Horizons

14 Brief

The fraternal quartet rested on an ancient wooden bench in a discarded hallway.  At least it appeared discarded, it was dusty and unkempt, however; the hallway was the entrance to the Council's audience room. The corridor was musty and forgotten, the once oiled wooden slats appearing dull under a heavy layer of dust, a single window at the hall's end illuminating the cob webs and the time forgotten masterful woodwork. The four figures sat, slumped together on the one thing that had born the slightest upkeep, probably by a library apprentice.  The bench had been dusted, maybe only for today's meeting, and the floor did show signs of the odd modest sweeping. But all told, the area was probably considered as an after thought by whomever maintained this section of the grand library. Simon sat staring at a particularly aged cob web, it's strands hung low with the weight of the accumulated grime, and it was clear to Simon that the spider that had made the cunning trap was long dead. He did not ponder the reason behind the condition of the old web, or even why it existed in this hallowed place. He was at that particular point of exhaustion that nothing could really pique his interest. Simon and his cohorts, had spent the last twenty hours or so deducing, planning, and arguing about the coming defense of their civilization. One person would raise a previously un-thought of point. They would, as a group, discuss the validity of the thought. Then they would try to insert a considerate solution into their strategy, but inevitably someone would contradict a point and an argument would break out. This sequence happened with every single idea. In the end the whole plan was scrapped, edited, and rebuilt more times than Simon could keep track of. Even when it was all done and the group was preparing to go over the finished strategy, arguments would be brought back to the table like old coals catching the wind to return flame to a smoldered fire. He was exhausted. They were exhausted. These men who played strategic games as a hobby were not conditioned to this degree of mental and emotional activity. This moment of reprieve while they waited for the council to receive them was just enough to lull each of them into various states of near stupor. Alex's head was falling and snapping upright in a rhythmic cadence that was almost distracting to the others. Quinn was taking very slow blinks while his shoulder supported a comatose Pete who's mouth was beginning to form the drool strand that would soon stain Quinn's robes. Lastly, Simon was still staring blankly at the ancient dust covered cob web that should have been out of place here, yet fit in completely with the rest of the decay.

"If only we had some sort of rudimentary repeating firearm." Stated Alex after his head returned to it's upright position for the umpteenth time.

Quinn received a fresh jolt of wakefulness at the mention of this tired and feeble debate. "Alex, if you talk about guns one more time, I don't care how tired I am, I'm going to beat you to death with my shoe."

"But, we wouldn't have to worry about any of this.  No archers, no spear men, no palisade walls, none of this simulated Greek fire non-sense.  None of it.  Just one Gatling gun, or hell even a few simple canons. We'd be almost automatically victorious. It was foolish of us Shamen to assume wars had passed by us. The very nature..."

"Alex, just shut up."  Simon cut him off.  "We can't waste anymore time thinking about what we don't have. We have what we have, and that is all. So just shut up, please!" Simon waved him away with a frustrated stoke of his hand.

"I'm just trying to say that we should've been more prep..."

"That's it, the shoe's coming off." Quinn stated as he bent over and began undoing his shoe string.

"... What?" Alex asked incredulous at his peers anger. "The Engineers have hamstrung us. By not seeing it as a priority to maintain any defensive weap..." Alex was cut off again, this time by Esteemed Master Melville opening the doors to invite the quartet into this mysterious chamber.