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My heart goes out to all who suffer at the hands of people who cannot control their desires, accept or overlook differences and refuse to compromise.  Thousands of years of evolution and the only changes to mankind have been cosmetic.
Song Of The Day

Please click today's Song title link to sample.  I have opted to remove the auto feed of the .wav file.

Song Title Album Artist
Avelo Son Egal Tarika
Here is an album by a band from Madagascar that blends Senegalese and Malagasy music.  This is significant because of the bad blood created between the two cultures when the French colonists used Senegalese soldiers to quell an uprising in Madagascar in 1947.  The album is centered around that uprising and the language barrier prevents us from enjoying the message but not the music.
  Album Links  
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"Catch a Fallen Star" by Bob Mauge   Copyright 2002       

Edited by: Michael Siebenhaar

Archive Page 7:  Previous weekly posts are available through the Archived Pages link in the top frame.
 
Page 27

As quickly as they had come the Telfria were gone and Keldrid ran over to Lourense to see if he was still alive.  After removing the shell of protection, Keldrid checked Lourense’s neck for a pulse.  It took a few long moments before Keldrid detected a faint regular heartbeat.  Lourense’s breathing was shallow but steady so Keldrid was comfortable enough to move him to an area that could be defended more easily should a Dragon happen upon them.  As the minutes passed, Keldrid kept his ears open while he dressed Lourense’s head wound.  He found some chloriosus leaf in his medical bag, mixed it with herbal tea and force fed it to Lourense via a tube that he pushed down his throat.  This infusion helps prevent hemorrhaging and swelling in the brain.   Once Lourense was attended to, Keldrid focused on the disemboweled Telfria since by now, the threat that caused the stampede appeared to have moved on or had already caught it’s fill for the night.

 

The guardian had made quick work of the entrails so Keldrid could concentrate on dressing the beast.  He immediately cut a portion to put over the fire for the evenings meal and after taking the best cuts of meat from the carcass, he cast a preservation spell on the lot, wrapped and packed them for the journey.  By the time Keldrid finished, the roasting meat was as well.  He settled back with his wine skin and tried to enjoy his meal in silence but a number of things troubled him and would not release their grip on his mind.  He was worried about Lourense because most regain consciousness from head injuries that are not too serious.  The longer it takes to recover, the more likely one will suffer some sort of side effect such as memory loss, change in personality, or at worst complete loss of functionality.  There was also the issue of what sparked the stampede in the first place and it should not be taken lightly.  From his experience, only a very large predator or an advancing army would provoke that kind of reaction and they were in no position to deal with either one.

 

Page 27
Suddenly, Lourense began to thrash wildly from an apparent seizure and Keldrid quickly rushed to his side and forced a wooden utensil into the boy’s mouth so that he would not choke on his tongue.   Keldrid did his best to protect Lourense from hurting himself and noticed that he was very cold to the touch.  This is unusual since one in his condition should be feverish instead. Keldrid felt a wave of depression come over him as he could feel his young protégé’s pulse begin to fade and he had no tricks, spells or remedies to prevent that.  In helpless desperation, Keldrid called out to Lourense hoping to stir some inner strength in the boy.

Lourense head someone calling his name and tried to open his eyes.  It was quiet at first but grew in intensity as his awareness did.  He was utterly overjoyed when he saw that it was his mother, father and older sister who were walking up to greet him.  They were beautiful to behold and had a subtle and indescribable glow about them.  They looked somewhat different as well; kind of like idealized versions of themselves.  He got up and embraced them warmly for several minutes before backing away with a puzzled look upon his face.   “I saw you die, how could this be?”, Lourense queried.  Lourense’s father, Alkare, spoke first; “My son, you are right, we did die and you were not imagining it.  The reason you can see us is because you have crossed over as well.”  Lourense felt dizzy as he fought against the reality of the situation.  His mind began to race over the events after the massacre and things started coming back to him.  “I did not die, I was wounded in the shoulder; see” Lourense revealed a shoulder that to his surprise was completely void of blemish.  He began to stutter and speak quickly, “but I have been traveling with Keldrid, a great warrior mage and I have become his apprentice, in fact I was just learning how to cast my first spell before you came by.”  With that, Lourense finally remembered the final events of the evening and became silent.  “Lourense”, his father spoke, “You have a restless spirit, and a gift that none of us had realized before.  This Keldrid you speak of, must have seen what we could not; how could we being just simple farmers.  Remember I said that you crossed over,  I did not say that you died.  That is a very unique distinction since you are still alive and yet at the same time here visiting with us.”  Lourense felt relief and guilt at the same time.  Relieved that he was still alive but guilty about not wanting to be with his family in this world. 

 

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