome country,” Roland reported early on.  “But it is likely the gnomes are wild ones, bred to care for these wild beasts, so it may be hard to tell them from their more mischievous imp cousins.”

            Lincoln nodded.  He was reading through the database, but said nothing out loud.  Elder Stow was also quiet, and thus they moved along in a way that was becoming their habit.  Boston, with the amulet to provide direction, stayed out front with Roland.  They spoke now and then, but quietly as lovers do.  Lincoln and the elder Gott-Druk rode quietly in the middle while Lockhart and Katie brought up the rear.  Katie and Lockhart also spoke now and then, but it was more about things like the weather and comments on the flora and fauna of the area.

            Lunch came all too slowly as is the case when people are bored; but during the meal, Elder Stow suggested a reasonable perspective on it all.  “It is good to be able to rest from one’s labors,” he said.

            Lincoln agreed but looked further down that road.  “Yeah.  I imagine things will start heating up soon enough.  The Kairos does tend to live in the eye of the hurricane, and I suspect Beltain will be no exception.”

            “Not to mention everything that is still following us, like the bokarus.”

            Oh.”  Katie turned her head to look back the way they had come.  “I hope Bob is alright.”

            “Bob?”  Lincoln had to ask.

            Lockhart grinned and pointed at Katie.  “She named the werewolf.”

            “Bob,” Boston said.  “Good name.”

            “But isn’t Bob a short form for Robert?”  Elder Stow looked at what he considered the leaders of the group, “Mother” Katie and “Father” Lockhart with curiosity written across his Neanderthal features.  Lockhart explained.

            “I was always Robert, and sometimes Rob.  As often as not I was Lockhart, but the only one who ever called me Bob was my older brother when he wanted to tease me.”

            “Ah, yes.  Family.”  The Gott-Druk nodded that he understood that much, even as Katie reached out to touch Lockhart on the upper arm.

            “I’m sorry,” she apologized.  “I never even thought of you as a Bob.”

            “Good thing I am not,” he responded with a smile as much for her hand on his arm as for her.

            “Hold!”  Roland spoke sharply and everyone stilled instantly and wondered what his elf ears picked up.  Roland stood and spoke more softly.  “Show yourselves.  We mean you no harm.”

            There was a slight pause, a moment of silence when people looked in every direction but saw nothing but the never-ending grasses, before six small figures became visible only a few yards away.  Even visible, they were hard to see as their long wheat colored beards and green clothes perfectly matched the color of the grass.  One stepped forward from the group and spoke to Roland.

            “So we have perceived.  One elf, one old one and four bits of animated mud are no concern of ours.  What we do not understand are the horses you ride.  We have never seen their like, but we have determined they should be free and not your slaves.”

            Every eye shot to the horses where they saw a number of the little green men stripping the horses of saddle and bridle.  Lockhart whistled, and the horse he called dog trotted straight to him.  It knocked down three little green men in the process.

            “Ours is a mutually agreeable arrangement,” Lockhart explained.  “We and the horses are from the future and do not belong here.  We are trying to get home and go with our strengths.”

            Katie interrupted.  “We care for the horses, feed and protect them and they carry us to our destination.”

            The little green man who had spoken looked at Lockhart and Katie like he was surprised the creatures knew how to talk.  He looked again at the elf.

            “Gnome, hear me.  The horses are a gift of the Kairos,” Roland said flatly.  “I recommend you leave them alone to fulfill their assigned task.”

            The gnome hissed, waved his hand and the ones by the horses left off setting the horses free and vanished.  Then the gnome spoke again.  “And you have seen her and the great mass of beings she brings to strip the land bare?  Woe that long ago the Kairos forbid our forbearers from preventing the beings from killing and eating our charges.  Soon there may be no beasts left in the fields for us to tend.”

            “The beasts will not utterly disappear,” Roland said before he was interrupted by Lincoln.

            “You have seen Beltain?  You know where she is?”

            The gnome continued to stare at the elf and pretended that Lincoln did not exist.  Roland had to repeat the questions.

            “There.”  The gnome pointed in the general direction they were headed.  With your horses it will take less than the sunset.  But beware, elf-kind, there are those behind you that seek to play.  The great one follows, but the play of the great one will not be fun.  It will ruin you so the great one may laugh.”

            “Great one?”  Boston asked before she also looked up at Roland.  Roland shrugged, and there was no way to ask the gnomes since they vanished back into the landscape.

            With that, the travelers became anxious.  They fixed their saddles, checked their saddle bags and other equipment and rode out with some speed.  It was not two more hours before they saw a cloud of dust coming in their direction.  There had to be thousands of people – a far larger herd than any animal herd they had seen.

            “And Beltain is somewhere in the middle of all that?”  Boston asked the rhetorical question.  “Good luck.”

            “I don’t know,” Lincoln countered.  “I have learned that the Kairos is usually pretty easy to find.”

            “Yeah,” Lockhart agreed.  “Just look for trouble.”  He smiled at his own humor and turned to share the smile with Katie, but she was looking behind with some worry on her face.

###

Avalon 2.7:  Horses first … Next Time

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Avalon 2.6: The Battle for Freedom

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            Apparently, getting out of the war zone did not get them out of the war.   The enemy is guarding the time gate.  There is no other way around it.  Someone is going to have to move or the travelers will never get home to the future.

###

            Katie handed her binoculars to Boston as she spoke.  “If they charge, they will run into a wall of arrows here at the edge of the trees and we will be able to get behind them.  If they dig in we will be here a while picking them off one by one.”

            “And if they do both?  Won’t that put Ivy at risk on his own rear?” Lockhart asked.

            “I can see that,” Ivy said.  “But we can watch for that.  I think this is the most brilliant plan I ever heard of.  Who would think of circling around to hit the enemy from the front and rear at the same time?”

            “War is still a relatively new business in the world,” Lincoln suggested as he put down the binoculars he inherited from Decker.  “Anger, fighting, tribe on tribe sure, but tactics?  This scale of war is probably unknown.”

            Boston lingered.  She was looking at the gate, perfectly framed by two great oak trees.  She guessed one of the gods or titans caused the trees to grow and caused their branches to curve and meet overhead.  The space was three riders wide and twice as tall as a horse.  She could see the slight shimmer in the air under the cloud-filled sky.

            “Boston,” Lockhart called and she scooted down the glacial boulder that was their spy perch.  She knew the plan was good, but it was going to take some timing with untrained people.

            Ivy and Holly got a full hour to explain the idea to their people.  Elder Stow spent that time with the help of Gimble and Linnia pinpointing the lesser spirits among the enemy.  His powerful weapon would be needed to take out as many of them as possible.  When he mounted his horse he expressed his reservations.

            “They would be fools to charge us when they have the strong position.”

            “Then we must hope they are fools,” Linnia said, and then Holly and Ivy were ready.

            The travelers on horseback rode out from the trees at some speed.  They had to act like this was the first time they saw the enemy and also make it look like it took thirty yards or so to get their horses to stop the forward motion.  They wanted to get close enough to present a tempting morsel for the enemy to bite.  Immediately, the travelers began to fire their weapons and men and spirits in the flesh began to drop.  Elder Stow was more deliberate in selecting his targets, but hopefully no one noticed in the midst of the confusion made by the guns.

            It did not take long for the enemy to respond.  They charged full out.  Only a half-dozen men and a couple of spiritual creatures remained to guard the gate.

            The travelers turned their horses and rode.  They knew some of the spirits would outrun the men and only hoped they would not outrun the horses.  When they rode into the forest and turned again, they saw the devastating effect of their plan.  Holly brought twenty-five fee from one side and Ivy brought twenty-five from the other so they met at the rear of the charge.  The enemy became covered with volleys of arrows from the hundred Little Ones at the edge of the trees and fifty at their rear.  Some near the sides managed to scoot out from the trap, but they simply ran for their lives.  Half of the enemy lay on the field, dead and dying, and the two sides never actually met.

            The ones left by the time gate realized they were too exposed by the oaks.  They moved aside to take up residence in a cluster of nearby rocks.  It was a wise move, but it allowed an opening that Lockhart was quick to exploit. 

            “Ride!” he shouted, and the travelers rode full speed for the gate.  They shouted as they went.  “Good-bye, thank you, good luck.”  They zipped through the gate into a world of grass that stretched out before them in small, rolling hills that looked like waves at sea.  Lincoln was content to ride straight on until morning, but Lockhart and Katie knew better.  Roland also knew better so he turned back and Boston followed him, and that left Lincoln and Elder Stow in the rear and grumbling.

            A lesser spirit, a harbinger of death that would one day be called a banshee followed them and three men followed the banshee.  The travelers could not take their eyes off the men as the banshee spoke.  Those men aged at least fifty years in a matter of seconds.  Two fell to their knees in pain and clutched their chests.  One fell to his face like one already dead.

            “The two before you escaped before we came to guard this place,” the banshee whined in a voice that made the travelers open their eyes wide and grind their teeth.  “You will follow me down into the land of the dead.”

            “And where might that be?” Roland asked as he came up alongside Katie. 

            The Banshee paused, floated up about three feet in the air, let her head circle all the way around on her neck like a scene from the Exorcist, and she even turned green.  Clearly the banshee had no idea where it was.

            Elder Stow arrived and fired his weapon.  The banshee was caught in the middle and thrown back through the gate, and if it was not dead, it was near enough.  Meanwhile, the three old men struggled to get to their feet and Lockhart got down from his mount to confront them.

            “I don’t know if you can get back through the gate or not.  If you can, I do not know if you will become young again.  Only this much is certain, that we cannot stay here and we cannot take you with us.  If you can get through the gate, you must surrender yourselves, and hear me.  Domnu and her children hate you and will kill you all.  Tetamon and the gods will give your people land and homes and bless your children.  Make your own choice, which is it you want?

            Lockhart got back up on his horse and turned away.  He led the group into those grasslands and while Boston and Lincoln looked back, he never looked back.

###

            Once upon a time the world was full of grass, until the day it became overgrazed and began to dry.  That was when people moved in search of greener pastures.  Great and successive migrations eventually filled the place between the fertile Tigris and Euphrates rivers, but in Beltain’s day, keeping the various tribal groups from killing each other while on the road is the key to a successful migration,  and the headache.  The travelers from Avalon are not much help with this problem.  In fact, they get caught up in the problem, thanks to the thing that is following them.  It is big and powerful, cruel, and hidden in the clouds, and it has an irresistible agenda all its own.

Avalon 2.7:  New Blood … Next Time.

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Avalon 2.6: War is Hello

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            Alexis and her father Mingus are alive and well, all things considered, and Elder Stow, one of those dreaded Gott-Druk, is a prisoner of the elves.  Tsk, tsk.

###

            “I am sorry, young Lincoln.  I did not expect treachery.”  Elder Stow shook his head, sadly.

            “Captain.”  Tetamon called the elf to get off the floor.  The elf was shaking once he discovered that this particular Gott-Druk was with the friends of the Kairos.  Tetamon just looked at the elf for a minute before he spoke.  “You did your best in a confusing situation and that is all I can ask.  You brought the elder Gott-Druk here without harm, and you respected the elder of your own people.  Respect is never a bad thing.  Learn and grow.  Dismissed.”

            The elf had a tear in his eye as he left and realized that nothing bad was going to happen to him for messing up and letting the others get away.  He would work twice as hard after that to be sure he did twice as good a job.

            “But what about your people?” Boston asked.

            Elder Stow shrugged.  “Stupid and stubborn.  I may have planted some seeds.  Domnu has promised them the land of what you call Western Europe.  It is our old land, you know.  But as you humans say, you can’t make a deal with the devil and expect it to come out heavenly.”  Elder Stow shrugged again.  “I will say this also.  Her humans are starving.  Children are dying of hunger, and some females.  The men are grumbling and may rebel.  Who can say?”

            “We may turn the Gott-Druk,” Tetamon spoke up.  “The men may rebel, and every day we are seeing Little Ones repent their rebellion and switch sides.  But all of this will mean nothing if we cannot drive back the titans.  I have every hope that mother will be able to persuade the gods of Egypt.  If Amon, Ptah, Bast, Anubis, Wadjt and others come, they have the least claim on this land.  I am certain Aesgard will come in force and probably Olympus as well.  That should be plenty to turn back the titans, but then how we settle the claims between them may be another problem.”

            “What if the gods start fighting each other over the land?” Katie asked.

            “The whole earth might end up in a ball of flame,” Tetamon shrugged like the Gott-Druk.

            “But that didn’t happen in history,” Lincoln protested.  “If it had, we would not have been born.”

            “History is in flux,” Tetamon responded.  “What you say and what I remember about the future gives me hope that a solution will be found, but we still have to find it.  I can’t just sit back and assume it will all work out.  My memories of the future and your lives are uncertain right now.  It can all be changed.”

            “So it is possible we might never exist,” Lockhart summed things up, and Tetamon nodded.  “Sounds like this watching over history business is not so easy.”

            “Figuring out how to keep it from all falling apart can be hard,” Tetamon admitted.

            “How can we help?” Boston was first in line to volunteer.

            “I’m not sure we can,” Roland spoke to her.

            “That’s right,” Tetamon said.  “The best help right now is for you to move on.  That is one less thing for me to worry about.  I am just sorry you couldn’t come at a point in my life when I was alone and bored.”

            “Me too,” Boston said.

            “We do have Alexis and Mingus to follow now.  We should be hot on their trail and might catch them soon.”  Lockhart put a hand on Lincoln’s shoulder to encourage the man.

            Lincoln looked at his boss.  “Thanks.”

            They gathered the horses first thing in the morning and found them well groomed, well fed and rested.  They imagined it might give them an advantage in catching up to Alexis and Mingus and their worn out steeds.  Elder Stow grumbled at the prospect of riding again, but Decker’s horse did not seem to mind.  On the other hand, he was not the only one relieved to know they would be traveling away from the battle front.

            The elf Captain, Arturo and his troop were assigned to protect their flanks and rear.  That meant they could not move too swiftly with the horses, but in any case it was going to take them more than a day to reach the time gate.  Lincoln was mostly good about it.  Sometimes he cursed the pace saying they would never catch Alexis at that rate.  At other times, when he looked around at the devastated landscape. he worried that without help, Alexis and her father might have been captured again and end up lost in that time zone forever, or killed.  But mostly he was quiet, and that was fine with Elder Stow who had no conversation left in him.

            The forest they traveled through was thin, and even as they increased the distance from the actual fighting there were signs of burned trees and fallow fields.  The few huts they saw were all abandoned.  And there was a pall in the sky which probably meant it was going to snow again, but all it did was dampen everyone’s spirits.

            “I bet this place was once beautiful,” Katie whispered.

            “War is Hell,” Lockhart responded.

            Katie and Lockhart whispered from time to time as they brought up the rear, but it was not really about anything in particular.  Roland kept his peace most of the way, but an elf maid was assigned to run at the front of the group beside Boston and those two soon became involved in a real discussion.  Some of it was about Roland which was perhaps why he wisely remained silent.  Some of it was about magic, and the maid, Linnia became animated when she discovered that Boston had some abilities in that direction.  Most of it was about being an elf, about life and culture and work such as elves did in the grand scheme of the earth.  Boston got excited when the conversation turned to talk about Avalon.  Boston was interested, but not surprised to find out that one day on Avalon could be worth three or four days on earth, or a third of a day, depending.  It made sense in a twisted sort of second heavens kind of way.  She was also not surprised to find Linnia had only been there once as a young girl.  Boston imagined Avalon was a nice place to rest for a time, but not meant as a permanent residence to take the Little Ones out of the world altogether.

            They halted to camp for the night when Captain Arturo, Roland and Lockhart all agreed on a defensible position.  Katie confirmed the choice with a nod that neither Lockhart nor Roland missed.  Lockhart once relied on Decker’s counsel, but he was finding Katie could judge such matters just as well, and in some ways perhaps better, as a woman might see it.  Thus they stopped, gathered wood for a fire and Boston got to practice her little magic to start the fire.

            “The Amazons called me Little Fire,” Boston admitted after she calmed from her excitement at lighting the fire with magic alone.

            “And you are,” Linnia said.  “But it is enough.”  She smiled.  They were friends by then and would remain so no matter how many millennia ended up separating them.

            There was not much to put on the fire, but the travelers had plenty of elf bread.  The dwarfs complained and the ogre would not touch it, but no one starved.  For everyone’s safety, the Little Ones shared their meat with the ogre first.”

            “When the ogre is fed you are safe in your bed,” Boston repeated what the Kairos once told her.

            “That is very good,” Captain Arturo said.  “I will have to remember that.”

            “Isn’t it a well known expression among the elves?”

            “No,” Roland and Lincoln spoke together, and Roland added, “But it is now.”

            “But what is that?”  Katie took everyone’s attention as she pointed off into the dark.  A string of dim lights stretched across the horizon some distance from the camp, undulating up and down like a snake slithering through the air about five feet above the earth. 

###

Avalon 2.6:  Traveling Mercies … Next Time

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Avalon 2.6: Lost and Found

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            So, is Elder Stow betraying the travelers?  Back in the days of the Kairos Odelion, the travelers killed his two “children” – crewmates who fell with him into the deep past; and the Gott-Druk are not known as a forgiving people.  On the other hand, the travelers are headed back into the future where he wants to go, and given some of the things he has seen, he understands it is not safe even for him to travel alone.  A truce seems in order.  But then, here he has a whole contingent of his own people to back him up, even if they are caught up in a war.  On the fourth hand …

###

            Mingus stood.  He intended to defend his daughter with every last shred of strength he had, and it might take his last shred.  Their jailer was a djin of the lesser spirit variety.  No little spirit could hope to match it, or her as Alexis kept insisting.  Even Mingus and Alexis combining their magic would not be enough.

            “Here is a change,” Alexis looked but stayed seated and let her sarcasm do the talking.  “A Gott-Druk who wants to talk to us.”

            “Must be the tenth.”

            “Oh, father.  An even dozen at least.”

            “In here,” the djin said in her grating voice that gave Alexis the shivers.

            “And where are the other prisoners?”  The Gott-Druk asked.

            The djin laughed, at least the others guessed it was a laugh.  “We don’t take prisoners.  These two with their horses are hostages, for now.”

            “So there are no other jailers around?”

            “What for?”  the djin asked.  “I got eyes and ears.  They can’t get passed me.”

            “Good to know,” Elder Stow said, and as soon as the djin unlocked the cage he fired some kind of weapon at the creature which vaporized her so fast she had no time to cry out.  He stepped into the cage and Mingus reacted.

            “Orange jumper.  You are the one from the future.  Are you here to kill us?”

            “No.”  Elder Stow said as he pulled a big piece of hand-held equipment from his vest pocket.  He scanned the two in the cage and read the readout.  “I came to talk some sense into my people.  They are on the wrong side of history here – not that I am an expert on earth history, but even I know that much.”

            “How did it go?” Alexis asked.

            Elder Stow shrugged.  “My people are naturally stubborn and some are stupid as well.  Stubborn and stupid is a powerful combination to try and overcome.  Here, swallow this.”  He held out something for Alexis, the size of a big pill.

            “Swallow what?”  Mingus asked.

            “Father can be stubborn, too,” Alexis said.

            “Electronic.”  Elder Stow handed it to the elder elf.  “It will pass in a day or two, but in the meanwhile she will appear on their scanners as Gott-Druk.”  Mingus hesitated.  “I already seeded your two horses,” Elder Stow added to suggest it would cause no harm.

            “Misty is alright?” Alexis stood with hope in her voice.

            “So far, kept as curiosities or perhaps because the powers feel they may need you with your horses to make the complete hostage package.”  Elder Stow shrugged.

            “Swallow this,” Mingus handed the thing to Alexis but kept his eyes on the Gott-Druk.  “How did you find us?”

            “Accident,” Elder Stow admitted while Alexis struggled to swallow.  “I found the horses first.  Of course you could only be Mingus and Alexis.  Lincoln, your husband speaks of you often, and your brother, though he speaks mostly to young Boston.

            Alexis swallowed.  “I have a husband?  You see, Father.  I said I had a husband only I couldn’t remember him.  But he is alive?”

            “Last I saw,” Elder Stow said.  “I hope they got picked up by the right side.”  He looked again at the scanner in his hand and tossed it to the floor, and broke it.  “They will see you from a distance as Gott-Druk, and your horses as well.  The elf does not show up on the scanner at all.  No surprise there.”

            “We must hurry,” Mingus said, and refused to look at his daughter.

            “But father?”  she was remembering some things, but only in bits and pieces. 

            “No, I will not speak of it.”

            “And he can be stubborn,” Alexis told Elder Stow.

            “But at least not stupid,” Elder Stow agreed and took the lead, pausing at the door only long enough to pull out whatever that powerful weapon was that killed the djin.

            They were in luck.  The horses were still saddled and looked untouched, though that was not good luck for the poor horses.  The Gott-Druk and two humans guarding the horses made them pause, but they appeared to be eyeing each other more than the horses or the approaches to the hastily erected pen.

            “Allow me,” Mingus said as he began to fade from sight.

            “Wait,” Elder Stow said.  He had twisted something on his weapon and pointed.  There was a bright flash and the Gott-Druk and two men collapsed.  “Unconscious,” Elder Stow said.  “At least mine are unconscious.  I can’t speak for the two humans.  They may be dead.”

            “Quickly,” Alexis rushed them forward, and the men argued.

            “You take my horse,” Mingus said.

            “No, you take it.”  It looked like they were passing a hot potato back and forth.  Clearly neither liked to ride.  Alexis had to step in.

            “Father, I’ll ride with you.  Gott-Druk, you take Misty.  He will follow us so all you have to do is hang on.”

            Neither man liked the solution, but they had no alternative to suggest.  Elder Stow changed the subject.  “Better go invisible,” he said, and mounted and twisted something on his wrist.  He vanished.  Mingus could still see him, but Alexis had to magically adjust her eyes to see.  Then she practiced her magical art on herself, her father and his horse to make them invisible as well.  She left a window open so Elder Stow could still see them.

            “But which way?” Mingus asked as they walked the horses out of the enclosure.  “They put bags over our heads when they brought us.”

            “And mine,” Elder Stow said as he looked again at his wrist.  “But my scanner kept recording the trail, and would no matter how big the bag.”  He pointed and started out.  Mingus quickly caught up, and they rode, all out when they could, for several hours.

            “We may be invisible to Gott-Druk and men, but not to the spirits.  We are certainly not invisible to the titans,” Mingus reminded his daughter.

            Since she sat behind her father and held on, she could whisper in his ear and did not have to shout to be heard.  “But maybe the others are looking for us.  Maybe my husband, whoever he is.  Maybe Tetamon will find us first.”

            They rode until Alexis called a halt.  Their horses had not been mistreated and had been fed something, but they had to be worn and sore from wearing their saddles for so long.  She made everyone get down and loosened the horse’s belts.  She knew if necessary she could tighten the belts again instantly by magic, but for now they walked the horses and gave them a much needed breather.

            “Good animals, these beasts of yours.  Loyal.  That is important,” Elder Stow remarked.

            “As the little spirits should be loyal to the Kairos.  You have no idea how distressing I find their rebellion.”

            “My people will probably be wiped out if they do not find some sense and switch sides,” Elder Stow agreed with the sentiment.

            “And what of the men?” Alexis said.  “They say Domnu has brought men, women and children to the continent to force their commitment to the cause, but in the process she has depopulated her islands.  If these people are wiped out, there will be no men left alive in all of her lands.”

            They all thought and walked in silence until Mingus finally signaled that they should prepare to ride again.  Alexis tightened the saddle belt on her father’s horse and went to tighten Misty’s.  Elder Stow gave her his attention and stepped back to give her room, and that is no doubt why he was taken unprepared by a number of elves, dwarfs and a rather ugly ogre who grabbed the Gott-Druk by the arms to prevent him from going for a weapon.

            “Wait,” Mingus yelled, and at the sight of the elder elf the troop did stop long enough to look.  Mingus mounted his horse.  “Hurry up, Alexis,” he said as he brought his horse up to where he could sprinkle some dust on the Gott-Druk.  “Just a temporary disabling of your many devices.  It should pass in a day or so.”  He grinned and turned to the elf Captain.  “Good work.  This one needs to go to Lord Tetamon as quickly as possible.  Treat him well, he has vital information for our side.  Now we have just one more job to finish our mission.”

            “Elder,” the Captain did not question his elder, though the dwarfs looked wary.

            “Hurry up, Alexis,” Mingus said again as he rode off at all speed before the dwarfs could speak up.  Alexis followed in his wake.

###

Avalon 2.6:  War is Hello … Next Time

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Avalon 2.6: Escape and Discovery

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            Well, the rest of the travelers slept for at least half a night before and Elenar ship found them and the enemy came charging out of the wood with the sole desire of killing them and eating them.

###

            Katie was the first to fire at the oncoming horde.  Lockhart’s first thought was for the horses.  “To the barn,” he yelled.

            “Back door!” Lincoln pointed at the barn and yelled back.

            “Our equipment!” Katie joined in the yelling and pointed to the house.

            “Damn,” Lockhart expressed himself.

            “We will pick you up out back.”  Roland finished the conversation.  To be sure, most of the camp was packed and ready to go.  Only Lockhart and Katie still had their bags in the house.

            “Come on,” Lockhart yelled at the three Elenar that had gone to their knees in firing position and were taking a toll on the attackers.  Arrows were beginning to come in their direction, and while they still fell short, they would not fall short for long.  “Come on,” Lockhart was a bit more insistent and got the leader’s attention.  Lockhart pointed to the house and the Elder nodded and barked orders.  They fell back to the house.

            Katie already had the bags in hand.  “Out the back,” he told her.  There was a window and she dove through it.  “Come. hurry.”  The Elenar were not sure what he had in mind, but they knew their three handguns, as advanced as they were, would not hold off this attack or even make much of a dent in it.

            Lockhart got out as Roland brought up his horse.  He mounted and put a hand down for the Elenar leader.  The leader did not look sure, but he took the hand and Lockhart hauled him up behind and told him to hold on.  The other two got up behind Roland and Lincoln and avoided the human female, though the one behind the elf looked very uncomfortable.

            They rode hard for the woods on the far side of the field, and Katie was glad she was not burdened with an extra rider.  It gave her the chance to turn, fire on the enemy as they rounded the building, and still turn again to catch up.  By then the Elenar ship came in to cover their retreat.  This enemy had no weapon to match the flying machine, but they did have some runners among the spirits that could race a horse.  Fortunately, the ship could target them even at that speed, and it was not long before three of those darting Elenar fighters joined the battle. 

            The riders found what appeared to be a natural path through the woods.  They revised their idea of natural when they discovered it led to a village.  It was a primitive, mobile village that was deserted some time ago.  They decided deserted rather than overrun because of the lack of bodies.

            “Who knows if that means anything, though,” Katie said when they stopped to check for pursuit.  “They may have eaten the dead.”

            “No bones,” Lincoln pointed out, and no one wanted to argue that even the bones might have been eaten by one group or the other.

            The Elenar all got down carefully.  They were shaken, frightened by the horses far more than by the enemy.

            “Invigorating,” the Elenar leader said and stepped aside to put his finger to his ear again.  “They have retreated back to the woods from whence they came.  Our ship has zeroed in on our position and will be here in a second, not that you would understand anything about flying in a ship or how it might find us,.”

            “Radar or geo-positioning?”  Lockhart asked, and the Elenar looked surprised.

            “Might be radio if they each have a micro transmitter, like sewn in a pocket, that could show them permanently on a grid,” Katie suggested.

             “But too easy to jam,” Lincoln said.  “Maybe they have a simple scanner on the ship that can track their life-signs.”

            “Who are you people?”  The Elenar asked as the ship appeared over the trees and set down in the adjacent field.

            “People who don’t belong here,” Lockhart said honestly enough. 

            “And there you are.”  They heard the woman before they saw her.  When she manifested, Katie’s face lit up. 

            “Artemis?”

            “Yes, my elect.”

            “Boston?” Lockhart voiced his first thought.

            “Safe,” Artemis said and she raised her arms and they vanished, horses and all.  They reappeared beside the entrance to a tunnel.  “The main cavern is about two miles in.  Tetamon set up a nine square mile area that does not appear to exist in the world so even the opposing titans cannot detect it.  Cheating, I know, but at least the refugees are safe for now.  Don’t be long.”  Artemis vanished down the hole and even the horses at full speed could not have kept up.

            “Curiouser and curiouser,” Katie said.

            “Lamps,” Lockhart said.  “We have a rabbit hole to negotiate.”

            “If it is big enough for trolls and ogres we can probably ride the whole way,” Roland said.

            “Comforting thought,” Lincoln frowned and they started into the tunnel.

            They walked the horses after one point in the tunnel narrowed.  In that way it took them an hour before they came out into the great cavern.  Gnomes were waiting for them and quickly relieved them of their horses.  It was an ordinary man who led them after that, straight to the chamber where Tetamon was waiting. 

            “Lockhart.”  Tetamon recognized them right away, and though they had never seen him before, they knew him once he spoke.  They also knew KimKeri and AhnYani and were pleased to see them safe and free of Jericho.

            Boston was still sleeping comfortably, but it was enough to see her.  They did not have to wake her.  That left them at liberty to ask about Elder Stow.

            “No trace of him,” Tetamon admitted.  “With so many competing powers on the field, even the gods are hampered in what they can do.  We retrieved Captain Decker’s horse.”

            “You did that,” AhnYani said with a joyful voice of praise.

            “Nameless did that,” Tetamon corrected.  “Wlvn plugged Nameless in when you first got your horses.  Nameless is still connected to them, not as strongly as you are connected, but certainly strong enough.”

            “But the Gott-Druk?” Lincoln asked.

            “I fear he may have gone to join his people,” Tetamon admitted what they all feared.

###

Avalon 2.6:  Lost and Found … Next Time

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Avalon 2.6: Out in the Wilderness

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            The main group of travelers have discovered that Boston is missing, and Elder Stow as well.  And the communicators are useless due to the interference in the air.

###

            “Roland?”  Lockhart turned to the expert.

            Roland shook his head.  “I don’t think I could find her in the dark and snow and smoke.  We might try and just end up wandering for hours, and might get the rest of us separated.”

            “I’m thinking Elder Stow left our company on purpose,” Lincoln said again.

            “Possibly,” Lockhart agreed.  “But that does not explain why Boston is missing.”

            Katie said nothing.  She was slouching a little in her saddle and Lockhart was concerned.  “Boston has the amulet,” he said.  “Can we move on a bit further and maybe find some shelter, or do you need to rest now?”  He was really asking Katie.

            “I can go for a bit more,” Katie said, and Roland turned to lead the party.

            “I can stay to the same direction we were going and compensate for our sidesteps.  It is true of the elves generally, but especially those gifted with the hunt.”  Roland was certain about that.

            “If we can get out in front of her and find a rise of some sort, we might catch her in the morning.

            “Not on a rise,” Lincoln said.  “Too many eyes in the air.”

            Lockhart heard and nodded, but he was not going to lose Boston somewhere in the past.

            The snow soon slackened and stopped and the clouds cleared off to reveal the moon and stars.  The smoke in the air slowly became more of a mist than smoke, but that just made the forest appear enchanted in the moonlight.  When they came to a clearing, it was a large opening in the woods.  They quickly saw the signs of slash and burn agriculture and felt they were on the right path to something.  It was not much further on before they saw a big two-room cabin in the opening.

            “We can’t just march in there,” Lincoln insisted.  He had Katie’s binoculars but saw nothing so passed them to Lockhart.  “No sign of anyone home, and no sign of alien visitation either.”

            “Gott-Druk and Elenar are not aliens,” Roland said.  “They are Elders of the earth, what you call Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon.”

            “I understand,” Lincoln said.  “But the principle is the same.  We look for burn marks from landing craft and other signs of advanced technology.”

            “Yes, of course,” Roland said.

            “We go,” Lockhart got up and caught the reins of his horse and Katie’s horse.  Katie had felt it best not to get down.  She feared she might not have been able to get back up.  Of the many cuts she received, only a few had been significantly deep, and the healing machine used by Elder Stow was a miraculous help, but she lost a fair amount of blood and was still torn up on the inside.  Continuing to walk and ride and walk and ride since then had taken its toll.  She hated being the weak one, but she was going to have to stop and rest.

            The cabin room was empty as expected.  The other room appeared to be a big barn area, big enough for a dozen cows.  It easily fit the horses.  Most of the grain had been taken with the cows, wherever they went, but there was enough in the few bins and areas of the floor to put together a real tasty supper for the horses.  There was even a water trough, and though the water in it was undrinkable. They emptied it and melted some fresh snow.

            Both men and the elf cared for the horses while Katie stayed in the cabin.  She was told to get into her sleeping bag and rest, but she tried to help out as much as she could.  She spread the tent material they carried around the walls to block any cracks for the cold or the light, then she lit several lamps and spread out everyone’s bags.  By the time the men came in, the inside was homey and warm.

            “We need to keep this one,” Lincoln said. 

            “Yes we do,” Lockhart agreed.

            They came at dawn.  Roland and Lincoln were in the barn tending to the horses.  Lockhart was failing to build a fire.  Katie was still in the house when the ship landed out front.  Three men came from the hatch, or at least they looked more like men than the Gott-Druk.  Lockhart recognized them as Elenar, and he stood as they approached.  He considered running, but he knew he could not get far enough.  He also thought of escaping into the cabin or the barn, but those structures would not provide any protection from an energy weapon, so he just stood and spoke first when they got near.

            “Good, can I borrow your heat ray?  I can’t get this fire started.”  He noticed two of the Elenar touched their side arms, and he smiled.  “Welcome,” he added.  “What can I do for you?”

            “Where is the Gott-Druk?”  The one out front did the talking.

            “Gone,” Lockhart said honestly.  “And I wish I knew where.  I’m worried about him.”  The same two touched their side arms again, but no weapons were drawn.  “Mostly I am worried about the girl he took with him.  Boston doesn’t know anything about being in the middle of a war.”  The Elenar looked at each other before the front man spoke again. 

            “Why should you worry about the Gott-Druk?” the Elenar asked.

            “Because he doesn’t belong here anymore than we do, and if he is lost he might never get home on his own.”

            “And where does he belong?”

            Lockhart stood up a little straighter.  “Five thousand, six hundred years in the future,” he said without blinking.  He could tell the Elenar were not expecting that answer.  Katie came out while the Elenar turned to each other to discuss things among themselves.  She had her rifle in her hands.  Lincoln also stepped out of the barn door with his rifle.  Lockhart guessed Roland was getting the horses ready for a quick getaway.

            “You do not look like the corrupted men of the enemy, but this may be a new ploy.  Can you offer any reason why we should not kill you?”

            “Because you will have to answer to the Kairos, and for murder,” Lincoln spoke up.

            “And because you will deprive yourself of help against the ones in the trees,” Katie said and pointed, and Lockhart realized she came out because she saw something in the distance, not because of the Elenar. 

            The Elenar out front put a finger to his ear to listen to something and then two things happened at once.  The Elenar ship began to rise into the air and about a hundred fur-clad men came roaring out of the woods with a hundred little ones among them.  The men looked starved and desperate and charged like their only hope was to kill and eat the ones by the cabin.  The little ones looked worse in a way.  They appeared twisted and distorted in their forms and features, but Lockhart guessed they were once elves, dwarfs and maybe a couple of ogres.

###

Avalon 2.6:  Underground … Next Time 

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Avalon 2.4: The Other Side of the Coin

M G Kizzia Leave a comment

            Defending the innocent often has consequences.  The travelers cannot simply abandon the girls when they find the next time gate and move into the next time zone.  They need to find a safe place for them to grow up.  Fortunately, sometimes events can help.

###

            Lincoln and Elder Stow had the morning shift, so they were the first to hear the horses in the distance.  It did not take long to wake everyone, but then there was the problem deciding what to do. 

            “If it is Revelon and the men from the city, our live will be forfeit,” Chloe said.  “I do not wish to cause any more deaths and there will be too many of them.  If it is the women from the East, we will be safe, but I worry about your men.”

            “It is the women,” Amira said.  “But we should all be safe with two elect among us.  Even the men should be safe.”

            “We will be fine,” Lockhart said.  “We will have elect to protect us.”  He slipped is arm around Katie’s shoulder right in front of everyone.  She did not mind, but she elbowed him softly.  Neither knew what Amira meant when she talked about Katie being elected, so it was hard to take it seriously.

            It did not take long to find out Amira was right about one thing.  It was the women, though  Lincoln thought they were more like young girls.  He did not imagine any of them was over eighteen until they brought a horse up from the back where an old lady had been straggling at the rear of the pack.  Lincoln suddenly remembered being that old.  He imagined the woman did her best to keep up.

            There were four large and mean looking women that surrounded the old lady.  Two held the horses while two helped her down and walked on each side of her like Secret Service bodyguards.  The Lady made an unwavering path to Katie where she surprised everyone, even her bodyguards.  She got down on her knees at Katie’s feet.  After a moment of hesitation and a few extra looks at Katie, the bodyguards joined her.

            “Elect,” the woman intoned in her ancient voice.

            Katie looked up at Lockhart, but he could only shrug.  She bent down a little toward the lady.  “Please get up,” and she would have helped if the bodyguards were not there.  The old lady stood slowly, like she was crippled with arthritis, but with her head lowered, she made a straight path to Chloe where she did the same thing and said something that shocked everyone present, including the women still on horseback.

            “My Queen.”

            Chloe’s instinct was to look at her sister, but Amira was simply smiling at her own thoughts.  At last Chloe echoed Katie.  “Please get up,” and the old woman did with a nod and made a new path.  This took her to Amira, and everyone prepared for her to repeat the same ritual; but again she surprised everyone.  She wrapped Amira up in her arms and hugged the girl, and Amira hugged the old lady right back like she was hugging her favorite, long-lost grandmother.  Then at last the old lady turned and spoke to them all.

            “Respect these men.  These two are older than I am in years, but by the grace of the gods they have returned to youth in their bodies.  This one is of the elder races.  Do not be afraid.  He will not harm you.  And this good elf and his betrothed are to be given all respect.  For us, the sign of the little ones is always good fortune.  Respect these men, and respect also these women, the elf wife, the elected one, the Sybil I hold in my arms who will follow after me and the future Queen.  Now let us ride.  The men of Revelon will be here when the sun breaks full above the horizon.”

            “Pack’em up, people!” Lockhart yelled and the travelers jumped to action.  “Chloe, you better ride with Katie.  Amira, stick with Boston.  She is rodeo trained and won’t let you slip from the saddle.”

            One of the women in the pack dismounted quickly and ran up.  “Male, who are you to decide such things?”

            “One far older and wiser than you, Iris,” the old lady said before she began to reach for the words.  “And one trained for this kind of operation.  Did I say that correctly?”  She looked at Katie who responded with a kind smile.

            “Perfectly.”

            “I’ll keep to the rear and protect the old lady,” Lincoln volunteered.

            Amira, Iris and Chloe spoke as one.  “Sybil.”

            “Exactly,” Lincoln said.  He did not explain what he meant, but Lockhart imagined he wanted to ask what she knew about Alexis.

            It took less than an hour to get ready and mounted.  Lincoln lamented not having any explosives they could rig as a surprise for the men.  Elder Stow agreed with him, but Boston scolded them both.

            “Three are dead.  We want to avoid killing any more if it can be helped.” 

            Lincoln understood, but Elder Stow shrugged like it did not matter to him since we were only talking about killing homo sapiens.

            As the twenty women and the travelers rode out, they heard a much larger group of horses in the distance.  Iris, who rode on Katie’s other side shouted when she heard the pursuit.

            “If we can make the border we should be safe.”

            The travelers discovered that these young women were riders.  At every opportunity, they let the horses ride flat out.  Fortunately for the travelers and in particular Elder Stow who was not so good on horseback, the women rode Black Sea ponies that they called horses.  The travelers rode mustangs from the mid nineteenth century American West. They were real horses, the product of millennia of breeding, and as such were far larger, stronger and swifter than anything the women had ever seen. 

            They came at last to a broad plain that stretched out before the hills began that rose into mountains in the distance.  Iris led the troop in an all out gallop to the other side.  The men were close by then.  The women came to a wide path up the rocky hillside that could not otherwise be climbed by horses.  Iris paused there and Katie and Lockhart paused with her as the women began that climb.

            “That cliff face,” Iris pointed.  “It marks the boundary of Amazon territory.  The men will not follow us there.”

            “Good to know,” Lockhart said as he shouldered his shotgun and snatched Katie’s rifle right out of her saddle holster.

            “What are you doing?”  Katie yelled at him.

            “You have responsibilities.”  He nodded at  Chloe and turned back to the bottom of the hill where he dismounted and got behind a boulder.  Lincoln saw and joined him on the other side, and when Lockhart slapped his horse on the rump, his and Lincoln’s horses followed the herd of horses up the hill.”

            “Quick volleys,” Lockhart yelled.  Lincoln nodded and in a second the men were in range.  They fired, rapid fire, and might have hit a few men, but certainly sent several horses to the dirt.  It slowed things, not to mention the oncoming horses did not like the cracking thunder that echoed off the hill.  Several more quick shots and the charge stalled.

            Katie swore as she raced to the top of the hill, faster than Iris or any pony could keep up.  As soon as she arrived, she let Chloe down.  “Ride with Iris,” she ordered, and Chloe did not argue.  Meanwhile, Boston handed Amira to Roland, who protested.

            “You are not trained for this.”  Boston was not going to argue either, but she added, “I would not trust Amira to anyone else.”  Roland helped the girl up as Boston and Katie sprinted for the bottom of the hill.

            “Lockhart!” Katie was the one who yelled as she brought her horse to a sharp halt.  Lockhart tossed her the rifle, and she did not hesitate to use it.  There were men dismounted and coming up on foot with bows.  Lockhart did not watch.  He simply got up behind.

            Boston did it a bit differently.  Lincoln saw her coming, leaning to the side with her hand down.  He quickly shouldered his rifle, caught her hand and swung up behind her as she passed by.  She turned her horse like going around a rodeo barrel and they started back up the hill.

            Several belated arrows came in their direction once the two horses began to go back up the hill.  They fell woefully short, but they were that close.  At the top, Lockhart slid off and whistled.  The horse he had named Dog came trotting right up.  Lincoln also grabbed his steed and mounted.

            Iris left a dozen of the women by the cliff, well hidden and well protected and also well armed.  The rest of the party she led down the other side into Amazon country.

 .

Amazon 2.4:  A Country for Young Women … Next Time