Chapter 1
It is a great day outside with bright sun, blue sky and puffy white clouds but I am so very depressed. It is a sad thing to feel this negative on a day like this. Strange how things work out, at 20 I thought that my beautiful bride would love me forever and that we would grow old together. BOY, WAS I EVER WRONG!!! The "sweet" young thing just wanted to get away from her old man. Once we were married she turned into a shrew. I could do nothing right! 40 years later and more than a few infidelities on her part, we divorced.
At age 60 I sit alone, with poor health; because I waited too long to leave.
I now know that it is a myth that one should not divorce for the sake of the children. My kids, though grown, are screwed up because of the turmoil in their lives as children. I am too sick to do much of anything most of the time. One positive thing, though, is that on a good day I can go and do as I wish... within my limitations. Well, that which is past must be released, and one must go forward into the future without looking too often into the past.
Perhaps a little antiquing will help lift me from this depression. Being that I am an artist and metal smith, I sometimes make things out of items found in antique stores. Today I am in the mood for finials that would work as cane or staff heads.
It was now evening, and I had spent the whole day digging through various shops in fruitless effort. Finally, near the closing of the last store of the day, I found my mood in the most elevated state that I had experienced in months. In a rather nasty pile of junk, I found a box that was of interest to me. The box was an old wooden shipping crate. It was filled with excelsior and finials. It looked as if it had not been moved since the store had opened, in 1908. The owner said that he was glad to get rid of it, as the crate was just taking up valuable space. I bought the lot for ten dollars. I took the crate out to my car, which I had left parked in the alley beside the store.
All of a sudden I felt... well, free of pain, and energized.
Then it happened!
I heard a voice saying, "Help her! They are raping her at the end of the alley!"
I felt compelled to obey. I grabbed my cane and ran. Now at the time I did not think about it. But I had not been able to run for ten years, because of various leg and back problems. Here I was though, racing like an Olympic sprinter, holding my cane as a weapon. My cane makes a very good weapon since it is a naturally hard wood that had grown out of a rock pile. That pile made the wood tough and twisted, so it was good for hooking or clubbing.
At the end of the alley I stopped to peer around a dumpster and saw the rape in progress. There were three men intent on the business of the moment, unaware of my presence. A huge man was ravishing a twisting, kicking and screaming woman that was lying on her back, while another man held her arms over her head. The third man was in the process of lowering his jeans so that he could replace the big man.
I moved ahead as quietly as I could and attacked the first man with a blow on the outside of his right knee. I heard it snap as he fell to the ground, screaming. The man holding the woman's arms rose up, and came toward me drawing a large butterfly knife. Moving faster than I ever have in my life, I struck the wrist of his knife hand so hard that I could hear the bones fracturing. Where did all this strength and agility come from? Instead of being stopped, the man became enraged and charged me. I spun my cane around. I caught the crazed attacker just under the nose at an upward angle with my cane, with such force that the bones in his nose went straight into his brain. He was dead before he hit the ground.
While all this was going on the big man just kept raping the hapless woman. As he weighed at least three hundred pounds, and was nearly seven feet tall, I am sure that this giant did not consider me a real threat. I moved behind the rapist and hooked my stick under his jaw and levered my end down toward his back. This did several things: it rocked his head back, it cut off his air, and it caused him to grab at his throat with his hands while arching back and up. With her attacker now rearing up to relieve the pressure on his airway, the woman now had use of her arms and hands.
I yelled, "Lady, jam your thumbs into his eyes as hard as you can!"
This woman had long nails, and she used them to good effect! She sunk her thumbs past the first knuckle puncturing the eyeballs of her rapist. Even with the stick around his throat, the behemoth let out a scream of pain and fury that was unlike anything I have ever heard. He grabbed her wrists and stood up, with both of us hanging from him. I dropped to the ground, unhooked my cane from his neck, and struck between his legs with all that I had. Again, he screamed. He doubled over holding his groin with one hand, but still held the wrist of the woman with the other. I followed with a strike to the arm that held the woman, but to no avail. Next I hit at his elbow. That did the trick, as his hand went limp with the force of the blow. Her sudden release caused the woman to fall to the ground. I quickly grabbed her, and dragged her away.
The giant rose again, and started to thrash his way blindly toward us. I stepped forward, and made a final strike at his larynx. I swung as if I were hitting a home run out of the park. He stopped. He stood there, with his mouth open, trying to breathe. Since his airway was crushed, there was no way for the air to get to his lungs. He fell to his knees, then to his face as he died. As all this transpired, the first man had crawled to his car, and opened the trunk. He was loading a shotgun. The voice that I had heard earlier warned me that he was arming himself. The whole battle had lasted no more than thirty or forty seconds, but the last miscreant had made it to his car, and to his gun!
I picked up a stone, and hurled it as hard as I could. Surprise, surprise! I hit him in the face. As he fell, I ran towards him. I arrived at his side, and was astonished to see that he had fallen against a broken railing and impaled himself. He tried to bring his weapon to bear, but just did not have sufficient life left in himself to complete the act. He died with his frustration plainly upon his face.
The voice then told me to gather the woman and any evidence of her being there, and to leave quickly. I went to the woman and asked her to get her things as I offered her my jacket to tie around herself to cover some of the blood and her nakedness. That blood gave me pause. If was she had not been a virgin, she was bleeding from internal injuries. I said as much. She just gave me a really sour look. I then said that if she were injured, that I would take her to a doctor. If she was but a deflowered virgin, then I would take her to her home. The look changed to one of understanding, and with a rueful half smile said that she had been a virgin, and that she was sure that she would be OK. I suggested that she get her things, including any garments that had been removed, so that the police (well known in this town for their corruption) would have no evidence to use to find her. At this she went quite pale, and scurried around gathering her handbag, suitcase, torn jeans and panties. We loaded her things into my car, and I drove away calmly, trying not to attract attention.
I drove us out of the bad section of town, towards the residential area. I could see the change of demeanor from a brave and tough young woman, to a tremblingly fragile and weeping mess, in a matter of minutes. Rocking back and forth, weeping and moaning in an ever-increasing volume; she was jamming the sleeves of my jacket, which were tied around her waist, between her thighs to cup her blood covered sex. Being just like any other man, I could not deal with the tears and shrieks from this woman. I pulled the car into a vacant lot behind a large store, and shut off the engine. When she realized that we had stopped a new look of terror filled her face. She looked around, as if to find a way to bolt from my presence.
With a voice that was firm yet non-threatening I said, "Stop your crying, and realize that you are a survivor! You have won a great victory, today, over that evil man!"
She looked at me as if I were insane. She did, however, stop crying.
I continued, "Rape is not about sex, but power! You took back your power, when you blinded that man!"
"Wait here," I said.
I went to the back of the car and retrieved her suitcase. Going to the passenger door I offered the case to her, and instructed her to get some clean clothes out, and to get dressed. At this she looked down at her nakedness, went white, and scrambled to comply.
I turned my head to give her some privacy. After I had returned the case to the trunk, and again sat behind the wheel, I turned toward her.
I said, " I am very proud of you for acting the warrior, and not the passive weak little woman! You blinded that monster without hesitation, and fought well for yourself. Just as any warrior, you emerged from the battle bruised, but not defeated. It is my honor to have assisted you."
She looked at me with great confusion on her face then turned forward and pondered what I had just said.
I, for that matter, was doing the same thing. I had no idea where what I had just said, or all that had happened, had come from.
Then I noticed a gentile whispering in my mind. It instructed me to not worry about such things, but to take the woman home, and get her cleaned and fed. I asked her where she wanted to go.
She looked at me with strong determination and said, "I have no where to go! Would you be so kind to take me to your home, so that I may clean up, and rest? Then I will try to figure out what to do next."
That was how I came to have a very beautiful young woman in my apartment. She looked to be about nineteen or twenty years old, fairly short, with a wonderful mane of wavy, mahogany colored hair. It hung down to the small of her back. I knew that it was her natural color, because I had seen her other hair during and after the battle. She had a slight but athletic frame, and small waist. She also had long legs for such a small woman.
As she sat, clean and scrubbed to a pink shine at my table, eating a light meal of fish and vegetables; I contemplated the happenings of the day. I was, to say the least, mystified at my improved health, and my newly acquired martial arts abilities. The voice in my head should be a major concern, too. But for some reason I was very calm, though I was also very curious.
"Would you mind if I stay the night?" she asked in a very soft voice that was almost a whisper.
I was glad of the opportunity to be alone to think for a while, I told her. I said she should take my bedroom for the night. As she slept I reclined on my couch considering the events of the day.
I should be terrified, I had just taken three lives, albeit, very nasty lives. Yet here I sat, perfectly calm and relaxed! Then it started again, the voice!
"Do not concern yourself. The killings will not be tied to you or to your servant."
"Servant? What servant?" I asked.
"All will be explained, in time. Be patient, for now. Please bring inside, the crate from your conveyance."
Strange as it may seem, I just went out to my car, retrieved the wooden box and returned to my apartment. Setting it on the table I removed the items. I disposed of the box and the packaging. Each item had a sphere held by an exquisitely worked metal figure. The three figures were of three dragons, each holding a different colored sphere in its hands. The first dragon held a sapphire blue sphere, and the second held an emerald green sphere. The third held a larger, clear, crystal sphere. When I picked up the last item, my hand locked onto it. I felt as if I were holding an energized high voltage wire. The shock became stronger and stronger! I fell to the floor convulsing in agony! I was thankful to pass out.
"Awake, my Lord! You must eat and drink after the transference of power."
I opened my eyes, then closed them just as quickly as I could, because of the pain. My head was splitting, and my ears were ringing. Then the pain was over ridden by great waves of nausea. I retched, again and again. Slowly the retching stopped, and I weakly crawled to my chair. I wiped my face with my long shirt's sleeves, and consumed the pitcher of water that was left from last evening's meal.
"My Lord, please! Eat! It is most imperative!"
"OK, OK!" I said.
I staggered to the refrigerator, and drank three bottles of protein drink, and a Poweraid. Feeling better, but still hungry, I consumed half a loaf of bread. I returned to my seat at the table, and looked at the 'clear dragon', which was still on the floor where I had fallen.
"You may touch me without fear of pain, now."
I looked down at the item as it sat in a fetid pool of puke. I picked up the object, washed it, and set it on the table. Then I cleaned up the mess that I had made on the floor, and on my clothing.
I sat at the table feeling queasy, badly shaken and confused.
"Just what the hell is going on here?" I asked the room since there was no one else with me at the time, or so I thought.
"I will be quite happy to explain everything to you. However, it will take an open mind, so please be patient," said the voice in my head.
"Shit! I'm losing my mind! I'm hearing a voice in my head... the first sign of schizophrenia!" I said aloud, dropping my face into my hands.
"You are quite sane, I promise you, my Lord. Just be patient with me and all will be revealed," the voice assured me.
I just sat there feeling sick, and becoming a bit afraid. My earlier calm state was being eaten away by all that was happening. I did answer in the affirmative, though. As the story unfolded my fear was replaced with wonder, tinged with just a little apprehension for what I learned.
"Many centuries ago a stone fell from the sky. It destroyed all, for many miles around its impact point. Man, beast, vegetation; all were utterly wiped out. All except that which lived near by, in a deep narrow valley. This valley was so narrow and deep, that no direct sunlight ever reached down to its floor. Because of that depth, the destructive forces mostly just passed over. A small tribe of twenty plus people lived along the stream that had, over several millennia, carved this small slot into the land. Though the stone's impact was severe enough to cause some deaths in the valley, most survived and continued on with their life. Other tribes, upon finding that the small tribe had survived such a cataclysm, considered the people of the valley holy. People from far and wide came to them for help.
"Thus was the Priesthood of the Stone founded, with the meteor as the holy of holies. The stone was a fickle thing, since it killed more often than it helped. Today we are aware that it was the radiation that was the problem.
"One day a widowed woman, heavy with child, came to the priests for a special blessing for her offspring. The priest told her that there would be a great price to pay for such a blessing. The woman said that they would both die without such a blessing, since she had no husband and the season was too late for her to find a new man. Thus the woman was taken to the great stone. She was told to sit upon its crest, until she was consumed by the power of the stone. The priests vowed that they would watch, and cut the child from her belly at her death. If the stone wished, the child would be granted her wish. The woman died, the child lived for the stone granted the request.
"Of course, the truth was that the radiation had mutated the child, causing many changes to his physiology. To those simple people, the boy was magical.
"The boy grew to manhood, never touched by sickness. He had powers that awed the people. The young man had instant and total recall. He could move objects with his mind. He was physically stronger and faster by far, than any normal person. He was extremely intelligent, soon becoming the leader of the priesthood at a very young age. After some time, it was noted that the "young" leader was not aging as the other tribe members were. As time went by, the radiation killed off the tribe, one by one. Alone in the end, the boy decided to leave the valley.
The Mage, as he was called, wandered far and wide living many identities such as Aesop, Archimedes, Merlin, and so many others. Though he aged very slowly, he did age. His power to manipulate the very elements, made it easy for him to change the way he looked. No one suspected his great age. Toward the end of his life, the thought of the loss of even a small amount of his immense power and knowledge weighed heavily upon him. He sought a way to pass on some bit of the essence of himself, and what he had learned over the millennia.
We, these items before you, are the fruit of his last labors. We were tasked to seek out three people with the genes of the Mage, and to assist in the development of those persons. We were to find a Mage and two servants/councilors. I am the leader and greatest of these objects. We are what in this era you would call, 'artificial intelligences'. However, we are actually living, sentient beings. My sisters are dormant at this time. I alone have been active since my Lord's death, searching for the right genetic makeup. You, my Lord, are the new Mage!"
I was stunned! I just sat there with my mouth open, and my mind racing. I was not special! I had been a failure all of my life! I had avoided responsibility at every turn. Now it appeared that I was to be the recipient of something very, very special. How could this be?
"Please be calm, my Lord, and I will continue."
"OK, OK," I said as I gathered my wits. "What proof can you offer me that all of this is true?"
"Perhaps you should listen to the news," the voice said.
It was time for the eleven o-clock news so I just settled myself on the sofa and grabbed the remote. The story of the hour was about the beating death of three thugs that were found earlier that evening. The killings were thought to be gang related since the three men were members of the Crips. The method of the death indicates that these murders were in retribution for "ratting out" the gang.
"Now go look at the girl sleeping in your bed. Will those two things convince you? If not, then just think about how your health and martial arts abilities have changed since you awoke this morning."
I had to agree that this was real and just sat dumbfounded.
"Are you ready now to let me proceed?" the voice asked.
"Yes," I said weakly. "But will you answer questions when asked?"
"Indeed, I will."
"OK, then. What the hell made me so sick and caused such incredible pain?" I asked peevishly.
"Ahh, yes. I am sorry that I did not warn you that something like that might happen. When you touched me I gave you just enough power to start your transformation. Each transfusion of power will hurt less and less, as your body changes. As for the illness... Well, your body is already purging itself of poisons, and the medications used to fight those poisons. Those things that have been infecting you and causing all of your health problems will decrease with each further transfusion. Oh, you should also stop taking all of those medications, now."
"You should have warned me!" I said with not a little bitterness. "Now! Who are you? I mean, just what do I call you? Why do you keep calling me your Lord and further, why have you been referring to the girl as my servant?"
"When my Lord Merlin began to create us, he named me Akili. I call you Lord, because you are our Lord and Master. I call the girl your servant because she is just that! And before you ask; yes, I made her so. I did not alter her basic being, but I did tie her to you, for the protection of you both. Your society is so upside-down; it gives the evildoer more rights than the victim. What you did today would, in all likelihood, have caused you to be imprisoned for the rest of your life. That would be counterproductive to my purpose. She is free to do as she wills, with the exception of being disloyal to you. You must tell her to never mention what happened in the alley to anyone, ever!"
"Women usually have very bad psychological problems when raped. Are you able to stop such things from happening to her?"
"Indeed. I already have."
"She is free to do whatever she wants then?"
"Yes."
"Good!" I said, feeling a wave of relief that I would not be responsible for this woman. "I guess that I'd better hear the rest of the story, then. Please proceed."
I again settled myself back on the sofa. Proceed, he did. He told me of the changes that would occur to my physical body, and to my mind as well. Akili went on to explain that with my greatly improved brain, I would become very wealthy and powerful. We conversed through the night, but I felt better than I had in decades. As the sun rose on a new day, I could hear movement in the bedroom.
Edited by TeNderLoin