Posted by admin on September 30, 2009
Suddenly there came a thought
As I sat, guided by a silent ray,
To go, to share, to help and pray,
I felt full of desire,
To shine for the world,
But I knew I could not rise.
My inner shell is too tight,
As I sit, still like a brick and listen.
Sparkling insights dance and glisten,
Along the length of my soul.
The spark calls to me.
But no, I must stay instead.
And give my light in drops,
Tiny but effective,
To burn away the loss,
Of those
who need,
or hurt,
or want,
Who pass,
unseen,
unheard,
unloved,
My way,
at home,
at school,
at play.
I will give my light
Free to all who would come until
I am fulfilled, and none
Are left empty, all
Are full.
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Posted by admin on September 28, 2009
The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep is a fantasy novel describing the adventures of Colter Halfspear as he becomes a man and an initiate of magical powers.
I was rather nervous about what we might find, and also somewhat let down. The room was essentially a library. Shelves lined the walls, packed with neatly arranged books. My first thought was that Pascalli would have me reading them for the next hundred winters whether I felt inclined or not. There was a sturdy table and two padded chairs. A lit candelabrum adorned the table, and lit lanterns hung from the ceiling in each corner of the room shedding a remarkable brilliance. In the center of the room an amazing life-like statue of white and blue marble gazed back at us.
The statue was an angelic figure, bold and strong, arrayed for battle with both spear and sword. I could just see the edges of great wings folded at his back. The face held an expression that I found both stern and defiant. His polished armor reflected slightly in the brightness of the room, and I found myself reminded of lord Kelsin as he charged into battle, though this figure far out measured Kelsin in both nobility and strength.
Pascalli gave me a soft nudge and I stepped into the room. “Take a look around, Scratch,” he suggested. “Be careful, there is something odd here.”
I crossed the room and reached to touch a book. As I reached out, a voice suddenly spoke. “The secrets of this place are the master’s alone.” The voice was strong, deep, and carried a hint of stone grating against stone. Of all the sounds a person can hear, hearing a sound such as the world has not known in a thousand winters may well be the most remarkable.
I immediately withdrew my hand and spun around. On reflex I brought my spear into a defensive position. Across the room Pascalli bolted the door, and laughed, “It appears you’ve found a new friend, Scratch.”
The statue, which had been facing the door, now stared at me. It raised its spear for a thrust.
“Only the master may touch the treasures of this place,” said the statue.
“Who precisely is your master,” asked Pascalli, his tone carrying only a hint of arrogant mockery.
“Silence, Betrayer!” boomed the statue as it spun with lightning speed to face the wizard. “My parlay with you will come soon enough.”
To my shock, Pascalli held his tongue. Something about the statue’s tone hinted at recognition of some kind between them. It turned to face me again.
“Who are you that comes with The Betrayer into my master’s realm?” it asked. I felt an icy edge to its tone.
“I am Colter Halfspear,” I replied, and then as afterthought I added, “Lord of Darnuth Keep.”
“Show your tokens,” he said.
I admit I was at a loss. I had no idea what it could be looking for, and I began to stall by fumbling in my pockets for anything.
“Surely the master has his tokens,” said the statue coldly. Pascalli caught my eye and mouthed the word rings, and encircled one finger with his other hand.
“Yes, of course,” I stammered. “Right here in my pocket.” I pulled out the pair of rings we had found in the great hall. I held them out for the statue to examine.
“Then you have not yet taken a bride,” he said. I blushed slightly and put the rings back in my pocket. “You should wear your tokens proudly. I will not ask for the medallion, for she has it.” He lingered for a moment at the unnamed enemy. “Nevertheless, you will prove yourself by test of battle.”
With no more warning, he sprang to the attack. I quickly discovered that I was very much outclassed. His movements were perfect and inhumanly fast in every way. Although I could now slip effortlessly through the forms that Pascalli had drilled into me, I could not match the speed, strength, or accuracy of this opponent. I felt the spear torn from my grip, and he hooked my off-balance heel with his foot. As I fell, his spear point followed, stopping a hair’s breadth from my throat.
“The young master is truly skilled,” it said with a humility I did not expect. “I am Golgaron, arms master of the Legion of Davmandius.” He extended a hand and helped me to my feet. Though the hand was hard as stone, it was not cold. I could feel the life inside him.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“I guard the secrets as Davmandius commanded,” he replied.
“How long have you been down here?” My curiosity was boiling over.
“I do not know,” he said. “Only one other has opened that door since Davmandius left. Time has little meaning for me.” He turned to face Pascalli, raising his spear again. “Explain yourself, Betrayer.”
“I prefer Pascalli, or wizard,” he replied. “Many things have changed since Davmandius died. I am a friend of your master.”
Golgaron turned to me. “Is this true, master?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said. “He comes as a friend and ally. I have a lot to learn, Golgaron. Tell me what has happened here.”
Pascalli and I sat at the table, grateful for the chance to rest in a quiet, warm place, and shared a simple meal of dried meat and water while Golgaron explained.
“During the last war, Davmandius brought me here to guard this place. He warned that its secrets must never fall into the hands of his enemies. Then he left and did not return. I felt him die, but that was long ago. Then she came?”
“She?” I asked. “Who is she?”
“Asmordreda,” replied the statue.
“The concubine of Delvor?” asked Pascalli incredulously.
“Yes.”
“That is very bad news,” said Pascalli, his face far more serious than I had ever seen it before. He saw the questions in my eyes and did not wait for me to voice them. “She is a very powerful demon queen. How she came to this world I can only guess.”
“She arrived shortly after the death of Davmandius, and has been spawning her children ever since. I feel their desecrating hands all over this once fair temple.”
“We killed a few on the way in,” I explained. “There are still a lot left, though.” I frowned. It was going to be a long fight to get out of there.
“Please go on.”
“She tried to come in here only once, but I killed many of her children and faced her as well. She was not able to destroy me, but I have been a prisoner here as I cannot allow her to reach these secrets.”
“By now she will know or guess that we are here,” I said. “What do you think she will do?”
“She will wait,” said Pascalli. “She will want Golgaron to leave here. She will expect us to fight, and she will know who wins, and then she will strike the weakened victor.”
“I see that The Betrayer has a cunning mind,” said the statue. “You were a most fitting opponent for Davmandius.”
“That was an old battle, and long ago,” replied Pascalli, his voice tired and suddenly very sad. “A victory I shall ever regret.”
“What happened,” I asked, but immediately regretted the question.
To my great surprise Pascalli answered without hesitation. “The last battle Golgaron refers to happened when those of us who no longer wished to follow the old code of magic rebelled against those who held to the ancient traditions. The battle began the breaking. I used cunning and artifice to lead the traditionalists into a trap. I was known ever after among wizards as The Betrayer, even by my closest friends.”
“Did you know Davmandius well?” I asked.
“He was my brother.” Pascalli stood up and faced the books, and we did not talk of those sad things again.
After several minutes, during which I think I must have dozed, Pascalli said. “You must find the secret Golgaron is guarding, Scratch. Asmordreda must be defeated.”
Copyright 2008 Kelly David Tolman
On to The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep Fantasy Novel Chapter Fifty Four
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Posted by admin on September 25, 2009
sparse words on bare
lines
seem a fraud
to the quick machinations of the mind
a skeleton
whose bones curl
at the smell of heavily versed
morality
but dead words
often hit the blunt truth
behind many thought’s thick
flesh
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Posted by admin on September 23, 2009
image mirage;
Baseball battery adding
flattery to the collage
of already half
dazed barrage
of happy sounds.
Whispy winds clim
silently the ice behind
the image of ids
and egos inside
the isolated shouts
of your mind.
Heresy says he dreams of beers and smiles
from ear to toe,
bending the earth
in its curve of doom,
wearing thin the years
of earnestness.
Image mirage.
What you thought
you saw
you didn’t hear.
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Posted by admin on September 21, 2009
The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep is a fantasy novel describing the adventures of Colter Halfspear as he becomes a man and an initiate of magical powers.
Pascalli woke me with a nudge, and I followed the direction of his pointing finger. A robed figure was moving north along the street, deeper into the occupied city.
We avoided the light of the mossy gardens as much as possible, and followed the creature. The dwellings had no windows, but they also lacked doors, each having but one opening to the street with no covering. Our greatest risk would be that we might be spotted as we passed on of these openings, but we had to match the pace of our quarry. Fortunately the chase did not last long. The main street ran in a straight line due north, and for some reason all of the locals were keeping indoors. The street ended in a wide courtyard featuring another small fountain and a wide lawn of glowing moss. The robed figure climbed a short set of stairs that made a porch before entering a large doorway.
Unlike other areas we had found so far, the courtyard was entirely lit due to the large spread of glowing moss and the large glowing mushrooms. We paused in the shadows just outside the courtyard. None of the surrounding buildings seemed to be a residence. Several creatures were talking around the fountain, or just inside the various buildings. All told, I counted twenty-one. To my surprise I saw that only two of them had visible weapons, they stood lazily guarding the entrance to the building we presumed to be the temple. The guards carried only the same shabby spears that we had encountered before. The rest of them appeared completely unconcerned about any kind of danger.
Crossing the courtyard would take several seconds at least. Pascalli pointed to my bow and then to the guards. I prepared an arrow carefully, taking my time, and set a second arrow close by where I could reach it instantly. Once the attack began we would have very little time. I loosed the second arrow while the first was still in flight, not waiting to watch my arrow pierce the left guard’s throat. We withdrew immediately to the shadows while confusion engulfed the courtyard. Two of them ran to check on the guards while the rest scattered to the cover of the other buildings.
I wasted no time killing the two that remained in the open, daring any of the others to venture out.
“Send a firestone ahead of us into the temple,” said Pascalli. “They already know where we are.”
I heated my stone as hot as I could, and sent it into the temple. When it reached the doorway Pascalli sprinted into the courtyard with me at his heels. We paused long enough to push the bodies out of the way, and followed the dim red glow of the stone inside.
For the first time I felt neither fear nor nerves as I entered a battle. I performed as ordered without hesitation. Either the winters of travel with Pascalli or the unrelenting days of strain in the darkness had edged cold calculation into my heart. I saw my movements clearly, as if watching another person.
The guards we had slain appeared to be all of the immediate fighting force. The temple itself must have originally been dedicated to Tylos, for its general construction and layout followed the pattern of all her temples, but it had long since been desecrated. The symbol of Delvor had been cut prominently into the back wall above the altar, and the place stank of rotting meat. Behind the altar I noticed a small pile of coins mixed with bones, but I was not hunting treasure or trophies. We saw two exits from the main hall, one directly at the back of the room, and a side door to our left.
“Which way?” I asked.
“You’re leading,” responded Pascalli sardonically.
“To the back then,” I replied. I hated when Pascalli chose moments like this to make me think. “What are we looking for anyway?”
“A way out,” said the wizard.
Pursuit could not be far behind, and they would certainly outnumber us. We hurried into the next room to find the priest waiting defiantly with his spear. As he hissed a warning, I sent the red-hot stone immediately to its eye, but he ducked at the last second. His movements proved futile, however, as I crossed the room in two quick steps and thrust my spear into its chest.
“Search the room for clues,” suggested Pascalli. “Go ahead and pocket any coins you find. We’ll need money to buy more supplies with when we return to the top.”
I turned up a handful of ancient coins, and a hidden lever in the back corner.
“Don’t just stand there,” commented Pascalli. “Pull the thing.”
It didn’t occur to me until much later that the lever might be trapped or guarded. In any event, we proved lucky, and a hidden staircase opened behind the back wall.
The lanterns that hung from the ceiling in this portion of the temple remained intact, a strong indication that the lizard creatures had not come here, at least not often. As we proceeded from place to place we lit each one. The ceilings and walls of this lower section were highly polished so that the light reflected much further than expected, giving the place an almost pleasant feeling after being in near total darkness for so long. I squinted dumbly into the new light for several moments, waiting for my eyes to adjust. Then I just stared dumbly as if I had forgotten light altogether.
“I almost forgot what light was,” said Pascalli lightly.
The main passageway split off after a very short while with a hall to the left and a hall to the right. Doors were visible only to the left.
“Left or right?” I asked. Pascalli simply shrugged, and I led us down the passage to the right.
The corridors and rooms beneath the temple of Delver were completely free of dust and debris. In the underground city almost everything left footprints or other sign as they passed through the fungus gardens that allowed us to track or be tracked. Here the place appeared locked in time. No sounds broke the silence, other than our soft steps and gentle breathing. I wanted to voice my opinion about these changes, but didn’t dare draw attention to us in the thick quiet.
The door we found, for the corridor ended quite suddenly, had been intricately inlaid with gold and silver lettering of the same kind found at the entrance to the cellars. I studied the writing silently, waiting for Pascalli to explain.
“It just says, study,” said the wizard. “Although it’s obvious this is a place of more importance than others we have visited.”
I studied the door a moment longer. “Do you think it’s safe?” I asked.
“No,” he replied firmly. “Especially not after the noise we’ve been making. But you’ve no choice. Open it and be prepared.”
I wanted to suggest that he open the door instead. I always seemed to be opening doors or charging in first, but I relented. To my surprise, it was locked or bolted.
“Definitely important, though it might be a trap,” said Pascalli. “Did Blackhand teach you how to pick a lock?”
“He explained it once,” I said. “I’ve never had a chance to practice, and I don’t have the tools he described.”
“I’ve the tools you need here,” replied the wizard. “I shall guide you. No time like the present to learn.”
As I took the tools, I wondered why Pascalli hadn’t taught me before.
“It takes a thief to catch one, or so the saying goes,” said Pascalli. “Or you can’t cheat an honest man, or something. At any rate, I’ve picked up a few tricks like this over the winters. Just remember that there are easier ways of getting rich than breaking into treasuries.”
“I’ve no intention of breaking into anything,” I replied. “As far as I can tell gold only brings trouble.”
Pascalli laughed long and hard, and a sudden comfort came over the both of us. His humor had brightened considerably in the light, and I began to feel as if we were finally nearing the end of that dark journey.
After several minute of painstaking effort and considerable noise, I managed to get the mechanism to move.
“Very good, Scratch,” said Pascalli when he heard the click. “Now hold onto that spear and let’s see what’s inside.”
Copyright 2008 Kelly David Tolman
On to The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep Fantasy Novel Chapter Fifty Three
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Posted by admin on September 18, 2009
Self Deconstruct in
Ten
Nine
Eight…
Stop!
Turn left
At the light
Turn right
Down the street
Lights burn
Incense
Smells bad
Boys
Climb trees.
Stop!
don’t change the subject.
There’s a pattern to this.
Shut up.
I said stop!
Go!
Signifier
Left
Cycle
Black
Formal
White
Circle
Right
Signified
Stop!
Endless
Endless
Endless
Endless
What is?
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Posted by admin on September 16, 2009
Never fail to dream.
Believe there is more,
Life giving magic streams,
Bubbling on golden shores.
Or passion rending fantasies
Whose shades twist and never end,
Because of a visionary
Who builds upon a promised land.
Wear within your broken heart
The lock of happiness and joy
That comes from the dreamer’s art
Played recklessly in thoughtful ploy.
Be imagination’s well,
Even if you think you can’t.
Thrive through times of trial
And find and use all your talents.
Use the tools God gave you.
Dream, hope, and live again.
Do what spirits do,
And love, dream, fly, spin.
And do it all again.
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Posted by admin on September 14, 2009
The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep is a fantasy novel describing the adventures of Colter Halfspear as he becomes a man and an initiate of magical powers.
Judging distance in that half-light was intolerably difficult. I imagine we followed the path for less than a kilometer, but truthfully we judged time and distance only by the changes that happened to our surroundings and by the degree of weariness our bodies felt.
A distant scrape of something hard against the stone brought us up short.
Ahead and to the left grew a small grove of giant mushrooms, a few of them shedding a dim orange glow, while to our right was nothing but blackness. I called a gentle breeze to blow our scent behind us, away from the sound, and Pascalli and I took cover behind two of the lager stalks.
I am sure we made no sound while we moved, but I knew better than to rely solely on sight and sound. After a moment of tense waiting, the breeze brought the unmistakable scent that constantly surrounded the scaly green lizard-like bipeds. A group of three slowly emerged from the black shadows. Their animal faces reflected dimly in the mushroom light. Each carried a short spear in one hand, and it was obvious from their slow, calculated movements that they were searching for something.
Cautiously, I willed the breeze to change slightly. I did not want them to wander downwind of us. The instant they caught our scent we would have to fight.
I had planned on hiding and waiting for them to pass, but as they drew nearer Pascalli suddenly leapt from hiding and set about them with amazing speed. His staff was a whirlwind of motion, and they were caught by complete surprise. He had cracked two skulls before they turned to face him, and the third was down before its spear could even be brought into play.
“There is no point trying to hide from a group this small,” he said. “Search them. There may be more clues.”
Obediently, I began rifling through the pouches and pockets, ignoring the stench they brought. Each carried a small earthenware jar of water as well as a small packet of either fungus or dried meat. “Just food and water,” I said.
“They were hunting for something,” replied Pascalli. “Either us or food.”
“Either way we are closer,” I said. “We should probably avoid the path as much as possible. There will be more of them.”
“Very well, but we will let none of them escape that we find,” replied the wizard. “Fear is a great tool, and if enough of these things disappear to unknown enemies they will take the defensive and stop venturing out. The less they know about us, the better.”
The patches of giant fungus slowly became a forest though which the stone path meandered carelessly. Though there was little undergrowth like we would find in a forest above the ground, we moved at an excruciatingly slow pace. Each sound carried too far for comfort, and neither of us trusted the black mushrooms as safe.
We dispatched two more groups of the creatures as well as a large lion. We cut the lion into strips, risking a little light to work by. “We need food,” I complained.
Pascalli nodded his agreement. “We can risk a day to jerk some of it, though the smell may attract predators. I don’t know how much longer we will be down here.”
The dried out mushrooms burned poorly, and they gave the meat a bitter taste, but at least it would no longer spoil. Though the ceiling was high, the smoke still clouded and smoked more than we wanted, and I eventually had to use magic to create a breeze to carry it away from us.
“Blow it back the way we came,” suggested Pascalli. “No point giving any more warning than we need to whatever lies ahead of us.”
Eventually we saw another glowing fountain ahead of us and to the left. This one was much less impressive than the water we had rested near, but its glowing bubbles remained a thing of beauty. Careful to make no sound, I took out my canteen and motioned to Pascalli. He nodded his agreement, and handed me a second canteen.
The lizard scent wafted suddenly very strong as I approached the water. I slipped quietly back into the shadows to watch. Several small patches of moss glowed dimly around the pillars that marked the buildings in this area. The sound of shuffling feet brought us up short, and we waited in silence for the sound to pass. Two quiet figures came to the fountain and filled large earthenware pots with water. Their manner was casual, even careless, and they hissed to each other in a strange whisper, like the wind in summer grass.
They filled their pots and turned to leave. I waited just long enough for them to turn their backs before approaching the little lake. I quickly filled my own vessels. Pascalli startled me as I turned to leave.
“We have to follow them,” he whispered. I nodded and handed him his water bottle.
Careful to keep downwind, we followed them as they carried their burdens back to a tight cluster of dwellings. All of the buildings on the north side of the fountain seemed to be occupied, and a wide street ran from the fountain north through a passage between dwellings. We held to the shadows, moving as silently as possible until we reached the street and passed the first open stone houses. Then we found a quiet alley, and sat to rest and wait.
I am not sure what Pascalli expected to see, but I was waiting for one or more of the creatures to come along that looked or acted differently from the rest. In the meantime I was content to learn their habits and rest my tired feet.
Without exception each family dwelling had a large patch of glowing moss somewhere near the marking pillar. By this means we were able to discern which pillars marked homes, and which marked public buildings. Several times two or three came out for water, returning with their pots sloshing gently, but on the whole the place was very quiet. They spoke to each other with a muffled hissing language whose sound carried only a short distance.
After a short period of hiding we determined that nobody in the area knew of our presence. Pascalli signaled to me that he wanted me to take the first watch, and he drifted into silent sleep. When he woke some time later I had no recollection of how much time may have passed, and I had not seen anything of interest happening. I reluctantly lay down in the shadows and drifted again into uneasy sleep.
Copyright 2008 Kelly David Tolman
On to The Cleansing of Darnuth Keep Fantasy Novel Chapter Fifty Two
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Posted by admin on September 11, 2009
Fits rock bright days
when the black rain
comes down. My head
hurts so much. Rainbow
drops will spill
my life blood
pumps the agony
further along. Hurt
feels the poison collect
in tiny dark pools
inside. Like gators
come to feed,
the hurts
fling themselves
on My battered psyche.
The reptilian voices
ring and beat
the waves
that seek to drown
my head. But the whales
of hope drift
over to the gentle
shores. Hopes drag
only a few strands
of hot seaweed
to blank the stares
of fits that bind
when the rain falls
black.
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Posted by admin on September 8, 2009
Pounding round and round
Fingers up and fingers down.
Each key a stroke of doom
In the early afternoon.
The project must with grace
Be placed on the boss’s plate.
Ere his pronouncement make
And in the unemployment line wait.
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