The Book of the Emissaries: An Animism Short Fiction Anthology Read online

  ZEROS 2 HEROES MEDIA PRESENTS

  The Book of the Emissaries

  An Animism Short Fiction Anthology

  edited by Emily C. Skaftun

  & contributing editor Jordan Ellinger

  E-BOOK EDITION

  The Book of the Emissaries is entirely a work of fiction from the world of Animism: The Gods Lake and the authors’ imaginations; any similarity to actual persons, events, or situations is strictly coincidental.

  All rights reserved – no part of this work may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations in critical articles and reviews.

  •••

  © 2015 Zeros 2 Heroes Media

  •••

  e-book version 1.1

  Contents

  Introduction

  Thanks

  •••

  The Seven Thousand Year Chase – Part I • Jordan Ellinger

  Night Star • James Alan Gardner

  The Rise of Man • Sam Chandola

  The Trickster's Promise • J. Chris Lawrence

  Trickster Faces a Wetiko • Elizabeth LaPensée

  No One's Flame • Gama Martinez

  The Seven Thousand Year Chase – Part II • Jordan Ellinger

  The First Pyramid • Gama Martinez

  The Tamer of Horses • Tiffany John

  Of His Wondrous Guile Sing, O Muse • Stephen Kotowych

  Warrior Poet • Joshua Schwartzkopf

  The Ladder Trick • Nick Mamatas

  Sibling Rivalry • David Gorman

  The Logos • M H Toner

  The Last Words of Antonius Pius • David Ray

  The Unicorn's Lament • Cat Rambo

  Dark Destiny, Bright Lady • Dave Wolverton

  The Alchemist • Patrick Perkins

  If I Were a Betting Man • Geoffrey Thew

  Scroll of Ragnarok • Gama Martinez

  The Fox and the Bowman • Sebastien de Castell

  The Seven Thousand Year Chase – Part III • Jordan Ellinger

  The Trickster and the Bard • Gama Martinez

  First Song • Brennan Harvey

  Last Kisses • Steven Savile

  The Maiden of War • Tiffany John

  The First Farmer of Papua New Guinea • David Ray

  Heart of Ice • Elizabeth LaPensée

  Old Friends with the Old Bird • Elizabeth LaPensée

  A Hawk's Feather • Diane Catsburrow

  The Seven Thousand Year Chase – Part IV • Jordan Ellinger

  With the Fires Out • William Wood

  Bad Water • Kevin J. Anderson

  Wolf I Am • Ken Hoover

  To Be Remembered • Megan Grey

  Kudzu • Ian Christy

  One Small Step • Gama Martinez

  The Gaffle • M H Toner

  Instant Sunshine, Lingering Darkness • M H Toner

  The Trickster's Last Trick • Jordan Ellinger & Nis Bojin

  The Changing Face of Mars • Emily C. Skaftun

  •••

  About Animism: The Gods' Lake

  About Zeros 2 Heroes Media

  Introduction

  by Ken Scholes

  I love my job.

  Not only do I get to create stories of my own but sometimes I get a sneak peek into what other creative are up to. And long before I became a dealer, I was a Story junkie myself, so it’s a pretty fine day indeed when something like this anthology drops into my lap.

  Did I say anthology? Oh but wait. There’s more.

  It’s attached to... a cartoon. I know, I know, animated series sounds more grown up. But the word cartoon captures the spirit of it better because my first gander at Animism: The Gods’ Lake pulled me back instantly to Saturday morning, several decades behind me, leaping out of bed at 6 a.m. to follow the adventures of Tarzan, of Will and Holly Marshall, of Thundar the Barbarian and the Super Friends. And any weekday morning where Speed Racer, Derek Wildstar, or Marine Boy made their appearances. You see, my first servings of Story came to me through those cartoons long before I was reading. I arrived at the written word with an imagination that had already gotten fat on Story thanks to Saturday morning cartoons.

  So when my friend from Writers of the Future, Jordan Ellinger, asked if I’d be interested in taking a look at The Book of the Emissaries and possibly writing its introduction, I jumped at the opportunity.

  I was not disappointed and I don’t think you will be either.

  Animism: The Gods’ Lake debuted on Canada’s Aboriginal Peoples’ Television Network in 2012. To my knowledge, seven episodes were produced; I’ve seen six of them and am now a fan. What’s not to love? A young environmental activist working to stop the development of the forest surrounding the Gods’ Lake – Mel Ravensfall – discovers that their problem is much bigger than they ever imagined and that she is much more important in its solution than she ever realized. Mel and her friends set out to find the Trickster in the far north and learn what they can about her role as his chosen emissary and the ongoing conflict between the Trickster, the Mother, and Wetiko as they wrestle for control of the world.

  Voiced by Jewel Staite of Firefly fame, Mel is a well-formed character riddled with doubt, infused with hope, and driven by her desire to make the world right. I was ready to put on my parka and go with her after just a few episodes and immediately saw the potential in this series.

  Animism: The Gods’ Lake tells an engaging story set in a universe that is rich with mythology rooted in Aboriginal culture and history. It is a pantheon of three prime movers with Wetiko guiding the humans toward blind progress no matter the cost, the Mother offering the counterbalance of honoring nature as the foundation for life, and the Trickster bringing chaos to bear at every turn. Each god gets its turn while the other two work to regain control or wait for the ongoing cycle to bring around their own time. When we meet Mel, the Wetiko is in power, the Mother is resisting, and the Trickster is nowhere to be found. I suspect it’s been done before but this is the first time I’ve seen North American Aboriginal mythology featured so heavily in a fantasy series, and from what I can see, it’s particularly well served by the fact that Aboriginal writers are involved deeply in the project. The first season contains a complete story arc full of action, unfolding mystery, and forward movement, and it sets us up nicely for more down the road.

  If it had stopped here, it would’ve been brilliant enough. But the folks at Z2H Media had bigger and better plans. M.H. Toner and crew cooked up a nifty idea: What if the mythology of the television series was augmented, explored, and expanded through an anthology that brought together both established writers and amateurs to flesh out the rich backstory? A contest emerged, offering those who submitted the opportunity to add their own creativity to the mix, their own voice to the choir.

  Emily C. Skaftun and Jordan Ellinger were brought in to edit. Several writers – many who are alums and even judges for the Writers of the Future contest I myself won back in 2005 – were approached for stories that would anchor the book alongside stories written by the creatives involved in the series. Then, a contest was launched to identify more material – this produced by folks who had not previously seen their fiction published professionally. Winning stories and vignettes were selected by voting fans and then, at the end of it all, I was brought in to introduce it to you.

  I’m delighted to do so.

  You a
re holding now in your hands The Book of the Emissaries: An Animism Short Fiction Anthology. It may have fallen into your hands for lots of different reasons. Maybe you saw the show and loved it. Maybe you’d never heard of the show but you saw some of the names on the cover and knew you couldn’t go wrong. Or maybe it just looked interesting. No matter how you found this book, you’re in for something unusual, rich, and engaging. The book will make you crave the series. The series will make you crave the book. And for someone like me, who had heard of neither but had the opportunity to experience both at once, the book and the series combined will make you crave . . . well, more. Period.

  The Book of the Emissaries carries us across pre-history, through history, and into the future, observing through Story the unfolding conflict between the Mother, the Wetiko, and the Trickster as humanity rises, stumbles, falls, rises again, ever expanding. I found myself sweltering in ancient Egypt while watching the pyramids built, drinking and pondering with Odysseus, exploring story ideas with William Shakespeare, watching the fall of the Aztecs and the seeing the behind-the-scenes build-up to Troy’s conquest by way of wooden horse. The chronology is impressive, starting in prehistory and landing, eventually, on Mars somewhere in our not so distant future.

  Though each of the stories brings its own voice to bear, it is the final arrangement of those voices that gives The Book of the Emissaries its power. Skaftun and Ellinger perform editorial magic, blending and arranging a choral piece of Story that is intricate, beautiful, and rich.

  I recognized some of the names in the choir immediately: Kevin J. Anderson, David Farland, Cat Rambo, Steve Saville, Nick Mamatas, and James Allan Gardner, along with stories by editors Emily C. Skaftun and Jordan Ellinger, both skilled pros themselves. I’ve read their words before and knew what to expect. And when I saw familiar names from the credits of Animism: The Gods’ Lake I had a pretty good idea just how much resonance their voices would add. Elizabeth LaPensee, David Ray, M. H. Toner, Ian Christy, and Nis Bojin brought all of their expertise and experience working on the show to bear on fleshing out its backstory and mythology, complemented by the professional writers brought in. But the big surprise in The Book of the Emissaries are the thirteen contest winners. Their voices carry the tune through, blending well with the rest of the choices and introducing us to writers we will hopefully see more of in the future. It’s a long list with each doing their part, but there are several stand-outs on it: Brennan Harvey, Gama Martinez, Tiffany John, and Megan Grey.

  Immersing myself in those voices, into that world, over the last few weeks has me thinking in cycles of three. A group of creatives with a vision, a group of pro writers brought in to help craft part of that vision, and a group of new writers selected in a contest and given a chance to craft their own part in the mythos. The result is a lyrical, cohesive collection of stories of depth and breadth, rich in mythology and history, that works entirely on its own. You don’t have to see the series in order to appreciate the world it springs from, but see it if you can. Both book and series are greatly enhanced by each other.

  For a few weeks there, I was caught up in a world that moves slowly between the cycles. Chaos, nature, and human progress locked into a struggle that happens around us as Mother, Trickster and Wetiko each take their turns. I felt like a little kid, fresh to Story, as I moved between Mel’s adventures on the screen and the tales in this book you now hold. It did what Story is meant to do: It took me places I’d never been, showed me myself and the world I live in through the lens of metaphor, magic, and mythology.

  It reminded me why I write by reminding me of the power of Story. My need to hear it and to tell it. My opportunity to become what those Saturday morning cartoons – and later, books like this one – whispered to me I wanted to be when I grew up.

  Did I mention that I love my job?

  Keep reading and you’ll surely see why.

  Thanks

  The family behind Animism would like to offer our thanks to the many nations across Turtle Island whose stories contributed to the characters and adventures of the series. We recognize the strength of the people of these nations against annihilating forces that tried to wipe these stories from existence. It is because of the resilience of these people that their stories are alive today, and we were honoured to have them as the foundation that underpins Animism. We hope this collection will help build a bridge to new readers who will find much in common with the themes of strength and hope. Gilakasla.

  The Seven Thousand Year Chase – Part I

  by Jordan Ellinger

  If cleverness is the strongest muscle of a weak man, then I am the god of weak men. Though I am now called the Trickster, eons ago, in the time of strong men, I was Lugh, the Sky God. My people lived in Orkney, a frozen archipelago north of what is now Scotland.

  The islanders were simple fishermen when I found them, but over the years I showed them the secrets of stone. I taught them to shape tools, to plough the land, to hunt the elk, and to scrape barnacles from sea rocks. They soon adapted my gifts to raise up mighty herds of cattle and build the stone city of Brodgar to serve as their capital. Culture flourished and they developed dyes from ochre and clay and used them to create great works of art. Out of gratitude they named me Lugh, the Sky God, and at the centre of the city they built the Ness, a mighty cathedral without a roof, so they could gather at night and worship the starry sky. They painted it to glow like a bonfire at the sunset.

  The Elders amongst my people believed it was this glow that attracted the notice of the Great Conqueror.

  His name was Hox the Younger and he and his men had no home. They came from the south, following goat paths and falling upon villages like wolves. They devoured what food there was, and if it was not enough they ate the villagers themselves. They had no goal, no motive, no desire beyond acquiring power. They wrought mindless destruction and left only death in their wake.

  Or so it seemed.

  I knew Hox for what he was – a creature belonging to Wetiko, the god of change and destruction, who had crossed a thousand miles in search of me. All of the wars his men had fought had been in preparation for our meeting. The battle between our two peoples would determine which of us ruled the next age. Hox and his men were primitives, quite unlike my people. They were said to wear ponchos of uncured human skin that stunk of rot and dried blood, and bathe themselves in the fat of their fallen enemies. I did not want his kind to determine the path of the world and so I, the god of weak men, decided to flex my muscles.

  I have found that the simplest tricks are often the best. Hox would know me for who I was – the scent of power was, to Wetiko’s emissaries, like blood to wolves. I knew there would come a time when I would have to meet him face to face, so I needed a decoy, one that could walk and act like me if it became necessary to fool him.

  I sent men across the seas to mine copper and tin, metals that were little known to the people of Brodgar. When they returned, I spent a fortnight at the centre of the Ness inventing the art of smithing, and then using that art to forge my greatest creation. I laboured well into each night and finished when the moon shone directly overhead. A bronze mask I’d carved to resemble a stylized raven’s head sat on the altar at the heart of the Ness. As my final act in its creation, I blew on it to imbue it with my power.

  When it was done, I summoned my closest advisors to the cathedral. Penarddun was a tall reed of a man, who might have been made high priest purely because of his height. He wore a necklace of seashells and his bulging eyes peered at me through the tusks of the elephant seal skull he wore on his head.

  “I feel it watching me,” he said. He’d locked eyes with it and had to expend some effort to pull his gaze away.

  My power had granted a kind of life to the mask and I too could feel it looking back at me through its cold onyx eyes. The sensation was new to me and gave me a chill. It was like seeing one’s reflection in a lake and knowing that the reflection was a separate being and that it was staring back.
/>   Brennan, the herder, whose broad shoulders and squat build made him look comically short next to Penarddun’s lean height, snorted. Though my priest often spoke in a deferential tone, Brennan was a simpler man who wore cured sheepskin breeches and a heavy woollen coat thick enough to soften blows from an axe or blade. He could not grasp the idea of a god walking amongst men. He thought of me simply as an especially long-lived man, who could sometimes control the weather. “It’s a weapon, isn’t it? Something we can use against the Younger Men.”

  “It is not a weapon, herder,” I answered. “It’s a trick.”

  He scowled. “I don’t care if it’s a weapon or a trick. Let’s use it on the enemy.”

  Ina, who represented the village elders, stood nearby. She was less richly dressed than Brennan. Our herbalist, she smelled of the rich earth and loam poultices she used. Her fingers were stained yellow and dark blotches of mud and blood from dozens of past operations marred her dress. It was a point of pride to her that she never washed it. She claimed that if she did, those who’d died and left their blood there would be forgotten. “Why trick them at all?” she asked. “Use your power to smite them and be done with it.”

  My fourth and final advisor was neither the eldest, as was Ina, nor the richest like Brennan. Caratacus was a young man with a patchy beard who wore homespun clothing, with a few bits of bone and leather tied into his stringy red hair as jewellery. He represented the poor and, never having achieved anything in life beyond being likeable, seldom had anything useful to contribute. “What does it do?”

  “Shut up, mudhutter,” Brennan cursed.

  I ignored Brennan and spoke to the rest of the group. “Hox’s master is my brother, the dark god Wetiko. I can fool Hox, but if Wetiko walks with him, then we will need a more cunning trick. To that end, I have stolen a trick from the Cyclosa spider and created a decoy. Using the mask, I will temporarily gift my powers and abilities to another. With luck, Wetiko will seek out the decoy and I will then be free to discover his weakness and attack him when he least expects it.”