PENDRAGON CHRONICLES BOOK 1: GUERRA Y PAZ
Well, here I am with the first book in the series. I suppose this is going to be rated M for…guns 'n stuff. And some harsh language and violence with the guns and war themes. Also that torture scene that seems to be in every Metal Gear game.
Also, the beginning chapter/prologue thingy is in the Pendragon category here on FanFiction. Search books and look for the P's. Or go to my channel. I think that would be easier. I highly recommend reading this beginning thing before this. Don't worry, it's short.
Oh, I should explain something: the POV switches from the main character, Bobby, to his friends occasionally. I'm sure you'll get the hang of it rather quickly.
The beginning more or less sticks to the beginning of the first Pendragon book, The Merchant of Death. But once Bobby and Press hit the Territory…it all changes. Read on, good readers.
And without further interruptions… the first chapter.
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SECOND EARTH
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"Hold on, hold on, hold on…" I muttered. "Where exactly is the Flume?"
"I'll have to show you." Press grinned. He tossed me a motorcycle helmet. "Put it on and hurry!"
I strapped the thing on my head and sat behind him on the motorcycle. He revved it and we shot down the street. "Hey, one question…what the heck is my mom going to think about this?"
"We don't need to worry about that until later." Press said.
Was I imagining things, or was there a hint of sadness in his voice…?
We rode for what felt like a good hour or so. We passed the towns I knew so well and continued on, to a not-so-safe looking neighborhood. Buildings were abandoned, windows smashed. Some buildings had caught fire and were still standing, the long-ago scorch marks still lining the windows and doors.
"Here we are." Press said, standing and leaving his helmet. He turned the 'cycle off, but kept the keys in the ignition.
"Um…why did you leave those…?" I asked.
"We don't need them anymore. The Acolytes will take care of it."
I wanted nothing more than to jump back on the vehicle and go back the way we had come, with or without Uncle Press.
"Why not?" I asked.
"Because we're going to First Earth, stupid!" Press laughed. "Now come on."
I followed him into an old subway station. It looked like it hadn't been used in years. Everywhere I looked, I could see old cans, bottles and boxes. "Are you sure this is the place?"
"I've been here a million times, Bobby. Trust me." Press said.
I have to admit, I was having a bit of a hard time with that. This just kept getting weirder and weirder.
We came to a boarded up section of the station. Press began tearing a few boards away only to be interrupted by a shout.
"CAN I GET ANY PEACE?!"
I jumped and spun around to see a homeless man dressed in rags shaking a half-empty beer bottle at us. "That is all I want! Peace! Leave me alone!"
"Sorry, we don't mean to intrude. We'll be out of here in no time. Sorry for intruding…" Press said. He began pulling the boards away a bit faster.
"Out! Get out!" The man continued.
"Yes…you should do what he says."
I jumped again at the new voice that came from my right. Standing there was a police officer in khakis and a blue shirt. He had a flashlight and what I assumed to be a Tazer.
"You're not fooling anyone, Saint Dane." Press said, going back to work on the boards.
"Saint Dane…?" I blinked.
"The police officers around here don't wear khakis." Press continued.
"PEACE! OUT! ALL OF YOU! OUT!"
The officer shrugged. His voice changed. "My mistake."
I watched as he changed from a middle-aged man to the tall, vampire-like one I had seen before in Press' house. He cast me a wicked grin. "Hello again, Bobby. I didn't expect Press to drag you out here so soon…so young, too…"
"Shut up," Uncle Press growled. "Leave Bobby alone. Besides, don't you have unfinished business on First Earth?"
"Oh, I'd say it's quite finished. Can the oh-so-brave Travelers save them…? We'll just have to see. I went easy on you two. This is his first Territory, after all." Saint Dane chuckled.
"GET OUT! I'LL CALL THE POLICE!" The homeless man continued.
Saint Dane whirled around to face him, his eyes flashing dangerous colours. The man gasped and then stood, running for us.
"Bobby, don't look…" Press warned.
"Let him watch. He'll see plenty of death as a Traveler." Saint Dane grinned.
I watched in horror as the man stopped on the abandoned subway tracks and stared down the tunnel. A rumbling began, deep in the cavern of the subway. A light illuminated the man…
"MOVE!" I shouted.
The man stared at me, as though confused. His eyes unfocused. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but his reply was cut off as the subway slammed into him.
I thought I screamed something. Saint Dane laughed. Press lowered his head and continued working with the blockade. A good sized hole had appeared.
"Come on, Bobby…let's go…"
"Ah-ah-ah…! Not so fast!" Saint Dane was still grinning madly. The thing I thought was a Tazer was aimed at my head. It was some type of gun, although I couldn't identify it.
"Bobby, run," Uncle Press pulled his own weapon from his side. "Use the ring. Get to the Flume. It has a star on it. Say, 'First Earth'. Watch out for quigs. Wait for me."
"Got it…what are quigs…?"
"Go!" Press had began firing.
I ducked and ran through the boards. A bullet grazed my shoe, narrowly missing my foot. I kept running. "Flume! Star! First Earth! Quigs! Don't get shot! Got it!"
It was dark, but I thought I saw something glowing up ahead. I ran toward it. It was a star…! I made it!
"First Earth!" I declared.
Nothing happened.
Something growled.
"Uh oh…" I turned. What I saw in front of me nearly made my heart stop.
At least five sets of beady yellow eyes were staring at me. The growling started up again, and I realized I was staring down a group of extremely large dogs.
"Nice doggies…" I whispered. My hand touched something…a doorknob. I quickly turned it and ducked into the room.
The dogs attacked the door, clawing and snarling. I held it shut, feeling them throw themselves against the wood with incredible force.
"First Earth!" I shouted.
From within the room, I thought I heard music. It began growing louder, a sweet little, chaotic tune. A light formed and grew. Crystals coated the stones in the wall. I was being pulled to it.
I tried to resist, but I was swept off my feet and thrown through the light. I was resting on a cloud of air and music, the sweet tune still playing.
I was totally freaked out. I don't think I stopped screaming once.
I was deposited on my back in some plants. Only then did I stop screaming. I lay there, staring at the star shape in the hollow inside of a tree. I thought I was going to pass out.
"Uncle Press…?" I whispered.
No response.
I realized I was still clenching the ring in my hand. I slipped it onto my finger and began taking deep breaths, trying to regain my senses. I wondered where I was. There was a pile of clothes nearby the Flume, and I wondered if that was the only remains of the last person to come though here.
I stood and used the side of the tree as a support. I glanced around the side of the Flume. I was somewhere in a forest. The ground was completely covered in plants and trees. I seemed to be in the middle of it. Where ever…the middle of 'it' was…
"Holy crap…" I muttered. I sat next to the tree and leaned against it for what I estimated to be an hour, but it sure seemed longer than that. I think I prayed.
Anyway, after that hour of terrible loneliness and intense fear, I heard music coming from the Flume. I scrambled up and stood by the entrance. I really hoped it was Uncle Press and not Saint Dane…
The music grew louder and there was a blinding flash of light.
"I'm glad you got here okay." Press said.
I blinked the spots away from my eyes and nodded. "Y…yeah…what took so long? I could have gotten eaten by those quig-dogs!"
"Oh no. First Earth quigs are different from Second Earth's," Press said, ruffling my hair as if I had asked a stupid question. "You would have gotten stung to death by killer bees."
Oh boy. That made me feel better.
"Now get changed." Press threw me shoes, pants, and a plain shirt.
"Why? What's wrong with my clothes?" I asked.
"Nothing. But we cannot afford to mix the Territories." Press walked around the side of the tree. "You've got five minutes to change."
I sighed and pulled my shirt and pants off, hurriedly pulling the other First Earth clothes on. I kept my boxers, though. I needed a little piece of home.
"Now come on, there's really no time to waste." Press began walking away from the Flume, already changed. "We need to meet up with the Traveler here. We need to see how much damage Saint Dane managed to do in such a short amount of time."
"Where are we?" I blurted out. "And don't say First Earth. I know that already…I want to know what game is based off this place. I mean…the forest is nice and all, but about a thousand games out there take place in the woods…"
"Duck," Press grabbed the back of my shirt and pushed me to the ground.
We fell just as a gunshot rang out, striking the tree behind us. Wood and bark splintered off and somehow managed to work itself into the back of my shirt collar.
"O…okay…" I stuttered. "Snipers and woods! That narrows it down!"
"Unfortunately, there were no weapons at the Flume." Press muttered. "But whoever shot won't come after us. I know the enemy pretty well here. They won't move unless instructed to."
"So…we just wait…?" I asked.
"And keep your head down."
I let my face fall into the dirt with a rather terrified and you-can't-be-serious groan.
"Don't worry. If there are snipers set up here, they must be after something. Someone on our side should show up," Press grinned. "Eventually."
"I think I'd rather have that guy shoot me."
"I'll see if I can distract him." Press slowly began to crawl along the ground on his stomach, inching for a small hill. He picked up a rock and lobbed it as hard as he could over the side of the hill. I heard it hit the ground a few seconds later, followed with a surprised shout.
"What was that?"
"Was that a grenade?"
"Move!"
The sounds of boots crunching leaves were heard as the snipers ran off. Press motioned for me to follow him and we hurriedly bolted down a beaten trail.
"What was that?"
Press froze and I nearly ran into his back. He stood completely still, eyes locked on a man with a gun not ten feet away. Luckily, some pretty heavy bushes and trees obscured his view of us, so there was a slight chance he hadn't seen us yet. I held my breath as he used the muzzle of his gun to move the branches aside.
He was wearing a ski mask, or something similar to it. He wore green camouflage, with some sort of armband. A belt of supplies was around his waist, and a deadly looking gun was being pointed our way.
He jumped, his eyes growing slightly wide as he finally saw us. He hesitated slightly before pulling a radio from his belt and speaking into it. "Hostiles…west side. I need backup."
"We're unarmed." Press said bluntly.
"Y…yeah," I added.
"On our way," the man's radio responded.
"State your name, rank and business," the soldier demanded. His gun's barrel settled, pointed at my head.
"Lone Wolf. Soldier. Espionage." Press responded without missing a beat.
"Are you with FOXHOUND?"
"I'm with no one." Press hissed.
"Come with me."
That was seconds before all hell broke loose. Shots rang out in the background, all from different types of guns. The solder spun around, surprised, and began to take aim at a running figure.
Press wasted no time. He wrapped an arm around the solder's neck and pulled the gun from his grip, throwing it to me. "Pick it up, Bobby, and use it!"
"I don't know how!" I protested.
"Then you're going to have to learn…fast!"
I picked up the weapon without a clue on how to hold it or what to do with it. I didn't want to shoot anyone…I wasn't a killer! I glanced back at Uncle Press for a bit of help.
"Just aim it at anyone with a hood! You don't have to shoot, just make sure they know you mean business!" Press shouted.
A bullet struck close to us, splintering a tree and sending a branch falling close to my head. I shakily held the gun up and stared through the crosshairs as Press went to work interrogating the soldier we had taken hostage.
Unlike the masked soldiers that all seemed to look alike, there were now other people running around shooting, or waving knives in the air. These people didn't look organized or lead by one individual person. They were in a frantic free-for-all.
"Let me go!" the soldier pleaded behind me. "I told you everything you wanted to know! Let me go!"
One of the random fighters took an interest in us. She ran over, twin pistols at the ready, screaming something so fast I couldn't make sense of what she said.
"I'll shoot!" I threatened. "I will! Go away!" The gun shook in my hands, and even though I could make out every one of her eyelashes through the scope, I doubted I would be able to hit her.
"¡VIVA EL LOBO!" she cried.
She didn't shoot me or Press. Instead, she ran right by me and holstered her pistols before slamming into my uncle in a hug. The soldier he had been interrogating was thrown to the ground.
I blinked. I never knew Press was good with the ladies.
The soldier was trying to crawl away. I aimed the gun at him and shook my head. He sat and stared out into the battle, looking anxious.
"Press, who is this?" I asked, not taking my sight off the soldier.
"Bobby, this is Amanda. Amanda Valenciano Libre." Press grinned.
I glanced over. I figured I had better get to know what an ally looked like. Amanda was covered in dust and debris, but she still was surprisingly pretty. She had short, wild brown hair and blue eyes. She wore a green scarf over her nose and mouth like a mask. She also wore a black tank-top-ish thing (What do I know about clothes?) and black jeans. She gave me a wave.
"And what's with all these random people running around?" I asked. "It's kinda freaking me out…"
"They're with me." Amanda said. She waved a gun into the air and shouted something I didn't quite catch. Her people immediately paid her attention, no matter what they were doing at the time. One guy had locked one of the hooded people in a headlock.
"Back to Mother Base!" Amanda shouted. "I'll meet you all there!"
"What about the mission?" Someone called.
"The mission can wait! We have a new member to join our ranks!"
"Who?" I asked stupidly. The soldier I had in my sights chose that time to make a run for it. I made a move to shoot, or at least follow, but Press grabbed the back of my shirt.
"Let him go. We'll deal with him later."
"Are you sure?" I protested. The soldier was still within my crosshairs…
"Positive. Come on, now. We have a new member to welcome into our ranks."
I realized everyone was staring at me. "Oh, you've got to be kidding…"
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I think my least favourite part of any FanFiction is the beginning, where you have to build up stuff to get into the big stuff.
Unless you're writing a fast-paced murder mystery or something.
So bear with me…more stuff is on the way. More stuff and a lot of explanation things.
I'm hoping to update this story with another chapter in two weeks or more.
Hasta la Vista, Readers!
Lordoftheghostking28