The Eternal Hunt of the Ephemeral

I thought I might as well put this very short story up here for all to read as I'm not sure what else to do with it. Think of it as a one of those free tidbits you get when dining out. Any responses will be, as always, welcome.

The Eternal Hunt of the Ephemeral

By Adam J. Shardlow

He shifted his body, turning from his bruised shoulder on to his back, intrigued as to what he might find.
A fire crackled someway off casting the surrounding trees into eldritch shadows that appeared to dance and spin in a parody of the plague dance. The flames gave off little heat but illuminated the face of the bearded man who nodded in his direction. He recognised the hunter and retuned a cadaver grin while secretly testing the bonds that held him captive. They held fast and his gaoler looked away.
A titter of manic laughter passed his sharp yellow teeth making the hunter scowl. The man was old and grizzled though he secretly knew that they had been born the same year. The slipping sands were taking their toll on his adversary as much as they were leaving him unmolested. He knew the hunter was tired, as soon as he fell asleep he would slip his knots and disappear quietly into the night to be born again, to love again, carouse again. He thought of his short sweet life, and laughed again.
He relaxed, conserving strength as the memories returned with a sudden jolt causing an expression of pleasure to pass across his delicate features. This was not how it was meant to end. His adventures had been too soon curtailed by this capture. He still had so much to do; his was a life that demanded to be lived. He blazed like star gas; a conflagration of deeds that he was not yet ready to renounce, they ached for action. The occasion of this existence had been but a fleeting punch into the world, the merry jig he had led his hunter a mere diversion still awaiting the main event.

He watched his captive with a quiet disdain from his seat by the fire. He felt old and exhausted but dared not close his eyes for fear the prisoner would once more disappear, a return to the chase that would drag on forever.
He had spent too much time on the road. This was but one of many winters he could remember, long dark expanses of frost bitten darkness, where the chill invaded his bones and refused to leave, the only accompanying sound the baying of the forever hungry wolf packs. After the shadow time the seasons seemed to merge, endless spring, summer and autumn flickered by, the tracks harder to follow but the journeying easier on body and soul. His prey always ahead of him, over the next mountain, in the next town, across the sea and desert where the winds blew eternally and the even the footsteps of the largest of creatures were wiped clean, the land both sterile and timeless. He had endured the eternal pursuit of this trickster but it had taken its toll both mentally and physically. He stroked his beard and wished for the timeless hunt to end.

Spanking comments

Well the writer's event with Alan Campbell was cancelled, so if you want to find out more about him you'll have to give his blog a go at http://anurbanfantasy.blogspot.com/index.html.

As the weather was atrocious we headed to the cinema to watch '28 Weeks Later', which was okay but personally not as good as the first movie. I'm sure the director was attempting to emulate the zombie horror movies of the early 60s that made reference to and commented on Vietnam. This film attempted to sum up America's war in Iraq in similar way, but came over as just a little bit hard handed. That said, great scenes of London being fire bombed. Lady H particularly liked seeing City Airport and the Docklands being levelled as she has had to spend so much time there with work.

Also went to see an The Curse of the Cat People from 1944, which was dreamy and strange and had some absolutely hilarious dialogue (that just wouldn't get past the pc brigade now), about a child being given a spanking for the first time.

Not many cats in it though.

Who watches the Watch Men?

I’ve just finished reading ‘Watchmen’. This is one of those comic books that I’ve been meaning to read for some time but I kept getting put off by the fact the industry considers it a mile stone, a totem of the adult comic book world. I was worried that I’d read it and not be able to work out what all the fuss has been about. I don’t like things being built up. The moment someone says this book, film, play is the best they have ever seen I know that I’m now going to be bitterly disappointed. They have taken away the magic of discovery for me, and a piece of work that I might have watched and thought of as good, now becomes simply okay.

The best pieces of work are those that I discover for myself. I can still remember the first time I sat in the cinema as saw a re-run of Cinema Paradiso, the first time I watched Casablanca on a wet Saturday afternoon, unaware that it was considered a masterpiece. The first time I read The Great Gatsby with its magical last lines and the first time I heard Gershwin accompanied by those great black and white scene’s of Woody Allen’s.

However I digress…

‘Watchmen’ is clever. It takes something of the infantile comic book staple ‘the masked hero’, and shows them with all their failings, hang-ups and personal problems. Too many hero’s, both on TV, in films and comics, seem to have few if any problems that would stop them from spending their days fighting crime, but what effect would this have on a person’s mental state. This, coupled with a super power, would turn these do gooders into gods, practically unstoppable and left to make snap decisions about what they considered right or wrong.

Another main issue is how society would cope with these heroes living among us. If we relied on these few heroes and then they fucked up, what would be the response? Would we place them above society’s normal values and concerns or would we ensure that they toed the line - that they conform to ‘normal’ society.

The book is slightly dated, rooted in the idea of the cold war and the east / west issue, but this distance helps to gain a perspective, though it would be interesting to see the book set in today’s celebrity, reality TV, ‘terrorist around ever corner’ obsessions.

Off out tonight to see a couple of authors (one of which is the writer of ‘Scar Night’) in discussion. Will report back soon with details.

Read this week: Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons
The Killing Kind by John Connolly

The cat, the gnome and the green man

Friends arrived from New Zealand last weekend. It was good to see them after nine months living in Scotland. They were doing a tour around Europe visiting friends and family and we were first on the list for ‘the cat’ and ‘Gnome’.

Whilst much drinking and merriment was had I tried to think of something for them to do that allow out livers to recover and finally decided on taking them to Rosslyn Chapel. I have wanted to visit Rosslyn for many years after reading about it and the number of ‘Green men’ it contained but had been put off to date because of the De Vinci Code tourists.


In typical Scottish weather we paid our fee and joined the others to examine the ornate Gothic interior, with its ‘Apprentice Pillar’ and gargoyles in abundance. The Templar history is a little over done, though the possible last resting place of the chalice is (quite rightly) barely hinted at. And the Green men are fabulous.

The rest of the weekend was spent in bars (five), restaurants (three) and the Royal Botanic Gardens.

Beltane

Beltane is a pagan festival that heralds the coming of summer and the warmer months. Its resonance is felt in many religions and something akin exists around the word, in one format in another.

I joined several thousand others atop the windy Calton Hill at this years Edinburgh celebration (one of the largest in Europe). Whilst most of the Pagans have been replaced with slightly tipsy students or those hanging on from a 60s acid trip, the colours, sights and smells of the festival were thrilling.

I feel I didn’t really get to experience the best of it, mainly because the crowds were too thick, but it was certainly something to add to the events list for next year.