April 19, 2011 
This excerpt from Act I of The Book of Ten is best appreciated to the following tune by ESCALA
‘In those last years before the time of The Fallen, there was much crime, sickness, and starvation. People fled the cities like refugees from any war-torn land—the ones who stayed behind wallowed in their own filth and fought each other like packs of rabid dogs over the last of the food. The ones who fled were caught on the open roads and prairies by mobs of criminals banded together into crude armies, raped, murdered, and scattered to the four winds. Some fought to defend themselves, but in the end they all succumbed. The wisemen say foreign armies came from across the great water to the west and that war broke out on the other side of the Rocky Mountains. Small, sallow men, vicious warriors that numbered in the million, soldiers who were bred to the gun and sword. They covered the land like a plague of insects. The Whitemen fought them, fought them until the mountains shook down to their very roots and great sections of the earth tumbled away and were taken back to the bosom of the earth.’
Father stopped talking and just sat for a time gazing into the fire, the box absently cradled in his scarred hands. Boarl stared at him gape mouthed and Seemok hunkered back on his haunches, carefully cleaning his .308 with an oiled rag. The horses moved in the dark.
‘It was then that the time of The Fallen descended upon the land, fell into the world of man like a hot wind,’ Father continued. ‘Man was ruined, his works broken and discarded, his people scattered like ash upon the wind. The lights went out and the time of greater darkness took hold, a period darker than any night since the Great Maker created the world. The few remnants of man who were spared became like animals, as they were at the dawn of time, preying on one another, devouring one another, living in filth and squalor and pestilence.
‘The peoples of the Plains Nations, our people, were spared this awful fate….’
Thanks for tuning in–more to follow….
Jason Barron's Blog 
Such a vivid description but the answered questions lure the reader to want more
Great music! Do you play particular artists when you write? I find writing for my blog comes much smoother when I am playing pieces that twirl my emotions, dip down and bring out the best in me.
Thanks for saying so, Margie!
Yes, I play the music at eardrum shattering levels while writing–classical/orchestra, epic pieces to help me find the right tone for the words. That particular group, Escala, happens to be my favorite for writing.
It’s surprising how two letters missing can change a thought. While the answered questions were painting a picture in my mind(setting the scene of the father telling the story to his sons) it’s the unanswered questions that keep this reader going—like how did things get so bad, when is this time period, is it an alternate world, why were the people of the Plains Nations spared that fate…pins and needles here
Mine is pretty loud too and I only do it when Xena is in the garage or I wear earphones. Surprisingly enough I can still hear a student when they say something unkind to another even if it is a whisper. It drives them nuts.
Hi Margie–what two letters did I miss?!?
Well, you have to keep in mind that when I share these little excerpts, I’m simply dishing out “crumbs” to peak the audience’s appetite–you’re definitely not meant to understand what’s going on in the “bigger picture”–also, I release these shorts hot off the press with little to no editing. They are rough, very very rough, draft only 🙂
Oh, most definitely the story is set in this world of ours–“Father” is simply orating about the distant past to his adopted son, relaying an oral tradition held by his people.
Oh, no, you didn’t miss two letters. I did in my first post I meant to say unanswered instead of answered.
Escala is on my wish list.
Thanks for the reply.
You’ll love Escala–and if you do, you also might enjoy Bond