A Jack Hanson Story on TA

"The fat man and the tall man approached the checkpoint cautiously, their hands empty and clearly in sight.  It was hot and humid on the colony of Cygnus III, with the cicadas echoing loudly on either side of the trail through the thick woods, and the clothes they wore didn’t help. Dark, old fashioned suits, with white shirts that were soaked through around the collar and armpits.  The thin man carried a leather rucksack, not bothering to wipe at the sheen of sweat that trickled down his forehead.  It did not seem like the heat or the burden bothered him though, even though his dark hair was matted down with perspiration.

His companion wiped at his broad face every few seconds with a cloth that wicked the sweat away quickly, a modern convenience in contrast to the anachronistic clothing they wore.  He was a head shorter than his companion, and walked with an odd waddle.  The few strands of greased hair he had combed over his bald head were wildly askew, and he was pink, flushed, and in obvious distress while his companion’s narrow tanned face was composed and calm.

The guards at the checkpoint weren’t quite sure how to respond to this.  One pointed his rifle at the two men while the other one looked askance at his companion’s reaction.  “Relax,” he told the other guard.  They were obviously local militia, with no conformity to the kit they wore, unlike true Janissaries.  Both were old enough to have gone through Reserve Training, but if they had, it was showing poorly as they confronted the two travelers."  Wisdom of the Serpent, cunning of the Dove"  Jack Hanson

http://turcopolier.typepad.com/the_athenaeum/

 

Comments

[The Twisted Genius]

There's a lot to be said for a fine Jesuit education.

[Tyler]

Infiltration, subterfuge, and other covert skills are cornerstones of the Jesuit method after all.

[Fred]

I'll stick to the starships. Just like subs only a hole means stuff leaks out fast rather than leaks in fast. Just like the old days.

[The Twisted Genius]

Tyler,

I don't know if those skills are part of the Ignatian spiritual exercises, but ite, inflammate omnia.

[The Twisted Genius]

Fred,

I like these face-to-face stories more than the usual technology centered stuff. Cold steel and quick wits. It's what I'm accustomed to.

[Tyler]

Fred & TTG,

I wanted to write something from a non FOSsil perspective w/o all the pathos (that makes them such interesting characters) and write about normal humans (by and large) doing good old fashioned military ops. But supported by intelligent dinosaurs with machine guns and mortars.

As the good Colonel told me, this is a story about the Church reclaiming its moral authority in a new age. Frank the Good might not recognize this Church, but c'est la vie.

[Tyler]

TTG,

I imagine it might have gone through a few revisions in the 24th century. ;)

The original ending included an exorcism scene, but I cut it out. The first draft of it didn't do it justice (I was always comparing it to the build up of The Exorcist in my head) and the second draft damn near doubled the length of the story. In either case it was a bit jarring to go from high tech to overt supernatural. In the future there may be another Jones story covering that though. Even in a world where spaceflight is possible, there are still hateful things that live in the dark between the stars.

[Will]

Estote ergo prudentes sicut serpentes et simplices sicut columbae

[Fred]

TTG & Tyler,

These are good stories and I enjoy them. No super tech weapons needed. Life took me down a different path. My brother now, 1/504th PIR. BTW I took a long look at the North Carolina memorial at Gettysburg. One of the men depicted up there rifle in hand looks just like him. I wonder just how the sculptor managed that.