small excerpt from JTPYO - King of the Waste [5] / demonstration

I am still trying to get "iframe" to work at displaying the PDF of the last part of "the trap" (King of the Waste part 3) how I want it to. That's why you're not reading it. 

I have been reading over "the blow" and "demonstration," the two chapters (4 and 5) after "the trap." 

This is from "demonstration" and has been only scantily edited from the original, which I started on in 2017. If you read the part from "King of the Land of the Dead [2] / the living dead" that references "Morativela" or "the house of Moratis" this is where it's first mentioned. 

Note: This will likely contain a lot of changes when the whole book (JTPYO - King of the Waste) is finally published. 

 *** 

8 December 2017 / 4 November 2023 / 3 September 2025 

from JTPYO – King of the Waste [5] / demonstration 

Copyright © 2017 through 2026 by Kristi A. Wilson 

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Which is me. 

Our story thus far: Korsis and Naemas have angered the sorcerer Joliel via their intemperate remarks to him in front of someone he was trying to impress. During a stop along their way from the wasteland into the mountains, Joliel extorts a bargain from Korsis, who is having an affair with Naxosos's mother, Ember. The entire tribe and many of its animals are assembled to watch a demonstration of sorcery, as Korsis particularly offended Joliel by saying that anyone with a sharp stick can kill him. 

 * * * 

"Ember's not going to let this go, and there's no way to know what she will do, now," Korsis said bluntly. "That's the way the chits are running at this point, anyway." Then, passing his hand in front of a sudden grin: "I can't believe she told them she was pregnant, that minx."

"Is she angry at you?"

The dancer laughed. "Well…"

"I guess I know what you meant by doing this," Naxosos said. "I suppose I understand."

"We want for Korsis to live," Thais said in a low voice.

Korsis lowered his voice also. "Nirith is a very smart woman," he said. "She doesn't have all the big words like a lot of us, but she knows the game quite well, too."

"It's better for Ember to be angry at Korsis than at Joliel, Naxo," Thais whispered. "Here come Tolalo and Naimejo."

"Praise God," Naemas said.

"Indeed," Naxosos said. "I need more wine."

"Same here," Naemas said.

Korsis said, "You said you would stay with me, Naxo."

"I will, I will. I'm not moving from this chair except maybe to walk over there –" here he waved an arm wildly "and take a piss, maybe. Thais and Naemas were going to make sure I don't try to escape."

Korsis gave him a long, undecipherable look, then stood, saying, "If you pass out, that's the same as leaving me. You said you would stay."

"And I'm going to, I promise. Throughout this…whatever it is, and afterwards if needed. And I'll stay awake. Is there any tea? Why is everyone offering me undiluted wine this early in the morning, anyway? Where is the water jar?"

Korsis walked away chuckling and joined those under the participants' pavilion, now including Tolalo and Naimejo, who Naxosos could observe were mind-talking, or seemed to be, as they sat close together, facing away from each other, each in a pose of great calm and ease to a casual observer, but unblinking. Korsis sat directly behind Joliel, yawned and stretched, and Naxosos heard him ask an attendee for something to eat. "Do me a favor," he stage-whispered to Thais, who was directing someone to set out a table with things to eat.

"What is that, my lord?" she stage-whispered back.

"I heard what you said earlier and I'm not going to interfere in the least little way, I want you to know that."

"And…?" Raising her voice: "And there is a great deal from dinner last night that needs to be eaten quickly or thrown away."

"And please don't give me any more directions, or explain anything, at least until this is over or until I ask you specifically, my dear, if you don't mind, please. I feel that Joliel can hear us and it's causing my thoughts to become scattered."

Across from them, the sorcerer smiled and raised his cup to them. Thais laughed, then made a rude gesture toward him, leaned forward, and kissed Naxosos's ear, whispering, "It shall be as you say."

Looking at Naemas, Naxosos felt some amazement to find him asleep, his legs sprawled out, a few flies circling around his open, snoring mouth. "Don't," Thais admonished when she saw Naxosos preparing to nudge him. "You are not the only one he is wearing out, Naxo. He and your mother are rampaging dragons today."

Four of the six warriors approached, their unsaddled, unbridled ponies following them like pet dogs. The one in the lead, Speck, saluted them and said to Thais, "She is indeed fast asleep now, we have seen it."

"Thank you, Stanilomaxinon," Thais said. "Did you leave Zyanonchoulain to watch over her?"

"We did, Goddess."

"Where is Terenorint?" Naxosos asked, and Thais pointed toward the participants' pavilion, where, again with surprise, he saw the warrior dressed in the same plain muslin garb as everyone else, instead of his customary leathers, sitting near Korsis. The warrior's face was blank and he sat with his elbows on his knees, staring straight ahead. His lips were moving and Naxosos realized he was praying. "This is starting to freak me out," he said. Now people were setting food in front of him and someone was holding out a large mug of tea. The four warriors all disposed themselves under the spectators' canopy, three of them sitting behind the Goddess-on-Earth and one nonchalantly patrolling, keeping an eye on the foothills and canyons to the west.

"Ungh," Naemas said, waving his hand at the flies and sitting up. "Has it started yet?"

"No, but in the next couple of minutes," Thais said.

"Those old bastards are setting out their betting trays," Naxosos said, referring to the priests, who had set up their own canopy and tables. The sun was blazing now and heat rose from the rocks in almost frantic-appearing ripples.

"Korsis warned you, if you recall," Thais said.

"How can they do that? Obviously we may lose him today, don't they even care? And they're betting on what my mother will do? Have they no shame?"

"If they see that you're angry, they will start betting on that, too," Thais said with a wave of her hand. "Insouciance is the best policy here."

"How many cups of wine have you had so far this morning, Naemas?" Naxosos said, taking the cold leg of a game bird to examine before tasting it.

"Um, pretty many."

"If you want to go lie down, that's all right with me."

"Can't right now."

"What kind of animal is this, do you know?"

Naemas took the leg from Naxosos and bit into it. "Dunno. It's good, though." He ate the rest of it in three big bites, sucking every scrap of flesh from the bone and then tossing the bone aside.

"Here, King Naxo, try this." It was the young woman Lumdi who had served their dinner the evening before. She was holding out a cloth with a piece of bread on it loaded down with different things.

"Hello, Lumdi," Naemas said.

The girl giggled and her face went bright red.

"Daughter, if you start bothering him, you will have to sit somewhere else, do you understand me?" Thais said.

"I understand, Goddess."

Naxosos took the cloth from her, noticing most of the stuff piled on the bread was spiced vegetable stew with only a small amount of meat. "This looks very good," he said, "thank you."

Naemas said, "Look how fat you got just from last night!" to Lumdi, referring to the fact she was wearing a different, and much tighter, frock.

"Naemas," Thais warned.

Nirith came up to them, holding something that Naxosos recognized as Korsis's belt pouch. She tossed it onto the table, saying in an uncharacteristically leaden tone, "Naxo, Korsis wants that you should watch over his things during the demonstration and says that if you want any of his weed, feel free to smoke it all up, as there is plenty more where the tribe is going, it grows all over the mountains."

Naxosos started to thank her when Naemas leaped to his feet and faced Nirith. The two of them stared at one another for several long, silent, confusing moments, then Naxosos saw Nirith's lips move in what seemed a command, and then she closed her eyes; Naemas shut his eyes tightly, took a deep breath, and before anyone could move or make a sound, cried out, "Bitch!" in a loud voice and slapped her. Nirith reeled back a foot or two, her hand to her nose, then left without a word, crossing the cleared area to sit with the other participants: Joliel, Terenorint, Korsis, Naimejo, and Tolalo.

"Naemas, sit," Thais said in an almost bored tone.

Wide-mouthed, Naxosos stared at his friend. "Why," he stammered. "What…"

"You said no explanations, my love," Thais whispered. Then, in a louder voice: "Naemas, that is enough. Sit down."

Naemas threw himself back into his chair and yawned. Standing behind Naxosos's chair with the water jar in her hands, Lumdi shrank away and ogled him fearfully.

"This offends me to no end," Naxosos said. "I may end up killing everyone here but Lumdi and Thais."

"You'll probably want to kill Thais, too," Naemas said, "by the time this is over."

"Not if she kills you first," the Goddess-on-Earth said.

"Aren't you going to participate, too?" Naxosos said.

"They may invite me and it is assumed that I will. If they invite you, it is assumed that you will, although they will not do it today, believe me."

Nirith passed behind Korsis, stopped, leaned over, and whispered something into his ear. Both laughed. Joliel said loudly, "It's not working, you might as well stop, you two."

"We who are about to die salute you," Korsis said in an equally loud, sardonic voice; Nirith repeated the same words mockingly, and went to sit between Korsis and Tolalo. Naxosos heard Tolalo ask her if she was all right and heard her reply: "I'm fine, Father. Don't worry about this one!" in a fair semblance of her typical chirruping tone.

Naxosos observed the increase in activity at the priests' betting tables. "This offends me," he muttered, feeling his face grow hot. "This offends me."

"Drink some more tea and eat," Thais said. "You're getting drunk and a display of emotion will not help matters."

"How can you allow this?" Naxosos demanded, but nonetheless set back to the bread and stew he was holding, which he'd only eaten about halfway.

"How can I not allow it?" Thais said. "How else will they learn, my lord? We can talk ourselves blue in the face, forever, and they will not have learned a tenth from us what they will learn here today."

"Why keep books, then? Naemas tells me there is a large library near here. If we all must learn by example only, then –"

There was a loud snore from Naemas and Naxosos saw with envy that he had fallen asleep again. "Why did he hit her?" Lumdi whispered now, obviously expecting an answer either from Thais or Naxosos.

"No more questions, daughter," Thais said. "You will know everything soon." She leaned in to Naxosos and said, "No more questions."

"Don't be afraid of him," Naxosos said to the girl. "But now you see that he can be provoked." Sitting just behind and between Naemas and him, he heard Thais snicker faintly.

Now Joliel rose from his seat and everyone grew quiet. He drank from his wine glass and set it on the table before him and stood in his place silently. Fearful stillness seemed to spread outward from him like a pool of oil. He walked out into the middle of the cleared space and his rather reedy voice carried surprisingly well in the sudden hush – his appearance, too, was most bizarre since for once he was dressed like every other man in the tribe.

"Some of us have never seen this kind of demonstration," the sorcerer began offhandedly, "and some of us have taken part in one or more. Naemas?" He waited for a moment. "Oh, he has fallen asleep. Will someone wake him? I could really use his help with this part."

"I'm awake," Naemas said in a groggy tone, sitting up. "And you're a piece of shit."

"Fie upon you, Naemas," Joliel said, "there are children present. Naemas, I heard you make reference to the account of one Moratis, a trader in the city of Viragos, with whom the Children of God did business at one time. Yes?"

"Yes," Naemas replied sullenly.

"Speak up, Naemas."

In an angry bellow: "YES!"

"I will give a brief account of what happened between myself and this Moratis of Viragos, and Naemas, who witnessed part of it, will confirm whether or not I am telling the truth." Pausing briefly and crossing his arms, the sorcerer then began to recount in the stylized pattern of a lay: "I took a purse with coins, scrip, and silver to the money changers of Viragos, so that food and supplies for the Children of God could be obtained. This was about four years ago. I do this once, perhaps twice a year, as many of you know. Many people who are here today were in the tribe then, but what passed with Moratis was not widely known of until some time after it happened; it may be that the mayor himself, or the chief constable, never knew exactly what passed at Moratis's house. Some men of the tribe accompanied me into the city, and some of the girls, and two of the fighters. Isn't this so, Naemas?"

"Yes."

"Naemas was with us, too, you see. He knows the ways out and back from Kheoran very well, and he knows all the fisher people, and they all know him.

(February 2026)

THIS IS ALL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL 

from JTPYO - King of the Waste [3] / the trap (that I have been working on for a long time)

Hi, folks. I'm making the referenced text into a PDF because it's pretty long. This is just to warn you! 

Happy Imbolc! Imbolc: Welcome the Return of Light - Conscious Reminder 

LINK TO DISCLAIMER:

Just another day in You-Know-Where (Scarlett_156's blog): My disclaimer (scarlett156.blogspot.com)

––––

1 February 2026 ☼

from JTPYO – King of the Waste [3] the trap (excerpt "The Dragon's Egg / Cuetio / The Children's Gifts / Welcome To A Life Of Worry And Strife") 

Copyright © 2017 through 2026 by Kristi A. Wilson 

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Which is me. 

This is how "the trap" ends. "The trap" is Book Three of JTPYO – King of the Waste (see the outline in another post ((https://scarlett156.blogspot.com/2025/10/outline-for-jtpyo-first-published-in.html)) for further details):

3. the trap - The tribe cannot move out of hiding due to the presence of a hostile clan of desert-dwellers, the Jaraturi, and is running out of water. The six warriors, attempting to fetch water from an area some miles away, are trapped in a narrow canyon. After divining their location, the Goddess-on-Earth sets out with her Second to rescue them and calls Naxosos and the two priests Tolalo and Naimejo to aid. Korsis and Naemas accompany the party. The sorcerer Joliel makes several kills. At the scene of conflict, Naxosos performs wizardry to save the fighters, after which he is greatly weakened and has to be carried to safety, later awakening in a hot place surrounded by drunken fornicators. To reward Naemas for saving Naxosos, the Goddess-on-Earth offers him a boon, and he asks that everyone in their party live long enough to see the arrival of the new kingdom. Finally returning to the tribe – whole and intact, and having made it to safety – Naxosos is honored and presented with a number of fine things.

At this beginning is the end of the section called "the dragon's egg." The sorcerer hears Nirith, Tolalo, and Naxosos praying. These three are in the lofty hideout "the dragon's egg" and the speakers are in the sere and desolate (and geographically interesting) place "Onyx Reach."

Note: "The Trap" is so long I've had to divide it into chapters.

Outline for JTPYO first published in 2017

This is the outline with what has been worked on and published:

 https://scarlett156.blogspot.com/2025/05/outlinenames-of-parts-jtpyo-fyi.html 

This is changed only by a couple of words from first published here by me October 2017. In case you want a reference. I'm working on a part of "the living dead" (JTPYO - King of the Land of the Dead [2]) right now. I recall that on gab ai just after I posted this in my blog some people kinda went nuts. Heh. Good times. You're probably sick of my disclaimer by now but in case you don't know what I'm talking about, look at older posts. Have fun and stay safe out there. Haha, forget I said that.

    --- Synopsis and overview of JTPYO all four novels --- 

There are four parts to the saga: King of the Waste, King of the Fishers, King of the Heights, and King of the Land of the Dead. Briefly, it concerns a few years in the life of a citified young man, Gorardeno Naxosos of Viragos, who through no crime or wrongdoing (except perhaps vice, laziness, and licentiousness) has become a fugitive from various governmental and religious authoritarian entities and must live by his wits among an assembly of wandering mendicants, fakirs, roustabouts, gamblers, prostitutes, monks, escaped slaves, herders, and bums who call themselves "the Children of God." Naxosos's best friend, Tagros Naemas, has been associated with the Children of God since age nine and urges that they join this collective, and so that is where Naxosos eventually ends up, with his teacher Maynaliel Tolalo, an elderly priest who has also been named fugitive from the law, and his friend Tagros Naimejo, also a priest and Naemas's older brother.

After a few months of adjustment to life among the Children of God, this tribe numbering approximately one hundred, with cattle, keeping to the wastes and trackless lands, Naxosos finally assumes a place of respect and honor, mostly due to his dauntlessness, sagacity, cunning, and inborn capacity for wizardry. He also has a quite pleasant, easygoing nature. (Most of the time.) 

Naxosos's position in life is a peculiar one, his having been born into a line of humanity predicted by religious writings to somehow rule over the earth at some point, although this line has all but been eradicated at the time our story begins, in part due to this prophecy, and in turn is part of the reason Naxosos and his kinsman, a sheepherder who like himself must constantly flee pursuit, Saridizi Maliel, are so sought-after. In addition, one or the other or both of them is by birth the ruler of a kingdom called Arigne, which has all but been absorbed by first one, then another, and then yet another kingdom, until there is little left of it – though the political influence this kingdom wields, by virtue of its wealth and placement of individuals in various important houses, is disproportionately large.

After spending a time on the waste, Naxosos and the Children of God begin to experience misfortune due to his being hunted by more and more people for an increasing variety of reasons. Naxosos attempts to separate from the tribe at one point but finds that even in the loneliest place he can manage to get to and stay for a time, he is known and intrigue springs up around him. Since it seems there's little way he can escape what appears to be destiny, he rejoins the Children of God.

Ultimately, Naxosos and a part of his cohort form a plan to subvert the rule of the corrupt Steward of Arigne, Aritritas. It is seen that one of Naxosos's closest companions, a pagan wizard they call Joliel, wishes strongly to use Naxosos and the influence of his stepfather, a wealthy merchant – and their other close companion, Korsis Zarodi, whose family is also wealthy and influential at the hub of the settled world which is the empire of Cela – to overthrow that empire. To this end Joliel has manipulated people and circumstances adroitly.

The subversion of Aritritas is successful, though it brings a swift doom of one type or another for almost every single one of the protagonists; this isn't gone into in detail. Naxosos is captured and, after an ordeal, is executed in spite of a last-ditch attempt to save him staged by a couple of his friends who have managed not to get caught themselves. He is shown, as the Children of God attempt to raise his lifeless body, in the Land of the Dead, holding a conversation with a "jinn" or demon, and then encounters one of his friends who was slain only a short time after he was – and that's the end.

- - - - - - - -

BUT WAIT! There's more!

Original outline of all four novels JTPYO from 2017

+++Towards the downfall of the impostor. 20 September - 22 October 2017

Note: The characters in JTPYO are all speaking the same language except where noted, but none of them is a native speaker of that language, so some of them have accents and some seem to be speaking more grammatically/formally. The main character speaks more idiomatically to his friends and more formally to others. Sometimes the main character and his teacher speak their native language with one another.

The following contains naughty words and situations. If naughty words and situations offend you, better not read this!

Also, it is all copyrighted.+++

+++[The following] was written between November 2017 and June 2018.

Brief, sketchy explanation:

This series of stories is something I just messed around with for a long time in the 1990s. I never wanted to publish it and never talked to anyone about publishing it. A couple of people I was friends (?) with in the past apparently have copies of one version of it, or an outline for it, or something. By like 1999 I had written hundreds of pages, but again, it was just a fun project I never took very seriously and had no intention of publishing, haha.

Why did I make new parts for it and put them in my blog? Why, #JTPYO, of course! :P

If you enjoy these stories or get something out of them, I appreciate that. If you don't like them, however, don't read them. lol

I never collaborated on this with anyone and all of these characters are fictional creations, although you may not find them too very original, lol+++

 * * * 

Prologue (never published) 

[0] The Children of God have been at a canyon domain to attend a rite of enormous power conducted by the Goddess-on-Earth, Thais, and Nirith, her second, resulting in an unanticipated manifestation of a mighty demon, the Prince of the Air. The Prince of the Air addresses Naxosos and attempts to frighten and demoralize him. After months of living with the Children of God, Naxosos has become infatuated with Thais and at the canyons becomes her consort; all begin to address him as their king. Now the main part of the tribe has returned to the wasteland.

the king of the waste

1. transgression

Naxosos strays into the wrong part of the desert encampment at the wrong time with subsequent consequences. Once his companions stop laughing at his self-pity, they urge him to develop a better relationship with the six warriors who guard the tribe. Some truths, both pleasant and unpleasant, about life with the Children of God are revealed and explored. The writer assumes the reader doesn't already know the four main characters so briefly delineates the behavior typical for each.

2. contest

Naxosos and Naemas challenge the Goddess-on-Earth's warriors to a javelin-throwing competition and use magic against them, which nearly causes an uncomfortable scene to erupt. Naemas wins the contest (and a great deal of money for at least one who gambled on him) by doublecrossing Naxosos with assistance from the archmage Joliel.

3. the trap

The tribe cannot move out of hiding due to the presence of a hostile clan of desert-dwellers, the Jaraturi, and is running out of water. The six warriors, attempting to fetch water from an area some miles away, are trapped in a narrow canyon. After divining their location, the Goddess-on-Earth sets out with her Second to rescue them and calls Naxosos and the two priests Tolalo and Naimejo to aid. Korsis and Naemas accompany the party. The sorcerer Joliel makes several kills. At the scene of conflict, Naxosos performs wizardry to save the fighters, after which he is greatly weakened and has to be carried to safety, later awakening in a hot place surrounded by drunken fornicators. To reward Naemas for saving Naxosos, the Goddess-on-Earth offers him a boon, and he asks that everyone in their party live long enough to see the arrival of the new kingdom. Finally returning to the tribe – whole and intact, and having made it to safety – Naxosos is honored and presented with a number of fine things. 

4. the blow

A sandstorm has arisen and members of the tribe take refuge in the dining hall tent, where Naxosos, Naemas, Korsis, Joliel, Tolalo, Naimejo, Thais, Nirith, the six warriors, and Naxosos's mother Ember and his little brother Naemejo, called by all M'jo, have been at dinner. Naxosos is still weakened from the encounter with the Jaraturi. Everyone behaves intemperately and speaks even more so. Taking offense at Joliel's criticisms of Naxosos, Korsis and Naemas cause the sorcerer to become outraged at their taunts. The storm grows violent and part of the dining hall tent collapses, though no one is hurt. When finally the blow ends, they emerge to find the oasis completely covered with an enormous mountain of sand. Joliel, still angry about being mocked, implies that he, Nirith, Thais, and Korsis had plotted to kill Naxosos and have Korsis impersonate him, and moreover that Naimejo – also a wizard – caused the freakish storm with his jealous anger. Naemas strikes Joliel, who gets even by assaulting Nirith in the priest's tent during the appearance of a strange being called alternately messenger or angel. The messenger seems to give Naxosos words of encouragement, informing him that he is "one of us," and telling him that it will leave him with a sign. This turns out to be the appearance of water at the base of the dune created by the sandstorm, and a tree that grows rapidly into a sapling before everyone's eyes. Naxosos sends Joliel away after he attacks Nirith; upon taking his exit, Joliel spitefully informs Naxosos that he is one of the "least necessary things in the new kingdom."

5. demonstration

After the sandstorm, the Children of God will relocate via a strenuous journey to a village in the high mountains where they maintain a friable welcome in order to make repairs to their damaged property. Deciding to take the messenger's advice, Naxosos asks the priests for a task to perform and is put in charge of cattle. Joliel decides to make Korsis eat his rash words spoken at dinner. Naemas becomes a management problem, apparently upon receipt of bad news. Korsis gives Naxosos a gift, something catches on fire, and the next morning Naxosos is waylaid and given serious advice (which he makes an attempt to remember, but ultimately can't) by Thais en route to a demonstration during which Joliel performs surprising feats of sorcery, a thunderstorm arises, and Naxosos ends up performing a work of magic as well, though in a way that is not entirely foreseen by anyone. Joliel suggests to Naxosos that the priests are against them. Korsis forgives Naxosos for saving his life.

This is the end of "the king of the waste."

- - - - - - - - -

king of the fishers

1. the one awaited

After the violent storm and the appearance of the messenger in King of the Waste/the blow, the Children of God will ascend to the mountains and take temporary refuge in a village on the site of an ancient complex of mines, called Fehischian-Or. (The area they're occupying in "the demonstration" is the first stage of that trek.) Since they will no longer be isolated in the waste, the tribe stops to wash tents and clothing at a waterfall; also, the priests will store their accounts of the meeting with the messenger in an astonishing cavern near the peak of the mountain, a library full of scrolls and tablets. Naxosos is recognized as someone important by yet another supernatural entity, yet this significant event is eclipsed almost entirely by the pandemonium that erupts upon Naxosos announcing to Naemas, then to their other friends, that he intends to ask the Goddess-on-Earth to marry him.

2. dream

Naxosos is mildly embarrassed to learn that "throwing the knife" didn't mean what he thought it did, but nevertheless manages to hang a few of his detractors out to dry. He and his cohort, with the warrior Merelioides to guard them, and including Naimejo, set out for a fishing village called Bortskina on a vaguely-described mission that arouses his misgivings to a great degree. Naxosos is warned by the fighter Zyanonchoulain that the sorcerer Joliel will attempt to influence him via dreams.

3. the dogs

The group, bruised but intact, arrives in Bortskina where the fisher people, upon receipt of the news about the messenger, the miracle at the oasis, and the announcement of the guardian of the scrolls, decide to acknowledge Naxosos as the avatar of the great god of tides, earthquakes, and storms, Sorah-nen. Naxosos and his retinue are feasted and he is presented with a rather disconcerting, and yet ultimately most agreeable, gift. An encounter with enemies, the Muratrayi, and their attendant enormous, fierce dogs along the road to Bortskina is recounted from a variety of points of view. Naxosos gains three young followers: Raikha the Orighoi, a fugitive girl from an aristocratic Celan family, and her two friends, orphaned fisher brothers named Kozvit and Andiamo, whom Raikha terms her retainers. Naxosos, Korsis, and Naemas impress the fishers mightily when they perform "the boar hunt" dance. The group discusses whether they might have to leave Bortskina earlier than planned due to indicators of potential trouble.

4. the avatar of Sorah-nen

Naxosos and his cohort, plus their three new companions, and minus the warrior Merelioides, are forced to make a rapid and quite perilous exit by sea from Bortskina when Celan bounty hunters come seeking them. They manage to escape the village to a relatively safe, inaccessible cove, though in the process their boat is destroyed, they lose almost all their gear – and, to add to their troubles, they are separated from the warrior Merelioides. After an anxious interval, they finally rejoin the warrior and regain the highway, though now it is clear they're being relentlessly hunted by multiple well-armed and -informed entities. Making their way at long last to the mountain pass village of Slaliros, where they are supposed to rendezvous with the Children of God, they are finally met with an encouraging sign.

5. the wild bees

Naxosos enjoys an idyll with Nirith, the Goddess-on-Earth's Second, though Raikha's subsequent jealous pique is not as enjoyable. Naxosos and his cohort finally rejoin the Children of God as the tribe begins the last leg of its journey to the village of Fehischian-Or. Their situation has grown a great deal more complicated and uncomfortable. Now there is discussion of the tribe splitting into several smaller groups as bounty hunters, military, and law men now are seeking Naxosos and his friends throughout three kingdoms. Some members do leave, mostly to return to the home canyons in the south. The main part of the tribe is reduced now to about seventy members: Eighteen men and youths who are priests or acolytes of the Aringni temple, twenty-five women and girls of varying ages including the Goddess-on-Earth, her Second, and Naxosos's mother Gorardeno Ember, and the rest men and boys in a wide variety of ages and stations in life, including Naxosos, his companions, and the six warriors. Amidst all of this, however, Naxosos has difficulty becoming discouraged, as he knows that in a few months he may become a father for the first time.

This is the end of "the king of the fishers."

- - - - - - -

King of the heights

1. the adulterous ones

After nearly two months of travel through mountains, the tribe arrives in Fehischian-Or. Naxosos has avoided discovery and capture on the road by assuming the role of a scribe and this is the role he assumes in the company of the Goddess-on-Earth, though the two of them plan to marry now that they have gained the semi-safety of the village situated in a high, remote area. He sees the young woman Meriezirim Honey for the first time and Naemas admits to involvement with her. Naxosos intuits that Honey, the much-younger wife of an elderly but very active village hetman, may be demon-possessed when he first sees her and the sorcerer Joliel assures him this is true. Joliel warns Naxosos to avoid the woman and indeed to avoid going inside the town walls at all if he wishes to stay out of trouble; Naxosos has little trouble remembering this advice.

2. the slip

A retinue including Naxosos and his cortege splits away from the main tribe to seek winter pasture for the cattle. At first the task is pastoral and almost transcendentally agreeable, but then Raikha, the Orighoi, falls and is killed, her corpse lost even to recovery. Naxosos and several others are nearly undone by grief and confusion. The sorcerer Joliel offers to take Naxosos to the Land of the Dead to say farewell to Raikha and predicts that he and Naxosos are destined to visit that land together again in the future.

3. wedding

Thais and Naxosos marry; Naxosos discovers finally thereby why is it never beneficial for the Goddess-on-Earth to become distraught.

4. letters

The wife of a rich villager, Meriezirim Honey, comes to the encampment of the Children of God to seek the services of "a scribe." It is clear she knows who Naxosos is and her constant arch references, sometimes uttered in crazy-sounding voices, create a state of general anxiety. Naemas confesses to Naxosos that Honey is extorting him into further meetings with her, that she does indeed know who Naxosos is and that she is pressuring him to flee with her to another city so they can marry. Naemas and Naxosos come to hard words over the issue, and Naxosos considers dismissing Naemas from his service. Now the weather is getting bad, however, so no one can easily or safely leave the area. Nirith almost miscarries. Other citizens of the village and surrounding province seek out Naxosos for his writing skill and he learns a great deal from them, and they from him.

5. the stones themselves

Naemas is nearly caught with Meriezirim Honey, whose husband is one of the village magnates. There is an uproar and Naemas barely gets away. Naxosos has to confront the village elders as they drag Honey from her home and bring her to the square to hear her confession and stone her to death (and her correspondent, if he can be found). To save Naemas from capture Naxosos reveals his own identity as Gorardeno Naxosos, wily fugitive sorcerer – and sorcery really is his only listed crime, though accusations always run rank everywhere he shows up – wanted in three kingdoms, with a high price on his head.

Naxosos confesses (falsely but convincingly) to a dalliance with Honey, though essentially he is frightened and repelled by her and nothing could be further from the truth. He manages to save Honey's life, although he's not really trying to, and escape with his own life via some fast talking, but the Children of God are exiled from Fehischian-Or, a warrant is taken out for Naemas's arrest and a party of armed men sent to find him, and Honey is also exiled from the village. (The elders have no wish to fight the warriors of Thais or contend with their own temple over the arrest or detainment of the supposed Shinsha-ava, so the tribe is allowed to leave.)

The Children of God are forced to take the Meriezirim Honey with them, though absolutely no one wants her along as it is clear, even to the men who appreciate her sexual profligacy and attractiveness, that she is a liability.

As well, it becomes more and more obvious as they flee that Honey is possessed. Korsis reveals to Naxosos that this is the reason Thais had been reluctant to come to Fehischian-Or in the first place, in spite of the tribe's dire need to hole up somewhere for a while after the blow: That Naemas was mixed up with Honey already and everyone knew, and moreover the woman is obsessed with the legend of the Shinsha-ava, promiscuous, untrustworthy, and unstable and the entire situation seemed a recipe for disaster, but Fehischian-Or was the closest place with people and houses where they would not be run off or attacked, and this had forced their hand.

Several days into their desperate flight through snow-covered mountains Naxosos discovers that Honey had caused Raikha's death, creating an effect of someone calling for help and tricking the girl into falling into a mining pit, this with the assistance of a demon. In a fury, he almost kills the woman (which Joliel and a number of others, among them several of the priests, urge him to do), but finds himself unable and ultimately ends up exorcising her of multiple demons.

He finds he hates her, but still Naxosos cannot bring himself to kill Honey and feels superstitiously that if they were to manage to abandon her somewhere, she would nonetheless be able to overtake them again. Thais feels they may be able to heal her completely and that Honey may in time become useful to the tribe; she and Naxosos fall out to a degree over this question, as Naxosos doubts Honey is completely free of demonic infestation or that she would ever be useful under even the best of circumstances. Nirith confesses to Naxosos that she sees Honey as a threat and tells him the woman has begun learning about poisons from Joliel.

The weather worsens and the tribe is snowed in on the heights. Nirith remains on the verge of miscarrying her infant and there is doubt whether it is still alive.

Naxosos turns twenty-nine years of age in the midst of a howling storm, his mind rife with suspicion and worry. He communicates via dreaming with his cousin Maliel, also a fugitive from the Steward of Aringni, Aritritas. Maliel urges Naxosos to meet with him at a particular place.

This is the end of "the king of the heights."

- - - - - - - -

king of the land of the dead

1. a bitter draught

Naxosos goes to an encounter with his fugitive cousin Saridizi Maliel. An unpalatable solution to Meriezirim Honey is found, and ultimately a most unstable one. Naxosos and his cohort are forced to flee for their lives as Maliel is arrested and imprisoned by Aritritas, steward of Arigne under Cela. Angels appear and birds speak. Naxosos puts away his spear.

2. the living dead

The Children of God are hunted and seldom can stay in any one place more than a few days before having to leave again. To his and others' great unease, Naxosos finds has become magnetic to all sorts of creatures, some human and some not, and there are many unusual and often distressing encounters. The tribe must be creative in eluding pursuit.

3. a devil's work

Naxosos attempts to break away from the Children of God but ultimately finds separation impossible.

4. the poison tree

Naxosos is arrested and imprisoned in the capitol city of Etrisiastoila and sentenced to be executed. Naemas and Joliel have a meeting that ends up being fatal for one. Joliel drops a big, fat dime on the Arigni temple.

5. the jinn

In the midst of a violent storm and flooding the Children of God, with assistance from several well-heeled parties, manage to spirit Naxosos away from the gallows and substitute the body of a man killed in a bar fight for his. Meriezirim Honey resurfaces at the worst possible time and in the worst possible way. Attempts are made to raise Naxosos and escape the city of Etrisiastoila. Naxosos has a meeting in the Land of the Dead.

This is the end of "the king of the Land of the Dead."

I hope y'all are doing well. (Why do I keep saying stuff like that????)  

2025-10-25 ♄ 06:17:54 PM

I'm publishing this again - from May 2022 - unusual dream including gangsters, miniature zoo animals, and a famous entertainer

This has been in my blog before but I thought it would be a good idea to repost it. From May 2022 - the "seinfeld" bullshit that me and Mr K have been having to suffer with started in about 2018 or so. It's still going on, so maybe there is some element in the dream that it was predictive, sadly enough.

-------

 

Unusual Dream Featuring A Famous Entertainer And A Bunch Of Other People Who Are Probably Famous, Too, Although I Didn't Recognize Them

Disclaimer: This is a memory about a real dream that I really had, presented for your entertainment and possible amusement. Maybe I'm hoping someone can offer an interpretation – wait a minute. That's a bad idea. Never mind. Forget I said that.

I don't think the dream was predictive, though I frequently have dreams that predict future events. For example, I had the following dream two or perhaps three days before the shooting at the DC sports field where GOP congressmen were practicing for a softball game: I was riding with a guy who died some years ago – he was an acquaintance in the local band scene who died of an overdose – and we passed a local sports field where two guys I have some extensive past with and an unknown female were playing baseball. I recognized the two guys instantly, but the strange part is that they were wearing RED BASEBALL CAPS. The dream was so unusual that I told Mr K (not the one on this forum) about it. Then, just a couple of days later there was the shooting. I asked Mr K if he remembered me telling him about the dream and he said he had just been thinking of it. He was just as weirded out about it as I was.

That's how predictive dreams are, a lot of the time: You can't figure out what the dream is predicting until after it happens. Often I can figure out during the dream that it's predicting something but can't figure out what.

– * * * –

Anyway, in this "famous entertainer" dream – I think it was about six months ago – there were lots of people and almost all the action took place in a building that was incredibly vast and also sort of falling apart. It reminded me of a school or some other public building that was in sore need of repair. Everything was quite real-life with smells and sounds and sensations. It didn't take me long to know that I was dreaming.

Usually when I realize I'm dreaming I start trying to wake up – almost always. I'm not sure why I'm so avoidant but this likely has something to do with whatever I experience after I realize that I'm dreaming, which is usually unpleasant.

I was in this gigantic place…

So I was in this gigantic place. It was daytime – per checking the windows – but there was an enormous nightclub type room in the very center of this sprawling building where it was like midnight and a show was going on. At various junctures during the dream I would look into this club place and there was always someone on stage and a bunch of glitterati types – guys in monkey suits, gals in sequined evening gowns – at tables watching.

When the dream started out I was in a place like backstage and there was a whole battalion of people there. I got the feeling it was like a Mob hangout. There were some very hard-looking guys in nice suits who started looking me up and down; meanwhile a guy like Tony Bennett (he looked almost exactly like him, from what I glimpsed, in fact) sang this "Come Fly With Me" type song. The scene was very lively and gay, with everyone smiling and downing expensive-looking drinks, but the place smelled bad and there were these Tony and Guido-looking guys. I realized I was dreaming and started looking for a way out.

I smell food…

I wandered around the backstage area and heard the sounds of a cafeteria, with clanging/clattering dishes and cooks yelling out orders, and I could smell food.

Throughout, the place was dirty like it had been sitting empty for a time and no one had bothered to clean before letting an army of people in.

So I went in the cafeteria – that's what it was – and it was also full of people, though these were not wearing formal or party attire and it was more just folks wearing jeans and tee shirts. I recall that it was mostly men. The place was busy as heck and daylight was shining in the smeared, steamy windows but I couldn't see much besides that it was day.

Looking around, I spotted an exit sign over a security door and headed for that. I actually had my hand on the door and could see what looked like grass and trees outside, but then someone called out my name and like an idiot I turned around to see who it was.

Never look back

There were a couple of guys standing right behind me and one of them looked so familiar it was startling, but to this day I can't remember where I ever saw him. I figure it was a picture that I had seen on the interweb or something because it was no one I had ever met. There was a big guy and then a smaller guy and for some reason I thought they were in video production. The big guy seemed to know who I was and said, "Hey, Kristi, they have beer here. Come get a sandwich and some beer with us." He pointed toward a gaggle of other guys – almost all looking like they were under age 30 – that were sitting at a table. Again, a couple of them looked familiar, though it was no one I had ever met.

The big guy who first accosted me was probably in his early 20s and he was quite heavy, wearing black cargo shorts and a black tee shirt. He was sort of olive-skinned and had a rather large mop of curly black hair. He was babyfaced and looked like he had barely started shaving, and wore little oval-shaped, wire-framed glasses. He was disturbingly familiar, but where had I seen him before? The other guy who was with him had a sort of nerdy appearance too and was wearing khaki pants and a Hawaii-type shirt. He also wore glasses, aviator-style wire frames. He had longish sandy-colored hair. I recall he had some freckles, too. Both of them smiled a lot.

So I went with them to their table, thinking that I would try the exit a little later.

During all this I could still hear the nightclub act going on with people clapping after the song was over and the singer launching into another song.

Wonder bar

When I sat at the table I could clearly view the remainder of the room and was surprised to see a really huge old-timey bar with like a thousand bottles of booze. Unlike about everything else in the building, the bar was ornate and expensive-looking, polished to a gloss, its glowing wood carved into intricate shapes like vines, flowers, berries, and birds. It had a gigantic mirror over it, reflecting the bottles of liquor in a myriad of different colors: Bright orange, sapphire, amber, poison-green (I was like, "Oh wow, maybe one of these guys will buy me an absinthe if I act nice and polite to them.")

It was truly gorgeous and like a museum exhibit. There was a door that by its appearance and the sounds emanating from it, led into the club.

These guys got me a cup of beer – it was warmish but tasted okay – and they had a half-eaten pizza that I had a couple of bites of. These guys seemed like a company of video producers and I think a couple of them were actors. There were about eight guys in all sitting in this one group. They seemed to be trying to be nice to me, like we all knew each other, but I had no idea who they were except that a few of them looked familiar.

Where's the can?

I started wanting to get out of there and thought of using the excuse that I had to use the bathroom, but to get to the bathrooms I would have to go back into the main part of the building and I didn't want to lose the exit. So I sat there sort of wondering what to do when the big guy who had first spoken to me said in a whisper, "Hey, look!" and pointed toward the big, shiny bar.

I looked over and there was the famous entertainer Jerry Seinfeld (comedian and TV actor) entering from the nightclub. He didn't look like he looks today but like he did in the Seinfeld TV show except that he was wearing a tux. At first I thought he was one of the performers or maybe a guest at this strange place but then noticed that his tux collar was open and there was a white bar towel over his arm, and he was carrying a little drink tray, like he was a waiter.

May I take your order?

He looked over at our group and sort of nodded like he was saying "hi" and I noticed a couple of the guys sort of waved at him. He appeared rather anxious, almost scared. I felt kind of sorry for him, or as much as I am able to feel sympathy for any play-actor, which admittedly isn't much. I started thinking, "Haha, I wonder if he's looking for the exit, too." Then the bartender accosted him and he (J Seinfeld) started ordering drinks. So, he WAS a waiter there or at least playing one.

The big kid started to say something to me, but I cut him off and said, "Is that door unlocked? Can I get out?" and pointed at the exit. He got this worried look and said, "Oh, I don't think that's safe, you'd better stay with us, we know this place from top to bottom." And then I finished my beer – by that time J Seinfeld had got his drink order and, casting a last unreadable look at our group, hustled out into the nightclub – and stood up. I think I had a purse with me and I was wearing a minidress and sandals like a gal on vacation.

I wanted to ask the big kid what was going on, but I was getting that "I really need to get outside" feeling. I saw that a couple of the guys with him had video equipment stashed under their seats and I felt that the absolute LAST thing I wanted on the whole face of the earth was to go roaming around this crazy building with them.

So I just said, "I'll be right back!" and practically ran toward the exit sign. The door turned out to be unlocked and as I pushed out through it I heard a couple of people exclaim anxiously and the big kid and his friends saying, "Kristi! Wait!!" The door was hard to push because there was a great deal of vegetation blocking it.

Freedom…

I ignored them and dashed outside. I immediately saw that this building was part of a complex and we were WAY, WAY out in the boonies somewhere. The sensation of hot, hot sun blazing down on me was very distinct. I was in an area of mowed grass – it was Bermuda grass, or looked like it, and it made my feet feel itchy.

I looked back at the building and saw that it would be unlikely that I could return that way because there was no handle. There were bushes and high grass growing around the door and along the walls of the building, but – as I turned about to get a look at my surroundings – the building and its attached buildings were in the midst of an extensive mowed area cut squarely into a place that looked like South American rain forest. The whole area was bigger than a couple of football fields. The trees surrounding it towered more than a hundred feet tall. I couldn't really see the boundary but it seemed there was a tall chainlink fence enclosing the field.

I decided to walk around and see if I could find a road or path or something, although I wasn't crazy about the idea of trying to find my way through that jungle. I figured I would probably wake up by then but I dreaded the idea of what it would be that would finally wake me up, because I was already pretty scared.

I started to walk around the building and it was truly gigantic. Part of it was an old brick building but it had a bunch of different things built onto it like storage sheds, additional rooms, and so on – including a little bell tower on one part. There was no one else around but I could at times hear sound coming from the inside of the building. It was all shoddy and dilapidated-looking, with weeds growing tall next to the foundations.

The cars

Rounding the building, I finally saw an enormous area full of parked cars. Most of the cars were costly-looking, sitting there shining in the baking sun. There must have been over two thousand cars. I could hear people talking in a hangar-type building off to the side of the parking area and figured it was security.

A dirt road led away from the parking area, so I started to follow it. I regretted having sandals on and thought if the path got too wild and woolly I would surely have to turn back. I walked casually and swung my purse like I was just out getting some fresh air.

I followed the road for a short distance and then saw – yes – that there was a gate on it with barbed-wire chainlink about twenty feet high. There was a structure like a guard tower. It was all quite serious-looking.

I was like, "Okay, I'll just stroll on back," so that's what I did. I wondered a lot where I was. It seemed like a real, physical place and not just something that popped out of my dreaming consciousness.

The animals

So I walked and was nearly back to the main building when I heard a little noise behind me and turned around to see a small pack of menagerie animals trailing me. It was a very bizarre sight as all these animals were miniature in appearance. There was a giraffe that was only a bit taller than me, and a hippopotamus about the size of a St Bernard dog. There were a couple of small horses and a little bull, a couple of goats, and – I think – an orangutan. The orangutan was about the size it should be, but all the other critters were very small. A couple of them were wearing collars. The hippo wore a little pink ribbon around its neck. Very bizarre.

These animals were friendly and tame so I spent a couple of minutes talking to them and petting them. Then someone called out and I saw a black guy in a security uniform approaching. He seemed upset and asked me why I was outside "the complex." I answered that I had lost my way and asked him if he could help me get back. The guy was really uptight like he expected trouble and quickly led me around the building to a broad stair going up to several pairs of double glass doors. I could see a lot of people inside. With a tense little smile he opened a door for me and waved me in. I thought of asking him where I was but he took off before I could do anything.

Out of the frying pan…

Inside the entry there was a small mob of people, all of whom turned and stared at me. The noise from the nightclub was loud and echo-y – there was a band playing a show tune and the audience was singing along.

I was rather depressed that I had not been able to get out and sort of fearful about what would happen next (and my feet were itching to beat the band after walking in sandals in that grass), but at that point I woke up.

This dream did not seem to predict anything. I have not seen any of the people I interacted with since, including in pictures, etc., except, you know, the occasional GIF with J Seinfeld in it or something similar.

-----------

My interpretation: No matter who else is there, the drinks always catch my attention above all else. Also: Small tame animals are fun to hang out with. Also: I'm as antisocial in the dream world as I am in the real world.

The Goose Girl and its place in JTPYO

Greetings, party people. There seems to be a great deal of misunderstanding about the following item that is part of "JTPYO" - specifically, it's part of JTPYO 4, King of the Land of the Dead, the chapter named "the poison tree."

    Strangely, no one has contacted me for help to try to figure things out - and that's okay! But just in case someone would like to understand more, I offer the following from my own point of view - and since I wrote it, that should be worth something, right? 

    I shouldn't have to say this, but: 

PLEASE NOTE THIS IS COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL

    Enjoy!

-----------------

A parable is a story that illustrates a philosophical maxim.

Naruthi is a character that appears frequently in Naxosos's lessons. He's actually just a version of Naxosos that's a little more of a boor and a knave, and a little more thick-headed, than Naxosos himself. Naruthi appears in a number of Naxosos's lessons, but not every single one. Naxosos's parables are usually a hit, as the audience knows him well enough to know he's spoofing himself (and occasionally his friends, wives, and adversaries) to get a point across.

The parable "The Goose Girl" appears in the segment "the vineyard laborers" after Naxosos meets and heals a young girl named Marihea from paralysis. He is about to meet with the leaders of the clan Gohaiash and try to persuade them to back his claim to the throne of Arigne. There is a large gang of people awaiting his arrival in the village and combined with his own followers – who trail several leagues behind him on the road – it's a huge passel.

Inspired by the simple faith of Marihea's family – they're Satrians – he relates this parable to the huge crowd. (And a whole bunch of things happen after that – Naxosos and his gang are basically kept awake all night by the hysteria accompanying their arrival and the subsequent arrival of the rest of his entourage, several thousand people and a number of animals, carts, wagons, and so on a few hours later.)

The basic, and very simple, premise of "the goose girl" is that God's word will always take root in a person's heart whether they have ever been told anything about God, or made to believe in him, or not.

Rose is a girl in a very small and somewhat impoverished town; no one in the town ever speaks of God and most have no idea in their heads about God at all. Rose herself has "never heard of or known about God."

     -----------

(The Goose Girl)

There was a girl named Rose and her parents lived by the sea on Benetetria in Pavrain. The town in which they lived was poor, though some of the houses were sturdy and fine; also, it was very isolated. The bay and waters beyond it had been fished-out for years, but the area was of interest to the military and so people continued to live and trade there.

This girl Rose kept a flock of geese, which had been something she'd been taught to do by her uncle, her mother's brother, who was now gone. Her uncle had informed her that she should never let any harm come to the geese and that she should only harvest their eggs at her family's need, and that if any of the geese were to be killed, it would only be at her father's order. Rose understood these things and obeyed. She was a great caretaker of her flock of geese and over the years it took for her to attain twelve years of age, there were many fat goslings who were sold to market or to the local militiamen or townspeople to profit her family, and eggs to feed her family when the winter winds buffeted the shores and food was scarce, with a fat goose, or several of them, to eat at solstice-time.

Now this little village town did not know God, nor of him. Some of the militiamen knew of him from their travels, but they were never in the mood to tell anyone about him. There were references to him upon some very old markers in the town cemetery, but the graves were almost never visited and when they were, no one paid attention to the markers.

Naruthi happened to be passing through the town at one point, as he had some shady business to attend to with the garrisoned men. He noticed the place was rather dull and lifeless, but people, most of them dispirited and uncommunicative, continued to live there – of course, Naruthi knew that even if all the townspeople died or moved away, the garrison and its soldiers would still be resident, so there was the explanation.

However, Naruthi happened to notice upon his perambulation through the town the goose-girl Rose. Because of his facility for perception, he noticed also that the goose-girl Rose was innocently dedicated to her flock of geese – and that she and her family were perhaps not thriving, but at least maintaining, in a place otherwise barren of any sign of success.

So, because that is what Naruthi does, he determined that he would upset Rose's world and cause disruption in the town, and then proceed to his shady dealings with the soldiers in the garrison.

Rose was driving her geese down to the shore to graze, then, as she did on most calm mornings, when she saw a handsome man giving her the eye. She was used to this, as she was a comely young girl but not a wealthy one, so she simply gazed back, and held up the flail she used to direct her geese as a subtle threat.

Naruthi said: "Nay, young lady, I wish only to take a moment of your time to tell you about God."

This stirred something in Rose's memory, though she knew not what. She answered, "Stranger, if you wish for only a moment of my time, you may have it, as long as you stay where you are and make no sudden moves."

Naruthi then informed Rose of the existence of God and taught her to say "praise God." Once he was sure she had accepted his message, he traveled on to the garrison and Rose never saw him again. She thought of Naruthi a great deal after that, but of God even more often, and was greatly disturbed thereby.

Upon successive days, it seemed that a great clamor had begun upon the island Benetetria, or at least upon its shores, for Rose heard the local residents talking about it. Then one day, when Rose released her flock of geese from their enclosure upon her parents' manor, she noticed people she didn't recognize in the streets, and that moreover the streets were full of carts and people carrying their belongings; she had a difficult time driving her flock down to the shore.

When Rose and her geese did get to their grazing-ground, she climbed a promontory and looked toward the town, and though she didn't see much, she heard an uproar. She wondered if this had something to do with the God that the handsome man had told her about – it did seem likely.

Being mindful of her uncle's advice, Rose decided not to take her geese back to her parents' manor until she knew that everything was all right in the town – this was not too much of a problem for her, as there were many grazing-places for her birds, and she was more than able to care for herself away from home and hearth – following her uncle's advice had made her very self-sufficient.

For a few days Rose and her flock stayed by the waterside, even though it was rainy and cold. There were plenty of charaberries left on the bushes on the saltwater flats, so the geese were quite content. Rose made a little fire that kept the hollow where she slept warm enough, and though she was sometimes hungry and uncomfortable, she did well. When the noise from the town started to abate, she said to herself, she would return. She worried about her mother and father, but there seemed to be little to do about it, so she continued to follow her uncle's advice. She cared for the geese and kept them from harm.

But things got worse. The noise from the town increased and now there was smoke from houses burning. Rose took her geese further out onto the salt flat; they were not as content here, but they followed her because she was their caretaker. The geese clustered around Rose when she slept and kept her warm; she dared not build even the smallest fire for fear of being noticed. She wondered if this trouble was because of the God she had been told of; also she wondered if the man who had told her about this God was the agent of all the ill she was experiencing.

One night there were sounds of conflict and flashes out on the water, and Rose became terrified. Now she collected her geese – they were also frightened – and retreated to a cove on a low jetty that she knew of, surrounded on every side except for the sea by salt marsh and, as far as Rose knew, only she was able to reach it. It was a very unhappy place and the geese also didn't like it, though one could live there for days as there was an abundance of sand crabs. Rose knew how to collect dew and rain for drinking water and so would be able to survive there for a time.

When morning came, Rose saw men in longboats out on the water. They could see her and her geese, but they could not reach them because of the shallows and the marsh. The men even shot arrows, but these were not able to reach Rose or her geese – and they couldn't retrieve their arrows – and finally they became frustrated and rowed away, shouting threats and curses. Rose was afraid and cried, and spent a very miserable day and night wondering if the men would find a way over the marsh and capture her.

Another handful of days passed. Things started to quiet down after a couple of days, and by the fourth day everything seemed almost back to normal – the sounds of conflict went away and the air cleared, and one morning Rose, now very worn and tired and hungry, woke to the sounds of birdsong, and realized that she had not heard this sound for many days, but now it had returned.

During her time of hiding, Rose had come to the conclusion that Naruthi, the handsome gentleman who had told her about God, had been the agent of all the upheaval, but in a strange way that didn't have anything to do with her – she began to feel that Naruthi had told her about God to protect her in some way, for she doubted greatly, given the fires that had burned for days, that there was much of the village left.

She listened to the birds singing and felt the clean air on her face and, even though no one had ever taught her how to address God, she felt gladness and gave thanks to God in the same manner she would have thanked someone giving her a present for her birthday. This made her long to see her parents and her home, so she resolved to leave the salt marsh and return to her village.

Rose told the geese that she would give them a chance to take their freedom, as she was going to go and try to find out whether her parents had survived, which would involve risk, and her uncle had told her never to let any harm come to the geese. She then removed the bands from their wings so that they could take flight. She petted them and said goodbye to them, and left them stretching their wings – it seemed they were thanking God, too – at the cove, and made her way out of the marsh.

Once Rose had a view of the town, she hid for some time in a covert, watching. She saw some men under guard being led through the streets with ropes around their necks and their hands tied; they were led by the local militiamen, and one or two of these prisoners wore the same uniform as the men who had shot arrows at her.

Rose still hesitated, as she had heard that even one's own soldiers may behave very badly after they have been in a fight.

Then a strange thing happened, for Rose heard a sound overhead and looked up to see her geese flying over her; upon seeing where she was, they circled, then landed in the covert and gathered around her. Rose sensed that the geese wanted to stay with her and were anxious to see their pens and food again, though if she drove them into the town it was doubtful that any of them would live much longer than it took for hungry survivors of the conflict to spot them.

But she couldn't persuade the geese to leave her and they all clustered around her until she decided that she would go to her parents' house to see how they had fared. Then all of her geese began waddling on their usual route toward Rose's house, and she followed them, wondering if she would see Naruthi again.

Rose and her flock managed to get back to the manor and, wonder of wonders, she found her mother and father there, whole and alive. Their house had taken fire but rain had put the fire out quickly, and they had been able to hide at a neighbor's farm for the worst part of the conflict. When they had come back, they had found that the local militia had vanquished the attackers and that further, the attackers had been driven from Benetetria. The manor house was somewhat damaged, but they had already hired workers to make repairs. Upon learning these things, Rose urged her parents to express their gratitude toward God, which they did, though they had never heard of him in their lives.

Everyone in the village, as it turned out, had been anxious about Rose, but her father had said to those who asked about her that he knew that she would always follow her uncle's advice, and that she was a very self-sufficient girl, and that they could and should expect her back. They were all surprised, however, that she had returned with her flock of geese intact and in a company all around her, having lost none, and that none of them had a band on its wing anymore. This was regarded as a marvel. Rose encouraged them to express gratitude toward God and, even though some of them considered it ridiculous and offensive, most of them did just on the off chance that there might be something to it.

The townspeople were hungry and so Rose and her mother and father made very good trades with them; after this, a number of townspeople started their own flocks from those animals they had purchased from Rose and not eaten straightaway. Rose ended up with only six geese left to begin a new flock, but her family now had enough money to make repairs upon their property, and Rose's father also made sure he added a substantial amount to his daughter's dowry. (After that, the young fellows in the district began to be very polite toward Rose, and to tip their hats when they chanced to see her driving her geese to the shore.)

Some years later Naruthi happened to be passing through the area on no particular business and noted that Rose was now a very successful lady married to an important man, living on an estate that was luxurious and productive, in spite of how isolated the village was. Intrigued, he wandered through the town, listening and watching and taking note of whatever he saw or heard.

The next thing Naruthi observed, then, was that the locals, though they were not ostentatiously rich or even comfortable-appearing, did not appear poor or downtrodden, either. People bustled about their business and when they would encounter one another, each would not just pass a greeting, but comment on something about the day or the other's attire, or about how peaceful everything was, or make some other observation that was friendly and positive-sounding, and then say – almost as though they were quoting a verse from an obscure text in a language unknown to them – "Praise God!" after which both parties would give a little laugh and look toward the sky, and then go on about their business.

"Drat that girl!" Naruthi exclaimed when he realized what was going on, and then traveled on down the road without taking a room, even though the next village was quite a distance.

If you have two ears, then hear.

### 

THIS IS ALL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL.