by Dave Hazel
Mykal understood he wasn’t thinking true thoughts. He knew he struggled with evil thoughts because of his magic ring. ‘No, I can’t get rid of this. This is what’s keeping me safe,’ he argued with himself and stirred in his uncomfortable feelings. ‘Even if this ring is causing me to do evil stuff and to think evil thoughts at times, I can’t give it up. I’ll be in danger. Surely God would have to understand,’ he wondered and looked over at the silhouette of Diaz on his knees with his hands clasped together. ‘I gotta talk to Diaz or Ski about this when I get back to the Pass,’ he thought and looked at the gold band around his middle finger. ‘I’ll try being a better person from this point on.’
Mykal continued to listen to Diaz pray. “…and Father I know Azarski was dead, but I saw him attack us with those other people. I know what your Word says, ‘It is appointed unto man to die once and then the judgment,’ so I ask You for wisdom because this goes against everything I would think. I know the body is not the soul and the spirit, but Father I don’t know how to make sense of this. Help me, give me strength so this will not rock my faith, and give me Your wisdom so I won’t question and doubt my faith, but I also ask for Your knowledge so I can understand this. I know You are God and nothing is impossible for You. Honestly, I just don’t know how to deal with this.
“I ask you LORD God to help me be the best example of a Christian I can be for these men. I understand God, that some of these men will never read the Bible so I will be the only Bible they will ever read. Help me to be the light and love of Christ to draw these men unto You Father, not because there is anything special about me, but I want to help point people to You and Your love. Help me show these men that I love and care for them with the love and compassion You pour into me. I ask all of this in the precious name of Jesus, Name above all names, LORD of all Lords and God of all gods. Amen,” he said and finished with a couple of sniffles and had to wipe his eyes.
Mykal watched the silhouette of Diaz wipe at his eyes, lift his head toward heaven and raise his arms. “I love You God and I thank you for your mercy, grace and great love. Help me keep my eyes focused on you no matter what this world throws at me or what the enemy tries to trip me up with. Thank You gracious Father, thank You precious Son Jesus, thank You righteous Holy Spirit. I surrender my all to You.”
Mykal laid there and wondered what made men like Diaz and Ski tick. How could they have a ‘relationship’ with someone or something they couldn’t even see? How do they know it’s real and not just a figment of their imagination? ‘How sure could he really be that his God is listening to him while we’re here in Towbar’s world? And not only in Towbar’s world but under a mountain in Towbar’s world? He sounds like he believes it, but what if it’s just his emotions? Or what if it’s just in his head? Can God, Almighty God, really have a true relationship with a puny human like us?’ He wondered and continued to wonder about the God that both Diaz and Ski talked about constantly. He dwelled on the subject of God until he fell asleep.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN 01/18/1984
1. Wednesday, January 18th 1984
0426 hours, Inside of Mountain, Other Side of Towbar’s World (11th Day)
“Hey Mykal, get up Myk,” Roy Jr. said quietly so as not to startle him.
“Huh, what’s up? Is it my time to do guard duty?” Mykal asked and sat up from the rock floor.
“Nah, Diaz said to get you up so we can head out,” Randy answered for his brother. “It’s almost 4:30 and he wants to get moving so we can get out from under this big ass rock as soon as possible.”
“How come no one got me up for guard duty?” He asked while stretching and working some of his stiff muscles.
“Diaz said you needed your rest,” Roy Jr. replied. “But are you up? Cuz we’re gonna get the others up.”
“Yeah, I’m up. Thanks guys, I’ll be with you in a few minutes,” he said and sat there. Suddenly Mykal was filled with sadness and wanted to be home with his wife and kids. He missed them dearly, but he knew he had a mission to accomplish or Doninka would probably get killed. He had to push his personal feelings and emotions aside and get the task at hand done. He calmed himself with the fact that this can’t go on forever. There was a deadline to be met, February 7th.
‘This is gonna end by the 7th of February one way or another,’ he thought. ‘Then I’ll be able to focus on my family. Damn it. If only I would have taken Doninka back with me on New Year’s Eve,’ Mykal thought with punishing guilt for the umpteenth time. ‘Not only would she be safe but then none of these other guys would have been killed. This is all my friggin fault. We gotta find her and rescue her.’
“Oh, you’re up?” Mathis asked when he saw Mykal sitting in the dark.
“Yeah, I’m up. I’m just trying to get myself motivated to get moving,” he snickered.
“I don’t know what we’re going to do Mykal,” Mathis whispered in a serious tone. “But Sergeant Overman, the one who got bitten by those zombies or whatever those people were, well, he’s not looking too good.”
“Ah damn it,” Mykal sighed heavily. He feared taking Overman back to the Pass because of all the talk of zombies and the dead coming back to feast on the living, thus turning them into new zombies.
“He keeps saying he’s doing okay, but Mykal, he looks bad,” Mathis said and winced. “Everyone is scaring him and Sergeant Klein with the talk of zombies and the zombie movies they’ve seen back home.”
“Are you friggin kiddin’ me?” Mykal asked in anger. “Why the hell would they say that shit in front of them like that?”
“I don’t think they’re trying to.” Mathis back stepped a couple of steps at Mykal’s rage. “They’re all talking about it and they just heard bits and pieces.”
“Where the hell are they?” He asked as he jumped to his feet.
“Mykal, I didn’t mean to get you angry. I just wanted to--”
“No, you didn’t make me angry but they shouldn’t be talking that stuff around them. We don’t know what the true story is on that stuff. Those two guys are friggin scared as it is,” he said with a scowl that revealed his anger.
“I agree, but they’re over there with Lieutenant Finley,” he replied and pointed.
Mykal left Mathis and rushed to join Finley and Diaz who were speaking to both injured men, Overman and Klein, with a couple of the medics. The father and son reporter and cameraman team of Josh and Jeff ‘Lil Bit’ were recording the discussion.
“…but after we get out from under this mountain we’ll take you both back to the Pass and have the hospital take care of you, okay?” Captain Diaz promised.
“That’s fine Sir,” Overman said and looked like what one would expect from a victim of a zombie movie. His skin was pale, with darkened circles under his sunken eyes. His eyes were blood-shot and looked heavy. “I’m doing okay. I just feel like I have a touch of the flu. That’s all.”
Mykal didn’t like the position he felt he was in. If there was truth to the zombie talk then he would be putting everyone back at camp at risk by taking him there. If there was no truth to the zombie talk then he was making them both suffer longer. “Do you think you can hold off until we get outside of the mountain?”
“Yeah Mykal, I’m really fine,” Overman answered quickly but looked like he was trying not to be an inconvenience and a burden to everyone.
“I’m doing fine too Myk,” Klein added. “I just hurt where I got bit, but it doesn’t seem like it will be a problem.”
“Alright. You guys just hang in there and we’ll get you the help you need as soon as we get a chance. We can’t do the green fog inside the mountain. The last time,” he paused because he decided he wasn’t going to lie to them. He needed time to think. He hoped he would come up with a good answer by the time they exited the mountain. “Just hang in there, okay?”
“Not a problem here,” Klein answered.
“Sure Mykal,” Overman said and gave a weak smile and looked suspiciously at those who were eyeing him.
; “Alright, you guys get your stuff together cuz we’re gonna head out,” Mykal instructed and felt horrible inside. Mykal wanted to run away and break down in sadness. The look in Overman’s eyes broke his heart. Overman, like every one of the men who volunteered for this mission, put his life on the line. Mykal knew he was denying Overman going back to the Pass due to the fear of Hollywood zombie movies. Mykal knew he was lying to the man who wanted to help him find and rescue Doninka. Mykal realized the magic ring caused his emotions to go all over the place but couldn’t stop the unbearable ache in his heart for the kid Overman.
All the men dispersed except for Diaz and Finley. “What’s the matter Mykal?” Diaz asked when it was just the three of them.
“I feel like crap. I’m scared for those two guys cuz I don’t know what the truth is about them,” he admitted. “I don’t wanna lie to them, but I don’t wanna put the rest of the world at risk.”
“That could have been a fluke thing with Azarski,” Finley said, but Finley sounded and looked disingenuous as if he made that comment for his peace of mind.
“Captain Diaz, I know you are a God fearing man and you really believe the stuff you talk about,” Mykal said with a slight sigh. “Would you please do me a favor and pray to God to give you an answer about what to do by the time we get outta this mountain? I don’t wanna make a wrong decision either way. Cuz if this is really a zombie type thing then we are putting the rest of the world at risk including all our people, which could possibly affect the people back in our world. And then again, if this is all blown up, blown out of proportion nonsense, then I’m causing these two brave guys to suffer longer than they deserve to.”
“I will do that Myk,” Diaz replied and looked honored by Mykal’s request. “I am so thankful that you know God is the One we need to turn to for an answer about something so monumental.
Mykal wasn’t sure if he imagined it or he saw a slight rolling of Finley’s eyes, but he wasn’t going to call him out in front of his superior and cause a rift in their relationship. “Do you guys know where Towbar is?”
“Yes, he went out that way with the Elves and Dwarves and Lanorear to see what lies ahead,” Diaz answered. “They said they would only go out about fifteen to twenty minutes away so they should be back any minute.”
“Thanks. I’ll talk to you guys later,” he said and turned away. Mykal had to get away. His emotions were getting the best of him and he knew the root cause was the magic ring that seemed to have such a strong hold on his mind.
He couldn’t pretend he didn’t feel the sadness and sorrow concerning Overman who looked to be bad off. But Mykal had to be honest with himself since he saw Azarski’s body up on his feet after he had been dead. He saw the dead Marine attack, not only another Marine but, his close friend as if he was a wild animal attacking a prey. He couldn’t live with himself if he brought Overman and Klein back only to have them turn and attack others who happened to be innocently in their way.
“What the hell am I gonna do?” He whispered to himself while he made his way to his friends. “I’ll just have to trust in what Diaz tells me.”
“Are we moving out Myk?” Roy Jr. asked.
“Yeah, look, Diaz is signaling. Let’s go.”
2.
After a couple of hours the column was halted. Mykal was requested to get to the front of the formation. Towbar went with him to see what stopped the forward motion. When Mykal reached the front he didn’t need to be told what was found. There were several many dark green little humanoid creatures sprawled out all over the path before them and into a cavern area off to the side of the path.
“Goblins,” Mykal declared and looked down at the damaged and broken bodies. They were dark green creatures that had the face of a bulldog and most had a severe under bite. “Do we know how many?”
“We counted twenty-seven Myk,” one of the men answered. “And all of them have been killed. I know that is obvious, but not one of them seemed to die from natural causes.”
“Do we know who or what killed them?” He asked as he slowly walked among the carcasses that did look to be dead for more than twenty-four hours.
“The arrows are not Elvin arrows,” Starling said.
“So we do not believe they were killed by Elves,” Leeno added.
“We believe it could have been soldiers of the Evil One,” Blair suggested.
Norg rose from looking at a couple of the bodies. “Not think axe be weapons. Look long blades,” he added and pointed to the swords of Towbar’s men and Nordad’s men.
There were bloody messes all around him, though the blood looked to be black. “We don’t have any of their foes here?”
“No, we were thinking they may have been caught by surprise,” Finley said. “Or maybe if there were others killed, they may have been dragged away to keep their losses unknown.”
“Oh man, I don’t wanna have to deal with friggin Goblins again,” he said and shook his head. He suddenly wondered if Captain William Roberts was still alive since he had been taken captive by Goblins back in December. Mykal wondered if any Goblins here under this mountain would be able to give information on William’s condition, but then that would raise a lot of questions since he told everyone he saw William get killed by Goblins. His hatred for William was so strong that he would shoot him dead if he ever encountered him again. He remembered the dreams and fears he had that William was still alive and under the control of Zizmon-Tarl, but he knew that could be all his over active imagination.
“Any advice for the new men if we should encounter these things?” Sergeant First Class Lemon asked.
“Kill them on sight,” Ratner barked loudly. “Cuz these meanie greenies will kill you without thinking twice.”
“Great point Gunney,” Mykal replied. He high fived the ranking Marine NCO. “Make sure all the men know that even though the Goblins are smaller they are really very dangerous. They’re not to be taken lightly, but I’m sure after all we’ve seen so far on this side of the world the new guys won’t take them lightly.”
“That’s right Sir,” Ratner replied. “And if any of them did I would kick their asses all the way back to the states,” he barked like an old hard-ass Drill Instructor. “I know some of them ol’ Army dawgs might make the mistake of thinkin’ they’re not that much of a threat, and may even think of these ugly assed Goblins as being a cute little stuffed animal type of creature,” he added with a humorous laugh. “But I know my lean mean killin’ machines, those hard core U.S. Marines won’t take them lightly and will brutally demolish these ugly green creatures.”
Lemon cleared his throat. Obviously he knew Ratner was joking, but he didn’t know how to respond to the grizzled old vet. Lemon knew Ratner was with them when they encountered Goblins the last time, since Ratner had explained some of the battles they had with the Goblins before Towbar arrived and took them away from the underground fortress. Others started to laugh at Ratner’s playful dig so he laughed with them.
Mykal saw the unease Ratner’s playful dig inflicted. “He’s just joking,” Mykal laughed. “Some of the Army dudes here faced the Goblins that last time and I’m sure they would like to get revenge if the opportunity presented itself.”
“Hooah. Hooah. Hooah,” shouted all four of the Army soldiers in unison. Two were Green Berets, Staff Sergeant Campbell and Sergeant Freeman and two were Rangers Sergeant McPherson and Corporal Hall who had experience all the running from and being trapped by the Goblins under the other mountain.
“I know you guys got your shit together,” Mykal laughed and raised his hand so all four of the Army soldiers could high five him. “You guys proved yourselves to me. I have no doubts when it comes to you guys. Now on the other hand some of youse who just joined us…” he joked which received a desired laugh. “I’m joking, I’m joking,” he said to hopefully lighten the mood. “Seriously though, pass it on to all the new guys,” Mykal added for the Marines, Towbar’s soldiers and anyone else who hadn’t encountered the Goblins previo
usly. “To be on guard and if you see Goblins, shoot first and ask questions later. This is serious business.”
“And for you new guys,” Sergeant McPherson responded with a stern look that broke into a wide smile. “Be sure to be on your toes. Mykal knows how to get the Goblins all pissed off.”
“How is that?” Army Ranger Sergeant Dirkson asked. He and Sergeant Nikopolous looked at each other and looked down at the dead Goblins and then back to each other again.
“We had been trapped in this big ball room type room after we had been chased by the ugly little monsters,” McPherson said and started to laugh. “They had chased us for hours and finally cornered us into this big room.”
Mykal started to laugh because he was sure what incident McPherson was going to bring up.
“We had attacked the Goblins a couple different times from inside the room and really put a hurt on them,” Staff Sergeant Campbell said and nodded enthusiastically.
“We had to get out of the room when we knew Towbar was coming,” Mykal said to clarify one of reasons for the attacks.
“But after Towbar was there and we had found another way out of the room,” McPherson continued and started to laugh even more. “Mykal came up with an idea to give them some special gifts as our way to apologize for the last attack.”
Those who had been there all began to laugh including Mykal. “It was the only thing I could think of,” Mykal said and laughed shyly.
“So we had the Goblins come to the opening of the door,” McPherson said and demonstrated the way the gifts were handed through the narrow opening of the door to the Goblins. “We placed live hand grenades into the hands of these Goblins, with the pins pulled mind you,” he laughed wildly. “And we told them not to drop them. Once all six grenades were handed off we shut the door and listened and all the men were laughing their asses off. It seemed like an hour passed but it was about thirty seconds or so and Ka-Boom and then several other big explosions one right after the other,” McPherson continued to laugh wildly. It blew their dumb asses to pieces and those that survived were pissed off,” he added which generated a loud round of laughter among the men.