Date: Thu, 25 Aug 2005 21:16:14 -0700
From: cez <cezbox4@gawab.com>
Subject: Zert's Ordeals-Chapter 02

Disclaimer- This is all complete fiction. NONE of it is true. It has
elements of violence ( explicit at times ), language,  relations between a
man and a man, and sexual themes. If this is illegal for you to read or not
to your tastes, DON'T READ!

I retain all copyrights and it is my property, If you want to host it or
post it somewhere, just ask. I will most probably give permission. Copyright
is by Charlie Z. aka cezmail, my alias on the net. The idea of Whitewater is
the creation of Dhvana and is copywrited by her, but is a shared world and
used with her permission. You can find all about the town ofWhitewater at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Welcome_to_Whitewater . Feel free to join and
look over the other stories there.

If you like the story, or even if you do not, feel free to write to me. My
address is cezbox4@gawab.com ,  Otherwise, please look on down and if you
have an opinion, let me know. I am more then willing to listen and reply.

Featured Characters: Zert Greendragon, Starblaze- Zert's Horse, Gilly
Goodwin

Other Characters: Banor Stonehand-Owner and manager of the Dirty Parrot,
Pirate the Parrot, Alaina Dakar-Server at Cool Beans, Ashe Wilson- co-owner
of Cool Beans
Chapter 2


It took Zert an hour to make his way down Highway 42 until he reached the
town limits of Whitewater. A sign boldly stated that Whitewater was the home
of "Pirate Days- a Celebration of our Infamous Past. 7 Days of Treasure
Hunting and Booty. Don't miss the Regatta at Spanish Main Cove" and"
Whitewater College-Home of Fighting Pirates"
The town itself did not have a large population according to the sign, but
from what Zert could see a-top Blaze, it was laid out. Lots of open land
away from the harbor and downtown. Off to the south he could make out a
block of buildings. Maybe that might be the school he had just read about.
There was some kind of stadium, where he supposed the Pirates did battle
with their enemies on the field. How good they might be he had no idea.
Maybe if he could get any answers he might check it out.
He and Blaze got some stares as he continued into the town. Zert ignored
them, wanting only to meet whomever he had the appointment with and to get
some answers. Later he could confront the town and maybe explore it more.
His side and head hurt and maybe he should seek a place to get some bandages
and medicine.
He was not bothered by the looks he got, for some reason he was used to it.
Zert was a virtual giant of a man and Starblaze was huge for a horse. He was
24 hands tall and weighed 2600 pounds. Blaze was a charcoal black, with only
the white making that gave him his name, shaped like a blazing star. His
coat was well brushed and even all the traveling he had done that day, still
held up nicely. His breed seemed liked a combination of a Clydesdale and a
Morgan, and could easily have passed as a knight's mount from the Middle
Ages.
Highway 42 turned into Main Street Zert observed. He passed various shops,
apartment buildings and a small building that declared it the "Whitewater
Treasure Trove" with an attached museum of the pirate past. From the
windows, it looked like a thrift shop or maybe an antique store. Or maybe it
was a combination.
As Zert arrived to Main and Maple, he observed a sign that caught his eye.
It announced that the three-story building was the "Dirty Parrot" operated
by one Banor Stonehand. There was a sign of a scruffy and parrot dressed as
a
Buccaneer who was leering as a buxom lass.
A short man stood outside it, ordering a deliveryman about as he wheeled in
some kegs and cases. He guessed that it must be some kind of bar, though the
upper stories had the look of apartments to them. The short fellow could
have easily passed for a dwarf of legend. He had a forked beard braided in
leather, a large nose, and while short, was very muscular. On top of his
left shoulder was a parrot that could have passed as the model from the
sign, right down to a strange leer to its eye as it stared at Zert. It
squawked when after a bit, getting the attention of the dwarf. The man
seemed taken aback by Zert and Blaze, but quickly looked away when the
deliveryman dropped a case of beer. He started cursing the man, the curses
being echoes by the parrot.
Zert saw a pharmacy across the corner and decided he should get some first
aid and bandages. He left Blaze in a parking spot not too far away. He
patted the horse and knew he could leave his mount alone. He almost felt
sorry for the fool who tried to steal Starblaze.
Quickly gathering up what he needed, he paused to wonder how he knew about
wounds and their care. Had he been wounded that much before? He had scars on
his torso and arms from before, but as with so much, no memories of how he
had gotten them. He quickly paid for the supplies from the young female
clerk, who stared at him and shied away when he returned her gaze. She
seemed to be either in high school or maybe a college student from the books
near the register.
The head wound must be part of it, as well as his stature. Zert thanked
"Missy", his deep base filling the empty air. No other customers seemed to
be about.
He went to the bathroom and used the privacy there to take off his shirt.
The wound at his side seemed better from this morning, but still looked
nasty. He applied the ointments and salves, and banded it up. He then took
care of the gash on his head. Once he had finished he cleaned up his mess
and went back to Blaze. He looked at his watch and saw that he still had an
hour before his 4 pm meeting.
Three more blocks on the left hand side Zert saw a sign for Cool Beans. It
was at the corner or Main and Vine. It had natural look to it, earth tones
with wide windows where the customers could look out when they drank their
coffee. Zert saw that there were not too many people inside. Maybe it was a
time between the lunch crowd and the kids from the school showed up to
devour their caffeine.
Once more, he looked for a place to leave Blaze, this time using the side
parking lot for Blaze to rest. He had carried Zert with no strain, but still
was tired from a long journey. Zert had nothing to water Blaze, but he did
take out some dried apples for the horse. He patted him on the side, saying
he would be back when he could. Blaze nodded his head as if in
understanding, and then started to scratch his hindquarters against the wall
of the neighboring building.
Walking to the entrance, Zert again touched his pistol, to reassure himself
of it. The door chimed as he walked in, a young woman looking up from where
she was washing down the counter. She looked about the same age as Missy,
though more outlandish looking. She had seven earrings in her left ear and
five in her right. A stud stood out on her nose along with dark shading
around her eyes. She looked barely over 5 feet and maybe 90 pounds without
her hardware. Her dark brown eyes seemed strange with her buzzed platinum
hair. The black skirt and blouse contrasted with her ivory skin. A word came
to Zert's head. Weird Chick!
A nametag said Alaina, and the lass just looked at him as if she met almost
8-foot tall men all the time. When she saw the look in Zert's eyes, she
laughed and shook her head. "OK buddy, what's with you? Never seen a blond
Goth before? Watcha want tall, bald and bad?"
Zert tried to take this all in and looked above. Nothing on the menu board
made sense to him, no clues to what they might be. The special of the day
was Ginger Chai so he decided he would try it. He also ordered some cherry
pie that he saw in case. Alaina quickly rung him up, and gave him his
purchases.
"So where you from Mister Giant?" The grin she gave him conveyed she meant
no insult, maybe just her normal -in your face-way. The earrings jingled as
she cocked her head.
"Umm around. I am supposed to meet someone here, but not sure what he looks
like? Do you know a Gilly?" Zert hoped she might give him some clue who this
man who might have some clue to who he was.
Alaina shook her head. "Nope, never heard of him, but then I just started
working here last week. Needed a job to help pay for school you know?"
Zert wondered what she was a student of and found his question was spoken
aloud.
Alaina replied in a deadpan tone. "Quantum Physics."
Zert's amazement and surprise showed itself, for shortly Alaina a barking in
laughter. He had no idea what that was, but whatever it was, he was not sure
she was the type. "Man, the look on your face was just priceless. Come on
buddy, do I look like the type to fiddle with particle accelerators?"
Zert shook his head and took a sip of his chai. He liked the taste, so took
another.
Alaina calmed herself down and came around from the counter. "Well
truthfully, I am going to major in psychology and paranormal studies. So
what's your name bandage boy?"
Zert smiled at her behavior. Alaina was certainly not the type to be shy.
"Zert and I guess you will want to read my aura to get all my secrets?"
Alaina smiled in return. "Nope, not into that. I will read the bumps on your
head though, seeing as you already got a good clocking. Hope the other guy
got worse."
Zert shook his head. "No idea. Just woke up this way. I am sure that if I
ever meet the man who did it again, he will come out wishing he had never
got me."
Alaina continued to smile. "I have no doubt he will regret hurting you. So
what else can I get you while you wait?"
Zert took a seat away from the one grouping of folks looking through
schoolbooks and typing away at their computers. It was in the corner,
furthest away from the main door. Alaina followed him, keeping an eye at the
door in case someone came in.
"Well maybe you can fill me in.. ?" but before he could finish a small mousy
man came running through the doors. He was dressed in a dirty gray suit, his
greasy, stringy hair flaring about him. He looked about the room and then
making out Zert's profile, paled. Zert got no memory of this gentleman, but
some warning made him pay attention.
Just as Zert was about to say something, a tinny voice came from the man's
jacket pocket. "Gilly, where the fuck are you? The bastard's horse is
already here. Watch out!"
Zert assumed that this runt was Gilly, and whoever his partner was, had seen
Blaze. He took a step to get some info. Before he could though, Gilly shook
himself alive. "Damn It! You're supposed to be dead."
This angered Zert even more and he roared out. "You're one of them eh?" He
was about to say more when a new man came from the back of Cool Beans.
Another nametag with Ashe on it gave him a name.
"What the hell is going on here Alaina? You get back behind the counter
unless you want to get fired. And you two, I do not care what your problem
is, but take it outside. We don't want your hassle to bother the other
customers."
Gilly took this distraction to bail out. Zert had been sidetracked by Ashe's
appearance, not sure at first if he was an associate of Gilly's. He tried to
follow but somehow tripped over Alaina, causing the two of them to fall. Her
squawk of surprise and worry for her job was combined with Zert's grunt of
pain as his side again struck him in pain. By the time that he had separated
himself from Alaina with Ashe's assistance, Gilly was gone. A car squealing
in the distance was the only clue where he might have gone.
Zert left without answering any of Ashe's questions, but when he came to
Blaze he saw only a dissipating cloud of dust from the gravel of the parking
lot. Blaze himself had his ears back and his eyes had a look of readiness to
do battle. Nothing seemed to be missing from Zert's gear, but he did notice
something on the ground. A cell phone lay near the horse. He picked it up to
try to get some info, and when trying to access it, it started to ring.
Zert pushed the talk button but said nothing. There was a pause and then the
same tinny voice he had heard from Gilly spoke. "So, you're alive Zert. Pity
that. Guess my minions will have to do a better job of it next time. Just
remember, you crossed my Hellhounds and ruined my work. I will get you, but
I will leave that for another time." Before Zert could make a retort, the
caller hung up.
Just who was this man and what the FUCK were Hellhounds?