The case of the Missing Stone Circle (A Pub Crawl)

[Kat Lady]

Editor's Note: These stories that appear from time to time in The Pub are just a bit of silliness that has been a tradition at The Druid’s Head and at The Foggy Duck for many years. In this story you'll see names of people you may recognize. Just because you don't see your name here doesn't mean that you can't participate. Please write yourself in if you'd like, and in that way we may get to know you. The only "rule," if there is one, is that we try to pick up the story from where the previous poster left it, and to include at least some of those elements in whatever comes next. Storytelling is a bardic pursuit, and although it’s hard to imagine Taliesin telling stories quite like these, it is entirely possible that by your participation, you could be immortalized in The Attic.

Crow looked out the window of the 747 and wondered how he had again gotten himself into another undesirable assignment. Sure, the idea of the free trip to New Zealand to cover a story about the New Stonehenge was an exciting prospect. And the promised bonus for taking on the assignment sure would buy Mrs. Crow a lot of rolling pins. But when was he ever going to learn that Charles Payne would never give him a simple assignment? He sighed at the fact that he had again been suckered into something that was giving him one of those pit of the stomach feelings, and that bodes no good. Here he was, chosen to co-moderate a debate sponsored by the Kiwi Pagan, the sister paper of the Pagan Press. The topic, of course was “New Stonehenge: A reconnection to the Ancients or capitalistic money machine?” What did he know about moderating? Better yet, what did he know about Stonehenge? He rubbed the very large bump on his head and smiled. This badge of his office was almost worth it when he remembered seeing the look on Mrs. Crow’s face when her rolling pin broke in half upon making contact with his skull. Selene had told him that his hide would thicken as soon as he became a moderator. He just had no idea it would happen this quickly.

He looked at the Junior Administrator sleeping in the seat beside him, her pumpkin medallion glowing in the early morning sun shining through the airplane window. He had convinced Charles Payne to allow him to take her along as a consultant, since this was his first job as Moderator. A frown appeared on his brow as he still didn’t understand why the old skin flint agreed so readily. He sighed again and began thumbing through the press release concerning his co-moderator so he could familiarize himself with her credentials.

Meanwhile, Unikorn was driving her economical and environmentally friendly electric car on Kokotau Road and was looking for the bridge over the Rumahanga River that would take her to the road for Stonehenge Aotearoa. She wanted to check out where this great debate she was to co-moderate was to take place before the great moderator from the Pagan Press that she had heard so much about arrived. She crossed a bridge and thought to herself, This is the only bridge for miles. But this can't be right. I should be able to see the new Stonehendge from here. She pulled the car off the side of the road and stopped a young boy, one of the people of the land, and asked in fluent Maori, (editor's note: the following conversation has already been translated to English for the reader's ease) "Excuse me. But is this the road to the new Stone Circle?" The boy answered, "Yes" and pointed his finger at a spot a few miles in the distance. Unikorn stared at the empty space in the distance. "But...", she began as the boy continued, "It is gone."

Unikorn stared, open mouthed at the road before her. She had a bad feeling about this...

[Unikorn]

Unikorn closed her mouth so the mosquitoes couldn't fly in and sat on the ground for a while to get her bearings. She was sure it should be here, the site 'felt' right but where oh where was this.

She had the sneaky feeling those adventurous folks from the Pub were gonna make this into some kind of adventure and grinned to herself, glad she had her trusty kite - traditional flax-woven backpack with her and tools to survive anything!! At that moment she heard an enormous roaring sound and looked towareds the sky to see.......

[Underground River]

GreenDruid was bored. She was also afraid. She had dreamed about StoneHenge again last night. She was very afraid of the place for some reason. She decided to go to the pub to chat with some of her friends. She hated pubs, but she really wanted to talk to somebody who might understand that she was bored and had had a bad dream so she went to the pub.
When she arrived, she called out "anybody here?!"
She heard no reply. She shivered in fear but decided she was being nervous for nothing. She would find Gladys or whoever was there and then she would feel better. Those bloody dreams were driving her mad! She called "gladys" and got no answer. The pub was dreadfully quiet...
She stepped on the mushroom. It made a sound that seemed very loud in the silence of the unoccupied pub. She cried out in fear before she could bite down on her tongue to stop the sound. She knew she should move away from the mushroom but she was paralyzed with fear. She stood there and felt herself transported to...
AAotearoa...
She smelled the fresh air and something exotic. She thought she might be in another country but wasn't sure which one. "Where am I?!" she cried hoping whoever was around might speak English. Nobody answered. She was just wondering what to do when she heard a really loud noise in the distance. It sounded like a plane. She waved her arms around hoping it would see her.
GD

[Crow]

Crow knew there was a hell, and he was in it.

For the past several hours he’d sat in a cramped middle seat on the 747 as it flew from London Gatwick to Auckland International Airport in New Zealand. To his right, in the window seat, sat Selene who was snoring loudly. To his left, in the aisle seat, sat a woman with a shrieking toddler, and her idea of parenting was that everyone must enjoy the brat’s ear-splitting racket as much as she did. Crow didn’t know how Selene was doing it, but for him, sleep was out of the question.

The green sheriff’s badge weighed heavily on his chest, and he was happy to have Selene along to consult about moderating. But just why his boss, Charles Payne, had agreed to it was troubling. Payne always had his eye on the bottom line, and having a moderating consultant along seemed like the type of extravagance that he wouldn’t allow.

The pilot announced that they were descending into Auckland, but that some weather problems had backed up air traffic and their arrival would be delayed. Crow leaned forward to look to his right and out the window, and saw that they were indeed at a lower altitude and over land. He could even make out what appeared to be a woman standing in an empty field and staring up as the jet roared overhead.

The announcement from the cockpit had said it would still be a while before they landed, confirming Crow’s notion that he really was in hell, and hell had no timetable. He cast about for something to occupy the time and his eye fell on Selene’s laptop. Crow and Selene had known each other a long time, and the old reporter was sure the junior administrator wouldn’t mind if he used her computer while she slept. He thought that perhaps he could find a game or something with which to further defeat and frustrate himself.

He took the computer and flipped it open. It quickly awoke from sleep mode, and Crow saw that Selene had been reading and answering some mail she received.

Crow felt the feathers around his neck tighten and sweat sprang out on his brow. He didn’t read other people’s mail, and it had all been quite innocent, but he now knew why Charles Payne had been so quick to pay for Selene’s flight. Crow also now knew why Selene was a junior administrator, and he realized that despite all they’d been through together, there was still much he didn’t know about her.

From the salutations on the letters on the screen in front of him, Crow saw that Selene was a close friend and confidante of the man who, as owner of The Pagan Press and the smaller Kiwi Pagan, signed his paycheck: one Mr. Phlipp Phlopp.

[Underground River]

"Hey, look at that!" the copilot said to the pilot of the 747. "A woman is standing down there. She's blind!"
"How on Earth do you know she's blind?" asked the pilot gruffly, secretly feeling awe that his friend could see so well.
"Because she has a white cane," said the younger copilot to his team-leader and friend.
The pilot looked down, and he thought he could see a woman waving up at them.
"She looks like she needs some help," said the copilot. "Since we have to wait for the landing space let's go and collect her. She's on a level stretch of ground, no problem to get her and take her to Aucland airport."
"But she hasn't paid for a ticket," said the Pilot burocratically.
"So what," said the copilot. "She might be lost. If we didn't help her, we'd be seen as mean people who didn't care about blind folks."
"Hmmm," said the pilot. "Maybe we should radio and ask what we should do."
The copilot agreed and got on the radio. The conversation was long and difficult, but he got permission to land and help the woman. The airport officials decided that since the plane was so close to Auckland airport her paying for a ticket would be kind of silly so they would do it for free and it would make them look good.
"Fasten your seatbelts," came over the loudspeaker in the passenger cabin. "We are going to land. Do not be alarmed, we are merely picking up a person in distress."
Crow was curious. He wondered who the woman he had seen was.
The plane landed without difficulty and a flight attendant picked up the blind woman. Crow stared, it was his friend GreenDruid!
GD

[Stohornugle]

As Unikorn stared tranfixed at the sky the roaring grew louder and louder until her ear drums felt like they were doing the Lambada. Clamping her hand over her ears in an attempt to prtect them from such gyrations
Unikorn threw herself to the floor. Just in time. Out of the hazy blue sky thrust the nose of a 747 dangerously close to the ground.

[Billy Joe Bob]

“Cross the river then turn due north and proceed 4 kilometers until you see a large Kawaka tree, then turn west for 1.7 kilometers until reaching the property, the boundaries of which are marked with metal stakes.”

From the wagon’s bench seat, Billy Joe Bob pulled on the reins and halted the two-mule team. He’d just crossed the river, which hadn’t been easy with the wagon, inside of which perched a pigeon that was easily as big as either of the mules. “Settle down back there, Merle,” Billy Joe Bob called over his shoulder to the bird, who he’d named after his favorite country-western singer, Merle Haggard.

Even though no one else was present, the cowboy continued to talk out loud because he’d discovered that the sound of his voice kept the bird calm, and as anyone knows, there’s nothing quite like 400 pounds of panicked pigeon to turn a bad situation worse.

“Okay, I crossed the durn river, and now I gotta turn north for four kill-o-meters. What in the hell is a kill-o-meter? Why caint these people measure stuff in miles like everbody else does? Well whatever, it says I gotta find a Kawaka tree. How am I supposed to find a Kawaka tree if I ain’t never seen a Kawaka tree before, and I ain’t never heard of one till now? Shoot, when I find the old boy that wrote these directions, I’m liable to string him up. Well let’s go, get up, mules!”

As the wagon bounced along dustily, Billy Joe Bob took a well-worn newspaper cutting from his pocket, unfolded it, and read:

Pigeon racing
is big money
in New Zealand

BY SUMMERBLOOMS
KIWI PAGAN STAFF WRITER
Special to The Pagan Press

Weekends used to be a time when New Zealanders relaxed from a week of work and spent quality time with their families.

No more.

A new sport has taken the country by storm, and thousands of Auckland residents are flocking to the weekly pigeon races, where they open up their wallets, spending freely on concessions and wagering.

But the really big money goes to the breeders of the speedy birds, who can make millions of dollars if they have championship-caliber stock.

The story went on about the huge purses received by winning birds, and about stud fees and endorsement contracts. Well-known pigeons appeared on television selling everything from automobiles to lawnmowers, and when he was in a grocery store buying supplies for this trip, Billy Joe Bob even saw a pigeon’s picture on a box of cereal.

A flapping of wings that shook the whole wagon jolted The Texan from his daydream of dollar signs. “You hear that, Merle, we’re gonna be rich! These Kiwis ain’t never seen the like o’ you, I’ll guarandamntee ye!”

Billy Joe Bob skipped down to the last paragraph of the story and read:

To keep out profiteers, the government has passed a new law that forces pigeon breeders and racers to be registered land owners in New Zealand.

This was his big chance, and Billy Joe Bob knew it. “My mama dint raise no fools, Merle, nosiree,” he called over his shoulder to the pigeon, who was settling back down.

New Zealand was too far from Texas for the pigeon to fly with Billy Joe Bob on his back, so he’d booked passage for them on a freighter, with the pigeon concealed inside a large, plush container. Once in Auckland, the cowboy had bought a copy of the Kiwi Pagan and looked for land deals. It hadn’t taken him long to find one that looked perfect:

LAND FOR SALE

Nearby construction of a stone circle by druid hippies has made the rural one-acre tract purchased for my retirement home unsuitable. I must sell quickly. Contact owner.

“Druid hippies ain’t gonna bother us none, are they Merle?” Billy Joe Bob said to the pigeon. “It won’t be the first time we mixed it up with them, will it? Hey, there’s a big ol’ tree! If that ain’t a Kawaka tree, then my name ain’t Billy Joe Bob.”

The cowboy had contacted the owner and settled on what he felt was a very fair price. Now, passing the tree, he turned west and coaxed a little more speed out of the mules. “First thing we’re gonna do, Merle, is build ye a big ol’ pigeon coop, and it’s gonna have a nice private area for ye. Just wait till I start collectin’ them stud fees, why I’ll be countin’ my money, and you’ll be happier than a pig in ...

“Shhiiiiiii!” shouted Billy Joe Bob, for he’d just driven into a clearing marked by metal stakes, and in the middle of it sat a Boeing 747 ...

[Kat Lady]

"What the...!" Pilot Jack looked at his co-pilot. "How did we get here?" He blinked his eyes. Once. Twice. Yep! He still saw a turtle. "And how did you get here and what happened to Joe?"

"Well, a funny thing about air currents combined with updrafts," began the turtle. "Mix them with a strong portabello mushroom and POOF! Goodbye Aukland and hello New Stonehenge. And good bye Joe and hello...me!" Greymore grinned a wide turtle grin. He was so happy that he had taken that pilot's course between stories. He knew it would come in handy someday. He undid his seatbelt and jumped out of the seat. He was also glad that he had started taking those vitamins as they certainly gave him more energy. No more turtle crawling for him! He could keep up with the big boys, so to speak.

Pilot Jack decided he had flown one Air New Zeland flight too many and that it was time for a Walkabout as he watched the speedy turtle climb out of the airplane.

In Coach, Crow and Selene looked out the window and realized that not only were they not in Kansas anymore, they weren't at the Aukland Airport either. What they saw was Billy Joe Bob astride a large pigeon, Green Druid standing next to Unikorn and a large circular empty area.

Outside the plane, Greymore met up with Unikorn, Billy Joe Bob and Green Druid.

"Steady, Merle," Billy Joe Bob said to the obviously aggitated pigeon. "It's only our hippie druid friend Greymore."

Crow and Selene, seeing the turtle walking rapidly toward the others, decided to promptly leave the plane. Crow knew there was a story here. And Moderator or not, his first duty was to find the story. So with notebook and pen in hand, they exited from the front of the plane, Selene still groggy from the rather rude awakening.

"Hey Crow! Whazzup?Why such a cloud of doom?" Unikorn asked, her usual cheery self, as he stepped next to her, his cloud of doom evident.

"Cloud of doom?"

Selene gathered her laptop under her arm, pointed above his head and said, "Cloud of doom" in a rather monotone voice. Then they heard the giggle and lo and behold, the doom cloud turned into a skittle cloud and there was MoonCloud above his head. Crow deftly stepped to his left to avoid being showered with any sticky confections and glared at the cloud.

"Oh stop!" said MoonCloud having reverted to her natural cumulous form. "Don't rain on my parade." She giggled again, "Get it? Rain on my parade?" More laughter.

Crow looked at Selene and they both decided tht MoonCloud had a few to many of those complimentary drinks the pilot had provided. Turning back to the business at hand, Crow quickly told Unikorn why he and Selene were here.

"You are the great debator?" Unikorn was looking at Crow, the rather large bump on his noggin evident, and giggling herself now. "I would have thought they would have sent one of the heavy hitters like Azrienoch, Frank or Lily!" Crow just glared at her and sighed. This day was just getting worse and worse.

It was then that GreenDruid asked the simple but obvious question, "What stone circle?"

"It seems that our Aotearoa Stonehenge is missing!" Unikorn felt a lump in her throat. This was a sad day indeed when a great stone circle would just up and disappear. Why even Philipp Phlopp had said that he would be here for the great debate and even sponsor a gathering.

"Well that is rather obvious," said Crow in his usual gloom and doom voice, looking suspsciously at Selene who seemed to be avoiding eye contact.

Greymore sighed. "Well that is why I am here. I have a message fromt he big guy himself." And he pulled out a small tape recorder from under his shell and turned it to the play position.

"Greetings and Welcome," began the calm, almost hypnotic voice. "Your mission, if you choose to accept it..."

[Kat Lady]

As the friends were listening, no one noticed the cheshire grin behind them on the branch of the Kauri tree near the empty site...






edit note: oops!

[Fascination]

Although the notion of an alcoholics annoymous meeting being held some few hundred miles away in New Zealand seemed rather bizzare, it did form a twisted sense of logic - what better way to maintain an annoymous personality than by going to the other side of the world?
When he got there though, the place seemed full of blank faces with a noticeable abscence of stone circles. It seemed a group of people were being instructed, so Fasc padded over...

[Underground River]

Azrienoch was sitting at his desk writing an essay. He was writing about how stone circles had affected humanity over the centuries. His friend Alferian was coming over to read his essay and then they would go and have a drink at the pub. Thinking of Alferian there came a knock on the door. Azrienoch opened it and smiled at his friend. Alferian came in and began to read Az's essay. "It's really good!" cried Alferian. "You should publish this. I'm serious, this essay is so good that millions of people will read it."
Az had written the essay on thick good quality paper. He had felt an instinct not to use his computer to write it. He would type it in later. Suddenly, the paper began to glow. Az was afraid but couldn't say why. "It is magical," said Alferian calmly. "Don't worry."
Suddenly the two men were transported to...
Aotearoa...
Az stood there, clutching the paper staring at a bunch of people. There was Unikorn, GreenDruid and...he paused to make sure...Selene.
Also BillyJoeBob and Crow.
"Hi," said Alferian, seemingly unafraid and unconcerned. "Nice to be here."

Lily was coming home from work when she got this weird feeling. She didn't know what it was, but it was strange. She went home and put on supper. When supper was cooked, she began to eat. In the supper was a portobello mushroom...

Beith was walking down the street when she heard a funny sound. She whirled around but saw nothing. She wondered what it could have been. She looked up at an oak tree and saw a pigeon.
"Hello," she said to it. "How are you today?" She felt mildly afraid but wasn't sure why.
The pigeon came toward her suddenly. "No!" she screamed as the bird flew straight at her. "Please no!"
The bird screetched to a stop just in front of her nose. It reached out a foot and touched her gently. Beith felt a strange power eminating from the bird and then...then she was flying. Beith didn't know for how long she flew, but it seemed like years. Finally, she landed, right beside Lily and Az and Alferian.
GD

[Crow]

The friends watched as the 747 taxied back and took off with a roar, barely clearing the trees that surrounded Billy Joe Bob’s new pigeon plot.

Crow looked around at the group of faces, some familiar, others not. “Before we go any further,” he raged, “Does anyone other than me find it strange that we keep meeting like this? I mean, landing in a grassy field in a Boeing 747 is something that just isn’t supposed to happen! And not only that, but we get off the plane and all of a sudden there are lots of people we know, just standing around!”

Merle cooed loudly and everyone jumped.

“Can’t you shut him up?” said Crow to Billy Joe Bob. “I’m not finished yet.”

The cowboy quieted his pigeon as Crow continued.

“Okay, I’d be willing to overlook the 747 and the fact that you’re all here, but the weirdness just keeps happening. If it’s not a 747, it’s a mushroom, or a shoe-balancing machine, or a cider vat. Well wake up, folks, because I’m here to tell you that there are people in this world who take off on giant airplanes every day, and they actually land at major airports! There are people in this world who eat mushrooms and remain seated at their dinner tables! There are people in this world who buy a new pair of shoes and get nothing more than a blister! There are people in this world who fall into a cider vat and either climb out or drown, they don’t go spiraling off to Switzerland! I’m tired of it, do you hear? For just one day in my life, I want to be normal!”

“Are you finished?” asked Beith. “Because now that you’ve had your little tantrum, I’ll just tell you that you’ll never be normal, and that goes for all of us, and we might as well just get on with this adventure.”

“Listen to her when she’s lecturing,” said Selene.

“Kewl,” said Unikorn. “Firstly, I’d like to welcome you all to New Zealand. I know that some of you are here to join in the debate about our ‘New Stonehenge,’ and I suppose the rest of you can either watch or join in the debate as you see fit, but I must point out that we have a little problem in that the stone circle seems to have disappeared.”

“How can you tell?” asked GreenDruid.

“Well, because I can’t see it,” answered Unikorn.

“She’s right everybody,” said GreenDruid, “I can’t see it either.”

"Fascinating," said Fascination.

“I jes wanna race pigeons,” said Billy Joe Bob, “And ya’ll are trespassin’.”

“Billy Joe Bob’s right, and we’re sorry about that, sir,” said Unikorn. “The stone circle is supposed to be right over here in this next field, and I suggest that we all head over that way and investigate.”

Everyone followed Unikorn except for Billy Joe Bob, who started dismantling the wagon and using the lumber to construct a large coop for Merle.

“This is the biggest boondoggle, the biggest waste of time I’ve ever seen,” said Crow, thoroughly disgusted with everything that had happened so far. “It’s just an empty field, anyone can see th…”

The old reporter staggered backward and fell to the ground unconscious after walking headlong into a pillar of stone.

Warned by Crow’s stupidity, everyone else walked carefully with their hands outstretched; GreenDruid tapped along with her white cane. Soon everyone found a pillar of stone, and the outline of the invisible ring could be envisioned by the circle of friends standing and touching an upright stone.

When Crow regained consciousness after about 10 minutes, he was staring directly into the face of his publisher, Phlipp Phlopp, who looked down and said, “Sleeping on the job again, eh Crow? I’m docking you one week’s pay for this! Make a note of that, Ms. Lady!”

The old reporter watched in silence as Phlipp Phlopp’s secretary, Kat Lady, made an entry into the ledger book she was carrying. He rubbed his sore beak and wondered what bad thing would happen next …

[frank]

Meanwhile, high over the central Pacific, Frank's evil twin Frank cackled to silently to himself.

That old man had been so right! He thought gleefully, because there's no point in being evil if you can't gloat.

His foot strayed yet again to the so-innocent briefcase under the seat in front of him. Inside was what looked like a miniature model of Stonehenge, disassembled.

And it was, sort of.

[/i]Ahhhh. Old school thinking. The best kind[/i] he thought. Those old druids weren't killed by the Christians. They found better things to do. Better places to live. They went...elsewhere. And now I know how. Those fools in the universities think they're inventing quantum computing. But those old stone circles, they're better computers than those geeks will ever know. Nothing but silicon and a bit of knowledge. And a good location. And I've got a GOOD location.

He thought about how simple it was. A wave of a wand, really, and the right words at the right time.

All that quantum stuff is so easy. I could never have moved those henges by strength alone. But they're quantum computers. All I had to do was decouple their mass from their essence, and take the essence with me. And once I get them set up, twenty five words at the full moon, and the stones will be where I want them. Hah! I'll bet no one has even noticed the mass left behind. I'll bet that they haven't even noticed that they're gone, and if they have, they think someone carted them out with a front loader. Those blind, dull cretins. Stuck in the real world... And his mind dribbled off into unspeakable psychophysical musings.

And once New Stonehenge is set up across a couple of ley lines, I can make simulations that are better than the real thing. I can be anywhere. Anywhen. No one will be able to stop me. They said it couldn't be done, but I'll show them. Those fools, I'll destroy them all!

All I need are virgins. Lots of virgins. Couldn't get that in Kiwi land of course. Or in England. Fortunately, the conservatives have been running America so long that I'll be able to get all the virgins I need there. And I know just the place. Missouri...

And dreaming his dreams of unholy power, evil Frank flew towards the United States, that vast northern country that dreamed that it was safe and so powerful. That dream was about to change...

[Underground River]

"I don't like this place," said GreenDruid fearfully. "I dreamed about StoneHenge again last night and well I just have a bad feeling about this. I wish I hadn't touched that stone with my cane, I vowed never to touch one of those stones again. Please warn me if I am getting too close to any of them. I have a really bad feeling...blah I dunno, maybe I'm just afraid..." GreenDruid's voice trailed off in uncertainty.
GD

[EarthWard]

Deep inside the mind of Green Druid the lucid dream floated along the rivers of twilight and myth aboard the vessel of wisdom and clarity in depth.
The vibration of her cane sent images swirling in her mind.
A tree root
A stone
A fallen log
And then.

With a thunk the mass of Stone Henge arose in her mind's eye like a wave crashing on the shore.
Her breath was stuck in her throat. The image did not go away after the vibrations died. It grew larger. She could see it and believe it she could not.
Anger voices chanted her name not known to her until now.
She felt herself struggling against the vise of arms that held her down
"No! No! How did I get here! No!"
Tears streaked her face and terror rolled itself over her like an unwanted blanket.
The knife's blade was held high above her. Her heart froze. Eyes closed.
Waiting
Waiting
Waiting
Time passed. Her heart slowed. Her eyes opened to see...
"EarthWard? What the hell are you doing?"
"What are you doing is the question?"
She looked around but there was no one else.
"My answer is I have no idea!"
"Well your dreaming for one thing." EarthWard gave her a hand off the sacrifice stone.
"I know that too. I can see."
"Yes well trust me I don't look as good in real life as I do in dream land but hey I'll take it."
"So why have I not woken up yet?"
"I guess we have unfinished business to take care of. We need to talk. Well the stones need to talk I'm just a tool to voice to you there concerns."
"You mean I'm talking to the stones? That scares me."
"I know it does and that is why we need to talk. We are all tied to these stones. They call to us all. Some of us more so than others but all that take up Druidry will be called at one time or another. There is a good chance your blood was spilled on these stones. That is what brings the fear to you. Part of you will always be here, Green Druid, and you can accept it or not but you cannot escape it. These stones love you. The men that did this did not. Evil has had its way but so has good. Its only in there strength for all that is good that they have stood through the test of time. Accept the good in them and cast out the bad. They need you now. You are their protector and they call you now. Another has risen that plots to do what was done to you. The stones need you to stop it for if it happens again they will break and the stars will fall from the heavens. They need you Green Druid and when you need them just say the word."
"What word?"
"Awe...."
Beep Beep Beep Beep
Green Druid hit the alarm cloak and sat up in her bed in the light of a new day but still frozen in the darkness. In her hand she felt a tiny stone.
She lifted it to her lips and kissed it.
A new day had begun.

[EarthWard]

That sent chills up my spine and I wrote it!!!


Sorry had to edit some parts.

[Crow]

It may be the first time a chapter is lifted from a pub crawl and reprinted in Touchstone.

[greymore]

[Underground River]

Earthward, you are a true bard! Awesome! I like the part where I am being sacrificed even though it is terrifying.
GD

[Saki]