A New Beginning

The Never Ending Quest - Episode 4062

Fred looked up and down the beach. He shivered in the early morning breeze. His wet clothes were clammy against his skin; he wanted to find some place safe and get out of them. But first he needed to find out where he was, and, more importantly, whether he was insane or not.

He recalled many strange visions; he recalled some man who looked like him but had said he was from the future, he remembered that he said the whole world was one spider's web of possibility and peril; he recalled another strange man who called himself a programmer and said the world had indeed ended; he recalled a town meeting where the discussion was how to burn a satanist; he recalled his ship and the Presider's mistress and the creature and the dead men floating in the sea. His head felt as if it were going to explode.

He didn't understand, he didn't want to understand. He only knew that he was Frederick von Suffex, son of Duke Dred von Suffex.

He looked about and saw that behind him were rocky hills and cliffs. The beach itself seemed to have no end as it curved along the sloping rocks, disappearing in the far off distance at either end. Before him was the blue sea. It filled the horizon like a wall. And like a wall, it made Frederick feel trapped. He had never been on a beach, for the Grand Presidio was a landlocked nation. To the north of it was the terrible Kinto Desert, to the south the Mountains of Shreike and nestled within were the Southern Caves of the Dreaded Wildebeast. The western border was shared with the Four Kingdoms and the eastern border was made up of smaller principalities, independent baronies and a collection of 'free' states, city-nations and untold village squares and hamlets. And the sea; to the east of the Presidio was the sea.

Frederick's stomach growled. Not only was he wet, but he was starving too. He looked down the sandy beach and saw a skeleton, walking over he had a strange vision of Sir Josh. Fred nearly swooned at the thought that his friend and comrade could be dead. The remains held no marker of who the corpse had been in life, and Fred was relieved that atleast it wasn't proof of his comrade's fate.

Fred shook his head again. Thinking of his friend and of his homeland made his head hurt even more. He felt something was wrong, he was sure that something terrible was going to happen to the whole world...or had it already happened?

  1. Frederick tripped over a hard object and searching the sands he found a large scimitar.
  2. A bobbing shape caught Frederick's attention and he saw a chest floating amidst the waves.

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9/1/1999 7:29:33 AM

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