Letting Go of Holding On

Letting Go of Holding On

Posted by Moonlight Gypsy on January 30, 2014 at 7:45pm
Holding on to a habit like a daily walk seems pretty harmless and even admirable. But think about the intensity with which we dogmatically hold on to our opinions and beliefs. Don't we often do damage to ourselves and others by determinedly clutching at opinions and beliefs that have little or no objective reality? Think about married couples fighting over the right temperature at which to set the thermostat or the correct way to stack the dishwasher. They each have strong opinions and arguments for a specific point of view. Watching sitcom couples struggle with this level of unresolved conflict can occasionally be funny. Living this way can be painful.

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The Buddha taught that it is usually a mistake to believe that any opinion or situation is objectively good or bad since everything depends on the perspective of the viewer. We see this in the horror of war, where one side can be rejoicing over the body count while the other is mourning its losses. Each side is attached to and invested in its own beliefs and opinions and holding on, no matter what the cost. What we each have in our lives thus are wanted and unwanted experiences, which are almost entirely dependent on individual opinions, preferences, and desires.

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We suffer because of a lack of validity knowing and understanding reality, what it is and how it works. The Buddha taught that it is like a group of blind men touching an elephant and then trying to describe what an elephant is. The one holding a leg says that an elephant is like a pillar, the one holding the tail emphatically says that it is like a rope, while the one confronting its side is quite sure the elephant is a wall. Because we are not totally aware or conscious, we have little ability to see and comprehend the whole.

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Mindlessly and rigidly holding on to anything exacts a heavy price. Think about how much energy and attention we have invested in maintaining and holding together our own self-image and persona. What a relief it is when we let down our guard and allow ourselves to be authentic and real. When we stop holding on, it's a little like taking off our shoes and allowing ourselves to relax. It's like taking a breather in the midst of hard work. It feels very good.

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The self is not a solid entity, yet we congeal around that self-concept until it becomes a continuous activity centered around a tightly held, cherished egotism. From this, all kinds of mischievous forms of selfishness arise. Buddhists say that we suffer as a result of our believing that things are permanent; we suffer because we believe that things truly, objectively, lastingly exist. We suffer because we think that our opinions and concerns are important and have lasting reality.

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We take ourselves so seriously that we tend to believe that our moods and emotions are real entities. When Andy, for example, gets angry with his twin sister Rachel, his feelings are so intense that, for the moment at least, he wants to annihilate her. Fortunately for Rachel, Andy's method of attack is limited to sarcasm and withering looks. Usually Andy's anger blows over within a short period of time. In fact, as soon as Andy sees tears well up in Rachel's eyes, his anger turns to sadness and guilt. He realizes he has been mean, and he tries to make it up to her. For her part, Rachel says she understands, although she actually doesn't, and she usually has some form of passive-agressive feedback that will quickly reignite Andy's fury.

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 Andy and Rachel have been playing our versions of this scenario since the days when they shared a playpen. Why don't they ever let it go and develop more evolved and mature ways of working things through? The bigger question, of course, is: Why can't any of us ever let go of our need to "win," or "be right," or just "show up the other guy?" Too often we would rather be right than happy and in harmony. The cost of this kind of clinging can be immense.

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Exerpted from Letting Go of the Person You Used to Be, by Lama Surya Das

With love to my blogger friends

Agathar, Part 10

Agathar part 1

I dreamed of being a little kid again on a planet that was named Agathar.
With beautiful mauve valleys, purple mountains and a subtle wispy lavender sky interspersed with puffy pink clouds. And, “oh my!”, so very strikingly beautiful, an aqua-colored lake with wavelets like a gem sparkling in the sunlight.

"Oh my!" There are other little children here, and they have "dragonfly wings" "WOW! cool!" I can see them flitting playfully between the purple trees.

There is harmony, peace, love, and tranquility throughout the land, the silence and peace only broken by the beautiful chorus of tiny song birds in the valley and the playful, musical laughter of the little children in the woods yonder.

The little children with the dragonfly wings dart playfully in and out, and,” oh wow!” “Will you look over there, I point with my finger excitedly!” On the other side of the valley lies the tranquil lavender surface of a large inland sea, with different layers of densities of water, a reaction similar to that of oil and water. In te different layer swam different varieties of aquatic life forms.

The ones near the surface swam through their fluid environment on wing like fins, as any bird would gliding gracefully in their airy environment.

Forests of purple and blue are bordered by sun dappled fields of dazzling shades of red, gold, orange, silver blue, amethyst, constantly shifting colors like waves on water by the light, warm summery breeze..

The lakes and waterway from above appear as a ruddy red reflection from the pomegranate sun sitting at high noon above.

Distant purple mountains and lavender sky with pink clouds are so pleasant to the eye and soothing to the spirit. Oh, and I can't forget the crystalline singing waterfalls in the woods, “over there by the giant tree,” I hear the sound like that of a thousand angels singing harmoniously, in with the energetic pulse of the Mother Planet herself.

All around the valley there are more of those giant trees, SO TALL that I fall on my back “aghast”while as I look up in the sky! The tops disappear into the pink clouds above and if one was to climb up to the top of these giant trees, above the clouds, it is said that you will find the Cadosee, the tiny Hobbit-like people with colorful moth wings.

The Cadosee live in small, close-knit villages they built among the intertwining limbs of the giant trees. There they share love, caring, and happiness.

Tiered from my journey through a wonderland of beauty and wonderment I lay down on the soft grass on a side hill facing the inland sea, the sigh of the wind and rushing of the waves and soon I was a sleep

Agathar Part  2  Click on link below

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Agathar, Part 10

As their mount banked sharply to the right towards the land, Jansen was prepared for it this time. She remained in control in her saddle as their mount continued in a sideways gliding motion. She and Jeji felt a tilt to Jeji’s right and each slid to counter the turn in their saddle. They returned to their upright, center positions again and the great winged beast resumed the rhythmic beat of her wings as the land ahead grew larger on the horizon.

“It seems like Atlantis rising from its depths,” Jansen thought. “I have accumulated many mental images in my mind as to what the magnificent Atlantis may have looked like before she sank under the ocean waves, but this ahead of us surpassed anything I could have imagined.” 

All around the tree line of the island was a glow with subtle light streamers of many different colors, similar to the aurora borealis, except this light source was coming from the ground, not the sky.

As they flew above the large trees that lay beneath them Jansen could smell several aromas from the multi-colored blooms that carpeted the forest floor below. She could see the purple, blue and violet, depending on the distance. The colors here were very much in a constant flux of hues.

And then she thought of the lavender sky above with the wispy pink clouds. As she looked up to verify her thoughts, she shivered within. “This is almost like having memories of already having been here before. And I didn't even know this planet existed until I crash landed on it,” she mused.

The sky where she had come from was just an ordinary blue like on her home planet, Jansen thought. It was like two different worlds on the same planet. This one, for some reason, felt like she had been here before. But back where the Cadose live, she had not felt like that there. Is this prescience, she asked herself for lack of any other explanation.

The only difference she could think of was the flora that she had been able to see while in-flight that were native to this small continent, comparable to Earth standard, which would be roughly the size of Australia. It was surrounded by thousands of miles of sea from its closest neighboring land masses.

As Jeji said, “The peoples of the other lands were happy in their land they did not have any need or desire to raid their neighbor’s lands when they traded as equals. That didn't mean that some of the citizens from one land could not unite with others from another land. The merging of the two made for a stronger alliance among the peoples of other lands. But seldom would one want to move to another land on a permanent basis. As visitors, all were equal.”

Their steed flipped forward and down, nearly straight down, building up a tremendous speed as the air rushed past Jeji and Jansen. Jansen could see the ground rush at them then with two great flaps of her wings their mount straightened and landed softly upon the ground next to a river, or what Jasen thought was a river.

Everywhere was vibrant color not so much reflected by the sun as more like glowing. Everything in this land had a glow of its own, an innate energy glow each with its own personal color.

Even the river flowed in different currents of color for here in this world water had many different densities so that one layer sat upon the other, each glowing in its own vibrant color.

Their mount folded her great feathery wings and twitched her long feathered tail then looked at Jansen directly in the eyes. Her large pink eyes blinked three times in succession then she remained very still with her steady gaze still upon Jansen.

Feeling uneasy, Jensen called to Jeji, "Hey, Jeji, what do you think about your friend over there?" she pointed a little nervously towards the dragon. "Is she fixing to eat me for lunch or something?" Jeji just winked in response. "OK, Jeji, stop kidding with me and tell me truly, does your friend, the dragon, plan on eating me for lunch?” she asked again.

"Oh, no worry, Ms. Jansen, no problem. She just studying you is all,” Jeji responded with a smile and handed her some fruit from a bag. Jansen ate hungrily then went down by the river for a drink. When she arrived at the water’s edge she just stood there, dumbfounded.

Jansen turned to Jeji and asked with a quizzical look on her face, “What are you supposed to do with this stuff, breathe it or drink it?" Jeji turned and smiled again and made a motion with her arms indicating that she should jump in and go for a swim.

"Swim in what?" Jansen questioned back, a bit perplexed, slapping her arms loosely to her sides. Jeji tied the bag then got up and ran towards Jansen, grabbing her hand as she ran by.

Jansen had not anticipated the suddenness of the event that was about to unfold and she was drawn along into the river just by sheer momentum. There was no splash, just a thick dampness that felt much like floating in a cloud. Jansen then open her eyes to witness a sight like she had never seen anywhere else at any time before in her life.

She floated there in the vapor-like layer and was stunned by all the luminescent colors that radiated up to the surface from the floral life forms at the bottom. Jeji waved for her to follow, and they swam towards the bottom. Each layer down was denser than the last.

Jeji took a deep breath and signaled for Jansen to do the same. She did, and continued down towards the bottom. At the bottom she found that she was swimming in Earth-like waters. She was about to pick one of the plants on a ledge that glowed every color in the spectrum of visible light but was stopped abruptly by Jeji, who pulled gently on her right arm and pointed to the surface.

She looked back to the ledge then back again her long hair floating around her then she began to swim up wards to the surface. She found herself again feeling like she was floating in a thick fog then she felt the shore beneath her feet and they walked the rest of the way from the least dense surface layer .

Jansen stopped for a moment to look back at the phosphorescent waters, mesmerized by them. Her attention was suddenly diverted to the tree tops, from where came a sound like a thousand singing angels. She looked up with her hand over her eyes in the hopes it would help her to see better what was up in the trees. "Kafans!" Jeji, shouted then nodded her head and smiled. "Birds!” she said pointing up into the trees.

"Ah, I see," Jansen responded. “At least now it lowers the number of whatever it could have been to one particular species,” she thought, and looked again then back to Jeji, her arms spread in bewilderment.

"Right there." Jeji pointed. “Hard to see because they are almost invisible; blend right in with the background.”

Then Jansen saw it, fleetingly, for a second, where she again had to readjust her vision. “They looked much like our Earth peacocks, very beautiful," she declared to Jeji.

Jeji seemed a bit uncomfortable or anxious about continuing on their journey. “We must go now,” she said as she bent down to pick up the sacks. This time it was Jansen who put her hand on Jeji's shoulder. Jeji stopped in her tracks and turned to Jansen. Jansen had been right, she could definitely detect some restlessness.

"What's up Jeji" she asked.

“This place is a bad place to be after dark; beings from the depths,” is all she would say as she slung the bags over the dragon’s neck then proceeded to cinch them down. Climbing up the dragon's neck she sat in her saddle.

Jansen wasn't very far behind. She had no inclinations of finding out what came out of the depth of the river after dark, and the sun had just set.

Their mount got up on its two hind legs and spread its great wings, and after a long ear-piercing screech they felt themselves surging forward. The dragon beat her great wings faster and faster, then there was a lurch that caused Jansen’s stomach to do a flip, and they were over the tree tops once again.

The scented evening air rushing past Jansen’s face gave her the sensation of pure freedom once more. Closing her eyes allowed that one thought to occupy her entire mind.

There were millions of stars in the clear sky above. "Oh, wow!" Jansen yelled in wonderment. Jeji turned to look at her and saw her pointing in a direction to their left. This night was too beautiful to escape the notice of even a seasoned traveler like Jansen.

A large galaxy loomed like a half moon over the horizon, she could see it so clearly that she could make out the fine details of the swirling dust nebulas and stars. After the galaxy had cleared the horizon two other celestial bodies followed in its place. Two very large moons, one slightly smaller than the other, arose. One was a pale brown color, the other a pale purple. She shook her head and said to Jeji, "This place never ceases to come up with surprises,"

Jeji began to laugh and for a bit I was worried she would fall off her saddle, but she was secured-in. Finally she stopped laughing then looked at Jansen. “Your face, you just looked so funny like you had just seen a ghost riding across the heavens in a chariot pulled by six unicorns. Or was that reindeer and elves and a sleigh?" she said raising her left eyebrow. “I always get my Earth mythologies mixed-up, but I must admit a lot of them are where fiction becomes reality.”

Jansen felt the dragon bank to the left. She could hear the creaking of the harnesses as their great mount strained to maintain their degree of descent at a steady pace, for it is not unusual for a distracted dragon to land on its chin.

The dragon leveled and glided gently. The only sound Jansen could hear was the air rushing past her ears. Her hair fluttered in the wind and again she closed her eyes and felt ecstasy once more. “If this is the feeling that is called ‘the call of the wild’, it would not surprise me,” she dreamed.

"Enraptured into the spirit of nature. That's what it felt like to me," Jansen said to Jeji. Jeji smiled then announced, "We are here, Captain." She turned forward again.

There was a large platform made of poles all around the upper part of the tree. The dragon landed on the platform with a thump. She thought to herself, “It's a good thing I didn't have my chin close to something. I might be missing some teeth!”

Jansen was not expecting to see what she saw next: the little children with the dragon fly wings!

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Agathar, Part 11

Jansen was not expecting to see what she saw next:

the little children with the dragonfly wings!

Jansen and Jeji were escorted through an aperture in a large tree by one of the dragonfly-winged children. The tree was not as big a tree as the ones the Cadose live in but it was big enough to contain a community of the children with dragonfly wings. “They look a lot like the fairy folk my friend from my university days told me about,” Jansen thought, “but these are of a childlike appearance and movement.”

Their child-guide brought them to a large room, a room that contained a long table with many chairs around it, where they were seated. One of the little ones half-jumped and flew up on a chair at the end of the table and introductions followed. Their host was a dragonfly-winged girl with brown eyes and hair whose name was Yanina.

“The winged children sound highly intelligent and wise, much the same as the fairy folk who were described to me,” Jansen thought.

She was mesmerized by the beauty and innocent appearance of these child-like beings. But it was obvious that they should not be mistaken for mere children as they had an intelligence level she believed to be equal to or possibly a few levels above her own. The way they lived was the way they chose to live and they didn't appear to have any interest in changing their normal, natural life patterns any time soon.

After her welcoming remarks Yanina asked

everyone present to welcome their guests. Antana, the speaker who had just finished her greetings, sat back in her chair and thought, “I can't remember the last time we had visitors from outside of Moro. The last time I had heard of any strangers from another land was in some stories from the elders.” They were elders only by years and not appearance as aging did not exist in Moro.

Antana remembered clearly now, the stories the elders told about beings that came down in light, big light, with much thunder. They emphasized the thunder.

The beings from the first big lights were not nice beings. But another light came down to the ground and there ensued much noise, bright flashes of light, and thunderclaps, until those who landed with the first lights from the heavens finally left.

The being from the second light were, according to the elders, peace makers and peace keepers. This is what had been told to Antana.

The telling of these stories by her people was, for as long as she could remember, a part of a special occasion as well as a pillar of their educational system. They were celebrated in a kind of ceremonial way with the ceremonial fire, music and dancers pantomiming the story.

After a simple but tasty meal, Jansen stepped out onto the platform and, leaning her two arms on the railing, looked down. “At least this is a little closer to the ground,” she thought. She couldn't help but feel acrophobic just going near the railings on the Cadose platforms. Actually it was a mix of feeling both acrophobia and vertigo, a strange pair of ailments for a rocket jockey.

“From here I can see what I would land on if I fell from here. That makes me feel a little better. A few of my bones might make it intact,” Jansen thought, when she felt something brush by her that nearly caused her to jump over the railing.

Antana landed agilely next to her at the platform railing, bowed slightly, smiled then said, "It is a beautiful evening with the bright stars, and Quintari ( the spiral galaxy) just coming over the horizon.” Antana pointed to the five-armed spiral as Jansen looked up. "Yes that is just so stunningly beautiful, I must admit that I have not seen anything anywhere else to come close in comparison to the entrancing beauty of this world. It is so peaceful and unspoiled," Jansen replied, her true emotions showing.

Antana noded then went on “First I must tell you a story then I will tell you more about Moro," Antana said. Then she proceeded to tell Jansen about the ceremonial stories:

"This land is now as it was from the time our Great Mother, who made all the stars, gave it to us for our home. We care and tend the great mothers gift to us, we are the keepers of our gardens and our gardens supply us with what we need. We are not in need of anything else," Antana finished and smiled the childish smile common to a youngster’s face.

“Hers is a face that shows much wisdom with eyes containing such a deep mystery as the cosmos itself,” Jansen thought. Shivers went down here spine as she thought of the possibility that she could be looking at a being more ancient than she could possibly know, one whose age has been lost in the annals of time.

Jansen asked, “Tell me Antana, do you have any idea how old you are? Like how many passages of the seasons have you seen?"

Antana looked at Jansen quizzically. She leaned her head to the left and looked up as through searching for the answer in the sky. She squinted her eyes then opened them and said, “As far back as when the hill over there was a mountain,” she said to Jansen as she hovered up and over the railing and pointed at the hill whose top just cleared the surrounding trees. Big trees, but not Cadose-size trees.

"Do you wish to go there? That is where the singing fountain is." Antana invited her.

"How will I get there?" Jansen asked. Antana hovered before her and crossed her arms then pointed behind her and the shaggy dragon perched on a large limb just above them.

Jansen responded, "I don't think so, Antana. Jeji said she was retiring early tonight. She was exhausted from all the dragon piloting or whatever one would call it. You know, the mind-to-mind thing,” Jensen pointed to her head and Antana's head.

"That's alright," said Antana, again hovering in the air in front of Jansen, with her arms crossed and smiling. “You can do it, you know how to do it. You are just not aware of it yet. It's instinct not just telepathy,” Antana said, both assuring and encouraging Jansen

"I don't know about this, Antana. You appear to have more confidence in me than I have in myself when it comes to heights. Of course you don't have to worry about that. You have wings. In an enclosure where I am in control, like on my ship, the QLPJ, that's different. I feel more secure. No enclosure around a dragon and no controls makes me feel uneasy, and queezy over the altitude,” Jansen finished.

"It's not confidence I feel, it's instinct, and you are in control, you and the beast become one mind!" Antana reveled.

"OK, but if I break my neck I'll be very upset, and someone will be upset with me because I could have hurt their dragon as well."

"She is your dragon, Jansen. She was picked for you," Antana announced.

Jansen almost choked then breathed and asked," Picked for me? How did anyone on this planet know I was coming and who I am supposed to be according to your analysis?"

"The energy bed where you healed; the healing beds are connected to that interplanetary living grid work. The Cadose legends described a ship that is identical in description to yours. In the legends it also crashed in the same area where yours did. Through the natural psychic grid that connects the consciousness of all living things on this planet, the psychic grid knowledge is passed on or shared almost instantaneously, like telepathy as you call it. And that is all the instrument panel and controls you need for the dragon.”

“But that still doesn’t explain everything to my satisfaction,” said Jansen, in a somewhat meek tone.

Jansen slid onto the back of the dragon and slowly put her feet into the stirrups as she tied herself into the woven saddle. The dragon turned to look at her with large pink eyes. She made a loud mewling sound but no other indication except for possibly a little irritation as her back shivered Jansen’s weight.

"OK Teddy, everything is fine. We're just going to go exercise those wings of yours for a bit. Do you mind?" said Jansen as she thought aloud.

Teddy responded with a loud screech then turned and jumped while unfolding her wings. She flapped them once as she came just a meter from hitting the ground, then she flapped lazily again once more taking them up to about a four meters off the ground, then back down again until she decided to flap her wings once more.

Jansen was in mortal fear by this time. She closed her eyes and just gritted her teeth in expectation when she saw a very large tree coming at them. Something crashed into her and, even though she was tied into the saddle, nearly knocked her out of it.

She felt a straight upwards surge and the speeding-up of the large wing beats when she decided to open her eyes and found herself spewing leaves from her mouth and picking twigs and leaves out of her blouse.

Looking up she saw a very large branch coming right at her, a branch so large that she swore to herself that it must have been a tree trunk bigger than a California redwood. This time she flattened herself forward against Teddy's back and held her neck with two hands at the same time doing all she could to send a mental image of where she would like to see Teddy go.

She felt more tree branches whipping at her back and sides then nothing, just the whistling of the air in her ears. She opened her eyes and looked. “You did it, Teddy!” she shouted excitedly and patted her dragon’s neck with her right hand.

They flew smoothly and peacefully towards the hill, than banked to the left and flew around the hill in a circle. Scouting was always the smart thing to do on any planet, she thought. Then I saw the meeting place that Antna had described to her.

Teddy hit the ground at a trot raising a small trail of dust behind them. Jansen sat, absorbed by the scene before her, the moutain top was surrounded by billions of briliant stars of every color imaginable.

Agathar 1, Agathar 10, Agathar 11,

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Agathar 2, Agathar 3 Agathar 4, Agathar 5 Agathar 6, Agathar 7, Agathar 8, Agathar 9 Agathar

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Agathar 12, Agathar 13

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The Dragon's Talisman part 3 page 7 of 8 ~ Total 15 pages

The Dragon's Talisman part 3 page 7 of  8 ~ Total 15 pages

In the midst of all of this action my mind found a few milliseconds to think about what would happen if our mission failed. “If we fail,” I thought, “it will mean that the present time line will continue to its cataclysmic end where the dark force wins, and that outcome is on our shoulders.” “It’s not just one reality that is at stake but many. Many layers of reality will be changed, like a shock waves or ripples on a pond when one drops a stone in it. Many realities that are in themselves like shock waves, or ripples in a pond, this pond being the fabric of time and space itself.”

As if that was not enough to consider, I added this to what was already on my mind: “This possibility of changing so many time lines would also cause many other time lines to be set back into chaotic realities. That is why this mission to the lower reality to acquire the dragon's talisman was so crucial. The talisman had to be brought to the upper reality, my birth home, a dying world that needed to be brought back to the same harmonic vibrations with the lower world and the Fairy world of long ago, even before the giants and the artifacts, tools of the gods as some describe them.” Tears welled up and ran down my cheeks in sadness for my birthplace as I thought.


I arrived at the area of the stone pillar where the entrance to the inner chambers should have been. I knew Jason would be impatiently waiting. Dragon and I flew around in wide circles as we feverishly looked for the entrance to appear. A part of the stone wall just wavered fluidly then disappeared. The entrance to the Dragon's Keep, Jason and I had named it.


Dragon landed lightly on a ledge, lowered her head to the cavern floor, and I slid down her neck to the ground and stepped aside. I put my hand on her scaly forehead. Her huge, glowing ruby eye stared at me with much respect and love. I left her with the thought, “If I should for some reason not able to get back to you and should this compound be breached, use the portal and go back to Fairy world.” If a dragon ever could show emotion I would have to say that I detected sadness in her reply.


Dragon spread her huge leathery wings and let out a screech to emphasize her feelings. Smoke drifted out from her nostrils. Folding her wings she snorted two more puffs of smoke then settled back for the wait. I clasped my hands together, closed my eyes and bowed slightly then turned and left and departed from her presence in to one of the many corridors that branched out from the central core.

I went to the control room where Jason had been waiting for me. I dropped my bag and lance to the stone floor and we embraced for what seemed an eternity. I didn't want it to end. To be in such total harmony with a being other than my Dragon was something that I had not experienced in a very long time. It felt like a few earth lifetimes.


Reluctantly, we disengaged. I stepped back a pace and said, “OK, we have no time to waste.” I updated Jason as to our success in making the intruders back away, reminding him the threat still existed, and that if they want to get in here they will. Reinforcements will return, the number and type of which would depend on just how much the government might think your project is a threat to them,” I informed him.


My feelings were correct. As we got about half-way down the corridor to the control room, we heard a muffled boom, then the entire corridor shook as sand and dust sifted down from the vaulted ceiling.


We entered the control center and made our way to the talisman receptacle part of the huge floor-to-ceiling console. Its array of electronic displays was already blinking like a Christmas tree. I saw the imprint of the talisman embedded in part of the console, but the material from which that receptacle was made was not the same as the rest of the console or any of the other artifacts that lay everywhere in these chambers.


Another muffled rumble and the ground shook once again. I nearly dropped the talisman as I withdrew it from my bag.


When the ground stopped shaking I gave Jason the talisman, held his hand monetarily and said, “May Spirit be with you!”


The ground shuddered again as Jason was about to insert the talisman into its receptacle. He steadied himself and slowly inserted the talisman, then pushed it in the rest of the way into its socket. He closed his eyes tightly and waited.


There was another booming sound followed by loud crashing sounds, sounds like those of large blocks of stone falling to the stone floor. The vibrations were very low at first, I felt like that of many ants crawling on my bare skin.


Jason quickly made his way to another console and pressed several buttons in rapid sequence. A stone wall materialized where the entrance to the control center had once been. “We are completely sealed from the outside.” He turned to inform me, “Now there's half a solid stone pillar between us and them. Let them try to figure out where next to blast. The only problem is that we're stuck in here like mummies in a pyramid.”


The tingling increased and I could actually see tiny ripples in the air around me, like ripples in water when something is vibrating in it. 


“Jason!” I pointed to the air in the chamber. “I think it's working!”


Jason took his glasses off to make certain it wasn't his eyes playing tricks or his glasses. He turned to me and exclaimed joyfully, “We did it, my love! We did it!” We danced triumphantly around between the instrument panels. It wasn't long until we heard more booming sounds, but this time further away.


“How long before the harmonic vibrations take effect?,” I asked.

“They have already taken effect, my beloved. Once started no one can stop them, even if the destroyed this chamber. Withdrawing the talisman he handed it back to me and said, “you may need this again. The air continued to vibrate and ripple all around us.


“The most pressing thing to consider now is what do we want to do with whatever remaining time we have before we run out of breathable air.”


I responded “There is nothing to be concerned about, my dearest prince of light, I have this:” I unsheathed my spear.


“But what can you do with that against the stone walls of our confines?,” Jason asked.


“Watch,” I said. I raised the lance towards the ceiling and touched the right side of the handle with my right index finger. The air began swirling around us. I put my left arm around Jason. “hang on this will be a little rough.” I informed, almost instantly we were swallowed up into the vortex of a small tornado.


We were spun in the dark, losing all sense of direction.

After what felt like an hour, I landed on the ground rolling then jumped to my feet. I looked around for Jason but could not see him anywhere. I heard someone shouting, “Help!” from above me. That is where I found Jason perched precariously on top of a tree!


I sure wish that whoever invented the reality jump spear would have worked out some of its minor deficiencies better when they made them. Not that there are very many of them; I am the only one so far that I have met that has one of these unique spears.


The fairy people came in parades from everywhere. I recognized some from our party so I was relieved to see that they found their way back. But where was Dragon?


I went up into the tree to help Jason climb down. I had to talk him down. My prince was afraid to fall out of the tree! He joined me at my side and put his arm around me. He was mesmerized by all the beauty of fairy world with its golden sunshine, rainbow colored skies, and beautiful blooming flowers of every hue imaginable!


In the distance there were purple, dark blue, as well orange, green, red mountains and rolling hills. Waterfalls seemed to come out of the sky turn into gently flowing rivers. And the beautiful music of the song birds was like nothing he had ever heard before.


I stood quietly watching the sky as Jason was coming to his senses. He noticed that I had not fared all that well.


“What is it it, my beloved?” he whispered in my ear.


“Dragon! Dragon! I don't see Dragon anywhere,” I told him. Jason felt a little awkward at not having thought of that. He held me to his side even more tightly and I leaned my head on his shoulder and wept.


From the distance I heard a faint screeching sound. My eyes opened as I stepped away from Jason to look in the direction from where I thought the sound came. A second screech was followed by a third and then more!


As I looked in the direction from where the screeching came I saw a blur, then the shape of a dragon became clear from the blur. Its form grew larger as it got closer. A few minutes passed and then there was no longer any doubt that it was Dragon! She landed next to Jason and I with her large wings outstretched, then folded them. She grunted and two puffs of smoke drifted from her nostrils.


The End ?

The Dragon's Talisman Part 3 page 6 of 8

The Dragon's Talisman Part 3 page 6 of 8

More gunfire came from within the cavern. I pressed the handle on the spear and another beam of blue light shot out. There was a commotion of sound coming from within. I raised my head to see over the curve of the cavern floor and saw many people milling around with rifles in their hands.
 
Suddenly they started running towards the entrance. They were charging me with weapons at hand, just as I expected! If I made it to this point and was still alive my plan was to get them to chase me through the woods. I was on my feet and half-way across the clearing when I slowed and turned to look back. They had just left the entrance to the cavern and started their ways across the savanna-like clearing. I slowed my pace some to make sure they would not lose me.

 
I entered back into the forest exactly where I had emerged earlier. I changed my course from due south to east, halted here and there to shake a bush, just loud enough for them to hear so they would follow. I heard a gun shot behind me and I stepped up my pace so that to an onlooker all they would see is a blur. 

A quick right turn and a push in the right place caused a large cypress to begin to fall towards the mob that followed me. A second later it was followed by a few cries of , “OK.” “The tree trick got a couple of customers,” I thought, smiling as I kept running. “Now,” I thought as I gathered an extra burst of speed. I leaped into the air and found myself airborne sailing over where the twine would be.

I hit the ground running and sent a message out to Dragon. I heard several crashing sounds coming from behind me. I flattened myself to the ground when I heard several stray gunshots. “That will teach them to run around the bush with loaded rifles cocked and ready to fire,” I thought wryly. 

I heard a few moans coming from the area behind me. Then Dragon arrived. She messaged to me asking if I was out of danger. I sent back, “Yes.” 

Dragon circled around once then set to work. The night sky lit up again as Dragon flamed-on. I was quite sure that I hadn’t given her warning prior to this about not harming any one. Dragon would be having human fried steak for supper. 

The whole crew that had been in that encampment were all accounted for, some a little more worse for wear but in one piece. They sat cross legged in a semi circle around a small campfire that Dragon helped arrange for me.
 
I paced back and forth before the campfire, lance in hand. “It is my suggestion that it would be much better for your health that you go to the east from here. It will take you out to a dirt road past a few farms and on to the highway.” “Leave right now and please make sure that you don’t return, I won’t be responsible for what she will do,” I pointed to Dragon who was only a few paces behind me, attentively watching all proceedings. 

After they had all entered the forest the next phase of the operations took place. The agents were constantly being pelted by unknown missiles from above. One didn’t dare look up for fear of losing an eye. The fairy people flew low to the tops of the trees to stay out of sight and at the same time collect a supply of ammunition. The agents kept moving, reluctantly at that. 

“To fight our way back through that is just a bit insane,” one male agent told his female counterpart, whom he held tightly with his arm trying to shield her from the killer walnuts. Upon seeing them the fairies ceased immediately bombarding them with walnuts and continued following along peacefully with the rest of the agents out of the woods and onto the dirt road.
 
The fairy people left, flying back towards the Pillar to

rendezvous with Dragon and I. This would not stop them for long, come morning the skies would be covered with helicopters. I just prayed it would be enough time to deliver the talisman to its receptacle, and reverse endangering of ancient unknown artifacts. It was a gamble they would have to take.

If we fail it will mean that the present time line will continue to its cataclysmic end where the dark force wins. It’s not just one reality that is at stake but many. Many layers of reality will be changed, like a shock wave.

Writen by me, To Be Continued

The Dragon's Talisman Part 3 page 5 of 8

The Dragon's Talisman Part  3 page 5 of 8

It was late evening and darkness was falling. Jason said that going out while still daylight we would have made to big a target. Under the darkening sky we flew due east around the pillar making our way to the east side where the blasts had come from, just as we had planned, so far we had not been detected.

It was only supposed to be a reconnaissance flight; fly there, check the ground conditions, then come back and make a report. This was when I heard those popping sounds from the darkness below and saw flames with the popping noises.  We were being fired upon!

I felt something thumping on Dragon’s left flank. Dragon screeched,

and shooting flames she made a steep sideways drop. It was so sudden that I felt myself slip from Dragon’s back. 

The next thing I knew, I was in free fall with the air rushing in my face. I felt a very sharp blow when I hit the top of the trees. A sharp pain flared up in my right rib area. I bounced three times then hit the ground rolling. 

Getting up, I winced at the pain in my right side. I felt around and was relieved that I had no broken ribs. Badly bruised, yes, but not broken.

I pulled out the lance, pressed the handle, and a long, smooth rod with a three-foot blade that glowed blue in the darkness appeared. This lance was not ordinary. It did not kill, it only stunned, disabling its victim for a short period of time. It was another of the many gifts from fairy land. 

Were the artifacts like this spear among the things that Jason has? I never thought to ask the fairy people. Some would call this spear an energy weapon. That might be a good description It could disable an army in a circle up to a quarter mile away. Or I could point it at one individual and only that individual would be affected. 

I practiced a bit to loosen myself by dancing around the woods while taking many different stances and moves of the warrior. I  stopped abruptly in a thrust stance with the lance, pulled it back, then pressed on the handle with my thumb and the blade returned to a rusty red where then I put it back in my bag.

Looking back I saw the few scattered branches where I had landed. Now I knew how Dragon had felt, except I couldn't scream and shoot out flame. On that thought I slung my bag back over my shoulder, winced from sore ribs again and thought: I had other toys in there for back up if I needed them. One was a simple spool of twine which I held in my hand.

Two hundred feet of line tied among fifteen trees that I had marked for possible later reference, that should do it, I said to myself. Getting up I plucked the twine and it twanged like a finely-tuned guitar string. I was satisfied as I started my trek up hill towards the encampment of agents above at the foot of the pillar. They no doubt knew that the pillar was man-made or else why are they blasting?

Climbing was made a bit more difficult with my sore ribs but it was not so painful as to keep me from continuing the mission. I heard a loud roar and flames lit up the sky right ahead of me,  followed by another roar and flame to my right. 

I stood still and closed my eyes and thought, "Dragon! Do not kill them, scare them away if you can but do not harm them." My thoughts were returned by Dragon, "No harm." I could also feel the pain she felt from where bullets had hit her. Granted, the bullets would never penetrate her thick armor of scales, but it still hurt, like being hit by pebbles from the spinning wheels of a car.

I came to the top of the hill and got down on one knee while I surveyed the clearing that was part of the empty space between forest and tower. There must have been something to do with the tower that kept that strip of land clear of vegetation, something that not even Jason had found or come to a conclusion as to its source, yet. 

I heard another roar but this time a little more distant. Then I saw the flash of flame on the other side of the clearing next to the tower wall. Now that my eyes had adjusted I could see the dark shape of Dragon circling that same area at the foot of the pillar.

Springing to my feet I ran as fast as I could. Outside of the dull pain in my right side I felt like a gazelle running across a savannah. I stopped running and continued walking towards a group of men who had holed up in a cavern at the base of the pillar. "A place where I can not reach without damaging them," Dragon informed me.

"Keep guard. I will be there shortly," I relayed back to Dragon. 

I climbed up to the top of the cavern floor and I immediately noticed that the cavern was not natural. It was part of the excavation by the people now under Dragon’s watchful eye. 

I thought they would have been blasting for quite a while to get to the main core where our labs and command centers were located. Given the direction of their work they would have missed it by several hundred feet and come out on the other side. 

I stood straight and still and waited. My long hair fell loose over my shoulders, legs slightly apart. I held my spear upright; the blade glowed a bright blue. Facing the people within the cavern I said: "You are trespassing. I would suggest that you pack all of your things and leave here. If not,” I pointed over my shoulder, “My friend out there will make toast out of you. Understand?" I asked. 

I heard some rapid gunfire from the left and saw little puffs of dust on the rocky floor. I moved, turning a somersault to the right, and landed on my hands and two feet. I then flattened to the cavern floor, pointed the spear at the man with the gun and pressed the handle on the spear. A beam of blue light shot out and I heard a thump and a firearm clattering to the stone floor.  I knew that particular threat had been neutralized.

More gunfire came from within the cavern. 
  

The Dragon’s Talisman Part 3 page 4 of 8

The Dragon’s Talisman Part 3 page 4 of 8

“So! You say that it’s more like a hologram? It sure felt real to me. I feared most being torn apart by that tornado we were inside of,” I said in a somewhat puzzled voice.

“The essence or the consciousness of our beings was there, in real time, well, real time 60 million light years ago.” 

“60 million years ago they killed their home, ravaging it with wars and waste, complete disregard for the consequences these would have on their environment. Owing to their total disregard and indifference to the effects they had on their own eco system, it became a dead planet. They had to find elsewhere to live.”

“They were revered as gods, but something went terribly wrong and

they very suddenly had to leave the planets they had colonized here in this solar system. That’s all I have been able to decode from the artifacts so far,” Jason explained.

Another shiver came over me with the thoughts of such beings from such a different time and place possibly having been in this very facility. “Do you think they’re still around?” I asked.

Jason shrugged his shoulders. “Some may have stayed behind to do whatever it was that was so urgent in order for them to leave; their very existence would have to have been in grave danger.” “What gives me the goose bumps is this: what could it have been to frighten away such powerful, highly-advanced beings” There certainly wasn’t anything on this planet that could have been of any threat to them,” Jason finished.

“So then it would have to have been a source from outside of this planetary system because they would have encountered or detected it much sooner in the early part of their arrival if it had been local,” I theorized.  

“Yes my thoughts exactly, it must have come from outside our solar system. Could it be something much more powerful was following them?” Jason wondered aloud.

We turned the corner into another corridor and kept walking as we talked. We were making our way to the gate to deliver the talisman its final resting place. I crossed my fingers and prayed that Jason’s reverse engineering of the artifact technology with ours would hold together.

Well I didn’t know what the end result would be but I had to trust in what Jason had said earlier about a great change, gradual, probably not even that noticeable at first. But it would be irreversible once the key was turned, where in this case it is inserting the talisman in its cradle, a molding set in an artifact.

At the edge of the long corridor there was a heavy metal door. Jason stopped and took his hand-held instrument from his pocket, aimed it at the door and pressed on the side of the object with his thumb. The door slid up to expose a very bright interior. I put my hand up before my eyes but continued to follow Jason into the brilliantly-lit room. Again, another source of light I could not detect. It was as if the light came from the air. I guess I had stopped momentarily during the time I was contemplating on the light.

“The light source is in the air itself!” I said in amazement, “Ionized air.” “You will see there is no distortion of light here nor are there any shadows.” Jason spoke.

The ground shook under our feet just as we had arrived at the terminal that contained the artifact. I lost my footing temporarily and fell against one of the instrument panels. I felt something buzz beneath where my shoulder had struck and the entire room went dark.

“I think I broke something,” I said lamely. “It’s OK, I can fix that” “We have a more immediate threat! Someone out there  is trying to blast their way through and they could succeed if they hit any of the ancient sealed entrances that we have not yet fortified!” Jason exclaimed.

“Who are they?” I asked, “The same ones as before with the van and other vehicles?”  

“I am not certain but whoever they are they appear to be quite determined to get in here. And for anyone to be that determined to get in here they must be convinced there is something in here worth the work and time of getting in here.”

A medium-sized man in a military-type uniform came up to Jason and showed him a piece of paper whereupon Jason nodded and the person in military uniform nodded back, then left.

“It’s the same people, special government agents.” It seems that these people are not very favorable to private enterprise, especially if it comes to close to matching their own intelligence.” Jason declared.

“I may have one solution.” I told Jason. “I am not just a courier from another reality I am also a well seasoned warrior. I would like to request that you open the entrance to dragon’s chamber so that we may go and scout and maybe even shake them up enough to back away for a while, until we get the power up again here to proceed with our operations,”

I volunteered.  

The emergency power came back on, the difference in the intensity

in light as compared to before was about as different as the light from a 100 watt bulb to a candle.

James motioned me to follow him.

“Follow that corridor to its end and don’t turn into any other corridor - just go straight forward,” he directed. He handed me one of those hand held instruments and told me to   press on the right side with my thumb to open the door.

“Go into the chamber and collect your dragon then press the same side of that mechanism I gave you and it will open the main tunnel to the outside world as well.  From there you are on your own I’m afraid, my sweetness.”

Just then the ground shook and streams of sand and dust sifted down from the ceiling. I embraced him and we kissed a long lingering kiss like it could have been our last kiss. That was a distinct possibility, I thought. He then held my hands and said, “I will be waiting for you, my sweetness.”   

Dragon and I hit the outside air with such speed that to an onlooker we would have been no more the a blur

To be continued