Moonlight Report

Panola Mountain Rescue will suspend its search for John Speck and his Wealthy Band of Adventurers. Speaking for the rescue outfit, Richard Button remarked, “If I’m being frank, Panola Mountain Rescue is trained for climbing mountains, not plunging into their cavernous depths.” John Speck announced his intent to find the Lost City of Cibola alleged to still exist under the Panola Mountains. The Wealthy Band of Adventurers included three dwarves from the Basque country familiar with underground civilizations.

Flannel opened his eyes, blinking into a sticky, pale-blue sky. The sharp gravel underneath him poked through the back of his shirt and he noticed the front was damp - signs he’d been asleep for a while. He wondered how he’d slept at all and made his first attempt to sit up. But the first lurch twisted his insides like it was a rag being rung out and his brain spun around unnaturally in his skull.

Old Cat sat in her window sill beneath the half drawn blinds. She felt the goodness of the warm sun on her skin but her bones ached, her body tired. Crow came to visit her in the afternoons. When they were young, he came to taunt her for being kept prisoner behind a pane of glass. Crow had been feathers and noise; Old Cat patiently waiting to demonstrate her hissing and claws.