The Whole World Versus Me August 11, 2014

The sun cut through the haze he had grown so accustomed to and pressed down on Jack’s back like a living thing. How could it be that the higher I rise in elevation the hotter it seems to be getting, he mused, but then set himself to more vital tasks.

The prisoner before he had begun to moan and show sighs of regaining consciousness. Jack used some of the cords and belts from the man’s fallen comrades to bind his ankles and wrists. Then he set himself to go through the weapons.

His own had grown thin, but he put his hand axe back into his shredded leather and counted his five throwing knives before the heat forced him to hang his jacket on a oak twisted into the shape of a crawling hand. He had retrieved his spear and found a thin javelin. These he placed these against the oak as well. Three obsidian daggers joined his throwing knives and he leaned three of the Ripperkah’s war clubs against the base of the tree. When he had finished, he turned and found the Ripperkah glaring at him.

“Don’t suppose you speak my language, huh?”

A string of spitting syllables thundered his way. The warrior’s eyes passed over his fallen allies weapons and the Xemmoni began to struggle against his bonds.

“I know these might be your lands and not mine, but I’m also willing to bet there could be decent folks around here that your kind preys upon.” Jack’s gaze took in the trees that rose up into the massive mountains. “Or at least I hope there are.”

“Yep, buddy, it may be your world, but finding Xemmoni here, Ripperkah no less can’t be-”

The sun cut through the haze he had grown so accustomed to and pressed down on Jack’s back like a living thing. How could it be that the higher I rise in elevation the hotter it seems to be getting, he mused, but then set himself to more vital tasks.

The prisoner before he had begun to moan and show sighs of regaining consciousness. Jack used some of the cords and belts from the man’s fallen comrades to bind his ankles and wrists. Then he set himself to go through the weapons.

His own had grown thin, but he put his hand axe back into his shredded leather and counted his five throwing knives before the heat forced him to hang his jacket on a oak twisted into the shape of a crawling hand. He had retrieved his spear and found a thin javelin. These he placed these against the oak as well. Three obsidian daggers joined his throwing knives and he leaned three of the Ripperkah’s war clubs against the base of the tree. When he had finished, he turned and found the Ripperkah glaring at him.

“Don’t suppose you speak my language, huh?”

A string of spitting syllables thundered his way. The warrior’s eyes passed over his fallen allies weapons and the Xemmoni began to struggle against his bonds.

“I know these might be your lands and not mine, but I’m also willing to bet there could be decent folks around here that your kind preys upon.” Jack’s gaze took in the trees that rose up into the massive mountains. “Or at least I hope there are.”

“Yep, buddy, it may be your world, but finding Xemmoni here, Ripperkah no less can’t be-”



Jack’s dialog was cut off when the Xemmoni flung himself at the Stalwart. While Jack talked, it had grown sharp edged ridges of bone along the lower wrist of each hand. It had not only used these to free itself from his bonds, but intended to slice Jack’s throat open with them.

Jack backpedaled, while grabbed up one of the rock encrusted clubs. “I should have remembered you freaks can do that sort of thing.” He made a wild swing just to keep the Xemmoni at bay. “Pretty much impossible to tie up a Ripperkah.”

The Ripperkah’s bonish blades continued to grow until he had machete lengths of jagged grey protruding nearly a yard past his hands. These flashed and stabbed at him and one managed to score a deep wound on Jack’s left shoulder.

It was his turn to curse. “Hell, I don’t have time for this crap.” He kicked out and knocked one arm away. The other elongated bone trust at his face, but he turned his body to the sideways and then stepped in toward the Xemmoni. With a yell, the club came down with a two handed smash. The impact was so strong it did three things at once. The blow cracked the skull so loudly it echoed through the canyon, the club snapped in half, and the man’s head burst like a watermelon tossed from a roof.

Jack looked down at his gore splattered form while he just tried to catch his breath. “Man, those guys are pretty tough. If these woods are crawling with them, this might end up being all she wrote.”

With a sigh, he used a bit of his mystic strength to heal himself and began to collect his weapons. He hid the clubs under some leaves. He doubted he would even be back to retrieve them, but no sense in letting his enemy find extra weapons to use against him. The heat made him tie his jacket around his waist and he held his spear in his right hand, while the Javelin filled his left.

Using the spear and javelin to help him climb allowed him make better progress. He covered some ground, but the lack of water took its toil. He wondered again why none of the men he fought had so much as a canteen on them, but figured things couldn’t be that easy.

Every chance he got, he tried to survey the rising mountainside before him. He almost didn’t trust his eyes when he saw a thin sliver of silver cascading down the side of a moss covered cliff. Smiling to himself he hurried that way.

Those last few hundred yards felt like the longest of his journey, but he reached a three foot wide stream and pledged his face into it. A chuckle escaped him as he poured handfuls over his burning brow and let it soak his hair.

After he had drunk his fill, he sat next to the stream. “Finally, well I see no reason not to just camp here tonight, I…”

Cries of anger erupted from the direction he had just traveled. Hoots and war cries quickly followed.

“Son of a bitch, talk about jinxing myself.” Looking up and the mountain that loomed above him, he continued, “Well, they want a fight, I say bring it on. If they never experienced fighting a servant of Yig in the middle of the forest, they are about to learn.”

To be continued next Monday

Find out how Jack’s Adventures Started Here!