"FREE-33" - читать интересную книгу автора (Jerome Bigge - Warlady 9 - The Freedom Fighters Of Trelandar)Freedom Fighters of Trelandar A Tale of Adventure in the Second Dark Age Book Nine of the Warlady Series By Jerome B. Bigge Chapter Thirty Three "Interesting ruins," Carl said, sitting there on his unicorn with the sunlight dappling the ground around us as it sparkled in down through the moving boughs overhead. The structure at first glance appearing to be more of a "hump" overgrown with vegetation than anything else until you noted it had once been a home here. A home made to survive anything, made to last here for centuries. "According to what I've read, this was the home of Marcella Domino," Lady Lana said, referring to a woman of the 21st Century who had left us a book now telling of her life back in that time. She had also referred to a Bob and Carol Simmons, close friends of Janet Rogers, who she said had lived in this same "earth home" all their lives before their deaths in 2033, Marcella herself having died in the year 2049 AD of a cancer caused by radiation. She was a TriVid "personality" earlier here in the 21st Century I might note for the curious who have no doubt never heard of her. Marcella's hair bleached blonde like mine according to her book.* * At this time here I was wearing my hair "bleached", a "style" that was quite "popular" in Trelandar here at the time. (Sanda) It was a pleasant day, middle spring, the year 2552, Jerry off to school now, learning his "3 R's", while his mother and her husband had settled in as "employees" of a lovely Imperial Lady. The people of Trelandar having "adjusted" to the fact that they were now the subjects of Empress Darlanis, who at this moment was leading an attack upon Talon, one I suspected would be a failure. Her battles against the Montanas last year had accomplished "lit- tle" in the long run, the Montanas themselves having now "merged" with the Nevadas and the Wyomings, two far more powerful groups. "Want to take a look inside it?" Carl asked, dismounting. "There could be dangerous animals," Lady Lana answered. "Sanda?" my husband asked, looking up at me there now. "I'll go," I said, glad for my mother's sword at my hip. "Fascinating..." I said, Carl holding up the torch for me. The flicking light reflecting off the sword in Lady Lana's hand. The house had been ransacked centuries ago, but it was obvious to me that there were still things here of interest to my caste now. "When you think of all they had..." Lana spoke quietly here. "Were they better off?" Carl asked, looking about the room. That was a question I knew had been debated by Scribes ever since civilization had been reborn in the Twenty Second Century. Those of the past had no doubt possessed "more" than we do now, but did they enjoy life any more? One cannot measure "happiness" as such by how "much" people had then. By the clothing they wore, or by the sort of entertainments that they had then. We live closer to nature now than they did, and our own "entertainments" are doubt- lessly far "simpler" than theirs were. On the other hand we per- haps "understand" what they did not. That the nature of Man is not something easily altered or changed as they once so believed. That things such as "honor" and keeping one's word are important. That criminals must be "punished", and severely or crime will be- come so rampant that people will not dare to walk the streets. I know Janet Rogers tried to "turn" the course of history, and to a great extent she succeeded in doing so, but the war between Earth and Mars cut short what could have been, leaving only speculation as to what Mankind might have accomplished in centuries to come.* * There would have been no starships so beloved of science fic- tion writers of that era, as such are forbidden by the Guardians of the Universe for good reason. However, I do believe that Man- kind and the Lorr would have been able to live together in peace had wiser heads prevailed after the death of Janet Rogers. It is "obvious" that Domino Tremaine was unable to maintain the sort of "control" over the military that Janet so maintained... (Sanda) "Hmm," I mused now, looking at a little china cat there on a shelf that still stood despite the centuries that had passed, the little figurine dirty, dusty, but yet a reminder of those who had once lived here so long ago. First the Simmons, then at the end a dying woman, gripped with pain as she wrote her last words now. Finally ending her life with poison when the pain grew too great. Leaving a daughter, who carried out her mother's last wishes in a society where the sword decided then whether one lived or died... Where strong men, armed, took as "wives" those women who pleased. "This is a place of `ghosts'," Lana said, looking about, no doubt uncomfortable here in this place, in these ruins we'd found here in the forest a dozen miles or so from the manor house now. Here and there one could see where animals had made their beds, a number of marks on the walls speaking of earlier human residents. Initials and "dates", some dating back even to the 21st Century. "Let's `go', Sanda," Carl said, the china cat still sitting there as it had no doubt for centuries, much to my own puzzlement as such items are frequently taken by children when they explore. On the other hand these ruins were not in a part of Trelandar now muchly "inhabited", not even by Peasants, I should also mention, it being held by some here too that these forests were "cursed" by mutated horrors of a sort that had never been blessed by Lys. ***************************************************************** "Have you heard the `news'?" Lana exclaimed as I greeted her return from Thistle where she'd gone with Carl and several of our men at arms to do some shopping. "Talon has defeated Darlanis!" Carl grinning at me, no doubt delighted here at Darlanis' defeat. The newspaper Lana gave me then as our retainers stood listening in awe leaving no doubts that this had indeed been the case here. That Darlanis' dreams of glory, first halted by the barbarians on the other side of the Sierras, had been destroyed by those of Ta- lon! The "costs" to Talon had been "high", even higher than that "paid" by the people of Trelandar, but little Talon had finally defeated the Empress of California in battle, although at a cost that had left no doubt thousands homeless; more children without any parents! According to the paper Darlanis was retreating from Talon, this tall golden woman who had sought to rebuild what had once been!! Beaten by the bravery of Talon's own Warrioresses on their great birds, women who risked their lives for their Queen. "She wasn't `invincible' after all," Carl grinned at me now. He was Trelandarian, and still saw Darlanis as being an invader. As the invader we'd beaten in a fair battle but for the "codes". "I feel sorry for her in a way," I said, looking up at him. "Maybe Lana is working you too hard..." my husband grinned, Lady Lana nodding, neither of them understanding how I felt here. ***************************************************************** "Look at the ship, mother!" Jerry said as I sat there on the end of the dock beside him, letting him try his luck at fishing, it being a hot middle summer day, the sort of day good for doing simple things like this. A day to soak one's feet in the ocean here in the little bay that the estate used for its harbor. The heavy Imperial trireme obviously was coming in towards us now... Its ornate gilt, the flags it flew, the symbols on the sails left no doubts either. I'd seen that "crown and stars" symbol before! Mischief standing there, alert, her ears perked up, her body so motionless that one could have so thought her a stuffed dog here. The sun bright on the gentle swells as the ship now came closer like some great prehistorical monster from a time now only myth. "That is Sarnian Queen, and Darlanis is aboard her," I said, aware that the trireme was apparently coming into our little bay. The news having been that Darlanis planned to make a series of visits to various Trelandarian estates, no doubt to insure that she still had control of Trelandar after her losses in Talon now. A couple of our slave girls standing there watching, the collars locked about their throats gray bands against their tanned skin. A barked order from me sending them both running to the manor now to warn Lady Lana that we could expect a very "royal" visitor... "Is my veil right?" Lana asked, making last minute adjust- ments to her clothing. I no longer bothered veiling myself any- more, but Lana of course had to due to her social status here. I did wear a hat, mostly to keep the glare out of my eyes, but now I saw such things as being little more than just a pretense here. The boat now coming over the swells towards us flying a smaller version of the impressive "Tarl" flag that Darlanis had adopted as a symbol of the Empire of California. The flag right now no doubt a bit of an "embarrassment" to her considering everything. "You look just fine," I assured her, holding on to Jerry. I had my hair bleached golden blonde, and I doubted that Darlanis would recognize me, as I didn't look much like I had back then. I'd put on about ten pounds, having been haggard and thin there at the end of the war, not the curvy "delight" that I'd become.* * I wore my hair "blonde" from the time we moved on to Lana's es- tate until only a few months before the time of her death. Carl always liked me as "blonde", but when I started to have problems with my hair, I had to quit, and return to my own color. (Sanda) "Be sure that your men give the proper `salute'," Lana spoke to Carl then, this visit by her Imperial highness having thrown the entire staff into an uproar, our slaves (female) all gathered to one side, while the field slaves (male) were in their sheds... My husband nodding, pointing with his sword to a man, having him step back a hair so that the formation might be perfect for HER. "Sword salute!" Lana snapped, drawing her blade, extending her arm, the blade lifted up over her head as Darlanis stepped up on to the dock, the gold of her hair bright here in the sunlight. I held my own up, aware of Carl's men doing the same as Darlanis now came striding towards us, a blondish little girl at her side. This being Princess Anna Marden, Crown Princess of the Empire... Freedom Fighters of Trelandar A Tale of Adventure in the Second Dark Age Book Nine of the Warlady Series By Jerome B. Bigge Chapter Thirty Three "Interesting ruins," Carl said, sitting there on his unicorn with the sunlight dappling the ground around us as it sparkled in down through the moving boughs overhead. The structure at first glance appearing to be more of a "hump" overgrown with vegetation than anything else until you noted it had once been a home here. A home made to survive anything, made to last here for centuries. "According to what I've read, this was the home of Marcella Domino," Lady Lana said, referring to a woman of the 21st Century who had left us a book now telling of her life back in that time. She had also referred to a Bob and Carol Simmons, close friends of Janet Rogers, who she said had lived in this same "earth home" all their lives before their deaths in 2033, Marcella herself having died in the year 2049 AD of a cancer caused by radiation. She was a TriVid "personality" earlier here in the 21st Century I might note for the curious who have no doubt never heard of her. Marcella's hair bleached blonde like mine according to her book.* * At this time here I was wearing my hair "bleached", a "style" that was quite "popular" in Trelandar here at the time. (Sanda) It was a pleasant day, middle spring, the year 2552, Jerry off to school now, learning his "3 R's", while his mother and her husband had settled in as "employees" of a lovely Imperial Lady. The people of Trelandar having "adjusted" to the fact that they were now the subjects of Empress Darlanis, who at this moment was leading an attack upon Talon, one I suspected would be a failure. Her battles against the Montanas last year had accomplished "lit- tle" in the long run, the Montanas themselves having now "merged" with the Nevadas and the Wyomings, two far more powerful groups. "Want to take a look inside it?" Carl asked, dismounting. "There could be dangerous animals," Lady Lana answered. "Sanda?" my husband asked, looking up at me there now. "I'll go," I said, glad for my mother's sword at my hip. "Fascinating..." I said, Carl holding up the torch for me. The flicking light reflecting off the sword in Lady Lana's hand. The house had been ransacked centuries ago, but it was obvious to me that there were still things here of interest to my caste now. "When you think of all they had..." Lana spoke quietly here. "Were they better off?" Carl asked, looking about the room. That was a question I knew had been debated by Scribes ever since civilization had been reborn in the Twenty Second Century. Those of the past had no doubt possessed "more" than we do now, but did they enjoy life any more? One cannot measure "happiness" as such by how "much" people had then. By the clothing they wore, or by the sort of entertainments that they had then. We live closer to nature now than they did, and our own "entertainments" are doubt- lessly far "simpler" than theirs were. On the other hand we per- haps "understand" what they did not. That the nature of Man is not something easily altered or changed as they once so believed. That things such as "honor" and keeping one's word are important. That criminals must be "punished", and severely or crime will be- come so rampant that people will not dare to walk the streets. I know Janet Rogers tried to "turn" the course of history, and to a great extent she succeeded in doing so, but the war between Earth and Mars cut short what could have been, leaving only speculation as to what Mankind might have accomplished in centuries to come.* * There would have been no starships so beloved of science fic- tion writers of that era, as such are forbidden by the Guardians of the Universe for good reason. However, I do believe that Man- kind and the Lorr would have been able to live together in peace had wiser heads prevailed after the death of Janet Rogers. It is "obvious" that Domino Tremaine was unable to maintain the sort of "control" over the military that Janet so maintained... (Sanda) "Hmm," I mused now, looking at a little china cat there on a shelf that still stood despite the centuries that had passed, the little figurine dirty, dusty, but yet a reminder of those who had once lived here so long ago. First the Simmons, then at the end a dying woman, gripped with pain as she wrote her last words now. Finally ending her life with poison when the pain grew too great. Leaving a daughter, who carried out her mother's last wishes in a society where the sword decided then whether one lived or died... Where strong men, armed, took as "wives" those women who pleased. "This is a place of `ghosts'," Lana said, looking about, no doubt uncomfortable here in this place, in these ruins we'd found here in the forest a dozen miles or so from the manor house now. Here and there one could see where animals had made their beds, a number of marks on the walls speaking of earlier human residents. Initials and "dates", some dating back even to the 21st Century. "Let's `go', Sanda," Carl said, the china cat still sitting there as it had no doubt for centuries, much to my own puzzlement as such items are frequently taken by children when they explore. On the other hand these ruins were not in a part of Trelandar now muchly "inhabited", not even by Peasants, I should also mention, it being held by some here too that these forests were "cursed" by mutated horrors of a sort that had never been blessed by Lys. ***************************************************************** "Have you heard the `news'?" Lana exclaimed as I greeted her return from Thistle where she'd gone with Carl and several of our men at arms to do some shopping. "Talon has defeated Darlanis!" Carl grinning at me, no doubt delighted here at Darlanis' defeat. The newspaper Lana gave me then as our retainers stood listening in awe leaving no doubts that this had indeed been the case here. That Darlanis' dreams of glory, first halted by the barbarians on the other side of the Sierras, had been destroyed by those of Ta- lon! The "costs" to Talon had been "high", even higher than that "paid" by the people of Trelandar, but little Talon had finally defeated the Empress of California in battle, although at a cost that had left no doubt thousands homeless; more children without any parents! According to the paper Darlanis was retreating from Talon, this tall golden woman who had sought to rebuild what had once been!! Beaten by the bravery of Talon's own Warrioresses on their great birds, women who risked their lives for their Queen. "She wasn't `invincible' after all," Carl grinned at me now. He was Trelandarian, and still saw Darlanis as being an invader. As the invader we'd beaten in a fair battle but for the "codes". "I feel sorry for her in a way," I said, looking up at him. "Maybe Lana is working you too hard..." my husband grinned, Lady Lana nodding, neither of them understanding how I felt here. ***************************************************************** "Look at the ship, mother!" Jerry said as I sat there on the end of the dock beside him, letting him try his luck at fishing, it being a hot middle summer day, the sort of day good for doing simple things like this. A day to soak one's feet in the ocean here in the little bay that the estate used for its harbor. The heavy Imperial trireme obviously was coming in towards us now... Its ornate gilt, the flags it flew, the symbols on the sails left no doubts either. I'd seen that "crown and stars" symbol before! Mischief standing there, alert, her ears perked up, her body so motionless that one could have so thought her a stuffed dog here. The sun bright on the gentle swells as the ship now came closer like some great prehistorical monster from a time now only myth. "That is Sarnian Queen, and Darlanis is aboard her," I said, aware that the trireme was apparently coming into our little bay. The news having been that Darlanis planned to make a series of visits to various Trelandarian estates, no doubt to insure that she still had control of Trelandar after her losses in Talon now. A couple of our slave girls standing there watching, the collars locked about their throats gray bands against their tanned skin. A barked order from me sending them both running to the manor now to warn Lady Lana that we could expect a very "royal" visitor... "Is my veil right?" Lana asked, making last minute adjust- ments to her clothing. I no longer bothered veiling myself any- more, but Lana of course had to due to her social status here. I did wear a hat, mostly to keep the glare out of my eyes, but now I saw such things as being little more than just a pretense here. The boat now coming over the swells towards us flying a smaller version of the impressive "Tarl" flag that Darlanis had adopted as a symbol of the Empire of California. The flag right now no doubt a bit of an "embarrassment" to her considering everything. "You look just fine," I assured her, holding on to Jerry. I had my hair bleached golden blonde, and I doubted that Darlanis would recognize me, as I didn't look much like I had back then. I'd put on about ten pounds, having been haggard and thin there at the end of the war, not the curvy "delight" that I'd become.* * I wore my hair "blonde" from the time we moved on to Lana's es- tate until only a few months before the time of her death. Carl always liked me as "blonde", but when I started to have problems with my hair, I had to quit, and return to my own color. (Sanda) "Be sure that your men give the proper `salute'," Lana spoke to Carl then, this visit by her Imperial highness having thrown the entire staff into an uproar, our slaves (female) all gathered to one side, while the field slaves (male) were in their sheds... My husband nodding, pointing with his sword to a man, having him step back a hair so that the formation might be perfect for HER. "Sword salute!" Lana snapped, drawing her blade, extending her arm, the blade lifted up over her head as Darlanis stepped up on to the dock, the gold of her hair bright here in the sunlight. I held my own up, aware of Carl's men doing the same as Darlanis now came striding towards us, a blondish little girl at her side. This being Princess Anna Marden, Crown Princess of the Empire... |
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