From alt.pub.dragons-inn Wed May 31 07:32:59 1995 Xref: netcom.com alt.pub.dragons-inn:8473 Path: netcom.com!csus.edu!csulb.edu!info.ucla.edu!library.ucla.edu!europa.chnt.gtegsc.com!howland.reston.ans.net!news.sprintlink.net!news.cdsnet.net!news From: Bones McCoy Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Subject: [LATOF]- Chapter 4 Date: 31 May 1995 01:23:11 GMT Organization: CDSNet. Lines: 85 Message-ID: <3qggdv$jsv@news.cdsnet.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: ts1.cdsnet.net Chapter 4- Obadias soon found that he did, in fact, take to the sea very well. He learned many things about sailing and navigations. Most of which he never cared for, and never thought of again. But some of the things he learned from Gelrich were quite useful. One night, while on shift, his step-father came up from within the ship, obviously not sleeping well. He went over the Obadias and sat down. Obadias looked over and smiled at Gelrich. "Son, do you know what those are?" Gelrich pointed to the night sky, and the shiny stars up in the heavens. "Why yes sir... I mean father, they're stars of course." Obadias still hadn't gotten past the fact that he was now in the presence of his sole realitive. "Ok. Now do you know, on a ship, what they are used for?" Obadias didn't quite know what his father was getting at but he answered just as well. "For navigation I suppose. But I don't see why? We have the channel lights, and no one goes out of sight of them." "True." Answered the old man sagely. He nodded his head, almost comically wagging that great beard of his about. "But do you know what they really are used for?" Obadias shrugged. "Dreams. Men, and women, have used those little balls of light for inspiration, goals and dreams. That is how we got to this planet. A group of great men and women decided that they were sick of where they were, and changed their fate forever. But we still look up at those stars as a means of hope." Gelrich stopped for a moment, still looking at the stars. Then he looked over at Obadias who was staring at his father with awe inspiring eyes. "Do you understand what that means? How important a dream really is?" Obadias just sat there a moment, thinking about the speech Gelrich had just given him. It was scary. Even confusing. What did his father mean by 'a group of great men and women decided that they were sick of where they were and changed their fate forever.'? But that was not the question Gelrich had pressed. He asked how important did Obadias know a dream really was. Well, thought Obadias, I never thought dreams that important. Nor realistic. But he didn't have time to ponder philisophics, he sensed his father becoming more and more anxious. "Yes father... yes I do." And that was the last of the odd peculiarities amongst many that Obadias had come to know about his father that would happen for the rest of the trip. It took them six days to get out of the Bay. But after that it was just, "South and around the corner." as an old sailor once said. In that time, they had to make at least a dozen stops to pick up supplies. Some of the stops the Mardella made, Obadias had know idea why they stopped. Some were right out in the middle of no-where. But as they rounded the southern tip of the Penninsula of Galli, nearing the dreaded harbor, they stopped less and less often. Obadias had heard strange rumors about ships being burned in the night with their crew still aboard. Evidently, some of this gossip was true, because Gelrich still kept his melancholic mood, with much vigor and respite. Obadias tried to remain as calm as possible about the still swamping situation he was in. Sometimes he sat in his quarters wondering just exactly had happened. Since most of the time of his imprisonment he was only half awake to witness his trial and sentence. Beyond that he became a bit blurry up until his father had come and 'collected' him. Now, he began to ponder how it was possible for his father to, own a boat, take him almost five-hundred kilometers to a place he had never been, and recieve guardian-ship over him without even a word of opposition from his former family. It was on one of these very days that Obadias was pondering the meaning of his exsistance when he heard the ship give a terrible moan and shake heavily from bow to stern. Obadias was knocked out of his cot, and fell to the floor with an alarming crash. He pulled on his trousers and raced up the stairs to the deck. What he saw was somthing, that he never forgot. A ship, a very large one, flying Gallien colors was very rudely docked on there port side. It was pouring out soldiers that were scrambling accross the decks undoubtly looking for him. But what struck him as most astonishing was his uncle, sitting where he had been caught unawares in shackles directly behind a rather large, beared man, who was scowling at him. ********************************************************************** I preparing a short, and sweet rendition of the history of the land I call Choji. So that when I review terms such as 'The Choji' and 'Galli' and 'Choji' you'll know that one is a group of people, another is a city, and another is a town, province, AND a city *whew*. Trust me it's a lot easier once you see it in black and white :) -Bones P.S.- Thanks for the encouragment and critiquing. I truly am new at this and I'm trying to make it better all of the time.