While fantasy remains one of the great escapes from the somnambulistic haze we live in (And will, of course, remain the sole focus of Tommy Atkins), I have noticed a somewhat disturbing trend in that the Republic seems to be burning to ash. This has concerned me greatly; and after a whisky-tinged visitation by the […]
Read More From the Desk of Grey Brother: Introducing The Dunce’s DictionaryAs predicted, once the Porkish Queen was dead (or at least plummeting towards some bottomless dimension of eternal torment), the Pigmen’s one advantage, that of the hive mind, was taken from them. Better still, it seemed that the enslaved knights had been freed, and were fighting the towering piggy warriors with shovels and picks; even […]
Read More Chapter Twenty-Eight; EpilogueThe outward appearance of decadence, royalty, and any sort of regal dignity was immediately dispelled when Petka got his first sight- and scent- of what lay before him. Now, granted, this was the first time he had actually set foot inside an otherworldly, mist-veiled kingdom’s throne room, but when it came to castles and royal […]
Read More The Crown of Fools, Chapter Twenty-SevenSomething startled Petka as he and Raksha worked their way up towards the castle on the ill-cared for cobblestone streets. First, he noticed that the grass had grown tall and unruly between the shops, and further, that every shop had been changed to either a bakery, restaurant, confectionery, or looming house of torture and pain. […]
Read More The Crown of Fools, Chapter Twenty-SixOnce the sky-bridge was crossed, everything for the deception was set up– and quite expertly too, if one were to ask Anais. In fact, Anais, Finnen, and the group’s weapons were hidden inside the impossibly enormous and elegantly designed cake– occasionally the cake would shake and swear, but a light kick from Petka set them […]
Read More The Crown of Fools, Chapter Twenty-FiveAside from the sign, there was, etched in a stone tablet (resembling much those Moses had carried down from the mountains) a series of “commandments”: Though shalt oink in joy, ‘pon seeing thy Queen Though shalt e’er obey the elder swine Though shalt bring offering of bacons and hams (why exactly a pig would eat […]
Read More The Crown of Fools, Chapter Twenty-FourUpon waking, Finnen’s eyes were somewhat bloodshot as the whales in his dream would never heed his cries to “Give it a rest already!” This inn was not what the strange book presented by Creighton and held in duplicate by Chaim (who also had bloodshot eyes- impressive, seeing as he was a spirit, and therefore […]
Read More The Crown of Fools, Chapter Twenty-ThreeThere was no easing into this battle, as if one were to ease into the cold ocean on holiday. There was no hesitant first shot or swing, nor did both sides line up parallel and eye each other with a mixture of awe and respect. The battle started with all the complexity and tact of […]
Read More The Crown of Fools, Chapter Twenty-TwoFinnen and Fawcett, both experienced outdoorsmen, dressed the unicorn very quickly while Chaim sat in the torch-lit bar and studied a very old book in one of the rooms in the inn above the pub. And despite the fact that it was always dusk- always sundown- a cooler wind started to blow, as if (maddeningly), […]
Read More The Crown of Fools, Chapter TwentyChapter Nineteen As it turned out, and much to Petka’s surprise, unicorns were (as promised) real and plentiful, resembling majestic white horses with a shimmering mane and silvery tail, and indeed (as the legends had said), had a twisting horn protruding from their skull– golden in color and undoubtedly magical. “You like them, Fawcett? Take […]
Read More The Crown of Fools, Chapter Nineteen
