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    Myths of the Magaram 2: Baptism of Fire
    Myths of the Magaram 2: Baptism of Fire
    Myths of the Magaram 2: Baptism of Fire
    Ebook102 pages1 hour

    Myths of the Magaram 2: Baptism of Fire

    By Carl Johnson

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    About this ebook

    THE EPIC CONTINUES IN THE WORLD OF THE MAGARAM
    WHEN LOVE LEADS TO ADVENTURE

    Following his obsession, his quest to find the woman that consumes his imagination, young Julio finds himself in a place unlike anything he's ever known. Battling a fierce creature again—and surviving, he felt, by pure luck again, he decides he will not be caught unaware the next time.

    It has been a year since the encounter and Julio has already written off the event as a memory. He has not seen the lady again, and has accepted that it will never happen again. But on the exact date that she appeared the previous year, she appeared again.

    And Julio follows her once more, eager to know her, to find out everything about her. But as last year, the events that follow are not as simple. Surviving another Magaram encounter, he finally realizes that everything isn't just a chance encounter. There are forces as old as the first folk stories at play. For reasons still unknown, he somehow has reached the fabled realms of the Magaram, a race of beings whose abilities and achievements are likened to that of the gods - a legendary race that till then has only existed in folklore and superstition.

    In the second installment of this epic tale, our young hero is again pitted against insurmountable odds that are impossible to survive from. Journey with Julio once more into a land filled with unknown dangers. Walk with him as he resolves to find meaning to the events that have changed his life, and the training he has to do to face another Magaram.

    When the reason is unclear and the outcome is uncertain, will he find the courage to brave the fire?

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    EXCERPT
    The head was huge. It was definitely a big snake. There was a long streak of fiery red covering the center of its head and ran in the middle of its back towards its tail. It was a shade of red that looked alive, while the rest of its body was bathed in white. Its scales had a whiteness that, if not for its fearsome features, almost seemed like it was pure. The area where the head stopped and the body started had a ring of black starting from where the red streak ended and appeared to cover the entire circumference.

    Then the dragging sound stopped.

    In its place, came a long and loud hiss that sent shivers from one end of his spine to the other. As if that was not enough to terrorize him, series of loud clucking sounds followed. The creature was moving its head from one side to another, and its sound decreased and increased in volume. The serpent raised its head way up, then dropped it low to the ground.

    It was looking for him!

    Without warning, a sound like an angry moan and a very heavy thud was heard. Julio felt the vibration in the ground. It had dropped to the ground heavily and the dragging sound resumed again, with the pauses in between almost undetectable.

    It’s going in for the kill, thought Julio frantically....

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    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSandra Ross
    Release dateJun 17, 2015
    ISBN9781311445735
    Myths of the Magaram 2: Baptism of Fire

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      Book preview

      Myths of the Magaram 2 - Carl Johnson

      Baptism Of Fire

      By Carl Johnson

      Published by Publications Circulations LLC.

      SmashWords Edition

      All contents copyright (C) 2014 by Publications Circulations LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this document or the related files may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, by any means (electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher.

      This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, companies and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or the publisher.

      ~ ~ ~ ~

      Chapter One

      JULIO SAT IN his usual seat just before sunset, surveying the area as far as he could see. There was less than an hour until dusk and in this hour, if one was paying attention, legends would come alive. He was looking at the rice fields when his old eyes noticed something strange and subtle. The late afternoon breeze was blowing left to right as it mostly did all year long. And yet, a little to the left from the center, a group of stalks were not only resisting the breeze, but going against it!

      He knew that his eyesight had diminished a little with the passing decades, but he was also aware that his sight was sharper than any other man's. By human standards, his vision was clearer than anyone else's, but it was not as it used to be.

      Still, he knew there was something amiss, and in there might lay things that brought him little joys in his otherwise sedentary existence.

      Then he saw it. Without the need for squinting, he saw it.

      The area around the defiant rice stalk seemed to blur and then the image warped. Subtle but with eyes trained to see, he knew there was something.

      Julio did not remove his gaze but consciously controlled his breathing. He wanted to see and that meant he had to be physically and mentally prepared. It was not as easy as it used to be when all he needed to do was tune his entire being. Over the years as he grew older, he found that he had to exert a little more effort in order to even detect them -- precisely the reason why he sat in this place a few hours before sunset.

      When he felt calmer and the ringing tone in his ears went down, the first images of what was happening in the rice field came into view.

      A flying creature, as small as a mouse with wings that spanned twice its height in every direction, seemed to be playing among the plants. Julio smiled. It might have been playing or it might have been tending, he did not know. He knew they tended to plants, but he was familiar enough to know that they were also playful and a bit temperamental.

      This was not the first time he had seen the creatures since he came back to the barrio but this would be the first time he would attempt to make contact in decades. Perhaps his recollection of the realm through story telling had made him ache for the place.

      Julio focused his attention on the small creature and whispered its name, Monatson. Almost immediately, the creature stopped mid-air and turned to face the direction of the call. It didn't take long for it to spot Julio as he was the only one there. It then flew in many patterns, all irregular and erratic, dropping and rising. This told Julio that the creature was in a panic.

      In one of his journeys into the Magaram's world, he had been taught that only a select few knew of the Magaram's existence. While there had been accidental sightings either by luck or by accident, there was no chance they would be able to see them again. The law of the Magaram was unbending in these circumstances -- unless through desperate need or special circumstance, no one shall be admitted to the realm. Violating this high law meant death.

      The panicked creature with its erratic flight showed this fear. To be seen was one thing, easily dismissed and easily debunked by the humans. But for a human to maintain sight and call them by their name meant almost certain death. Julio knew of this fear and worked to calm the creature.

      Monatson, he whispered once more, "Kaysang coa moni. Monatson, I am your friend."

      Once again, it stopped mid-air, with the exception of its fluttering wings.

      Padika, he spoke, maintaining the concentration required to maintain contact, "Diup coa ridi. Mahai na pahonna raywa coa kataki yoi. Come. Be with me. A long time has passed since I saw one of you."

      The creature moved forward cautiously. Julio smiled when he noticed the flight pattern. It was no longer erratic, it was now graceful. It came forward in a surge and then stopped, as if waiting for him to do something.

      Julio just sat there and concentrated. He knew that the creature had lost its fear in favor of curiosity. After all, there were only a handful of people that knew the Magarams existed, and even fewer who knew how to speak their language.

      Julio whispered again, "Han moi pagligsa, samatla. Thank you for your trust." This time, the creature flapped its tiny wings excitedly and its forward surges covered longer distances. Finally, Julio thought, containing his excitement and years of yearning, A friend that may just help me open a new way for me to be admitted back.

      Suddenly from a distance, he heard familiar voices calling him.

      Inkong, Inkong! the children called. They were running to him excitedly and for a moment, Julio smiled. He knew the reason -- they wanted more of the story. He had to cut it short the night before, ending it as it was already dark.

      Then he realized that he had just let go of his connection to the creature.

      Julio hurriedly scanned the landscape hoping to find the creature. He spotted it, or rather the warping of the area around it, but it was going back in the direction that it came from -- away from him. He felt a sting. He was hoping to have communed with the creature, hoping he could have earned its trust, hoping it could help him.

      Now it was gone, and he didn't have enough time to summon it back. The children were already near.

      Inkong! Tell us more about Ricardo, Lito demanded, the first to arrive.

      Ricardo was the name he had used in the tale. Julio did not want the children to overwhelm him with the many questions they would have asked had they known it was him. Still, he gained immense pleasure from just recounting his adventures although they were told through an alias.

      What happened to him? What did he do with the feathers and the scale? came Elia's questions in quick succession.

      Alright now, one at a time, he answered.

      Did he see the beautiful lady again? Yayong asked.

      Just tell us the story before it gets dark again, said Manuel this time.

      But there is nothing more to tell, teased Julio.

      No! Pedro exclaimed, You said adventures, not adventure!

      I did? he asked, pretending to have forgotten.

      Yes! Yes! You said there was love, chimed Elia.

      Stop it, love is not adventure, complained Manuel, It's boring.

      But what if it was love that started the adventure? Julio posed the question, Or what if it's the adventure that started love?

      The group of children fell silent for a moment, thinking of the question.

      Adventure comes first! Just like in Ricardo's story, Lito answered.

      But he did not ask for adventure, Elia quickly countered, He fell in looooove with the lady first.

      Eeeewww, the boys cried in unison.

      There now, there now, Julio

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