Read Times of Peace: Volume 1 of the side adventures to The Mercenary's Salvation Page 32
Introduction:
There is a certain irony to this so called opening. When I was instructed to write it, I was informed that it would be labeled an introduction; instead, I find myself writing a eulogy, a dedication to the deceased of whom this tale speaks of. This is no happy beginning; this is merely a reflection, the postscript somehow attached to the start.
Yet how often do we find ourselves in this position, where we start at the end and work ourselves to the start. Fiction calls this in media res; math calls it antiderivatives. Whether you are a scientist calculating the velocity of an African swallow or a pulp addict buying the latest tale of espionage for ten cents on the dollar, I invite you to try a different tale; one with kings and queens, knights and bishops, rooks and pawns.
I’m talking about chess, mind you, though this version may be a bit more fantastical than what you are familiar with. In fact, those familiar with the workings of major league sports will find this to be their venue rather than those who spend hours a day mulling over decisions, trying to implement eight step plans into effect without being disrupted by a suicidal pawn. As the times change so do the games we play, and as we move closer and closer to the heart of the twenty first century you’ll find that simply killing the opponent’s king is no longer the point.
No, both the match of life and the duel of Chess has grown to be much more complex. It is now a tale of constant war and those who fuel its violence, of political and economic change whose waves move up and down with the charge of societal shifts. It’s not about being the smartest or strongest man in the room anymore; it’s about being the sneakiest, the most manipulative, the best saboteur in a den of cheats.
Such is the fight that Seth Sears had to fight in his final days, a tale which I now both mournfully and joyfully present. The tale of…
The Mercenary's Salvation
En Passant
Story Extracted from the private journal entries of