“You think they ever…you know…here?” Marcus made a stabbing motion from atop the viewing platform.
”Probably,” Joe laughed, walking below along the ridges of the Great Serpent Mound. It really was spectacular, way more impressive in person than his new friends told him it was.
Joe hovered briefly over a sign detailing the complexity of the soil arrangement that allowed the mound’s preservation before following along the slinking trail running beside the Snake’s body. Climbing slowly, he stopped beside Marcus who looked out over the Snake’s head from the viewing platform. Despite the day, most of the park stood empty.
Joe had known Marcus since childhood. They worked Marcus’s dad’s farm together, and Joe remembered devouring his dad’s ribs, always freshly butchered, each summer for Marcus’s birthday. Joe was a good man.
The sun was setting in perfect Solstice alignment with the spiral of circles constituting the Great Serpent’s head.
“I’m surprised there’s not more people here for this,” Marcus said, watching the sun lower towards the horizon. Joe looked around, confirming that the rest of the crowd had been faithfully dispersed by agents of his new friends. The sun sank down, down, ever closer to the Snake’s mouth.
Joe fumbled with his waistband, hands trembling. His mouth was dry, and he struggled to swallow down the lump in his throat. He stood besides Marcus, fumbling with what lay hidden and strapped to the small of his back.
His palms were slick on the handle of the emerald dagger. He kept it hidden, just like they learned on the farm.
Joe saw the faintest flash of fear in Marcus’s eyes. “Hey, you alright, man?” Marcus said.
The Great Serpent demanded blood—innocent blood.
The world needed to be reborn. Joe held his breath.
He just wished they had chosen anyone else.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A/N:
Alright Lamar, I lied when I said 2016 CAVALIERS would be my only work ever set in Ohio....
The Serpent Mound, along with places like Poverty Point and Cahokia (amongst many, many others often overlooked) represent some of the best examples of North American Prehistoric civilization that are woefully undertaught and overshadowed by their Mesoamerican and European counterparts.
For the following challenge:
If you've enjoyed this, please leave a like and an insight below. If you really enjoyed this, tips to fuel my coffee addiction are always appreciated. All formatting is designed for desktops. Want to read more? Below are the best of the very best of my works:
About the Creator
Matthew J. Fromm
Full-time nerd, history enthusiast, and proprietor of arcane knowledge.
Here there be dragons, knights, castles, and quests (plus the occasional dose of absurdity).
I can be reached at [email protected]
Keep reading
More stories from Matthew J. Fromm and writers in Fiction and other communities.
Past Lives
War made for odd couples. To Private Jim Mclellan, Sepp seemed a good man; better at least than some of the monsters he heard stories of deeper into the Reich. Real monsters. This Sepp almost reminded Jim of his uncle; the one from Wisconsin he met a few times at Weddings.
By Matthew J. FrommExclusive • 10 months ago
Bruce Lee and The God of War: Kuan Ti
It starts with love.. The Power to the God Of War and Wealth Walk into a Chinese restaurant (even in Oklahoma, USA), a Chinese police station, a kung fu martial arts studio or even a Chinese temple and you often see a red faced warrior holding a heavy quan-do (spear like weapon).
By WILD WAYNE : The Dragon King7 days ago in Chapters
Comments (8)
The unseen plot twist is it's actually Joe they chose, right? Man is about to commit sudoku right in front of his friend. Heavy stuff.
I like how you quietly set it up in the opening lines Matthew, and this rolls right along. I’d never heard of the Great Serpent Mound so this was cool to read a story set in such a unique but real place.
A great blend of natures and darkness. Thank you for joining in.
Gee! That ending! It was interesting to learn about the Serpent Mound.
Well, now, that was an ending I really should have seen coming, knowing this story came from you, Matthew. I'll have to say, you played me well.
Fascinating!! Joe just had to go and make some "new friends" didn't he...
Wow, that’s gripping! Feels like a moment that could shatter everything. Sometimes the heaviest choices fall on the kindest hearts. What’s next for Joe?
Oh shizz, son. This is some drama brewing right at the end. Woah. Love everything about this. Set it up so well, and everything felt smooth and in-depth. Felt in there.