[Mkguild] Start with an empty sheet (2) - revised #2

[Prof]

Greetings,
dear Keepers!

 

I send you
another (and hopefully the last) revised version of part 2 of my story. 

Again I
must thank Elliott Olson for taking his time to proof read it. You were a great
help. 

 

Sincerely

 

Prof





Part II

 

 

„Richard, Kaplan, Wayne, Adam, Dan, Carl, Egon, Peter, Ray, Winston…”

 

“Enough Hiram, please. My head’s pounding.” 

 

I had to stop the continuous flood of names and names and names, the
seemingly inexhaustible fennec feed me since we made stop for rest. I sat
slumped down against a tree trunk, eyes closed and panting. It was shortly after
noon and the temperatures still rising, high enough to make me very uncomfortable
under my thick pelt. 

 

I was hungry for something real. 

 

“No luck so far?” His voice came from somewhere above me. I looked up
and spotted him in the crown of an oak, where he retrieved a backpack. “Nothing
that sounds familiar?” 

 

I shook my head. “No bell’s ringing. Let’s just settle for Mark.” 

 

My new friend jumped back to the leaf-covered ground and opened the bag.
Rummaging through it he asked: “Is there a special reason for your choice?” 

 

A frustrated hiss escaped my muzzle. “No, to me it doesn’t feel more
known than Edgar, Hassan, OIaf, Cabracan – seriously Hiram, Cabracan? – Or
Xiao. I simply like it.” 

 

Grumbly I added: “Besides, ‘Dreamer’ sounds kinda lofty, now as I think
about it.” 

 

The fennec made no attempt to conceal his giggle. Finally finished with
his expedition through the depths of his backpack, he tossed me a water skin
and something wrapped in wax paper which smells made me swim in drool. 

 

“Your decision. Then it’s Mark Dreamer for the moment. Plus any
nicknames me or any of my friends come up with”, he declared. 

 

My reply was something muffled, mouth full with dried meat. 

 

His smile grew sardonic. “And I don’t believe it will take long for you
to get the first one, ‘Stripper’.” 

 

His gentle laughter drowned my very eloquent “Hey!” He lifted his paws in
defence. “I’m just teasing you, sorry. But the problem’s still present. We need
something to cover you. Couldn’t let the ladies see you like this, all in the
buff. Lessee…”

And again his arms dived into the bag. “Too bad I didn’t bring some
spare duds.”

 

“Lucky me”, I remarked dryly, after a glimpse at his narrow hips. “I
would die by suffocation, but modest at least.” 

 

It’s almost a dramatic view, watching the tremendous ears of a fennec
fall back. “Touché”, Hiram said. “I think I deserved this one”, with these
words he threw me another bundle.

 

Let’s say I was, uhm, slightly puzzled after I unfolded it.  

 

“A towel?” 

 

“Big enough to swathe even your waist in it.” 

 

“You don’t have a spare of clothes but a towel?” 

 

He shrugged. “You never know.” 

 

Eventually the absurdity of this situation brought a smile to me. And as
I was busy covering my bareness, my talkative companion did his best to fill
the silence. 

“You know, a skirt…” “Kilt!” I demanded 

 

“You know, a… kilt”, he chuckled “Has its merits, especially for you, in
this conditions.”

 

On my clueless look he added: “Better ventilation.”

 

My expression must’ve been priceless. First he started to giggle, then
me too. That went on for some minutes, every time one of us got his senses back
together; the giggles of the other incinerated the fit anew. 

 

Oh man, it did me a great deal to laugh. 

 

To be honest, Hiram had a point. Even my impromptu-kilt was almost too
much for me in the summery heat. A properly pair of trousers would certainly
set me ablaze. 

 

*****

 

Finally our laughter subsided and my mood swung back to the opposing
side. I can tell you, my sudden high and lows started to tire me. But now I had
more time for questions and Hiram for answering them.

 

“Hiram, when I tell you I’m sure that I wasn’t always a Leopard, you
wouldn’t be surprised, wouldn’t you?”

 

He gave me a sympathetic and sad look. Maybe my friend feared this
question more than me. “I wouldn’t, Mark. You were once human, like me.” 

 

“What happened?”

 

“Metamor Keep happened”, he looked skyward and took a deep breath. “Gods,
I don’t know where to start. It’s a long story for long nights and…” 

 

“… And you don’t have hours to waste, not even minutes, fool!”

 

Like a blade this harsh words cut Hiram’s sentence and the peaceful
atmosphere of the place. In a blink the fennec was on his feet, sword in his
paw. And a heartbeat later I realised, me too, claws unsheathed. This one time
I’ve been glad for the arbitrary acts of my body. 

 

Then the owner of the unfamiliar voice appeared in my view, leaving its
hiding place. Immediately Hiram relaxed. And me, well, I stared. 

 

Have you ever seen paintings or statues of goddesses of war? Perfect
sculpted bodies, athletic but still very feminine, clad in chain mail and
leather, wielding shield and sword.  And
unbridled wisps of golden hair flowing from under the helmet down to their shoulders.  

 

Uhm, to be honest I’m not sure about the portrayals, but at that moment
I’ve seen one in flesh and blood! And I almost forgot to mention her steel-blue
eyes, currently busy burning holes in both of us, although the fennec got the
most of it. 

 

“By the gods, Hiram! You still wonder why you’re no scout? These aren’t
the gardens of the Keep. Lutins were seen near here! 

 

My friend literally shrank by almost a foot and not only because his
ears laid themselves against his head. The mixtures of emotions on his face
were of a kind, no one gladly would let them be seen by anyone else. Most of
them were tied with embarrassment and shame. I almost felt pity for him until
her gaze of death nailed me to my spot. I readied myself for the inevitable
scolding I was about to endure next. 

 

But it didn’t came. The goddess looked at me silent for some moments in
which my anxiety grew some magnitudes more. Then she just turned away from me,
and I’m almost sure I saw her lips twitch, like she’s been stifling a smile. 

 

“You might cover yourself now.”

 

This took a moment for me to mentally recite and sort it out, definitely
a change of subject I’ve had not expected. A careful look down my front
revealed, if you’re forgiving me the figure of speech, the discreditable truth.
Intent of not letting myself getting fazed by it I snorted. “Yeah, it slipped.
It is no plate armour. It’s a freaking towel!” 

 

Again I wrapped myself in the off-white linen, (Did I mentioned the
little foxes printed on it?) this time with a tighter knot. Hiram’s voice seemed
absent for now, so it was on me to participate in the talking. “Forgive me for
I am curious, but how long have you been here?”

 

“Long enough. And be thankful it’s only us. Your stupid cackling was
loud enough to alarm half of the forest.” Cute. Beyond doubt not a friend of
sweet-talk. 

 

The fennec cleared his throat. “I may as well introduce you. Mark
Dreamer, meet squad leader Demeter E. Skylark. And the imp behind you is called
Dustin.” 

 

I whirled around. Indeed, there stood someone, two steps away from me, bearing
a boastful, dirty grin.

 

It’s hard to remember now what shocked me more: That I never even got the
slightest indication or hunch someone sneaked up to me, or that my stalker was
a little boy! 

 

I estimated him around 12 years. With little higher heels he would reach
four and a half feet, and 80 pounds if soaked wet. Messy black hair that needed
a cut, lively brown eyes, freckles, grimy leaf green tunic, brown breaches in
the same condition and ditto for the boots; all in all the typical kid you’d
expect to frolic around in the fields.

 

With the exception that on his belt, well, that wasn’t a slingshot. Throwing
daggers, half a dozen of them and a pair long knifes. 

 

Dustin did nothing to interrupt my gawking, clearly enjoying the
attention. At the same time a hushed conversation unfolded between the others,
mostly unnoticed from my side. Only when Demeter got a little louder my
attention snapped back to them. 

 

“Two squads are on the way, we round them up. And you’re going with us,
long-ear. We could use another good archer.” Hiram made no attempt to object, I
could imagine there was nothing less expected. 

 

And again, her finger pointed at me. “What about him. Can he at least
move silent?”

 

“Sure”, Hiram said, “he passed me only a few steps away and I almost
didn’t notice him.”

 

Demeter looked not very convinced. “Given how easily distracted you are,
that means not much. I can’t bother with him now. He will stay back. 

 

“Dustin, the same goes for you. Keep an eye on spotty.” With a raised
finger she subdued his upcoming protest. Mumbling some things for which he
seemed way too young, the boy submitted.
He shot a dour look at her back and a resigned one to me. “Just stay close to
me and be quiet. I get you out of here.”

 

Surprises were a part of my life since I opened up eyes, and if a scrawny
child were chosen to look after me… FINE! 

 

The moment Demeter moved, suddenly shades appeared in the thicket,
heading the same direction as her. Maybe five, probably more. Dustin commented
my startled expression with a crooked smile and a slap on my back. “Bam, you’re
dead”, he whispered. 

 

*****

 

They vanished between the trees, without trace and without sound. Even
Skylark in her heavy armour, which must’ve been enchanted in some ways. 

 

We followed them in some distance. To be more precise: Dustin followed
and I trailed him as soundless as possible. 

 

Maybe you can imagine the multitude of questions burning on my tongue, for
I had absolutely no clue what I had myself gotten into and what kind of weirdos
dragged me around. 

 

Yes, I was pretty frustrated. Blame my instable mood. 

 

That went on for some time, sneaking, not saying a word, brooding (that
one went for me, I didn’t knew about the boy) and slowly accumulating tension. 

 

The term lutin wasn’t entirely unknown to me. I associated it with
“nasty, little, murderous vermin”. Kill them or be killed. To me it’s been very
obvious what “We round them up” meant. The Keepers were out to spill blood, a live
and death fight ahead. And with a sparse portion of bad luck, me and my little guide
would be involved. 

 

I froze in mid-step and perked my ears. Dustin, who noticed that
something wasn’t right, got a signal from me to stay quiet. Of course he
couldn’t have heard. Human ears were such a dull tool. Closing my eyes I tried
to concentrate harder, I’ve been sure there was a scream. 

 

A thunderous roar nearly deafened me and let my tail fluff up like a
bottlebrush. 

 

Forrest’s aren’t suited for people who like to have the great overview.
I only got glimpses of something that gave me the impression of a quick
spreading wildfire, though the flames died as fast as they have been appeared
in the first place. 

 

Dustin touched my wrist to get my attention. His undying smile had
changed into a grim and dark one, badly misplaced on the face of a, uhm,
innocent kid. “Heh, firefoxy is doing his mojo!” (Don’t ask me, I’m writing it
down exactly as how he said it.)

 

Now that my ears recovered from the first hit I was able to hear it:
Screams of pain and rage, battle cries, the clank of metal against metal, the
dreadful melody of combat. 

 

Of course the boy seemed completely unimpressed by the fact that only a
short walk away people died. I hoped it would be mostly lutins. 

 

For Dustin obviously no question it would. “Shouldn’t take them long.
Come on, let’s look for refugees. “

 

Wait, what?!

 

I don’t know how he did it, but the next moment I remember he moved
toward the carnage. And a moron who currently called himself Mark, well he
followed. Again it is necessary to be honest with you. The prospect of hunting
and killing touched something in me. I prefer to call it my feral side. I was
frightened and cursed myself for approaching the battleground instead of
running from it. Though at the same time thrilled and hungry for some serious
violence. A streak of mine I’m not proud of. 

 

All thoughts of my conflicting emotions were erased from my mind the heartbeat,
something within the bushes in front of us screeched. Then a bunch of ugly,
little green-skinned creatures left their cover, charging in our direction.
They were four (but I couldn’t tell exactly at that moment) and in retrospect
more scared to meet us than vice versa. 

 

The foremost of them had only a short appearance. After two steps he reeled
backward, one of Dustin’s daggers had found their mark. Of the remaining lutins
two bolted at the boy, believing him the easier target and I got the last one. 

 

Instinctively I knew what to do. Evidently there were some things you
couldn’t unlearn, like breathing. Apparently I was that intense trained to
execute some fighting moves, I could perform them automatically.

 

Unfortunately my altered body wasn’t part of the equation. The different
stance and balance, caused by my animalistic feet and tail proved to be
disastrous. 

 

Whatever I had intended, it run to the place where failed ideas are
going. Suddenly one foot got in the way of the other and my brilliant sweep
changed into a lurch. Bad turn of events? It could have been worse; I guess it
surprised both of us. 

 

The lutin’s Dagger, clearly aimed for something important, hit only my
right arm, below the shoulder. I won’t describe the feeling, though it’s been
oddly familiar. 

 

The next couple of moments were shrouded by a red veil. I grabbed the
weapon hand of my opponent with my left and then… I will spare you the details;
still I can not believe I’m capable of doing such things. Some time I think
I’ll never get the taste of blood out of my mouth. 

 

I came back to my senses as a body crushed into the undergrowth beside
me, missing my head by inches. The corpse of a green-skin, almost as terribly
mauled as my victim, a good part of its throat missing. 

 

Gods, I totally forgot Dustin! Frantic I struggled to get back on my
paws, not that easy ‘cause my right arm refused to work. Where’s the boy? 

 

What boy?

 

There stood someone, the carcass of the last lutin at his hind paws. A
juvenile wolf of five feet, on two legs like the fennec and me. With hazel fur,
wearing Dustin’s clothes sans the boots, which were missing. I would have
deemed him rather cute, weren’t it for some distressing details. 

 

Details, what details? I should speak it out for everyone to hear:
blood. It covered his clothes, his muzzle and above all his paw hands. 

 

Seemingly for an eternity no one of us spoke. Again, like at my first
encounter with Hiram, my mind ceased working, a few times more and it would
become a habit. 

 

The other one now looked more mortified than menacing. His ears were
folded back and the tip of his tail visible between his knees. “I lost
composure.” Even with my keen ears I almost overheard him whisper. 

 

“Aw, don’t worry”, I said, trying to sound nonchalantly. “Me too. Hey,
could you teach me that trick?” 

 

“Trick?” 

 

“You know, change back into a human.” 

 

He winced at this, hard. I presume I hit a very sore spot. Then he
pinched his muzzle bridge, not caring for the red marks his finger pads left
behind. “All right, you really don’t know anything. No, you can’t change back.”

 

“But…”

 

“You can’t! Nor can Hiram or Demeter or another Keeper. I’m different.”

 

I chuckled. “With you there are many stages of ‘different’.” 

 

At last a smile! Now the wolf pup looked a lot more like the old Dustin.
“You have no idea.” A deep inhale. “I’m a werewolf.” 

 

Pause

 

“You’re not surprised.”

 

“Should I?” 

 

Pause

 

“I guess not.”  With a pleading
expression (look at this puppy eyes!) he added: “Please don’t tell anyone. As
you can see, I’m not good at keeping secrets, but I’m really trying.”

 

“Don’t worry, pup. I keep my lips shut.” 

 

I learned a valuable lesson about keepers that day: Expect always more
than meets the eye. 

 

*****

 

 “Enough of me”, Dustin called.
“What about you spotty, you’re bleeding like a pig!” 

 

“Oh, that”, I mumbled, all of a sudden feeling a little light-headed. I
haven’t thought of the wound, which looked darn deep and was heavily bleeding.
Nevertheless I felt no pain; on a second thought I felt nothing of my entire
right arm. “Looks not so good, but I feel nothing. I, I can’t move my arm.” My
utterance turned slurry and I started to stagger. “Feeling funny.”

 

Dustin jumped to the lutin I had killed. He looked around until he found
the creature’s weapon. He sniffed the part of the blade not stained with my
blood and wrinkled his nose in disgust. 

 

“Blast, its poisoned!” 

 

My legs gave way eventually. Dustin’s small frame had no chance to
support me, so he had to let me fall. It wasn’t that awful, the ground was
covered in thick layers of leaves. Actually a good place to take a nap. These
and similar thoughts flew through my increasing clouded mind, as I slowly
drifted away. Barely could I feel Dustin shaking me, desperately trying to keep
me awake. 

 

Stinging pain made me yell and open my eyes wide. A paw with sharp claws
seized my ear and forced me to look into the face of my tormentor. It was the
boy, still in his wolven shape. And I could see some silvery hair sticking
between his canine teeth. He had bitten my tail! 

 

“Fight, spotty! You will not going that easy.” 

 

If I had had enough air to laugh, I’d probably given it a try. So I
attempted to smile the human way. Not sure how good I’ve been, but the message
got through. “I’m here, boy”, I murmured. “And I have no desire to leave. Do
that again, if necessary.”

 

That brought the smile back on his furry cheeks. “I will, spotty. Better
believe it.

 

“MEDIC!”

 

****

 

I remember nothing more until I regained consciousness, wondering why
the ground beneath me shook so violently. Opening my eyes was quite a task, for
they gathered pounds in weight somehow. 

 

The “shaking ground” turned out to be a litter; made out of two branches
and some cloth (thankfully not my towel), carried by two big people I wasn’t
acquainted to. I felt like a well used piece of chewing tobacco, the taste in
my mouth that horrible, it must have been medicine. 

 

“He’s awake!”

 

I didn’t recognise the voice or the face appearing in my view, but
within a moment two known ones joined her. 

 

“Welcome back to the land of the living”, Hiram shouted. 

 

“We were almost worried, spotty”, Dustin chimed in, now back in his
human form and relatively clean. Both seemed noticeable relieved. 

 

I tried to speak, an undertaking crowned by success, to my great
pleasure. “Good to see you guys. Don’t worry, I feel fine.”

 

A shameless lie. And a very obvious one, as the third visitor on my
sickbed, a tiger striped grey cat, hurried to attest. “You’re an awful
incompetent liar. Weren’t it for my antidote, you would probably be dead now.” 

 

“Meet Siren Andred”, Dustin said. “Our field medic and the woman who
saved your furry…” 

 

“Language, boy!” Siren scolded, though she did it with a smirk.
“Besides, what are you doing here, back to your position!” 

 

On our way back to the Keep Hiram finally got enough time to fill some
of the deepest gaps in my knowledge about him, his fellow keepers and the place
we were approaching. He told me about the battle of the Three Gates, the dark wizard
Nasoj and the three curses he threw on Metamor Keep. Everyone, who dwelled
longer than a few days in the vicinity of the keep, would be afflicted by one
of them. The first one changed someone in the opposite gender, the second in
something animal-like and the third in a child. Inevitable and irreversible. 

 

Yes, now a few things about squad leader Skylark made sense (by the way,
the “E” in her name stood for Edward, her former name as a man). And somewhat
more about Dustin. In fact, the little rascal is 35, married and father of two
kids. 

 

Whatever Siren made me drink when I was out, it did miracles. I got
increasingly better, weren’t it for my thick bandaged arm, it’s possible I
would have tried to stand up. And Siren unquestionably would have beaten me
down for it. 

 

Maybe you’re waiting for me to tell you about the first time my eyes
fell on the majestic edifice named Metamor Keep. I must disappoint you, I slept
through it. The first thing I’d seen of the Keep was the infirmary. 

 

*****

 

The nimble Hands of the healer fastened the bandage with a pin. 

“There. The dagger had damaged a tendon. I repaired it and now the wound
will heal fast and nicely.”

 

Carefully I tried to move my arm, it worked. Despite the painkiller
which made my head swim, it hurt like another stab, but I could use it again. This
“lyte”-magic my helper used was really a neat thing. 

 

The small racoon gave me a disapproving look. “You shouldn’t do that too
often, or the stitches will not hold. Take this.” With these words he handed me
a sling. “But as you can see, it works. No need to look that tense.” 

 

His bright smile was contagious and, I must admit, made it worse for me.
It was good that he interpreted my behaviour as tense. In reality I practically
sat on my hands to keep them from petting this adorable little coon boy. Not
only looked he like a racoon, he also had the body of a cub, eight to ten
years, maybe younger. But now I’ve been told about the curses of Metamor Keep
and knew that within this cuddly hull a grown man was stuck. And my attempt to
pet him would, without doubt, both of us embarrass to death.

 

Eventually I managed it to stretch my healthy hand out to shake his
(left-to-right handshakes are awkward, let me tell you). “Thank you Doc, by the
way I’m Mark.” 

 

“Err, no, I'm not the doctor. I'm the
doctor's assistant. And my name is Kiba.” 

 

“Lucky me you’re here today. Well, that took care of my body and now I
need something for my soul.”

 

“Oh, if you need a place to pray”, Kiba declared, “we have Temples for both the Lothanasi
and…” 

 

“Uhm no, you misunderstood me Kiba.” I had no idea which denomination I had
followed before my amnesia. And I wasn’t in a hurry to find me a new one. Not
until some of the more mundane tasks were settled. 

 

“I mean, where can I get a good ale here?” 

 

I think I found another new friend that day. He led me to a tavern known
as the Deaf Mule and introduced me to a lot of people. I finally got my ale and
Kiba told me some stories about the Keep (he actually loves it to get scratched
between his ears, who would have thought).

 

Siren caught me there. I almost gave her a heart attack, seeing me
sitting on a table, a tankard on my side, instead of lying in a bed. I will not
repeat the fierce wigging she gave me and my companions, my ears still burning.


 

*****

 

It seems I need to find an end now. Most of the story is already told
and Dustin has arrived. At the moment he’s waiting impatiently for me to set
the quill aside (in case you’re wondering, it turned out that I’m left-handed).
He’ll give me the grand tour through the Keep, declaring I should not share the
same fate as him and fall into Copernicus´ clutches. After that I have an appointment
with healer Coe, concerning my lost memories. 

 

There are still empty sheets left. I will fill them with events I’m
going to witness in the future, hopefully not too many unpleasant ones. 

 

But for now this is the end. 

 

 

Sincerely

 

Mark Dreamer








!DSPAM:4be74150103391804284693!
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.integral.org/archives/mkguild/attachments/20100509/60f1aefb/attachment-0001.html>