CQ Calling, CQ Calling

By Dean Moriarty

This is the fifth book in the Zen and her adventures series and features CQ the mermaid. This book is zany but does not come with a warning and anyone can read it. In this book, Zen comes back from the temple after talking to the monk and tries to make up her mind as to what to do with all her new found knowledge but too many things internal and external prevent her from becoming quiet enough to listen and the pirates are of course no help.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dean Moriarty
• Release date: Feb 9, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310556524

Dean Moriarty

What do you do when nothing seems to be working out? Most of my books are about that place you come to when you’ve reached the desert of all you know. When nothing seems to be working out and you find there’s nowhere left to go. When all you’ve tried has come to nothing and no amount of effort brings your goals any closer and where the questions you ask appear to drop dead at your feet. When all has become a grey mist about you populated by the ghosts of all you once loved; where do you turn? I turned to writing books.

Book preview

CQ Calling, CQ Calling.

By

Dean Moriarty

Copyright 2015

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CQ: Communications.

Zen: Warrior.

Cap’n: Non standard brawny drunkard.

George: Sidekick and roustabout.

Book five of Zen and the gang

Zen, after the monk:

After I'd left the monk in his temple I set out for the city and found after I'd got there that it had changed and was ruled by some mad king.

I got into trouble in the city and had to escape and so made my way back to the hills but that had changed too:

The flight:

Coming into the temple you will see it is not in use, holes in the roof, birds flapping round, dust everywhere, but the thing that struck me first was the huge Buddha covered in bird droppings and then I noticed the figure sitting in front of the Buddha, very still.

It was hot for me and I was glad to find shelter from the heat. I quietly walked across to an open window and let my bag drop to the floor then sat beside it with my back up against the wall making sure my feet were not pointed at the Buddha.

Closing my eyes for a moment I must have dozed off for I awoke with a start not knowing where I was for a few heartbeats, then I looked about me and saw that nothing had changed except the sun had moved across the floor a few degrees and I had two bites on my face, probably mosquitoes.

The figure seated on the floor in front of the Buddha had not moved and I thought that perhaps he was meditating or maybe had just fallen asleep as I had.

Now would be a good time to catch up on my journal even though no one would ever read it except those who had been chasing me for the last three days and they would probably burn it along with everything else of mine including my body when they’d finished with it and without a weapon how could I protect myself against them?

I’d just been preparing to leave when they’d barged through the door, swords out and ready to cut me down and with most of my stuff by the door I couldn’t reach it in time so I’d jumped through the window with just my carrying gear already slung over my shoulder and made my escape from the city. Out into the desert where I’d been journeying and hiding out for three days to get to here to this abandoned temple at the foot of the hills I would have to cross to safety.

The water and food I’d managed to find before leaving the city was gone and I knew that without at least water I wouldn’t be able to go much further. So here was where they would find me when they came as surely they would for the crime of speaking out against the unjust king which was punishable by death and I’d done a lot of speaking out before they found me, and surely betrayed by one of the company and who it was I shall probably never know.

An hour had passed while filing in my journal and I noticed that the figure had still not moved. I got up and walked quietly over and saw that the man was slumped over on himself and seemingly not breathing.

I cleared my throat but still no movement from him so I went close and touched the man’s shoulder and I knew then that he was dead, although of what I really couldn’t say.

At his feet were his swords, one long and two shorter ones and some other personal belongings. By the look of his sunken face I would say he’d been dead a long time and now would have no need of anything ever again and so as my needs were pressing I relieved him of anything useful for me.

Out of respect to him, even though he didn’t need it I carefully carried his body outside and buried it with as much honour as I could find and thanked the Buddha for the fine swords.

There was nothing to say who the man was or what he was doing there but I could see that he was a fighting man by his clothes and swords which were now mine.

Near to where I buried him I found a small pool of water that was fresh and so I was able to fill my water bottle and his too and was now ready to carry on and felt much of the concern leave me to be replaced with hope that I would now make it. My luck was holding.

Unless too many of them came with dogs or horses I’d be able to hold my own, but they’d have a hard job getting animals across the desert without a lot of water. No, men would come on foot for me and they’d probably send from three to five of their best depending on the captain of the watch and as there’s no swords to be had in the desert they would feel sure I was yet unarmed and weak from my ordeal and perhaps even perished along the way.

So I had surprise on my side; they will be expecting me to be half dead from exhaustion and lack of water as I had been when first I arrived here and they of course will be coming out of the desert tired and foot sore and I’ll be fresh. Yes, now I have a chance. I prepared to leave, no sense in getting into a fight unless you have to.

They’ll know I was here by the freshly dug grave and I was hoping they’d take some time to examine it to find little clue as I had. And so gathering up all I had I set out on the trail through the hills. I took one quick look out into the desert and there they were still some miles distant but I couldn’t make out how many. No matter, on foot they’d have a job to catch me now.

I’d said a prayer to the Buddha just before I left for I felt sure He’d taken one life and given me mine.

The path went up steeply and after some hours the sun set but it was a clear night and by the light of the stars I was able to carry on but I was getting cold and would get colder the higher up I went and without a coat it would be too cold to stop and sleep so I would have to keep going.

Hunger pangs gnawed at my insides and I was weak and worn out while my pursuers would be well provisioned so I had to keep up the pace to stay in front of them but it was becoming more and more of an effort to put one foot in front of the other and still the going was uphill.

Could I afford to stop and rest? I was in no fit state to fight them if they came upon me while resting so that was another reason to keep going.

When the sun finally came up to throw light on the path I was all in and ready to drop. I couldn’t go any further.

Sometime during the night I’d made it to the top and had stumbled along through the hills following the path and now was on the downward slope to the sea and the seaside town where I could get a boat and disappear, but to get to there I would have to rest and find