The Legends of the Big Game: Legends Iii and Iv

By Suna Flores

Legends III and IV pick up where Legends I and II left off. They reveal the second half of a game already in progress between two spirits (Spirit and Fighter). They are playing the game for the right to dictate the fate of the world for good or evil. Early humans are entirely evil with no sense of right and wrong. Fighter is winning the game. To fix this problem, Spirit has placed a tiny Scrap baby with a human King and Queen. Scraps were made at the beginning of time with the knowledge of right and wrong, but they are tiny (three inches—full grown!).

The humans accept the Scrap baby as their own and expect him to grow. He doesn’t. Spirit expects the adopted child to learn how to be a Conscience and help humans. Unfortunately, nobody tells the Scrap child about this. He feels that he is a useless runt.

Fighter is close to winning the game. The fate of the world hangs in the balance. Will the Scrap child become a man in time to learn about his destiny and save his adopted father and the world? A final battle will determine the fate of the world forever.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Mar 8, 2019
• ISBN: 9781796018400

Suna Flores

Suna Flores has been writing all her life: newspaper articles, plays, short stories and musicals. She is the mother of five, but, thanks to a patient husband, has found time to be a teacher, a counselor for the disabled and sometimes a member of the local community theater company as an actress, director, producer or set designer. (Husband Armand has been a big part of the latter.) Suna and Armand live in a cottage by a lake in Northern California which offers great inspiration for fantasy and storytelling.

Book preview

The Legends of The Big Game

Legends III and IV

Written and Illustrated by:

Suna Flores

Copyright © 2019 by Suna Flores.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2019901937

ISBN:                   Hardcover         978-1-7960-1806-6

                             Softcover           978-1-7960-1807-3

                             eBook                 978-1-7960-1840-0

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the

product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance

to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 03/07/2019

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CONTENTS

LEGEND III

The Tiny Players

I              A New Game Plan Begins

II             Big Mother, Small Prince

III           Royal Lessons

IV           Living with the Rules

V            The Game Heats Up

VI          The Wretcheds

VII         After King Heart

VIII        Enter Awake

IX          Fighter’s Recruits—The Brothers

X            Fighter’s Coaching Scores!

LEGEND IV

The Game Changer

XI           The Heroes Arrive

XII         The Glory Story

XIII        Meanwhile, Back at The Castle

XIV        Roots … and the Revelation

XV         Trouble at the Gate

XVI        Sol and The Hall

XVII      The Conscience Army

XVIII     The Big Game Is On, or Is It War?

IXX        The Goal Line Stand

About the Author

Introduction and Summary

Legends III and IV are the last two quarters of a century-old game between two spirits, Spirit of Good and Fighter for Chaos. The Game started at the beginning of time in Legends I and II, but now, here we are.

Centuries have gone by and the Game is still in progress. The winner of the Game will have the right to determine the future of the universe for good or evil. The whole universe? Yes. This makes the Second Half of their Game pretty important.

As we said, this Game between Goodness and Chaos has been going on for centuries, but the idea of ‘Consciences’ is recent and untried. What impact will that have? Spirit of Good (Spirit) is disappointed with his team’s performance in the First Half, but he has great hopes for Consciences in the rest of the Game.

His strategy is hanging on the ability of his new recruits, the Scraps, and the potential of Consciences. Scraps are tiny beings made of Special Clay, wonderful stuff that actually contains the knowledge of right and wrong. Fireflies (Scrap and mouse angels) are also extremely interested in the Game and are part of Spirit’s team.

An important detail about Scraps should be added here. Legend I details the fact that Scraps were actually created by a very early mouse named Michael Angelo. Fireflies supervised the creation process. Although Scraps are tiny (no more than an inch or two in height), they were made of Special Clay and they naturally possess great promise for assisting with human Goodness. Scrap creation by mice and supervised by Fireflies is the reason for the current interest of mice and Fireflies in Legends III and IV. Spirit, Fireflies and mice are all on the same side.

Only one Scrap is activated for the Game right now and he is just a baby. This baby was placed as the first-born child of King Sol and Queen Luna in Legend II. Spirit hopes the baby will learn human ways by living with humans as their son. Then the little Scrap will know enough to become a Conscience and be able to help humans understand more about Goodness. Then he can win the Game.

This ‘adoption arrangement’ for the baby Scrap has issues, however. Neither the Scrap baby nor his human parents understand the Plan or its goal. They also have no idea that they are not related by birth, in spite of the size difference.

If Spirit’s Game Plan works, His team could score a Comeback in the Goodness Game, but there are many more problems that Spirit doesn’t anticipate such as: how long it will take for a baby Conscience to grow up enough to be useful in the Game; what will the rest of Scrap Kingdom do since they are currently homeless, jobless, and hungry; why didn’t anybody tell Scraps about killer rats. What?

Fighter for Chaos (Fighter) doesn’t know anything about Scraps, but he believes that he is totally ready for the Second Half of the Game. The universe is getting ready to go down the tubes into complete violence. Fighter has also decided to recruit some new Players to ensure his success. These Players will be extra motivated toward evil outcomes.. Spirit’s new Game Plan will be in for a big challenge when Fighter’s new Players hit the field, and Spirit will have no clue what they are up to.

Mice and Fireflies will continue to be important. These two creatures helped Spirit to set up the new Game Plan, but they might not have seen the above problems coming. Neither does Spirit. Both mice and Fireflies are dedicated to helping Spirit win the Game, however, and that’s good. He will need all the help he can get.

Spirit will soon have to admit that some of his new strategies are a little shaky, but, as Fighter’s humans become more evil, Spirit knows that Consciences might be his only chance to win Goodness for the universe.

The Scrap King and Queen have set the new Game Plan in motion. Their Scrap child now lives with humans. Scrap parents will continue to watch over their son’s development, but their role will not be easy. What if their son’s human parents do not know how to raise a Scrap child? How is the rest of their Scrap Kingdom going to survive? The answers are here in Legends III and IV.

The Second Half of The Big Game is ready to start. The Players on both sides are on the field. Spirit and Fighter will have to figure out answers to their problems on the field of play as the Game goes into its Third Quarter.

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Legend III

The Third Quarter - The Tiny Players

I

A New Game Plan Begins

From Combined Memoirs of Queen Constance and Moses Mouse

River People went back to fighting and brawling immediately after The Great Fire and the ‘birth’ of tiny Prince Sol to his human parents. Life did not change much for the People, and Fighter didn’t miss a minute of his favorite entertainment: watching evil, violent humans knock each other around, cheating, lying, and a little murdering here and there. There were still no refs and no penalties in The Big Game, and Fighter knew he was moving the ball.

But People gossiped all day every day about the surprising changes in their King. It had started with his decision not to punish a completely innocent guy for The Great Fire. That was something he had never done in the past.

Then he had served cider to everybody. That was very cool. Cider, mind you! That was an all-time first. (They had no idea that the Scrap Queen had secretly caused these improved behaviors.)

Second was that wacky birth announcement and the party that followed. That party had been so amazing that everybody talked about it for months, even if there was no baby prince to see. No one had seen anything that looked like a prince then or since.

The King brought his son out on the Royal balcony

but he was too small for the People to see.

The townsfolk nudged nudges. They stared a long stare,

but not one of them saw a new baby prince there!)

Does the King make a joke?

We just don’t understand.

"There is no baby!"

Just cloth in his hand!

The King was so high up on his balcony

that the townsfolk below him just couldn’t see

that there was a baby up there at all.

Folks were now sure that there was no Prince Sol!

The crowd started whispering low to each other,

sister to cousin and father to brother.

What do you think?

Has the King lost his mind?

No one sees a prince.

We can’t all be blind!

"We know that the King really wanted a son.

That wish made him crazy. His mind is undone!"

The townsfolk all watched as their King took his hanky

and gently wrapped nothing up tight in its blankie.

He then gave the tiny cloth back to his Queen,

the weirdest announcement that they’d ever seen!

The Queen made a resting place snug in her hand,

and nestling the bundle there, she took her stand

as though she was proud as a parent could be

of something that none of her subjects could see!

But this King had a temper the town knew to dread.

If you doubt him, the King might just chop off your head!

The folks thought things over a second or two

as they all tried to figure out what they should do.

How should we act? the folks said to each other.

He’s a horrible King, but we don’t have another.

If we say that we doubt him, things might get real bad.

Who knows what he’ll do if he really gets mad!

Our King seems content now, and that’s a good thing.

It’s better for us to agree with the King.

So we’ll just pretend that we see the babe too.

Our King will be pleased. How much harm can it do?

The crowd began cheering. They dared not be rude

even though they all thought that their King was unglued.

The crowd put aside all their doubts and their fears

and welcomed their Prince with much cheering of cheers

and enjoyed the best party that they’d seen in years.

Spirit was watching from skies overhead.

The New Plan has started, he gratefully said

to the mice and the Fireflies who were nearby as well.

These Royals love this child. In their eyes I can tell

that their love for their newborn is as real as can be

even though he’s too small for their People to see."

Fighter dropped by when he heard the commotion.

Fighter heard People’s doubts, and it was his notion

that the King was now showing some weakness of mind

by displaying a Prince that nobody could find.

"A weak king, of course, is the very best kind.

Weakness breeds doubt of the King. Never fear it.

This doubt will destroy any joy that old Spirit

might think he has gained from this make-believe birth.

River Kingdom will see what a weak king is worth."

Fighter laughed at the future this weakness would bring

to a world that had nothing in line to be King!

I’ll win The Big Game, and have earth to myself,

and he roared off in thunder, quite sure of himself

*****

Everybody believed that the King didn’t really have a new son, but he was in such a good mood lately that no one was going to screw it up by saying that they doubted him. The party went on for days! Nothing burned, nobody died, and the party was still fun! Everyone actually began to speak of the Prince as though he actually existed. Why not? the King liked it. What harm could it do?

The Prince will probably grow up to look like his father, they snickered.

It would be better if he was good-looking like his mother.

That will never happen. All the men in the Royal Family Tree look alike.

That’s a shame.

They laughed and rolled their eyes as they spoke, knowing that this Prince talk was going to be a running joke, and it was their best way of keeping their King happy and out of their business.

Fighter was happy too. A King who was going through great changes of personality and showing off a baby that didn’t exist was definitely a sign that he was losing his grip. This craziness would eventually bring on a complete breakdown in any kind of Royal Order. There might even be a revolt! These temporarily happy behaviors in the King were a good thing—a false sense of security for Spirit. Fighter had it all figured out. Game on!

*****

As the days after the birth announcement went by, Moses Mouse, true to his lifelong practice, continued to record the world that he witnessed in his journal. "People will certainly want to know about what happened to the Prince, but they will also want to know about the rest of the Scraps. I hope somebody has a plan for that, but I don’t see one. The Prince is safe and secure for the time being, but the next question is, What is going to happen to the rest of Scrap Kingdom? They are homeless."

Indeed, in the weeks after The Great Fire, Scraps were homeless. Spirit also became concerned. He was increasingly aware that his wonderful new Plan for Goodness would take more time than he had originally thought. Point 1—Scraps were as slow to mature as humans, and Prince Sol was a baby. Point 2—how would the Scrap population survive until the Goodness Plan for Consciences was really ready to work? Right now, there was no plan in place for Scrap Kingdom, itself.

(Point of clarification: The Great Fire refers to a fire that took place in Legend II. The Scraps of Scrap Kingdom were burned out of their homes and farm lands by a fire that was carelessly started by humans and blown out of control by Fighter. Neither Fighter nor humans knew then (or now) about the existence of Scraps.)

In the days immediately following The Great Fire, the Scraps survived huddled in the branches of the Willow by the River. Soon, however, Scrap creativity took over and they remembered some of their childhood games, building themselves temporary homes in the branches of the Willow. Here they were relatively safe, being off the ground and out from under the feet of the River People.

Again, Spirit was impressed by the Scraps’ ability to adapt and find positive solutions, but this was only temporary, he knew. Winter would soon be upon them. Frozen Scraps could not practice their Goodness, no matter how good they were. Scrap homelessness was a potential setback for the Game and, even worse, a humiliating oversight for Coach Spirit. Again, the future of his team was in trouble.

Queen Connie and King Heart (Scrap parents of the baby placed with the human King and Queen) were painfully aware of the situation. For a week, they remained camping with Moses in his home under the kitchen of the Castle, making sure that their son was safe, but they were consumed by guilt at their own relative comfort. They knew that their subjects needed them. The rest of the kindly Scraps did not question their King and Queen about their living conditions. They had faith in their leaders. They were sure that they would somehow find better accommodations as soon as they were able and the time was right.

King Heart decided that the right time was now. On a warm fall evening, King Heart called a meeting of the complete Scrap Kingdom. The gathering was massive—a swarm of tiny people intent on hearing from their beloved King and Queen and completely unaware of the plan that had recently placed their infant prince in the fearful Castle of the River People.

Spirit was shocked by the huge number of Scraps, which he had not even known about until a week before. There were probably as many Scraps as there were River People. Amazing!

King Heart began with an apology. He was sorry that he had not consulted with the Whole Scraps Council and made them part of what he was going to tell them now. He was accustomed to discussing important matters with them. Tearfully he confessed the future that he and Connie had chosen for their Prince the night after The Great Fire. Heart told of the pain and fear that had racked him when he had put the plan in motion. The decisions he had made that night again became painful to him. He could not go on.

The Whole Scraps Council comforted him. They had not seen their King cry before. Queen Connie came to his rescue. She was a strong woman. Spirit watched the Queen and King with sympathy and admiration.

The Fireflies were there for us, Queen Connie explained. They were there at the beginning to help us see our need. They were still there to help us find the solution. Without the Fireflies, we would never have had the knowledge or strength to do what we did, but with them, we could not refuse their request. What we have done was part of Spirit’s original Plan for Goodness on earth. We Scraps have always known that something was needed to complete the Game Plan. We just didn’t know what it was.

All Scraps were alert now and paying complete attention.

"But when I speak of need, I hope you will understand that I speak of two kinds of creatures with need: Scraps and River People." The gathered Scraps mumbled. What possible need did River People have, and what did any of that have to do with them?

River People are violent and basically have no understanding of right and wrong. They really need to change that, am I right? the little Queen offered quickly. The Scraps nodded. This was a fact that no Scrap would deny.

We Scraps are small and at the mercy of River People because of our size. Scraps need to find a way to feel useful but also to live in safety, am I right? Again, the Scraps nodded and, this time,