A few years ago I wrote a series of short fiction pieces that were included in the Era: The Empowered Roleplaying Game, published by Shades of Vengeance. A fifth anniversary edition of the game is due to be released in early 2024 I believe.

I had great fun writing the shorts and Ed Jowett, the man behind the Era range and MD of Shades of Vengeance, has kindly allowed me to share the fiction here on the blog.

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Lobo Faces A God by Angus Abranson (first published in Era: The Empowered RPG Core Rulebook)

The pyramid was in a clearing about the size of a football pitch. Thick jungle surrounded it for dozens of miles, with a well-worn asphalt road linking this popular tourist site with the hotels and beaches a few hours away.  There were no tourists here now though. There hadn’t been in weeks. The food kiosks and information centre had been abandoned.

Whilst this ancient and historic site was devoid of foreigners taking photos, the hundreds of daily tourists had been replaced by about a thousand of the ‘faithful’. All standing, with masks depicting an array of animals and flowers, in silence gazing up towards the pyramid where a woman stood at the top of the stone steps, outside a darkened doorway, flanked by two burning cauldrons illuminating her.

The woman atop the pyramid was undeniably beautiful. She wore a thin ankle length skirt and off the shoulder top of the same semi-see through red material. Three large golden ear-rings dangled from each ear to her bare shoulders, and her dark hair was adorned with an array of flowers and quetzal bird feathers. Two small green horns protruded from her forehead. Xochiquetzal, goddess of beauty, love, the arts, fertility, flowers and vegetation, among a number of other things. One of the Old Gods returned, and one whom I had to send back or atleast convince to let those enthralled by her presence have their own freewill back. Easy, right?

I stood at the back of the crowd, trying to figure out how to get through them all to the pyramid and how to get Xochi to let her adoring congregation go home, or atleast choose to stay of their own volition when suddenly the figure raised her arms. A thousand masked faces turned and looked in my direction. Bodies moved to one side, leaving a perfectly straight path from me to the base of the pyramid.

“COME LOBO, WARRIOR PROTECTOR OF THE PEOPLE. I HAVE BEEN EXPECTING YOU.”

Her voice was mesmerising, seducing without actually having any meaning to be. I had to check myself from impulsively disregarding my own will and running to become her servant. I was already a few steps forward before regaining myself. I staggered slightly, but composed myself and continued forward, focussing my mind and strengthening my own mental defences.

“Xochiquetzal, you must let these people go.” I said as I strode towards the stone steps.

“I AM A GODDESS, IT IS ONLY RIGHT THAT MY PEOPLE WORSHIP ME.” A simple statement that seemed so true. Why was I trying to make her give up her birthright?

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. “This is not right. Be worshipped because they want to worship you, not because you’re power demands it. Not because of intimidation or taking away their free will. Show them why they should want to worship you.”

“I HAVE NO QUARREL WITH YOU PROTECTOR. INDEED YOU SHOULD BE BY MY SIDE. WE WANT THE SAME THINGS. PROTECT MY PEOPLE AND MY LANDS FROM THOSE WHO WISH THEM HARM. YOU ARE STRONG, WITHOUT BEING TAINTED BY POWERS NOT MEANT FOR MANKIND. YOU SHOULD BE WITH ME.”

And with each of her words there was nothing more in the world that I wanted than to be with her. Serving her will, being by her side. “We could indeed do great things, if only you would relinquish you’re control over my brothers and sisters. Let them see you with clear minds. They will still love you, and that love will be pure as opposed to the corruption that you are forcing on them by blinding them and their desires.”

“THEIR DESIRES ARE TO LOVE ME.”

“I am sure they don’t need any convincing of that Goddess. But by taking away their freedom you are not helping them. You are enslaving them. That makes you as bad as the Cartels and criminals who use threats to make them do their will, who addict them to poisons that will kill them.”

“YOU DARE COMPARE ME TO THOSE WHO DO MY PEOPLE WRONG?”

I steadied myself, now beginning to climb the stone steps up towards her gaze that was beginning to turn fiery… and not just because of the reflection from  the burning cauldrons.

“Open your eyes Goddess. Surely you can see that a love freely given is a much greater and fulfilling reward. Look upon yourself. You do not need to force people to love you. You are right, we could do great things for the people and the land. There is nothing more that I would like than for us to combine forces and drive the disease of the Cartels and cronies away once and for all. To free the people from their control. But we can not free them from one control just to imprison them under another against their will.“ I was nearing the top and could see her eyes soften as she looked down on me and then shift her gaze to the thousand souls in front of her in the clearing.

“Let me join you, of my own free will. Let them,” I extended my arm towards the crowds below “join you of their own free wills. Show them the love of a mother, the love of a Goddess.”

“LOBO, WARRIOR PROTECTOR OF THE PEOPLE. YOU SPEAK WISELY. I WANTED YOUR COUNSEL, AND YOU BY MY SIDE, AND WOULD BE FOOLISH TO IGNORE…”

“Foolish is right bitch!” I heard the voice the same time that I saw Xochiquetzal chest burst outwards, a spiked ridge of black bones protruding outwards holding a dripping heart in a clawlike hand. The hand tightened and the heart burst. The crowd beneath let out a bloodchilling wail and a thousand figures slumped screaming and crying to the ground as their Goddess, Xochiquetzal, body slumped like a lifeless puppet, only being kept from falling by the boned protrusion that had killed her. I, too, slumped to my knees, tears rolling down my face uncontrollably with the unexpected pain of loss and void within.

“Nice speech, I did appreciate being called a disease” The cold female voice of the Empress of Bones said from the shadows of the doorway atop the pyramid. She moved from the shadow, the boned appendage whipping the body of Xochiquetzal into the air and throwing it irreverently away into the thick jungle, before recoiling back into her spine.

The Empress looked down at me, and then to the screaming horde of people below. Black bone-like wings sprang forth from her back as she glared in anger and triumph and shouted, her voice carrying above the wails…. “I am the only Goddess around here and you had better remember that!”