(Page 1 of 13) The Wishing Orb by William Fulks
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SUMMARY: A fantasy/sci-fi thriller about three men who find something unexpected in a cave located beneath a forgotten cemetery.The sun crested over the eastern mountains, gently warming the crisp autumn air and thus beginning another day of patrolling the roads for the three hapless Rowan town guards. They rode on horseback in a triangular formation with Christian Underwood in the lead. Christian was their default leader due in large part to the fact that the other two riders, Conner Holm and James Samson, were natural born followers. Christian always rode with his shoulders hunched forward and his big square chin raised, displaying a wide smile. If it were not for the massive gap between his two front teeth, or the way his oversized ears stuck out of the side of his head like bee wings, his appearance might have been considered regal. Conner and James attempted to maintain the same stature in the saddle, but their enthusiasm quickly wore away as the long road stretched out ahead.
James was too fidgety to enjoy the morning silence for long. He asked Christian and Conner, "Have you ever heard the legend of that ball thing that's supposed to buried around here?"
Christian's memory was piqued. "My grandfather told me about it once. He called it an orb. He said it would grant wishes like one of those genie lamps, only with this thing you didn't have to speak your wish aloud. It knew what you wanted and would grant it to you."
"That's it! Do you know anything more about it?" James asked.
"I was always told an ancient race of people buried it because they thought it was too powerful and had become afraid of it. You are right, though. It was supposed to be able to read your mind," Christian said.
"I wonder what it would grant me?" James asked.
"If it has to go by what's in your head, you probably wouldn't get much at all," Conner said.
"I know what you'd get, Christian," James said. He started flapping his arms and making "Bawk! Bawk!" chicken sounds.
Conner snickered, but knew better than to throw any fuel on that fire.
Christian drew his sword from its scabbard, making a distinctive ‘shing' sound. "Stifle yourselves, both of you. That's not funny."
The event that earned Christian the respect of Conner and James is the same reason why the trio had been relegated to guard duty on the outskirts of town. Christian thought he was in love with a certain farmer's daughter. She wasn't very pretty or even very bright, but she loved to have intimate encounters with whoever was willing and she had a particular attraction toward men in uniform. Therefore, most of the local guards knew her quite well, but Christian was the only one to develop feelings for the overly friendly young woman.
On one particular evening, the farmer's daughter pulled Christian into a chicken coop to do what she loved so much. Unfortunately, the coop's primary occupants raised enough protest to wake the sleeping farmer inside the nearby house. When the farmer discovered what was happening, he chased Christian off with a pitchfork and filed a formal complaint with the Rowan guard.
Since most of the other guard members had also seen the inside of the chicken coop, or some other secluded place around the farm, they could not in good conscience punish Christian too severely.
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