Just So Long As It Works #Blog Battle : March – Perfect

Posted on 19th Mar 2024 by deteremineddespitewp

Thinking on Perfection

King Horris of Melenbach had sired four sons Morris, Borris, Norris and Dorris, in that order. On hearing the allotted name of her youngest son Queen Calphenia took holy orders in the remotest Sanctuarium possible. It was a perfect way out.

Morris considered perfection in one art was essential to an heir, his being Song. He climbed to the top of the Great Mount Grandpon which was the natural border with the kingdom of Peylanebach and from there planned to sing loudly songs and impress Princess Wendalyn, daughter of King Handsell of Peylanebach. His rationale not perfect. Nor his balance. On leaning back, taking his first deep breath, fell off. But yodelled on the way down. A reasonably perfect end.

Borris being oafish thought he could raid Peylanebach, carry off Wendalyn, and force her into marriage, thus assure his right to both kingdoms. On the second day of his incursion an arrow pierced his heart. Many, including his father felt there was a perfection to this demise. Handsell who had nephews similar in temperament to Borris, understood. No more was said on the subject.

Dorris had a dour outlook on life, albeit with a certain plausible perspective. Not waiting for full manhood, he donned false facial hair of perfect design, practiced a gruff voice to perfection, styled him Burt Bungdover and took employment on the large barge Marge, eventually to rise to the rank of Master Bargesman. And would work hard eventually owning ten barges. None disagreed for him it was a perfect life.

Norris was a quiet fellow but knowing full well the nature of his brothers Morris and Borris had prepared for the worst while hoping for the best. When The King unexpectedly succumbed to a boating accident during a perfect storm on Lake Frosbee, Norris accepted things.

Thus, with careful disposition and foresight took his place upon the carved to perfectly carved Oak Throne of Precision.

Amongst the many issues Norris faced one was what to do with the estates belonging to his parents and brothers, The matter, as was normal for the times was held in Chancery At His Majesty Completion. This was a perfectly reasonable option when a king was very busy or getting used to the job but could not go on too long for no one of any class in the realm liked a king having too much land of his own. He had a kingdom for Frib’s sake. Norris was quite aware of this, particularly as the whole came to about one-eighth of the size of the entire kingdom, a small nation if lumped together. The matter had to be attended to.

Norris was obliged to refer to The College of Purpose whose members were selected from Bishops of the Church, Philosophers of the Universities, Judges of the Judiciary and High Clerkes of the Administration. Appointees renowned for individual tendencies to pedantry. They gathered at irregular intervals to muse on matters no one else cared about. This change delighted them. They would have to consult books of lore both secular, religious and of pre-sidence, and maps.

The business would take some time.

This gave Norris the opportunity for a perfectly respectable courtship for the hand of the Princess Wendalyn. She was not renowned as a beauty but possessed perfect disposition and intelligence. And she rather liked him. Everything went perfectly and they were married.

In Peylanebach Duke Urbit, cousin once removed yet not far enough took offense as he felt perfectly entitled to marry her. He raised a smallish rebellion with those nephews Turbit and Shurbit. Norris was given permission by his father to help out his father-in-law. The rebels were apprehended and slaughtered, justly.

Although Norris had expected The College to take some time, in the three years which had elapsed between the marriage negotiations and ceremonies promptly followed by the rebellion, he had expected some initial findings. There were none pending. His trusted most experienced lord Duke Ferrex was not surprised. Norris ordered the College to assemble.

When the representatives of each office appeared there seemed to be between the individual disciplines quarrelsomeness, exchanges of ill-tempered looks and undignified attempts to nudge each other aside.

          Three robust bishops were in the lead.
          ‘Your highness,’ intoned one as his colleagues made a credible blocking defence to the three Clerkes challenging as a wedge.
          ‘Good News,’ he continued ‘We have discerned after examination the total square mileage of the land is eight thousand, one hundred and twenty-eight, and that is a perfect number, being one which is the equal of the sum of its positive divisors,’
          ‘Thus hath the Good Lord God spoken, and indicated the lands should be administered by the Church,’ added another even though he was sorely pressed by a Clerke wielding an atlas.
          ‘The number your Highness ,’ objected the Clerke whose slight built was useful as he skipped aside of a bishop ‘Is quite deceptive, being reached by NOT taking into account the vertical acreage of the mountains and hills. Some locations have substantive populations whose basis of worship while not heretical does not conform with church doctrines. Thus, would not take well to ecclesiastical rule,’
          ‘There is no precedence for recourse to numbers,’ wheezed an ancient judge ‘Unless there had been due process of affirmation as to their validity,’
          Two other judges nodded. Everyone else ignored them.
          Norris tutted. This would be a poor impression unto his queen.
          The philosophers had constructed a triangle of tables, the most agile of the trio stood above the assemblage and hailed Norris.
          ‘Your Highness these mathematical objects are defined by their places in such structures, consequently having no intrinsic properties and cannot be seen as supportive of a theological claim on land,’
          One bishop sterner stuff and treading on the toes of his nearest clerkish opponent swung to address the elevated philosopher.
          ‘You ignore the precepts of Mathematical Realism which indicate numbers are not of human minds, and therefore must have a divine origin,’
          The Clerke whose toes had been trampled up looked up sullenly while massaging his foot.
          ‘Yet neither of your groups has come up with a workable system by which the lands may be made integral with adjacent secular parts of the kingdom. Or if it comes to it,’ he cast a glance to the still elevated philosopher ‘Just on what alternative basis the division can take place, particularly as at least one of your party has suggested there are no true divisions,’ he huffed ‘Might as well talk about The Ethereal,’
          ‘Hush!’ cried a bishop in alarm ‘Lest we bring forth evil forces,’
          ‘We should,’ meandered one of the judges ‘Refer to the Assizes at Jublebester in 726 over the case Duke Quynlabable’s sheep’s grazing rights,’
          There was no enthusiasm for such. The Judges sulked.
          Not fooled by the theatrical stumble of a Clerke into the philosophers’ tables sending their nominee tumbling, Norris glanced to his Captain of his Guard who gladly thumped the floor with the butt of his staff and demand order.
          Norris looked upon the representatives of The College with resignation.
          ‘No agreement has been reached then?’
          Feet shuffled and the pattern of the flooring studied.
          ‘You never previously gathered together?’ he asked.
          His Chancellor of The Palace whispered.
          ‘Each discipline kept to separate chambers and those were noisy enough,’
          ‘Perfect,’ Norris said with derision heavy enough to match his ceremonial armour, and dismissed the lot before he was tempted to emulate one great-grandfather who had been king and wont to solve intractable problems with a favoured axe named Prefect Solution.

          ‘My husband. My lord. My king. I ask you will all modest civility unto your most noble self. Put that fribbin’ book away before this furry slipper impacts with accuracy upon your nogging,’
          During a courtship a prince or king might have concerns if their seemingly demure, lady of retiring appearance would navigate a queen’s household of older more experienced women. Norris had been quick to realise that beneath the veneer was a wry, combative facet to Wendalyn ‘s character of intelligence and a deft selective irresistible coarse wit.
          ‘But my sweet wife,’ he tried not to sound wheedling ‘The question of the division of those estates is vexing me. Did you know eight thousand, one hundred and twenty-eight is indeed by a definition of mathematics a perfect number?’
          Un-lady like vocal exclamation of derision.
          ‘And’ she began in recitation manner ‘Perfection can be. That which is complete of required parts. OR. Is so good nothing of any kind could be better. OR that with hath attained it’s poi-puss,’
          ‘Anyway,’ she continued her drawl in a most common accent ‘You’ll not get any sense of them ol’ walnuts,’
          ‘You observed then from secret alcoves?’
          ‘Yes,’ tersely then her voice lowered now regally mocking tones ‘Discourses which are above the minds of women and thus are they forbidden(ed) to listen,’
          An anatomical vulgarity followed.
          Norris pursed his lips in thought, Wendalyn told him to desist, and the subsequent is none of our business.

Warmly Queen Wendalyn awoke, her lord of course was about business.

And she her own.

She met with the wife of one of Norris’ most trusted lords, Duke Ferrex, a journal bound in red leather passed between her and Duchess Ferrex.

          Three days on King Norris bade the entire College gather. Their continued truculence muted.
          ‘Learned sirs, any compromise?’
          There were mumblings which he translated as their pleas to the traditional spirit Varyous Xkusis.
          ‘I see,’ he said with an obvious glance to his Captain of the Guard ‘Therefore we shall take this number of eight thousand, one hundred and twenty-eight square miles which is some five million, two hundred plus acres and grant one to each person in our realm,’
          There were gasps, he continued.
          ‘Folk will sell unto other folk and combines will be formed, all will be done through the Judiciary and Administration,’ he glowered ‘Who will co-operate to the benefit of the realm,’
          He settled back on the perfectly carved Oak Throne of Precision and waited out the hub-bub.
          ‘Learned Sirs. It will attain Purpose,’

Despite reluctant murmurs his will would be done, for someone else was now watching from the gallery

‘I am so pleased,’ said Queen Wendalyn

There were anxious collegiate glances from King to Queen and back again. Then the assembly exited.

Swiftly. Very muted whispers to some one word might have been discerned.

‘Journal’

          ‘The College was most willing to please,’ Wendalyn said over dinner.
          ‘Your presence was a help my love,’ he raised a wine glass in a toast.
          A knowing pause between them.
          ‘Ten days’ time is the commemoration of the memorial to Morris,’ ventured Norris.
          ‘A poetic sort of accident. By chance I was nearby. It was a lovely yodel. And yet I heard no one mentioned that at his funeral. What a shame,’

‘Father did not consider it a suitable memory for a funeral,’

Another pause. Norris spoke with a sigh.

‘We shall have to do something for Borris, lesser of course. Mounted. He was shot straight through the heart. No archer was visible,’

‘It could have been worse. He could have been standing and struck lower,’

‘Did you know? That was a common opinion held at his funeral,’

Another pause. Wendalyn spoke.

‘Father in a recent letter, asked to me to repeat his thanks with that disruption. He maintains a hunt is a good bonding for a man with his son in law,’

‘We benefitted from the most excellent intelligence,’

‘Hmmm,’

Pause.

‘Duke Ferrex speaks highly of you my dear. I am glad you are making good associations at court,’

‘His wife is nice too,’

Sixty days later came the most perfect news. The Queen was with child.

The College of course sent its communal congratulations, then turned its attention to new designs for weathervanes.

At the Ferrex household, the duchess speaking first

‘Such good news. And such a perfectly sweet bright girl too,’

‘And he is perfectly suited to the role of king,’

Each thought of the red journal

‘So perfectly complimented,’ she said

‘Such is Fate?’ he replied not expecting an answer, only to say ‘And she is noteworthy on the archery course,’

‘Also interested in business, she has advised the king to invest in a new barge venture in the Kingdom of Urdle,’

‘What a perfectly good idea,’

Elsewhere Norris closed his own grey leather journal. A family history of many generations. Every so often, the right scion meeting the right girl at the right time.

Perfect.

A Place I go for Solace and Perception

Posted on 13th Jan 2024 by deteremineddespitewp

hubble-deep-field

A brief foreword. When it comes to the News in general, domestic, social, political, economic and the rest I have reached a tipping point. It is a dangerous one because I am now in the ‘It Is What It Is’ mindset. This arose not so much due to the events but the sheer volume of Humbug and Biased Commentary and Fashionable Hysteria displayed in the nations or communities not directly involved in the tragedies. A protest against the protests both pro- and anti- whoever. Not an apathy, more a bitter rejection of the narrow biased views taken by the more vocal groups. Hence my dissociation with The Left of politics- as much Humbug as the Right.

So where does one go to rest, recoup, relax and gain perceptions of The Whole? Where can one truly find strength in the ‘It Is What It Is’ response to these single view folk and their ignorance, a bit mean spirited as it is only meant to annoy them and dull my own pain of frustration at their lack of intention to bring peace and harmony to the world.

Me? I go out and beyond this world. Even further than the large enough distances of this one humble solar system, beyond the possibility of the Oort Cloud

Yea far beyond into the local vastness of our own one small galaxy

Into the realm of the Clusters and Super-Clusters of Galaxies. Formations whose size are measured in thousands upon thousands of light years. Whose stellar inhabitants can be numbered in the billions, holding mysteries and marvels we are most likely fated never to see because those distances and numbers are places are simply beyond our comprehensions.

This is where I drift, on the wings of the imagination fuelled by The What Might Be. The places of The Are but forever Beyond. Here, where somewhere between 200 billion and maybe 700 billion galaxies are or have been, in the Observable Universe, alone.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe

What a glorious concept is this Grandness one who very being makes all our efforts but the stuff which motes of dust are made of. A State of Existence against which the most extreme egotist is simply nothing, they wouldn’t even register on one of those say 200 billion galaxies, their rantings and ravings not even a background whisper. Nothing -Trump, Putin, Musk, billionaires playing games- you are nothing in the Scheme. Nor are Those howling Hate and Conflict. Not as rich as those of us who can stand back in awe as we fumble to grasp the concept of The Universe.

And those heroes who refused to be numbed and confounded by this Enormity, who daily in the realms of Astronomy and Cosmology keep seeking out the next answer or possibility, yet knowing for each answer or possibility they will come up will birth a host of others to be met with.

These glorious places which by their very size neutralise the need to argue philosophies and faiths concerning existence. For out there all is possible. And no one can take me to a physical location and say ‘See this is where your God should be. But is not’ . No more than I can do the opposite. The Universe a place where Faith and Flexibility can flourish beyond our narrow boundaries.

Always something new and wonderous, which places us as miniscule observers of but a fraction of the Totality. But by good grace, ever curious as what is there….

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-67950749

Always, always. Something new to learn

Don’t. (You know it makes sense) #Blog Battle : December – Provoke

Posted on 19th Dec 2023 by deteremineddespitewp

Don't

No one of at least reasonable intelligence, perception and maturity had expected the Earth to suddenly be confronted with a large space fleet. One day the cosmological community were going about their usual varied activities collecting and evaluating data, all methodical and calculated pace. The next day there were several times several million tons of advanced technology and construction quite getting in the way.

Quite sensible attempts were made to communicate. The responses were formal pronouncements to wait for further communication. These conveyed the tones of ‘Do As You Are Told’.

First were predictable attempts to hurl munitions at the fleet, these barely reached the commercial aircraft cruising height before they came back down in very, very tiny bits. The places from which the munitions had originated suffered similarly, the very, very tiny bits going upwards.

Brave aircrews taking to the skies, found out the complex electronics on their craft were doing very odd things and in general wisely ejected. which was as well since all the aircraft were being hauled by known forces skywards and beyond.

To occupy themselves while waiting for whatever and relieve the tension, scientists of various disciplines tried to figure out The How of what was going; governments having even less to do concentrated on the business of maintaining order, obstinately by arresting large amounts of folk they had been trying to think of reasons for, for some time.

And armies being told not to provoke the visitors shot at mobs whose members really should have stayed indoors.

Then the next day across all methods of communications came warnings that landfall arrival was imminent and not to do anything hostile. Many smaller but nonetheless big enough dark grey craft descended upon capitals, and places of strategic importance, discharging human-looking armed figures dressed in equally dark grey armoured uniforms and helmets. The few folk nearby who were fixated with that most virulent of Human diseases, Terminal Stupidity attempted to resist. They also ended up in tiny, tiny pieces going in various directions. Aside from them there was no damage done that day.

The message sternly and efficiently delivered was quite obvious.

Do not provoke.

Those who seemed to be commanders did actually ask, in those serious tones in many languages to be taken to ‘your leaders’.

The general feeling was not to laugh. Anyone who might was stifled by those other folk close at hand, gagged, tied up then dragged off somewhere out of sight and hearing.

Leaders all over the world were confronted by stern tall fellows of composed features, as was a meeting of the UN. The message was simple.

Earth was now part of The Disstarn’Gahn Empire. There would be a period of adjustment. In the meantime, the planet was allowed to go about its non-military business. The latter part of the announcement was unscored by all sites of nuclear weapons being subject to severe malfunctions of all equipment, including toilets which was probably the most effective action. All naval craft over five hundred tons having been surveyed by pale green beams began to leak and slowly sink on account of developing hundreds of incredibly tiny holes.

Financial Markets and Religions did not know what to make of it.

Normally the internet would have been alive with conspiracies, mostly fringe religious pronouncements, annoyingly smug folk saying ‘Toldja’ in various languages. Empty-headed folk tried to take and post up selfies of them standing next to the invaders.

Such was the impression by the invaders there were a relative few of these usual human displays of feeblemindedness. Those who resorted to social media commentary found their screens filled with static, then a brief message which read in many languages. ‘Stop it. NOW,’. The very small percentage who persisted suffered the same fate as their machines, that being reduced to tiny, tiny bits. The selfie folk were sprayed from small canisters with something which made them promptly sit down and stare vacantly for the count of one thousand.

Across the world, the message was reinforced.

Do not provoke.

After the passage of one hundred days, many folk previously in authority were replaced and rather relieved to be so since they were just told to go away. Others with no ambitions and feelings of self-importance, but generally efficient were, whether they liked it or not, were put in place instead, under the supervision of dry, humourless Disstarn’Gahn officials who handed out instructions and orders with a patient, slightly distant paternalistic air.

Armed forces were to be retained but generally as rescue and repair forces, and supply some assistance to local law enforcement to keep things in hand until the Disstarn’Gahn would turn up to finalise the problem.

There was about the planet a distinct feeling of anti-climax.

Mixed with relief.

And apprehension, for after all every record of human history was replete with either graphic or sub-textual themes of conquerors being beastly to the conquered at some stage. Occasionally somewhere, somewhen folk would notice very tiny, tiny bits of ‘stuff’ drifting down out of the sky to remind them.

Someone had provoked the Disstarn’Gahn.

During the aforementioned passage of one hundred days, the rules had begun to appear. To begin with, these took the original Do As You Are Told format. As the Disstarn’Gahn had obviously seized all computer information the vast majority of folk via their phones, laptops, games consoles, workplace machinery, TVs, and radios were kept updated. You went to work. You could have leisure time, but in a restrained and muted way. After a while, you were allowed social media just so long as the commentary related to restrained and muted activities. Personal travel could be undertaken on approved routes in a responsible manner at reduced speeds.

The substantial number of folk on Earth had become weary of violence by those of small minds, ill-earned fame, and riches by those of hysterical personalities but little talent, those equally hysterical who made up stories supported by other hysterics and some of talent who reckoned they had the right to play at being celestial. Therefore, as those within these categories gradually disappeared either into tiny, tiny bits or just were no longer there, the remainder adapted contently to a peaceful if somewhat mundane existence. For those whose previous life had been one of hunger, fear, and general uncertainty, Mundane was fine.

Even if there were rules.

Two thousand, four hundred and thirty-two to be exact. Not every rule applied to every person, but The Disstarn’Gahn were a folk who were precise for every occasion. And anyway, folk only suffered at first an admonishment, repeated transgressions of any rules after then resulted in gradually harsher admonishments, until…

Everyone was getting used to that.

Scientists, scholars, and generally serious mature folk of all sorts were naturally still curious. The former were told they would still have to find out things for themselves but were given advanced equipment, which suited them. Scholars were left to ponder on the Implications of this event. Serious Mature Folk with investigative minds conducted very discreet digging of facts. One which came to light early on was that a large number of the more disruptive unpleasant sorts were being taken off planet. That suited a lot of folk.

There was the Other Question though.

Why Us? What purpose did this invasion serve? For we were obviously isolated in galactic terms. Since The Disstarn’Gahn did not indulge in social interactions with Humanity, the matter was going to take some time.

Those Serious Mature Folk with investigative minds encouraged others idling in boredom from all manner of disciplines and professions. Discoveries were made by painstaking stealthy observations. Contacts and exchanges of information were conducted by the ancient art of paper and ink through messengers. The whole business was naturally complex and time-consuming. Years.

The first discovery was the fate of those taken off planet.

It was a known fact The Disstarn’Gahn did not have a sense of humour but were curious about this Human trait in its manifold forms. Thousands of malcontents were marshaled into the activity. The Disstarn’Gahn truly wanted to see if anyone did survive having an anvil dropped on their head or being blown up by human explosives. Other unfortunates were grouped in large armies dressed as clowns to crash at each other in vehicles honking horns, while more ran about striking opponents with mallets or emptying vast amounts of liquid on them; it was discovered only water was relatively safe. There was much slapping, kicking and eye-poking, and falling out of buildings. Since those involved suffered injuries, fatalities, or at least emotional distress and none appeared to enjoy participating in the activities. The experiments were abandoned, and the survivors sent off to work on farm planets. Salutary information indeed.

As is common with Research there were Unintended Consequences. Some by accident, others by the application of the Sideways Glance, seeming to look at one thing while actually watching for the true subject. The endeavour was to learn more of The Disstarn’Gahn. Something officially discouraged by the race. To do this many folk worked covertly on the invader’s language under the guise of varied subjects of Arts, Sciences and creating Commonalty of Human Languages (An obscure term that slipped all supervisory activities). Eventually, something of a surprise arose, so much so that several years elapsed while linguists of every culture were consulted on the findings.

The results were irrefutable. From whichever language you looked at the name of the conquerors, when finally translated into any local vernacular it came out as.

Funny.

The variations were numerous. From ‘The Great Wibble-Wobbles’ to the ‘Old Flabby Bottoms’ with divergences such as the very quirky ‘More Fish Please.’

This was a great problem for Humanity. Conquerors with superior weaponry, lacking a sense of humour and most likely irony would not take well to their subjects pointing and giggling. Chances of provocation were too high. Secret discourses took place and the more trustworthy of phlegmatic Humans who had been drafted into service were taken into confidence and the difficulty discussed.

One of Humanity’s few gifts was to conclude at some times ‘Yes. We see The Problem,’

After some musing as only administrators and defter sort of politicians were capable of, those of eloquent brevity, diplomatic astuteness, and not a little courage were tasked. A common strategy was reached.

Each in their own way sought audience with rulers. They explained Humanity was grateful but suffering Existentialist Dilemma. By good cultural fortune this concept was understood by The Disstarn’Gahn.

It was explained to them Humanity was worried as to the dignity of The Disstarn’Gahn. In researching for a common language and using that of The Disstarn’Gahn as a template the issue of ‘unfortunate translations’ of the race’s name had been uncovered. Some relatively insipid examples were selected such as ‘They Who Sniffle’ and ‘People Who Need Cushions’.

Since this was conducted with much supplication and apparent distress, The Disstarn’Gahn took the matter very seriously. For galactically speaking they had opponents equal in ability to contend with. It would not do for these to learn the most recent Disstarn’Gahn conquests thought conquerors to be entertaining. Stellar empires being possessed of great self-importance. Therefore, a simple solution should be adopted, one which would keep this private between the two planets.

Earth’s highest-ranking locals were told their progress, maturity, and obedience had been noted. Their status would be elevated to Favoured Beneficiaries, which meant Earth was effectively independent but cordoned off. Considering its relative remoteness this was easy.

Aside from a few small, discreet observation posts, there was no longer any evidence of The Disstarn’Gahn.

Those Humans who had full knowledge of the situation swore themselves to secrecy and all evidence of the matter was hidden in deep places. The Disstarn’Gahn pronouncement passed into history as a simple fact. And Earth into an era of global cooperation and acceptance of variety.

Leaving one unanswered question. Considered too provocative to pursue until stellar progress was made.

Why the heck had The Disstarn’Gahn come in the first place?

Bothered by Having to Think? We At Save-U-Tyme. Have The Answer!!!

Posted on 11th Nov 2023 by deteremineddespitewp

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Are you confused by all these folk who say they are Experts or Commentators, with degrees and what they claim to be experience? Taking up all that time you could use watching Reality TV, Car Adverts, Film Action Trailers, Adult Entertainment?

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Time Out From One Direction. Forge On In Another

Posted on 1st Nov 2023 by deteremineddespitewp

Foreword: Having spent a week thinking about this and two days writing, and re-writing (and probably still making grammatical errors) I am still uncertain as to the theme. It is either an announcement, a public apology for future shortcomings, or something of a rambling discourse on the motivations for writing up posts in the Blogverse (in the case of the latter there is a chance some readers who are also writers of fiction might say…’Oh yeah. Not just me then’).

Anyway…..

Several years ago when I started out on another launch of a writing career someone pointed me in the direction of Word Press as a way to get to know other writers and make my work known. That said, although there was a great deal of time, and keyboard tapping on the subject of writing, WP being a social site my attention was drawn to those bloggers whose interests were more social and above all political and before long, there I was also reading and engaging on the subject of politics. For a while there was a quite productive balance, switching and, using experiences and styles from one to the other. At times it was refreshing to do that.

After finishing up my trilogy

And having too much fun and not enough focus on marketing campaigns

Just for Marketing and Giggles – The Good Ol’ Hard Sell Approach.

Just for Marketing and Giggles II (The team conference)

It was good to have the political side to blogging while I threshed about trying to get a plot going for a second series.

But, ah me. One should always remember that Dynamics are prone to friction resulting in Wear & Tear.

Consider the following:

Brexit, MAGA, 2016 & 2020 US presidential Elections, the bungling of the UK Labour Party from 2015-2019, that year’s UK General Election, Boris Johnson as PM, That Vanity Project in the Whitehouse from 2016-2019, the slaughters around the world which gained no public interest, the Russian Invasion of Ukraine and inevitable Western Excuse Makers for The Kremlin, The Return of Cohesive Misogyny, The Proliferation of Racism, the Hypocrisy of the American Religious Right, Mass Killings, The Conspiracy Idiocy over Climate Change, its degenerate cousin claiming Covid was anything but a warning from Nature, The abuses of Social Media, Men displaying their Sexual Insecurities by ranting over a comedy film about a doll. And there were more. Then came the final tipping point with the sanctimonious outrage at Israel (while having been quite silent over the Rohingya genocide, the decades of abuses in Sudan, complete ignorance over the Sahel region (where’s that?) in Africa, and never mind about the Horn of Africa- and that was just a few the vast majority current paraderers seemed to not give a damn about- all the while playing into the hands of the extremist corrupt Israeli Government and its rent-a-thugs in some settler communities ).

I knew the tipping point was reached when writing up a series on the current round of Palestinian / Israeli conflict and coming to the essay on Palestine. The Palestinian case was quite easy to see and understand, the history had an inevitable tragic flow to it. My problem was, writing about something which if seen on social numerous folk would point to in approval (apart from the few comments on Hamas) while those very people know nothing of the Big Picture or the nuances of the whole Histories and to those I would yell at saying ‘Read the other two essays will you!’ (Not quite the exact words, but let’s try and be all Age-Friendly here). Set against the back drop of thousands of deaths and countless tales of misery and anguish my reaction is rather ugly and not justifiable, and also sweepingly judgemental. But I have always had to write with the restraint of a leash on an attack dog.

While, finally thanks to taking part in a BlogBattle every month, the fantasy book narrative was starting to coalesce with the characters; a time every writer of fictions hopes will happen….soon, and I felt the need to put my efforts there. A place I had some control over (not total control- ask any writer about trying to rein in Characters)

Therefore, to restrain my vitriolic anger (you really don’t want to know what gets stopped by the internal censor) and concentrate upon creative fiction I am stepping back from a smidge from the political side of the Blogverse..

Now that does not mean I’ll be leaving all the good friends I have made through following politics or not caring about the good fights that they fight on various fronts. Now I will be there reading your posts, putting a ‘Like’ but in the comments there will probably be a short statement of support or maybe an emoji. So you should know this is nothing personal, nor apathy breaking out. It’s just a re-adjustment. I will be there, backing up you in thought, but the words will be slender.

Vitriol can be useful in very small doses but when you are drinking it like coffee, it’s time to stay away. And waking up at 5am with a tirade of a post going through your brain about hypocrisy or intolerance, or the slaughter of innocents is not conducive to good health.

I am better disposed to spend my creative time writing fictions

I wonder how long this resolve will last?

Keep on keeping on all you bloggers I follow

Strive on with your own journeys

PS: The worse part of the writing of this being not knowing what inappropriate advert WP will include to mess up the narrative at some important juncture

Into Our 50th Year Together

Posted on 26th Oct 2023 by deteremineddespitewp

Autmn

26th October 1973** we made promises and vows to stay together and look after each other no matter what.

And here we are 26th October 2023. Quiet, with each other. For a myriad of reasons there will be no great celebrations, no gathering of a host. It never works out that way, because it’s not our style.

50 years and like a lot of folks out there, it’s not been an easy passage of those years. No cheerful advert style montage. Like most of us, a lot of hard work, upset, disappointment; maybe worse than some but less painful than a lot. And times we can look back on a laugh a bit, or remember with fondness.

We’re still together though, chugging along our own way one which was melded out of the trial and error, ups and downs. And if this was what it took for us to get here, together still, 50 years on; then let it be so. For we have no cheerful or wise recipe to hand out. We got here because we did. Because we could not imagine being without the other I guess and as writers we have pretty good and vivid imaginations.

So, 50 years on. In Love. But don’t ask for a definition of that either, for to do so is to spoil the feeling and distort the image with clumsy words. It simply is. 50 years it simply is. (and yes I know, technically it can be argued 50 years will have only passed on 26th October 2024- don’t care) .

In this world where the senseless and random acts of cruelty and greed strike without warning at numberless innocents, this one globally small, quiet event is one which makes does make sense and gives me Hope.

** (Of all the people to have just the right song too!)

Good News Came Visiting Us

Posted on 13th Oct 2023 by deteremineddespitewp

Sunrise

At 0.10 BST 13th October 2023 we became Great-Grandparents. Our eldest grandchild Kath gave birth to a baby girl. A reason why I didn’t mind being woken up between 3am & 4am. We decided when we first heard of Kath’s pregnancy we were keeping this ‘under wraps’ until the birth.

Like all babies, she is of course a sweetie to look at. Mum looks tired but very happy and proud (Sorry folks. No photos because I don’t have permission from parents – I didn’t ask at this time- didn’t seem the right thing).

Another Chapter, another alignment. My daughter Meg is now a grandmother, our daughter Clare becomes Great Aunt Clare and our son Great Uncle Ash. Kath’s brother will become Uncle Jim. They will all be very protective. And one year ago Kath’s partner Tom was going through life, single and with no commitments- The Suddenness of Life eh?

We are great-grand parents. Something a while ago we were actually discussing if such a thing would ever happen. Life eh?

Many of you as part of Life will have experienced similar joys and also painful losses. And yet. And yet…

And yet this post would not be truly genuine if this news was not against the backdrop of the thousands upon thousands of families around the world mourning the loss of their ‘little ones’ through many avoidable events. Going through anguish and pain most of us cannot comprehend. Think of them.

Meanwhile I am quietly happy. I am proud of my granddaughter Kath. I am also grateful to her for bringing some sunlight and hope back.

Cancel Culture? What’s New

Posted on 3rd Oct 2023 by deteremineddespitewp

The Overview (Supported by Cosmology and Theology)

This observation comes across me, from time to time, that folk just are not satisfied with the old tried and tested phrases and feel the need to make up new ones. This in turn gives an opportunity for other folk to become all excited about the new one. Some are for it, others are not. Both sides invoke the overused word ‘Freedom’. Then follows the process where another group of folk decide to comment on the new term and analyse it backwards, forwards and upside down. In consequence everyone involved piles in and the pitch becomes febrile. At this point social media’s version of nuclear fusion takes place and a ‘star’ is born ; the term becomes a new stellar object in the said social media firmament. The public looks and sees it is ‘good to use’, memes like planets are born out of the dust. The Cosmic analogy is completed. Let there be posts and tweets. And on the Seventh Day, no one rested for fear of being left out. (See- Religion and Science are always there and make such good partners).

So, this Cancel Culture.

Somebody says something controversial or outrageous in the public domain. Someone else takes offense which is likely to be justifiable or possibly understandable and says so in the public domain. The offended person gets a lot of support. The person who made the remark might default to ‘Freedom’ and will get their own support base, and the whole becomes the latest ‘thing’ on sections of social media with both sides hurling accusations in all directions, the meantime others will take neither side but make those analytical comments on ‘Cancel Culture’. You will note by now the particular cause is imitating the life cycle of the Social Media label under which it resides.

Those who object to the original remark will then adopt this notion that they will no longer have anything to do with the person who made the remark and urge others to do so in the secret hope that the originator becomes as social non-person who nobody will like or listen to. Human Nature being what it is they sometimes make such a noise that they raise the originator’s profile, who then becomes a lightining rod for those who have issues with the social / racial / political / theistic base of those who are objecting. This will be advantageous for the person who made the comments if their social media stock has been falling, and if they are very astute they will set up a You Tube ‘Thing’ or a podcast about how dangerous this Cancel Culture is to ‘Freedom’. They will then have achieved a social media prize of being from henceforth being associated with the ‘Cancel Culture’ debate. This does come with a certain dangerous caveat for some unhinged by too much social media to feel ‘Cancel’ should be taken to the extreme, ie removal of the deemed ‘offender’ from this mortal world.

It is often assumed this debate takes on a simple Right / Left dynamic. This would be incorrect. Treading into the social media minefield I would cite the case of J R Rowland (UK Labour Party Supporter; Anti-Brexit; Feminist, Target of the US Religious Right) who entered the transgender debate and started off a firestorm, which carries on these days in a multi-layered fury which divides already persecuted groups and only benefits homophobic misogynists. Comics with either Left leaning or anarchic-lite views also come into this region.

So Cancel Culture

Or Ostracism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ostracism

Or Boycott? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boycott

Or Shunning, or outlaw, or persona non grata, or non-person, or?

Truth be known, nothing new here folks. For many a year, decade, century and beyond aside from the big political, social or religious movements it’s been living under the banner of ‘Naah. I don’t like them. Wouldn’t go and see them /listen to them / read them, if you paid me’ and that would take on its own popular tone, and the rest of Life went on. It would be ugly where someone in a community broke that community’s own taboos or ways and would be cut out. Nothing new here folks. Humanity in action. Sometimes a question of taste, sometimes unpleasant, other times quirky.

I’ve been cancelling folk in my own personal world for years. Aside from my poor wife putting up with the ‘Not having that (bad word) speaking in my house’ outburst. I keep it mostly to myself. Why raise their profile any higher by making an issue out of my choice. Hands up those who embargo persons or subjects in a similar fashion……… Thought so.

In my socially dyspeptic view the term ‘Cancel Culture’ is simply nothing less than a marketing ploy to add zest to a cause or profile. For Pity’s Sake if Trump is using it as an excuse to snake-oil sell his hypocrisies under the guise of this ‘CC’ being a threat to Freedom (there’s that word again) then you know it’s a term which has no discernible new ethical value.

I therefore give this out to you as my own advice. If someone uses the term Cancel Culture as a concern or is critical of it as a threat to ‘Free Speech’ (another questionable term), ask yourself this…

‘What’s in it for them?’

Religion. Another Viewpoint (With Some Assistance From Quantum Mechanics & Cosmology)

Posted on 22nd Aug 2023 by deteremineddespitewp

WorldReligions-164107922-c72cce704d4d4521962046df4fa8ce3f

NB- This will also be very long, because the subject matter is not to be fitted into snappy one-liners. It will also be very short of quotes; the reason being quotes with the best will in the world (or especially, the worst will) are going to be selective to argue a case. I’m not going to fall back on that. This is simply my view, in my words…. ok, with a few links just to illustrate complexities in the science side. I leave it up to you to go seeking evidence one way or another.

This is another one I have started out (in my mind anyway)- several times. You may recall I earlier on this year felt obliged to voice a common challenge Christians face and I would venture to suggest folk of other faiths face at times:

One Christian’s Confession

Now my faith remains, yet so do those misgivings over some aspects taught to us. This post is not about those issues though. This is about the experience of being a Christian, in a Middle (Aside: Cosmically speaking there is no ‘The Middle’ as we know it. Only your own perspective from your local focal point. The Universe does not subscribe to our limited perceptions -that’s me mixing religious and scientific by the way). The Middle I wish to discuss is the one which sees; on one side an abrupt generalised dismissal of all theistic belief and believers and on the other side those who do evil and sheer opportunistic folly under the guise of theistic belief. In this case, of course, I repeat I use the Christian perspective, it would be crass to impose upon the beliefs of the moderates and liberals of other religions.

There is a particular reason why I gave a nod to ‘Quantum Mechanics’ and that relates to a concept known as The Waves -Particle Duality, in short having two properties at once. Have fun reading this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave%E2%80%93particle_duality

This has its parallels with the majority of Christians. The majority accept the status of The vastness of everything through the scientific lens while adhering to their faith. That actually takes some doing. As one Jesuit priest astronomer said ‘Every day I study the stars I am challenged’. After all we have a Bible to go on while on the other hand we have the wealth of knowledge which goes from the wonderous massive magnificence revealed by Cosmology down to the mind-stretching infinitely small domain of Quantum. And everything in between. One Being brought all that into existence and can also claim they know everyone one of us. How is that supposed to work?….Uh????

That’s where Faith, be it leaping or just standing still, comes in. Now the majority of us have A Faith. This comes in many forms. I ask you to pause and reflect on that. Think on what you hold true to be in a view, a relationship, something which is always there in your background. An aspect which appears to be steadfast irrespective of the rest of the world around you. Think deep on that. That’s a Faith. Faith transcending what seems to be the case of the world around you. It exists despite the apparent practicalities you have come to learned. It defies the logic you have been told is so. And sometimes part of its nature might be founding wanting. You’ll find a lot of that in Quantum. There, I am back with the Quantum-thing again. Research still continues there into the contradictions and the apparently evasive. Thus any Christian honest with themselves and the relationship with their Faith has met doubts, unsatisfactory conclusions, mysteries which remain just out of reach. Those do not stop us believing. The question is not finding ‘An Excuse’ or ‘A Platitude’ to answer the difficult issues. It’s a question of going In Deep, to use Faith as a foundation to work from. If you consider Science you will find in its history that answers or solutions were and still are being constantly overturned because they do not fit the model. Let’s look at that. From A Middle. Or using cosmological metaphors to be more analogous. From Planet Me.

The Bible – An average moderate Christian gets a bit queasy about parts of The Old Testament, particularly the opening books. These seem to support incest, genocide, suppression of women, the punishment of same-sex relationships, heroes and figureheads having multiple sexual relationships and that’s before we get to ‘A Jealous God’ who is likely to wipe you out with a snap of the fingers because of some minor misdemeanour. Such passages are leapt upon by intolerant Fundamentalists who gleefully announce their excesses of Hate, Intimidation and Violence are but carrying out the Word of God, while their atheistic opponents have the easy task to use the same as evidence that these beliefs are flawed. And the Moderates get lambasted by the Fundamentalists as not believers and going to Hell (Hoorah!) while Atheistic folk look aghast and say to any moderate ‘But how can you belief that?’

OK. If we look at the Four Gospels used in most branches of Christianity we have at the centre Jesus. Basically the Son of God sent into our world to take on Human form and ‘suffer death’ to cleanse us of all our sins, Past, Present and Future. The Four Gospels reflect four different reporters of the story. Nothing wrong with that, have you ever encountered an event in which ALL of the reports are exactly the same. Really? No you haven’t. Anyway here’s another old post of mine concerning that subject:

A Case for The Christian Easter Actually Happening

The New Testament Gospels have their own issues. Though nothing as useful to the Fundamentalists as they can take out of context from The Old Testament. However the two parts are linked and whereas there are some branches who will claim you don’t need the Old Testament because Jesus’s coming into the world did away with those books, unless you are looking to play a lazy Anti-Semitism card, that don’t work.

But here is the aspect which bears repeating over and over and over about the Old Testament. Firstly it is a collection of written accounts based on oral accounts, or in some cases religious interpretated historical events OR codes of practice based on the social circumstances of the time. Secondly the accounts are translation of one of several versions of local languages and dialects, using poetical imagery, which have been translated into Greek and then into Latin and then into English (at least once each)…so you can imagine that what was said, why and when, would likely be not perfectly translated and represented in today’s English (whatever version). In short you just don’t go looking for a bit underline it or dog ear your Bible and say ‘Ah-ha! That’s why I can be terrible to other people!’ Theologically speaking we’re also a flawed, cussed and arrogant lot, thinking we know best, which is why God has to keep telling us we’re wrong. Not that even Jesus’s supreme sacrifice on the Cross seems to have sluiced out our flaws. Thus quoting ‘bits’ to suit your intolerances- that is a load man, you are just bigoted- period! (Apologies to the late Michael Herr for plagiarism of ‘Despatches’- again)

Change of tack again. Just to personally slip back to The Science Area, Quantum and Cosmological (Very, very, very small and very, very, very big). There I was with three puzzling issues trying to comprehend Christianity, AND Quantum AND Cosmological, when gradually they all slide into place. All three cannot be taken at what seems to be a swift-throw away face vale, all need some study, pondering, and ‘gosh are they not hard to get around?’ There appear to be contradictions, there appear to be unfathomable, no one appears to agree on one set of rules, laws or perceptions, and so on. Thus it came to me, ‘this is how it is’. Nothing is straightforward, nothing can be encapsulated in a simple few words. All needs study and reflection. All is the same. For me the melding of the perspectives of Science and Religion became a most liberating time. Giving room to deal with the challenges, like trying to comprehend 150 billion galaxies (not stars) in the observable universe or getting your head around the Quantum concept that the nature of a particle being affected by it being observed OR your Belief and Faith being tested. No need to worry about The Purpose of Life. It just is.

One aspect of the Theistic and Atheistic conflict which strikes me as having an Irony the size of one of those Galaxies, is the way some arguments on both sides get hung up on the same piece of English estimate of what was originally said. Like somebody says the World was created in Seven Days because it says so in the English, and then somebody mocks the religion because of what a fundamentalist said, as if we all believed that. The Irony being that both sides are buying into the same statement. It’s like the fundamentalist has convinced the atheist, this is something to argue about. As if the description of the Time Scale matters. Or that everyone believes it or should believe it has only one direction and value, which by the way it doesn’t.

Navigating back to the Quantum and Cosmological aspects of this post, I would suggest brief visits to sensible academic sites, where you will encounter a variety of views, suggestions and ideas (avoid the calculations that’s like reading a theological treatise on The Holy Trinity concept- your mind will spin). There is a great deal out there based on Laws, however there are always differing the interpretations and the suggestions that those laws might not have actually always been quite that way. The whole is an ongoing process. Everything is ongoing. We are children learning, or being wilfully difficult.

From my own perspective I reason that if this is the case, and since God set the whole in motion, it follows a simple reasoning, that resorting to Confirmation Bias is not the satisfactory way to seek deeper into one’s faith and beliefs. Working on the basis that God is perfect we cannot be perfect because we are not God, therefore being flawed we have to work through a great deal of difficult and challenging questions. Just like Cosmologists or Quantum Physicists are involved with. There we are again; the two concepts are intertwined. Including those times when a person can get frustrated or discouraged by the immensity of the task. To emphasise once more, Nothing Can Be Neatly Fitted* Into How You Want It no matter how good or bad you wish to portray it. The closest you will get to that is with a Human Flawed Perception of ‘Things’

And there is that troublesome word again ‘Human’.

Religion– Used by more than a few as an excuse for war, or other acts of violence, or just intolerance. And wilful ignorance of or objection to progress, even when benefitting from that progress. Also, a handy tool for the hypocrite and the opportunist. Of course, I could put up a pretty good case against any form of secular governance on the same basis. There again let’s be neat about it and condemn Politics and Religions all in one go. Isn’t that *neat-ly fitted? What we need is good honest scientific progress?

Progress– We have much to be grateful for in the research into atomic and sub-atomic particles. Look how much Quantum has revealed:

Applications of quantum mechanics – Wikipedia

Mind you that research into the atom and its constituents did lead to the splitting of the atom and observing the release of energy….and sorry folks but…. Nuclear Weapons. That is the trouble make an advance and the next thing you know some Human grouping talks about weaponising it. Weaponry doesn’t spontaneously evolve, Humans develop it. You find a Human idea and you are going find a benefit and a mis-use, also several loud and long arguments about how to approach and utilise that idea. Humans, that’s the issue folks. Not just Religion then. Might as well throw Economics into the mix.

I could go on and on with more analogies, examples, arguments, discussion and so forth. Why, gee, I haven’t even got around to the question of The Historical Approach, nor the sometimes amusing, sometimes hysterical lengths both sides of the divide will go to support their point. Both using out of context statements, hurtful language and demonstrating Intolerance and quite a bit of Ignorance in pursuit of that good old Confirmation Bias. Don’t try and drag me or several millions others into either side of your squabble. We’re waiting to sort it out with God, as far as we are concerned, that is where The Last Word is. And there are those for the record who in addition to being professional scientists are theists too. It’s all a question of perspective

Basically limited thinking in a Universe about 14 billions years old and possibly 90+ billions light years…..errr…big? While at the other end of the scale particles which don’t do as we might think they should. Basically, arrogance in trying to claim we know the mind of the Being that brought the Whole into existence….Apparently only in one language, to a selected few, of one race or creed….Yeah like that’s going to resonate through the Universe, which God created.

Try this:

Tolerance

Respect

Compassion

Co-operation

You can even add on a few positives if you want. How and why you believe doesn’t matter to me as long as you are trying to stick with those….Not easy. WE can agree of that. Yes?

Now it would not be such a post without a part set aside for some impassioned commentary. So, as parting words, for those who do not visit my site, will most likely not read this. For everyone else this is what I have to say to them in that unlikely event they arrive and stridently tell me I am wrong.

Do not tell me that it is the Will of God and that Jesus Christ died on the Cross so that you could persecute others because they don’t fit your ideas of gender, are the wrong colour, because they were forced into medical choices for situations you did nothing to help with, because they seek out Our Lord God along different paths. Don’t you dare. I renounce you as Christians.

And …Over to the other side. Do not tell me that to follow my Faith is somehow dangerous to society, and I am to be shunned for my beliefs, that I am wrong, because quite frankly you know nothing about me and all you are doing is profiling, just like any other narrow minded hypocrite. The other side of the coin. I renounce you too. And don’t try and tell me it is all a delusion because you cannot take me to the place in the Universe and categorically say ‘Look this is where God should be, and there is nothing,’. You may believe it, but you cannot tell me I am wrong for believing otherwise. And sorry some guys but some schools of Logic haven’t got a place in this debate. This is a Science and Faith zone. Your Latin quotes won’t cut it here.

OK, for the rest of you guys who read my posts. Read and questions and poke holes if you find them. I know you all and respect your concerns and questions.

Also I confess to a smidge of mischief, mixing Religion, Quantum Physics and Cosmology into one post. But, I’m one of those (not the first) who just could not resist it. It had to be done. They cannot be avoided.

No Shortage of Crises. Nor Folk To Suffer In The Solving #Blog Battle : August -Sacrifice

Posted on 16th Aug 2023 by deteremineddespitewp

Sacrifice

It wasn’t part of the mission but being so close by he had to take a detour. Once more pay his respects and see this time if any of the ghosts wanted to talk over old times.

LifeGuard Fileman Trex once more looks upon the ruins of Parledach. Cities that suffered prolonged sieges with the expected sackings did not come back quickly. And Parledach had been a very bad one. Just one in three of The LifeGuard Company of Engineers had come out, Captain had died with guts torn open, and veteran Sergeant Ferred had finally broke, and slit his own throat. Only one of his friends had come out, the laconic ‘Cheerful Chye’ and then.

Then they’d been given a ‘Community Mission’ one of those they did for villagers and all small towns to prove The LifeGuard could be nice and helpful. Repairing a bridge. What could be easier? Only Chye had slipped on a plank giving way and had plunged into the fast-flowing river. Lost. He’d survived Parledach dammit. He was helping folk. Where was the justice in that? Sacrificed for being good.

They finished the work, but after that last loss what was left of Company no longer had any morale to give and its various troopers were disbanded to other units. He had been not so much an engineer, more a trooper who defended engineers about their work. Another one sent to fill up a gap. He did the work for three of his then ten years. Killing, saving, surviving. He was useful in any place where the LifeGuard worked.

And ended up at an Outpost a relatively quiet posting, with its Hounds file, those who scouted, and did things to make sure the area the Outpost covered remained, relatively quiet. Maybe some of the folk on the receiving end didn’t deserve what was meted out, maybe they could have been made to see the errors of their ways, but as every trooper knew in keeping the stability of The Empire, small sacrifices had to be made, or taken, or something like that. After all, if you didn’t there’d been another Parledach.

Dismounted he crouched on the grass and looked out over the jagged gap, the place where they had finally blown down the main doors and let the imperial army swarm in. A city to be sacked. The LifeGuard units did not stay when that started, they were ordered out. Not their problem anymore. Anyway, all units were worn down from their specialist tasks. They had paid their dues. LifeGuard were normally like thin blades in the night. Not to be used as blunt instruments. Whatever imperial general or noble on the ground who had thought the sacrifices were worth it, well a long-serving trooper knew LifeGuard command would have attended to him, its own way. When lent out to the Imperial its troopers were not to squandered.

Only the memories drifted in. The ghosts still didn’t seem inclined to be wanting to talk. Well, he wasn’t about to disturb their rest.

‘Sleep well,’ he began and spoke each name, faces still clear in his memories.

One set of recollections led to another. A short while after joining Outpost Dorigen, who should ride in with a whole pack horse’s worth of equipment but Medician Beritt. The blonde haired ‘suddie’ trooper Beritt who had been with them at that damn town. She who had dragged men back to trenches, patched and sewn them, saved some. When she had arrived at the Outpost, she was lean and long-staring, but after a year in the friendly neighbourhood, being sent to work her healing skills for locals and delighting a few girls, she had softened. Getting recompense, he reckoned for her own costs. All LifeGuard paid those out. Some forgot they could get recompense, only the paying out seemed to satisfy them. They went down The Long Road, they never came back until Death coming a’calling brought them rest, at least it was hoped it did.

At that outpost, all was settling down quite well, when something involving The Astatheia or Ethereal or Stommigheid, call it what you will came up. Hounds went off with Beritt in tow. Things went into a Second and Third Hell’s worth of chaos in a town called Prendaelyn where they were chasing down a culprit just as some pirates raided. The Hounds should have all been crushed by a falling building but someone or something using that Astatheia made it slow down and they just got buried in a cellar. Sergeant Erzns and Trooper Norvan were invalided out to hobble around the bastion, Castle Drygnest. Trex always reckoned that hurt Erzns a bit, the man was made for riding out and far. Dangerous ending. That place had a wide share of sergeants and filemen not suited for The Outside anymore, ending up drinking their spare time away, or jumping off the battlements into the sea.

From there it had gone peculiar like you couldn’t rid yourself of that Astatheia, every mission involved some trace of it, and Beritt with those other two girls always turning up. With the strangest tales around them.

Always with a quirky funny twist in them though.

Scratching his stubble, he let slip a soft laugh of reminiscence. You had to hold those good times very close, particularly when you were riding solo on despatch duties. He never liked working alone. You knew where you were with a file, good or bad, it was a family, replacing the one long gone from years of duty. But he had been so good at surviving, it got noticed. Veteran good at staying alive, ideal for getting papers to and from places, at a pace.

The trouble with that was there were folk who wanted to know what those papers were, who had no business knowing, and there were others who didn’t want the papers to get where they were going. Some could go crazy if they thought too much about where those papers might end up, if that was the place they were supposed to end up?

That’s why troopers like him were chosen, you got a sense for these things, knowing whether the person you were supposed to hand them over to was actually that person. Maybe you had to be a kind of crazy to be able to think that way. Maybe

‘You always were a sly one Trex,’

And there he was, as doleful looking as ever but still with the hint of understanding how things were. His thick-set body and features still intact.

‘Cheerful Chye’ Trex said, surprised, not frightened, glad. ‘You finally got here,’

‘Yeah. Washed up in a stream full of reeds. Wasn’t sure about what was what until I realised, I wasn’t breathing. So had to be a ghost. It’s difficult y’know? Trying to get direction when you’re dead. There’s lots on this side wandering, but Parledach? Well, that’s a place I was bound to get to. And you all shining with The Ethereal?’

Up until then the conversation had been sort of easy for Trex to follow. But him with The Astatheia? What the scraith was that all about?

‘Ethereal? Is that any different from Astatheia? Is that where you come from these days?’

‘Couldn’t tell you that Trex. We’ve not got any old fellah with a beard halfway down his chest and an inclination to talk at length,’

Trex looked at his hands. He remembered that dark girl with Beritt, her hands were supposed to glow red and blue at times. His weren’t. He was floundering here.

‘I didn’t touch any of the stuff,’ he complained ‘I didn’t get drenched in it, like some do,’

‘You don’t get all-seeing, all-hearing just because you are a ghost Trex. No, I don’t know anything about that. Only I don’t get what you’d call rest. That’s all. Seems to be a trooper’s fate,’

Trex pressed on trying to make sense.

‘I’ve been here three times in the last five years. Nothing like this has happened before. What’s all this about Chye? Have you got some sort of message from,’ his voice took on an ironic tone ‘The Other Side,’

Chye smiled always a wry, crooked thing.

‘Yeah. Deliver your despatch and get back here. I’ll be waiting,’

‘Aww, scraith,’

As if delivering a despatch under strained situations was not bad enough, now he was holding discourses with a ghost, who had once been a friend they’d shared a lot with and was now being mysterious.

Trex rode off, in a foul mood. He reckoned that was better than being troubled. Troubled got you distracted. Foul put an edge on your senses.

He reached the appointed location. A reasonably sized village on a market day. He walked in leading his horse, riding made you too good a target. He was approached by a fellow driving a cart. The horse shied; the drover swore at him blaming his beast for scaring his. He swore back. In the sort of daily altercation of Anywhere, the despatch pouch was slipped into the hay. Trex and the drover went their separate ways grumbling about the other idiot. Trex visited the local tavern for a drink and a meal and sat with his back to the wall. He rode out, swigged peppermint for the indigestion always brought on by bad tavern food combined with the tension of such a delivery.

In the settling dusk of a late summer’s day, he stopped in an open place affording good all-around vision and rested. That village had smelt of ambush. Maybe it had fallen on the drover instead. He should worry? He’d done his bit, and anyway, there were ghosts in his life now.

‘I’m getting too old for this,’ he said, out loud for once.

‘Me too,’

Knife out, swinging around into a crouch, peering into the gloom Trex was confronted by a ridiculously young fellow. Ridiculous for agreeing and sounding like he meant it. And lying there, hands knitted together, like he had nothing better to do.

‘Fileman Trex? It is. Isn’t it? I’m Trooper Wailsteg,’

‘Talk informative and clear trooper,’

‘That knife has seen some work I bet. Anyway, been keeping watch. Not for that despatch. Not my concern. It’s about you stopping off at Parledach and ghosts,’ Wailsteg sighed, bitterly ‘So they sent me out of my cosy Outpost. My Captain thinks the orders were just to keep an eye on you despatching and report back. Y’know how it goes,’

‘I used to,’ Trex said. That face might be young, but those eyes had age crammed into them too fast ‘Talk on trooper,’

Wailsteg eased up from his prone position into seating, hands now clasped about his legs, he rocked slightly.

‘It’s the Ethereal or whatever you want to call it. Stuff has been going on for the past five or six years like it’s leaking out. Apparently, it’s affecting folk more than usual, some say choosing. Folks at Castle Drygnest have been watching. What with ghosts an’ all. You’ve been noticed Fileman. Drygnest wants you for its own, like me and a few dozen others of course,’

‘You’re not making much sense there Trooper. You’re good at the soft approach, but your explaining needs work,’

The boy’s face hardened.

‘That’s because I know scraith all as much as you’re likely to know it the next year or so. They, whoever they are want you to be triple layer. Ordinary trooper, courier,’ he spread his hands ‘And this. You met ghosts. Go and talk to ghosts. Find out what they have to say and report back. NO, I don’t know to who. Gotta go now. Make up a report to my Captain,’

He slipped away.

Trex was bone tired but did not sleep. The world was coming at him from all directions.

In the morning he would ride back to Parledach. Talk to ghosts. They had things for him to do, and so would the LifeGuard.

And experience taught him, he could not get out of any of it.

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