The Road Less Traveled: Or How Trouble Always Finds Me

© 2014 Stephen L. King. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 03/14/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4918-7153-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-7152-2 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-7151-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014904644

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Contents

Alfred and the Old Man in the Mountain

Pura Vida

Sunday Day 2

Monday Day 3

Season Six At The Dino Field Of Bonz

If

Real Time Outward Bound

Day 4 Mon Capitan Drago Mulgado

The River of No Return

Day 4 continued

Day 5 Thursday

Dedicated to everyone who has and to the ones that will read these epistles in their lifetime.

Marc Ben Meir. A very good friend.

Melody Cabrera. I haven’t decided how to place her in the book. Mysterious or Nice. Hers is an ongoing development, a little of both I think. Her motto: Be Nice.

Nunior Mulgado, who wanted to degrade himself into something other than himself. He found himself up the creek with a broken paddle… .

Brother Art Sahlstein. You’ll not meet in your lifetime a more honorable man and a man of God. He will always have your best interests at heart and always guard your back. He fits right in as Gnomeman, Infidel Runner.

Sarah and Paul Beauregard. They brought us to their home in Costa Rica for a week of adventure. A rich experience and a very beautiful place.

Stuff did happen the way it occurred but with a little more prodding. Builds character in each of us and we need more character, integrity, honesty, transparency and oh yeah… take personal responsibility fer yer actions. It’s a tough call these days with some folks occupying a certain House that’s White, calling wrong right. It ain’t natural the way things are being done these days. Oh my, I better stop here.

In memory of Dr. Derek Main

PURA VIDA!

Alfred and the Old Man in the Mountain

Alfred, Queenie, and Starr

Meanwhile back in the cave, the deep rumbling finally stops to a dull roar. Alfred slowly retreats further into the black lightless tunnel. His torch is barely casting feeble weird shadows on the tunnel wall. Some of the listless firelight catches sparkling crystals and shiny gold specks. There’s no time to stop to collect a few samples.

The tunnel shakes and small rocks continue to pelt Alfred as the root of the mountain shudders in deep convulsions as more explosions a felt more than heard further down in the bowels of this mountain.

Gas?

Alfred hears or senses another minute sound nearby.

He quenches his fire stick by rubbing it in the dust.

Total, blinding, darkness.

He can smell death coming his way.

Those demon teddy bears from space are still hot on his trail.

Peering around a corner, Alfred can see the luminosity of their eyes and hear the snuffing of their very sensitive noses in trying to locate their prey.

He moves back around the corner.

All Alfred can do is find a shallow depression in the wall and tries to melt out of sight, hoping that these critters walk past him.

Something grabs his shoulder from behind and pulls very gently. He tries to escape but can’t.

He doesn’t make a sound but tenses his muscles for an all out fight with whomever is on the other side.

He disappears through solid stone and loses sight of the demons.

The dirty motley crew of maddened, frenzied little teddy bears, stumble past where Alfred used to be.

They stop.

Look around and touch the barren rock wall where Alfred used to be.

Nothing.

They move on and turn the corner in the tunnel. Another jarring rumble in the mountain causes the tunnel to collapse, blocking their only means of escape.

Onward they go in the dust-filled tunnel, ever deeper in the total darkness.

Alfred pops out of the rock wall as it is melted, bent, shape shifted around him. What a cool experience! He lets out a great sigh of relief as he is reunited with Queenie and Starr. It is Queenie that had performed Alfred’s great escape, by bending rock with a few choice words that were neither Cajun, Creole or ’merican. She uses her own special brand of an unknown tongue, long dead but more powerful to the spirit world. Just one more step further into the dark wilderness that she has embarked on. It is ever since that chance meeting, in the back waters in Louisiana, when Alfred was on the circuit, riding his precious motor-cross events. She has always wondered why on this backward world that these creatures have chosen to inhabit? Probably with all of this religious hallyaboo, stuff sounds good and new to gullible people. This stuff is so old, it is still fooling people, it’s all how you package it. But, that is what the Deceiver is all about.

Queenie tamped down the ever-present burning deep in her being. It is more of a conflagration that has exploded into white hot heat. It has risen briefly during Alfred’s stupid behavior, which highly pressed her button to the max.

Her reply is pleasant enough but is tinged with a sarcastic remark to her handler came back equally sharp but to the point: until the job is finished or until you are dead!

Not much of a choice is it Queenie?

Alfred is so glad to see Queenie he almost wrapped his great muscled arms around her. Queenie stopped him, by putting her arms out and said, hold right there buster, let’s not get too carried away! We’re still stuck in here… besides we have company.

She wasn’t referring to Starr at all.

To whom Queenie is referring to, he turned around and beheld the biggest Hu’Man in his entire life other than Major Sterns. Oh how I miss him, thought Alfred. Someday… .

But this interloper is something else to look at. The man’s totally white hair is knotted twisted, matted and it is down to his waist. He wasn’t wearing a shirt but is wearing Farmer John overalls. This guy puts Arnie really to shame, rocks for muscles and his arm, chest, neck veins popped all over. He is barefoot to boot.

What little light from the torches reveals the man’s eyes… completely opaque. He’s blind as a bat!

But his demeanor belied his temper and it is on a slow boil with these three and those strange little bears roaming in his home.

Why are you here, causing explosions in my house, Creature? And pray tell what are those bears? He looked about him, sniffing the air and said, besides they stink terribly like death warmed over! His voice rumbled with extreme authority, demanding immediate answers.

Starr went to stand with Queenie and Alfred stood in front of the two women, ready for any action. Alfred spoke up, first tell us who you are, then we might let you know of us and why!

The new stranger laughed at Alfred’s outlandish request!

He pointed his fingers at Alfred and took one step closer to them. They backed up until the rock wall prevented them any further escape, and this tunnel is a dead end.

You, Creature are in no position to question me, but I feel like entertaining my guests this day! I am known as The Old Man of the Mountain, Vulcan, He that Shakes Mountains and many lesser names in history. Come, I will show you my Great Hall and treat you all to a feast to end all feasts. And I will deal with those little space monkeys! He smacked has great hands together and the tunnel shook.

He led them on.

They made one sudden stop in the total darkness when he spoke to Queenie without even looking at her. He invaded her senses and she gasped out-loud and stumbled to the dusty rocky tunnel floor in a dead faint. Starr shouted and Alfred rushed to Queenie’s still body.

Alfred scooped Queenie up and walked up to The Old Man of the Mountain. He watched this pair with amusement in his eyes. He wonders if Alfred knows of the woman’s evil personality.

He spoke, my friend, Alfred, be patient, she is merely overwhelmed by the journey she is on, she is well. My Great Hall is just around the bend in the tunnel. Come.

The Old Man of the Mountain turned and walked ahead. Alfred and Starr followed.

True to his word, Great Hall, didn’t even begin to describe the meaning Great Hall!

Majestic… awesome… gigantic… stupendous… are just some of the words that came to their minds.

Bright light flooded the entire interior, even in this remote place.

It is translucent gold with highly ionized water, running in between the plates, which produces electricity.

Alfred is too amazed to utter anything that would have made sense, so he kept quiet.

The Old Man of the Mountain continued,  . . . it’s width is 400 feet wide by 2200 feet long. Of course, the tables and chairs are made out of the softest stone possible. It’s a substance that conforms to any ones shape in an instant, even senseless ones! He laughed at his own joke.

When he laughed, he spoke again to Queenie by invading her senses. She gently woke up from her slumber, finding herself in Alfred’s massive arms. Alfred gently but quickly lowered Queenie to her feet

The Old Man of the Mountain sat down on a huge rock chair, which morphed into a raised Throne of the purest gold and radiated light all around the group.

Welcome to my home, Starr, Queenie and Alfred! Let’s refresh ourselves. He clapped his hands in this overlarge room and the noise thundered, reverberated throughout in all the corners.

Hot towels were provided by smaller versions of The Old Man as they came up to where they were seated. Food and drink are provided, spices, fruits are to had. No one complained that they did not have enough or that they did not like what was provided.

What seemed like hours that flew by, The Old Man of the Mountain interrupted the lively impromptu feast and spirited talk with him standing. He announced to Alfred, Starr and Queenie with fantastic news that he is sending them on a journey. A journey of impossible means. But, he has one more surprise in store for this threesome. A guest has arrived quite unexpectedly.

A nearby rock wall just opened up and out stepped la hac awwni!

The last we saw him he was sitting in a tree as Shadow Eagle.

The Old Man of the Mountain spoke to the complete group, friends, it is time that I make my promise good to return you where you want to go. Besides, I have my own troubles to attend to. Those rascally little teddy bears are creating some problems for me and I must attend to them. We go in the next room to where I’ll send you off wherever you want to go.

They left the Great Hall and in the next room, it is very spacious, reminded Alfred of sorts of sterile room where experiments are conducted. Can anyone say Frankenstein?

Standing alongside and leaning on one rock wall there are many translucent shuttles big enough to place bodies inside of it. For what purpose thought Alfred?

The Old Man of the Mountain’s voice boomed in the stillness and the smallness of the room. That’s right, Alfred, to go anywhere in the world they wish to go! From this control panel here, all I have to do is set the coordinates to places they want to go. All in a matter of minutes, by way of tunnels through rock. Now of course, some of those tunnels are compromised by those pesky teddy bears. I have workers amending that slight problem and will contain those critters in endless tunnels.

He showed all four of them the controls and the various shuttles in which they would be traveling in.

Now Alfred, where do you want to go?

Alfred looked at Queenie and then to Starr and la hac awwni. They talked a bit and said their goodbyes and hugged each other.

Alfred said he wanted to go back to Louisiana to be with Major Sterns and Molly.

Queenie also wanted to go back to Louisiana to Beauregard’s Landing which is on the delta of the Mississippi River.

Starr and la hac awwni wanted to go back to the Arizona, Nevada desert. It’s their place, not hemmed in by rock walls and low ceilings. The wide open places of the desert.

The Old Man of The Mountain smiled at hearing of their destinations. My friends, step inside your shuttles and lay down when the covering comes down and locks you in. You will be there in a matter of seconds at your destination and when you’ll arrive you won’t remember this place or me for that matter. Take your places friends.

Alfred helped Queenie get into her capsule and gently lowered the lid. He kissed the translucent covering with his fingertips and she in turn. He then climbed into his capsule.

la hac awwni helped Starr into hers and he then hopped into his contraption. Both lids hissed shut.

Three tunnels opened in the rock wall as The Old Man pushed several knobs on the control panel. He sent three zipping away in a flash. The fourth stayed.

Pura Vida

After the crash landing of Sansa