Carl's heart skipped a beat, then began beating hard and fast. He had suddenly been waken by someone yelling at him from the tail end of his wagon. There were other voices in the distance, hollering out his name. Sounds of battle were backing the disturbing choas of words being thrown at him.
Pushing Fluffy off of him, he fratically reached for his green and black plaided kilt. Barely dressed in a modest fashion, the old man headed out of the wagon; just becoming aware that it is now mid-day. Stepping down into the driver's seat, he watched Aaron smash the naga skull against some rocks. Sudden dread silence filled the air. That signalled the final end of Stupid.

A cold chill ran through the necromancer's body. Not for the loss of his ghost, but rather the dire neglect of ending Stupid's sentry duty at sunrise. Blocking the trail, any trail not owned by him, was an act of war and treason. Punishable by death, as is nearly all crimes. There are no jails nor prisons in this land. People paid for their sins with either their wealth, or their life. A hollow sinking feeling was developing in his chest, afraid to ask but wondering,
Looking for answers to questions he dared not ask, he forced himself to look into the face of the man who destroyed the undead naga.

Aaron, a middle-aged man, shared much of his father's looks. Despite having a white mother, his dark skin and afro indicated a south western heritage. His father, Gangis McBride, came from the capital during the war; to replace the previous burgomaster who fell in battle. Aaron's mother, Tammy, was born and raised in Hollow Oaks. (But, educated in the Royal Knighthood of Pictland, where she first met Gangis.)

It was bad enough that Carl commited an act of treason. Worse, he did so against the ruling family. If anyone was wounded or killed by Stupid, Aaron had the legal right to kill him on the spot. Or if this man so desires, arrest the old man and place him in the arena to be sport for any of the town folks' monsters.
Breathing heavy, the burgomaster's son glared at the timid geezer. He was also joined by his sons, Shane and Flint. Both in their late teens. The stocky build of these three masons together, only added to the dread that the old man felt. It was the first time that he's ever seen any of the McBrides in a sour mood. Now these three look as if they're ready to tear the necromancer apart with their bare hands.
Carl tried to mentally prepare himself for his execution, as they approached him with fire in their eyes. Slowing to a stand still, their faces cooled to a look of suprise. The youngest, Flint, asked,"Is that the beast we heard last night?". They then cracked up laughing.

The McBrides are known for many of their traits that they hold in common. Being overly educated, they saw to it that everyone in the burg had to learn some reading and writing. Although more than half of the people will never see a real book. They're even the ones who teach the local monsters fighting techniques. Tammy, herself is in chare of that. Yet, although all the McBrides have gone to get some education in the capital city of Pictland, none of them ever held a snobbish air about it.
What they have done with all this learning, was to change an ordinary town into a place of fame and beauty. Not only did they build the docks, covered bridges, and arena. They practically refurbished the whole town with elaborate sculptures and reliefs on all the granite buildings, wells, and even the fountain in Shipper's Square. If it wasn't for this hobby of theirs, they would be the richest family in Hollow Oaks. Why, even their own mansion is nearly as big and fancy as the arena itself!
The most mysterious thing about the McBrides, is their madness. At times, for no apparent reason at all, they laugh. When something is funny, they laugh like most people do. However, there are times when they laugh at nothing. When two or more of them are together, they might start laughing simultaneously. As if they heard a secret joke at the same time.

Carl became even more frightened, if that were possible, that the McBride madness chose to show itself now.
Shaken down to the very core of his soul, there was some comfort in Fluffy coming out of the wagon and wrapping her arms around him. For added security, he reached to hug her in return.
The insane roaring laughter that the three McBrides suffered, only increased.

Much to Carl's relief, they didn't come any closer to him until what possessed them had abated. Returning to a normal state of mind, the father asked his sons,"How are they?"
"One dieing. Another is severely wounded, but workable.",Shane reported.
Aaron turned to the necromancer, with a smile calmly ordered,"You will replace my two golems by paying Fagin for the next ones he brings. Understand?"
"Sure. Sure! Yes, yes. No problem.", the old man nervously stammered.

Nodding in satisfaction, the mason led his sons back to their wagon load of granite and marble blocks. Leaving the dying golem behind, the cursed McBride laughing madness began to strike their poor fevered minds once again.

Carl, very much thankful to have just barely escaped death, wasn't taking any chances. He quickly began leading his wagon towards home, before insanity could cause the burgomaster's closest kin to change their minds.
Further on the trail, after thinking about everything that had transpired; it dawned on him that Aaron might have been intentionally lenient. Maybe, because in the close knit community, everyone is somehow related to one another. Both, Gangis and Aaron had married local girls. It wouldn't be hard to figure out how he himself is a distant relative to the McBrides, as well as anyone else in Hollow Oaks.
Meditating on these things, the old man began to recover from his shaken nerves. Fluffy, sitting next to Carl and holding him tightly, had been purring. The sound and vibrations she makes, had been soothing him as well.

you're doing a good job, methodically introducing me to the place where your story takes place. another good chapter.

Only 9,834,721 pages more, before I finish the story.

Nice. I love the ways you manage to brief the audience just about when they may be confused. You flashed back right before the point I would've been lost.

Ok sounds kinda hairy, but true none the less. One thing still puzzles me about this story so far...


...you manage to keep the true villin a secret. I'm still not sure if it is a current charactor, or perhaps one who has yet to show his face? I suppose it ids just their personalitys that throw me off, but only time may tell.

The introductions will taper off at page 6 or 7, then the villiany begins.