Warriors Absence

I am been away from my post. I am easily distracted like a cat with a ball, then a piece of lint...what's that noise outside, is there food in the bowl...where did that ball go? This causes me to let my guard down or to not report in.

I need to report in. I want you to know the story of my fight to protect the village. I want you to know about the monster and all of his tricks becuase I suspect he lurks outside of your village too. I must admit I want hero's songs and rewards of fame. I cannot deny the desire for the validation of fortune.

So where have I been? Nowhere. I have been out drinking by the fire. I have enjoyed the rambling conversation of my neighbors. Listened to the tales that stretch like a woodland path with it's abrupt turns, dead-ends and meaningless stretches of the same blade of grass and weed. I have plowed the Baron's fields while my garden has become overrun with neglect. The meager pay has been good but unsatisfying. My cottage remains warm and my bed soft thanks to the Baron. I have slept, dreamed and ignored my duties as a warrior.

But I must protect the village. Even if my story is unrecorded the village must exist in peace and thrive. A summers day will sit around it's borders again. It's people will contribute to the glory of the kingdom. This is my mission. This is my pledge to you.

October 20, 2010

And so the second night begins. There is little carnage. The villagers believe this night was uninterrupted. They won't know what happened until they rise tomorrow morning. Even then some might not notice. From his perch the monster observes the village with an almost a parental eye. Making sure nothing is out of place other than what he did . He bids them sweet dreams ...tonight. No rocks will be thrown, no torches lit. The smells of their slumber wash over the battlement of his encampment. Their vulnerability pleases him. They will always be available to him and the monster finds this reassuring. The villagers find this unnerving. Theirs is a fitful sleep. Contrary to the monster cynical desires there are no sweet dreams here.

October 19,2010

I am walking strong on the first night of another beginning. Determination and experience are my finest weapons right now. I walk prepared for the long haul. Reminding myself am a warrior, engineer, practitioner and participant.

This is an experiment to deconstruct the monster. The villagers have already gathered. Their torches light the distant dark. The monster sees them and they are insignificant like fireflies. His rampage is done for now. The rubble is theirs to remove. The work of rebuilding is mine. The monster is not intimidated or impressed. He is simply spent like the edge of night before dawn. He is not threatened because he knows the sun will set and darkness will rise again. His power lies in this repetition and the dark. To him the villagers are weak. He sees them but he is invisible to them. They wrestle in his wake as he passing among them. They feel the disruption around them; the air move. They are frightened as they witness the tossed dreams, and splintered hiding places.