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Authors: Bryan Cohen

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The Light, the Dark and the Ugly (32 page)

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The girl's voice was vaguely familiar

The General grunted. "Silence the child."

Razellia shushed her daughter. "No, Vella. It's the General. They look and sound similar, but you need to–"

Vella pulled from her mother's grasp and stepped forward. "Ted, do you remember how you made things float around the house? Or the stories you told me about Natalie and Erica?"

As strange as it was, the General saw pictures floating in and out of his head. Of course, he'd never even been to the girl's village. And yet, he saw the house so clearly. He recalled the games the little girl spoke of and he even remembered a few words of the story.

Pluric cleared his throat. "General, I can have this girl removed."

The General leaned forward on the throne, allowing his face to come into the light. Vella clapped and squealed. "I knew it was you! I want to hear more about Travis."

The words came out of the General's mouth before he even realized it. "The big… dumb… idiot."

Vella cheered. "Yes! Him!"

As soon as the General tried to grasp further at the memories, they flitted away. Butterflies bounced in his stomach as he realized the spectacle he'd allowed. "Take the girl away, Pluric. This is becoming a farce."

Vella screamed when the guards laid their hands on her. "Ted! Don't let them do this!"

The General noticed Razellia's tears when her daughter was taken from the room.

Her sobs were silent. "Please forgive me, General. She doesn't understand."

The General tried to relax away the nervousness, but it wouldn't leave him. "The typical punishment for your crimes is death. For both you and your child."

She nodded and straightened her spine. "Take her. I care not for my own life. Pretend she's your own. I beg you to let her live."

Something was coming over the General, and it felt like a conscience. This hadn't been a problem for any of the other executions he'd uttered, particularly for Ferrick Galloway, the former leader of Razellia's village. For some reason, this woman's argument was more compelling than the others had been.

"I wish to let you both live."

Pluric gasped. "But sir! The things this woman has done are inexuse–"

"Do you dare question me?" The General felt his temperature rise. "In my own court?"

Pluric took a few steps away from the throne. "Of course not."

The General projected his voice throughout the room. "The girl will become property of the stronghold. The mother will be confined to the dungeon, though she can provide daily lessons to the girl. Now take her out of my sight."

Razellia smiled and bowed. "Thank you, General! Your leadership is–" She started to cry again. "Thank you."

The General clutched at his stomach as the sickness crept over him again. It was the third time this week he'd run to the bathroom with discomfort. The previous two instances had induced vomit, but a few splashes of water had made him feel much better this time. A knock came at the door.

"Give me a moment."

The clicking of Pluric's tongue made his identity obvious through the door. "Are you doing alright, General?"

The General hesitated for a moment before opening the door. Pluric looked more annoyed than sympathetic.

"It's better this time."

Pluric looked back to the throne room. "You have a dozen more trials to see to."

The General nodded. "The last few weeks have been... strange."

Pluric tapped his commander on the shoulder. "Soon enough, you'll be back to normal." He looked deep into the General's eyes. "I think you should reconsider the decision you made about the girl's mother."

The General once again saw the memories of Razellia and Vella. There were bits and pieces of other people interspersed throughout the thoughts. The humans Natalie and Travis, and the protector, Erica LaPlante. There was a sweetness to the images. He wasn't seeing enemies. He was seeing friends. His friends. The realization came over him that he wasn't the General after all.

As soon as the epiphany came, it started to dissipate. A tiny memory formed far back in his mind. It was as if it was miles away. He remembered Tank, one of Nigel's gang members calling out to him after he'd first used his powers. The voice was like an echo.

"What the hell are you?"

I'm Ted
.

The memory came and went. It'd been wiped from his mind.

The General blinked. "What was the woman's name again?"

Pluric smiled. "Razellia."

The General straightened his clothes and grinned back. "You know, we do want to send the right message to the people." Warmth filled him as he pictured his kingdom yet to come. "Kill her. And make the daughter watch."

About the Author

Bryan Cohen is the author of the
Ted Saves the World
series and a collection of creative writing prompts books. Bryan is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 2013, Bryan appeared on an episode of the nationally televised "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." He did just fine. Bryan lives with his wife, their cat Rocket, and their Netflix account in Chicago.

Acknowledgements & Legal Info

Thank you to everybody who made this book possible. My beta readers Julianne Clancy, Tim Matson, Barbara Pohland, Dan Brian and Rachel Bean made a difficult project much easier with their notes. James Olsen did a great cover, and Oomphotography did an amazing job with the key art. Thanks to Alisa Rosenthal for helping out and to Michael Silberblatt and Cordelia Dewdney for bringing the characters to life. Ashley Gainer was fantastic as always. My wife is incredible, and I'm glad she puts up with my "story time."

I'd like to dedicate this book to Joss Whedon whose painful plots continue to toy with my emotions.

Click here to see copyright info for
The Light, the Dark and the Ugly.

Thanks from Bryan

Thank you so much for reading my novel
The Light, the Dark and the Ugly
. Would you be willing to post a review of the book on Amazon? It would mean a lot to me.
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Ted Saves the World
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Ted Finley will
return
… in book 5 of the
Ted Saves the World
series in October 2015.

Look for a special prequel of the
Ted Saves the World
series in July 2015.

Table of Contents

PART ONE