Hello all! The video I created on youtube includes part of this excerpt from my newly published book, (
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqZbrwnpVpQ) Rise a Knight. However, the sound is awful and it is hard to hear. So, I decided to post the excerpt here. Hope you enjoy!
It was fall season and the trees were beginning to shake off their leaves onto the brown and drying ground. Red, brown, orange, and yellow tainted leaves were scattered among treetops and the earth floor. A slight breeze gracefully took the falling leaves with it, carried to all parts of the land, and landed them softly to a resting place. To the right there was a worn forest path with leaves hiding the brown earth. A Welsh man rode a beautiful, sleek, black Arabian horse alongside his wife who rode an equally beautiful brown-speckled paint. They raced at thundering speed laughing as they went. The wind gusted impressively and powerfully behind them as the animals’ giant hooves crunched the piles of leaves loudly. Yes, it was loud, but it was a calming, almost musical sound. The man and wife were simply awed by the feeling. This was tradition: a race through the forest just before sunset. Fall made it even more exhilarating than usual. Wind gusted past and leaves flew everywhere around them until they could not tell which leaves were from the trees or the ground. This was their secret life that only few knew of. After the ride they enjoyed the sunset. She would often paint things of nature surrounding them as he described it to her. She listened to his vivid descriptions and then would paint without looking up. This was her occupation. She was an artist and very good from what the villagers said.
After the ride this time, they stopped for a breath and panted loudly in rhythm with the horses’ breathing, while laughing all the while. He leaned over and kissed the woman softly on the cheek and she blushed.
“Isn’t it beautiful?“ she breathed leaning into him from her horse. “The leaves are all sorts of colors, falling all around.“
“I know my love,” he replied. “It just makes me want to sit here for hours just taking in the smells, the sounds and the colors. Takes my breath away.” he took her hand and they rode, slower this time, on their horses toward the stables located behind their rustic cottage.
“Shall I paint it?” she asked excitedly, just as she always did at the end of a race. “Like I did yesterday?” She waited, ecstatically, for his approval.
“Of course,” he grinned widely from ear to ear. “ You know full well that I’ll never say no to that.”
“But this time,” she smirked in an almost scolding manner, jerking her hand from his grasp, “don’t tell me falsehoods about what I am supposed to be painting.” He blushed, frowning that he had made her upset. Then she laughed and he frowned even more. He shook his head. Women were so confusing. They were angry, their brows furrowed one minute and laughing the next. Then, sometimes they were sarcastic, but he had a hard time understanding how to tell the difference between the two. He wished he understood his wife better. Then, maybe he could understand how to join in with her fun or maybe not to join in with her fun when she was serious. It hurt his brain just thinking about it.
“By the time I was finished, I do believe I had painted some exotic fairytale land that you dreamed up.” Oh, did he feel awful - And embarrassed. His face felt like fire. She looked at him with another laugh and continued, “Then, I examine my painting and frown. You sit there laughing, and I look up at the sky.” She started laughing hysterically and he couldn’t help but grin.
“And you were furious!” He wasn’t frowning anymore, just laughing. He remembered her reaction and said, “You asked,” He gasped for air between laughs, “You asked if I had eyes to see the world for what it really was or if I just dreamed life along.”
“Oh, but I like a dreamer for a husband. Makes life exciting!” She grinned. And then she laughed when he frowned at her statement. He didn’t what he was supposed to do, whether she’d be mad or happy about something one moment or the next. Still, he did it again. He was supposed to tell her the description of the surroundings and it was fairly close, just a little twisted that’s all. This time she laughed at his imagination and stated again that he must dream life along.
As you can see they were newlyweds. Or close to it. They had been married for three years. And this particular couple loved sharing the joy of a daily ride into the sunset. And the fall weather was perfect. They were riding towards their stable, disappointed to have to stop riding and painting, for the sun was just going down. It had been a long day besides and they knew they would be riding again tomorrow. Together they put up the saddles and talked about the types of leaves they saw and how the horses seemed ready to go again. They finished, and walked back up the small hill where their house sat. The woman stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes widened like a frightened animal. Her ears were pricked up like that of a rabbits and her body stiff. Her hair felt like it was standing on end and she couldn’t move.
“What’s wrong?” He asked her. And then he heard it. “Is that why…?” he began and he gulped as she nodded vigorously without looking away. His hair stood on end too and chills ran up and down his spine. It was an eerie howling noise that’s pitch in sound defied all laws of nature.
“What is it?” she whispered, shaking. She grasped his hand tightly.
“I don’t know,” he whispered back, clutching his wife‘s hand in return, but not as tight. He did not want her to think that he was scared. After all, he was supposed to be her protector. Holding her made him feel not so frightened and in turn she felt protected. He was holding her around the waist against his chest. She was hanging onto his hand so tight that her nails practically dug into his skin! That was nothing compared to the awful noise! It seemed to be coming from in front of them, but then the sound was behind them. It changed directions and pitch as it screeched and howled.
“Is it after us?” she asked and shook with fear. She clutched her husband’s hand even tighter.
“D-don’t say that,” he huffed, “It’s probably nothing. Let’s go back inside.” But he knew what he said was wrong. There had to be a reasonable cause for it, but whatever it was sounded unnatural and so very evil.
The seemingly invisible noise, laughed demonically. The woman
Gasped aloud, as its laugh seemed to get closer and closer. It sounded like death coming to take away the souls of the living. Its laugh came in all directions, surrounding them in its vacuum. The couple clutched each other and she closed her eyes tight. He watched as dust gathered itself from the earth and took the shape of a column. It formed itself and warped into a human likeness. The thing rode a dark black horse with a dark black hooded cape resting on its shoulders with the hood hiding its face - if it had a face. When he looked at it, he couldn’t even tell if the human-like creature had a face. It was hollow inside the hood of the cape. His wife cried aloud and fainted when she saw it. It laughed demonically again and the man shrank back in fear. He covered his face like a frightened ostrich, sticking its head in a hole. The man bent over to nurture to his wife. Then, he stood to face the evil thing.
“Wh-What do you want?” he asked shakily with his knees knocking together. If the thing suddenly tried to attack, he had no means of fighting it off.
“I bring a message for the King,” the thing’s voice boomed. It stuck its hand… well it didn’t look like a hand…. Limb out, holding a shining scroll.
“But the King is at the castle…”
“You are the messenger!!!” it screeched into the man’s ear.
“H-How do you know who I am?” the messenger whispered in fear.
“That is beside the point,” it growled. “I asked one thing of you. Is that so difficult?”
“ No…” he gulped. “But there is a rather….. Slight problem,” he winced.
“Tell me this… this problem. Perhaps I can assist you with such things that burden your heart.”
“You see sir, the King does not allow strangers to deliver messages. You could be seen as a threat. Who knows, you might be lying. You’re all dressed in black besides. The King would not take this message,” the messenger explained. He tried to be calm about it but he was still shaking.
“ You cannot tell me no! “ It yelled. He pointed a bony finger at the Celt. “You infidel. You are but scum of the ground. You swear to me. Swear!
Swear that you will take this message at once to the King. Do not tell him who gave you the message, but you will tell him it was not strange.”
“You will go to the King now! And if you do not follow my instructions as I have asked, I will kill you with my sword. And this lady will be mine when I kill you, “ the thing rubbed its hands together and laughed. The man couldn’t see, but he assumed the thing was licking its lips too. He thought the curse was broken since he was hired at the castle, but it had come back apparently because some thing, perhaps even a demon, was standing directly in front of him. He had heard of such things among the defeated Celts. He didn’t want to die nor did he want his wife hurt by the evil monster, but he had to obey the King. For once the man lost all the courage he ever had. Not even a small bit of heroism was flowing through his veins right now. He stood there, sweat streaming down his face writhing his hands nervously.
“Is it so hard to obey me?” It asked in its monstrous voice. “One way you choose, you will live. If you choose the other way, you die. How is that so difficult? I would love to have such a choice as yours,” it breathed.
“I swore my loyalty to the King on the day of my placement in the Castle,” the man hung his head in shame. He did not want to betray his king.
“I see,” it laughed. “Then, I suppose, I’ll have to kill you,” it stated, beginning to draw its sword. It seemed as if killing was nothing to the evil creature. It acted as if killing was fun. He didn’t want to die. That was the last thing on his mind right then. So he did the first thing that came to his mind that moment, which was extremely unstable under the circumstances. He got down on his knees at the creature’s feet. He felt humiliated and disgusted bowing at such an insult to nature.
“No! I implore you! Please do not kill me!” He clasped his hands together, begging pitifully, “I will do what you ask. Just tell me every detail of what you ask of me.” The creature seemed to enjoy this moment of being worshipped. It stood there for a moment soaking in the pleasure.
“Alright, stop your groveling,” the creature kicked the man in the ribs. “Get up you fool!” it laughed demonically.
The poor messenger held his aching side from and tried to stand. Once standing, he dusted himself off. Not that it did much good. He was in his worst clothes anyway. During the day he farmed and when he was at the castle, he was also the messenger. No one else besides his wife, the King, and a few others in the castles knew this. He always changed into the right character when going to the castle. He looked up wearily at the hooded creature like a forlorn kitten.
“All right,“ the creature chuckled, “I will not kill you. Not yet anyway.“ he threw back his head and laughed ever so eerily again. It made the poor messenger shudder at its sound. And the black hooded cape made it even more horrific to look at.
