'Twas the Night Before Christmas

"'Twas the night before Christmas
and all through the house..."
"I know, I know."  I said.  "Is there any way we could make this any more interesting, Dad?"
"Why?" he answered. "It's a classic!"
"Yeah," I sighed, "but it gets boring hearing it year after year.  Can't we spice it up at all?  Maybe make it an action movie style?"
Dad just looked at me strangely.  Of course he wouldn't understand.  He'd already been desensitized to the poem.  It was about time someone told this story a different way to help all the suffering kids in the world who grow up listening to the same poem told the same way year after year.  Here's what I was picturing.

So there I was, lying quietly in my bed.  It was Christmas eve.  The only noise came from the winter wind gusting outside my well-sealed window.  The decorations were up.  I pictured my red and green striped stocking perfectly hanging from the edge of the fireplace.  Being the kid I was, I had my fingers crossed hoping that Santa Claus would come and fill the entire living room with presents only for me.  I was an only child, and would've gotten spoiled anyway, but Santa gave me an excuse to ask for it.
Mom and Dad had tucked me into bed earlier that evening.  When they left they told me to dream about "sugar-plums."  I had no idea what those were, so I was thinking about M&M's and Skittles instead.  Despite all my best efforts, though, I couldn't fall asleep.  My Superman pajamas seemed to make it itchy everywhere.  Now that I look back, it could've simply been the anticipation.  Not too long after being tucked in, I knew my parents were asleep, judging by the steady stream of snoring coming from down the hall.  I just shook my head and rolled over.
Suddenly, I heard a huge noise from outside.  It wasn't just the thump of a large bit of snow falling off the roof.  It sounded like a cross between a Christmas song on the radio and a car crash.  Despite the cold, I jumped out of bed and ran to the window.  I was halfway there when I remembered to put my slippers on.  I rushed back to the bed, threw my feet into the soft tigers, and ran to the window.  Even though they know I hate it when my curtains are closed, my parents had closed them again tonight.  I struggled with them for a while before throwing them open.
The moon was shining brightly on the yard.  It was so bright it almost looked like day time.  I looked up at it and noticed it was almost full.  "That's weird," I thought, "the moon was only a small sliver yesterday."  I shrugged and returned my attention to the front lawn.  My eyes immediately grew to the size of my aunt's molasses cookies (and let me tell you, they're huge!).  There was Santa's sleigh!  I counted the eight reindeer, just to make sure.  It, he, was real!  It was sitting right on my front lawn!  I could barely hold my excitement.  I almost let out a high-pitched screech.  Fortunately, I was able to contain myself and content myself with shaking with happiness.
A small person hopped out of the driver's seat and began moving around the sleigh and the reindeer.  I didn't have to look twice to guess who that was.  It was Santa Claus!  He was talking and calming the reindeer.  He let out a shrill whistle and, through some trick of the acoustics, I was able to hear every word he said.  He called out to each of the reindeer by name.
Santa stepped back onto the sleigh and into the driver's seat and called out.  "Alright, Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and Blitzen!" (I, being a big fan, was able to say each name along with the old man.) "Put your backs into it, lads!  We've got to get to the top of this here house!  Pull!  Dash away!"  I was mesmerized by Santa's enthusiasm.  He was never like this at the mall.  He always seemed slow and careful.  I wouldn't blame him.  The guy looked old enough to be my dad's grandfather!
To my surprise, the reindeer, straining against the reins, dashed forward, and before they hit the angry neighbor's fence, leaped into the air.  Now my mouth joined my eyes in mimicking my aunt's molasses cookies.  They circled around a couple of times.  I guess they were trying to find a good place to land.  Finally, on the third time around, they landed on the roof, spraying snow everywhere.  I didn't wait to figure out if Santa had made it safely to the roof.  I ran downstairs to watch him come down the chimney.
Each step I made down the stairs was repeated on the roof by the reindeer's hooves.  Each time my foot hit one stair with a muted thud, a reindeer's hoof would clack on the roof with a slight jingle of bells.  When I reached the bottom, the noises on the roof stopped, and my dad's snoring regained it's dominance in sound for a bit.  Then, a solid thud resounded on the roof.  Then, similar thuds echoed as someone moved towards the chimney.  I quickly looked around for a place to hide.  I didn't want Santa to see me up this late.  Finally, I decided to hide under the dining room table, across the room from the tree and fireplace.  The footsteps finally reached the chimney, and Santa Claus slipped down the chimney with a grating noise and plenty of grunting.  I guess they don't make chimneys as big as they used to.
Then, suddenly, Santa Claus was standing in the fireplace.  I knew it was him immediately.  He was wearing his classic red and white outfit, though it had soot and ash smudges all over the place.  I obviously wasn't his first stop.  That was fine with me, as long as he left a bunch of presents for me!  My eyes turned to his bag of goodies on his back.  I was almost drooling with anticipation.  When he set down his bag and began to look through it, he reminded me of one of those street vendors who carry their stores on their backs.  I almost laughed he looked so funny.
When he resurfaced from looking through his bag, I got a good look at his face.  His dark eyes were shining and twinkling with the Christmas tree lights.  He had a big smile on his face and his cheeks were bright red.  I guessed it must be cold flying around in the middle of winter.  Now I was glad that I had convinced my mom to leave hot chocolate instead of milk for Santa.  I guessed he'd probably appreciate it more.  If his cheeks were red with cold, his nose was bright red.  It looked like one of those cherries that you put on the top of an ice cream sundae.  His huge white beard reached down to the middle of his chest.
He had a piece of wood sticking out of his mouth.  I had no idea why, but there was smoke coming from it.  I guessed it was something like a cigarette, but more old-fashioned.  In any case, the smoke seemed to be contained.  After leaving the pipe, it circled around his head like the green circle thing we hung on our door during Christmas.  He was even fatter than I had imagined him.  He chuckled as he moved around.  His humungous belly bounced like a big water balloon every time he moved or laughed.  I almost burst out laughing myself again, but forced myself to hold it in.
Every time his huge belly bounced, I tried to hold my laughter in, but that didn't last long.  I finally let out a huge laugh that I was sure was going to wake up my dad and get me coal in my stocking.  He turned and looked right at me.  Then he picked up a cookie from the table and winked at me.  I understood that there was nothing to be afraid of.  I carefully crawled out from under the table and walked back toward the staircase.  I turned around wand watched the old man get to work.
He never said anything to me, but immediately began to bustle around the room.  He downed the hot chocolate and the other two cookies with gusto and a big belch before turning to the stockings.  In a flash, he had filled all three stockings to bursting with candies and small toys.  Then, he got to my favorite part: the presents.  One after another he pulled them out from the bag and put them under the tree in an organized mess.  Some were huge packages and others were smaller than my hand, but I knew that all of them were going to be great.  To my slight disappointment he didn't fill the entire room with presents.  I realized that that would be too many to open in one day anyway and contented myself with what I got.  When he finished pulling presents out of the bag, he stepped back into the fireplace.  He put his right thumb against his nose, and, with another wink and a nod, disappeared back up the chimney.
I heard his thumping boots on the roof again for a little and then, I heard a shrill whistle.  With a jingle of bells, the clack of reindeer hooves, and the scrapes of a sled on snow, I knew that Santa had taken off the roof again.  I ran up the stairs, hoping to get one last glimpse of that jolly old man before waiting for a full year to see him again.  When I reached my window, I heard him give his classic call out from down the street.  "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"  I smiled and, yawning, went back to bed.  I was ready for Christmas to start the next day.

When I told my dad that version of the story, he smiled.  "I guess that wasn't so bad."  He said.  "I still like the original better, though."
"Well," I said, "sometimes new ways of telling old stories are good."
"That's true." he agreed.  "Now good night.  Your mom will kill me if you're not in bed in time!"
He gave me a kiss and tucked me into my nice warm covers.
"Sleep tight, Kiddo."
"G'night, Dad."
"Love you!"
"Love you too.  And, Dad?"
"Yeah?"
"Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas." He answered with a smile that looked almost like how I imagined Santa's must look.

Your Big Backyard

    I sat in my backyard, at about 8 o’clock at night.  As I tried to receive data from my senses, I was amazed at all that was going on!  All my senses had to work hard to assimilate everything that was going on.
    There were only a few tastes in my backyard.  I tasted some phlegm in my mouth at one point when I coughed.  I also tasted a slight, acrid taste I attributed to smoke near the end.
    There were more smells than there were tastes, however.  There was a wintery smell in the air.  Also, there was a slight smell of dog feces and a smoky smell.  Along with this, I smelled the scent of some of the flowers in the yard.
    There were many sensations of touch in that hour I sat in my backyard.  It was cold out that night.  The wind was cold, as well, and even cooled off my pen when I held it against my face.  Since it was cold, I shivered more than once, and tried to keep warm by bouncing my legs.  The chair I was sitting in was soft and comfortable.  At one point, I coughed, hurting my chest.  Near the end, I was getting really tired and stretched, causing my sternum to crack.
    I also felt many kinesthetic sensations in that hour.  I felt comfortable in the surroundings of the backyard.  I was feeling pretty hungry during that time, as well.  Near the end, I was feeling bored and thirsty.
    I heard a lot of things in the hour I was seated there.  Throughout the entire hour, there were dogs barking, whistles sounding, and car horns blaring in the distance.  I also heard, at irregular intervals, water trickling in the distance.  Motor and car noises were almost constant, especially car alarms.  At one point, I heard an automatic car garage opening and then some tires spinning on gravel.  A baby was crying for a long time as well.  Some people walked down some metal stairs with sandals on and opened the creaking sliding door on the other side of the yard.  Many times I heard a metallic clang and creak as a distant gate was opened.  At one point, I heard a large thump as something fell.  Since the chair I was in had wheels, they made noise as I shifted and made the chair creak.  At one point, my dog came out and began to drink water.  Its claws also made a clacking sound on the tile.  Since I had a cold, I coughed interrupting all the other sounds.  Throughout the hour, I heard insect noises.  Near the end, I rustled the paper I was writing notes on.  I also heard the telephone ring and many distant conversations.  I was also hearing music in my head as I sat there.  At the very end, everything seemed to freeze and I only heard ringing silence.
    I also saw many things while I sat in my backyard.  I saw the green and brown grass full of small white and brown lumps of dog feces.  I also saw the watering hose lying like a green snake with a white patch on it at one end of the yard.  I saw an old, yellow, rusted bike leaning on the cream colored wall.  I saw a red tennis ball that had blue and white splotches on it lying in the middle of the yard.  The earth was damp and dark brown and littered with yellow leaves.  I saw the dark sky with white, blinking stars staring down.  I saw my reflection in the dark glass window and shadows moving on the second and third stories.  I saw the dog wandering aimlessly around the yard when it came out.  The leaves on the tree and most of the raspberry plant were green with a yellowish or reddish tint on the edges.  To my left, there was a bunch of red flowers that almost glowed in the dark.  I saw a small plant with long green and yellow leaves with a red and yellow flower bud rising above it.  I saw a couple moths moving, as well.  One white one fluttered around the yard for a while and then left.  The other one, that had a grey color, was darting at the light bulb above me.  I saw a bright red cutting board in the kitchen with photographs on the refrigerator and apple stickers on the cupboards.  I also saw some books sitting on the table inside and saw the lights of a car going up the hill.  I saw reddish-brown and black tile surrounding the yard with white tile in the center.
    In conclusion, I saw, heard, tasted, touched, smelled, and felt many things in my backyard.  Afterwards, I thought that there was a lot going on there, even when I didn’t think about it.  I think it’s worth sitting in your backyard assimilating everything you can.  It will amaze you!

Read and Remember

(This is dedicated to Ramie Harris, a classmate of mine, that, though I didn't know her personally, has impacted my life, and to her family.  She died in a plane crash on Saturday, November 26th, 2011.  May this be an encouragement to those who did know her, as well as to anyone who has ever lost a loved one.)

He just stood there, staring, browsing the spines of old, dusty books on the shelf.  Some were brightly colored; others, dull and brown.  There was no noise except the occasional cough in the distance of the vast public library.  Finally, his hand lifted ever so slowly to the spine of one of those dull, brown books.  The title on the spine read The Magic Sword in small simple gold letters.  He pulled it down off the shelf and, blowing the dust off the cover, saw the intricate gold font spelling the title a second time.  Slowly, a smile spread across the boy's face.  He clutched the large book to his chest and walked out of the aisle.
The boy wandered the library, searching for his mother.  He'd forgotten where she'd told him she would be.  He walked through the rest of the science fiction/fantasy section, then moved on to the fiction.  Just when he was about to lose hope, he found her standing in an aisle flipping through the pages of a magazine.  It took a moment for her to notice him there.  When she did, she jumped, startled.
"There you are!" she squeaked.  Composing herself she asked, "Did you find one you want to read?"
The boy just nodded, and held the book out for his mother to see.  When she looked back at him, his smile widened for a moment before disappearing completely.  His mother's face was full of disappointment.  She gave an exasperated sigh, then returned her magazine to the shelf.
"I guess you can read that one this time." she said.  "Next time, though, I want you to pick out a book that will teach you something real.  You read a lot of that fantasy junk, but it's not teaching you anything."
The boy hung his head in shame.  He didn't want to disappoint his mother, but this is what he liked to read.  Silently, he promised himself he would show his mother the value of what he read.  They walked to the check-out counter and the young librarian stamped the card with the due date shooting a smile at the boy.  He smiled back, happy that someone was glad he was reading the book.
Back in the car, the boy opened the book to the first page, and began to read.  His mother looked at him, gave another sigh like the one she'd given inside and started the car.  The boy spent the rest of the summer afternoon on his bed reading that book.  His mother tried to get him to play outside, but he just shook his head and stuck his nose back in the book.  After a few attempts, she gave up and left him alone.
The boy finished that book quickly.  Within a week, he was back at the library looking for a new book.  Grudgingly, he followed his mother's instructions and looked for a book in the biography section.  None of the names on the spines of the books was familiar.  Then, suddenly, one book caught his eye.  It was an old, dusty, brown book with gold letters spelling out the title on the side.  His heart jumped into his throat.  Could it be?  When he read the title, he smiled.  This biography was of the author who had written The Magic Sword.  He quickly pulled it off the shelf and ran to find his mother.  When she saw it was a biography, she agreed to let him take it home.  He smiled broadly at the librarian as she stamped his book.
The boy read this book just as fast as the first.  His mother was impressed, but worried at the same time.  The boy had begun to stay inside and read all the time.  He never did anything outside.  All he wanted to do was read.  No matter how much she pleaded with him to go outside, he just shook his head and went back to reading.
Then, one day, the boy's father left on a business trip.  On the way back, his plane crashed, killing him and many others that had been on the plane with him.  Both the boy and his mother were devastated.  Even during this time, the boy just wanted to be in his room reading.  His mother didn't care.  She just attributed it to grief.  After the funeral and all the family members had left, the boy and his mother began to adjust to life with just each other.  The boy insisted they go back to the library many times.  Finally, she relented.  They went back to the library and the boy checked out another biography.
As the weeks went by, the boy began to laugh more and become more like he was before his father died.  His mother wondered about this.  The grief for her was still too near to make jokes or laugh, but her son seemed to be fine.  They continued to take regular trips to the library and the boy would sometimes check out a biography and other times take a fantasy novel.  Regardless, the boy kept reading constantly, refusing to go outside.
One day, a couple of months after the father's death, when they had just returned from the library, the grief sprung up on the boy's mother unawares and she collapsed on the living room couch in uncontrollable sobs.  The boy, worried about his mother, ran up to his room and, when he returned, set the same dusty, brown book with the title in golden letters he'd had months ago on her lap.  She looked at him angry and confused.  What use was this book going to be?  It was the biography of some random author!  She pushed the book off her lap, but the boy just picked it up, and set it back on her lap.  When she tried to push it off again, he held it there.  Then, he opened the book to a page near the beginning and pointed at a line.  She forced herself to wipe off her tears and look at the page.  When it finally came into focus, she realized why her son had pointed this out to her.
"Don't cry for those who have died." the line her son was pointing out to her said.  "Instead, remember them with joy, and delight in the activities that they knew you enjoyed."
Suddenly, it all made sense to the boy's mother.  She remembered the smiles her husband had given their son when he walked in the door holding the book out.  She remembered the times when her son was too young to read for himself and her husband had read to him.  She realized that her son was still grieving over the loss of his father, just like her, but he was doing it in a way that showed how much he loved his father: he was reading.  His father had taught him to love books, and the boy had kept reading to remember his father.
She reached down and gently closed the cover.  Then, she stretched out her arms and pulled her son into a long and strong hug.  The boy hugged her back, and tears flowed freely down each of their cheeks.  After a few minutes of this, she pushed the boy back and wiped the tears off his cheeks and her own.
"Thank you." she said lovingly.  Then, opening the book to the beginning, she began to read it out loud to her son, remembering the way her husband used to read to him.  As she read, slowly, very slowly, a smile began to stretch across her face.

Alive

    Standing on a distant field of glorious green, I saw great horses galloping on the plain.  The beat of their hooves was like the noise of thunder on a stormy night.  The gallant beasts, tails and manes flowing in the wind of their own speed, came at a great stride up the small hill I was standing on.  They all flew past me like spirits of great warriors heading into battle.
    They all flew past me, but one.  The last one of the group checked his pace and whinnied as he reached the peak.  Then he trotted towards me.  He was completely black except for a star-shaped spot on his brow, right between his coal black eyes.  He was a strong beast with great limbs and a fire that burned deep within his eyes.
    I stretched my hand out as he came nearer and caressed his noble neck.  He stood proudly and stared at me as I studied his magnificent body.  He was very, very large, but gentle.  I fed him an apple I had with me and turned to leave after studying him for a while.
    I walked down the hill then looked back.  There he stood black against the bright blue sky.  He suddenly reared up and ran down the slope towards me.  Startled, I tried to move out of his way, but he changed his course straight towards me.  He stopped right in front of me looking at me with intelligent eyes and his proud ears standing alert towards me.
    I walked tentatively to his side and rubbed his onyx flanks.  Then, not knowing why, I leaped onto his back.  He reared up, but not in a way that he wanted to throw me off.  He took off towards the west almost flying across the green plain.  The wind pounded in my ears and the blood pulsed in my veins.  I was alive.  I was so very much alive in that glorious rush.
    We ran for a long time.  I say “we” because I felt that I was part of that great being running like the wind across the rolling green plain.  When we finally slowed down, I saw that we were at least six leagues from where we had started.
    Not knowing what to do, I stayed on the glorious horse’s back and stared at the sunset on the distant horizon.  I felt alive at that moment.  Not only breathing and thinking, but alive.  It was as if this was the reason I existed.  I was alive.

Fright (and a caveat)

(A quick caveat before publishing this post:  I've been publishing things I've written before, some of them quite a long time ago.  In no way do these stories represent the current state of mind of the author.)

    He walked into the room, the swinging doors creaking closed behind him.  His black, wide-brimmed hat lay low on his head, just enough to cover his eyes.  His pale mouth was frozen in a half smirk.  As soon as he walked in, the ordinary loud and boisterous room got as silent as a winter midnight.  Everyone looked up to see who had come in.  I knew immediately that there was going to be trouble; those kinds of men always bring trouble with them.
    He walked slowly up to the bar and asked for a beer.  I was sitting in the corner, but I heard everything.  Everyone was still staring at him, sizing him up.  Little by little, conversations began to start again, but only in hushed whispers, afraid to break the silence that had reigned for the last couple of minutes.  When the man got his beer, he sat back and stared openly at the people gathered there.  When he did this, I finally got a glimpse of his eyes.  They were black, not just dark brown, but black as coal mined deep in the darkness where the sun never sees.  They seemed to look straight through you into the darkest corners of your soul.  When that evil pair passed by me in the corner, I shuddered at the eeriness in that stare.
    I quickly got up and left after that episode.  I couldn’t stand being in the same room as that man for another second.  I left quickly, muttering to the bartender to keep the change as I shoved a bill at him.  If I could have run out of there I would have.  I was so uneasy that I had to leave.  It seemed as if I was the only one.  Everyone else had regained their composure (to an extent, at least) and were talking more and more loudly.  When I finally left the tavern, I ran to my house on the edge of town.  I didn’t want to be within a hundred feet of that man.
    I threw open the door after unlocking it and slammed it behind me.  I leaned heavily against the door breathing hard.  For some reason, I still couldn’t shake the feeling of dread I had felt in that man’s presence.  It was as if it had followed me here.  I locked the door behind me out of paranoia, maybe, then slowly walked into the kitchen, looking for some water to pour down my dry throat.
    To my utter dismay, and extreme fright, the man stepped out from behind the kitchen door only five feet in front of me.  I jumped back, terrified and ready to run.  I bit my lip in terror, but stood firm.  We stood there for a full minute, him with his piercing black eyes and uncomfortable smirk and me with my eyes wide and bleeding lip.
    “Wh-wh-who ar-re y-y-you?”  I stammered.
    “I’m the guy who’s gonna take away your pain.”  He said in an eerily uncomfortable rasping voice.
    “Wh-what p-pain?”
    “You know what it is.”  He looked up.  “It’s your life!”
    At that, I could hold it in no longer and ran.  I ran for the front door and fumbled with the keys, trying to get out.
    “It won’t do you any good, y’know.”  His voice approached.
    I got even more frantic than ever as I heard his heavy boots moving my way.  I glanced over my shoulder and nearly jumped out of my skin.  He was standing right behind me, his eyes level with mine and his disgusting smirk glaring at me.  I tried to move away, but was held in place by some invisible force.  I struggled against it, but only got myself tangled more and more.  When I was totally immobilized, the man took one step back, pulled a Colt revolver out of its holster, cocked it, and pointed it at my head.
    “Bye, bye.” he said waving with his other hand.
    I woke up panting and screaming in my own bed at home.  It had all been a dream.  I tried to move and found that my sheets had wound themselves around me forming a cocoon.  I breathed a sigh of relief and began to unwind myself.  Suddenly, I heard a heavy boot hit the ground beside the bed.  I turned and saw the man there pointing his revolver at my head.  My eyes went wide.
    “Bye, bye.” He said pulling the trigger.

Terror

    The darkness presses in around me.  I’m lying in my bed shivering in fear at the blackness of my room.  Even though I’ve been in the same room countless times before, this fear always grips me at night.  At night everything looks different.  I can imagine things moving and staring at me once my back is turned.
    Why do I feel like this?  What have I done to deserve this affliction?  It is true that at one point I was not afraid of the dark.  In fact, I have never been afraid of the dark, that is, until It happened.  “What happened?”  You may ask.  I will tell you, but I must warn you that it is not a pretty fairy tale or beautiful story.  It is a story of dread and sorrow.
    I grew up as the child of a lord of a certain province.  He was by no means powerful and he owed his allegiance to many a lord over him.  I say I grew up as one of his children because I was not really.  My parents, subjects of this lord, died of a sickness while I was still an infant.  The lord took me in as his own child to maintain a good image among the rest of his people.  I did not mind in the least when I found out.  I was treated well and could not complain of my upbringing.
    When I was old enough to learn to wield weapons, I learned alongside the lord’s own son.  I soon mastered the ability and bested any opponent before me.  At that point, I knew I wold become a warrior.  There was never any doubt in my mind.
    The years passed and I became a great warrior, renowned throughout the land.  I had ridden with the King’s army and had proved myself over and over.  Soon, I was hailed a champion and was admitted as one of the King’s elite guard.  Needless to say, I was elated when I received the news.  I accepted readily and gathered my things to go immediately.
    While in the service of the King, I gained even greater renown.  Me, who had been born of humble subjects of a petty lord, was considered the greatest warrior alive.  The King, marking my skill and knowledge of battle, gave me lands of my own.  I became a lord with a large army of men at my command.
    Oh, but that was my downfall.  I grew proud of my abilities.  I grew haughty and arrogant.  I despised the common people that were my subjects, even though I had been one of them in my childhood.  I grew to be a tyrant, but a prosperous tyrant, for a time.
    Years passed in this manner.  I grew wealthy with the land given me and I grew ever more arrogant.  At times I would ride to aid the King in his wars, but I was not often called upon.  There was peace in the land for a long time.  The arrogance and pride I held for myself and my realm were my downfall.
    One day, as I observed my realm and held council with my chiefs, a rider came to my house and asked to come before me.  I admitted him and offered him food and drink, both of which he refused graciously.  He told me that he was a messenger from the King.  The King bade me come to him with my men to fight.  There was trouble brewing on the southern borders.
    I readily agreed and sent the messenger back to the King with my answer. It had been long since I had fought any war.  It was about time.  I quickly made the preparations and rallied my army.  Two days after the messenger left, my army and I took to the road.
    We rode to meet the King at the place the messenger had said.  We saw nothing of any trouble on the way, in fact, everything looked blissful.  I did not remark on this because I was too preoccupied with my pride.  We rode for three days without any resistance.  Because of this, I did not bother setting a guard during the night.  If I had been paying attention, I would have noticed that the settlements were abandoned and the land silent.
    But, oh so great was my pride that I deemed myself invincible.  That fateful night, everything changed.  That night my life was so altered and my life defeated.
    Everyone was asleep and the cooking fires had died down when it happened.  A great roar came from all around our camp.  We awoke quickly and reached for our weapons, but it was too late.  The enemy had come upon us unawares in the night.  They flew into the camp slaughtering anyone the saw.  The entire camp was killed.
    Only one man survived: me.  My tent had been set up a ways from the camp to avoid the common men under me.  My arrogance made me separate myself from my men.  Now I know it was a mistake.
    When I heard the battle cry, I ran out of my tent, gripping my sword in front of me only to find the enemy charging through the camp.  I saw my men being slaughtered where they stood.  Burning with fury, I charged towards the camp.  By the time I got there, though, the enemy had left, without leaving anyone alive in the camp.
    I walked among the men there and stared into their eyes.  They were all faces full of fear and anger.  I could not bear the sight of them, but neither could I tear my eyes from them.  In the midst of this grisly sight, I saw a robed figure moving towards me.  The figure leaned on a staff made from oak wood that was at least as tall as he was.
    He hailed me across the field and I could not find it in myself to answer.  My men were strewn dead around me.  The figure came to me and pulled of his hood.  I saw that it was an old man.  His white beard and hair were full, even though he must have been older than any man still alive.
    His eyes stared at me with disgust and anger.  What had I done to deserve such hatred?  I asked him this and he answered.  Oh yes.  He answered very carefully.
    “What have you done?”  His croaking voice began.  “Why have you deserted your men?  They lie here, blood pooling in the dirt, yet you are not dead.  Why did you not come to their rescue?  Why did you let them die in this fashion?
    “You arrogant fool!  You have been blinded by your pride and have forgotten your roots!  Remember, Fool; remember your past!  You are not worthy to wield the title of lord any longer!  Your arrogance has been your bane!
    “This curse I place upon you.  You will return to your house, yet you will not be at rest.  During the day, you will be as you always were.  At night, however, you will change.  A deep fear, nay, a profound terror will overcome you.  You will see the men who have died this night before you every night, begging for your mercy.  Their ghosts will harass you ceaselessly from sunset to sunrise.  There will never be any rest for you.”
    So it has been.  I returned to my home, sad and dejected.  During the day, I am normal as always, if not exhausted.  The widows of the men that had died, demanded recompense, and I gave it to them, knowing they would need it more than I.  At sunset, the slain men appear to me, grasping my clothing with their cold hands.  Their dead eyes stare at me begging for mercy.  I feel a terror unlike any other take hold of me when this happens.  I cannot do anything to prevent it.
    Because of this terror, I have forsaken my realm.  My people have left me to my terrors.  They have all gone, leaving me alone in the darkness.
    I do not reckon the passing of time.  How long has it been since that fateful night?  I do not know.  It feels like eons, yet I know that a year has not yet passed.  Life as I once knew it has died.  I am forsaken and alone and destined to be that way until I die.  Even though this curse be lifted from me, I will always fear the darkness and what it will bring.  I will never recover from this.
    I now know it was my arrogance and pride that made this happen, but I will not have a chance to amend things.  I am wasted.  I am ready to die.  I know that I will die soon and have to face the judgement for my wrongs.  There is no way to avoid this.
    I fear the dark.  I always will.  Though the curse be lifted, I will always fear he dark.  Unfortunately, the dark is all I am fit for.  I deserve every moment of this curse.  It is a just punishment for everything I have done wrong.

The Eagle

    Standing on the edge of that sheer coastal cliff, I heard the waves crashing against its base.  The green grass on the cliff’s edge was soft under my bare feet that day.  I stood gazing out at the endless ocean spread out before me.  The beauty of God’s creation overwhelmed me.
    I looked up at the blue sky and saw a golden eagle circling high above.  He was the largest animal I had ever seen, and he was coming steadily closer.  For some strange reason, I began to feel guilty of everything I had done.  The eagle kept coming lower and closer.
    I fell to my knees crying over my guilt.  I was unworthy of God’s love.  I had completely rejected him.  The eagle finally landed in front of me, shaking the earth with his weight.  I didn’t dare look up.  He was a messenger from God to me to shame me for my sin.
    Finally, when he didn’t do anything, I looked up at the amazing creature.  It was a rich golden brown color and its beak and talons seemed to be made out of pure gold.  Its eyes were a startling blue, in complete contrast to the rest of the colors.  Its whole being seemed to shine with a light all its own.
    It turned its head and looked at me piercingly with a brilliant blue eye.  I hung my head in shame and began to cry again.  I could think of nothing else but my guilt and shame.
    When I finally dared to look up again, the eagle was gone.  In its place stood a boy dressed in a white robe crying.  He walked over to where I was, hugged me, and began to cry.  I hugged him back, trying to console him and comfort him a little.  We sat that way, hugging and crying with our eyes closed, for a couple of minutes.
    I heard a rustling all around us after we stayed there for a little bit.  I opened my eyes and looked up to see the eagle wrap his huge, powerful wings around us.  His piercing eyes were closed and there were tears on his cheeks.
    I can only imagine the sight of us on that cliff.  A grown man kneeling, hugging a crying child and crying himself, surrounded by the powerful wings of a gigantic golden eagle on the edge of cliff with golden mist flying in the air from the waves crashing far below.

Cold Dream

    Far away in the north, there is a vast expanse of snow and ice.  The mountains and valleys covered in snow seem to hide a forgotten world.  The clear, blue sky and cold, pale sun speak of a long forgotten past.
    Standing on the snowy expanse, I felt the wind’s biting chill.  My shivering body was clothed in heavy fur and woolen clothes.  I had a pack of wooden sticks at my back and a small isolated bottle of water against my skin.
    I stared ahead, knowing that there was a village somewhere.  Hoping to see a wisp of smoke, I squinted up at the sky.  Wearily, I trudged up the large ice-covered hill before me.
    Before I reached the top, however, I stepped onto a piece of thin ice.  The ice broke under my weight sending me hurtling down into the darkness.  It seemed to be deep underground because of the heat that I felt.  I looked up and saw the hole I had fallen through looking like a single star shining through a cloudy night.  Fortunately I was unhurt and began to search for a way up.
    There was no way up that I could see.  I tried to think of a solution to this predicament.  Suddenly I remembered my pack of sticks.  I always kept wood with me in case of an emergency…like this one.
    I reached behind me and found that I only had one stick left.  The rest must have fallen out when I fell.  Sighing, I lit the last stick using two smooth stones from the cavern floor.  With its light, I picked up the rest of the sticks.  I counted thirteen left, including the one that was lit.  I tore my woolen clothes into strips and wrapped them around the sticks in a desperate attempt to make torches.
    I packed up the torches and found a tunnel in the wall of the cavern that ran in the general direction that I was going.  I hesitated for a second, then walked into the pitch-black tunnel.  I followed the tunnel for a long time.  I used up three torches by the time I decided to stop to rest.  I needed to sleep.  I figured I had fallen through the hole at about noon and had walked for about five hours.  I only had ten torches left.  With caution, I thought I had enough light for a day and half.  I had water enough for two days, but I didn’t have any food.
    I drank some water and curled up against the tunnel wall.  I fell asleep watching the embers of the last torch slowly blink then go out.  The moment before I fell completely asleep, I noticed it was growing cold.
    I woke up and started because it made no difference whether my eyes were open or closed.  I fumbled around until I had a torch in my hand.  I lit it frantically trying to shed light on my black world.  I was hungry, but there was nothing I could do about it.  I drank a little water and then got up and went on.
    I had no idea what time it was when I stopped, but I was tired.  I had used up exactly six of the torches before I decided to stop.  I thought that if I didn’t see light by the time the last torch ran out, I would go on until I died of thirst or hunger.
    I drank only a little water because I only had a little left.  I laid my head on a rock and fell asleep almost immediately.
    The next day, if you could call it day, brought only miserable darkness.  My mouth was parched, but I only drank enough water to wet my mouth.  I decided to save the torches until they were really needed.  I went on, stumbling in the dark for about an hour.  At that point, I ran into a rock wall.  Far above and in front of me was a light.  It heartened me very much to see that light.
    Thinking it was necessary, I lit one of the last torches.  In its light I saw that the wall wasn’t much taller than I was.  Above the wall, there was a slope leading directly to the light.
    Carefully, so that it wouldn’t go out, I placed the torch on top of the ledge.  Then I lifted myself up slowly.  I picked up the torch and began to run up the slope.  At least, I thought it was a run.  It really was more like a stumble.
    When I reached the top, I saw that the light was an entrance to a cave.  It was covered by a thin layer of ice.  Not heeding any danger, I broke through the ice with my hands and feet.  I suddenly felt very cold.  I remembered that some of my thicker clothes were still in the cavern where I had taken them off.
    I tentatively stepped out from the blackness into the daylight.  To my complete amazement, I had ended up on the hill right before the village I was trying to get to.  With a short whoop I ran down the slope not heeding the cold that was creeping through my body.  I ran into town, but no one seemed to recognize me.
    “Poor man,” said the rescue volunteer. “He must have died because of the cold.  He was so close to the town, too.”

Ma'ory and the Basilisk

Deeply in the ground
By the lair of the basilisk
It’s roots have been bound,
Strong and quite sound,
The roots of the Obelisk.

Deep down the roots were set
The bases deep were laid
For the Obelisk’s beginning.
It’s needs were quickly met
The foundations stayed
The construction beginning.

On top of the Earth
Where people live and walk
The middle’s greatest berth
Strong around the turf,
The Obelisk’s great stalk.

Level the stones were laid
The middle strongly set
For the Obelisk’s building.
The stonework’s powerful braid
Never again in debt
The construction continuing.

Up high in the sky
By the perch of the great eagle
It’s tip does now lie
Strong and quite high
The Obelisk’s tip, regal.

Up high the crown was placed
The keystone high above
The Obelisk’s final building
Strong and quite well based
The keystone’s dove
The construction then ending.

From every single place
Where people live on Earth
Men came to see the trace,
Strong and deep mace,
Of the Obelisk’s great birth.

The caravan’s were long,
The trains of people great,
For the Obelisk’s great sighting.
Those who came were strong
Their power, then innate,
The Obelisk then slighting.

As people came together,
Around the mighty Obelisk
They came to simply gather,
Tied with a tether,
Not thinking of risk.

The cities then quickly grew,
The populations high
Surrounding the great Obelisk.
But the people there were new
Their knowledge incomplete
Of the building of the Obelisk.

Deep down the earth was stirred
At the roots of the Obelisk
A creature’s sleep disturbed
Strong and angered,
Leapt from the ground the basilisk.


The people quickly fled
The cities deserted
Around the mighty Obelisk
The people then were dead
Their homes deserted
All caused by the basilisk.

In a place that’s far away
Far from the Obelisk
Men from there came to stay
And then to say,
The story of the basilisk.

Stories were always told
To people of all ages
To anyone who’d listen.
The stories then grew old
By a few stages
And only children then would listen.

One of those children
Heard the ancient story
And attentively would listen
Son of a stone mason,
Whose name was Ma’ory.

Ma’ory would always listen
To any of the stories
And think about it every day.
So he began to strengthen
And train in weaponries
For a possible future day.

Then finally on that day,
The day Ma’ory came of age,
He decided he could not stay,
Instead he may,
Leave to become a mage.

Ma’ory traveled very far
Even to the Eastern Sea
At which he once was stopped.

He hired out the Ra’amanar
A ship to cross the sea
To an island to be dropped.

Finally across the sea,
On the island which he reached,
Ma’ory finally could see
The walls of the city
Of the mages that he seeked.

There Ma’ory found a master
And began to learn his power
Slowly learning to control it.
He learned his trade faster,
Faster by the hour,
And his muscles knit.

Finally his training ceased
A master Ma’ory became
Then a decision he reached,
Strongly he was teased,
As he left to make his fame.

He traveled back to his home
Where he was rejected
Because his power scared them all.
So he left again his home
To wander unprotected
Except for his skill and call.

As he traveled he remembered
The stories of his childhood,
Of the basilisk untethered,
Destroying undeterred,
Whatever he would.

He then quickly decided
To travel to the Obelisk
Upon the fringe of memory.
So towards the desert he headed
Intent on killing the basilisk
That lived on even in memory.

The Obelisk’s distant land
As far as the Earth was wide
Was a path that had not been manned,
Long and full of sand,
Ma’ory walked the pathside.

Over great mountain peaks,
Through darkened gorges
Ma’ory followed the ancient road.
Renown is what he seeks,
Fame is what he forges
In the basilisk’s abode.

Deep in the lonely desert,
Ma’ory found the place he sought
Surrounded by mounds of dirt,
Strong and unhurt,
Lay the basilisk of thought.

Ma’ory quickly resolved
To kill the ancient beast
To leave his exiled state.
The riddle he had solved
To not be the creature’s feast
And to not arouse it’s hate.

Ma’ory called upon his power,
The power of his mage’s flame
To slay the basilisk that hour,
Fire he would shower,
On the beast of that horrible name.

Yet the basilisk awoke
And was not damaged by the fire
That Ma’ory rained down on it.
In flame though it did soak,
No hurt came to the sire
Of dragons, though it hit.

The fury of the basilisk
Awoken rudely by the fire
Shook even the Obelisk
Even with the risk,
Ma’ory the beast did ire.

Then Ma’ory attacked anew,
Raining fire from above
Hoping the creature to destroy.
But the basilisk then knew
The weakness of that dove
That it treated like a toy.

Swiftly came the counter
The attack in retaliation
For the attack did not flounder
In the air outer,
But smote quickly the affliction.

Not able to defend himself
Ma’ory took the brunt of it
And lay there gasping as he died.
Lying alone on a single shelf
His body took that hit
And then his last breath he sighed.

From nearby a man came out,
Out from behind an ancient wall
To see what he didn’t doubt,
Ma’ory’s life was out,
And sent out a mourning call.

This man then returned to his home
To remember all that he’d seen
Of the fateful life Ma’ory’d had.
He then began to write a tome
On all that Ma’ory’d been
And why his life had been so sad.

When he’d finished writing,
The verses on the page complete,
He gave it to his child sighing,
“Child of my rearing,
Remember Ma’ory and his strange feat.”

That man had been, to be exact,
Ma’ory’s master in the past
Who’d followed his apprentice’s life.
The story of Ma’ory was fact
Even though his life was fast
It was always full of strife.

The child of the master,
Young though he had been,
Always would remember,
Sad and somber,
The truth of who Ma’ory’d been.

In his great old age,
He wrote this poem to warn
The people of the modern world.
“What can they learn from that unhappy mage?”
Some ask with scorn.
That the basilisk still lies curled
In the shadow of the Obelisk.

The Light

    As we rolled into the station, I woke up. No one was making any noise, not even that obnoxious baby that had been squealing the whole trip.  Everyone was just staring out the windows on my side of the car.  I followed their gazes, but had to shut my eyes and turn my back to the window.  It was so bright!  In that single glimpse, I noticed that the whole town was lit up by some sort of golden light coming from its center.  There weren’t any shadows, that I could see.  Everything seemed lit up.  It was as if the sun had come down and taken residence in that town.
    Was it the light that was enthralling everyone?  I wondered.  I figured that had to be it.  With my eyes still closed, I fumbled around my feet for my backpack.  Once I found it, I pulled out my brand new aviator sunglasses.  Well, they weren’t brand new.  My grandpa had just retired from the Air Force and he gave them to me for my twentieth birthday.
    “You never know when they’ll come in handy.” he’d said.  “These things do wonders when you’re flying and have to look directly in the sun’s direction.”
    I hoped he was right.  That was kind of what I had to do now.  I had to find that light.  I mean, it’s not like it’s an important town or anything, but I couldn’t just leave people standing or sitting like that: transfixed until they died.  I had to do something.
    Putting on the sunglasses, I carefully moved into the aisle.  No one even noticed, not even the guy I tripped over.  I walked over to the open door and jumped onto the platform.  My sneakers squeaked slightly in that glass and steel mausoleum, but, again, no one noticed.  After getting turned around inside the deceptively large station, I finally found an exit.
    At any other time, I would have marveled at the quaintness of the town and the various storefronts, but today I wasn’t even paying attention to that.  Instead, I was looking at all the people and animals that were standing rigidly still staring at the center of town.  I saw a young family, the parent’s couldn’t have been more than twenty-five, with their young daughter and dog stiffly staring at the light.  I couldn’t bear it anymore.  I took off running.
    I was angry.  Who or what could be doing this to these people?  Whatever it was, couldn’t it leave these people alone?  The image of that family kept coming back into my mind vividly clear.  I sprinted through the crowd, careful not to knock anyone over.
    I reached a park with a fountain at the center and stopped to catch my breath.  At first, I was startled by a noise.  I quickly realized it was just the fountain gurgling and spraying it’s water in the air.
    “Good!” I panted to myself. “At least there’s something alive here.”
    I looked around to get my bearings.  I’d kept my head down during my mad sprint through the streets.  Everyone in this section of town had their necks craned upwards.  I followed suit.  There it was!  At the top of the tower!
    I took off again.  The tower was only a couple of blocks away.  I wasn’t going to wait any longer.  I would not let that cute family and their dog stay that way anymore.  I even missed hearing that crying baby on the train!
    I reached the base of the old stone tower.  I circled it twice looking for some sort of entrance.  Nothing.
    “Dang it!”  I exclaimed.
    I looked upwards again to see if there was anything I could use to get inside the tower.  Above and to my right was a closed window.
    “Perfect.” I muttered sarcastically.
    I pulled myself up to the ledge that the window was on.  A brief inspection of the window frustrated me even more.  It was locked.
    “Dang it!” I said again.
    I reached into my backpack and pulled out my jacket.  How hard could it be to punch through the glass?  Guys did it in movies all the time!  Just to be safe, I wrapped the jacket around my hand and arm.  Mentally counting to three, I launched my fist at the largest pane of the window.  Nothing happened, at first.  Then came the pain.  I clenched my other fist and bit my lip so that I wouldn’t let out a yell.
    “That didn’t go like I planned.” I squeaked.
    I took a second to think about it.  On second thought, it might’ve been better to kick it in instead.  I gingerly unwrapped my arm and wrapped the jacket around my ankle.  My sneaker would protect my foot.  I didn’t want to cut myself.  After taking a few deep breaths, I glared at the window.  I wasn’t about to let that window stop me!  Drawing on the mental picture of that frozen family and all the rage that came with it, I drew my leg back and swung my heel as hard as I could at the window.  It shattered with a loud, satisfying crash.
    I quickly unwrapped my jacket and reached through the broken window-pane to unlock it.  It took me a frustratingly long time to figure out what kind of latch it was.  Once I got it, I threw the window wide open and looked into the tower.
    I was expecting it to be dark, but it was even brighter inside!  I saw a staircase winding itself around the tower only a couple of feet below the windowsill.  Carefully, so as to not cut myself on the broken glass or break a leg, I jumped onto the staircase.  I followed the staircase all the way up to the top of the tower.  There was nothing there except a small tube in the middle of the floor.  The light seemed to be coming from that tube.  It was brighter than anything else around it.
    I turned and sped down the stairs.  At the bottom, I found a cast iron gate.  I resisted the urge to ram my shoulder against it and reached in.  In seconds I’d drawn back the bolt and swung the gate open on its creaking hinges.  I went down another flight of stairs before reaching a long hallway.
    I could hear something coming from the other end of that brilliantly lit hallway.  It was like a rhythmic humming and thumping.  I’d thought I’d heard something like it before, but I couldn’t place it.
    I ignored the noise and, spurred on by the anger I felt, I sprinted down the hallway right into the wooden door at the end.  I yanked the knob and furiously threw the door open.  In the middle of the chamber was a bright glass orb, like a light bulb, only a hundred times bigger.  The “light bulb” was connected to the tube I’d seen at the top of the tower.
    “Really?” I groaned. “More glass?”
    This time, I remembered one of my other birthday presents: a swiss army knife.  I pulled it out of my pocket and looked at it.  Which one of its tools could I use to break this thing?  I thought of various different things, but nothing made sense.  I finally decided to use a small sharp tool between my fingers while I held the rest in my fist.  I didn’t learn my lesson from the window.  I thought that the sharp point would weaken the glass, allowing me to punch through it easily.
    I worked it out so that I wouldn’t have to put a hole in my jacket while I punched the “light bulb.”  I took a few steadying breaths as I got ready to shatter it.
    Suddenly, the ground bucked slightly underneath me.  I didn’t lose my footing, but it unnerved me nonetheless.
    “OK!” I yelled determinedly.  “It’s now or never!”
    Just before I punched the thing, I felt someone tapping me on the shoulder.  I closed my eyes, spun around, and threw my arm at them.
    “Relax, dude!” a familiar voice said.  “We’re there!”
    I opened my eyes and saw the inside of the train car.  The baby was squealing again and the people were chatting and bustling about with their luggage.  The train was slowly pulling into the familiar station of my hometown.  There was no light or intense silence.
    I rubbed my sleepy eyes and tried to remember what had happened.  I must have just fallen asleep on my way back home with a friend, I decided.  I got up and grabbed my backpack off the floor.
    “You seemed to be having an intense dream, Dave.”  my friend said.
    “Yeah.” I shrugged.  “I can’t remember it though.”
    “That’s the thing with dreams,” he said, “you never can remember.”
    “Nope, I guess you can’t.” I said as I put on my brand new aviators.

E43T3 (AKA Earth) Report

    Entry number    53947
    Date            40/07/29065 R.Q.
    Location        High orbit of unknown planet
    General report on alien race

    This morning, by this planet’s standards, my companion and I landed on the planet to gather information on the alien race that inhabits it.  Our landing was unobserved by the aliens because of our use of a cloaking device.  We landed just outside what seemed to be a heavily populated area and, after observing a few of the natives, were able to fashion disguises that would pass their inspection.  They are very undeveloped creatures and have no technology that would help them identify what exactly we are.  We don’t mean them any harm, but as our observations continued, we saw that they would probably harm us if they knew who we were.
    After creating the disguises, we entered the populated area, and soon learned their primitive speech.  they seem incapable of telepathic communication and instead use vocal sounds to express themselves.  Seeing as it was very basic, consisting of approximately 1,000,000 words, we were able to catch on quickly.
    Armed now with speech and disguises, we felt comfortable talking to some of the specimens directly.  Most of the ones we talked to looked at us strangely and answered slowly, but they responded well to our first prodding.  We quickly learned that a great news center was based very near to our location.  Immediately, we headed to that place.  As it is on Carzumine, these creatures have a center of news which announces what happens during the day.  We walked (yes, walked.  These creatures have not yet mastered the art of levitating or teleportation!) to this center of news, expecting to understand more of these creatures.
    We entered the building that had over the door a sign saying “the Chicago Tribune”.  We expected this to be the name of the publication, but we were not sure.  We asked one of the creatures in the building that seemed to be knowledgeable and helpful to whomever entered if this was a news center.  The creature responded in the affirmative after giving us a strange look.  I guess it is strange for them to ask such questions.  the creature then pointed us to a small stand with a large stack of wood pulp paper with ink on it.  They also don’t seem to have mastered the electronic form of presenting news.
    My companion and I thanked the creature and picked up one of the copies.  As soon as I began to read it, I was disgusted at the creatures on that planet.  They refused to report the good news of their fellows, but instead dwelt on the bad.  Throughout the entire copy of news, I saw stories on war, famine, death, mutilation, and many other atrocities that our society would not allow to be printed.  on one page, I saw a list of everyone who had died that day, yet there was no list of children that had been born.
    My partner and I, quickly got out of the building and walked as fast as our disguises would allow, back to our landing pod.  We then immediately took off, to return to our ship.  Those creatures on the planet circling below us are part of a race that delights in knowing the atrocities committed by their fellows at their fellows.  They seem to not have any remorse for the killings and destruction that goes on on their planet!
    I will soon send out a notice to all interplanetary travelers to avoid this planet at all costs!  If any of us, scientists one and all, landed there and was discovered by that race, we would be destroyed by them if not captured and analyzed.  Their scientists think that the best way to understand something is to take it apart and study each part individually and in a very detailed manner.  I cannot see how that would help them understand.  How do they see how the entire system works together if they take it apart?  Can they put it back together again?  I don’t believe so!
    We are now preparing to leave this orbit and never return.  I must man the controls for extended space flight. Report Over.

Winter Paradise

    “Where are we going?”  I asked again.  I was hiking with at an extreme altitude with my cousins.  A few weeks ago they had said that they had discovered something really amazing.
    “You’ll see when we get there.”  They answered with knowing smiles on their faces.
    “Stop being a pain!”
    “You’ll just have to wait!”
    I almost decided to stop right there and wait until they told me.  The only problem was that they were capable of leaving me there.  My curiosity spiked, I just walked on, following three backpacks in front of me.  I finally drew on some of my courage to ask one more question.
    “When are we going to eat?”
    My cousins laughed and one of them patted me on the back.  “In about an hour.”
    When we finally stopped, I dropped my backpack on the ground and ran into the woods.  On my way back, I heard them talking.  I gathered that we were going to hike for another day until we got to where we were going.  That dampened my spirits.  I was ready to give up.
    We set up camp for the night.  I was expecting some of the food that my cousins had brought, but I was very surprised when one walked into the camp holding a pair of rabbits already skinned and cleaned.
    “We’re eating that!?”  I said indignantly.
    “If you don’t like it you can go hungry.”  One of my cousins said.
    “Fine.” I muttered.
    After we ate the rabbits—which weren’t as bad as I thought—I went out of the camp and lay down looking at the stars.  I was trying to find some constellations that I knew.  In any case, it was peaceful and I was enjoying it.  While I was lying there, I heard a twig snap behind me and someone trying to breathe silently.
    “Don’t even try it, Matt.”  I called out behind me.
    “Shoot!”  Matt called out from behind me.  “How’d you know I was coming?”
    “You snapped a twig and you breathe like a horse!”  I answered quickly.  “Now I know why you don’t go hunting.  You’d scare every animal within a mile away.”
    After that I went back to my tent and unrolled my sleeping bag.  Next to me, Josh—my oldest cousin—was already snoring.  I rolled my eyes and got comfortable.  Soon I was also asleep.
    The next morning I woke up after dreaming of eating waffles, bacon, eggs, and sausage for breakfast.  I was very disappointed when I learned that we were just eating bread.  I knew I wasn’t going to get anything else until lunch, so I shrugged and just ate what I was given.
    After eating, we packed up our stuff.  Then we went back to walking.  We walked and walked and walked……..and walked.  I was starting to feel frustrated with how little progress I thought we were making.  The only thing that kept me going was my huge curiosity about where we were going.
    When we finally stopped for the night, I was ready to sleep right there.  I stayed up only because I was hungry.  That night we ate some of the provisions that we had brought.  Everyone seemed exhausted.
    We woke up early the next morning and ate breakfast as we walked.  My cousins seemed excited at how close we were.  There was frost on the ground when we woke up.  I guessed that we were going up even farther.  Needless to say, I wasn’t happy about that.
    Before long, I began to see sky through the canopy up ahead.  That didn’t seem right, but I was too tired to think about it.  When we reached the summit, I stopped and stared.  In front of me there was a scene that just left my mouth wide open.
    Just in front of me there was a small slope down to a plain surrounded by mountains.  The plain started as a little stripe of brown dirt, but gave way to a wide open expanse of ice that glittered and shone with the sun.  I couldn’t even see the other end.  It was awesome!
    “Wow!”  I whispered to myself.
    “I told you it was worth it!”  Matt said.
    Finally I walked down the slope, careful not to fall.  When I reached the bottom, I felt really small.  I saw the ice plain going on and on in every direction.  My pack was heavy, but I had forgotten everything but the beauty lying in front of me.
    I saw Josh and Matt running and sliding on the ice.  It looked like fun, but I noticed that they hadn’t checked if the ice was thick or thin.
    “Hey!!”  I called.
    “Don’t worry!” My other cousin, Andrew said.  “The lake is frozen solid.  There’s no reason why they can’t slide around.”
    “Did you say ‘solid’?”  I asked.
    “Yep.”
    “That’s impossible!”
    “No it isn’t.  Here, come with me.  I’ll show you how we know that it’s solid.”
    I followed him onto the ice.  From here I could see that the ice was very smooth.  Far into the lake, there was a hole.  Obviously someone had dug it trying to find water or to fish.  When I looked into it, I couldn’t see the bottom.
    “Now do you get it?” Andrew asked me with a smile.
    “Yes.  No I get it!”  I said staring down the hole.
    I went back to the shore and dropped my pack with the rest.  Then I ran out to where Matt and Josh were running around.  I ran around with them for a while until I got tired.  Then I went back to our packs and helped Andrew set up the rest of the camp.
    “Does this lake have a name?”  I asked.
    “Not that we know of.”  He shrugged.  “We just call it Golden Lake because of the color it gets at sunrise.”
    That night, after eating a warm meal around the campfire, I looked up at the sky and saw that I could see more stars than the last time I looked.  Later I fell asleep thinking that there couldn’t be anything better than this winter paradise.

Flight

    I stood in the middle of an endless field.  Something seemed awkward or different, though I couldn’t place my finger on it.  Then it came to me.  There was no sound in the entire place except my breathing.  There were no animals or wind or anything.  I looked up at the sky, trying to find a bird, and found that it was light purple in color.  I thought I must have fallen into a strange world.
    As I stood there thinking about what had happened, the ground began to shake.  I heard a faint rumbling and rasping of metal against stone all around me.  Little by little things began to appear.  Buildings and towers grew out of the ground.  A tower began to grow right underneath me taking me to the heights.
    I studied these towers a little closer.  They were shaped strangely.  Some even had holes right in their middle.  Others had rings of metal flung out in front of them looking like large bubble blowers.  As more and more of them appeared, it began to look more like a gigantic obstacle course than a city.
    Something inside me told me to jump off the building I was on and fly over to the next building.  Strangely, this sounded perfectly reasonable.  I ran to the edge and threw myself off whooping with delight.  The wind rushed around my body, pushing my hair back and billowing my clothes behind me.  Finally, I stretched out and willed myself towards the next tower.  Amazingly, my body obeyed.  I actually flew towards the nearest tower!!
    I kept flying like this for a long time, willing myself towards different towers until I got used to the movement.  Then I decided to try something.  Would I be able to take off from the ground?  I landed so that I could try it.
    I stood on the field, surrounded by those towers, gathering my strength.  Then  let loose.  I threw myself into the air willing myself to fly higher and higher.  It worked!  I could take off from the ground.
    I continued to fly through the towers for a while just enjoying the feeling of flying.  It is like nothing you can imagine!  The wind is rushing past you and gravity has no hold on you.  You can defy the laws of physics only using your mind!  It is great!  No, it is better than great!  It is spectacular!!
    Suddenly, I began to feel as if I was moving down.  In fact, I was.  I was drifting back to the earth, contrary to what my mind was saying.  I fought it with all my strength, trying to stay up in the air.  I landed hard on my knees.  I got up slowly and began to gather my strength.  I knew I could take off once more.  There was never any doubt in my mind.
    I leapt and willed myself upwards.  I flew up about ten feet then began to fall.  Not just drift back down, but fall quickly.  I looked at the ground and saw that a deep chasm had opened just where I had been.  I was falling right into it.  There was nothing I could do to avoid it.
    Just as I thought I would die, I landed hard on something soft.  I sat up, looked around and found myself in my bed.  It had all been a dream!

The Leap

The water is falling, tumbling over the cliff in front of me.  The white foam disappears for a moment on the graceful curve of the water giving way to gravity.  The sunlight catches the mist from the waterfall turning it into a beautiful rainbow.  The sound of water falling and splashing into the deep pool far below is a loud roar in my ears.
I stand on an outcropping of rock on the edge of the large cliff right in the middle of the river.  How did I get here?  I don’t know.  There is a reason for it, I know, but I can’t seem to figure it out.  I glance over the edge of the cliff to see how far the bottom is.  I can’t see it through the mist and the clouds.  I step back slowly, reeling from the immensity of the fall.
My bare foot slips into the cold water.  I pull it out quickly.  There is something about the water that keeps drawing me.  It wants to swallow me and take me over the dreadful depths of the waterfall.  I must resist it.  I cannot fall victim to its wishes.  I do not want to die.
The water is cool and refreshing.  Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to let my feet dangle in it.  No!  I can’t let it draw me in!  I have to fight this desire!  I will not fall over that cliff!  I’ve been down there before.  All it leads to is pain!  I can’t do that again.
Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t.  I wouldn’t survive a second fall.  The first time, I had let the river sweep me off my feet and carry me down over the falls.  This time, I wouldn’t be so naïve.  I will not go over those falls!
The water keeps drawing me.  It promises peace and joy.  It promises refreshment and encouragement.  How can I deny these things?  I must!  I must!  It never fulfills its promises.  It’s just a trap to lure people to their death over the falls.
Why am I standing on this rock in the middle of the river?  Am I here to make a decision?  Am I supposed to fall?  Or am I supposed to stay?  I cannot decide.  The river is calling, but it is such a long way down.  The rock is safer.  I’ll stay here until I can figure out how to get off it without falling.
The hours pass.  The debates continue unabated.  The sun is beating down on my head making me thirsty.  I want to drink from the river, but I know it will only bring me trouble later on.  Once I drink from the river, I won’t be able to resist its call anymore.  I have to resist.
How can I put up with this?  My thirst grows and the water looks more attractive by the second.  NO!  I can’t do that!  I need to resist.
But, if I don’t drink, I’ll soon die.  I need water to survive, and that’s the point.  Survival.  I need to survive.
There’s got to be another way.   The river can’t be the only source of water.  I need to find a way to get off of the rock and find a different source of water.
I’ve tried that already.  I got off the rock and found a muddy stream leading away from the falls.  I drank deeply.  I couldn’t stop.  No matter how often I wanted to stop, I always drank more.
But that brook was better than this river.  That brook wasn’t threatening to drag me over the cliff.  It wanted to take me away from danger.  That’s the best way to go.
No.  The river is my only hope, and I know it.  Why am I arguing?  I know what I need to do, but I don’t want to do it.
But…
No buts.  It’s time to do what I was supposed to do when I got here.  I know the reason for being here.  I have to follow the river.  This time I have to do it, though.  I need to take the initiative.  The river can’t sweep me off my feet this time.  I need to follow, not be dragged.  It’s time to take the leap.
I walk over to the edge of the rock and look down.  I take a step backwards and gulp.  I can’t do it.  My stomach is tossing and turning.  I can’t do it!
I sit back down on the rock and put my head between my knees.  Why can’t I do what I’m supposed to do?  Why can’t I take the leap and follow the river?
I’m so thirsty now, that I have to drink.  I move down to the edge of the river and scoop some water up in my hands.  I lower my head to my hands haltingly and take a small sip of the clear liquid.
What a drink!  The water is so pure and delicious!  How could I have argued against it before?  Compared to this, the muddy stream is as dry as sand and as disgusting as excrement!  I lean down and gulp great draughts of water into my parched mouth.
I stand up, hands and mouth still dripping, and walk to the edge of the cliff once again.  My stomach is tossing and turning again.  What is it that I feel?  Is it anticipation?  I smile at the thought.  It’s time to take the leap.  I won’t be dragged by the current now.  It’s my decision.
I look down at the unending pillar of water.  My mind tries to tell me not to, but I’ve already decided.  I spread my arms and jump.
I’m following the river!  I let out a great yell of joy as the wind rushes past my body.  This is the way to go.  I don’t know if there’s a bottom to this waterfall, but I don’t care.  There is an exhilaration in falling like this that cannot be beaten by any other sensation.  If there is a bottom, great!  If not, even better!  This is life!

War of the Mind

I stand at the edge of a cliff staring down at the roaring waves below me.  My tall, white castle is right behind me.  The faint crashing of the waves below is almost drowned out by the sounds of a town inside the castle walls.  Horses stomping and neighing, creaking wagons, and ceaseless chatter all reach my ears.  The cool ocean breeze blows through my black hair.
I am Lord Jonathan of Endor.  I am master of the castle behind me and elected official and ruler of the Plain Alliance.  The Plain Alliance is a group of eight nations spread out on a plain that created a political and economic alliance when they were formed.  These eight nations are Endor (of which I am Lord), Imran, Diafor, Lanin, Rodim, Car Fiam, Desar, and Wialor.  Now these nations are prospering.
Three years ago I stood in the same place staring out at the horizon when a horseman came up to me.  At the sound of the pounding hooves, I turned around and lay a hand on my long sword.  It was a courier from Diafor, the westernmost of the nations of the Plain Alliance.  He reined in his horse quickly and jumped off the beast and bowed.
    “Come,” I said seriously, “Tell me who sends you and what is your message?”
    “My Lord Jonathan,” The courier began quickly, “I am sent by Lord Daniel of Diafor.  My message is this: scouting parties from the Introsal Dominions have been spotted on the borders of our nation.  Also, the entire Introsal army is camped in a distant valley.  My Lord Daniel requests that you call a council of the Lords of the Plain Alliance as soon as possible to discuss the possibility of war.”
    I stared at the courier in surprise.  There had never been problems with the Introsal Dominions.  The Plain Alliance was not friends with it, but neither country had been bothered by the other.
    “My Lord?”  The courier said, knocking me out of my surprise.
    “I will do it immediately.  Tell the Lord Daniel to meet here at Endor in seven days.”
    The courier bowed, ran back to his horse, and sped off towards the west.  I walked quickly back towards the castle and sent out six of my couriers with the same message to the other six nations.  I called my most trusted servant and asked him to bring some food to my room.
Ten minutes later, I was sitting on my bed when there was a knock at the door.  “Enter,” I said.  It was my servant with my food.
“Will you be needing anything else, Milord?” He asked politely.
“Not right now, Markus,”  I answered.
He turned to leave.  “Markus,” I called.
“Yes, Milord?”
“There will be a council here in seven days.  Please make sure that everything is prepared.”
“Milord, I will do everything in my power to make sure the servants prepare everything to everyone’s satisfaction.”
“Thank you, Markus.  You may leave now.”
“Good night, Milord.”
“Good night, Markus.”
The days before the council passed quickly.  I worked with some of my most trusted advisors on a possible plan of attack or defense, but we had gotten nowhere by the time the other Lords had arrived.  I had hoped to have a plan prepared to show the other Lords, but I didn’t.
The day of the council I decided to take a morning walk by the cliff again.  I reached the cliff and stared vacantly at the distant horizon.  Suddenly, I began to have an idea.  It didn’t seem like it was my own.  In fact, it seemed like it was a suggestion from someone else.
It seemed to be perfect.  As long as everything went as planned, not a single person would have to lose their life.  I began to chuckle quietly.  Then it increased in volume until it was a full guffaw.
“It’s perfect!” I called to the air.
“What is perfect, Milord?”
I spun around and saw Markus standing behind me.  He had a puzzled look on his face.
“My plan!” I said smiling from ear to ear, “My plan is perfect!”
I ran up and embraced him, then ran back to the castle for the council.  I thought the plan over once more on my way back and saw its flawlessness.  The thought made me run even faster.
I ran into the castle surprising my guards and ran straight into the council hall.  The council hall had a large, polished, wooden table in the middle surrounded by matching chairs.  At the head of the table there was a bigger chair with a taller back and a little higher than the other chairs.  In each of the other chairs there was one of the Lords of the Plain Alliance with their servants and guards behind them.
Every single person present looked up with surprise when I barged through the large wooden doors.  They all rose quickly to acknowledge my Lordship over them.  I walked to my seat, acknowledging each of the Lords.  I sat down in the big chair and motioned for the others to do likewise.
Once all the Lords were seated, I said, “This is a council of war.  Even though we must think of our own protection, I would ask every Lord to send away the servants and guards with you today.”
Immediately everyone tried to argue with me at the same time.  I raised my right hand and called for silence.  “I do this for the benefit of our nations.  We never know where a traitor can be found even in our highest ranks.  If you will not do this, I will have to send you out of this council.”
Some of the Lords noticed the logic in this and told their servants and guards to go out.  Others stared at me angrily for a few seconds before reluctantly sending their servants and guards away.  I could sense that this was not going to be an easy council.  Though I thought my plan was perfect, it would be hard to explain where it came from and how it would work.
Once everyone was gone, the Lord Daniel of Diafor stood and said, “Now that your orders have been carried out, my lord Jonathan, I am sure that the rest of the lords present are as curious as I am about this order.”
“Very well,”  I said after the Lord Daniel sat down.  “Before I begin, I must say that I know that some of you will not like what I am going to say.  I will answer any questions later, but I must ask you to allow me to finish before you ask any.  Are we agreed?”
All the other lords quickly said “yes” in agreement.  Their curiosity was spiked.  I knew that.  It was hard not to see it in their greedy eyes.
“As you know, lords of the Plain Alliance,” I continued, “We are under heavy threat of war on our western borders.  Many scouting parties from the Introsal Dominions have been spotted in Diafor and Lanin.  They come with a greater force than we could muster.  The Introsal Dominions are almost twice the size of the Plain Alliance.   I have learned that the Introsal forces are camped in a valley.
“The only hope we have of defeating the Introsal forces is by trickery.  My plan for the defeat of the Introsal forces is this.  I will need five hundred soldiers on horse in Diafor.  Each of them must have a horn and covered torch.  During the night we will surround the Introsal Forces.  When a signal is shown, each man must uncover his torch and blow his horn.  If this works as I believe it will the Introsal soldiers will believe that they are surrounded by five hundred generals with troops behind them ready to charge down the mountain.  At this, they will either kill each other, or surrender.  In this way, we will not lose a single man, and we will win the war.”
As soon as I had finished and sat down, all the other lords stood up and started yelling their views of the plan.  I let them yell for a minute, then stood and called for silence.  “My lords!  You are bickering like children.  Please compose yourselves and try to resolve these things like the men you are.  I will try to answer your questions, but, please, one at a time!”
The lords questioned me for a very long time.  By the time they seemed satisfied it was mid-afternoon.  I was tired and so were they.  I suggested everyone get something to eat and then the next day we would meet again to discuss the details of the plan.  Everyone quickly accepted and left for the kitchen to get a meal.
I stepped out of the council hall and met Markus.  “Markus,” I called.  “Please make sure the lords receive a good meal.  For my part, bring a small meal to my room when you have finished with them.  I need to rest.”
“As Milord wishes,” Markus answered as he turned towards the kitchen.
I went quickly back to my room and took off my belt and sword.  I then sat on the bed and leaned my head on my hands.  A few minutes later someone knocked on the door.
“Enter,” I said quickly.
Markus walked in and set a small tray with a plate of bread, butter, and cheese and a cup of water on the small table in my room.  “Is Milord well?” he asked when he saw me.
“Yes, Markus.  I’m fine.  It is only that I am tired of the discussions today.  I feel as if the other lords think that I am unfit for the leadership.  They believe that I am too young to be governing this alliance.  I fear that they will try to dissolve the Plain Alliance.”
“If I may say so, Milord, I believe that you are a great leader and can command the respect of anyone Milord desires.  Yes, Milord is young in relation to the other lords, but it is not Milord’s fault for his father’s quick death because of a sickness.  I believe that all the other great lords will come to realize this at some time.”
“Thank you, Markus.  I needed to hear that.  You may go now.”
“Yes, Milord,” Markus said as he turned to leave.
“Oh, and, Markus,” I said as he left the room.  “You are as good a friend a man could ask for.”
Markus’ blue eyes looked at me kindly.  “And Milord is just as good a friend.”
I stared at the door even after Markus left.  The food on the table was all but forgotten.  I was amazed at the security I felt when Markus was around.  He was my chief servant, but he was also older than I was.  I figured I felt comfortable around him since he had been there since before I was born.  Markus was that father figure I had not had since my own father had died nearly four years ago.
I snapped back to reality when I felt my stomach grumble its complaint at being empty for too long.  I walked over to the table and began to eat.  It wasn’t much, but I felt satisfied after eating that meal.  Once I had finished, I changed into a light blue tunic with a white belt and sash.  Then I walked to the library in my castle.  I always tried to read a little every night.  It helped keep my wits sharp and alert.
I sat in the library and read for a long time.  I had been studying the history of the Plain Alliance, but tonight I decided to study a little of the Introsal history, because of the circumstances.  After reading and studying for a few hours, I closed the books and rubbed my eyes.  I yawned and stretched and decided it was time to go to bed.
I left the books sitting on the table and returned to my bedroom.  I undressed and slipped under the blankets lying loosely on the large bed.  As I fell asleep, I could see my plan unfolding perfectly.
The next day, I woke refreshed and ready to talk to the other lords again.  I put on a white tunic with a yellow belt and sash and hung my sword on my belt.  I put my feet into my worn, leather boots and walked over to a mirror and basin.  I washed my face quickly and went to the dining room.
I walked into the room and saw that most of the lords were already seated there waiting for the food.  I sat at the head of the table and ordered the servants to bring out the breakfast food.  I ate lightly because of what was going to happen next.
After breakfast, the lords and I went to the council hall and sat at our respective places.  Once everyone was seated, they all looked at me.
“I know some of you have misgivings about the plan,” I began.  “I know that if it fails, it will mean our destruction, but I believe that we must take this risk to be able to save our families from death.  I learned yesterday that the Introsal soldiers are pressed into service by the king.  They are not volunteer soldiers like our own.  This is something that may work to our favor.  If we can frighten the soldiers enough, they will give up their weapons or lives before trying to defend their country.  They do not love the system that they fight for.  They would almost prefer to destroy their own country over ours.  If we can defeat the system that they hate, we could gain many allies and free innocent people from the clutches of an evil, greedy king.”
The other lords remained silent after I had finished.  Many of them were looking at me with a new respect and awe.  I knew that I had won them over to my side and that they knew that I knew what my plan entailed.
“If anyone has a better idea,” I continued, “I will receive suggestions and will seriously consider them to see if they have any merit.”
I expected to see at least three hands raised or a couple voices call out their new ideas.  The only thing I saw was a table surrounded by nervous lords and the only thing I heard was a nervous cough.  After a couple minutes had gone by and no one had spoken up, I said, “Very well.  Each of you, lords of the Plain Alliance, will supply one hundred soldiers for the assault.  I would ask you to make sure that they are the best that you have.  We will need soldiers that we can trust with the plan.  We will meet at Lord Daniel of Diafor’s castle in a week.”
    When I had finished, all of the lords stood up and left the room.  Most of the lords quickly left for their countries.  These were the ones who lived far away and needed all the time they could.  A few others waited until the next day to leave.
    Once they all left, I began to muster my own troops.  I selected the best captains and generals that were fit to fight and asked them to pick the most reliable of their soldiers.  Within a day, I had the full list of those that were going with me to Diafor.
    Two days after all the lords had left I left my castle with my troops to go to Diafor.  Before we left the castle, I had made sure that each man had a loud horn at his side.  In the cook’s cart, I had ordered some men to place all the torches we would need.
    Since we were all on horseback, we arrived one day early to Diafor.  Lord Daniel had not been expecting us, but he accommodated us quickly.  Within the next two days, all the other lords arrived with their men.
    Two days after we had planned to meet, we decided that it was the night to attack.  There would not be any moon that night.  This would give us an extra cover as we moved into position.  There were more men than we thought we needed at first.  In a quick council with the lords, we decided to place all the men on the hills around the valley instead of just the original thought of five hundred.
    Later that night, my horse was fidgeting beneath me as we stood on a hill surrounding the Introsal camp.  All our men were strategically placed around the valley waiting for my signal.  I still saw many men in the camp moving around.  We had to wait until most of the soldiers were asleep to attack.  We had avoided detection by Introsal scouting parties and were hoping to make a surprise attack.
    Finally I could see very little movement in the camp below.  Fires had been put out and there were very few torches moving around the camp.  The timing was perfect.  I raised my horn to my lips and blew a long clear note.  Immediately, I yanked the cover off the torch I held in my other hand.  I could see similar lights being uncovered all around the valley.  I blew another clear note on the horn and this time every horn of every man in the perimeter sang along with mine.  Then we charged.
    The alarm horns sounded in the camp below, but most of the men were already running like madmen trying to escape the onslaught.  A few were able to escape through the line of our horsemen and disappear into the outside woods.  Some killed themselves and their comrades to avoid getting killed by, what they thought, was a large army.  What most did, however, was throw themselves on the ground pleading for mercy.  Our soldiers had orders not to kill men that surrendered but guard them and not allow them to escape.   
    Followed by the other seven lords, I rode into the middle of the camp and surrounded the largest tent of all.  I rode to the front door of the tent and waited.  In less than a minute, a fat man with a coarse, long, black beard came waddling out of the tent with a surprised look on his face.  He was wearing a heavy gold crown on his head and a white silk nightgown.  As soon as he saw me, he stopped and tried to run back inside.  I jumped off my horse and grabbed him by the nightgown.  I threw him on the ground and drew my sword.
    “King Amori,” I said pointing my sword at his neck.  “You are an evil king that has tried to control countries that are not your own.  You deserve death for enslaving other nations and for trying to invade a country that had not done you any harm.  I will give you a choice.  You can die right here, right now, or you can come as a prisoner to Endor and keep your life.  In any occasion, you must free the nations you have enslaved and renounce the claim of Introsal Emperor.”
    He glared at me for a full minute before answering in a rough voice, “I would rather die than be a prisoner of cowards that attack at night!  Kill me swiftly and take my life like you know you should.”
    “You have made your choice.”  I said to him.  “I shall not kill you.  I will not give you the satisfaction you desire.  Take this knife and do your duty inside your tent.”
    King Amori took the knife, stood up, and walked into his tent glaring at me the entire way.  I then left twenty guards around the tent to make sure he would not try to escape and rode around the camp trying to find the rest of the Introsal troops.  I found a large group standing in the field next to the camp.  They were huddling together watching their guards with scared expressions on their faces.
    “Your king is dead!” I called out to them from where I was.  “He has just killed himself after refusing an offer to surrender and keep his life.  I now set you free and bid you return to your countries and try to rebuild them into good countries that will prosper and be able to govern themselves.”
    Immediately the whole group started murmuring to each other without moving.  Finally, one young man with a scared look on his face walked up to me and said, “My lord, how are we supposed to rebuild our countries?  They have been part of the Introsal Dominions for so long that nobody remembers how they were before that.”
    “What is your name, young man?”  I asked him.
    “Thomas, my lord.”
    “Well, Thomas, you are doing it.  All you need to do to build up a country is find leaders like yourself who are willing to take a risk and try something different.”
    Thomas looked up at me and smiled, then walked away into the camp as the rest of the company followed him.  I watched the whole group pack up their things then walk away towards their countries with their heads held high.  They were free and they were enjoying every second of it.
    That was three years ago.  Now the Introsal Dominions have become the Introsal Alliance.  There is constant trade between the two Alliances.  Thomas, the young man from the war is now the Lord of this Alliance and is leading the people well.  Everyone loves him.
    I stare out at the ocean, hear its roar and I smile.  I know that the world is a better place to live now.  No one has to fear their own neighbor.  Some risks must be taken in order to gain a freedom and peace like no other.  But over every risk we must take, we must trust our leaders and elders to do what is best for the whole.