The Awen: Book One of the Sacred Oak Series (Chapter 3, Part 1)

If you haven't read the synopsis, beginning prophesy, the prologue and Chapters 1 and 2, you may want to scroll down and read it first to have context for what you are about to partake of. The following is Chapter Three Part One, which I'm releasing for feedback. I hope you enjoy ~ Rebecca

 

CHAPTER THREE:  The Crescent of Power

The boys burst out of the classroom ready to carry out the plan that had been percolating during lessons with such abandon that they were like two overgrown Labrador puppies bumbling their way towards a body of water--tumbling and tangling their legs as they thundered down the long hallway from their classroom and then down the back flight of stairs to the exit closest to the woods. Before they fought their way out the door, they both grabbed the bundles they had left leaning in the corner before school.

Ian’s mom poked her head out of the room where she was ironing and urged the boys to “slow down” and “mind the pictures on the wall.” Before she could stop them though, the boys were outside and had already transformed into Bran the Blessed and the great King Arthur.

“To the fort! Defend the fort!” King Arthur, who looked a lot like Reese, shouted.

“Argh!” added Bran the Blessed, who happened to look just like Ian.

The boys zipped into the woods full throttle, knowing that they had a whole arsenal of weapons awaiting them. They had piles of rocks for launching, crudely hand-carved swords and other make-shift weaponry collected in the previous weeks. Their prized possessions were, however, carefully wrapped for safety and hanging over their shoulders.

During lessons, Mr. McBee had taught them to make what had quickly become their prized possessions: Welsh longbows, formed in the way of their ancestors that had lived hundreds and hundreds of years before them. The boys learned to fashion the weapons from Yew trees they had personally chosen, cut down and soaked until the wood was limber enough to be shaped. The final touch to their artistic masterpiece was whittled knots on the face of their bows that interlocked in never-ending symmetry--a Celtic knot.

The woods grew thicker and the area slightly darker as the two boys trudged deeper into it. The boys took a wide, arcing path to their destination, avoiding a bizarre clearing in the woods of Winter Haven that some of the townsfolk called the “Ring of Power.” Also known as the “Crescent of Power,” the area was a semicircle surrounded by huge oak trees. According to the endless stories told by locals about the mysterious area, the center was flat and covered in a matt of thick grass.

“It’s too bad we aren’t allowed to go play in there,” Ian said with jagged breath from running.

“My dad would tan both our hides if he ever found out you were thinking that. You know that,” Reese snorted.

“I’m just saying…” Ian started.

“And besides, you should know better than anyone that it’s haunted. Your own ancestor Ifan Jones disappeared from that very spot never to be seen again,” Reese interrupted with a note of authority.

“No one knows for sure, Reese. Trees and open spaces can’t be haunted,” spat Ian, not liking how his friend recited the local folklore as though it were a proven fact.

The two boys stopped running to catch their breath and walked toward their fort a bit further into the woods.

“You know the stories--everyone does. All the druids, bards and other folks with all sorts of magical powers and the supernatural creatures of the wooded world met here because it was a special place of power. It’s connected to the otherworld,” Reese sniffed and raised his chin in typical Williams fashion, as though he knew exactly what he was talking about and had been there firsthand.

Ian decided that Reese never knew when enough was enough or how close he was to getting a good nose bleed from Bran the Blessed, who was feeling more like “Bran the Bullied.”

 Next time... to be continued Chapter 3 Part 2.

Rebecca Dunning is an award winning writer who lives in beautiful Colorado with her husband and three children. She not only loves to read and write but also enjoys hiking, climbing mountains 14,000 feet or higher, traveling the world and about anything else out-of-doors. Rebecca is the author of two children's books:The Real-Life Princess and Beetle Hunter.

The Awen: Book One of the Sacred Oak Series (Chapter 2)

If you haven't read the synopsis, beginning prophesy, the prologue and part 1 and 2 of Chapter One, you will want to scroll down and read it first to have context for what you are about to partake of. The following is the rest of Chapter One, which I'm releasing for feedback. I hope you enjoy ~ Rebecca

Without further aduie, Chapter Two:

CHAPTER TWO: Mr. McBeetle

     Reese and Ian sat at their desks in the school area and eyed Mr. McBeetle. IIIIIIan didn’t mind being inside at this particular moment because it was a gloomy and rainy afternoon. It was his favorite type of weather, for it meant wool sweaters and hot cocoa in front of the fire. It also meant a better chance at tomorrow being a clear, warm day to rummage through the woods.

     Now Mr. McBeetle wasn’t his tutor’s real name, as one could probably guess, but due to his appearance he was so-called in whispered voices among the household servants. His real name was, of course, Mr. McBee, but Ian had never seen a human being so resemble a bug. Mr. McBeetle was short and squatty with tiny limbs that attached to his rather rotund center. His round, thick head sat on his shoulders in a way that took away any view of a neck and it protruded slightly forward. If that were not enough, his thick coke-bottle glasses magnified his eyes so most people blinked and sort of looked away when speaking to him.

 “Just like a bug,” they all said.

     Mr. McBee was shy and unsocial in front of adults. Most people in town thought him to be a rather awkward fellow. However when he was teaching history or science he could make even the dullest, most uninterested student pay attention.

     To top off his awkwardness, the small amount of hair remaining on his head tended to stick up and wiggle around whenever he became excited about a particular subject he was teaching. Ian and Reese had to squelch their giggles as his “antennae” would sway this way and that as he related stories to them of the World War or his many trips to India as a young lad. Nothing got him going like his favorite topic, though: the Welsh Celts. The Welsh Celts were Iron Age warriors from the very area the boys called home.

     Reese was taught in the old ways like his ancestors at Winter Haven. Tutors filed in and out of Winter Haven, instructing him in everything from reading, math, and social studies to grammar, etiquette and physical education. In the eyes of the Williamses, though, perhaps the most important class he was taught was Welsh, the native language of their people.

     Ian, however, attended public classes during the regular school year but was forced by his parents to continue his studies part-time in the summer at the manor. “It’s a wonderful gift offered by Mrs. Williams and you should be grateful,” was what he was told each summer as he was hunted down from the woods and practically hog-tied to be brought to the schooling area. But like when he had to be rounded up for bath time when he was younger, he always had a great time once he got there.

     Ian was completely fascinated by the rich, colorful stories of the ancient Celts, the ancestors of the United Kingdom and Ireland who were not only brave warriors but who were also known for their love of various sciences, of nature and of the arts. Mr. McBee spun tales so real that Ian and Reese were sure they themselves had been a part of the ageless stories fighting as brave warriors, their names lifted in songs played on lyres by bards, as heroes worthy to be remembered through the centuries. The two boys would listen wild-eyed to their teacher--who looked especially insect-like when telling these stories-- and memorize the details of battle and song so that they could reenact them later.

     After this particular class, when the rain was taking a short break, the boys got an idea that they thought was exceptionally brilliant. But first--on their way out of the classroom--they each took the special handmade treat Mr. McBee always placed for them on two small silver trays. Made from an archaic recipe handed down in Mr. McBee’s family, it was the single sweetest and most delicious thing the boys had ever tasted.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Next time, Chapter 3 

Rebecca Dunning is an award winning writer who lives in beautiful Colorado with her husband and three children. She not only loves to read and write but also enjoys hiking, climbing mountains 14,000 feet or higher, traveling the world and about anything else out-of-doors. Rebecca is the author of two children's books:The Real-Life Princess and Beetle Hunter.

Team Abolition Races to End Slavery

This is an article I wrote for 24-7prayer. Enjoy! ~ Rebecca

L-R: Clint Dunning, Jennifer Manly and Adam Manly

I thought I knew what the three members of Team Abolition, our grass roots team dedicated to raising funds for Just24 and awareness about human trafficking, were heading into when they took on the Tough Mudder on June 26^th, but I was in for a few surprises. Namely that the race was not 8 but 10 miles long, there were 26 instead of 24 obstacles and that I would be spending the next 3+ hours on different means of transportation and forging around the mountainside on foot to stay ahead of them.

Clint and Adam finishing "kiss the mud"

The challenge which took place in Vail, Colorado is dubbed, “Iron Man meets Burning Man” by the founder, a Brit, named Will Dean. The first thought as you enter the teaming masses is that you have stumbled upon a sub culture that is one part brilliant business plan and one part fantastical community. Costumes are a plenty, including chicken suits, men in speedos and bow ties… well you get the picture. It’s not all fun and games though as the Tough Mudder has donated over 1.3 million to the Wounded Warrior Project and its British counterpart.

I was happy to see that despite the madness, Will Dean, had noticed our abolitionist jerseys and the 24-7prayer.com website on them before he met me for our interview and was planning to check it out.  After discussing the event and human trafficking, I raced towards the starting lines were they were about to, according to Dean, “test toughness, fitness, strength, stamina, and mental grit all in one place and all in one day.”

Adam and Jen on "Mount Everest"

Every twenty minutes a group of 500 hundred competitors surged down the hill and began the grueling challenges, most which included rank mud and ice cold water. One such event required navigating through chest high water that was only 36 degrees and swimming under barrels. After such events, hypothermia blankets were handed out and many quit the race. 

 

I was able to locate Clint Dunning and Adam Manly & Jennifer Manly, members of Team Abolition, in the mountains at 8 obstacles including a mud crawl under 8 inch high barb wire and a full body plunge into ice water. I also caught up with them as they navigated a cargo net across a river before heading up a black diamond ski slope with nets.

Clint getting zapped with live wires

At the end of the day, Team Abolition defied not only icy fire hoses but the 30% drop out statistic with all three of them finishing together by running through dangling live wires pulsing with 10,000 volts. I think being a spectator and hanging with the crowds was probably more fun than being in the race; however I’ve been coerced along with about 10 others to join in the next event. I’d better start training now.

Thanks for reading

~Rebecca

The Awen: Book One of the Sacred Oak Series (Part 2 of Chapter 1)

If you haven't read the synopsis, beginning prophesy, the prologue and part 1 of Chapter One, you will want to scroll down and read it first to have context for what you are about to partake of. The following is the rest of Chapter One, which I'm releasing for feedback. Next week... Chapter Two. I hope you enjoy ~ Rebecca

I give you: Part Two of Chapter One of The Awen: Book One of the Sacred Oak Series

   Ian needed a moment to collect his thoughts and face what he thought might be an unusually quiet dinner. He continued to meander away from where Reese could see him; out past the stables to the knoll where the two boys used to play “King of the Hill” when they were younger. At the top he stood and gazed at the panoramic view, taking a moment to remember how thankful he was for the life his parents worked so hard to give him.

     The estate really was fantastic. With sixty acres of sprawling grounds, horse stables, ornate fountains, lush gardens, streams, woods and a relatively short walk to the coast there was no end to the imaginative and troublesome things a boy could get himself into. In many ways it was a delicious way for the son of a servant to grow up. When Ian was prowling the grounds without Reese tagging alongside of him to keep him in his place he didn’t even remember his father’s low standing. 

     As he stood looking over the grounds, Ian knew one thing for sure: he would go out and make his own way in life someday, and though he was relatively gracious towards Reese now, he knew he would never spend the best years of his life trimming hedges and cleaning muck out of the fountains for one Reese Williams. He supposed he knew this from one of his dreams, but he did not know how it would all work out quite yet.

***

     Ian stood on the knoll for several moments feeling a little sorry for himself if he were honest and a bit lonely. With summer approaching he knew that Libby would soon be coming, as she always did, and normally the thought of her coming would have brightened his mood, but if his dreams about her were indeed true, things would not be as happy as last summer. 

     Ian had always enjoyed the fact that Libby was half-American and half-Welsh and happened to be Reese’s first cousin on his father’s side. It leveled the playing field a bit that Reese was related to a “commoner,” as the Williamses often snipped when they thought the children weren’t listening. Libby’s mom, Catherine, a former Williams herself, had married a middle-class American twelve years ago after meeting him while she was traveling to New York. It had been quite the scandal in the family and Ian loved that it gave him Libby--an ally against “Lord Reese” when he needed one and a girl to pester when he didn’t. It’s the little things in life, he thought to himself.

     Libby was eleven years old and half-decent as far as girls go, though Ian would never admit it. In fact, it always brought him and Reese great pleasure to torment her when she spent her summer holidays in her mother’s homeland. It was the only time when Reese treated Ian as almost an equal. Libby, you could say, almost brought them together.

The Awen: Book One of the Sacred Oak Series (Part 1 of Chapter 1)

If you haven't read the synopsis, beginning prophesy and prologue you will want to scroll down and read it first to have context for what you are about to partake of. The following is part one of Chapter One, which I'm releasing for feedback. Next week... the rest of Chapter Two. I hope you enjoy ~ Rebecca

Aber, Wales @ sunset

Chapter One: Winter Haven Manor  

     Ian stood at the water’s edge engaged in two of his favorite boyhood pastimes: skipping rocks and spending one-on-one time with his father. He and his dad gazed out at Cardigan Bay from the coastal town of Aberystwyth, Wales--known as Aber to locals--where he had been born. The pair stood in comfortable silence, the kind of quiet that said they were enjoying each other’s company so much that talk wasn’t necessary. Simply watching the boats was so entertaining there just wasn’t much need for words.

Aber's warf area

     Besides the occasional pointing out of something interesting and the one-word response or a quip to brag about how many times their rocks skated across the water before plunking below the surface, there was only the toot of boat horns and the distant rumbling of the men’s voices who were working the docks. Talking was for when the two of them walked over to the pier and haggled over the cost of the catch of the day. Talking took place as they made the thirty or so minute stroll back to their home on the estate known as Winter Haven Manor.

Aber sunset

     On days like this being together and soaking up the late spring sun when his dad wasn’t working helped all of life make sense to Ian. And so, every Saturday things were set straight again. They were just father and son and nothing else mattered in the world. There was no Winter Haven and he was no longer the son of a lifelong servant to it. In fact, he was able to step away from the fact that for generation after generation his family had been servants of Haven.  He was Ian Jones, a twelve-year-old young man, and he had hopes and, well, dreams. A lot of dreams, in fact, and those were what he was thinking about today.

     When the sun began to slip down on the horizon and the raging waves began coming in from the Irish Sea, Peter Jones, Ian’s father, disturbed his thoughts with what he said every Saturday, “Well, son, I bet your mom is beginning to wonder where we’re at. What do you say we get her some fresh fish for dinner?”

     Ian had always nodded and said, “Yep, she’d like that,” and fell into step beside his dad. Today, though, he looked for one last rock and heaved it as hard as he could over the water before joining his dad. He really wanted to tell his father about his vivid dreams but was at a loss for how to begin. Ian decided to start off slowly by asking his dad a few questions before he shared his news.

     “Dad, tell me what it was like away from Haven,” Ian started.

     “What do you want to know?” his dad said as he looked away from the bay towards the hills and distant mountains.

     “Why did you leave and why did you choose to move back and become the estates’ caretaker?”

     Silence reigned for a moment, and then with a big intake of breath, Peter Jones began to share: “I suppose I left because I’d met and married your mother and wanted to set out to be my own man.  I guess it was bad luck mostly that brought me back--not that I’m not thankful for the job. You know your grandfather fell ill about the time you were born and wasn’t able to do all his duties caring for the grounds any longer. With you being born, your mom and I needed money to keep a roof over our heads and food on the table. There just wasn’t work anywhere else and, well, I knew the job inside and out from being raised here. At first I began working the estate from our little place across town until my dad passed, and then they offered your mom the nanny job caring for Reese and us the cottage to live in. We just couldn’t turn it down.”

Ian’s dad pursed his lips and a stony expression took over his face. Ian sensed that his dad was reliving a distant memory.

“It seems like there’s no way to stay away from this place. Everyone says it’s our destiny,“ his father added quietly.

A castle in Aber

With that, Ian knew the mood had changed by the now uncomfortable silence between them. He thought that asking questions would open a door for him to share with his father about the last several months, but he decided that now was definitely not the time. They reached the fish market, got what they wanted and then made forced small talk all the way home. 

Shoot, Ian thought, I’ll have to find another way.

As they neared their small thatched cottage next to the main house, Ian turned again to his dad.

“Thanks for working so hard to take care of us,” he said, seeing one of the reasons the Joneses had returned to Winter Haven out of the corner of his eye. Reese, the only child of Patrick and Victoria Williams, was ten yards from the main house practicing archery.

“It’s my job, Son.  I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Peter answered, rubbing his son’s head and turning towards the cottage.

     Ian watched Reese take aim with a determined look on his face until he saw that he was being watched.  Reese’s facial expression then turned to one of smug overconfidence as he set an arrow sailing precisely into the center of the target ahead of him.

“Show off,” Ian muttered to himself as he turned away and watched his father duck into their home to prepare the fish to fry.

     It was moments like this that Ian took pride in the fact that he was a full year older and over an inch taller than his occasional nemesis, the self-proclaimed nobility of Winter Haven Manor, Reese Williams. The two boys had been raised like brothers and were best friends until the day that Reese realized two things: first that Ian was naturally better at just about every boyhood skill than him; and second, that Ian was merely part of the hired help.

     Reese often talked poorly to Ian and his mom but would settle for playing with Ian when the other children in the area had taken enough of Reese’s spoiled, rude behavior. Ian for the most part didn’t think he had any other choice but to accept Reese’s offer to play and then to make sure things were the way they should be: he would trounce Reese in marbles, netball, cricket or whatever else was the game of the day. Ian had always liked that he was better at every sport or game than Reese. Better that is until archery came along. The Williamses could afford to give Reese lessons, and he’d left Ian in the dust.

     Ian had often overheard his mom describing him as having a “thin but sturdy frame, a brown mop of hair on his head and dark eyes that are both fierce and tender.” Ian wished she wouldn’t say embarrassing stuff around him but secretly thought she summed him up rather well.  People often looked into Ian’s eyes and then told his parents he had an “old soul.” It seemed like a compliment, so he thought maybe it was. It was some of these same people who also tended to say that he was “quick and competitive.” When Ian heard this he always added but usually only competitive in good ways in his head.

     Despite what people said, Ian knew he carried himself like he was the son of a servant and that his poorer-looking clothing made it evident to anyone who did not already know his station in life. He wanted to yell when wealthy people of standing looked right past him in town yet stopped to talk to Reese. When guests came for gatherings or dinner parties at the estate and handed him their coats and bags to hang up instead of saying hello he wanted to climb in a hole.

     Reese on the other hand, was average in height and weight and was unremarkable in every way. His hair was dishwater blonde, and besides a dusting of freckles on his nose and cheeks there was not one thing that stuck out to help people remember him. Ian couldn’t stand it that in spite of Reese’s looking totally average, his royal bearing and fine clothing were evident. Somehow he made up for being so ordinary by carrying himself like a king. That trait alone made Reese unforgettable.

NEXT WEEK ... The rest of Chapter ONE

Thanks for reading ~Rebecca

Rebecca Dunning is an award winning writer who lives in beautiful Colorado with her husband and three children. She not only loves to read and write but also enjoys hiking, climbing mountains 14,000 feet or higher, traveling the world and about anything else out-of-doors. Ms. Dunning is a regular contributor to The Gazette, Pikes Peak Parent and FreshInk. Rebecca is also the author of two children's books: The Real-Life Princess and Beetle Hunter as well as her first novel, The Awen: Book One of the Sacred Oak Series.

Team Abolition to Take on the Tough Mudder

L-R Clint Dunning, Jennifer Manly and Adam Manly

This is an article I wrote for FreshInk on a race our team is doing. I'm not quite nuts enough to do it, but I got my first press pass and will be doing an interview with the founder of the race. Once I attend, I will be writing another article so check back and see some pictures too.~ Rebecca

Three members of Team Abolition-Colorado Springs will be taking on the Tough Mudder on Sunday, June 26^th 2011 in Beaver Creek, Colorado.

Team Abolition members Clint Dunning, Adam Manly and Jennifer Manly, will be heading into the event that is roughly eight (8) miles in duration that in the Tough Mudders words will, “test  toughness, fitness, strength, stamina, and mental grit all in one place and all in one day.”

Dunning, Manly and Manly are part of a grass-roots group of friends, dubbed Team Abolition, which is dedicated to spreading awareness about the atrocity of human trafficking and raising funds (for www.24-7prayer.com) through sponsorship to help end modern-day slavery. Team Abolition does this by engaging in events like running, climbing Colorado’s highest peaks (14ers.com) and other intense events-- events like the Tough Mudder.

Tough Mudders (www.toughmudder.com) are not for the faint of physique or heart; in this case starting at 8,100 feet and ending at 11,440, means competitors are ascending a total of 3,340 feet during the competition; much of it in mud or icy water conditions.  If that isn’t a bit daunting then consider this: only 7 out of 10 “Mudders” finish, meaning 30% drop out along the way.

The course begins with five thousand (5,000) others and includes twenty-four (24) obstacles to surmount; quite a few requiring the help of those around you,  including a series of 12 (twelve) foot walls and enormous bales of hay. A further sampling of the course includes: army crawling through mud under eight (8) inch high barb wire, dragging a log up a ski slope before descending, three different sets of cargo nets, running through waist high mud, crawling on hands and knees through a mountain of snow, climbing to the top of a greased quarter pipe, swimming under a series of barrels tied together on the surface of the water and edging through a series of constricting pipes that dump you into muddy freezing water. The event then finishes by leading you through a series of live wires, some which carry a 10,000 volt shock.  

When asked about the choice of this particular race Jennifer Manly stated, “We saw this race as something pretty extreme. This race will no doubt bring about blood, sweat and tears as does the fight to end human trafficking.  We wanted to represent the 27 million slaves world-wide and their struggle for freedom.”

Team Abolition represents their current sponsors, Freedom Chiropractic (www.maximizedlivingdrkells.com) and Artisan Decorative Finishes (www.proartisan.com) in this year’s events.  The group also has a July 27, Pikes Peak and a September 17, Mount Bierstadt climb left in their schedule during the 2011 season.

To find out more about ending modern-day slavery visit: www.24-7prayer.com/just24-7.

Thanks for reading ~ Rebecca

Rebecca Dunning is an award winning writer who lives in beautiful Colorado with her husband and three children. She not only loves to read and write but also enjoys hiking, climbing mountains 14,000 feet or higher, traveling the world and about anything else out-of-doors. Ms. Dunning is a regular contributor to The Gazette, Pikes Peak Parent and FreshInk. Rebecca is also the author of two children's books: The Real-Life Princess and Beetle Hunter as well as her first novel, The Awen: Book One of the Sacred Oak Series.