Post by kannon on May 26, 2005 12:58:01 GMT -5
The cool breeze from the open window carried the sounds of the dolphin playing in the pool below. I lay there quietly listening to the chitters of the dolphin and the waves lapping against the marble. A door opened and closed and something landed on the foot of my bed with a heavy THUMP. I lifted my head ever so slightly and looked toward the foot of the bed through half open eyes. With an exhausted sigh a let my head drop back onto the pillow. After a brief pause, I replied with a groan, while still staring at the ceiling…
“Good morning Winston,” I managed to struggle out.
“Mornin’” came the bright and cheerful reply from the large yellow dog sitting on the edge of the bed, with a smile on his face…if indeed dogs can be said to smile.
“You know Winston,” I replied still staring blankly at grains in the marble ceiling above the bed, “sometimes I think I liked you better has a human. As a dog you have this constantly cheerful disposition that can sometimes be incredibly irritating.” I sat halfway up in bed and looked straight at Winston, “…you know even bodhisattvas get a day off now and then…I hope you are just coming for breakfast.”
“Nope!” came the reply, which, remarkably enough never seemed to come out as a bark despite the fact my dear companion was a dog…well…a human transformed into a dog.
I laid back down in bed and curled up, covering my head with the quilt…an attempt at peace and quiet which didn’t last long. An instant later the quilt was being dragged forcibly off the bed. Winston spoke through clenched teeth which held the other end of the quilt…
“You know if you spent more time in your pagoda I wouldn’t have to come up here to Olympus and bother you so much.”
I sat on a nearby bench beneath the window, which, despite being made of marble seemed remarkably comfortable. I sat there staring at the dolphin in the pool below. Still looking at the window I spoke to Winston behind me.
“Even the dolphin has a smile.”
A dragging sound came from behind me, as if something were being dragged or pushed across the floor. Between grunts, Winston said matter-of-factly, “Dolphins always smile, that’s their natural look…they can’t help it. Actually your dolphin is a bit ticked off this morning but we can talk about that later.”
I turned around and Winston was pushing a table with a cup and a bowl of coffee up to the bench. “Would you mind?” he said politely looking up at the bowl.
“Oh, not at all. Thanks for getting the coffee,” I replied, setting the bowl of coffee down in front of Winston. I held out an outstretched hand and a plate of toast appeared in it…offering it to Winston I said, “Toast?”
“Coffee isn’t the same without it!” came the ever cheerful, ever more irritating this early in the morning reply…
We sat their quietly enjoying the morning. True friendship is when silence can pass between two friends without either one being uncomfortable. I stared down at the dolphin swimming back and forth, wondering what on earth (or actually on Olympus) a dolphin would have to be ticked off about in the first place. With a final lap from the bowl and a final slurp from the cup the small breakfast was finished.
“Now,” continued Winston, “to work. There is someone named Liz Bathory waiting for you in the pagoda….something about a silver hammer…oh, and there’s a wizard throwing up in to the fountain. Well. He was throwing up into the fountain when I left He probably isn’t STILL throwing up into the fountain. Well…then again…he might be…he WAS very sick when I left…then again…he did just LOOK sick; he might not ACTUALLY be sick…although I can’t imagine why a wizard would go to all the trouble to pretend to be sick…and if he was pretending why go to all the trouble to making himself throw up…although…”
“Enough, ENOUGH,” I interrupted Winston’s long and meandering monologue…what do they want?” I crossed the room to the armoire and donned my kimono as I listened to Winston’s story.
“Well,” Winston said with a huff, “Ms. Bathory said she has rescued someone named Maxwell and said to tell you that you might have warned her about the giant paragon spider…but I did mention that the chances are you didn’t even know about the spider. She said she brought the hammer as proof and has come for the reward for the rescue.”
Tying my obi sash around my waste I turned my pack to Winston; who without saying a word dutifully held his paw in the center of the obi, while I finished the knot…
“…and the wizard? What does the wizard want?”
“I don’t know….all he could get out between bouts of vomit was the word ‘disgusting’.”
“Well lets stop and get Ms. Bathory’s reward on the way to fel.”
“Sure,” came the barked reply, oddly enough…which I realized suddenly that I had become so used to Winston NOT barking, despite the fact that he is an enchanted dog, albeit a dog all the same…that it hadn’t occurred to me that he might actually sometimes bark.
“You know,” Winston said as Olympus vanished in a column of flames that surrounded us, “it just occurred to me. What the wizard might want is simply to stop vomiting.”
The Justice Island pagoda snapped into existence. I looked over at the wizard, now sitting on the edge of the fountain. “No, I don’t think so.” I said. I went inside the pagoda to meet Ms. Bathory and give her, her much earned reward. Meanwhile, Winston, stayed outside talking to the wizard; and all the while their heated discussion grew louder and louder. Ushering Ms. Bathory out the front door of the pagoda, her rewards now in hand, I tried to reassure her…
“I am truly sorry. I just had no idea about the guard but believe me, I can empathize.”
“Well,” Liz replied, “at least Tinkerbell was there to come to my rescue.”
“Well thank heavens for that!”
I watched Liz walk away for a moment. My attention was suddenly drawn by Winston speaking to me.
“You won’t like it!”
“Won’t like what?”
“Don’t ask…” Winston warned.
“Don’t ask? How will I know what the problem is if I don’t ask!”
Pausing, Winston looked me straight in the eye and spoke. “Spiders,” he said simply.
“I hate spiders,” I said with disgust.
“Didn’t I just say don’t ask?” Winston shot back at me, “Didn’t I just say you won’t like it?” He looked over at the Wizard. “She hates spiders.”
“She hates spiders?” the wizard said in a mild tone of amazement.
“She hates spiders!” came the emphatic reply…. “especially big ones.”
“Big ones?” I said looking at Winston.
“Big ones….really…really big ones.” Winston said.
“How big?” I asked.
“Don’t ask” Winston and the wizard replied in unison…
This time I knew not to ask.
“You know that Maxwell Silverhammer that Liz Bathory rescued?” Winston continued, well that big spider that was guarding him had a mamma, and lots of sisters and brothers…LOTS of them…and they are NOT happy campers…well they aren’t campers at all…its just an expression…but…well…you get my meaning…”
“AND THEY HAVE OVERUN BUC’S DEN!” Screamed the wizard.
A pained look crossed my face as if I had just finished going down a slide with a razorblade running down the center…without a word, Winston just ‘tossed’ over his shoulder “Don’t worry about it boss, I will take care of it…”
Some time later a still chipper Winston came trotting into the temple library…
“It’s all taken care of boss, but it’s going to be a long swim…”
“…a what?”
“swim, swim…a long swim…”
“You’re swimming there? From here?” I asked incredulously.
“Yah sure, need to work off all that coffee and toast…anyway, I know how much spiders bother you and I didn’t want to bother you having to take me…besides…all the flames and smoke and all the rest of that jazz that goes with the trip is really starting to bother my lungs…and last time you even singed my fur….”
“Oh, so that was what that smell was last night…”
With that Winston turned tail and headed off to Buc’s Den. As he was leaving I shouted the question, “Why Buc’s Den? Does Liz Bathory really come from Buc’s den?”
Winston turned back to me and said, “Who knows? No one ever said a spider had much common sense, even if that spider is the size of a 57 Buick…”
“Whats a ‘buick’” I called after Winston, as the door slammed shut.
“I don’t know really,” came a voice trailing off into the distance, “it’s an expression the wizard used, I think it’s a type of carriage but I kinda’ liked the expression.”
The Quest: The Quest of Hanna and her sisters…and daughters…and sons….and friends…
In revenge for the killing of Memphitis, her mother Hanna and relatives, have overrun Bucs Den. While there are many smaller relatives, the main objective, is Hanna and her sisters. You will recognize them because they will be the only paragons. The reward for the quest will be on the corpses of Hanna and her sisters. Winston tells me he should reach Buc’s den by 10:00 pm tonight (central)…the quest will begin then. It will be announced live and in the Zento City Quest book.
“Good morning Winston,” I managed to struggle out.
“Mornin’” came the bright and cheerful reply from the large yellow dog sitting on the edge of the bed, with a smile on his face…if indeed dogs can be said to smile.
“You know Winston,” I replied still staring blankly at grains in the marble ceiling above the bed, “sometimes I think I liked you better has a human. As a dog you have this constantly cheerful disposition that can sometimes be incredibly irritating.” I sat halfway up in bed and looked straight at Winston, “…you know even bodhisattvas get a day off now and then…I hope you are just coming for breakfast.”
“Nope!” came the reply, which, remarkably enough never seemed to come out as a bark despite the fact my dear companion was a dog…well…a human transformed into a dog.
I laid back down in bed and curled up, covering my head with the quilt…an attempt at peace and quiet which didn’t last long. An instant later the quilt was being dragged forcibly off the bed. Winston spoke through clenched teeth which held the other end of the quilt…
“You know if you spent more time in your pagoda I wouldn’t have to come up here to Olympus and bother you so much.”
I sat on a nearby bench beneath the window, which, despite being made of marble seemed remarkably comfortable. I sat there staring at the dolphin in the pool below. Still looking at the window I spoke to Winston behind me.
“Even the dolphin has a smile.”
A dragging sound came from behind me, as if something were being dragged or pushed across the floor. Between grunts, Winston said matter-of-factly, “Dolphins always smile, that’s their natural look…they can’t help it. Actually your dolphin is a bit ticked off this morning but we can talk about that later.”
I turned around and Winston was pushing a table with a cup and a bowl of coffee up to the bench. “Would you mind?” he said politely looking up at the bowl.
“Oh, not at all. Thanks for getting the coffee,” I replied, setting the bowl of coffee down in front of Winston. I held out an outstretched hand and a plate of toast appeared in it…offering it to Winston I said, “Toast?”
“Coffee isn’t the same without it!” came the ever cheerful, ever more irritating this early in the morning reply…
We sat their quietly enjoying the morning. True friendship is when silence can pass between two friends without either one being uncomfortable. I stared down at the dolphin swimming back and forth, wondering what on earth (or actually on Olympus) a dolphin would have to be ticked off about in the first place. With a final lap from the bowl and a final slurp from the cup the small breakfast was finished.
“Now,” continued Winston, “to work. There is someone named Liz Bathory waiting for you in the pagoda….something about a silver hammer…oh, and there’s a wizard throwing up in to the fountain. Well. He was throwing up into the fountain when I left He probably isn’t STILL throwing up into the fountain. Well…then again…he might be…he WAS very sick when I left…then again…he did just LOOK sick; he might not ACTUALLY be sick…although I can’t imagine why a wizard would go to all the trouble to pretend to be sick…and if he was pretending why go to all the trouble to making himself throw up…although…”
“Enough, ENOUGH,” I interrupted Winston’s long and meandering monologue…what do they want?” I crossed the room to the armoire and donned my kimono as I listened to Winston’s story.
“Well,” Winston said with a huff, “Ms. Bathory said she has rescued someone named Maxwell and said to tell you that you might have warned her about the giant paragon spider…but I did mention that the chances are you didn’t even know about the spider. She said she brought the hammer as proof and has come for the reward for the rescue.”
Tying my obi sash around my waste I turned my pack to Winston; who without saying a word dutifully held his paw in the center of the obi, while I finished the knot…
“…and the wizard? What does the wizard want?”
“I don’t know….all he could get out between bouts of vomit was the word ‘disgusting’.”
“Well lets stop and get Ms. Bathory’s reward on the way to fel.”
“Sure,” came the barked reply, oddly enough…which I realized suddenly that I had become so used to Winston NOT barking, despite the fact that he is an enchanted dog, albeit a dog all the same…that it hadn’t occurred to me that he might actually sometimes bark.
“You know,” Winston said as Olympus vanished in a column of flames that surrounded us, “it just occurred to me. What the wizard might want is simply to stop vomiting.”
The Justice Island pagoda snapped into existence. I looked over at the wizard, now sitting on the edge of the fountain. “No, I don’t think so.” I said. I went inside the pagoda to meet Ms. Bathory and give her, her much earned reward. Meanwhile, Winston, stayed outside talking to the wizard; and all the while their heated discussion grew louder and louder. Ushering Ms. Bathory out the front door of the pagoda, her rewards now in hand, I tried to reassure her…
“I am truly sorry. I just had no idea about the guard but believe me, I can empathize.”
“Well,” Liz replied, “at least Tinkerbell was there to come to my rescue.”
“Well thank heavens for that!”
I watched Liz walk away for a moment. My attention was suddenly drawn by Winston speaking to me.
“You won’t like it!”
“Won’t like what?”
“Don’t ask…” Winston warned.
“Don’t ask? How will I know what the problem is if I don’t ask!”
Pausing, Winston looked me straight in the eye and spoke. “Spiders,” he said simply.
“I hate spiders,” I said with disgust.
“Didn’t I just say don’t ask?” Winston shot back at me, “Didn’t I just say you won’t like it?” He looked over at the Wizard. “She hates spiders.”
“She hates spiders?” the wizard said in a mild tone of amazement.
“She hates spiders!” came the emphatic reply…. “especially big ones.”
“Big ones?” I said looking at Winston.
“Big ones….really…really big ones.” Winston said.
“How big?” I asked.
“Don’t ask” Winston and the wizard replied in unison…
This time I knew not to ask.
“You know that Maxwell Silverhammer that Liz Bathory rescued?” Winston continued, well that big spider that was guarding him had a mamma, and lots of sisters and brothers…LOTS of them…and they are NOT happy campers…well they aren’t campers at all…its just an expression…but…well…you get my meaning…”
“AND THEY HAVE OVERUN BUC’S DEN!” Screamed the wizard.
A pained look crossed my face as if I had just finished going down a slide with a razorblade running down the center…without a word, Winston just ‘tossed’ over his shoulder “Don’t worry about it boss, I will take care of it…”
Some time later a still chipper Winston came trotting into the temple library…
“It’s all taken care of boss, but it’s going to be a long swim…”
“…a what?”
“swim, swim…a long swim…”
“You’re swimming there? From here?” I asked incredulously.
“Yah sure, need to work off all that coffee and toast…anyway, I know how much spiders bother you and I didn’t want to bother you having to take me…besides…all the flames and smoke and all the rest of that jazz that goes with the trip is really starting to bother my lungs…and last time you even singed my fur….”
“Oh, so that was what that smell was last night…”
With that Winston turned tail and headed off to Buc’s Den. As he was leaving I shouted the question, “Why Buc’s Den? Does Liz Bathory really come from Buc’s den?”
Winston turned back to me and said, “Who knows? No one ever said a spider had much common sense, even if that spider is the size of a 57 Buick…”
“Whats a ‘buick’” I called after Winston, as the door slammed shut.
“I don’t know really,” came a voice trailing off into the distance, “it’s an expression the wizard used, I think it’s a type of carriage but I kinda’ liked the expression.”
The Quest: The Quest of Hanna and her sisters…and daughters…and sons….and friends…
In revenge for the killing of Memphitis, her mother Hanna and relatives, have overrun Bucs Den. While there are many smaller relatives, the main objective, is Hanna and her sisters. You will recognize them because they will be the only paragons. The reward for the quest will be on the corpses of Hanna and her sisters. Winston tells me he should reach Buc’s den by 10:00 pm tonight (central)…the quest will begin then. It will be announced live and in the Zento City Quest book.