THE ORACLE’S DILEMMA
by
Shawn O’Toole
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PUBLISHED BY:
Cover Art Illustrated by:
Coy Fields II
The Oracle’s Dilemma
Copyright © Shawn O’Toole 2013
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the publisher of this story, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Your support and respect for the property of this author is much appreciated.
This story is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are products of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.
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THE ORACLE’S DILEMMA
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Chapter 1
“The Arriving Edifice”
The Oracle was the oldest and wisest of all the denizens of Telluria. She had come to the Far Sight Forest to learn the hearts and minds of the Great Shadow’s mortal women. “We hope to make peace with them,” she explained to little Shrubby.
“Why? The Concubines are evil.”
“Oh? Do you know their hearts and minds?”
“No.”
“Nor do I: That is why we have come here.”
The Oracle was in the form of a tall, voluptuous, naked woman with fair, greenish skin, bright green eyes and a head of long, leafy “hair.” Shrubby was a squat zoophyte and looked like a face with an outgrowth of articulate roots and branches. Hairy the sasquatch was with them. He was very big, broad, strong and– hairy. Though monstrous in form and stature, his friendly smile and twinkling, blue eyes gave him a gentle aspect.
“Here,” the Oracle chose a spot. Her feet stretched and formed into roots that sunk into the ground. She cooed as she savored the rich, tasty earth. “Yes,” she determined. “This is a good spot.” She told her companions, “Wake me only if you must.” The Oracle grew and hardened as she formed into a very large tree.
For several days, Hairy and Shrubby waited. The sasquatch would go out and forage for food and to drink from the nearby creek. Shrubby would sink her roots into the soil and eat and drink from the ground itself. Whatever they did, they remained near the Oracle. Shrubby would sometimes touch the sentient tree, listening for anything told or asked of them. Hairy had his big gun. He was here to guard the plant fairies.
Atop a forested hill: There was a large, swirling flash... then a modular, prefabricated edifice of metal, plastic and glass. Inside the structure’s command-and-control room, a Concubine in blue reported, “Teleport successful. Foundation secure and all systems online.”
A Concubine in purple commanded, “Initiate perimeter scan.”
“Initiating.”
The Concubines of the Great Shadow were the mass-produced duplicates of his favorite original maidservant. As fit young women, their physiques were firm and supple. Their uniform varied in color, but was otherwise the same for all of them: a snug, elastic shirt that covered the crotch, neck and head but not the lower half of the face. Black goggles fixed to the tight, elastic hood covered the wearer’s eyes. She wore nothing else, whatsoever, leaving her shoulders, limbs, buttocks and feet completely bare.
Concubines in blue, (Keepers), sat or stood at consoles and monitors. Two in red, (Sentinels), held minicarbines and stood guard on either side of the door. Naydeen, the Concubine in purple, (a Priestess), was in command– but even she was subordinate to the inhuman entity who was with them.
Thulu was a demon. She was feminine but not actually female. She was only even tangible as a sheer act of will, for she was not a corporeal entity. In her current, somewhat physical form, Thulu towered head-and-shoulders above these human Concubines. She only had legs because she was standing. She only had arms when she reached out to touch something. Her face was the only constant. It was vague, as if it could not be clearly seen, but it seemed to be beautiful. She looked down at the Concubine Priestess and commanded her, “Link the regional siphons and begin the feed.”
The mortal woman informed, “A feed at this time would obscure our perimeter scanning.”
“I am with you. I can see beyond the vision of your technology. Link and feed– now.”
The Concubine nodded. She ordered a subordinate, “Initiate link and begin feed; optimum capacity.”
Thulu corrected, “Feed at full capacity.”
The Concubine in purple fretted, “If we drain this region, it will be laid waste, thus, shall no longer be suitable for our master’s consumption.”
The demon snarled, an eldritch whisper echoing her voice, “Drain this land and lay it waste!”
Every Concubine in the room feared this demon, but their loyalty to the Seen Unseen (the Great Shadow) gave them pause. They looked at their sister in purple and awaited her command. The senior Concubine told them all, “Lady Thulu is a chosen or our master’s beloved and only begotten child.” The woman hesitated before issuing the command, “Feed at maximum capacity.”
“Acknowledged,” the appropriate Keeper complied. “Initiating link. Feed shall commence in approximately twenty minutes.”
The demon laughed, sending a cold chill throughout the room. She told them all, “You are not our master’s only soldiers. I am chosen for my power and wisdom but also for my loyalty. Obey me, always, and you shall serve him well.”
Shrubby and Hairy watched as the Tree of the Oracle slowly shrank and softened. The sasquatch looked at the little zoophyte. She told him, “I do not know, but something must be wrong.”
The tree eventually became the “woman” with leafy hair. The Oracle gasped for breath and fell to her knees. “Oracle!” Shrubby worried.
Hairy ran up to the venerated fairy and helped her to stand. “Thank you,” she told him. She winced as she pulled her shrinking roots from the ground. “We must depart,” she told her companions. Her roots became feet and she hurriedly started walking.
“Why?” Shrubby followed after her.
“The dwelling of a thousand Concubines has come. It is here to ravish this land of all its life.”
Shrubby blurted, “We must stop it!”
“Stop it? How?”
Shrubby looked at Hairy. The sasquatch brandished his fully charged stormgun. “No,” the Oracle told them. “A thousand is too many, even for Hairy and his big gun. Besides, many more would come.” The Oracle hesitated before telling the skittish zoophyte, “A demon has come with them. She commands the thousand.”
“A demon?”
“Yes. My powers are gentle. Hers are not. I fear that I may be no match for her. We must depart this land and seek Adam’s help. If it is the will of our king, he shall come and do what we cannot.”
On the landing platform atop the Concubine edifice: A beetle-type entomopter was being boarded by a scanning team. The aircraft then opened its wings and buzzed into the air.
Hairy, Shrubby and the Oracle hid upon hearing the ominous humming of a Concubine aircraft. Little Shrubby worried, “Are they looking for us?”
“No,” the Oracle assured, “but they are being watchful. We must hurry, or else we shall be discovered.”
Shrubby fretted, “They interrupted your ritual!” The Oracle tittered, worried that the swirling of energies summoned by the rite may be noticed.
Later that day: Concubines in the command-and-control room were monitoring when one of the
women reported, “Mystical anomaly detected.” A red, blinking dot appeared on the regional map display.
Naydeen looked over the subordinate’s shoulder and surmised, “A botanical fairy signature.”
“Yes,” the Keeper agreed. We’ve detected some sort of feed. The anomaly is fading. The unidentified feed has been disrupted.”
“Interrupted... by us.”
The Concubines were startled when Thulu blew into the room as if a cool breeze. The demon told them, “Well done. Your technology is better than I believed.”
Hairy, Shrubby and the Oracle fled through the woods on foot. The zoophyte whined, “It would be quicker to open a portal.”
“No,” the Oracle corrected. “Our portal would be seen and either followed or seized by the Concubines.”
Shrubby scurried as fast as she could on her articulate roots. Hairy and the Oracle were virtually walking! “I am sorry,” the zoophyte apologized. Hairy set down his large gun and offered to carry her.
“No,” The Oracle stopped him. “They are already upon us. You will need your hands free to fight, if we are to escape.” Hairy knelt down and Shrubby climbed up onto his back. The Oracle told the zoophyte, “You are to drop to the ground, if Hairy must fight.”
“I understand.”
Hairy and the Oracle ran and ran... until running into trouble! A throng of Concubines in red