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    21 AC The Mercenary
    21 AC The Mercenary
    21 AC The Mercenary
    Ebook333 pages4 hours

    21 AC The Mercenary

    By W.Wm. Mee

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    About this ebook

    The rumors about the mercenary called ‘Edge’ were many and wildly contradictory. Far too many to recount here --- but let’s touch on a few of the choicer ones anyway, shall we?

    She was the first child born after The Cleansing.
    She was something more than human --- and something much less.
    She always travelled with a hundred trained killers.
    She always travelled alone.
    She never missed with a gun and was even better with a blade.
    She killed only the rich and greedy; the evil and the cruel.
    She killed anyone, anywhere --- man, woman or child --- as long as the price was right.
    She was a master of disguise and could change her appearance at will.
    She could vanish in thin air and walk on water.
    She was a ravishing beauty.
    She was as ugly as sin.
    She could be wounded, but never killed.
    (And my own personal favorite:)
    She could stop a man’s heart with a single glance.

    What is true and what is not?
    I’ll let you, Gentle Reader, make those decisions for yourself. All I ask is that you come with me now to a distant future that may or may not happen. To a time twenty-one years after The Cleansing, when that world wide plague left three quarters of humanity dead in a week and the rest scrambling about to stay alive.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherW.Wm. Mee
    Release dateAug 14, 2017
    ISBN9781370241347
    21 AC The Mercenary
    Author

    W.Wm. Mee

    Wayne William Mee is a retired English teacher who enjoys hiking, sailing and walking his Beagle hound. He is also a 'living historian' or 'reenactor'. You can see Wayne's historical group on Facebook's 'McCaw's Privateers' 18th Century Naval Camp' page. Building & sailing wooden sailboats also takes up a chunk of Wayne's time, but along with his wife Maggie,son Jason and granddaughter Zoe, writing is his true love, the one he returns to let his imagination soar.Wayne would like you to 'look him up' on FACEBOOK and click the 'Friend' button or even zap him an e-mail.If you enjoyed any of his books, kindly leave a REVIEW here at Smashwords and/or say so on Facebook, Twitter, Tweeter or whatever other 'social network' you use.Thanks for stopping by ---and keep reading!!Drop him a line either there or at waynewmee@videotron.caHe'll be glad to hear from you!'Rest ye gentle --- sleep ye sound'

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      Book preview

      21 AC The Mercenary - W.Wm. Mee

      Introduction

      The rumors about the mercenary called ‘Edge’ were many and wildly contradictory. Far too many to recount here --- but let’s touch on a few of the choicer ones anyway, shall we?

      She was the first child born after The Cleansing.

      She was something more than human --- and something much less.

      She always travelled with a hundred trained killers ---she always travelled alone.

      She never missed with a gun and was even better with a blade.

      She killed only the rich and greedy; the evil and the cruel.

      She killed anyone, anywhere --- man, woman or child --- as long as the price was right.

      She was a master of disguise and could change her appearance at will.

      She was a ravishing beauty.

      She was as ugly as sin.

      She could be wounded, but never killed.

      (And my own personal favorite:)

      She could stop a man’s heart with a single glance.

      What is true and what is not?

      I’ll let you, Gentle Reader, make those decisions for yourself. All I ask is that you come with me now to a distant future that may or may not happen. To a time twenty-one years after The Cleansing, when that world wide plague left three quarters of humanity dead in a week and the rest scrambling to stay alive.

      In those two turbulent, death filled decades, many things had passed away.

      The lights had gone out for good and darkness had not only spread over the land but had also worked its way deep into men’s hearts. The fair, kind and just ways of the ‘modern world’ were quickly replaced by a return of older, harsher ways.

      Wars were fought, thousands were killed, cities were leveled, various religions rose and fell --- and everywhere the time of ‘might makes right’ once again ruled the land.

      So come with me now, Gentle Reader --- if you dare --- to the year 21 AC and meet Edge the Mercenary.

      ***

      Chapter1: ‘Payback’s a Bitch!’

      Cardinal Winters’ Fortress

      ‘Our Lady of Mercy’ church,

      on the misty Oregon Coast.

      Prudence Edgewood, better known to both friends and enemies alike as ‘Edge’, gave the hand signal for her small band of mercenaries to advance. Seth One Ear, her second in command, quickly passed the order down the line. The two sentries guarding the stone causeway to the fortified church had already been eliminated. In the grey light of a fog bound morning Edge and her dozen mercenaries looked like wraths floating silently through a graveyard --- which was a fairly accurate description of just what they were.

      Each of the twelve --- eight men and four women --- had been hand picked by Edge herself for their various ‘military’ skills. All were tough, deadly and lean --- and all were a little bit in love with death --- their leader most of all.

      You sure the door will be unlocked? Seth asked.

      Five gold Eagles will unlock anything --- if put in the right hands, Edge replied.

      Seth grunted and loosened his shortsword in its leather scabbard. In the dampness the heavy blade was prone to stick. All of them carried firearms of various sorts --- pistols, rifles, shotguns --- but tonight’s work called for silent killing, and so blades, not bullets, were being used --- unless of course things went in the crapper. Then they would blast their way out, one way or the other!

      Guns, however, need bullets, and bullets are expensive. Very expensive --- and getting more so all the time! For several years now Edge had accepted payment in various calibers of brass as well as the usual gold or silver coins.

      An owl hooted and Seth’s mocking grin flashed. The lads have made it to the door. He made a slight bow. After you, my lady.

      Edge frowned. She put up with Seth’s flippant ways because he was the best fighter she had ever seen. Gun, fists, sword or knife, Seth One Ear was unbeatable --- though even the best get cut up now and then --- hence his nick-name. Together they moved silently across the misty causeway --- as always, he was guarding her back.

      ***

      Open the fucking door! Edge yelled in frustration as she pounded with the hilt of her shortsword on the hard, iron bound wood. The prearranged knock had been given but the small, heavy door had not moved.

      Silence followed as the echo was quickly swallowed up by the thick fog. Sidelong glances, a shifting of feet and a tightening of hands on hilts came from the killers all around her --- but not a word. They all knew better.

      Shit! Edge hissed. Five gold Eagles I paid that little fucker! I’ll have his guts out and shove them down his lying throat!

      Just then a creaking was heard and a sliver of yellow light spilled out into the darkness. The door, at last, was opening!

      Shit! Edge swore again, this time however it was followed by a smile. Move your asses, boys and girls! Lets’ get this party started!

      Death, in the form of a dozen forms dressed in dirty wool, greasy leathers and patched tactical vests, slid into Our Lady Of Mercy’s back door and went looking for their mark, Cardinal William Randolph Winters --- the man they had been hired to kill. Fifteen years ago Winters was an unknown priest with an easy smile, a warm handshake and a taste for young girls --- and Edge was a nine year old orphan that the Church had just agreed to raise.

      Edge pushed past the well paid, red faced door-keep and, shortsword in one and silenced pistol in the other, she took the stone stairs two at a time.

      Cardinal Winters had come a long way in the twenty-one years since the Cleansing. A newly ordained Catholic priest at the time, he had quickly seen that, in order for both himself and the church to survive, many age old doctrines needed to be to drastically changed --- starting with the Ten Commandments --- ‘thou shalt not kill’ being the first one to go!

      A large number of the clergy, including the pope at that time, had resisted the change, preferring to die a martyr’s death rather than compromise their morals or their faith. Fortunately for Father Winters, an even larger number of clergy were more than willing to oblige their hard headed brethren. The survivors of this ‘secondary cleansing’ quickly agreed to make ‘whatever changes necessary’ in order to survive --- and so the Holy Church of the Cleansing Light was born, a new, more ‘practical and worldly’ pope was elected, the Ten Commandments were rewritten and shrunk down to five, self-serving lines of dogma, and a new world order had begun.

      1. Ye shall worship, obey and faithfully serve

      the priesthood of the ‘Holy Church of the Cleansing Light’.

      2. All that do not do so are godless heathens

      and shall be either shunned or put to death!

      3. Ye shall freely and with a glad heart

      share half of all thy wealth, goods and bounty with the Holy Church.

      4. And ye shall fight to the death to protect

      both Holy Church and all its chosen leaders.

      5. If all this ye faithfully do, then, upon your death, the Gates of Paradise will open for thee!

      Now, twenty-one years later, many of the Church’s ‘founding fathers’ were either dead or in hiding, rebellion and chaos reined in most areas of the kingdom and a new Dark Age was once again upon the face of the land.

      And the little girl that had once been Prudence Edgewood, now known as ‘Edge’, fitted in perfectly.

      ***

      She stood at the foot of the large, four poster bed and looked down at the fat fuck now cowering beneath the silk sheets. The frightened little girl that the two legged pig was molesting had been gathered up and removed by Mother Shirl, a marine that had come through the Cleansing and taught Edge all she knew about fighting. Mother Shirl was now Edge’s second in command and already had given the terrified child a sweet, wrapped her in a warm blanket and whisked her from the room. There was no need for the girl to see what was about to happen --- though on second thought, Edge knew that long ago little girl named Prudence would have enjoyed seeing the fat pervert get his ‘just reward’!

      She looked from the pile of shit quivering in the bed, to the shortsword in her right hand, then to the silenced, .22 pistol in her left. She’d offed plenty of bad men before with both the pistol and the blade, and was now deciding which one to use on Cardinal Pig-Face Winters.

      ‘The blade is always cheaper,’ the reasonable side of her argued. ‘Quieter too. So far no-one knows we are here --- except for this dog’s vomit and the child he was raping!’

      That last part brought her emotional side into play. ‘The blade would be slower as well. Cause more pain; last longer and bring me more joy!’

      Fuck it! she swore out loud. This is faster! And just as painful! She placed the end of the stubby, round silencer against the cardinal’s upper right arm and pulled the trigger. There was a low, muffled ‘popping’ sound, followed by a high pitched scream.

      Edge smiled wickedly and did the same with Winter’s other arm --- and then both his hands.

      Please, the bleeding thing on the bed whimpered. No more --- please!

      Please?! Edge repeated, stepping closer so her fierce gaze was just inches from the priest’s sweating face. "That’s what I said long ago! What every poor, frightened little child you’ve raped has said to you! We all begged you to stop --- but you just grinned and kept right on! Your fat, sweating body pressing down on us! Smothering us! Ripping away our innocence and killing our dreams!"

      The thing that had been Cardinal Winters; the powerful politician, the well-spoken statesman, the sought after councilor of kings --- and a life long pedophile --- narrowed his gaze and took in Edge’s hardened features, her scars, her frown, her half shaved head --- and recognition surfaced.

      "Prudence? Is --- is that you?!"

      In the flesh, old man! Finally come back to set things straight! Edge moved the pistol to his right thigh and pulled the trigger. The small .22 coughed and the fat priest screamed. She moved the barrel to his left thigh and fired. This time he only whimpered. The barrel moved twice more and fired each time. Small round holes appeared on the priest’s fat feet. Surprisingly there was little blood and even more surprising little noise from Winters. Looking up Edge saw that he had passed out.

      Slowly she holstered the pistol, the black silencer protruding out the bottom. Even more slowly she leaned forward and pressed the point of her shortsword against his crotch. Her mouth now a cold grimace, she whispered words she hadn’t spoke in fifteen long, hard years. Please stop. I’ll do whatever you want --- just don’t hurt me any more. With each word she pressed down a little harder.

      The cardinal’s eyes opened wide, as did his mouth. She pulled the blade back, tilted her wrist ever so slightly --- and drove the point into his open obscenity.

      There was a gurgling, choking sound, followed by a whimper, followed by silence.

      Moments later --- just how many she’d never know --- she felt Seth One-Ear’s hand on her shoulder, heard his voice in ear. Time to go, my lady. Your work here is done.

      And so it was.

      They left the same as they came --- silent as Death and just as deadly. A wake of bodies behind them, they vanished into the early morning fog, taking the little girl with them --- another young recruit for Mother Shirl to train.

      ***

      Chapter 2: ‘A Deal’s A Deal!’

      ‘The Devil’s Den’, the palace of

      King Charles I in the Kingdom of Oregon,

      Astoria at the mouth of the Columbia River

      "I don’t give a fuck what ‘complications’ have come up! Edge said through a thick cloud of cigar smoke. A deal’s a fucking deal! You wanted that fat fuck gone and he’s gone. Now pay me like we agreed!"

      Cardinal Gabriel Stark’s dark robes rustled as he crossed to his ornate desk. His gold chain of office swung forward as his long fingered hand, adorned with several rings, opened the domed lid of a small, iron bound chest. Glancing back at the strange young woman, he did something that some might call a smile.

      Your payment, my dear ---as requested.

      Edge stepped forward and glanced in the chest, a hand on the hilt of one of the many blades she carried on her person --- after all, it was never smart to trust a priest --- especially when it concerned money --- or anything else for that matter!

      Edge’s wary look turned to a frown when she saw what was actually in the chest. "What the fuck’s this?! I said a fist size bag of gold coins, not silver! And five boxes of shells. Either .22’s, 38’s or 9 mil! Not a couple of boxes of fucking .45’s! Most people don’t use those big mothers any more! Too fucking expensive!"

      Silver coins draw less attention than gold, Cardinal Stark said in his soft, sing-song voice. "And you do want to keep a low profile, don’t you, Prudence? After all, Cardinal Winters was a high ranking member of the church and his killer will be hunted high and low. The king’s justice must be upheld."

      "Fuck King Charlie and fuck his so-called justice! That fat prick Winters deserved killing! Edge hissed. Besides being a high, mucky-muck cardinal like you, he was also a thief, a slave-trader and a pervert who raped little girls!"

      He was all of that and more, Cardinal Stark said. And also my greatest rival in the church. The world is indeed a better place with him no longer in it.

      Edge snorted a dry laugh and blew out a cloud of cigar smoke. It’s certainly better for you! Now you’re a step or two closer to wearing the purple yourself!

      This time the cardinal’s smile was genuine. I’ve never hid the fact that I hoped one day to be chosen leader of the Holy Church.

      Edge’s short, mocking laugh came again. "You’ve done a hell of a lot more than ‘hope’ --- Your Grace. You’ve plotted, planned, schemed and now murdered!

      The cardinal looked shocked. Me? Don’t be ridiculous, girl! I merely suggested that Cardinal Winters needed to be removed from office. I cannot be blamed if your mercenaries got carried away!

      Of course not, Edge said sarcastically. "The great and powerful Gabriel Stark, prince of the church and councilor to kings, would never bloody his own hands --- he’d just pay low-life’s like me to do it for him. Speaking of which, next time I want gold, not fucking silver! And you can shove those .45’s up your ass!

      Really, Prudence, there is no need to be so crude. Besides, you can always trade them for any caliber you want.

      And loose a percentage of brass in the process?! Edge replied. Not bloody likely! Besides, Seth uses a .45. She rooted around in the chest and frowned. "There’s only three pouches of silver here. I’ll need at least twelve to equal the amount of gold we agreed on!"

      Five, Stark said softly.

      Ten, Edge’s countered with.

      Six.

      Eight! And another box of .45’s!

      The cardinal pursed his thin lips, steepled his long fingers in front of his narrow, hawk-like nose and eventually nodded.

      Good! Edge grunted. "Now, what about this ‘complication’ you spoke of? Do you want me to take care of that as well?"

      The smile that was not a smile widened. Oh, I doubt that you would want the job.

      Edge’s dark eyes narrowed. Try me.

      It involves eliminating yet another member of the church.

      You mean another pain in the ass obstacle in your path to the papal crown?

      Cardinal Stark sighed. "Once again, Prudence, crude but accurate. Though, unlike that piece of filth Winters, this priest is a true rarity in the church --- he actually is a good man! Too damn good, by all accounts!"

      Prudence Edgewood’s mocking smile turned into a frown. "You know my rules, cardinal! No women or children and only men that need killing! The world’s overflowing with bastards and I see no need to kill the few good ones there is!"

      "Ahhh, but ‘goodness’ itself is such a relative term, my dear. This young upstart is spreading heresy and sedition. The misguided fool is a follower of Jesus, the sheltered, naive son --- not the stern, strong and far wiser father!"

      Edge drew on her cigar and blew out a torrent of smoke. "Save it for your sermons, You Grace. You know that talk’s all just so much bullshit to me. But if this lowly priest is such a good, gentle man, then what harm can he do you? No-one takes that Nailed God, turn the other cheek, Messiah crap seriously anymore! Only idiots, cowards and old women would listen to him!"

      You’d be surprised, Prudence! the cardinal said, his usual soft, sing-song voice now strident, his brow furrowed, his gaze intense. "He has a following , Prudence! And it is growing daily!"

      The shaven headed young woman grunted out here disdain. Like I just said; only idiots, cowards and old women!

      The cardinal spoke again, only this time he sounded nervous --- a first in the fifteen years she had known him. "At the beginning, perhaps, but not now! Now all sorts of people are heeding the blasphemous words of Father James O’Malley! And not just the poor and simple minded, but many of the wealthy merchant class as well! Even some of the nobility have been swayed by O’Malley’s simplistic version of how Jesus thought the world should be! With such seditious thoughts of freedom and equality for all, thousands are now having their minds turned against Holy Church, causing the people to question even the sacred Five Commandments!"

      Needless to say, Edge had no great love for religion in general or for the Church of the Cleansing Light in particular! She came by her dislike honestly; having been a five year old orphan left on the church’s doorstep, she had to pay for her ‘rescue and glorious salvation’ by scrubbing floors, pots, pans and latrines from sun up to sun down --- and later on, when the gangly little girl became a budding young woman, she paid further by warming a number of the hairy old bastard’s beds!

      As for the bloody Five Commandments, Winters and a number of the other hairy old perverts that had used her nightly would often have her recite all five of them over and over while they plowed away at her tender body. Even now, years later, some nights both the words and the deeds that they conjured up would return to her in nightmares.

      Most especially the hated first commandment.

      Ye shall worship, obey and faithfully serve

      the priesthood of the ‘Holy Church of the Cleansing Light’.

      How those dirty old men had loved that one!

      But never this priest! Never Cardinal Gabriel Stark --- who, back then was merely kindly, clean-shaven, Father Gabriel. He had never used her as a servant or a slave or a sexual play-thing. He had spoken kindly to the frightened young waif, made sure that she had enough to eat, a dry place to sleep and an extra blanket during the rainy, damp, Oregon winters. He had been her protector, her teacher and her friend.

      But he had used her as well--- but in a much different way. He used her as a weapon.

      Early on the smiling, soft spoken but oh so very ambitious Father Gabriel had seen her potential: the anger in her eyes, the defiance on her lips, the fire in her heart --- and the bleak, cold, emptiness in her soul. He’d seen it all and exploited it for his own personal gain and the gain of Holy Church --- which in the end, was one and the same thing.

      The cardinal now stepped forward and gently took hold of her tattooed forearm. "Do this for me, Prudence! Find this foolish priest and put the fear of God into him! I don’t ask you to kill him, but frighten him greatly! Have him haul on the rope when you hang a thief. Have him watch as your men decapitate one of your hated slavers! Shove his trembling hands into the entrails of a pedophile you have just disemboweled! Let him see, smell, taste and feel what will happen to him if he persists in spreading this blasphemy! Do this, and I’ll pay you twice today’s payment! But you must do it quickly --- for his power is growing!"

      Edge drew on her cigar, found it had gone out, swore and tossed it aside. Five times today’s payment.

      The cardinal frowned, then smiled. Three.

      Edge matched his so-called smile. Four.

      Done! But you must leave right away!

      "First thing in the morning --- but only to frighten him off --- perhaps even to save him from himself --- but not to kill him."

      The cardinal held his hands out to the side, palms up. As long as he stops spreading heresy against Holy Church, I will be content.

      She gathered up the small, wooden chest. What’s this priest’s name again?

      Father James O’Malley. He’s said to travel up and down the coast, gathering converts as he goes.

      How far south? She asked. I’m not going anywhere near the Mutie Lands!

      Cardinal Stark shrugged. I doubt, Prudence, that even this Father O’Malley is foolish enough to venture into what is left of California, especially the southern part.

      She made a mocking half bow to her one-time savior and headed for the door.

      And Prudence, he said sharply, "Please make it crystal clear to the young O’Malley that if he does not stop, you may not kill him --- but someone else certainly will!"

      She nodded and closed the door behind her, eager to get a drink, a bath, a hot meal --- and maybe an even hotter young partner for the night? Man or woman, it really didn’t matter which, as long as they were lean and hard. As usual she’d take whatever Chance sent her way.

      ***

      Chapter 3: ‘King Charlie’

      Like they say, ‘when one door closes, another door opens’. The moment Edge closed hers, another one did indeed open --- an inner panel really, cleverly hidden behind a heavy drape --- and two men and a woman came into the room. The first man was middle age and bearded with a thick head of curly, brown hair. The other was a youth just coming into his manhood. Tall and thin with a long blonde, almost white mane

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