Magic Ink V The Third RealityChapter 47
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"Complications, Carl?" Seamus asked with a frown.
"There were a number of cabins under attack also. Not everyone had gotten as far as the fort before the Shawanoes caught up with them, and they had holed up in some of the cabins near it. They needed immediate assistance, and we took care of that first after securing the fort. The Shawanoes broke off the attack, once we secured the fort and the cabins with Defensive Shells. We followed them, and eliminated the majority of them," I explained.
"What are the conditions here at the fort? How much help will they need?" Seamus wanted to know.
"I don't know yet. We just got back from chasing the Shawanoes," I told him.
"All right, Carl. Let's check with the leaders here at the fort, and see what assistance they require. If nothing else the Rangers and our allies can patrol around the fort for some distance and check for any additional threats," Seamus told me.
The arrival of two additional platoons of Rangers had been the cause of quite a bit of surprise to those at Fort Massie, especially the appearance of our allies with them. Seamus quickly sent the newly arrived Rangers and our allies out to scout the area around the fort, before turning to deal with the local inhabitants.
"This is my Commander, Captain Seamus O'Connell," I told those in charge of the fort.
"I'm sorry to have been delayed so long in arriving, but I understand that Lieutenant O'Connell and the Rangers have dealt with the attackers. What help do you require?" Seamus asked them.
Those who had remained in the cabins were being escorted to the fort by some of the Rangers from the original Platoon at this time, and this created a bit of a disturbance. I didn't see any of the people from the third cabin, or my Sisters with them, but I could detect their presence still in the furthest cabin.
"Please excuse me," I asked Seamus and the local leaders, as they prepared to adjourn to the militia Captain's office for their discussions. They too had been disturbed by the new arrivals. I transferred directly to the third cabin.
On arriving there, I found M & M and C & D talking to the two O'Keefe Brothers. They were nearly on top of those young men and were rubbing themselves against them subtly. From the smiles on their faces, the Brothers didn't seem to mind their advances.
"Your Sisters are very forward," the younger Sister, Eileen, said when I appeared. She seemed very calm, and not at all startled by my sudden appearance. This wasn't true of the others in the cabin. The somewhat older woman was very surprised, as was her injured but recovering husband, another man, and their children.
"Are the Indians gone?" Mrs. O'Cuinn finally managed to ask on recovering. "Is it safe to leave for the fort?"
"Yes, it's safe. There are Rangers patrolling the area," I assured her.
"How ... how do we get out of here? There is something that prevents us from leaving," she told me near tears. I instantly detected the wards that my Sisters had created around the cabin for safety and canceled them.
"It's been taken care of now. You may leave whenever you like," I told them to looks of relief on their faces.
"We're leaving for the fort, Eileen," Mrs. O'Cuinn told the O'Keefe woman, as she gathered her small children, her husband, her Brother-in-Law and their three muskets to depart for the fort. My Sisters and Cousin didn't seem to notice their departure. I reset the wards around the cabin once they were gone before returning to the young woman still here.
"You didn't seem surprised by my sudden appearance, as the others were," I told her.
"No, it's a little hard to explain, but it was as if I knew slightly ahead of time that you would appear and where," she told me in embarrassment.
"Yes, that's very possible. You and your Brothers all have strong Talents, and could possibly detect the use of a spell. Have you learned any Magic?" I asked.
"Magic? No, we don't know anything about Magic, but we do sometimes have strange feeling, or thoughts, and seem to know when something will happen before it does," she told me, embarrassed.
"Yes, that would be your Talents sending you warnings," I told her.
"What is this Talent, that you keep referring to?" she asked.
"It's the ability to both use and do Magic," I told her.
"And can your Sisters and Cousin also do Magic?" Eileen asked in a shy voice.
"Yes, but two of them are Mages and use Green Magic," I told her.
"There are different kinds of Magic?" she asked, startled.
"Yes, there are at least three kinds of Magic. There is regular or White Magic, which most of our family and clan use. Then there is Green Magic. It is the Magic of plants and growing things, and it is used by Mages to help plants grow, and to heal animals and people. Then there is Black Magic. It has been outlawed by the Eternal Flame. It uses blood and other things to harm people. No one in our family or clan uses it," I informed her.
"And just why are your Sisters and Cousin so interested in my Brothers?" she asked with a shy smile.
"They are looking for Husbands, and your Brothers posses fine Talents, just as you do," I told her.
"But there are four of them, and only two of my Brothers. Won't the ones who don't get a Husband be upset?" she asked.
"You misunderstand," I told her with my own smile. "Each set of twins is looking for only one Husband. They will share him. The only real discussion was over which one each set of twins would select."
"But two Wives?" she asked in surprise.
"Oh yes. It's quite normal in our clan and family for a pair of twins to select one Husband. We don't have any male twins -- only females. Well, except for one pair who are one male and one female."
"And are you looking for a pair of wives?" she asked a bit disturbed.
"Not especially. I will settle for one Wife, but she must have the Talent. Twins with the Talent can be hard to find, although my Father has three wives -- half of two pairs of twin Sisters, and another single lady, but theirs is a rather unusual relationship even for our clan," I told her, but could see that she was very surprised by this admission.
"Three wives?" she asked in shock.
"Yes, it came about as the result of a rather unique situation," I told her. (See Magic Ink III for how this developed.)
"And do they all get along together?" she asked in amazement.
"Oh yes. They all love my Father and are very close. Two share a mental link -- those are the half pair of twins, and they all love Petra, who is Dad's third Wife," I assured her.
"But what about the other half of the two pairs of twins? What happened to them?" she asked in a bewildered voice.
"Oh, they also share a mental link and are married to my Uncle, who also has a third Wife that they all love," I told her. She seemed really confused by now.
"Yours must be a strange family. How many Brothers and Sisters do you have?" she asked.
"I have two Brothers and three sets of twin Sisters."
"So there are nine of you!?" she asked in surprise.
"Yes, nine. My Uncle also has nine children with the same proportions and ages as those in my family," I told her, but decided that I needed to learn more about her and her family.
"Is this your cabin?" I asked to bring the conversation back to her and her Brothers. My Sisters and her Brothers were past the point of conversation by now, but hadn't gotten to sex -- not yet.
"No, this isn't our cabin. This is as far as we managed to get before the Indians caught up to our group," she told me with a catch in her throat.
"Do you and your Brothers live far from here? What about your Parents? Do they live near here?" I asked.
"Our Parents are dead!" she told me in a very sad voice. "They were killed a few years ago in another Indian raid. They told us to run to the fort, and they would cover us and distract the Indians while we got away," she started, and began to tear up. "They never joined us at the fort, and we later found them in the burned ashes of our old cabin. The Indians had killed them in a horrible way! And now our new cabin is probably burned down too," she finished in tears. "We'll have nothing!" she cried in a wail of despair.
I took her in my arms and held her while she cried in sorrow and despair. I couldn't imagine how I would have faced such trials.
"It will be all right," I tried to assure the crying girl. "We will take care of you. You won't have to worry about being attacked by Indians or the British again."
"How can you do that?" she asked with a sniffle.
"We will take you with us, and we will teach you how to use your Talents and how to do Magic," I assured her.
"But our land! Our Farm! How will we be able to survive without them?" she asked.
"The O'Connells have a lot of land. We have huge fields and our clan is nearly self-sufficient except for some specialty items that we purchase. We also have several businesses that we run: a printing plant, a book store, and an herbal store plus several other businesses. Neither you, nor your Brothers will have to worry about anything," I told her.
"You don't look wealthy, and what would the rich be doing out here fighting Indians?" she asked.
"We are here to help remove the British from North America. When that is accomplished, we'll return home to our own Reality," I told her. She appeared very confused by this last, but wasn't ready to leave my arms quite yet.
"It could take a long time to defeat the British. We can't even stop the constant raids, and it's been nearly twenty years already," she told me, bitterly.
"We are working on that. We hope to strike the British in a year or so. In the meantime, you and your Brothers can stay with us and learn Magic. You will be safe," I assured her.
"But what of the other people here, like the O'Cuinns? Can you keep them safe?" she asked.
"The leaders of the Americans are working on ways to keep the peace with all of the tribes. It will require some time yet to accomplish," I told her. "The defeat of the Shawanoes today may help in that," I added.
"We will need to do something," she answered with a sigh. "We probably don't have anywhere to live or any food for the winter, either," she finished in a despondent voice.
"Come stay with us, if only for the winter," I told her. "We'll teach all of you to use your Talents and to do Magic. In the spring, we'll see what you want to do."
"By the spring, my Brothers will have your Sisters pregnant from the way they are carrying on," Eileen told me with a little laugh in her voice.
"Not unless my Sisters are desperate to get pregnant, they won't," I told her.
"But if they have sex... !" she started and trailed off.
"Oh, I'm sure that they will have sex, knowing my Sisters -- probably a lot of sex and by tonight," I told her with a smile. "But they won't get pregnant unless they want to. There is a spell that all of the girls learn early in their study of Magic that keeps them from getting pregnant unless they wish to and cancel it.
"Really!?" she asked in stunned surprise.
"Definitely! They have been having sex since they were fourteen."
"But who with?" a stunned Eileen asked.
"With our Cousins and the children of those that work in our various businesses," I told her.
"That's amazing!" Eileen said with a thoughtful look in her eyes, as she pressed herself tighter against me. She was certainly a young woman with a fine body, and I reacted just as any young male would. I was certainly interested in having her as my Wife, especially with her level of Talent. I was still holding Eileen a short time later when Seamus appeared in the cabin.
"So here is where all of you have disappeared to," he said on appearing, but before looking around. His face brightened considerably then.
"What have we here?" he asked in a voice filled with expectation, once he had checked the various Talents in the cabin.
"These are the O'Keefes," I told him, as Eileen pushed away from me.
"This is our Commander, Captain Seamus O'Connell, my older Brother," I said to introduce Seamus to the O'Keefes before turning back to speak to him.
"They are the reason that we needed to protect those in the cabins," I told him.
"Yes, we took good care of all of those in the cabins," Meagan told her older brother, as she looked away from Morgan O'Keefe.
"All right, I guess that I can forgive you for being a bit distracted," Seamus said with a smile. "It isn't often that we find an entire family with strong Talents. What about their Parents?"
"Our Parents were killed in an Indian raid several years ago," Morgan O'Keefe told Seamus, with a catch in his voice.
"I'm sorry to hear that. I would have liked to have met them. Have any of you asked the O'Keefes to join us?" Seamus finished.
"I asked Eileen to come with us, at least for the winter," I told him.
"We haven't gotten that far yet," Cessair told him.
"Actually, we haven't gotten past them joining us for the night," Dealla added with a giggle.
"Of course we want them to join us, but permanently," Maureen said, smiling at Morgan O'Keefe, who actually blushed on hearing this.
"That is probably the best offer that we'll get," the older Brother said after that. "I don't imagine that our cabin or crops survived this latest raid," he told us in a tired voice that sounded much older than he was.
"We should check to be sure," Maureen volunteered.
"It's four miles from here, and even if anything is left, we probably have no way to get it back here. The raiders probably killed all of our stock also," the younger Brother, Donald, said speaking for the first time in a while.
"You two are much too gloomy," Dealla told them. "And you've forgotten that we use Magic, and can do a lot of things that regular people can't."
"Can you picture in your mind where your farm is?" Meagan asked Morgan.
"Yes. I have a good picture of it," Morgan told her as he closed his eyes. Morgan, Meagan, and Maureen vanished right after that.
Mark resumes the Narrative: The following new characters appear in this chapter and the rest of the story: Clare O'Hara Mark's Wife, 5'-1" tall, 100 pounds +, 34C-21-32, 16 years old, auburn hair, gray eyes, very cute Saoirse Ward Wolf's Wife, 5'-0" tall, less than 100 pounds, 32C-20-32, 15 years old, bright red hair, green eyes, very cute Nora and Nola Twin Sisters, 3'-0" tall, 35 pounds, nearly 4 years old, red hair, green eyes, adorable The following characters reappear...
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Mark's Narrative Continues: We didn't see Seamus or most of his people for ten days following dinner that night. Meagan and Maureen did appear for dinner a couple of times during that period, and they borrowed Dymphna for a time as Seamus and Carl had taken Dealla and Cessair with them. Having three Mages in the Ohio country put a strain on our one remaining Mage, Coleen, who was rather busy with two locations to take care of. Things on this side of the Ohio River had not slowed down or...
"Shannon, what are you doing?" Savannah demanded, standing in the hall behind us. Shannon's head came up off my chest, and she turned toward her Sister in a more determined way than I had seen before. "It's all right, Savannah. He will take us with him and will marry both of us," she told her Sister. Savannah gasped in surprise. "Really? Both of us? Are you sure?" she asked in a doubtful voice. "I told Shannon that I would marry both of you. I will be glad to have both of you as...
Mark resumes the Narrative: I didn't have a chance to return to the barracks room until sometime later. I had checked with all of the Platoon Leaders and the remaining leaders of Olive Hill. I had also created the permanent Portal to Hickory Hill to get supplies in here. Wolf came over to me as I entered the room. He had very hesitantly left the girl that he had rescued, who was asleep on one of the bunks. "I'm sorry that I let you down, Mark, but I ... I just couldn't leave Saoirse....
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...
We didn't get to see Grandfather Michael until well after noontime. We joined him in his private parlor when summoned. "Good afternoon, Grandfather," we both said in greeting after being told to enter. "Well, what do you think of us after spending your first night here, and scaring the staff half to death?" he asked with a grin. "The scaring part wasn't intentional," I told him. "Maybe not on your part," Pat told him in a disgruntled voice. "And just what is the problem?"...
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...
New characters appearing in this chapter and the next: Gwyneth O'Leary Doctor, OB/GYN, Irish, 5'-3" tall, 108 pounds, 34B-23-35, 28 years old, long red hair, gray eyes, some freckles Gwyn and Glanda Mike and Gretchen's Daughters, born 6 November 2051, both have dark Auburn hair and gray eyes Sererena and Saraid Pat and Petra's Daughters, born on 6 November 2051, both have red hair and green eyes Early on Monday morning both of our Grandmothers and our Moms came to visit us. We...
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...
"Oh Dear!" the Smith groaned in distress at the table. "What is it, my Sweet?" he asked, as he quickly rose to see what was the matter. He never did make it to the bedroom, as his wife led a small boy and girl out into the main room. She was followed by a girl a few years older than the pair of youngsters, and Clare and Cathleen. "Look at them, Henry!" the wife demanded, excitedly. "This morning, they could hardly hold their heads up, and now they are as well as you, or I. How could...