Preludes
Sarah rolls over groggily as she awakens to realize where she is. She glances left and right in an effort to ensure herself that the nightmare of last night was just that, finding herself alone in the middle of an open field still struggling to come to grips with what she thinks she saw last night. “Crap!” Sarah breaths under her breath then she hears something that really makes her jumpy.
A deep baritone voice rings out from behind her, “About time you woke up sweetie.” Sarah turns her head to look toward the edge of the clearing and stares at the eyes of a handsome and rugged young man that is not wearing a shirt while out in this cool morning air – ooh those pecks! drool. Sarah stands and starts to walking toward this unassuming young man with the allure of looking innocent and with what she hopes is a beautiful smile on her face but her ankle has other plans and as she steps toward her newest infatuation she ends up falling right into the arms of the swift and deft moving young man. – Hmm he was closer than I thought to be able to catch me in those strong arms.
Just then Sarah goes stiff with fear as she watches four other non-shirt wearing young men emerge out of the bushes behind the one who spoke, these four do not appear to be as handsome and are very hairy with slightly protruding jaws and noses.
Before Sarah can think to say anything, the young man scoops her into a strong embrace and shouts, “I, Zachariah, claim this prey by the right of the hunt. Any who oppose my right, speak now or forever be silent!” Crap now what did I get myself into? – Zachariah glares at his companions who cower from his fierce gaze. Then he turns his smiling face toward Sarah who only hears a now familiar voice booming from the opposite side of the clearing.
“Thee would beg to differ with thou as thou hath no authority over the young-ling!” Victoria’s voice booms like drums.
“Crap! Not her again.” Sarah cries as Victoria proudly strides in from the far edge of the clearing.
“Do you know this wench?” Zachariah questions Sarah as he signals his four companions to intercept the lone intruder.
“Yes, she killed two men last night and is now obviously following me to get rid of any witnesses.” Sarah replies.
“Sarah Grove, child, thee is protecting thou, even from thou’s own actions. Do not make thee kill thou’s new friends like the had to dispatch those two vampires last night.” Victoria calmly states as if it were an everyday event to kill two vampires.
“Ha, one lone wench against the five of us. I say we will roast great meat and feast on the bones of this she-devil.” One of Zachariah’s companions boasts as the four of them come around Sarah and Zachariah to advance toward Victoria’s position while they change into their wolf-hybrid forms. One of them even starts running in an attempt to get at Victoria before the rest.
“Foolish puppies, thou sees a woman, frail and soft, but thee is neither. For thou doth face The Weapon of NOJ. And, thee commands thou to release Sarah Grove or perish by these hands feet, elbows, knees, etc., etc., etc., …” Victoria growls
Zachariah pantomimes being scared, “NOJ, did you say NOJ? Damn now why did not you say something sooner?” Then he moves away from Sarah as he roars, “Now!” and his companions all move swiftly to attack Victoria as he continues his saunter forward convinced of an easy kill.
Sarah tries to move toward the fine muscular backside of Zachariah only to be reminded by her ankle that it will still not hold her weight – Crap! Crap! Crap! Sarah realizes this as she tumbles into the tall grass and the sounds of battle erupts from across the clearing.
The first werewolf charging toward Victoria is attempting a bull-rush maneuver essentially trying to force her back into he trunk of an ancient tree directly behind her. However Victoria is expecting and ready for such a maneuver, so She lowers herself in a crouch grabbing his fore-legs then with a quick spin causes him to lose his balance and easily launch him upside-down into the very trunk of the ancient tree that he was trying to smash Victoria into. Victoria then moves swiftly to him and places a flurry of blows that land all over his body as he sinks to the ground dazed and confused.
The next werewolf approaches with much more caution after witnessing his comrade so easily dealt with hence he has less enthusiasm and confidence. This gives Victoria enough time to setup for his eventual attack and she is well prepared for such an easy one-on-one fight. As he reaches her she surprises him with a reverse-spinning-heal-kick to the side of his head ending with a loud cracking sound and knocking him out cold. She watches him drop to the ground as the sound reverberates across the glade.
The next two werewolves, after taking a backward glance at their now fuming young-werewolf-lord, give Victoria an even more cautious approach. Upon arrival they try to implement the strategy of surround and confuse. As they draw near Victoria confidently smiles and says, “Yes, puppies, thou does face a Paladin of NOJ. So, do come and feel the full power of the wrath of NOJ!” as she looks over their shoulders at a familiar face rising from the tall grass across the clearing. She then reaches up appearing to fiddle with a pendant that looks like a miniature bastard-sword, complete with a ruby in its hilt. Its powers activate and enhance her ability to harm those she attacks with her weapons of close combat.
Victoria has honed her abilities as a monk and is well know throughout the monasteries of NOJ in her home realm of Sram. This however is not Sram so her abilities come at a shocking surprise to anyone who she faces. For instance her ability to close her eyes and know where multiple opponents are and what actions they are about to take while keeping her outside reaction to a bare minimum giving nothing away as to what she is about to do. Concentrating on her foes she swiftly defeats both opponents in quick succession and does not even appear to have broken a sweat.
She turns her full attention to the young-werewolf-lord that is now fuming mad at watching his henchmen being so easily dispatched. She taunts him, “Come puppy, let The Weapon of NOJ give you a lesson in humility. I hear its good for the soul. Like you really have one.” As Zachariah arrives he removes his designer eel-skin gloves and Ray-Ban sun glasses – I will take out my anger on this wench and return to my latest bride, or play-toy.
Sarah’s head rises above the tall grass to watch that oh so hot backside of whatever his name is saunter toward Victoria who seems to be uttering something while touching her necklace’s pendant then shouting defiant claims against these cute young men – Just what is a Paladin of NOJ? She attempts to take a tentative step toward Victoria as her ankle again fails her and yet again she winds up tumbling back into the tall grass – these dam grass stains will never come out of this dress.
To Sarah’s amazement as she rises again the fight has ended and so she regains her feet to watch Victoria stand triumphant as the cute men retreat into the woods away from them both – And she did not even get her hair messed up, it is so perfect still, while I stand here in a severely grass stained dress looking like a wreck that washed up on the shore after a freak storm at sea with this probably broken ankle swelling to the size of a freaking watermelon.
Just then Zachariah shouts from inside the woods, “I will see you dead for this affront.”
Crap! Crap! Crap! Just who is this crazy bimbo that seems to be following me. I have gotten myself into some crazy messes but this one takes the cake and ice-cream too!
Victoria moves toward Sarah with a petite sashay arrives at Sarah’s side while she is standing and staring in awe at the bimbo she says, “See, I told you what to do to get the attention of the boys.” And then winks at Sarah.
Crap! Crap! Crap! No, I will need a more profound explicative phrase than that for this crazy wench! Sarah turns to flee as her forgotten ankle gives out once again, but this time as she falls her dress also flies up to reveal her Barney the Dinosaur panties while she tumbles yet again into the tall grass — those stains will never come out.
Victoria rushes to Sarah and bends down while grabbing her damaged ankle then says, “This might feel weird, hell it probably sounds weird too, but please trust me. Sit still for just a few seconds.”
As Sarah is composing a response, besides thrusting her grass stained dress down to cover her exposed panties, Victoria says something she cannot understand, like in a foreign language, and immediately a sharp burning sensation races up her leg toward her knee causing an involuntary gasp to be released from between her lips. She watches as the swelling in her ankle deflates and her skin takes on a healthy natural tone and the pain stops almost like it was never there.
Crap! Crap! Crap!
Victoria stands to proffer a hand with a genuine heartfelt smile and urges Sarah to stand and test out her now fully healed ankle with not even a hint of a bruise. Sarah takes the proffered hand and once standing proceeds to stomp her foot to test her ankle then stares with open amazement at the woman standing before her. Unable to fit the past days’ activities into her version of reality. Then just as the thought of escape enters her mind Victoria clamps down on her shoulder with an iron grip surprising for someone her size and stature as she pleads, “Sarah Grove! Please, child do not flee from thee. Thee has already had a difficult enough time over the last four years just tracking you down across this North American land. Do not make thee’s mission to protect and guide thou even more difficult.”
“What? Just who? How? Why?” – Crap! Crap! Crap!
Chuckling, Victoria replies, “Dearest Sarah Grove, NOJ himself hath sent thee across the dimensions to this crazy and distant realm to find, protect, and guide thou as to thou’s destiny which thou will choose to pursue. Thee is to instruct thou in the affairs of powers which many mere mortals are not even able to comprehend exist, while others strive to destroy and deny such powers as those that hold the realms together.”
Sarah stares dumbfounded at Victoria for a minute then asks the one question she can think of to ask, “Just how do you know my last name is Grove? I have not used that name in over three years.”
Victoria smiles and gives Sarah a wink, “Child if thou’s parents had not died in that ‘accident’ thee would have been with thou for the last four years giving thou guidance such as thee has; however, other forces interfered, and thou ran away from thou’s assigned foster family before thee could arrive to extradite thou from them. Since then thou have led a merry chase across this land mass known as North America, thee arriving in time only to persuade others from pursuing thou for their own nefarious designs. If thou will accompany thee to the beast-less-carriage, a true wonder of this world, thee will attempt to guide thou as thee was tasked to perform.”
Sarah still confuses says, “I was not thinking about Joshua’s crotch, his buns of steel however.” Sarah blushes while continuing, “So, if I decide to listen to your fanciful story, you will have to start from the beginning as I am lost in this now weird world we live in.”
Victoria fills the air with a warm but husky laugh and with tears forming in her eyes pronounces, “Thou’s wit exceeds thee. Now attend thee for as this world is said to have begun with a big bang, so too does the beginning of the story of NOJ. As thou hath already lost four-years of study time thou’s attention needs to be alert and thee will attempt to be brief. But, stop thee if thou hast questions and thee will attempt to answer them.”
Sarah grins, “OK but kill the thee’s and thou’s they are making my head hurt.”