Magic Ink V The Third RealityChapter 27
- 3 years ago
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New characters introduced in this chapter:
Sergeant Mulligan
Militia Sergeant, 5'-10" tall, 160 pounds, 36 years old, blond hair, blue eyes
Seamus and I transferred to the Headquarters tent. Our arrival there startled everyone. Luckily Colonel Williams was still there.
"You startle everyone when you do that!" he told us in exasperation, when he had recovered somewhat.
"Sorry sir. We're all used to it, having grown up with everyone in the family able to do it," Seamus told him.
"What can I do for you? We are a little busy preparing for the storm that is coming in," the Colonel told us.
"That's what we want to talk to you about, sir. The storm that is," I told him.
"Can you stop it?" he asked, eagerly.
"No sir. Even we can't affect that much weather. What we can do for you is to cast a defensive shell over your entire encampment. It will keep the rain out, and your people dry," I told him.
"This camp covers an extensive area. Can you cover that large an area?" the Colonel asked.
"Yes sir, it won't be a problem. We can cover a quite extensive area with a spherical defensive shell," Seamus assured him.
"And the smoke from the watch fires won't accumulate like the smoke from the gunpowder did this afternoon when the militia fired their weapons?" he asked, expectantly.
"No sir, we can create some openings for ventilation. It won't be a problem," I assured him.
"You can probably reduce the number of men on guard duty also, sir," Seamus told him.
"The men are used to pulling guard duty, and would think it strange if we were to cancel it here in the field. They would worry that something was wrong," the Colonel told us.
"So, do we have your permission to set up the defensive shell?" I asked.
"Go ahead. It can't hurt, and if it keeps us dry, we will be able to move out of here without waiting for things to dry out, or ruining our tentage, which is in short supply," he told us.
"Thank you, sir," we both said, before vanishing again to reappear in G & G's defensive shell.
"It's a go!" I told everyone gathered there, when we appeared. "Now here is what we'll need to do. Seamus and I, along with Gwyn and Glanda, will cast the defensive shell. We'll need four people with Magic-powered lanterns to be stationed at the four extreme edges of the camp. As we cast the spell and expand it, the ones with the lanterns will turn them up, and wave them to indicate when the shell has passed their position. That way we can move the center, as necessary to cover everything without making it too large," I told the others.
"What about the ventilation?" Seamus asked.
"What ventilation?" G & G immediately asked.
"There will need to be ventilation to clear out the smoke from the watch fires that will still be burning," I told them.
"And just how, dear Brother, do you intend to accomplish this?" they asked sweetly.
"By creating some openings in the shell," I told them.
"And what will keep the rain from coming in those openings?" Gwyn asked.
"Or any British waiting in the forest to attack the camp?" Glanda asked.
"We will place the openings high enough that no one will be able to use them to enter the camp," Seamus told them.
"And we will use wards over the openings to keep the rain out," I added. My Sisters looked at me thoughtfully for a few seconds after hearing this.
"Yes, that would work," Gwyn admitted. "The wards will allow air and smoke through, but would prevent anything solid, like rain, or infiltrators, from coming through."
"Who wants to be on the lanterns?" Seamus asked. Sererena and Saraid both volunteered, as did Carl and Wolf. We all transferred to our approximate positions when we were ready. The four of us appeared in the area outside the Headquarters tent, and then moved to what we thought would be the center of the camp. We wound up on one of the company streets in the infantry camp.
We quickly sat down and cast the spell for a regular spherical defensive shell. We then expanded it, and began looking for lanterns. We were beginning to draw a crowd when we saw the lanterns from the two sides and one from the area toward the stream, but we couldn't find one from the area behind the camp where the bluff was. The crowd of curious men had also increased while we searched for signs of the fourth lantern.
We quickly moved toward the bluff and lost the light from the area toward the stream. We expanded the shell some more, and soon had all four lanterns showing. We were half finished, but now had an angry Lieutenant to deal with.
"What are you people doing here," he demanded, gruffly.
"We're trying to keep everyone dry,"Gwyn told him.
"By creating a disturbance?" he demanded.
"The Chief-of-Staff approved our casting a defensive shell to keep the rain off the camp," I told him. This information didn't seem to appease him, or have any affect on him at all.
"I want you out of this company area immediately," he shouted at us.
"We will leave you in peace, in just a minute," I told him, in the old English that he had been speaking before I turned to the others.
"Let's create the highest opening here over the center," I told them in Gaelic.
"You two create the opening, Mark, and Glan and I will cast the wards over it," Gwyn told me.
"Cast your own wards around you first," I reminded the others, and we all cast our personal wards around us. Seamus and I then quickly created the opening at the top of the dome, and were rewarded with a shower of rain. It was pushed away from us by our wards, but caught the Lieutenant and several of his men in a good drenching. It only lasted for a few seconds before G & G had the opening covered by the wards. The Lieutenant was very unhappy (furious) with us, but we vanished before he could do anything.
Following that, two of us went to each lamp position to create an opening for ventilation and ward it. There had been quite a bit of commotion when the rain suddenly stopped, but it didn't last long, and everyone seemed to be glad that it was no longer raining on them. Everyone but that Lieutenant, that is. We were soon finished, and had all returned to G & G's defensive shell.
"We don't know about the rest of you, but we are going to sleep," Glanda told us. It was already dark, and the rest of us soon followed them. Jillian had moved her things over to my area and cuddled up to me after we lay down on our sleeping pads, which had been covered by our sleeping bags. I pulled my blanket up over us, and we were soon asleep after a little hugging and kissing.
It was some time later when we were all awakened by a series of blinding lightning flashes that were followed almost instantly by the crash of deep, loud thunder, that seemed to roll across the landscape of the valley. This was accompanied by a torrential downpour that beat against the defensive shell covering the camp. It was pushed by the accompanying high winds of the storm.
"What a storm!!" I heard Seamus say, across the isle from us during a lull in the thunder.
"It's a good thing that we erected that shell over the camp. This storm would have really soaked everything," Sererena said from farther down the row of sleeping pads.
"Well, I'm going back to sleep. I need my rest," Glanda told her Cousin right after that. We all tried to get back to sleep, but it took some time. Eventually the thunder and lightning moved on, but the rain and the wind continued long after that.
It was still raining, but not as hard, and the wind had moderated also, when we were all awakened by the sound of a bugle the next morning.
"Damn Army! It's too early to get up!" I heard someone say from farther down the line of sleeping bodies, but I wasn't sure who it was.
"They aren't going anywhere until we remove the defensive shell, so go back to sleep," Gwyn said in a perturbed voice to those still listening. Jillian cuddled up closer to me, and we kissed for a time before going back to sleep.
When we awoke again, it was at least light out, if not sunny. The clouds that we could see through two defensive shells were dark and foreboding and held the promise of more rain, but it wasn't raining currently.
"I'm going to cancel the defensive shell over the camp, so they can go out to get water and other things that they may need," I told the others, as we got up.
"We need to check for threats outside the shell before we cancel it," Seamus reminded me.
"Yes, an excellent idea, Cousin," I said, chagrined that I hadn't thought of it myself. I had only been thinking of what they might need to get from outside the shell.
"Maybe I should check with those at the Headquarters tent also," I added after that.
"I'll go with you when we finish," Jillian said. "I haven't seen the rest of the camp." We finished our morning rituals before leaving, believing that the Army could wait that much longer. We then transferred to the Headquarters tent, but appeared outside of it, so as not to startle those inside. A couple of the guards were shocked by our sudden appearance though.
"Are you going to be long?" Jill asked.
"I shouldn't think so," I told her.
"I'll meet you back at G & G's shell. I want to look around a little, and see what they are doing," she told me.
"Okay, don't be too long, or you'll miss breakfast. The others will eat your share," I kidded her, knowing full well that James would keep something for his twin to eat.
"Okay!" she told me with a smile, and set off to look around the camp. I went into the Headquarters tent.
"Good morning, sir," a Sergeant on duty there said as I entered. "What can we do for you?"
"I came to see if it is all right to remove the defensive shell that kept the camp dry last night?" I told him.
"I'll have to get one of the officers to answer that," he told me, and hurried over to a table where a meeting was in progress. A large man in the uniform and with the insignia that I had come to associate with a Lieutenant Colonel looked up from the meeting on hearing the Sergeant, and rose from his chair to come over to me.
"Good morning, Master Mark O'Connell. We were wondering how to remove that. Our people need to leave to draw water and cut firewood, in addition to grazing the horses, which we now have a considerable number of," the officer told me before looking past me and saying, "Good morning, General."
"Good Morning, Alex. In the future, you may address young Mark O'Connell here, as Captain O'Connell. I've issued him a commission, as Captain of Special Troops," the General told the Colonel, as he handed him a piece of paper, and then handed me a second sheet.
"You will be able to draw food and transportation for your people this way, Captain O'Connell. When we return to Lexington, you can get proper uniforms for your people. You will need to send a representative to the Quartermaster to draw rations and arrange transportation later this morning," the General informed me before turning to the Lieutenant Colonel.
"Issue orders to have the Ranger Companies scout the area as soon as the defensive shell is removed," he told him. I gave both Officers a salute before departing, as they were obviously busy.
Outside, I looked around for Jill, but didn't see her anywhere. I could detect her Talent, as she made her way through the camp on foot, and back to G & G's shell. I canceled the defensive shell and wards covering the camp before transferring back to G & G's shell to have breakfast. Everyone was certainly surprised when I told them about being commissioned a Captain, after I reappeared in the shell.
"This doesn't really change things though," I reminded them, before adding, "It does create some added responsibilities, however. The first of which is the need for someone to be the Quartermaster, and draw food and arrange transportation for us," I told them.
"And just who would that be?"Gwyn asked.
"Since you volunteered, I appoint you our Quartermaster, Lieutenant," I told her. "Glanda can be your assistant." This just got me a dirty look from both Sisters.
"Don't worry. I'm sure that there will be additional responsibilities for all of you, as we go along. C & D and D & C are already the Medical Team. All of you will get the chance for some special assignment," I told them before we all sat down to have our reconstituted freeze dried breakfast.
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New characters appearing in the next two chapters: Gerald Ward Saoirse's Father, 5'-7" tall, 165 pounds, 40 years old, brown hair and gray eyes Maureen Ward Saoirse's Mother, 5'-2" tall, 120 pounds, 36C-27-36, 34 years old, long red hair, green eyes The storm had subsided by the morning of our third day here, and it even managed to warm up a little that day, as the sun was out for most of the day. The snowshoes and toboggans had been transferred here from Mount Sterling via...
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On returning to our quarters to change clothes, Seamus and I were greeted by Cessair and Dealla, who were in an exuberant mood. "You missed the big event!" they told us joyfully. "Big event?" Seamus and I asked. "The mare delivered her foal this morning while you were gone," Cessair told us with a big smile. "We helped!" Dealla added happily, also with a smile. "You have to come to the stable and see her," Cessair told us, insistently. "Maybe we should change clothes before...
Our Sisters and female Cousins insisted on changing clothes before dinner, and the rest of us waited for them. None of us had a chance to bathe yet, but we had all washed up in our rooms. The Officers' Mess was located on the far side of General Clark's Headquarters in a separate building. During our walk there, I again paid attention to the construction of the various buildings that we passed. I had been doing that since we had arrived here, and had drawn several conclusions. The first...
Saint Patrick's Day, the 17th of March, fell on a Wednesday this year, 2032. Sean and I had already helped Dad plow the fields in late February, and we had planted the seeds by the 1st of March, as we were having a warm spring this year. The past three years had seen the last freeze in Mid-March, and it hadn't been conducive to early planting. This afternoon, we were out checking the various fields on foot with Annie and Sara. They were still new to farming, and we wanted them to see the...
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Characters introduced in this chapter: The Wizard Master Wizard of Leinster House, a tall older man of indeterminate age with a beard going gray. We were up early the next morning, and dressed for a day touring the city. We didn't wear anything too formal like a suit, or anything too sloppy like ragged jeans. Slacks and sports shirts along with comfortable pairs of athletic walking shoes completed our outfit. We left the backpacks in the room and returned our suits from last night to...
We were awakened early the next morning to the cold gray light of dawn by the Castellan calling to us through the wards across the stairwell entrance. "Master ... Master, you must come out here. Something awful has happened!" As I sat up in bed, my movement disturbed Sunshine, and she sat up also, as the Castellan continued to call to me. "What is wrong?" she asked. "I don't know. I'll have to go and see," I told her, as I pulled on my jeans and reached for my Wizard's...
The meeting that evening was held outside the main house at Hickory Hill for two reasons. First, everyone was invited, and that included all of those that worked for us and not just us O'Connells. There wasn't a large enough room in the house for that many people. Secondly, it was a very nice warm evening, and it would be more pleasant outside. We hung a number of the Magic-powered lamps in the trees around the main house for light. Seamus and I stood in one of the wagon beds so everyone...
The following character returns from the original Magic Ink story: Sean Patrick Martin O'Hennessy Senior Master Sorcerer, head of the Boston council, 5'8" tall, a thin old man with a long white beard and hair When we arrived home, it was mid-morning on Friday the 11th of June in Statesboro. Our Moms called our sisters to let them know that we were back. Dad called the printing plant to let Uncle Will Stuart know the same thing. Sean and I didn't have anyone to call. Neither did Annie...
At the sound of the rifle, Wolf pulled his wards up around us for protection. "You'll just stand there, or the next one will take one of you out," we were told by a voice that came from back in the trees. I could detect a number of men moving through the forest approaching us, now that I was paying attention to our surroundings. I had also added my wards to Wolf's during this time. Several men in long hunting shirts, leggings, and moccasins appeared out of the forest. They all carried...
The following new characters appear in the story in the next few chapters: Allistair O'Flannagain Supply Sergeant, 5'-8" tall, 155 pounds, 42 years old, brown hair going bald, gray eyes, married Egan O'Callaghan Private, 5'-9" tall, 145 pounds, 21 years old, dark blond hair, blue eyes, second level talent "And how was this remarkable feat achieved?" President Jefferson asked in a calm voice. "We created Defensive Shells around all of the front-line militia units," Gwyn...
The four of us instantly reappeared on the field in front of the fort where we had watched the column arrive earlier that day. The Rangers and our relatives were all gone by this time. There were a number of tents belonging to the various militias set up a short distance from the fort. There was also the spherical defensive shell by the creek where our horses were being kept until we learned where to stable them. Both Generals stared around them at their new surroundings in shocked dismay...
The following historic characters appears in the next few chapters: General George Rogers Clark Major General, Commander of Fort Henry, Conqueror of the Northwest Territory, 6'-0" tall, 190 pounds, 48 years old, red hair going gray, brown eyes The others were all waiting for me when I reappeared in G & G's, Gwyn and Glanda -- my older Sisters, shell after leaving the Headquarters. James had Jillian off to one side away from everyone, and had his arms around his twin to calm her...
Margie has the Narrative again for a time: My timing was just about perfect, as I arrived in the kitchen just as Grace was ready to leave. “Hi, where are you off to?” I asked, as I appeared. Grace jumped in surprise on hearing my voice and turned to look at me. “Lord! Margie, you scared me out of two years growth,” she told me on recovering. “Sorry, most of those in the Clan can detect when someone is transferring to their location,” I told her. “It’s a skill that you’ll develop over...
The following characters appear in this chapter and later in the story: Carl Michael O’Connell, Were – Siberian Tiger, Margie K’s Father, 6’-3’’ tall, 230 pounds 42 years old, broad shoulders, auburn hair, green eyes Seamus O’Connell, Margie K’s Great Uncle, an Ordained Minister, 5’-10’’ tall, 170 pounds, very old, white hair and a short beard, gray eyes We appeared in the Clan Hall just before 5:45 that afternoon. It had been set up with tables and a serving line. A number of the Clan...
The Following new characters appear in the next two chapters: Sergeant O'Faolain Administrative NCO, 5'-10" tall, 165 pounds, 36 years old, brown hair, gray eyes, he had a limp from an old wound when he joined to the O'Connells. Jeremy Lister Senior Lieutenant, Finance Officer, 5'-9" tall, 150 pounds, 28 years old, brown hair, gray eyes Charles Immes Private, Short but muscular, long brown hair, hazel eyes, about thirty years old The next day we were very busy. The wagon...
The next morning, we all returned to what I had termed "O'Connell House". Both of our cooks came with us, and all of the women began preparing food for those whom we expected to arrive at around noon time. Albert, his Wife, and their children were the first to arrive. We were glad to see them and to know that he was well enough to come to the meeting. He was followed shortly by a trickle of other men, and as noon approached a veritable flood of men appeared, but there were very few women...
Mark resumes the Narrative: New characters introduced in the next two chapters: Colonel Williams Chief of Staff, 5’-9” tall, 170 pounds, close to fifty years old, gray hair, blue eyes After clearing away the carnage in front of where G & G had their shell, the guys and I create additional defensive shells, one on each end of our Sisters’ shells, across the width of the valley making six shells, and two more on each side of the valley to form a deep, wide U-shaped area protected by...
The three of us appeared in the evening shadows near the Officers' Mess at Fort Jefferson, and proceeded inside where we secured a table and ordered some ale while we waited for Captain Moore to appear. That gentleman arrived fifteen minutes or so later. He had on a clean and correct uniform and spotted us soon after entering. "Good evening, Major O'Connell and also both of you lovely ladies," he said with a large smile. "Have a seat and join us!" I requested. "My pleasure, sir,"...
New characters appearing in this chapter: Thomas LeGras General Clark’s Aide, 5’-7” tall, 145 pounds, 30 years old, brown hair and eyes, a bit of a dandy The site for the town of Lexington was first selected in June of 1775, when a party of surveyors and frontiersmen led by William McConnell camped on the Middle Fork of Elkhorn Creek. When they heard of the patriot victories at Lexington and Concord, they named their campsite Lexington in honor of it. A permanent settlement...
The following new characters are introduced in this chapter: Seth Thomas's contact in the Baltimore area, 5'-8" tall, about 150 pounds, forty years old, blond hair, hazel eyes Phebe Harper Owner of the Turk's Head Tavern, 5'-7", a bit heavy at 150 pounds, 36C-27-37, 62 years old, gray hair, light blue eyes We were soon ready to leave Brown's Summit, and Kell and I cast the transfer spell to take us to our Towson bookstore location. In this Reality, we appeared in a small...
New character introduced in this chapter: Craig Robinson Ensign, 5'-8" tall, 135 pounds, 18 years old, black hair, blue eyes After a fine dinner prepared by our Sisters and Cousins, the enlisted men were excused while we had our planning meeting. I did notice that even the large dining room here was a bit strained with the thirty people now here to eat. "We will start with the things that must be accomplished in the next day, as they are the most pressing. After that, we will...
Characters returning from the previous story: Mark Kent O'Connell The children's Father, 5'-9" tall, 165 pounds, 39 years old, brown hair, hazel eyes Mary Kathleen O'Connell (Katie) Mary Margaret O'Connell (Margie) Mark's wives and the children's Mothers, 5'-3" tall, 124 pounds, 36DD-25-37, legally 38 years old (actually 196 years old), long flaming red hair, deep green eyes, a sprinkling of freckles, very cute Edana and Gale O'Connell Margie's daughters, 5'-4" tall, 105...
It turned out that we needed to wait quite some time for our Wives. We soon grew tired of waiting, and I went to check on the shells to be sure that all of the guards were gone, the fires were out, and everything was taken care of. The last thing that I did was to cancel the openings in the tops of the shells as there would be no one here to start fires or breathe the air. When I returned, Wolf went to check on things also. Our Wives eventually returned, but they were very upset. “These...
“We will allow you time to consider your decision,” I told them before we all transferred back to Hickory Hill. After a fine dinner there, we all returned to our separate rooms for a good night’s sleep. I was sure that the Generals in Philadelphia were having a much less comfortable night and no sex. On Monday morning the 16th of March, I again went to Fort Jefferson to see General Greene, and to update him on the most recent developments. Ken and Kell went with me. We had no trouble getting...
The following characters appear in the first two chapters: Kennard Curran O'Connell (Ken) Mike and Clare's Son, 5'-10" tall, 142 pounds, 17 years old, red hair, green eyes, dual Talents Kellen Conroy O'Connell (Kell) Pat and Cathleen's Son, 5'-10" tall, 144 pounds, 17 years old, red hair, blue eyes, dual Talents Mark Michael O'Connell Mike and Shannon's Son, 5'-10" tall, 140 pounds, 17 years old, red hair, green eyes Seamus Patrick O'Connell Pat and Sheena's Son,...
Ken Takes the Narrative for the trips to the East Coast: We packed our things on Monday night and following breakfast on Tuesday morning were ready to leave for the East Coast, specifically for Charleston, South Carolina. The we included Kell, his Wives Airmid and Alma, Thomas Young, my Wives, Sunshine and Rose, and me, Ken. We all had our horses plus a pack horse in addition to extra clothes and food. Thomas Young had been very nervous when we mentioned that we were going to Charleston,...
The following new character appears in the next few chapters: Fredrick Matherson Senior Lieutenant, Continental Commander at Fort Washington, 5'-7" tall, 135 pounds, 25 years old, brown hair, blue eyes We had been told that Gilmore's Station was located a bit more than the twelve miles east of Mount Sterling, but distances here had to be taken with a grain of salt, as they were seldom correct. The trail that we were following crossed the Licking River, twice before it approached the...
We found our Relatives at the far end of the field with a large pink Defensive Shell set up for our horses to remain in while we attended church. They had all been unsaddled. The field, which had been empty when we arrived, was now crowded with wagons and horses. There were easily well over two hundred people here now besides us O'Connells, and the chapel would be overcrowded with fifty people in it. Something would need to be done. It soon became evident that something was being done....
We all transferred to Lexington after that. Our Sisters all knew where to go as there was only one real jewelry store in town, and all of our female relatives had been there multiple times. The manager was a French gentleman and smiled as we all entered. The store only had a limited selection of engagement and wedding rings. The engagement rings were mostly wide rings that were engraved but had no gems set in them and certainly no diamonds. They were, however, made of 20 carat gold. The...
The following new character appears in the next few chapters: Samuel Moore Captain of Rangers, Chief Ranger Trainer, 6’-0” tall, 180 pounds, 25 years old, broad shoulders, long brown hair, blue eyes, a rugged individualist with a quick smile, Gwyn and Sererena in their evening gowns made quite an impression on those gathered at the Officers’ Mess for their evening meal. On entering, they were immediately approached by several Captains and a Major, all of whom they brushed off with a...
It was nearly ten minutes before the Lieutenant commanding the garrison here appeared, and even then he was only partially dressed and was unshaven. He was still drunk and stumbled as he entered. He looked at us through bleary eyes for a number of seconds before attempting to salute, which wasn't done well either. "You are drunk on duty and also present a very poor appearance, Lieutenant," I growled. "Additionally you set a very poor example for your men," Seamus added. The Lieutenant...
Everyone was still excited about the upcoming move to the O'Connell Realm on Tuesday, the 18th of October, when they resumed work at the printing plant. The excitement was soon replaced by shock. On Wednesday morning, the 19th, just before 8:30, as everyone was just getting to work, Uncle Will noticed a black Humvee and several black Suburbans pull up across the street from the plant. The hair on the back of his neck stood up in premonition, and he instantly reacted by reciting the spell...
Over the next few days, Dad got with Uncle Will and Thomas Stuart to determine how much paper, plates, ink, and other supplies that we used in a year. They went over the business records and then projected future increases based on the increases over the last two years. They were quite surprised at the amount of materials required. "You say that we have maybe a year or so?" Uncle Will asked. "Yes, that's our daughters' estimate," Dad answered. "We can double our regular orders and...
The following characters appear in the next few chapters: Aengus Patrick Sean Michael O’Brien “himself”, half owner of the Pub, 5’-10” tall, 86 years old, stoop shouldered, silver gray hair, watery blue eyes Patrick O’Brien Aengus’s youngest son, 5’-10” tall, thin, 52 years old dark blond hair, blue eyes Michael O’Brien Aengus’s grandson, Patrick’s son, 5’-9” tall, thin, 24 years old, brown hair, blue eyes Monday morning dawned bright and sunny. We were up shortly after 6:00, having...
The meal that evening was much more festive than our afternoon snack had been. Everyone wore their best clothes, and there was even music at the meal, which consisted of seven courses and finished with wine and ale. The twins did try some of the ale which was very good, but only a little, and none of the wine. They had learned their lesson. That night the Sisters wanted sex, which was all right with me. Both of them wanted the long, slow, and passionate variety, but separately and with a...
Mark resumes the Narrative: The remainder of the family had continued with our regular chores while James, Gwyn, Glanda, and John were in Boston with the Commission to convince the New England colonies and the Canadians to join the Confederation. Ships had continued to arrive to transfer units of the British Army to their new stations. The soldiers weren’t the only ones leaving, however. Many civilians were also leaving. It had started with some of the English merchants departing that...
The following new character appears in this and later chapters: William Graham (Captain Billy) Ship's Captain, 5'-10" tall, 170 pounds, 49 years old, brown hair and beard going gray, blue eyes, weather complexion The next morning the seven of us were ready to leave again, but we only took one pack horse with us not feeling the need for the extra grain. We transferred to Savannah, Georgia this morning. At least Savannah didn't have marshes near where our bookstore would be at this...
The two Mage Cousins then sat down on either side of Gerald Ward, and reaching through the freeze spell took his hands and started a mantra. I could feel their Green Magic at work, but couldn't tell what they were doing. They had been working on him for several minutes, when both Cousins looked up in shocked surprise. "His condition is much different than we at first thought," Coleen told us after several seconds. "Yes, we have detected a virus in his brain that was causing him to act...
I reappeared near another large warehouse. On the side of the building, a large Sergeant was busy kicking a younger man on the ground. The one on the ground was the one with the Talent. "That will be enough of that, Sergeant," I growled to get his attention. The Sergeant who was in the process of drawing his foot back for another kick instantly whirled around on one foot to see who was behind him. What he saw was not a young Mark O'Connell. No, what he saw was the grizzled face and...
The following new characters are introduced in the next two chapters: Father Michael Fournier Priest, Missionary, 5'-7" tall, 135 pounds, 45 years old, brown hair, hazel eyes Thomas Young Partisan Leader, Lieutenant Colonel, 5'-10" tall, 150 pounds, 38 years old, brown hair and beard, blue eyes, no Talent Shortly after the Feast of the Epiphany, which is on the 6th of January, a Tuesday in this year of 1801, Clare, Saoirse, and Eileen became very agitated. On the evening of Friday,...
The sun was well up when I awoke the next morning. I was indeed loved. Gretchen was still in my arms, and Clare and Shannon had moved up against me. Clare was pressed against my back, and Shannon was pressed up against her little blond friend. I lay there for a time thinking about what had happened last night. It had indeed been an exceptional night, but I was worried. I had three women in love with me. Somewhere along the line, I had already decided to marry two of them. This, of course,...
Kell and his twins arrived an hour, or so after we had gotten back. He knocked on our door when they got upstairs. They looked tired. "Anything?" I asked, after they were seated on the bed. "A morning's ride, some nice scenery, and time spent at two ancient sites, but no trace of recent Magic use at either of them," he told me. "There were still some traces of ancient Magic at the well. Kell told me that the goddess Airmid was one of the ones that created the healing well, and that...