The Ant Returns – Chapter IX (594 hits)
Category: NoneLabels: The_Ant
Rating: 1.61 on 23 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Jack McCallum (View user info) at 2005-02-10 11:49:18 EST
(Prologue - http://www.ubersite.com/m/57985)
(Chapter I - http://www.ubersite.com/m/58042)
(Chapter II - http://www.ubersite.com/m/58125)
(Chapter III - http://www.ubersite.com/m/58205)
(Chapter IV - http://www.ubersite.com/m/58437)
(Chapter V - http://www.ubersite.com/m/58529)
(Chapter VI - http://www.ubersite.com/m/58649)
(Chapter VII - http://www.ubersite.com/m/58931)
(Chapter VIII - http://www.ubersite.com/m/59032)
(When we last saw Rob, he had defeated Angela, and was about to leave the Bas family and go to Pont Chandon...)
==Chapter - IX - La Source==
"Whoa! Not so fast!"
Rob groaned. The voice was familiar. The timing sucked.
Rudolph was blocking the road to town.
"I don't have time for this, pal" Rob said.
Rudolph chuckled. "You'll have to make time, my contemporary friend. But then, that's something that we have been able to do, no?"
"What do you want?"
"Well, I've got a pretty simple day planned out. First, I kill your ass. Then I kill the kids, and the old hag. Then time will flow as it should, your ancestor will go to Paris and lose his head, and we'll have your timebelt."
"Your sister tried the same thing. I hope you like your birds extra crispy." Rob gestured over his shoulder to a thread of greasy smoke rising over the field.
"No," Rudolph said.
"Yes," Rob said. "And as a bonus bit of bad news, the timebelt is useless. It's turned to shit. Which, come to think of it, is probably what happened to whatever gadget brought you and your sister and Dr. Pfaltzer here."
Rudolph lifted one foot, and then his body blurred and was gone.
A blow to the back of the head knocked Rob to his knees. "Jesus," Rob said. "He's fast."
He heard a scream, cut short. He shook his head to clear his vision, got to his feet, and ran back to the farm.
Rudolph was standing beside the pump, washing black goo off his hands. The old woman was crumpled at his feet. The children were by the barn, the boy holding the hayfork.
Rob didn't say anything. He had come to like the old woman.
Etienne screamed and gestured at Rudolph. "That monster killed Béatrice!" He lunged forward, but Justine held him back. "He wanted your strange costume. None of us wanted to show it to him. He said he would make us give it up and tried to grab Justine. Béatrice stood before him, so brave, and ordered him out of our home. He shook her like a rag doll. I could hear her bones breaking, even as she slapped his face and called him a dog!"
Rob looked at Rudolph. He didn't know what to say.
"What are you gawking at, fuckface?"
The words seemed utterly strange, considering their surroundings and the way Rudolph was dressed. Rudolph seemed like a different man. The cockiness was gone. He was now white-faced, scared, confused, and angry.
"The old bag was in my way, so I moved her. Big fuckin' deal."
Rudolph kicked at the ground and raised a small cloud of dust.
"Me and Angela been stuck in this shithole for four fuckin' years. Paris sucked. This century sucks. It's like being on fuckin' Survivor. The only kicks you can get are reading books, and watching donkeys fuck. Pfaltzer never wanted us interacting with the locals, always had us hidden away, waiting for you to arrive. He had some big bullshit plan to get rid of you, but we also needed to know where you hid your timebelt."
Sorry, Bea, Rob thought.
Rudolph was getting angrier by the second. "Now we're all stuck here! I could have fuckin' gotten rid of you myself... in fact, I think I will."
Rudolph launched himself at Rob. This time, Rob was ready for him.
Rob sidestepped and turned. Rudolph's boots were already churning twin channels in the earth as he skidded to a stop.
"Your mother was a psycho, just like your sister," Rob said, wanting to get Rudolph away from the kids. "And your dad, well, he was just a fucking idiot."
Rudolph hollered some unintelligible thing and leaped at Rob. Rob tensed, and bounced high into the air, in the direction of the freshly plowed field, away from Etienne and Justine. He could hear Rudolph bounding along behind him.
Rob landed hard near the wall, grabbed a rock bigger than his head and threw it at Rudolph, who didn't see it coming.
The rock hit Rudolph full in the face, in mid-leap. He dropped like a goose with a head full of buckshot.
Rob muttered, "If this was a cheesy horror-flick..."
Rudolph slowly got to his feet. He was grinning. "Nice try, asswipe. I'm invulnerable, remember? And-"
Rob saw a blur solidify before his eyes.
"-fast!" Rudolph drove his fists into Rob's chest, a rapid succession of punches.
Rob had tensed his muscles just in time, but he still felt every brutal blow like a series of artillery shells exploding against him. He swung a right hook at Rudolph's jaw and let out an involuntary yell when his fist connected with what felt like the densest, hardest thing he had ever hit.
"Uh-oh," Rudolph said. "It looks like our hero is in trouble!" He grabbed Rob by the throat and began the wind-up for a punch that would probably blast Rob's skull apart.
Rob snorted up a loogie and spat it into Rudolph's right eye. It wouldn't hurt Rudolph, but it would blind him for a moment, and maybe the gross-out factor would work in Rob's favor.
Rudolph let Rob go and staggered backward, crying out like a comic-book villain.
"Eyagh! My eye!"
Keep working on the soft parts, Rob thought, holding Rudolph steady with a hand on each shoulder while kicking him in the ballsack hard enough to burst his boot apart. Rudolph hollered so loud Rob's ears rang, and he stumbled away, shaking off his other boot.
Rudolph leaped at him and they hit the ground rolling, clawing and punching at each other. A broad old oak tree exploded when they rolled into it. Suddenly they were slipping off the bank and into the little stream.
It was only luck that kept Rob on top when the hit the streambed. Rudolph got a mouthful of water and gagged, and Rob threw him into a low jumble of rocks from which the stream was trickling. Rob leaped on Rudolph and began hammering at the man's face with both hands, knowing that if he let up for even a second he could lose everything.
Rob was vaguely aware that he was ramming Rudolph's head deeper and deeper into shattering rock as if his arms were a pair of pile drivers, when suddenly the stone gave way and they both dropped into a cavern, and a waist-high pool of icy water. Rob surfaced first, grabbed at a little shelf of stone and hung on, wrapping his legs around Rudolph's neck, holding the man underwater.
Rob hoped that the father was like the son, too stupid to realize that he could outlast this, stupid enough to panic, and drown. The water offered resistance and slowed Rudolph down, allowing Rob to brace himself for every hit. Rob watched Rudolph swallow water, and concentrated on holding fast.
The struggle didn't last long. After a few minutes Rudolph spasmed violently, and Rob's stone handholds crumbled in his grip. He took a deep breath and pushed Rudolph to the bottom of the pool, bearing down on the man's chest and forcing every bubble of air to the surface.
Etienne and Justine were white-faced and mute with grief and shock, watching silently as Rob climbed out of the hole in the rock.
"Looks like you have a spring on your land," he said. "That's gotta be worth something."
He caught Etienne's eye and said, "I'm sorry about Béatrice. Take care of your sister. I may not be back, but that was the last of the... devils."
He gave Etienne's shoulder a squeeze, wishing he could do more, knowing that he was out of time. He had to get to Henri.
User Reviews
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-08-03 12:10:49 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Supreme Overlord damage control...
Submitted by Supreme_Overlord (user info) at 2005-07-21 22:25:30 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
shite
Submitted by CaptainThorns (user info) at 2005-02-13 12:29:14 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by ess-arr (user info) at 2005-02-11 13:00:10 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by horse87 (user info) at 2005-02-10 23:59:46 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
'Uberfest'?
Hey Jack, did I miss something, or was there another contest nobody mentioned?
Or is that kinda like 'Oktoberfest' except for drunken Uberusers?
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-02-10 23:46:38 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Mitchapalooza (user info) at 2005-02-10 23:00:31 (#)
Ranking: -2
True, mccullum is an easy target, because he seems to be the most popular.
BECAUSE HE WON UBERFEST, I read his 'award winning' story, about the gold and the water and the little moral at the end, and I was so angry that he won with that crap!
I don't deny that it was the overall opinion of ubervoters that it was the 'best' story, but in MY opinion, I'd seen much more interesting stories than that one.
And so, BECAUSE HE WON UBERFEST, and also because he seems to only get +2 ratings, I still go to read his stories, intrigued... to try and see what it is in his stories that people seem to like.
--
Actually, it was the other story that was the winning entry.
The one you just trashed was written by Domenad.
Dickhead.
Submitted by AshK (user info) at 2005-02-10 23:33:19 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I think the point about respecting the ratings of respected Uberers is a valid one. I will never care that KoolMang -2ed a post that most people enjoyed, but I would be much more concerned about a -1 I've seen better from a respected author. ahem.
do I sound petty? It was my first real negative rating by anyone of real consequence. I can't help but wonder what was so shitty. I can't help it. *sob* I'm destroyed!
Submitted by Mitchapalooza (user info) at 2005-02-10 23:00:31 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
However...if I am to be totally honest, I must say that Jack could have handled things a bit better too, in my opinion. He's a bit of a reactionary and tends to be a little less than tolerant.
I could have told him that there is no sense in a verbose, knee-jerk reaction to any of your comments.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The above is the only intelligible thing you've written in that long-ass rant of yours.
There is no system in Uber where you have to accumulate a certain number of 'points' until you're allowed to give someone a -2. Anyone, with or without any posts under their belt, is completely allowed to give their honest opinion about anyone else's work.
This whole 'you gotta contribute before you say anything mean about anyone' is absolute bullshit.
At best, don't take me seriously, which you're doing anyway by even acknowledging me.
True, mccullum is an easy target, because he seems to be the most popular.
BECAUSE HE WON UBERFEST, I read his 'award winning' story, about the gold and the water and the little moral at the end, and I was so angry that he won with that crap!
I don't deny that it was the overall opinion of ubervoters that it was the 'best' story, but in MY opinion, I'd seen much more interesting stories than that one.
And so, BECAUSE HE WON UBERFEST, and also because he seems to only get +2 ratings, I still go to read his stories, intrigued... to try and see what it is in his stories that people seem to like.
I think by now we've figured out they all bore me.
I don't write -2 DIE, or go eat shit, or you mom is a whore, or anything like that. I only write 'yawn'.
It is this VERY honest review, that couldn't be simpler, that couldn't be clearer, and that couldn't be more genuine that I keep getting shit for (mostly from jack himself, which is absolutely ridiculous) but also from people like you.
Do you really think I give a shit that I only have 2 posts to my name?? I'll review what I want, when I want. And the fact is, I'm always honest with my reviews (not that I even have to be that).
Lastly, I find it sooooo ridiculous that someone like mccullum is so INCREDIBLY PETTY about my 'yawn' reviews. He could be doing himself such a favor by just seeing my 'yawn' review, and thinking to himself "mmph... i guess you can't please everyone", and move on with his life.
BUT HE DOESN'T!! He's like a petty little child. I've given so many opportunities for him to rise above it, and he fails miserably EVERY time:
Some of Jack's retorts:
-you're just jealous
-you're a caulain alter
-you're just doing it for the attention
-you're not upfront
-my penis is small and i have a fragile ego and i need attention wha wha!
Ok that last one i made up, but it screams that everytime he gets upset.
Jack, word of advice.... when i read your stories, and write 'yawn', i mean it. Let it go, ignore me, I'm not trying to get attention, I'm just stating my opinion.
I think a turning point in your life is when you'll learn to accept it instead of trying to fight it.
That day, draw a big unicorn in your journal, cause you'll have earned it sweetheart.
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-02-10 21:47:42 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by horse87 (user info) at 2005-02-10 19:45:47 (#)
Ranking: 2
--
Regarding horse87's post below...
H o l y f u c k i n g s h i t !!!
You should do posts like that about stuff that pisses you off.
Submitted by horse87 (user info) at 2005-02-10 19:45:47 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Jack:
Keep 'em coming.
Adamdidit2u:
Jack's book is called 'Made In The USA' and is still available on Amazon.com, last time I looked...
It's a pretty twisted read. Anything with a cannibal Jesus in it is bound to get your attention.
Mitchapalooza:
Normally (because I usually don't give a rat's ass), I try to stay out of stuff like this, but I just gotta say something here;
Mitch, nobody on Uber will deny your right to -2 dumb stuff that clearly deserves it. (Lord knows that's why I haven't posted anything....I know I can't write worth a damn and I don't think I could handle the barrage of -2's that would bury anything I put up here..)
However, for those that don't know, if you actually looked at the meanings of the numerical ratings system in use here, you would see that -2 = 'Don't Bother'.
There are *many* posts on this system that truly rate the -2's they receive, and, for sure, Jack's been guilty of generating one or two of those types of posts way back when, but in no way does 'The Ant' series deserve the -2's you've been dumping on it.
Why?
Not only has Jack been consistently able to crank out imaginative stuff since the beginning of Ubermadness (..which, by the way, he won, over dozens of other writers, thanks to the opinions of the rest of us Uberusers..) but he has managed to sustain the output since then. He is always coming up with either something at least worth reading, or something complex and huge in scale, like 'The Ant' series, which, by the way, is something I see few other people on here even attempting.
That kind of monumental effort alone makes his posts 'Worth Reading'.
What's that you say?
You're entitled to your 'opinion'?
Well, of course you are, but a word about that as well;
If you were someone like Domenad, Badlands, Sideburns, Fat Tony, Circe, or any one of a host of other active, talented contributors to this site, you would be very much entitled to -2 something that, in your opinion, was clearly a bad post. As someone who had demonstrated at least some talent and a bit of discretion, your opinion would be held in some regard by the rest of the Ubercommunity. That's because, having done it yourself, we would know that you would understand what it takes to create something like that which Jack does, and, like it or not, you would at least respect the effort that went into it and rate it accordingly.
Is this what you do?
Nope.
Whether out of spite, jealousy or just plain stupidity, you simply -2 the guy to death for no real reason. Your -2's reflect no insight, no real criticism, nothing of any value at all, other than your so-called 'opinion'. (To quote: "Yawn".)
It seems, therefore, that you, who have posted nothing of any real value on Uber, have appointed yourself the local arbiter of good taste.
Perhaps you should post one of your own stories so that we might humbly see a shining example of the talent and refinement from which your learned opinions spring.
No?
And you call Jack talentless?
Which might you be? The pot or the kettle?
You, sir (..or whatever you are..) contribute nothing of any substance to Ubersite.
You create nothing, you tell us nothing, you entertain us not at all.
You are entropy at the keyboard personified.
You have, unfortunately, learned that Jack has a short fuse and you enjoy simply pushing his buttons.
(At least guys like Caulaincourt amuse us and piss Jack off with honest attempts at intelligent, structured arguments.)
However...if I am to be totally honest, I must say that Jack could have handled things a bit better too, in my opinion. He's a bit of a reactionary and tends to be a little less than tolerant.
I could have told him that there is no sense in a verbose, knee-jerk reaction to any of your comments.
Personally, I simply would have ignored a mouthy, no-talent, hack, inbred halfwit like you.
To acknowledge you is to simply encourage your childish antics.
But then again, I might be a little cranky too if a little pissant like yourself took it upon him/her/itself to badmouth me in other posts as well as -2'ing mine to hell and back.
You're like the guy that comes into a bar and, for no reason, harrasses other people who are enjoying themselves, then whines and cries when somebody deservedly punches his lights out.
Perhaps, like these sick fucks, you're simply doing it for the attention.
Who knows?
I could go on, but why bother?
No doubt you are already formulating your witty riposte to this and will be posting it shortly along with another -2. (Wait! Let me guess: "Yawn" ? Oooh how cutting..)
Big deal.
You're either a knuckle-dragging troglodyte with no talent, an over-inflated sense of self-importance and too much time on his/her/it's hands, or a jealous someone's alter, bent upon stirring up shit for no reason other than because you can.
Either way, I'm sure we'll have seen the last of a nothing like you soon enough.
Doubtlessly, you'll get bored with the whole thing and either go back to setting the neighborhood cats on fire, or go back to posting as your usual talentless self, depending on who or what you are, exactly.
Can't happen soon enough, as far as most of us are concerned....
Submitted by JonnyX (user info) at 2005-02-10 17:21:54 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-02-10 16:56:34 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
**Mitch opens his mouth and condemns himself, yet again**
Submitted by Mitchapalooza (user info) at 2005-02-10 16:37:53 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
now see... i was happy to let it die, and your massive fragile ego just had to scream out of your little penis to try to get a micro-rant out.
First off, this little "you're just jealous" comeback when you get criticized, that's cool if you're in the 3rd grade.
It's sad once you reach adulthood (i'm assuming you're over 16? maybe i'm mistaken).
Also, just because all the dicks you've had rammed up your anus are scabby, that don't mean it's the law of the land.
Some of us have very large, healthy, scab-free penises, and we LOVE to insert them into......... vaginas!
Most noteably?
your mom's.
(ok that was very 3rd gradish, but i'm only trying to reach you on your level.)
See what you made me do... you could've just let it die....
racist.
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-02-10 16:24:09 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Mitchapalooza (user info) at 2005-02-10 16:17:46 (#)
Ranking: 1
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-02-10 12:29:45 (#)
Ranking: 0
I have, an action/adventure story set on the Eve of the millenium with flashbacks going back 60 yrs or so... unfortunately the marketplace was a veritable... Mitchapalooza.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That's the VERY FIRST clever thing you've written.
Ever.
Well, I'm true to my word <*crap*>.... here's a +1.
If you've learned anything, you won't respond to this.
--
Mitch, go back to picking at the scabs on your dick and giving me jealousy-fueled -2s.
Submitted by Mitchapalooza (user info) at 2005-02-10 16:17:46 EST (#)
Ranking: 1
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-02-10 12:29:45 (#)
Ranking: 0
I have, an action/adventure story set on the Eve of the millenium with flashbacks going back 60 yrs or so... unfortunately the marketplace was a veritable... Mitchapalooza.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That's the VERY FIRST clever thing you've written.
Ever.
Well, I'm true to my word <*crap*>.... here's a +1.
If you've learned anything, you won't respond to this.
Submitted by hcp28 (user info) at 2005-02-10 15:48:49 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I just read the whole series and have to say it is awesome. Can't wait for more!
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-02-10 12:29:45 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Adamdidit2u (user info) at 2005-02-10 12:15:38 (#)
Ranking: 2
Books
Do you know them?
Go write one..
Seriously
--
I have, an action/adventure story set on the Eve of the millenium with flashbacks going back 60 yrs or so... unfortunately the marketplace was a veritable... Mitchapalooza.
It sold like coldcakes.
Still working on others. Sequels and a prequel to the book already done, all set in a semi-revisionist America where a 'secret government organization' of real nasties plays a central role and conspiracy theories provide lots of foundation. The Ant stories take place on the edge of that 'universe' and these baddies will appear in the next Ant tale... whenever I get it done. Also working on some stories set up in Canada, and some other shit. It's a good thing I like writing, cause I'm sure as hell not doing it for the paycheck!
Submitted by Falconer (user info) at 2005-02-10 12:29:07 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
C'est fantastique.
Submitted by Adamdidit2u (user info) at 2005-02-10 12:15:38 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Books
Do you know them?
Go write one..
Seriously
Submitted by AshK (user info) at 2005-02-10 11:55:54 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Brdn_Nkd (user info) at 2005-02-10 11:55:33 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
more more more!
Submitted by munkeypants (user info) at 2005-02-10 11:54:09 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Mitchapalooza (user info) at 2005-02-10 11:52:29 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
yawn.