"Wake up Rolf. Someone is coming."
"What!"
"Shhh. I can hear someone coming up the trail. It sounds like a single rider."
"Untie me, I'll help you fight them."
" I don't need your help. I only woke you so that you could get to safety, and I'm not ready to untie you."
"But I didn't make a run for it last night."
"True, but maybe that is because you slept through the whole night."
"It's still dark, so I couldn't have slept through the entire night."
"True you are. It is still dark, but there is only an hour or so left of night before the dawn. Trust me you slept more soundly then a log on the floor of the forest. Now get to the horses. If there are more than one, I want you to get on your horse and run as far away as you can. I'm not ready to trust you, but I don't want you to die."
"Well that is reassuring thought. I'll get to the horses but I will not run."
"Do what you must then. I'm going to head towards the trail and see what I can see."
We parted company as I headed for the trail. I entered the Swordsman's Euphoria and reached out to the stone around my neck. I could not see anyone near or around the camp other than the three horses and Rolf. I slowly and silently made my way to the trail. The rider was coming from the direction we were going to be heading in the morning light. He didn't sound like he was trying to mask his movement. That could be a distraction to pull our attention to them instead of the danger at our back. I could still see no one. I got to the tree I had slept under nights before and looked down the trail. I could see the lone rider. They were slumped in their saddle and bouncing to the rhythm of the horse's trot. As they made their way closer I could see something sticking from the riders back. It had fletching on it like an arrow. I began running to meet the rider. I could make out the blue tunic of a Targen Knight being worn by him. It was Sir Paljin.
"Sir Paljin, Sir Paljin. It's me Pitre."
There was no response from the man, I ran until I reached the horse and grabbed it by it's reigns. Sir Paljin was slumping forward taking shallow breathes. He was still alive but he was unconscious. I guided the horse and Sir Paljin to the village center and called for Rolf. He came running immediately. He had managed to get his hands untied in his time alone with the horses.
"Since your hands are free, help me get this man down from his horse. He is wounded and we need to try to help him."
"That is a Targen Knight."
"Yes it is, and he is a friend of mine. Now help me get him from his horse so that we can tend to his wound."
Rolf jumped to action and helped me get Sir Paljin down from his horse. We laid him on his side so that the arrow would not have any pressure on it. It was stuck just below his shoulder. It wasn't deep, but with hard riding and panic setting in, he would have bled faster than normal.
"Go to my horse, in one of my saddle bags are some scraps of cloth. Get them and bring them to me. I grabbed the dagger I had taken from the fallen Raider at the Crossing and used it to cut into Sir Paljin's back to widen the wound from the arrow. I pulled the arrow head out fully intact and pressed on the wound as I waited for Rolf to return with the scraps of cloth. I began feeling a tingle in my hand. I looked and I could see the aether flaring around my hands and the area of the wound. I watched as the wound began to slowly heal itself. It started with a bright golden light that leapt from the finger tips to the interior of the wound. It would pulse and as the light dimmed I could see the wound was shallower, than before. It would pulse again, and again it was shallower. As it healed the light pulses with less intensity, until it left only a faint scar in the place of the wound that was the depth of an arrow head.
Rolf came sliding to a stop with the cloth in his hands, and was handing it forward as he looked at my face.
"What is it? Did he die?"
"No, quite the opposite."
Rolf looked down at my hands that were now sitting on Sir Paljin's side above the feint scar.
"Where is his wound? He had an arrow sticking from his back and there is no mark."
"I wish I could tell you what happened, but I don't fully know myself. I watched as the wound closed up by itself after I pulled the arrow from his back."
"That's not possible."
"Do you see a wound where there should be one?"
"No."
"Well, it appears to be very possible then. Help me carry him into one of the huts. They have beds. He needs to rest."
"You mean that these huts had beds this whole time and you let me sleep leaning against and old post?"
"I wanted to stay in the open so that we would hear anyone approaching. You can see how that thinking has paid off."
"Well it certainly paid off for this old chum. He has a healed wound that should have been the near death of him."
"Just help me move him."
Rolf grabbed his feet as I gently lifted him from his shoulders. We carried him inside the nearest hut and laid him on a small bed that was more a platform with a rough spun blanket on it.
"I guess I can trust you now. After all, you didn't run and you helped me save my friend."
"Well, it's true that I didn't run, but I had nothing to do with saving your friend. I only got rags that turned out to be unnecessary. Are you sure you don't know how his wound healed itself."
"No, no idea at all."
I did have a small idea of what happened. Arial had told me that the ancients had used the aether to help heal people. Maybe that is what happened. I was still in the Swordsman's Euphoria when I was helping him. It helped me focus, and my attachment to the aether through the stone probably played a big part in his healing. I did see the aether jump from my fingers to his wound.
"Rolf, that arrow was a Raiders arrow. I thought you said that your vanguard was the only one in the area."
"It was. We were told that we were to roam the countryside taking care or villages that still had inhabitants. The rest of the army is in the Kingdom. They took it over several weeks ago. There is no other vanguard out here."
"Are you sure of that?"
"As sure as I can be. I told you that they don't really give me any information other than what I need to know."
"Maybe he was on his way back to tell me where to go and he was ambushed by scouts."
"That is very possible. The general of the vanguard has scouts out everywhere. I told you that there were a dozen or more men that could take my place, but that was only the men that were with the vanguard. The general has 2 maybe 3 dozen scouts out roaming ahead of the vanguard."
"I guess we won't know the real story until Sir Paljin awakes then."
"Sir Paljin is his name?"
"Yes, he was with me at the Crossing. I told him to warn our caravan of the vanguard."
"It's a strong name. I'm sure he will make it through. He clearly has something watching over him if his wound will heal on it's own. I know his name, and you know mine, but I have no idea what to call you."
"I guess in the excitement of capturing you and trying to get information from you, that I forgot to give you my name. That was very impolite of me. My father would have tanned my hide for not introducing myself. I'm sorry Rolf. My name is Pitre."
"Pitre? Are you the Pitre that killed a wolf as a boy?"
"How would you know that?
"There is a girl that is with the army. She told me of a boy that saved her by killing a large wolf. A wolf that was twice the size of himself. We all thought it was a tale she told everyone."
"What is her name?"
I was terrified and thrilled to ask that question. The only person that would know that story was Arial. The only person alive anyway."
"Her name is Elandra."
My heart stopped. It wasn't Arial. I didn't know an Elandra, there wasn't even anyone in the village by that name.
Saturday, June 30, 2018
Thursday, June 28, 2018
The Victims Of Maryland.
Rob Hiaasen
Gerald Fischman
Wendi Winters
Rebecca Smith
John McNamara
If you don't already know, those are the names of the fallen from today's mass shooting. As always, I find the names of those that fell to this violence and ignore the name of the vile that did the act. Their name does not deserve to be remembered, or spoken. Those names above are the names to remember. It's still early, but look up their stories, they have them and they deserve to be heard.
I've already seen the typical response of "thoughts and prayers" by politicians, who will say that for a few more days and then forget about these deaths as they have all the others. Just remember that the midterm election is coming up in a few months. If your representatives don't match your ideals, find someone that does. Don't vote for a letter, vote for a person. Do your research and learn what each candidate is about. Find out if they think like you or close to you. If you have a candidate that has more things differing from you then don't vote for them. Find that person that does.
We are becoming more and more separated by a letter as opposed to actual thought and dialogue. Those latter two don't exist anymore. You see a letter and you hate that letter. Listen to the content of a persons thoughts, then you will know the true person. If you take the time to listen you might learn something about someone. The person you think you hate, might think more like you than you know. Listen to what people have to say. If they really are terrible people, they will show you with formulated thoughts. It never fails. The old adage of give someone just enough rope to hang themselves will come true if you let it.
I had every intention of writing a fun little post tonight, sharing videos that went up on the CS yesterday, and the PR today, but then the shooting happened. I'm tired of having to find and write these names of victims from mass shootings, but until they somehow miraculously stop, I will keep doing it.
I'm going to leave you with this. There has been a lot of talk about civility to one side or the other. Fine, be civil, but don't forget to question. People are calling the media the enemy of the country. The first amendment of the constitution protects the media as it does everyone. You should question what you hear from any source, but to deny it without question is not only irresponsible but reprehensible. To believe everything a member of government tells you is the same. Always question, so that you can find the true answers. Don't just follow, be involved. Questions lead to answers, and answers lead to changes. If you are uninformed you will simply be put in your place, and follow. This country was founded on the principles of question authority. That was the whole reason the first colonists left their countries of origin. There was dictators and monarchies that didn't allow the people to think for themselves. If you just follow and agree despite knowing something is wrong, that is what it will become again. Vote this fall for the person that best represents you and your thoughts. Peace in and goodnight.
Tuesday, June 26, 2018
Take A Chance On You
I thought I was all caught up on everything, and things were going to be smooth sailing from here on out, but I was wrong. I was looking back over the chapters of The Patchwork Knight that are scheduled to go up, and I noticed that I scheduled some of them wrong, so now I have to go back through all of them and edit the scheduling. The good news is, that I have everything transferred over. Chapter 4 went up yesterday on schedule, but I need to check the rest of them before Friday, so that is what I'll be doing tomorrow.
A new video goes up tomorrow afternoon. I'm trying out that time instead of early morning like I have been doing. If it shows a significant difference in views, I may change post times to later in the day, to get that benefit. I might even change all the chapters on Medium to see if that works over there as well. It's not going quite as well as I hoped it would, in fact it doesn't seem to be going at all, and to boot, a friend told me that it was hard to find the different chapters. He read chapter 1 and then he could only find a link to chapter 3. That isn't' good for the continuity of my story. I told him the easiest way to do it, was to click on my avatar so that it would take him to my profile and he could find them all there. Even though you go there, it is still a little confusing. It features Chapter 1 and I think that is because it is the most viewed chapter so far. In order to read them in order, you have to go to the bottom of the page and work your way up. The put the most recent post at the top of the page and then they go in a reverse chronological order. It's weird but understandable. This is going to take time to get used to.
I might get out and try to shoot a video tomorrow, but my main focus is on getting those chapters in order, and begin work on the PR logo. I put up a temporary one on all of our media outlets, the looks similar to what I want to do, but the idea of painting it, is to go back to those old basics of advertising. Not to mention, it will be my own creation and not just putting shaped in letters in an area from dragging and dropping them. It was fun to do it that way, and I learned as I went. That is all going to pay off in that I also learned how to make thumbnails for YouTube. The video tomorrow has a custom thumbnail and so does the PR video that goes up Thursday. All of these things are in hopes to draw peoples attention to them. It is proven on YouTube that a eye catching thumbnail actually gets people to click on that video.
I'm learning all of this as I go along, and it's fun. I'm not a graphic artist, but I found a site that makes it easy, not professional, but easy. I'm not a cinematographer, but I found a way to learn how to create and edit videos, and I'm getting better at that all the time. I'm not a publisher but this what I'm doing here, and what I'm doing on Medium is a version of that. What I'm getting at here, is that if you have a dream, or something that you really want to do, get out there and do it. You can learn anything. You only have to get off your butt and give it a try and learn from your mistakes as well as your accomplishments. Don't be afraid to fail. It's going to happen, and when it does, reflect on it for a moment so that you can get the lesson from it, and move on wiser. The only true failure is if you fail to act on your dreams. You've heard the old saying, nothing ventured nothing gained? Well it's true. If you never try anything, then you will never know if you could have done it. I know what you are saying, but what if I find out that I'm terrible at it? That is a question you can keep asking yourself, but isn't it better to know the answer than it is to wonder about it? Knowledge is power. If you know you can't do something, then you adjust your dreams. You try something new. the truth of it is, that you might just surprise yourself. If it is something you really want, then chances are you actually are good at it, and you won't have to worry about being bad at it. Give it a chance, what do you really have to lose.
That brings us to Favorite Song of the Week, and believe it or not, I can tie it in to everything I just talked about above. This is a song that was released last week just before the new album came out. One last little gift to fans before the whole album was available. Oh, and I got the album, as a matter of fact I pre-orderd it. Who am I talking about. It's none other than that band with the punctuation mark in the middle of their name, Panic! at the Disco. Brandon Urie is back with a new album and it's really good. This song is fun and so is the video. It can be a little disturbing, but the message is there, go after your dreams, but be careful along the way. Yeah, it's a little cynical but I'm reading into it what I want. So here is Panic! at the Disco with "Hey Look Ma, I Made It".
Ok look, I choose to read the message I want out of it, and I'm saying it is what I was talking about above. Don't judge me. I have an unexpectedly busy day tomorrow, but a new video will be released at 3 PM New York time, so that is something you can check out on the YouTube channel. It's a fun one, with a little surprise conversation with Scoots in the middle of it. I'll share it here on Thursday, but if you are on Facebook I'll have a link for it there tomorrow after it is released. Off to bed with me now. Peace in and goodnight.
A new video goes up tomorrow afternoon. I'm trying out that time instead of early morning like I have been doing. If it shows a significant difference in views, I may change post times to later in the day, to get that benefit. I might even change all the chapters on Medium to see if that works over there as well. It's not going quite as well as I hoped it would, in fact it doesn't seem to be going at all, and to boot, a friend told me that it was hard to find the different chapters. He read chapter 1 and then he could only find a link to chapter 3. That isn't' good for the continuity of my story. I told him the easiest way to do it, was to click on my avatar so that it would take him to my profile and he could find them all there. Even though you go there, it is still a little confusing. It features Chapter 1 and I think that is because it is the most viewed chapter so far. In order to read them in order, you have to go to the bottom of the page and work your way up. The put the most recent post at the top of the page and then they go in a reverse chronological order. It's weird but understandable. This is going to take time to get used to.
I might get out and try to shoot a video tomorrow, but my main focus is on getting those chapters in order, and begin work on the PR logo. I put up a temporary one on all of our media outlets, the looks similar to what I want to do, but the idea of painting it, is to go back to those old basics of advertising. Not to mention, it will be my own creation and not just putting shaped in letters in an area from dragging and dropping them. It was fun to do it that way, and I learned as I went. That is all going to pay off in that I also learned how to make thumbnails for YouTube. The video tomorrow has a custom thumbnail and so does the PR video that goes up Thursday. All of these things are in hopes to draw peoples attention to them. It is proven on YouTube that a eye catching thumbnail actually gets people to click on that video.
I'm learning all of this as I go along, and it's fun. I'm not a graphic artist, but I found a site that makes it easy, not professional, but easy. I'm not a cinematographer, but I found a way to learn how to create and edit videos, and I'm getting better at that all the time. I'm not a publisher but this what I'm doing here, and what I'm doing on Medium is a version of that. What I'm getting at here, is that if you have a dream, or something that you really want to do, get out there and do it. You can learn anything. You only have to get off your butt and give it a try and learn from your mistakes as well as your accomplishments. Don't be afraid to fail. It's going to happen, and when it does, reflect on it for a moment so that you can get the lesson from it, and move on wiser. The only true failure is if you fail to act on your dreams. You've heard the old saying, nothing ventured nothing gained? Well it's true. If you never try anything, then you will never know if you could have done it. I know what you are saying, but what if I find out that I'm terrible at it? That is a question you can keep asking yourself, but isn't it better to know the answer than it is to wonder about it? Knowledge is power. If you know you can't do something, then you adjust your dreams. You try something new. the truth of it is, that you might just surprise yourself. If it is something you really want, then chances are you actually are good at it, and you won't have to worry about being bad at it. Give it a chance, what do you really have to lose.
That brings us to Favorite Song of the Week, and believe it or not, I can tie it in to everything I just talked about above. This is a song that was released last week just before the new album came out. One last little gift to fans before the whole album was available. Oh, and I got the album, as a matter of fact I pre-orderd it. Who am I talking about. It's none other than that band with the punctuation mark in the middle of their name, Panic! at the Disco. Brandon Urie is back with a new album and it's really good. This song is fun and so is the video. It can be a little disturbing, but the message is there, go after your dreams, but be careful along the way. Yeah, it's a little cynical but I'm reading into it what I want. So here is Panic! at the Disco with "Hey Look Ma, I Made It".
Ok look, I choose to read the message I want out of it, and I'm saying it is what I was talking about above. Don't judge me. I have an unexpectedly busy day tomorrow, but a new video will be released at 3 PM New York time, so that is something you can check out on the YouTube channel. It's a fun one, with a little surprise conversation with Scoots in the middle of it. I'll share it here on Thursday, but if you are on Facebook I'll have a link for it there tomorrow after it is released. Off to bed with me now. Peace in and goodnight.
Sunday, June 24, 2018
This Weekend Was Fun
I have been busy today. I woke up early so I could do a video. I got it completed and ready for release on Wednesday. I decided to release it a little later in the day just to see if I get more views based on the time of day. It's an experiment worth trying out. I also found a site that I could do thumbnails for YouTube, and I got two of those done today, as well as create a new logo for the CS. It's not much but it will do for now. I put that on all my projects so far, but for some reason it's not showing up on the YouTube page. I will have to keep playing with it.
I also edited yesterdays video for the PR ad created a temporary logo for it. You can see it on the Facebook page and soon on the Instagram. I haven't had a chance to change that one yet. It's time to write, so that comes first.
I have that video for the PR uploading right now, and it will be available for your viewing pleasure on Thursday evening. I will write the blog post tomorrow to have it ready for it's Friday release. The numbers are going up on the PR, but it's not where I would like it to be, but I just have to be patient.
Oh, while I was out making that video this morning, I got a few pics. Well the was the entire purpose of the video. I'm not going to share all the pictures with you, but I will share my favorite one. I only cropped the image to get it where I wanted it, and it came out much better than I thought it would. see what you think.
Yeah, I actually liked it. Trust me, I'm more shocked than you are. I pride myself on my tasting skills and my discerning pallet, but good is good, and despite the fact that it was a little too salty, it had a good flavor. It's not going to get me to go back for another one, but it got me there, and if I find myself traveling cross country, I would stop at an IHop to have another one.
Tomorrow I get back to editing and proofreading The Patchwork Knight. I kept away from it for a few days so that it wouldn't affect my writing last night. I was really worried that I was going to create some kind of horrible loop that I would get trapped in. I think I avoided that, and I should be able to get all remaining chapters transferred over this week so that I won't have to worry about that again. It is a genuine fear that I will write myself into a major block if I get them too close to one another.
That reminds me, the fourth chapter of The Patchwork Knight goes live on Medium tomorrow. This is the first one that will be part of the partner program. That means that it is the last of the truly free chapters. You can still read it, and you have a certain number of items you can read on there without being a member, but it will take you longer to get to them as you will have to wait until the next month to refill your read allowance. I can't remember if I mentioned but I did find a big error in the continuity of the story, and I fixed that in the Medium version. That is all taken care of, and although it is a big error, it really doesn't affect the overall story. I think it more bugged me that I made such a huge mistake. I don't think anyone caught it, so it's not as big a deal as I think it is.
Fun thing that happened this weekend. It wasn't all work. I did watch the second season of Luke Cage, and it was great. I think it was better than the first season. The first season took me some time to get through all the episodes. I finished the second season in two nights. The thing I love most about it, is the music that they feature in it. This is the type of stuff I love and grew up with. I know I was a lily white kid from the south, but I listened to funk, soul, and jazz. Yeah I listened to everything, but that was the stuff that I really loved. Since one of the main places that they are at is a club, they are playing all that type of music. I get lost in that and forget about the story some times. It was fantastic. I highly recommend the second season of Luke Cage. Plus they throw a little thing in if you know any of the history of the character that is special. I was excited when I saw that. I think it was episode 10 or so. If you are a fan, you will know when it's happening.
Busy week of getting The Patchwork Knight all moved over to Medium, then writing the post for the PR, then making a video or two for the YouTube channel, and finally helping a friend move. This should be an easy one, because she is getting some of the things transported over during the week. She is saving all the heavy stuff for me on Friday. I am hoping that we can get it all done Friday, because an old friend wants to go riding on Saturday if I'm free. I can turn this ride into a video and have something for the channel. Maybe we could go to a place I've always wanted to go and have lunch or something. This place is worth filming and should be a fun video if we get a chance to go. Plus, I should be able to get my drone controller and be able to fly with that guy that I met. I do need some flight time. I'll get some at her new house, because we have plans of getting some drone pictures for her. That will be fun. I'll see if I can share one or two here. I want to have her permission for those though. It is her likeness that will be for everyone to see.
Ok, I need to go feed Morty and just sit back for the rest of eh evening. I think I'll try to watch a movie or catch a few more episodes of Clone Wars on Netflix. That is a really great animated series. There are 129 episodes in that, so I got a long way to go to finish that one. I think I'm on episode 12 or something like that. Peace in and goodnight.
I also edited yesterdays video for the PR ad created a temporary logo for it. You can see it on the Facebook page and soon on the Instagram. I haven't had a chance to change that one yet. It's time to write, so that comes first.
I have that video for the PR uploading right now, and it will be available for your viewing pleasure on Thursday evening. I will write the blog post tomorrow to have it ready for it's Friday release. The numbers are going up on the PR, but it's not where I would like it to be, but I just have to be patient.
Oh, while I was out making that video this morning, I got a few pics. Well the was the entire purpose of the video. I'm not going to share all the pictures with you, but I will share my favorite one. I only cropped the image to get it where I wanted it, and it came out much better than I thought it would. see what you think.
The morning light was just perfect for that shot. If you want to see the rest of the favorite shots, head on over to Instagram for them. I'll give you a link right here pictures.
I nearly forgot, that I had a video for you to watch today. It went up early this morning, so it's been nearly a whole day since I thought about it. This goes back to that picture of the burger from Thursday I think. Whenever it was, I wanted you to guess where it was taken, well, this video answers that question and lets you know what I thought of that burger.
Yeah, I actually liked it. Trust me, I'm more shocked than you are. I pride myself on my tasting skills and my discerning pallet, but good is good, and despite the fact that it was a little too salty, it had a good flavor. It's not going to get me to go back for another one, but it got me there, and if I find myself traveling cross country, I would stop at an IHop to have another one.
Tomorrow I get back to editing and proofreading The Patchwork Knight. I kept away from it for a few days so that it wouldn't affect my writing last night. I was really worried that I was going to create some kind of horrible loop that I would get trapped in. I think I avoided that, and I should be able to get all remaining chapters transferred over this week so that I won't have to worry about that again. It is a genuine fear that I will write myself into a major block if I get them too close to one another.
That reminds me, the fourth chapter of The Patchwork Knight goes live on Medium tomorrow. This is the first one that will be part of the partner program. That means that it is the last of the truly free chapters. You can still read it, and you have a certain number of items you can read on there without being a member, but it will take you longer to get to them as you will have to wait until the next month to refill your read allowance. I can't remember if I mentioned but I did find a big error in the continuity of the story, and I fixed that in the Medium version. That is all taken care of, and although it is a big error, it really doesn't affect the overall story. I think it more bugged me that I made such a huge mistake. I don't think anyone caught it, so it's not as big a deal as I think it is.
Fun thing that happened this weekend. It wasn't all work. I did watch the second season of Luke Cage, and it was great. I think it was better than the first season. The first season took me some time to get through all the episodes. I finished the second season in two nights. The thing I love most about it, is the music that they feature in it. This is the type of stuff I love and grew up with. I know I was a lily white kid from the south, but I listened to funk, soul, and jazz. Yeah I listened to everything, but that was the stuff that I really loved. Since one of the main places that they are at is a club, they are playing all that type of music. I get lost in that and forget about the story some times. It was fantastic. I highly recommend the second season of Luke Cage. Plus they throw a little thing in if you know any of the history of the character that is special. I was excited when I saw that. I think it was episode 10 or so. If you are a fan, you will know when it's happening.
Busy week of getting The Patchwork Knight all moved over to Medium, then writing the post for the PR, then making a video or two for the YouTube channel, and finally helping a friend move. This should be an easy one, because she is getting some of the things transported over during the week. She is saving all the heavy stuff for me on Friday. I am hoping that we can get it all done Friday, because an old friend wants to go riding on Saturday if I'm free. I can turn this ride into a video and have something for the channel. Maybe we could go to a place I've always wanted to go and have lunch or something. This place is worth filming and should be a fun video if we get a chance to go. Plus, I should be able to get my drone controller and be able to fly with that guy that I met. I do need some flight time. I'll get some at her new house, because we have plans of getting some drone pictures for her. That will be fun. I'll see if I can share one or two here. I want to have her permission for those though. It is her likeness that will be for everyone to see.
Ok, I need to go feed Morty and just sit back for the rest of eh evening. I think I'll try to watch a movie or catch a few more episodes of Clone Wars on Netflix. That is a really great animated series. There are 129 episodes in that, so I got a long way to go to finish that one. I think I'm on episode 12 or something like that. Peace in and goodnight.
Saturday, June 23, 2018
The Patchwork Knight (Chapter 32)
We followed the trail back to the small village at a slow pace. With my guest tied up, he couldn't ride very well. I could see no trace of the caravan on the trail, Sir Paljin had gotten to them before they got too far along the trail. That was good news, but if a scout had checked the crossing, they would surely be moving towards it by now.
"Are you sure you didn't see any rides coming along this trail?"
"Yes, We saw no one."
Something was wrong. If the scout saw the two men, he would have held returned and reported to Sir Jacob. He would have sent a small group to take the men and clear the crossing.
"It seems we are going to be riding alone together for a longer time than I had thought. What is your name?"
"My name is Rolf."
"How old are you Rolf?"
"I just saw my 17th winter."
"What is the name of the village you come from?"
"I haven't seen my village since my fifth winter. I don't remember the name of it."
"Where do you call home then?"
"I don't have a home. I travel with the army from place to place. I've done that for as long as I can remember."
"You've been with the army since you were 5?"
"Yes, I traveled with he support caravan and helped wash small clothes and prepare meals When I was old enough to carry a sword, they put one in my hands and had me battle in the infantry. Once I learned to ride a horse, I became a scout."
"Why did you leave your village so young?"
"I didn't leave. The Raiders came and destroyed my village, and took me with them. That is what they do. They destroy villages, kill the adults and take the kids to become soldiers when they are old enough."
"Why did you stay with them once you had a horse and could ride away?"
"There is no getting away from the Raiders. They never stop. They are always marching and fighting, and if they catch you trying to leave, then you aren't killed right away. You are tortured and used as an example in front of the rest of the soldiers. They keep you on a wagon attached to a cross during the day, and they torture you at the evening meals as dinnertime entertainment."
"That is terrible. Would you really turn? You are away from them now and I can't promise that they won't catch you, but I will help you to try and get away. You could fight with us."
"I would turn. I have no loyalty to them. They have treated me like an animal since they took me, but fighting is still fighting, and I don't want to fight anymore."
"Even if it's for your own freedom? You would be fighting for something instead of someone."
"Yeah, but aren't you still fighting for someone? I mean, you do have a King that you live under don't you?"
"Well, yes, but he doesn't force us to fight for him, we want to fight for him. To protect the Realm and all the people who live here. This is a nice place when Raiders aren't killing everyone and invading our lands."
"I can see your point, but in the end, you are still doing all of this at the whim of one person. Your King very well may be good and just, but does he fight alongside his men?"
"I can't tell you that, but I do know that he fought alongside his men many years ago, when his father was beginning to be the very type of king you are talking about."
"Hmmm, maybe your King is different then."
We rode in silence for the rest of the way. The small village came into sight and there was no sign of Sir Jacob and the caravan, nor any sign of a scout that was left behind to guard their rear. There were plenty of tracks here. They were scattered about with no form of direction, It wasn't until rode further along the trail that I could see that the caravan had turned and rode in the opposite direction. They were going back the way they came.
It was beginning to get late in the day, so I decided to stay at the village again. This time I took the horses and Rolf to the village center. It wasn't much more than a smoothed over patch of land with huts surrounding it, but it would protect us from sight from the trail. I tied the horses after getting Rolf down, and tied them in a small stable off the side of the common area. I kept Rolf's hands tied but let his legs free No sense in leaving him untied yet. I couldn't trust him yet, despite his story. They could be just that, stories.
"Do you have any rations in your saddlebags?"
"Yes, I have some dried meat, and bread."
"I'll get it for you. Don't try and run. I will catch you, and if I have to do that, I can't promise that you will remain alive."
"I have no need to go anywhere. What would I report. that a lone rider got the better of me and my partner and then took me captive for the day?"
"I guess that is exactly what you could report."
"They would kill me on the spot for failure to perform my duty."
"Well, that is a deterrent then isn't it?"
I walked to the stable keeping my eyes on Rolf to see if he would run, but he never made a move, other than to sit on the ground leaning on the wall of a hut. I checked his bags and all he had was a bed roll, a small wrapped sack of dried meat, and a small loaf of bread bundled in a second bag. They really didn't expect him to be gone long, or they didn't expect him to live.
I return to the common area, and Rolf was fast asleep. He must have stayed up the entire night before on the march and then was told to hold the crossing. I put his supplies near him and let him sleep. the quiet was deafening in the tiny village. There wasn't even the song of a bird. The horses didn't make a sound either, it's as if everything was keeping us hidden.
"Are you sure you didn't see any rides coming along this trail?"
"Yes, We saw no one."
Something was wrong. If the scout saw the two men, he would have held returned and reported to Sir Jacob. He would have sent a small group to take the men and clear the crossing.
"It seems we are going to be riding alone together for a longer time than I had thought. What is your name?"
"My name is Rolf."
"How old are you Rolf?"
"I just saw my 17th winter."
"What is the name of the village you come from?"
"I haven't seen my village since my fifth winter. I don't remember the name of it."
"Where do you call home then?"
"I don't have a home. I travel with the army from place to place. I've done that for as long as I can remember."
"You've been with the army since you were 5?"
"Yes, I traveled with he support caravan and helped wash small clothes and prepare meals When I was old enough to carry a sword, they put one in my hands and had me battle in the infantry. Once I learned to ride a horse, I became a scout."
"Why did you leave your village so young?"
"I didn't leave. The Raiders came and destroyed my village, and took me with them. That is what they do. They destroy villages, kill the adults and take the kids to become soldiers when they are old enough."
"Why did you stay with them once you had a horse and could ride away?"
"There is no getting away from the Raiders. They never stop. They are always marching and fighting, and if they catch you trying to leave, then you aren't killed right away. You are tortured and used as an example in front of the rest of the soldiers. They keep you on a wagon attached to a cross during the day, and they torture you at the evening meals as dinnertime entertainment."
"That is terrible. Would you really turn? You are away from them now and I can't promise that they won't catch you, but I will help you to try and get away. You could fight with us."
"I would turn. I have no loyalty to them. They have treated me like an animal since they took me, but fighting is still fighting, and I don't want to fight anymore."
"Even if it's for your own freedom? You would be fighting for something instead of someone."
"Yeah, but aren't you still fighting for someone? I mean, you do have a King that you live under don't you?"
"Well, yes, but he doesn't force us to fight for him, we want to fight for him. To protect the Realm and all the people who live here. This is a nice place when Raiders aren't killing everyone and invading our lands."
"I can see your point, but in the end, you are still doing all of this at the whim of one person. Your King very well may be good and just, but does he fight alongside his men?"
"I can't tell you that, but I do know that he fought alongside his men many years ago, when his father was beginning to be the very type of king you are talking about."
"Hmmm, maybe your King is different then."
We rode in silence for the rest of the way. The small village came into sight and there was no sign of Sir Jacob and the caravan, nor any sign of a scout that was left behind to guard their rear. There were plenty of tracks here. They were scattered about with no form of direction, It wasn't until rode further along the trail that I could see that the caravan had turned and rode in the opposite direction. They were going back the way they came.
It was beginning to get late in the day, so I decided to stay at the village again. This time I took the horses and Rolf to the village center. It wasn't much more than a smoothed over patch of land with huts surrounding it, but it would protect us from sight from the trail. I tied the horses after getting Rolf down, and tied them in a small stable off the side of the common area. I kept Rolf's hands tied but let his legs free No sense in leaving him untied yet. I couldn't trust him yet, despite his story. They could be just that, stories.
"Do you have any rations in your saddlebags?"
"Yes, I have some dried meat, and bread."
"I'll get it for you. Don't try and run. I will catch you, and if I have to do that, I can't promise that you will remain alive."
"I have no need to go anywhere. What would I report. that a lone rider got the better of me and my partner and then took me captive for the day?"
"I guess that is exactly what you could report."
"They would kill me on the spot for failure to perform my duty."
"Well, that is a deterrent then isn't it?"
I walked to the stable keeping my eyes on Rolf to see if he would run, but he never made a move, other than to sit on the ground leaning on the wall of a hut. I checked his bags and all he had was a bed roll, a small wrapped sack of dried meat, and a small loaf of bread bundled in a second bag. They really didn't expect him to be gone long, or they didn't expect him to live.
I return to the common area, and Rolf was fast asleep. He must have stayed up the entire night before on the march and then was told to hold the crossing. I put his supplies near him and let him sleep. the quiet was deafening in the tiny village. There wasn't even the song of a bird. The horses didn't make a sound either, it's as if everything was keeping us hidden.
Thursday, June 21, 2018
Took A Day Off
I kind of took the day off today. I've been working non stop on videos, writing, editing, and proofreading, since last Wednesday. A thought occurred to me, late yesterday, and it was how is all this proofreading and editing going to affect me when I write the next chapter of The Patchwork Knight. The honest answer is, I don't know. Because I've been going through all these chapters, my head is at the last one I read as opposed to the last one I had written. This could be bad, but it could give me a new perspective on it. I really don't know. I do have more than have of the chapters moved over to Medium. The next chapter is going to go live a little before the email for this goes out.
That will be chapter 3 and the final free chapter, although I'm not completely sure of that. Although you will have to be a member of Medium to read all of them (that much I am sure of), I don't think they will keep all of them from public view. I think they allow you to read limited amount of monetized stories. I just don't know how many.
Ok, I just looked it up, and non members have a limit of how many stories they can read a month, so conceivably, you can read the whole thing on there, but it will take time and patience. Since I'm doing two chapters a week, that would be an average of around 8 a month. If Medium only lets non members read say 5 stories a month, it will take you some time to get through the whole thing in it's polished version. So what I'm saying is, it is possible to read the entire thing without being a member. Got it? Good.
Tomorrow I start back to work on all these projects. I still think I may take a little break from the proofreading so that my head is clear to write either tomorrow or Saturday. Instead I'm going to get started on something I should have done a while ago, and that is create the logo for the PR. I have a rough sketch that is very crude and simple, but sometimes simple works, and I think this will if I can pull off the idea I have. When I have it completed, I'll post it here. I will have to get the all clear from my partner before I will use it officially on the PR, but I think he will be all in if I can pull this off.
The reason I keep saying "pull this off" is because it is going to take every ounce of talent I have in art and then some to do what I want to do. It will look simple in concept, but there is one very difficult feature to what I want to do, and it's going to be in an arena that I'm not very good at, and that is color.. I'm ok at black and white drawings, but black and white won't work for this. I need color, and I need to get realistic color. This is going to take me quite a bit of time. I can do the majority of it rather fast, but that realistic color part, is going to probably take days if I can even get close. Yes, I could go a simple route and just go for something flat and 2 dimensional, but I don't think that will pop as much as what I want to do. I know this all sounds vague and it is, but trust me, I need to keep some secrets, so that when I finally unveil it, it will have some kind of impact. Either it will be, "Oh that's nice that he tried, but he failed miserably." or,"Wow, I can't believe he did that." I'm hoping for the latter rather than the former, but I'll just have to take which ever it is.
That is what I will be doing tomorrow, and maybe possibly writing the next chapter for The Patchwork Knight. That will depend on how much I get done with the logo though. I'm trying to leave Saturday somewhat open, because my plans may have to change somewhat. I have to do a tasting for the PR, but after that, I want to have that time open to help a friend if it is needed. I still haven't had any confirmation on that, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to be writing tomorrow night, and then posting on Saturday morning.
On a slightly different subject, I do have a video going live on Sunday morning. I posted two different pictures to Instagram and on Facebook to give everyone an idea of what it will be about, and my hint must have been too good, because just about everyone figured it out. I'll put the best picture here without a hint and you can see if you can figure out where I was.
That will be chapter 3 and the final free chapter, although I'm not completely sure of that. Although you will have to be a member of Medium to read all of them (that much I am sure of), I don't think they will keep all of them from public view. I think they allow you to read limited amount of monetized stories. I just don't know how many.
Ok, I just looked it up, and non members have a limit of how many stories they can read a month, so conceivably, you can read the whole thing on there, but it will take time and patience. Since I'm doing two chapters a week, that would be an average of around 8 a month. If Medium only lets non members read say 5 stories a month, it will take you some time to get through the whole thing in it's polished version. So what I'm saying is, it is possible to read the entire thing without being a member. Got it? Good.
Tomorrow I start back to work on all these projects. I still think I may take a little break from the proofreading so that my head is clear to write either tomorrow or Saturday. Instead I'm going to get started on something I should have done a while ago, and that is create the logo for the PR. I have a rough sketch that is very crude and simple, but sometimes simple works, and I think this will if I can pull off the idea I have. When I have it completed, I'll post it here. I will have to get the all clear from my partner before I will use it officially on the PR, but I think he will be all in if I can pull this off.
The reason I keep saying "pull this off" is because it is going to take every ounce of talent I have in art and then some to do what I want to do. It will look simple in concept, but there is one very difficult feature to what I want to do, and it's going to be in an arena that I'm not very good at, and that is color.. I'm ok at black and white drawings, but black and white won't work for this. I need color, and I need to get realistic color. This is going to take me quite a bit of time. I can do the majority of it rather fast, but that realistic color part, is going to probably take days if I can even get close. Yes, I could go a simple route and just go for something flat and 2 dimensional, but I don't think that will pop as much as what I want to do. I know this all sounds vague and it is, but trust me, I need to keep some secrets, so that when I finally unveil it, it will have some kind of impact. Either it will be, "Oh that's nice that he tried, but he failed miserably." or,"Wow, I can't believe he did that." I'm hoping for the latter rather than the former, but I'll just have to take which ever it is.
That is what I will be doing tomorrow, and maybe possibly writing the next chapter for The Patchwork Knight. That will depend on how much I get done with the logo though. I'm trying to leave Saturday somewhat open, because my plans may have to change somewhat. I have to do a tasting for the PR, but after that, I want to have that time open to help a friend if it is needed. I still haven't had any confirmation on that, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to be writing tomorrow night, and then posting on Saturday morning.
On a slightly different subject, I do have a video going live on Sunday morning. I posted two different pictures to Instagram and on Facebook to give everyone an idea of what it will be about, and my hint must have been too good, because just about everyone figured it out. I'll put the best picture here without a hint and you can see if you can figure out where I was.
Not a bad looking burger right? Anyway, the vide is all about that burger, so if you don't guess, you will find out on Sunday.
I have one last thing to talk about. I forgot to mention this on Tuesday, but I noticed that my GoPro was having a problem with the view screen. It's going bad, and getting a weird tint on it. Everything looks like it is going through some weird filter that turns everything green and pink. Although I really didn't want to do it, I ordered a new GoPro Hero 5. The good news is, that if I was going to buy it at anytime, now is the time. I was planning on buying another one eventually, so that we would have A and B cameras for the PR, but this screed issue pushed me forward a little. GoPro had them on sale for $50 off and they were throwing in a 32 GB memory card and a gift bag for free. Those two things are about a $50 value in themselves, so I'm really getting a great deal. The new camera should be here tomorrow, and I can use it for the Saturday tasting. I doubt anyone will know that we will have 3 cameras going, but that is the whole idea. Have it, but don't make it look like you have it. The new camera will be the B camera and full time backup until my original one goes belly up. That way we won't lose any production from loss of equipment. What was it PT Barnum always said? "The show must go on." This way it will.
I'm going to leave you with this final thing. This weekend find a way to make the world directly around you a better place. It doesn't have to be anything big, but maybe open a door for someone or buy a random person a cup of coffee. Your own mind is the only limitation on you for what you think you can do to make it so. Peace in and goodnight.
Tuesday, June 19, 2018
It's Been An Interesting Couple Of Days
It has been a bust couple of days. Also, some of the most relaxing busy days I have ever had. I woke up Monday morning with the intent of finding the right photo opportunities to get for The Patchwork Knight. I was thwarted in my attempt though. The first place I was going to go was closed. That's right, they are closed only one day a week and that day is Monday. That was the place I thought I would get the best pictures, for what I needed. It is called the Enchanted Forest after all. I had to alter my plans and I headed to the secondary location which was Fay Lake. There is a little park that surrounds a lake, and they do have some random wilderness trails. I got some good pictures there, but the best part was the gentleman I ran into. He was flying drones near the lake, and when I say drones, I mean he had like 10 of them, and they were all pretty amazing in one way or the other.
When I was done taking pictures, I decided to stop and try to talk to him, and he was one of those people that love to talk and share about their hobby, and his hobby is drones. He had been doing it pretty much since drones came out, so he has a few hours of flight time under his belt. He showed me each of his drones, and explained a few things that I didn't know. He talked about antennas that boosted the range so that he could fly further than normal, upgrades that he has done to his drones to make them faster and able to fly further, and just his love of flying, and how he always wants someone else to fly with. We exchanged numbers so that I can go fly with him some time. I don't have my controller right now, and plans to get it back this week just didn't line up, but I will have it back soon, and I will take it out and fly with him, and we will see if we can get some cool footage for you to view.
He mentioned that he likes to make videos, and I told him about the projects I have going on. He told me he had a recording studio, and he would love to help out if he could. This is the second recording studio I've been offered, but I don't know what I would do with it right now, so I'll keep that all in mind. He let me fly one of his drones, and it was an expensive one. He told me the price, and I thought it was low, just based on the size and how it looked. I didn't take off, or land, but once it was up, he gave me the controls and I flew it around the area. It was really fun, and made me miss mine even more. We were going to try something he hadn't done before, and that was have two people controlling it. He wold control the flight, and I would control the camera, but it turns out, he needed to download some firmware to get it going. That is something for the next time then.With that two person control, we may be able to get the camera to do things it wouldn't normally do because of the gimbal involved in stabilizing the shots. We might be able to get banked style shots if we synch up the movements the right way. That would be very cool, and open up doors on the possibility of different videos. This is the drone that I got to fly.
I really enjoyed my time out there, and I'm looking forward to going out there again soon. My plan was to get home and begin more editing on The Patchwork Knight, but this video took over, and I wanted to get it done and up today, so I'm a little behind in the proofreading part, but I have plenty of time to get it all together. I may not be done by the end of the week now, but probably by next Monday for sure.
That only leaves one thing left to talk about tonight. Favorite Song of the Week. This is a new song, by an old band. Well, they aren't that old, and this is their first song with getting the majority of the original band back together. It's been 17 years since the original lineup was together, and with the absence of one member, they finally are, and they are making good music again. The Smashing Pumpkins were a mainstay on the 90's scene. They were thrown in with the grunge sound, but they really didn't fit in there. They were kind of their own thing. Hailing from the Chicago area, they brought a different sound with them then what was coming out of Seattle, and it was fantastic. This new song, definitely harkens back to those early years and I can't wait for you to hear it, so here it is, The Smashing Pumpkins with "Solara".
That's a goodie right? Anyway, I have to get to bed. I'm waking up early to make another video, and then later in the day I'm going to shoot for another one. The one in the morning is imperative that I get out in that morning light. The second one is kind of a hot topic of sorts right now. I think I will schedule the second one for Sunday, and the first one for mid week sometime. I think the second one is going to be fun. I hope you enjoy both of them.
Oh, before I go, I guess I should give you a Facebook update. I'm not doing it the same as I had before. I'm not putting the app on my phone, so I will only see it when I get on the laptop, and then I only see whatever story is at the top of my feed. I check the notifications after I post what I need to, then I check what's going on with the PR, and then I'm out of there. Way different than what I was doing in the past. I would spend hours on there for no reason, but no more. I get it, I get out. I will go on right after this, because I will be posting the link to this on there.
That's it for me tonight. I will have a new video for you on Sunday that should be fun, and wait a minute. I did want to share my favorite picture that I took today. I can't share them all, because there are just too many, but one won't hurt.
When I was done taking pictures, I decided to stop and try to talk to him, and he was one of those people that love to talk and share about their hobby, and his hobby is drones. He had been doing it pretty much since drones came out, so he has a few hours of flight time under his belt. He showed me each of his drones, and explained a few things that I didn't know. He talked about antennas that boosted the range so that he could fly further than normal, upgrades that he has done to his drones to make them faster and able to fly further, and just his love of flying, and how he always wants someone else to fly with. We exchanged numbers so that I can go fly with him some time. I don't have my controller right now, and plans to get it back this week just didn't line up, but I will have it back soon, and I will take it out and fly with him, and we will see if we can get some cool footage for you to view.
He mentioned that he likes to make videos, and I told him about the projects I have going on. He told me he had a recording studio, and he would love to help out if he could. This is the second recording studio I've been offered, but I don't know what I would do with it right now, so I'll keep that all in mind. He let me fly one of his drones, and it was an expensive one. He told me the price, and I thought it was low, just based on the size and how it looked. I didn't take off, or land, but once it was up, he gave me the controls and I flew it around the area. It was really fun, and made me miss mine even more. We were going to try something he hadn't done before, and that was have two people controlling it. He wold control the flight, and I would control the camera, but it turns out, he needed to download some firmware to get it going. That is something for the next time then.With that two person control, we may be able to get the camera to do things it wouldn't normally do because of the gimbal involved in stabilizing the shots. We might be able to get banked style shots if we synch up the movements the right way. That would be very cool, and open up doors on the possibility of different videos. This is the drone that I got to fly.
One of the coolest features of that drone, are the struts. When it takes off, they slowly rise up to flight position, so that the whole thing lays kind of flat when it is flying. When it gets a certain distance from the ground, they automatically begin to lower to the portion you see them in there. It is super cool.
I talked with him for a few hours, and then finally left so that I could go home and look over the pictures I got there. They were good, but still missing what I needed for the most part. I decided to edit and proofread more chapters and get them ready for release. I'm up to 10 chapters now that are ready to go, and I did find a very big flaw. I mentioned something in an early chapter and neglected that in one further down the line, so I will be correcting that error when I get to that chapter. I knew this was a possibility based on the way I was writing with no safety net of a storyboard, or a character list, but that is all being corrected as I go now, so the story will be different but still the same.
Since I couldn't go to the Enchanted Forest yesterday, I went today, and it was, well in a word, enchanted. It lived up to most of the hype. I either missed an area or it was over sold to me, but I still got a ton of great shots that I can use with The Patchwork Knight. While I was out there, I managed to shoot some video, and low and behold, I made a video of my adventure out there. I think you are going to like it, so let's give it a watch.
I really enjoyed my time out there, and I'm looking forward to going out there again soon. My plan was to get home and begin more editing on The Patchwork Knight, but this video took over, and I wanted to get it done and up today, so I'm a little behind in the proofreading part, but I have plenty of time to get it all together. I may not be done by the end of the week now, but probably by next Monday for sure.
That only leaves one thing left to talk about tonight. Favorite Song of the Week. This is a new song, by an old band. Well, they aren't that old, and this is their first song with getting the majority of the original band back together. It's been 17 years since the original lineup was together, and with the absence of one member, they finally are, and they are making good music again. The Smashing Pumpkins were a mainstay on the 90's scene. They were thrown in with the grunge sound, but they really didn't fit in there. They were kind of their own thing. Hailing from the Chicago area, they brought a different sound with them then what was coming out of Seattle, and it was fantastic. This new song, definitely harkens back to those early years and I can't wait for you to hear it, so here it is, The Smashing Pumpkins with "Solara".
That's a goodie right? Anyway, I have to get to bed. I'm waking up early to make another video, and then later in the day I'm going to shoot for another one. The one in the morning is imperative that I get out in that morning light. The second one is kind of a hot topic of sorts right now. I think I will schedule the second one for Sunday, and the first one for mid week sometime. I think the second one is going to be fun. I hope you enjoy both of them.
Oh, before I go, I guess I should give you a Facebook update. I'm not doing it the same as I had before. I'm not putting the app on my phone, so I will only see it when I get on the laptop, and then I only see whatever story is at the top of my feed. I check the notifications after I post what I need to, then I check what's going on with the PR, and then I'm out of there. Way different than what I was doing in the past. I would spend hours on there for no reason, but no more. I get it, I get out. I will go on right after this, because I will be posting the link to this on there.
That's it for me tonight. I will have a new video for you on Sunday that should be fun, and wait a minute. I did want to share my favorite picture that I took today. I can't share them all, because there are just too many, but one won't hurt.
Do you know how hard it is to get that picture with a phone? It's near impossible, but I found a way. That spider is very tiny, and I had to get up really close to get that shot, not to mention I had to get it in just the right light so that the webs would glisten. I think it works despite the spider being blurry. Anyway, now that is all I have tonight. Peace in and goodnight.
Sunday, June 17, 2018
I Hope This Feeling Doesn't End Anytime Soon
I feel like I have been more productive these last few days, than I have in years. I woke up Friday morning, and began editing and uploading videos. I have the next couple of months worth of Remember When uploaded and scheduled to go every other week. I will get busy on creating new videos this week to fill in the spaces. I have seven chapters of The Patchwork Knight loaded up and scheduled for release on Medium. I rejoined Facebook (yeah, I did, I can't really believe it myself. I'll talk more about that in a moment.), and finally met with the brand manager that wants to help us out with the PR.
Before we get to the Facebook thing, I need to tell you about Medium. I found out that when I monetized the first chapter, it kept it from being viewed by all readers. It was only available to members. I fixed that, and although it seems counterproductive for what I want it to do. I took the monetization off for the first three chapters. That way, you can read the first three chapters without being member. They are shiny and new, with all the corrections and even a few words changed or sentences rewritten to make better sense. The way Medium works is, if you like what you read, they have a feature called claps. You can click on it once for a single clap, or you can hold it down for multiple claps. Those claps are what more the piece forward for other people to see. It's kind of like liking a picture on Facebook or Instagram. The more likes they get, the more it is promoted as something people should see.
Here is what I see on Medium, just so you know. It has a feature that you can pull up the stats for overall performance or performance for each story. It will tell you how many people viewed it, which means that is the number of people that actually clicked on the story. It will show you how many people read it, which is only an assumption based on time a person spent on the page. I have no idea how they record that data, but that is what they have. The last is Fans, and I have no idea what that means. I'm guessing that has something to do with the claps. They have all that for Stories, Responses, and Series. Those are all different ways you communicate or write on there. I'm just sticking with Stories for now. I tried to write a response on someones piece, and it said that I didn't write enough, so I deleted the whole thing. I clearly have no understanding of it yet.
The second chapter of The Patchwork Knight goes up tomorrow morning, and all other chapters will go up on a Monday and Friday schedule. I'm not sure, but I think you will still be able to read some of them even when the monetized ones go up, but I think they limit you to a certain number unless you are a member. Membership is $5 a month, and like I mentioned before, only become a member if you want to read the finalized version of The Patchwork Knight. It will still be right here in the rough draft version fo everyone to see.
I forgot to mention above that I wrote chapter 31 of The Patchwork Knight yesterday morning. I wrote in the morning, how crazy is that? It felt good. I had this feeling that that was the right time to write it, so that is what happened. I had an idea of what I was going to do with it, but once I started, like it so often does, it began to write itself. It really is amazing. I am really loving this freedom to work on the things that make me happy.
I guess it's time to talk about Facebook now. While I was at that meeting with the brand manager that is helping us out with suggestions and what not, he asked why I wasn't on Facebook, and mentioned how good it was for promotion. I couldn't argue with him about that. It's true, I know the power of Facebook when it comes to promotion, and I was leaving that all to my partner, but I finally decided with being unemployed and needing to promote all these things that are going on, I needed to step back my pride and rejoin. I am only on there to promote, I"m not spending anytime looking at anything other than the story that is right there on my front page, and that is it. I post what I need to, and then I'm off. I had my buddy make me the Admin of the PR page, and I have done a few things to get that going in the right direction, so I will more than likely take over doing the posts on there, to make sure that they get posted. I even posted two pictures today of the pizzas we had Friday night. I'll share the pizza I had right here, although you probably already saw it if you follow the PR on Facebook or Instagram.
These videos aren't elaborate, but I promise those are coming, and I'm still going to keep them under the 5 minute mark. Speaking of those videos coming. I'm going to be scouting sites for one video tomorrow. This is going to be a drone specific video, and if I can pull it off like I hope, it should elicit some emotion. I can see it all in my head, I just need to find a location that is close to what I see, so that I can work some magic.
While I'm out there, I'm going to try and get some pictures that will relate to The Patchwork Knight. Stories with images tend to get more attention then just a written story, so if I can get pictures of forest like areas, lakes, and even something that could resemble a mountainside (where are you going to find a mountain side in Florida), I can get maybe a new viewer to check out my writing. I need to do everything I can to try and make this dream work, so picture hunting I will go. There is the added bonus that I get to walk through beautiful surroundings in sunny Florida. I think I will just have to suffer and do that work. Did I mention that I love this freedom of doing things that I really want to do?
I did take most of the day off, to just sit back and collect my thoughts and plan things out. I will do that picture hunting and location scouting in the morning, and then I will get back to editing and scheduling new chapters of The Patchwork Knight on Medium. I really do plan to have everything up to where I am on here posted there by the end of the week. I have a lot of work ahead of me, but this is work that I want to do, instead of have to do. Plus, I get to go back and read my own story, and I have to say, it's not too bad. I rarely go back and read what I've written, so this is an odd experience for me. Remember the next chapter goes up tomorrow (Monday) morning. It's scheduled to release at 6am New York time. I post that link to my profile on there again right here The Patchwork Knight. I think this one has a picture with it. I can't remember if it's this chapter of the next one, but I did have a picture that kind of relates to it.
I think I've written enough for you to read tonight, considering that you will have the second chapter of The Patchwork Knight tomorrow if you so choose. Peace in and goodnight.
Before we get to the Facebook thing, I need to tell you about Medium. I found out that when I monetized the first chapter, it kept it from being viewed by all readers. It was only available to members. I fixed that, and although it seems counterproductive for what I want it to do. I took the monetization off for the first three chapters. That way, you can read the first three chapters without being member. They are shiny and new, with all the corrections and even a few words changed or sentences rewritten to make better sense. The way Medium works is, if you like what you read, they have a feature called claps. You can click on it once for a single clap, or you can hold it down for multiple claps. Those claps are what more the piece forward for other people to see. It's kind of like liking a picture on Facebook or Instagram. The more likes they get, the more it is promoted as something people should see.
Here is what I see on Medium, just so you know. It has a feature that you can pull up the stats for overall performance or performance for each story. It will tell you how many people viewed it, which means that is the number of people that actually clicked on the story. It will show you how many people read it, which is only an assumption based on time a person spent on the page. I have no idea how they record that data, but that is what they have. The last is Fans, and I have no idea what that means. I'm guessing that has something to do with the claps. They have all that for Stories, Responses, and Series. Those are all different ways you communicate or write on there. I'm just sticking with Stories for now. I tried to write a response on someones piece, and it said that I didn't write enough, so I deleted the whole thing. I clearly have no understanding of it yet.
The second chapter of The Patchwork Knight goes up tomorrow morning, and all other chapters will go up on a Monday and Friday schedule. I'm not sure, but I think you will still be able to read some of them even when the monetized ones go up, but I think they limit you to a certain number unless you are a member. Membership is $5 a month, and like I mentioned before, only become a member if you want to read the finalized version of The Patchwork Knight. It will still be right here in the rough draft version fo everyone to see.
I forgot to mention above that I wrote chapter 31 of The Patchwork Knight yesterday morning. I wrote in the morning, how crazy is that? It felt good. I had this feeling that that was the right time to write it, so that is what happened. I had an idea of what I was going to do with it, but once I started, like it so often does, it began to write itself. It really is amazing. I am really loving this freedom to work on the things that make me happy.
I guess it's time to talk about Facebook now. While I was at that meeting with the brand manager that is helping us out with suggestions and what not, he asked why I wasn't on Facebook, and mentioned how good it was for promotion. I couldn't argue with him about that. It's true, I know the power of Facebook when it comes to promotion, and I was leaving that all to my partner, but I finally decided with being unemployed and needing to promote all these things that are going on, I needed to step back my pride and rejoin. I am only on there to promote, I"m not spending anytime looking at anything other than the story that is right there on my front page, and that is it. I post what I need to, and then I'm off. I had my buddy make me the Admin of the PR page, and I have done a few things to get that going in the right direction, so I will more than likely take over doing the posts on there, to make sure that they get posted. I even posted two pictures today of the pizzas we had Friday night. I'll share the pizza I had right here, although you probably already saw it if you follow the PR on Facebook or Instagram.
Look at that, it looks amazing right? It was. They do something special with the dough and they way they cook it. Basically they cook the dough first, so that it is light and thin, and almost like a cracker. That is a bad analogy, but it's the only one I can think of. They then top it with arugula, prosciutto, shaved mozzarella (which they make themselves every morning), marinated grape tomatoes, and finally a drizzle of truffle oil. That pizza had such a unique flavor, that I truly wish everyone that is looking at that picture could taste it. One other thing about going to Zarrella's that night. Oh, that's where we went. I told you how they put our link on their Facebook page, and how it went crazy. As soon as I sat down, the owners ran up to me, to say hi, shake my hand and thank me for doing that video and blog for them. I thanked them right back. What they did helped us more than it probably helped them. I truly appreciated their appreciation of what we are trying to do with the PR. Anyway, back to that pizza. After we were done, and we were leaving. I started talking to one of the owners and how we were going to come back and that I wanted to feature that pizza above. I really think people need to know about that. He handed me his card and told me to text him when we were coming back, so that he could get everything ready to make it even better. It's a difficult pizza to make, and it uses a certain flour in the dough, that they didn't have there. They usually make it at their other location. They had no idea how it was going to come out, and they told me that they had to make it twice, because the first one overcooked. I might actually die if they can make that pizza taste better than they made it that night. So we are going to make plans to do a special edition where we go back to Zarrella's and feature two of their most difficult pizzas to make, and let you know what we think of them. Keep and eye out for it, although I will post here when it is going to be coming up.
I guess I should finally post the video that went up this morning. I went to check it this morning to see how it came out, but other than that I haven't looked at it to see how it's doing. This is another episode for Remember When. I hope you enjoy it.
These videos aren't elaborate, but I promise those are coming, and I'm still going to keep them under the 5 minute mark. Speaking of those videos coming. I'm going to be scouting sites for one video tomorrow. This is going to be a drone specific video, and if I can pull it off like I hope, it should elicit some emotion. I can see it all in my head, I just need to find a location that is close to what I see, so that I can work some magic.
While I'm out there, I'm going to try and get some pictures that will relate to The Patchwork Knight. Stories with images tend to get more attention then just a written story, so if I can get pictures of forest like areas, lakes, and even something that could resemble a mountainside (where are you going to find a mountain side in Florida), I can get maybe a new viewer to check out my writing. I need to do everything I can to try and make this dream work, so picture hunting I will go. There is the added bonus that I get to walk through beautiful surroundings in sunny Florida. I think I will just have to suffer and do that work. Did I mention that I love this freedom of doing things that I really want to do?
I did take most of the day off, to just sit back and collect my thoughts and plan things out. I will do that picture hunting and location scouting in the morning, and then I will get back to editing and scheduling new chapters of The Patchwork Knight on Medium. I really do plan to have everything up to where I am on here posted there by the end of the week. I have a lot of work ahead of me, but this is work that I want to do, instead of have to do. Plus, I get to go back and read my own story, and I have to say, it's not too bad. I rarely go back and read what I've written, so this is an odd experience for me. Remember the next chapter goes up tomorrow (Monday) morning. It's scheduled to release at 6am New York time. I post that link to my profile on there again right here The Patchwork Knight. I think this one has a picture with it. I can't remember if it's this chapter of the next one, but I did have a picture that kind of relates to it.
I think I've written enough for you to read tonight, considering that you will have the second chapter of The Patchwork Knight tomorrow if you so choose. Peace in and goodnight.
Saturday, June 16, 2018
The Patchwork Knight (Chapter 31)
Sir Paljin was running over to wake my, but there was no need. I was awoken by the rumble in the ground. From the tremors and the sound coming from beneath my head, it was the entire war band. I sprung to my feet and began rolling up my bed roll. Everything else was on my horse, so I only need to cinch that down.
"Riders are coming. They aren't moving fast, but they are riding by torchlight. They are still a few miles off."
"I could feel them. Which fork leads to the Crystal Palace?"
"The one they are coming down."
"Which fork is the direction that Sir Jacob wanted to take to go around them?"
"I believe it is the fork to the right. That is the western trail."
"Good, you go and warn the caravan, I will stay here, and try to lure them down a different fork. Send a scout ahead of the caravan to see if I was successful."
"If you do that, you will be on your own, and won't make it back to us."
"I will find a way to get around them, once I think they are far enough off the trail of the caravan. Now hurry and ride to Sir Jacob. I will clean the trail of tracks as best I can, and then wait for them to spot me and lead them to the east."
"This is suicide Sir Pitre. You can't possibly get away from an entire warband. You fight like no one I have ever seen, but some things are beyond even your skill.:
"I promise you, I will get away from them. I don't intend to fight them. I just want to lead them in the wrong direction. I will hide from them once I'm several miles up the trail, and I will wait for them to pass. I will be alright. Go, if they see you, all will be lost. They will slaughter everyone in the caravan if they cross them. This is the best chance we have to avoid them now."
"Stay ahead of them Pitre, sorry, Sir Pitre. I only hope that this isn't the last tale we tell of you. Your heroic sacrifice to save a caravan of wounded and sick."
"I hope that it isn't as well. Ride with speed Sir Paljin."
"As you should do the same."
Sir Paljin mounted his horse and galloped off in a spirit back to the small village where the caravan was staying. He would most likely meet them on the trail. He would be the true savior that day. I was only a diversion.
I cleared the tracks on the trail leading to the caravan for a hundred yards, then I waited at the crossing for the war band to get sight of me. There torches were in sight when they were a mile off. I could see there weapons gleaming in the torchlight from half that distance. I could make out individual riders when they were a few hundred yards. That was the closest I wanted them to get. I rode my horse in circles to stir up dust on the trail to catch their eye. When I saw riders break from the column, I knew I had their attention. I rode down the eastern trail in hopes that they would all follow. I gained some distance and stopped to see what they would do. It worked, the riders that had broken form the main stopped at the crossing, and signaled for the war band to follow me.
I was away with as much speed as my horse could muster. we rode for miles before my horse began to tire. I found another fork in the trail, and took the one to the left, leading the war band slightly to the north and as far from the caravan as I could get them. I rode my horse for another mile in a trot, and then veered off the dirt of the trail and into the grass. Once I was sure that the tracks could not be found easily. I turned around and rode back towards the oncoming war band. A few hundred yards back, I rode off into the forest. I rode until I found a small stream. I dismounted and began watering my horse. There was a tree near the stream, so I tied him off, and made my way back near the trail to see if my ruse had worked. When I was within a hundred yards of the trail, I entered the Swordsman's Euphoria, and reached out to the stone for the aether. I lightened my footsteps, to a point that I could not be heard by normal ears. I could hear the rumble of the horses as they were passing. I climbed a tree a ten yards from the trail and watched as horses carrying Raiders, carts full of supplies, and larger siege engines to batter walls of even the Kingdom. They were enormous. No wall would be able to withstand them for very long.
The war band was much larger than anyone thought. There were probably 2000 men in tow. That included the support personal as well as soldiers. It wouldn't have even taken a quarter of them to slaughter Sir Jacob and the caravan.
It took them nearly an hour to pass where I was. I stayed in that tree for another hour to make sure that they were well on their way in the wrong direction. I quietly walked out to the trail to see if there were any scouts or stragglers roaming about. The trail was clear. I ran to the small fork in the trail to see if any guars had been left to watch their rear, but that was clear as well. I sprinted back to my horse as fast as I could. It was well rested by now. I untethered it from the tree, and we gently made our way back to the trail. I still was satisfied that I was out of the fire yet. I dismounted my horse before getting to the trail, so that I could once again scout for scouts. Once again there were none. I walked my horse back to the trail before mounting again. Once on the trial we took off in a sprint again. The fork was still clear and I made little haste in riding back to the crossing. I could see two scouts at the crossing. I dismounted my horse and tied him to a tree off the trial and out of sight. I snuck my way back to the crossing through the forest. From the tree line, I could see that it was to Raider scouts. Sir Paljin had succeeded in stopping the caravan, but I could see no sign of a scout that he might have sent. They could have been in hiding avoiding the two Raiders.
The scouts looked less than enthused to be standing at the crossing looking for the enemy. I drew my sword from my waist and entered the Swordsman's Euphoria. There was a large distance of open ground between me and them, so I had to clear the area fast. I waited until they both turned away from where I was hidden, and sprinted at them without making a sound. One turned just in time to see my sword coming down in an arc towards his neck. He tried to raise an arm to block the blow, but his had fell away at the wrist as my sword made its way into the meat of his neck. I drew the sword back letting the man fall to the ground without a scream. The thud of his body was enough to make the other Raider aware of my presence. They were separated by a few yards, and that distance gave him the time to draw his sword. I quickly advanced on him. He swung his sword at me in an arc that was intended to slice from shoulder to hip. I dropped down and slid underneath the slice. I rose up behind him, and gave him the time to turn to face his end. He spun around quickly but awkwardly. His balance was lost and he tumbled to the ground. I lunged forward and stomped on his sword with enough force to free it from his grip. I then slid it with my foot behind me. I pointed my sword at his nose.
"I'm going to give you a choice. You can answer some question and live, or you can choose to die right now. What do you choose?"
"I will answer anything you want. Please don't kill me."
It appears that it was true what my father and Sir Wallace had always said. In the depths of their hearts, true cowardice lies with the Raiders.
"The war band you are with, where are they going?"
"We were ordered to roam the countryside and destroy any villages and forts that we came across. We had heard of a large number of villagers that had survived previous raids and we were waiting for them to stumble upon us. When they didn't come in due time, we formed up and rode out to find them."
"Did you see anyone other than me at this crossing?"
"No, you are the first person that has come to the crossing since we were left behind."
"If you don't find these villagers, where will you war band go?"
"I do not know. I'm only a scout. I'm given orders as they are needed, and then I follow them. I know nothing of any of the planning."
"What were your orders for this post then?"
"We were told to remain here until nightfall. If anyone came one of us was to ride to the vanguard, and report what we saw. The other was to stay and remain out of sight, then follow to report a location were the enemy would stop and camp."
"If you don't report back, will they send anyone to look for you?"
"I doubt it, There are more than two dozen men that are able to scout. If I don't return, they will keep going unless they see no reason to do otherwise."
"Your men would just leave you to die?"
"Yes, that is our job."
"Would you turn if given the chance?"
"If it gave me a chance to live, then yes."
"Then you will ride with me. I will have to bind your hands and legs first though. I believe you, but I don't trust you."
"Throw me rope and I will bind my own legs for you."
"You won't be able to ride a horse if your legs are bound before you get on."
With that, I got the man to stand and I bound his hands behind his back. I then helped him onto his horse, and bound his legs underneath so that he couldn't free himself. I then led his horse as well as the dead scout's horse back to my own, and we made our way back down the trial to the caravan.
"Riders are coming. They aren't moving fast, but they are riding by torchlight. They are still a few miles off."
"I could feel them. Which fork leads to the Crystal Palace?"
"The one they are coming down."
"Which fork is the direction that Sir Jacob wanted to take to go around them?"
"I believe it is the fork to the right. That is the western trail."
"Good, you go and warn the caravan, I will stay here, and try to lure them down a different fork. Send a scout ahead of the caravan to see if I was successful."
"If you do that, you will be on your own, and won't make it back to us."
"I will find a way to get around them, once I think they are far enough off the trail of the caravan. Now hurry and ride to Sir Jacob. I will clean the trail of tracks as best I can, and then wait for them to spot me and lead them to the east."
"This is suicide Sir Pitre. You can't possibly get away from an entire warband. You fight like no one I have ever seen, but some things are beyond even your skill.:
"I promise you, I will get away from them. I don't intend to fight them. I just want to lead them in the wrong direction. I will hide from them once I'm several miles up the trail, and I will wait for them to pass. I will be alright. Go, if they see you, all will be lost. They will slaughter everyone in the caravan if they cross them. This is the best chance we have to avoid them now."
"Stay ahead of them Pitre, sorry, Sir Pitre. I only hope that this isn't the last tale we tell of you. Your heroic sacrifice to save a caravan of wounded and sick."
"I hope that it isn't as well. Ride with speed Sir Paljin."
"As you should do the same."
Sir Paljin mounted his horse and galloped off in a spirit back to the small village where the caravan was staying. He would most likely meet them on the trail. He would be the true savior that day. I was only a diversion.
I cleared the tracks on the trail leading to the caravan for a hundred yards, then I waited at the crossing for the war band to get sight of me. There torches were in sight when they were a mile off. I could see there weapons gleaming in the torchlight from half that distance. I could make out individual riders when they were a few hundred yards. That was the closest I wanted them to get. I rode my horse in circles to stir up dust on the trail to catch their eye. When I saw riders break from the column, I knew I had their attention. I rode down the eastern trail in hopes that they would all follow. I gained some distance and stopped to see what they would do. It worked, the riders that had broken form the main stopped at the crossing, and signaled for the war band to follow me.
I was away with as much speed as my horse could muster. we rode for miles before my horse began to tire. I found another fork in the trail, and took the one to the left, leading the war band slightly to the north and as far from the caravan as I could get them. I rode my horse for another mile in a trot, and then veered off the dirt of the trail and into the grass. Once I was sure that the tracks could not be found easily. I turned around and rode back towards the oncoming war band. A few hundred yards back, I rode off into the forest. I rode until I found a small stream. I dismounted and began watering my horse. There was a tree near the stream, so I tied him off, and made my way back near the trail to see if my ruse had worked. When I was within a hundred yards of the trail, I entered the Swordsman's Euphoria, and reached out to the stone for the aether. I lightened my footsteps, to a point that I could not be heard by normal ears. I could hear the rumble of the horses as they were passing. I climbed a tree a ten yards from the trail and watched as horses carrying Raiders, carts full of supplies, and larger siege engines to batter walls of even the Kingdom. They were enormous. No wall would be able to withstand them for very long.
The war band was much larger than anyone thought. There were probably 2000 men in tow. That included the support personal as well as soldiers. It wouldn't have even taken a quarter of them to slaughter Sir Jacob and the caravan.
It took them nearly an hour to pass where I was. I stayed in that tree for another hour to make sure that they were well on their way in the wrong direction. I quietly walked out to the trail to see if there were any scouts or stragglers roaming about. The trail was clear. I ran to the small fork in the trail to see if any guars had been left to watch their rear, but that was clear as well. I sprinted back to my horse as fast as I could. It was well rested by now. I untethered it from the tree, and we gently made our way back to the trail. I still was satisfied that I was out of the fire yet. I dismounted my horse before getting to the trail, so that I could once again scout for scouts. Once again there were none. I walked my horse back to the trail before mounting again. Once on the trial we took off in a sprint again. The fork was still clear and I made little haste in riding back to the crossing. I could see two scouts at the crossing. I dismounted my horse and tied him to a tree off the trial and out of sight. I snuck my way back to the crossing through the forest. From the tree line, I could see that it was to Raider scouts. Sir Paljin had succeeded in stopping the caravan, but I could see no sign of a scout that he might have sent. They could have been in hiding avoiding the two Raiders.
The scouts looked less than enthused to be standing at the crossing looking for the enemy. I drew my sword from my waist and entered the Swordsman's Euphoria. There was a large distance of open ground between me and them, so I had to clear the area fast. I waited until they both turned away from where I was hidden, and sprinted at them without making a sound. One turned just in time to see my sword coming down in an arc towards his neck. He tried to raise an arm to block the blow, but his had fell away at the wrist as my sword made its way into the meat of his neck. I drew the sword back letting the man fall to the ground without a scream. The thud of his body was enough to make the other Raider aware of my presence. They were separated by a few yards, and that distance gave him the time to draw his sword. I quickly advanced on him. He swung his sword at me in an arc that was intended to slice from shoulder to hip. I dropped down and slid underneath the slice. I rose up behind him, and gave him the time to turn to face his end. He spun around quickly but awkwardly. His balance was lost and he tumbled to the ground. I lunged forward and stomped on his sword with enough force to free it from his grip. I then slid it with my foot behind me. I pointed my sword at his nose.
"I'm going to give you a choice. You can answer some question and live, or you can choose to die right now. What do you choose?"
"I will answer anything you want. Please don't kill me."
It appears that it was true what my father and Sir Wallace had always said. In the depths of their hearts, true cowardice lies with the Raiders.
"The war band you are with, where are they going?"
"We were ordered to roam the countryside and destroy any villages and forts that we came across. We had heard of a large number of villagers that had survived previous raids and we were waiting for them to stumble upon us. When they didn't come in due time, we formed up and rode out to find them."
"Did you see anyone other than me at this crossing?"
"No, you are the first person that has come to the crossing since we were left behind."
"If you don't find these villagers, where will you war band go?"
"I do not know. I'm only a scout. I'm given orders as they are needed, and then I follow them. I know nothing of any of the planning."
"What were your orders for this post then?"
"We were told to remain here until nightfall. If anyone came one of us was to ride to the vanguard, and report what we saw. The other was to stay and remain out of sight, then follow to report a location were the enemy would stop and camp."
"If you don't report back, will they send anyone to look for you?"
"I doubt it, There are more than two dozen men that are able to scout. If I don't return, they will keep going unless they see no reason to do otherwise."
"Your men would just leave you to die?"
"Yes, that is our job."
"Would you turn if given the chance?"
"If it gave me a chance to live, then yes."
"Then you will ride with me. I will have to bind your hands and legs first though. I believe you, but I don't trust you."
"Throw me rope and I will bind my own legs for you."
"You won't be able to ride a horse if your legs are bound before you get on."
With that, I got the man to stand and I bound his hands behind his back. I then helped him onto his horse, and bound his legs underneath so that he couldn't free himself. I then led his horse as well as the dead scout's horse back to my own, and we made our way back down the trial to the caravan.
Thursday, June 14, 2018
Big News And A Big Announcement
The title says it all. Are you ready for this big news? Are you really ready? Ok, here it is. I quit my job yesterday. I finally had enough. Then person I have the biggest problem there, finally crossed the line and I was done. I apologized to the owner that I was having to leave, but I couldn't take it anymore. I truly believe that that person is undiagnosed bi-polar, and I really think he needs help. I was there for over 27 years, and it was time to do.
I was asked by my guitar teacher today if I felt anxious about my future. I had to say no, not right now. I feel more excited about it than anything. I'm going to take some time, and focus on doing something that I really want to do, and that is more of what I'm doing right now, writing. I got a little video I made today, that explains a little about it. After you've watched it, I'll fill you in on a little more of what is going to happen for the future.
The big announcement was in there, so I hope you didn't miss it. If you are reading this after I post it on Thursday night, you will have to wait until tomorrow to see the first edited and proofread version of The Patchwork Knight. I made my decision on what I'm doing with it. I'm moving it to Medium, but I will still write it here. I'm going to post the polished version on Mondays and Fridays. It will take 15 weeks to catch up to where I am right now, but since I will continue to right the first draft on here, I should be able to stay a little ahead of it. If it does catch up to me, I will have to write twice a week and then edit and proof each one to have it go up on Medium. I'm almost positive that you don't have to be a member to read the final version of The Patchwork Knight, and if you can't see it, just remember the first edition will always be right here for you. Only sign up if you absolutely want to see what changes and corrections I make.
Since I'm doing this, I have started creating my character list, and notes to keep things in order. I wasn't doing that this entire time, because it was a bit of an experiment to see if I could keep things straight with out all of that, but since I have to have a shiny and polished product, the notes are in full force. Here is the link to my profile The Patchwork Knight It is under the Counterfeit Squirrel name, so if the link for some reason doesn't work, you can search for that on Medium. I also have some options on there, to write other stories, and I plan on taking advantage of that, so keep an eye out for new stories in the future.
Oh, I guess I should mention the publishing schedule. I did say that it was going to be on Mondays and Fridays, but I didn't tell you that it will be published at 6 AM New York time. You can read it first thing in the morning every Monday and Friday if you want to. There is no subscription service attached to this, so it will have to fall to your memory unless you become a member. If you are a member you can follow different writers and their posts will show up in your feed, but as I said before, you shouldn't have to do that, and definitely don't if you are only doing it for my stories. I will post link to each one I put up right here, so that you can get to them if you don't remember to check each Monday and Friday.
Now that that is over, I can talk about the other part of the big announcement. I'm also going to put more time in making videos. I'm hoping to be able to put up a couple of videos a week instead of just the one on Sunday. It was a productive day today. I shot footage for 6 videos. You saw one of them up above, and another one will be going live on Sunday. The rest I still have to edit and put together, but I will be uploading them in the next couple of days, and schedule them for the coming weeks. With the exception of the one above, the rest are all going to be part of the Remember When series, so I want to spread them out. I will go out and make other videos to fill in the gaps, and for those extra videos during the week. You should be able to see why I'm so excited about all of this. I finally get to use my creativity to try and make a living. I have to take this chance. If it fails, it won't be because I didn't try. You always hear those stories from people that say losing their job was the best thing that ever happened to them, because it freed them to finally do what they really wanted to do. That is the way I choose to see this whole thing.
I'm putting all of my effort into this. Tomorrow is going to be another productive day. I'm going to take the first five chapters of The Patchwork Knight, and put them up on Medium. I will schedule their release after I've gone through them for edit and proof. I'm not just going to sit back and wait until the next one is supposed to go up, I'm hoping to have all of them edited and proofed by the end of next week. They will all be on Medium and scheduled for publishing on those days I mentioned above. I'm also going to work on the rest of those videos, and have them uploaded and ready to go for scheduled release as well.
I have a plan and I have ideas, and that is all I need right now. I also have the PR, and the newest video went up today, with the blog going up tomorrow morning. We really liked this place, I believe I mentioned that after we did the tasting, but now you can see it. This is the last video of the night, I promise.
There you have it. I have quite a few pokers in the fire, now it is all about making them take some heat. Like I said above, I'm putting all my effort into this for as long as I can. I will still do all of these things if I have to get another job, but for the time being, this is my new job, and it's one that I really like. Peace in and goodnight.
I was asked by my guitar teacher today if I felt anxious about my future. I had to say no, not right now. I feel more excited about it than anything. I'm going to take some time, and focus on doing something that I really want to do, and that is more of what I'm doing right now, writing. I got a little video I made today, that explains a little about it. After you've watched it, I'll fill you in on a little more of what is going to happen for the future.
The big announcement was in there, so I hope you didn't miss it. If you are reading this after I post it on Thursday night, you will have to wait until tomorrow to see the first edited and proofread version of The Patchwork Knight. I made my decision on what I'm doing with it. I'm moving it to Medium, but I will still write it here. I'm going to post the polished version on Mondays and Fridays. It will take 15 weeks to catch up to where I am right now, but since I will continue to right the first draft on here, I should be able to stay a little ahead of it. If it does catch up to me, I will have to write twice a week and then edit and proof each one to have it go up on Medium. I'm almost positive that you don't have to be a member to read the final version of The Patchwork Knight, and if you can't see it, just remember the first edition will always be right here for you. Only sign up if you absolutely want to see what changes and corrections I make.
Since I'm doing this, I have started creating my character list, and notes to keep things in order. I wasn't doing that this entire time, because it was a bit of an experiment to see if I could keep things straight with out all of that, but since I have to have a shiny and polished product, the notes are in full force. Here is the link to my profile The Patchwork Knight It is under the Counterfeit Squirrel name, so if the link for some reason doesn't work, you can search for that on Medium. I also have some options on there, to write other stories, and I plan on taking advantage of that, so keep an eye out for new stories in the future.
Oh, I guess I should mention the publishing schedule. I did say that it was going to be on Mondays and Fridays, but I didn't tell you that it will be published at 6 AM New York time. You can read it first thing in the morning every Monday and Friday if you want to. There is no subscription service attached to this, so it will have to fall to your memory unless you become a member. If you are a member you can follow different writers and their posts will show up in your feed, but as I said before, you shouldn't have to do that, and definitely don't if you are only doing it for my stories. I will post link to each one I put up right here, so that you can get to them if you don't remember to check each Monday and Friday.
Now that that is over, I can talk about the other part of the big announcement. I'm also going to put more time in making videos. I'm hoping to be able to put up a couple of videos a week instead of just the one on Sunday. It was a productive day today. I shot footage for 6 videos. You saw one of them up above, and another one will be going live on Sunday. The rest I still have to edit and put together, but I will be uploading them in the next couple of days, and schedule them for the coming weeks. With the exception of the one above, the rest are all going to be part of the Remember When series, so I want to spread them out. I will go out and make other videos to fill in the gaps, and for those extra videos during the week. You should be able to see why I'm so excited about all of this. I finally get to use my creativity to try and make a living. I have to take this chance. If it fails, it won't be because I didn't try. You always hear those stories from people that say losing their job was the best thing that ever happened to them, because it freed them to finally do what they really wanted to do. That is the way I choose to see this whole thing.
I'm putting all of my effort into this. Tomorrow is going to be another productive day. I'm going to take the first five chapters of The Patchwork Knight, and put them up on Medium. I will schedule their release after I've gone through them for edit and proof. I'm not just going to sit back and wait until the next one is supposed to go up, I'm hoping to have all of them edited and proofed by the end of next week. They will all be on Medium and scheduled for publishing on those days I mentioned above. I'm also going to work on the rest of those videos, and have them uploaded and ready to go for scheduled release as well.
I have a plan and I have ideas, and that is all I need right now. I also have the PR, and the newest video went up today, with the blog going up tomorrow morning. We really liked this place, I believe I mentioned that after we did the tasting, but now you can see it. This is the last video of the night, I promise.
There you have it. I have quite a few pokers in the fire, now it is all about making them take some heat. Like I said above, I'm putting all my effort into this for as long as I can. I will still do all of these things if I have to get another job, but for the time being, this is my new job, and it's one that I really like. Peace in and goodnight.
Tuesday, June 12, 2018
Janis Joplin Reincarnate?
Where to begin. This is usually what I say when I have no idea how to start things. Guess what? I have no idea how to start this. Mostly because I don't really have too much to talk about. Well, there is that dinner with an old friend thing, but I was hoping to save that as a kind of crescendo to the post.
Oh, I know, I can tell you how I haven't filmed the new Remember When segment. Well, that isn't really news, but I do have an idea. I'm going to go around a film a few of them the next time I go out. That way, I can put them each together and sprinkle them throughout the next few weeks for publishing. I have about 4 or 5 places that I have an idea of what I want to say and do for them. They are all pretty close by, so I could film all of them in an evening or morning. Put them together and set up their release dates. I should be able to get it done Saturday morning.
It's been kind of a slow week. I don't have to do another PR until the 23rd, so it's been a long break between them. The latest video will go live on Thursday evening, with the blog post going live the next morning. It's a little weird having all this time between them. I finished that video two weeks ago, and I won't write the blog post until Thursday evening after the video goes live. I have my notes, and I remember well everything about the place we went, so I should have no trouble getting the write up done. Still, its just weird having all this time and not being rushed to get it done. I haven't decided if I like it or not. Maybe I work better under pressure. Let me know what you think when you see it all.
Alright, let's get to what you've been waiting for. I met an old friend for dinner tonight. We decided that we probably hadn't seen each other for 8 years, but I kept thinking it was more. I'm not always good with timelines. This person is one of the three women that saved my live nearly 10 years ago now. She is someone who never needs to fear asking me for anything. She asks, I do. That goes for all of them, and I think they know it.
I met her at my favorite place to eat, and they now have a new customer. It wasn't just that it is my favorite place and that is why we should go there, she actually had heard about it and wanted to give it a try. She loved it. We caught up, had a great meal, laughed, and reminisced. We both agreed that it had been far too long since we saw each other, but know that life has a way of getting in the way sometimes. She brought something up that I had heard before. It was her astonishment about how we just picked up where we had left off. I heard that when I visited one of the other three, after not seeing her for about 8 years. That is the thing with people that are really good friends. There isn't anything that gets in the way of just a good conversation. It just comes natural, and that's what tonight was.
There are people that you hope will always be in your life, but then things change, and people slowly drift away, but sometimes, those people find their way back into your life. The three are some of those people. Even if I didn't have my time where I nearly ended my life, I believe that they would always find a way to drift back into my life, and I couldn't be happier about that. There are a few more that fit into that category, and I always greet them with open arms and a good conversation. I lost sight of that recently, that there are people that are going to be in my life. They may not be there now, but they will pop up again. I guess I've always had friends that were sort of transient. I don't ask for anything from anyone, so I shouldn't expect them to always just be there. I am thankful for all of them, and I hope they know who they are.
Enough of the mushy stuff, it's time for Favorite Song of the Week. I had this big plan for FSOTW, but that got turned on it's heals when I watched America's Got Talent. I will save the song I had for this week for next week, and it's a good one. Anyway, back to AGT. This was the final act of the night, and it's a young girl, who I think is from Ireland, but the accent is just a little different, so it could be somewhere else in the UK. None of that matters though. I just watched the video, and it had what I was hoping it had. They don't put the little vignette in the videos they post on YouTube, so you won't get all that background stuff, but the important thing to see, is just how nervous she is going on stage. She said in the little video package, that her biggest fear was that she was going to get a red buzzer from one of the judges. That is all I'm going to say, until you've had a chance to watch the video. Here is Courtney Hadwin with her version of "Hard to Handle".
Now that you've had a chance to see the video, you know that she was the golden buzzer winner. Here is the thing. I had a feeling she was going to be good. What I didn't know, was that she was going to explode into that personalty when she began singing. The music turned her into an entire different person. She was no longer a little girl that was shy and reserved, she was a 1970's Goliath of rock. She sang in a way that you wouldn't expect from a 13 year old, not today. Her stage presence could have competed with Mick Jagger. She controlled it, and the entire auditorium. There was no one else in that room but her while she was singing. It was a marvel to see. This golden buzzer was well earned, and I for one can't wait to see what she does next. Since she is the golden buzzer, I will have to wait until they begin doing the live shows. Here is the other reason I am happy she got the pass through to the live shows. I don't know if she could have handled going through the audition elimination process. She might have got massive stage fright. I'm hoping she does some Rolling Stones, because I instantly thought of Mick Jagger when I saw her dancing around, but I think because of Howie's little story about Janis Joplin and Clive Davis, she will most likely do a Janis Joplin song, and there really couldn't be a better person to pull it off properly.
I'm going to keep my eye on her, because she is something special. This is how I felt about Grace Vanderwaal, and she went on to win the whole thing. I think this young lady has that same potential.
Looks like I had more to talk about than I thought I did, but I am not at an end. Peace in and goodnight.
Oh, I know, I can tell you how I haven't filmed the new Remember When segment. Well, that isn't really news, but I do have an idea. I'm going to go around a film a few of them the next time I go out. That way, I can put them each together and sprinkle them throughout the next few weeks for publishing. I have about 4 or 5 places that I have an idea of what I want to say and do for them. They are all pretty close by, so I could film all of them in an evening or morning. Put them together and set up their release dates. I should be able to get it done Saturday morning.
It's been kind of a slow week. I don't have to do another PR until the 23rd, so it's been a long break between them. The latest video will go live on Thursday evening, with the blog post going live the next morning. It's a little weird having all this time between them. I finished that video two weeks ago, and I won't write the blog post until Thursday evening after the video goes live. I have my notes, and I remember well everything about the place we went, so I should have no trouble getting the write up done. Still, its just weird having all this time and not being rushed to get it done. I haven't decided if I like it or not. Maybe I work better under pressure. Let me know what you think when you see it all.
Alright, let's get to what you've been waiting for. I met an old friend for dinner tonight. We decided that we probably hadn't seen each other for 8 years, but I kept thinking it was more. I'm not always good with timelines. This person is one of the three women that saved my live nearly 10 years ago now. She is someone who never needs to fear asking me for anything. She asks, I do. That goes for all of them, and I think they know it.
I met her at my favorite place to eat, and they now have a new customer. It wasn't just that it is my favorite place and that is why we should go there, she actually had heard about it and wanted to give it a try. She loved it. We caught up, had a great meal, laughed, and reminisced. We both agreed that it had been far too long since we saw each other, but know that life has a way of getting in the way sometimes. She brought something up that I had heard before. It was her astonishment about how we just picked up where we had left off. I heard that when I visited one of the other three, after not seeing her for about 8 years. That is the thing with people that are really good friends. There isn't anything that gets in the way of just a good conversation. It just comes natural, and that's what tonight was.
There are people that you hope will always be in your life, but then things change, and people slowly drift away, but sometimes, those people find their way back into your life. The three are some of those people. Even if I didn't have my time where I nearly ended my life, I believe that they would always find a way to drift back into my life, and I couldn't be happier about that. There are a few more that fit into that category, and I always greet them with open arms and a good conversation. I lost sight of that recently, that there are people that are going to be in my life. They may not be there now, but they will pop up again. I guess I've always had friends that were sort of transient. I don't ask for anything from anyone, so I shouldn't expect them to always just be there. I am thankful for all of them, and I hope they know who they are.
Enough of the mushy stuff, it's time for Favorite Song of the Week. I had this big plan for FSOTW, but that got turned on it's heals when I watched America's Got Talent. I will save the song I had for this week for next week, and it's a good one. Anyway, back to AGT. This was the final act of the night, and it's a young girl, who I think is from Ireland, but the accent is just a little different, so it could be somewhere else in the UK. None of that matters though. I just watched the video, and it had what I was hoping it had. They don't put the little vignette in the videos they post on YouTube, so you won't get all that background stuff, but the important thing to see, is just how nervous she is going on stage. She said in the little video package, that her biggest fear was that she was going to get a red buzzer from one of the judges. That is all I'm going to say, until you've had a chance to watch the video. Here is Courtney Hadwin with her version of "Hard to Handle".
Now that you've had a chance to see the video, you know that she was the golden buzzer winner. Here is the thing. I had a feeling she was going to be good. What I didn't know, was that she was going to explode into that personalty when she began singing. The music turned her into an entire different person. She was no longer a little girl that was shy and reserved, she was a 1970's Goliath of rock. She sang in a way that you wouldn't expect from a 13 year old, not today. Her stage presence could have competed with Mick Jagger. She controlled it, and the entire auditorium. There was no one else in that room but her while she was singing. It was a marvel to see. This golden buzzer was well earned, and I for one can't wait to see what she does next. Since she is the golden buzzer, I will have to wait until they begin doing the live shows. Here is the other reason I am happy she got the pass through to the live shows. I don't know if she could have handled going through the audition elimination process. She might have got massive stage fright. I'm hoping she does some Rolling Stones, because I instantly thought of Mick Jagger when I saw her dancing around, but I think because of Howie's little story about Janis Joplin and Clive Davis, she will most likely do a Janis Joplin song, and there really couldn't be a better person to pull it off properly.
I'm going to keep my eye on her, because she is something special. This is how I felt about Grace Vanderwaal, and she went on to win the whole thing. I think this young lady has that same potential.
Looks like I had more to talk about than I thought I did, but I am not at an end. Peace in and goodnight.
Sunday, June 10, 2018
New Video And A Goodbye
A few thing about that video above. It took me quite a lot of time to make that little video, and I still had problems with it. Just the opening sequence of the title, took me about a half hour to get exactly right, then the next two elements of the opening took another hour of filming and editing to get right. I did that filming the night before the ride. I forgot to put the camera in the proper wide angle view for the ride part, and I got the view that is on the video. I wasn't thrilled when I saw that that was what I filmed the whole time with, but I think it ended up adding a grittiness that I usually don't have in my videos. All in all, I'm happy with the way it turned out, but I know it could have been better if I had changed it to the proper camera view.
I have some pictures to add to the video. Since I was out there for sunrise, I saw no reason no to get some good shots while I was filming the footage of the sun peaking through the horizon. These are what I got.
That first one is the one I posted on Instagram. I didn't want to give anything else away on there, so you get to see the rest of them here. After I got home, it took me another two hours to get the rest of the footage checked through and edited, so you can see, it is a process for one of these videos. The Remember When series is a little easier, and only takes about a half hour or so to put together. I think I'll have another one of those ready for next Sunday. I haven't settled on the location yet. I have several that I want to do right away, but I'm not really sure which one I want to do next. I might do it either tonight or tomorrow. Weather is supposed to be good for it.
I can't do it on Tuesday, because I'm going to see an old friend of mine. One that I haven't seen in a great number of years, and I'm really looking forward to seeing them. It has been far too long.
I still haven't made final decision on what I'm doing with The Patchwork Knight yet, but I should come to it soon. It's a much harder decision than I thought it would be to move it. Part of the reason is , is that you get the absolute raw version of it. There is no edit and no proofreading done on theses chapters. The reason I'm doing it that way, is that I want you to see what it looks like in the rough draft. No one gets to see what their favorite book looks like before it goes to edit. When I move it, I'm going to have to go through and proof it, so that it will look good. When I give that edited and proofed version, I will lose that little part of transparency that I'm doing with it here. That begs the question, do I keep writing it here even after the move, and just put the shined up version where it is going to go? That is the question for you, what do you think? I really want your input on this. Do you want to still see the rough draft or would you prefer the completed edit?
I finished watching Trollhunters last night, and I'm a little sad. It is truly the end of the series with this final part. It was really good and really well done, but I would expect nothing less from Guillermo del Toro. I guess, if he really wanted to, they could create a new series, because the series title in full is Trollhunters Tales of Arcadia. They could leave the Trollhuntres and have a new Tales of. I really do hope that they do that. I want more of that series.
I also began downloading Fortnite last night as well. I've been hearing a lot about that game lately, and I found out that it is free. They do have a lot of add-ons that can bring a price to it, but the basic platform is free for anyone. I figured I'd give it a try. It is a battle royale type game where it's every person for themselves. I'll probably start playing it this coming weekend, and then I'll let you know exactly what I think of it.
After I finished watching Trollhunters, I wanted to watch something else, and I saw that Netflix had Thor Ragnarok up, so I gave it a watch. It was good. It wasn't what you have come to expect from the Marvel movies. It was more in the vain of Deadpool, with it's non stop comedy humor. It's worth watching. If you want to see a funny movie with a colorful eye popping backdrop, give it a try.
I just got some sad news while I was writing this. One of my canine buddies has risen into the ether. I spent a lot of time with this particular dog. I've even driven back and forth across the country with him, and a better ride buddy couldn't have been asked for. He was named for a character from JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, and his personality was just as big as the character. Gandalf the White was one of the friendliest and best dogs you would ever meet. He could be intimidating if you didn't know him, do to his large size, but he was a teacup polar bear, so what else would you expect. Good bye Great Gandi, run with your pack in the ether.
Peace in and goodnight.
Saturday, June 9, 2018
The Patchwork Knight (Chapter 30)
The night was restless. Even though Sir Jacob had knighted me, it wouldn't be fully steeped until the King did it himself. We still had a day or two ride ahead of us, and my excitement kept me beside myself all night.
I stayed by the trailside under that tree, and due to my restlessness I kept watch for any riders on the trail. None came during the night. In the dawns early light however, a lone rider approached on the trail. I saw him slow his horse and stop. From the village he wouldn't have been seen, but he hadn't noticed me by the tree along the trail. He dismounted and crept along the trail at the tree line of the surrounding forest. I stood my ground hidden behind my tree. He slowed at the tree line's edge and surveyed the area. He remained their for some time. When he turned and crept back to his horse, I made my move. I darted along the hardpack sand of the trail keeping my feet light and noiseless. He was so focused on his own stealth that he never saw my approach.
I hit him like a ram, boring my shoulder into his lower back. He released a HMMPH, as his air escaped his body. He was unconscious by the time he hit the ground. He clothing didn't look like that of the Raiders. He had a lone dagger at this side, and a quiver of arrows on his back. When I was sure that he wouldn't wake soon. I called out.
"RIDER."
I could hear the village stir behind me. Three men quickly ran out to the trail and then towards me with swords drawn.
"Are there anymore Sir Pitre?"
"I didn't see any but this one. One of you grab his horse, and those left, help be carry him back to the village. Do any of you recognize him?"
The collectively said no, and we made our way back to the center of the village with our captive in hand. Sir Jacob met us as we were lowering the man to the ground.
"Is this the rider?"
"Yes, I watched him approach and then survey the village. I caught him as he was making his way back to his horse."
"Is there anything you can't do Pitre?"
"I havne't tried everything yet, so I do not know."
"He doesn't look like a Raider, but we have had new reports, that they are roaming the countryside in disguise. Dressed as common folk, and getting information to relay to their commanders for attack plans. We will wait until he awakes to see what his story is. Just how hard did you hit him. I've never seen a man out so completely?"
"I just ran at full speed and hit him from behind. I knew I had to get to him before he got to his horse. Whatever he is, we need to know."
"This is true, but maybe show a little restraint next time."
Everyone surrounding our new friend was laughing at this. "The Patchwork Knights takes down another one." A few of them began singing. It wasn't a very good song, but it made everyone happy and joyful.
We had planed to leave the village in the morning after the sun fully broke the horizon, but that had come and gone with our intruder still resting. Sir Jacob believed that it would be easier to defend from the village if there was a war band or party waiting for their return of information.
The sun was high in the sky by the time our guest had stirred. Sir Jacob and two of his men questioned the man for a great deal of time. They had moved him into a small hut off the village commons to remain private. All the villagers, sick, and wounded rambled around the village preparing meals and searching for nuts, berries and any vegetables that they might find. They prepared small meals for everyone. It wasn't much but it was enough to for everyone to have something in their bellies.
It was past midday by the time that Sir Jacob came out of the tiny hut. He gathered all of the Knights and men able to fight together.
"Our visitor was indeed a Raider in disguise. We learned that he was to report back to a band of 50 men a days ride from here to the South. They are right in the line of our path to the Crystal Palace. We will either have to destroy that war band or we will have to travel around them. With the sick and wounded that we have, I think it best to ride around. There are other ways to the Palace, but it will take us more time. At least 3 more days will be added to our journey."
"That is the safest course of action commander. I will ready the horses and gather the people and carts."
"Wait, Sir Paljin. I want to take another day here. I'm going to send out two riders to check our path forward. I won't send anyone by demand, I will only take volunteers. I will need you to ride to the trail crossing to be sure it is clear of any other spies."
"I'll do it. I need something to occupy my time."
"Are you sure Sir Pitre? You will be without the other men, it will only be you and one other. If you run into that war band you won't stand a chances, even with your skill."
"I will just have to avoid that war band then."
"That is also the best course of action. I will go with him commander."
"Very well then. Sir Pitre and Sir Paljin, you will be our forward eyes. Go to the crossing and remain there until we arrive. Only leave if there are signs of the war band. If that is the case, ride back to us with all haste, and we will decide our plans from there."
"Yes Sir. I'll prepare my horse and meet you at your tree Sir Pitre."
"Remember, do not attempt to engage the war band. If you see anymore spies on the trail take care of them as you see fit. If you can question them, do so. If you learn anything new that could affect this caravan, then ride back to us. We will begin our travels to the crossing at first light. We should meet up with you by midday. Stay safe."
I turned and walked back to the tree where my pack and horse were. I relieved the two men that had been standing guard on the trail and told them to send two more when Sir Paljin was ready to leave.
It didn't take Sir Paljin long to ready. He rode out with two men in tow to watch the trail once we left. We rode at full speed for the rest of the day, and arrived at the crossing as night began to fall.
"You get some rest Sir Paljin, I'll take the first watch."
"I'd say that you need the rest more than me. Weren't you the one that was up at first light to capture our spy?"
"Aye, but I don't need much rest. I'll be fine. I'll wake you in a few hours."
Sir Paljin put a bed roll down under a tree and dozed off. The crossing was a forked trail that went in five directions. I walked a few hundred yards down each one to see if I could see anything out of the ordinary but there was nothing to see. It was a moonless night, so light was sparse. I relaxed and went into the Swordsman's Euphoria, and then reached out to the aether. Other than the random small animal in the woods, there was still nothing to see.
I woke Sir Paljin for his watch after about six hours. He scolded me for keeping watch for so long, but I told him that there was nothing to watch. I helped him roll up his bed roll and then unrolled my own. Despite my restlessness and excitement about finally becoming a full Knight, darkness took hold of me as my head hit the forest floor.
I stayed by the trailside under that tree, and due to my restlessness I kept watch for any riders on the trail. None came during the night. In the dawns early light however, a lone rider approached on the trail. I saw him slow his horse and stop. From the village he wouldn't have been seen, but he hadn't noticed me by the tree along the trail. He dismounted and crept along the trail at the tree line of the surrounding forest. I stood my ground hidden behind my tree. He slowed at the tree line's edge and surveyed the area. He remained their for some time. When he turned and crept back to his horse, I made my move. I darted along the hardpack sand of the trail keeping my feet light and noiseless. He was so focused on his own stealth that he never saw my approach.
I hit him like a ram, boring my shoulder into his lower back. He released a HMMPH, as his air escaped his body. He was unconscious by the time he hit the ground. He clothing didn't look like that of the Raiders. He had a lone dagger at this side, and a quiver of arrows on his back. When I was sure that he wouldn't wake soon. I called out.
"RIDER."
I could hear the village stir behind me. Three men quickly ran out to the trail and then towards me with swords drawn.
"Are there anymore Sir Pitre?"
"I didn't see any but this one. One of you grab his horse, and those left, help be carry him back to the village. Do any of you recognize him?"
The collectively said no, and we made our way back to the center of the village with our captive in hand. Sir Jacob met us as we were lowering the man to the ground.
"Is this the rider?"
"Yes, I watched him approach and then survey the village. I caught him as he was making his way back to his horse."
"Is there anything you can't do Pitre?"
"I havne't tried everything yet, so I do not know."
"He doesn't look like a Raider, but we have had new reports, that they are roaming the countryside in disguise. Dressed as common folk, and getting information to relay to their commanders for attack plans. We will wait until he awakes to see what his story is. Just how hard did you hit him. I've never seen a man out so completely?"
"I just ran at full speed and hit him from behind. I knew I had to get to him before he got to his horse. Whatever he is, we need to know."
"This is true, but maybe show a little restraint next time."
Everyone surrounding our new friend was laughing at this. "The Patchwork Knights takes down another one." A few of them began singing. It wasn't a very good song, but it made everyone happy and joyful.
We had planed to leave the village in the morning after the sun fully broke the horizon, but that had come and gone with our intruder still resting. Sir Jacob believed that it would be easier to defend from the village if there was a war band or party waiting for their return of information.
The sun was high in the sky by the time our guest had stirred. Sir Jacob and two of his men questioned the man for a great deal of time. They had moved him into a small hut off the village commons to remain private. All the villagers, sick, and wounded rambled around the village preparing meals and searching for nuts, berries and any vegetables that they might find. They prepared small meals for everyone. It wasn't much but it was enough to for everyone to have something in their bellies.
It was past midday by the time that Sir Jacob came out of the tiny hut. He gathered all of the Knights and men able to fight together.
"Our visitor was indeed a Raider in disguise. We learned that he was to report back to a band of 50 men a days ride from here to the South. They are right in the line of our path to the Crystal Palace. We will either have to destroy that war band or we will have to travel around them. With the sick and wounded that we have, I think it best to ride around. There are other ways to the Palace, but it will take us more time. At least 3 more days will be added to our journey."
"That is the safest course of action commander. I will ready the horses and gather the people and carts."
"Wait, Sir Paljin. I want to take another day here. I'm going to send out two riders to check our path forward. I won't send anyone by demand, I will only take volunteers. I will need you to ride to the trail crossing to be sure it is clear of any other spies."
"I'll do it. I need something to occupy my time."
"Are you sure Sir Pitre? You will be without the other men, it will only be you and one other. If you run into that war band you won't stand a chances, even with your skill."
"I will just have to avoid that war band then."
"That is also the best course of action. I will go with him commander."
"Very well then. Sir Pitre and Sir Paljin, you will be our forward eyes. Go to the crossing and remain there until we arrive. Only leave if there are signs of the war band. If that is the case, ride back to us with all haste, and we will decide our plans from there."
"Yes Sir. I'll prepare my horse and meet you at your tree Sir Pitre."
"Remember, do not attempt to engage the war band. If you see anymore spies on the trail take care of them as you see fit. If you can question them, do so. If you learn anything new that could affect this caravan, then ride back to us. We will begin our travels to the crossing at first light. We should meet up with you by midday. Stay safe."
I turned and walked back to the tree where my pack and horse were. I relieved the two men that had been standing guard on the trail and told them to send two more when Sir Paljin was ready to leave.
It didn't take Sir Paljin long to ready. He rode out with two men in tow to watch the trail once we left. We rode at full speed for the rest of the day, and arrived at the crossing as night began to fall.
"You get some rest Sir Paljin, I'll take the first watch."
"I'd say that you need the rest more than me. Weren't you the one that was up at first light to capture our spy?"
"Aye, but I don't need much rest. I'll be fine. I'll wake you in a few hours."
Sir Paljin put a bed roll down under a tree and dozed off. The crossing was a forked trail that went in five directions. I walked a few hundred yards down each one to see if I could see anything out of the ordinary but there was nothing to see. It was a moonless night, so light was sparse. I relaxed and went into the Swordsman's Euphoria, and then reached out to the aether. Other than the random small animal in the woods, there was still nothing to see.
I woke Sir Paljin for his watch after about six hours. He scolded me for keeping watch for so long, but I told him that there was nothing to watch. I helped him roll up his bed roll and then unrolled my own. Despite my restlessness and excitement about finally becoming a full Knight, darkness took hold of me as my head hit the forest floor.
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