DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. If you are offended by 
sexually explicit material or are under the age of 18, stop reading 
now. This material cannot be reproduced for commercial purposes 
without the consent of the author.



John Carter
By
Lazlo Zalezak
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezak, 2003


Part 2: Mantle Of Aries
Chapter 13

John leaned against a boulder watching the evergreens sway in the 
breeze. Occasionally, handfuls of snow would cascade down from 
a tree. The snow in the area was over two feet deep and powdery. 
The footprints that Rover made when he had charged into the 
woods were visible as dark spots in the snow. He could hear the 
few birds left in the woods singing. 

It was peaceful and as quiet as nature allowed. It was never 
perfectly silent in the woods. Leaves rustled, birds sang, the wind 
blew, and animals moved. Nature was never static. There was 
always motion, but the dynamics of natural surroundings was 
relaxing rather than stressing. John reveled in the solitude. It had 
been so long since he had the chance to just sit and be at one with 
nature. 

His last extended hike had been almost six months ago. He 
wondered when his next chance to walk alone in the wilderness 
would occur. He promised himself to make the opportunity rather 
than wait for it to occur. Having the chance to walk out his back 
door and walk for hours through the desert was very nice. He was 
able to put together a couple of two-day hikes on occasion. They 
satisfied, but they were a poor substitute for the kind of 
introspection that would occur after two weeks alone.

The soft swishing sound of a cross-country skier attracted John's 
attention. John stood up and adjusted his cloak around his 
shoulders. He brought his walking stick up and leaned on it. Rover 
came out of the woods to sit by him. The noise of the skis 
increased in volume as the skier neared. At the other end of the 
clearing, a figure emerged moving mechanically. The person 
stopped at the center of the clearing when they spotted John. The 
two of them stared at each other for a minute. 

John spoke in a voice loud enough to carry to the skier, "Come 
here. I was sent to meet you."

The skier slowly approached and stopped about six feet away. John 
reached under his shirt and brought out his medallions. He showed 
them to the skier. The skier looked at them and then fished out 
their medallion. John stated, "I know you're a little disoriented now 
and full of questions. If you come with me I will answer all of the 
questions that I can."

"Are you going to hurt me too?" The voice sounded feminine.

John shook his head. "No, I was thinking of taking you to a café 
where we could get something to eat and talk."

"Okay," replied the skier. With a glance over at Rover, "is he 
safe?"

John nodded, "He's safe."

"Okay."

John turned and headed up the hill. He still moved a little slowly 
and stiffly. He hadn't recovered fully from the gunshot wound. It 
was only three days ago that he had been shot. The skier kept 
shooting out in front. Finally, John waved, "Hey, slow down. I was 
shot a couple of days ago. I'm still moving slow."

The skier stopped and removed the skis. John headed towards the 
highway, it was only a mile away. At this pace, it would take him 
forty-five minutes to reach it. The skier revealed herself by 
removing her goggles and hat. John glanced over, "My name is 
John Carter."

The woman was silent for a moment and then stated, "I know who 
you are. You invented the fusion battery."

"Yes. More important for you is the fact that I serve the Gods and 
the Goddesses. I take it that you serve the God?"

"I guess."

They finally reached the highway. John and the woman followed 
Rover. John stated, "That's Rover. He's my friend."

The woman walked along beside him. Finally, she stated, "My 
name is Catherine Sullivan."

John followed behind Rover. After a while he answered, "It is 
good to meet you Catherine. Before we get to the café, I must warn 
you that you've probably undergone some major physical changes. 
I became more muscular, my hair changed colors, and my cock got 
bigger. Since I don't know what you looked like before, I can't say 
what changes you've experienced."

Catherine smirked, "Bigger cock? Yeah right."

John laughed, "Just wait. When we get in the café, there is a small 
mirror near the coat rack. I'll remove your coat and give you a 
chance to examine yourself in the mirror. I'll fumble with the coats 
for a minute or two. Then I'll take you to the table. You don't want 
to make people wonder about you."

"Sure."

They entered the café and John removed her coat and took his time 
hanging it up. Rover bounded over to the counter where Martha 
was standing. Other patrons made noises of shock and dismay. 
Martha smiled as she saw the cat. She shouted into the kitchen, 
"Six pounds of hamburger served raw!"

George shouted out, "Hey, John. Have a seat. I'll be right out with 
a little snack for Rover."

At the interaction between George and Martha, the other patrons 
slowly returned to eating. John smiled as he hung up his coat. He 
glanced out of the corner of his eye as the woman stared at herself 
open mouthed in the mirror. He turned and grabbed her by the arm. 
He calmly led her over to one of the chairs at the counter. Martha 
moved over to them. John greeted her, "Hi Martha, I'd like you to 
meet Catherine. Catherine, this is Martha. She and her husband 
own this place."

Catherine pulled herself together, "Hello Martha. Nice place you 
have here."

Martha smiled, "You can thank John for that. He provided some 
motivation for us to fix it up."

Catherine looked at John for a moment. She tried to remember all 
that she had heard about him. He was famous for a couple of 
reasons, but the only one she could remember was the fusion 
battery. John asked, "What's the soup today?"

"Beef Barley. Good hardy soup for a cold day like to today."

"Sounds good to me. We'll both take a bowl," John saw George 
come out of the kitchen with a plate of hamburger. "Hey, George. 
That had better be for Rover or else your stove isn't working well."

George laughed as he came around the counter and set the plate on 
the floor. Rover went over to it and started eating. "John, don't you 
know that Rover is the only one that appreciates my ability to not 
cook!"

A couple of patrons laughed at the joke. The realization that the 
man at the counter was John Carter assured that he wouldn't be 
bothered. He was actually well known in this region. He had 
helped bring a much-needed doctor into the area.  One of the 
patrons shouted out, "Hey John, you need to visit the hospital here. 
Both doctors are getting meaner every year. We need you to put 
them in their place!"

Everyone, except Catherine, laughed. The story of John's stay in 
the hospital down the road was very well known. John replied, 
"You just have to kiss them on the lips!"

"Hey, since the old doc got married his wife won't let us kiss him 
anymore! We figure she'll let you." The man talking was huge and 
John couldn't imagine how anyone could intimidate him.

The laughter was wide spread. Martha turned to Catherine, "As 
you can tell, John is a legend around here. He's helped many 
people in this area. He saved the daughter of the Sheriff from being 
killed by a serial killer, brought us a new doctor in the area, saved 
a boy, and helped take care of old Jed's place after he died. Every 
once in a while he makes the evening news and he's all that the 
town can talk about."

Catherine turned to stare at John. She remembered some of the 
other things about John that she had heard. John turned to her and 
stated, "My exploits are exaggerated. There are a hundred people 
there and they give me all the credit. It's not fair."

Martha smirked, "Keep saying that and one day you'll find 
someone who will believe you."

George came over to John. He smiled, "That was a nice bit of work 
you did with the FBI in Nevada. How many of the bastards did 
they get?"

John answered, "Actually I don't know. I was shot in the middle of 
the whole thing. They hauled me off to the hospital."

George stated, "That's not the way I heard it. I heard that you 
arrested a guy with an automatic rifle after wrestling with him bare 
handed. Rover took out another one that was hiding in the shed. 
Then you plugged the barrel on a gun and the fool using it was 
stupid enough to pull the trigger. That plus the tear gas you threw 
in the house caused them to surrender."

John shrugged, "Well, Rover did get a little angry at the guy that 
shot me."

George asked, "Where did you get shot?"

"In the side," John replied pointing to the location. He laughed, "I 
died, but I'm feeling much better now."

Martha asked, "That's at least twice now that you've died."

"Just twice. Let's not exaggerate it any more than it is." 

George shook his head, "So you died four days ago with a gunshot 
in the side. What are you doing here?"

John looked at Catherine, "I came here to meet her. I promised Jed 
that I would be here to find the new owner of his store. She's 
probably the one. Still have to interview her."

Catherine looked around, "What do you mean, you promised Jed to 
give me the store? What store?"

John smiled, "All in good time. Hey, speaking of time, where's our 
soup? You feed the fur-ball, but starve us?"

Rover shot John a look and went back to cleaning the plate with 
his tongue. John leaned over to Rover and whispered, "Sorry about 
that."

Two bowls of soup magically appeared in front of John and 
Catherine. John dug into the soup for a minute savoring the 
warmth. He looked up at Martha and George, "This soup is great!"

Martha asked, "What else can we get for you to eat?"

"I would like a grilled cheese sandwich. Rover will take another 
four pounds of hamburger, if you have it. How about you 
Catherine?"

"I think I would like a Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato sandwich."

George answered, "How about two pounds of cubed steak? I'm a 
little low on hamburger."

John nodded, "That'll be fine. Of course, this time you are going to 
have to give me the real price of our food. If you don't, I'll write 
into all of the contracts that no one is allowed to sell you a fusion 
battery!"

"Oh, I'm mortally wounded," replied George. He laughed, "I never 
met anyone get so mad about getting undercharged!"

George went into the kitchen to work on their order. Martha drifted 
off to take care of some other customers. John turned to Catherine, 
"So tell me. Do you make things?"

Other people might not have understood the question, but 
Catherine knew exactly what John was asking. She nodded, "Yeah. 
I make all of my own camping equipment."

John smiled, "Good, then you are the one I was sent to get."

George delivered the meal and the couple ate it. After a morning in 
the cold weather, the soup and sandwiches really hit the spot. 
Everyone, including Rover, left the restaurant feeling much better. 
They walked down the street and got into John's rental car. 

Rather than heading to the store, John first went to the hospital. 
Catherine and Rover followed him in. John saw the receptionist 
and winked. She smiled and pointed to the back. John whispered, 
"Anyone sleeping?"

"No. You can shout."

John smiled and walked to the middle of the corridor. Catherine 
followed behind him confused. John shouted out, "I heard there 
were a couple of guys here pretending to caring physicians."

"John! You cad. The veterinarian is down the street. Get there 
now!" The voice of old Dr. Simpson echoed down the halls.

"Come on out here you old goat and let me kiss you! I come into 
town and everyone is complaining about you!"

Dr. Simpson came out of his office and walked up to John. He was 
laughing, "So what are you doing here?"

"Ah, I came to get some stitches looked at. I think I pulled a couple 
this morning."

"Do you want me to do it or your friend?"

"Where is Dougie?"

Dr. Simpson smiled, "He's hiding in my office. We flipped a coin 
to see who would come out here. I lost."

John laughed heartily. Nurse John came out of one of the rooms. 
John saw him and shouted, "Hey, Nurse John. I'm still waiting for 
you to dress up for me."

"John Carter, this place hasn't been the same since the last time you 
were here."

"I'm going to let Dr. Simpson patch this old body up. That is, if his 
hands don't shake too much."

Dr. Simpson grabbed John by the ear and pulled him down the hall 
to one of the examination rooms. John made little noises of 
complaint, but followed him anyway. Catherine looked puzzled, 
but followed them down the hall with Rover. She entered in time 
to hear the doctor stated, "Okay, remove the shirt."

She stared in horror at the mass of scars. The doctor pulled off the 
bandages as another doctor entered the room. The other doctor 
stated, "I thought we had agreed that the next time we were going 
to send him to the vet."

It was at that time, Doug noticed the cougar sitting at his feet. He 
jumped in the air, "Jesus. John is that your cat?"

John grimaced as Dr. Simpson pulled on a stitch, "Yes it is. His 
name is Rover. He doesn't like vets."

Dr. Simpson smiled, "Well, I was hoping we would get to operate 
on this degenerate without anesthetic."

"I heard that a certain doctor made an honest woman out of Myrtle. 
Congratulations."

Dr. Simpson grunted, "She married me for my body."

Even Catherine laughed at that one. John started to laugh, but Dr. 
Simpson pulled on another stitch. John looked over at Doug, "So 
Dougie, have you found a love interest yet?"

"Yes, you might know her. Her favorite sex game is pirates!"

John looked embarrassed, "Oh, you must mean Lucy. She's perfect 
for you. That's great. I'm really very happy for you."

Dr. Simpson interrupted, "Lie down here. We need to remove all 
of these stitches. Taking into account your healing rate, they 
should have been taken out yesterday."

Doug walked up to the edge of the bed and looked over John. He 
said, "Jesus, John. You look like you've been in a war. I see 
gunshots and knife wounds."

"You should see the bottom half. I have shrapnel, burns, and 
snakebites in addition to gunshots and knife wounds."

Catherine stared at his body. She was sure that she was going to 
look just like that because of the medallion around her neck. She 
couldn't believe how cavalier he was about the scars. She would 
never let anyone see her body if it looked like that. She asked, "Is 
that going to happen to me?"

John laughed, "I seriously doubt it. I'm a special case."

Doug replied, "You can say that again."

Dr. Simpson told John to roll over on his side so that he could get 
the stitches around the entry point. John did as requested and more 
scars became visible. Catherine shuddered at the sight of the long 
one down his back. Doug asked the question that was on her mind, 
"How'd you get that ugly one down your back?"

"Getting a kid out of a burning building. I didn't see a nail or 
something when I slid out the window."

Doug's voice got very soft, "Your brother would be very proud of 
you."

John nodded, "I know. He'd be proud of you too. The people in this 
town are very happy you are here. They teased me about you, but it 
doesn't fool me."

"Thanks, it means a lot to me to hear that from you."

Catherine asked, "How do you two know each other?"

Doug answered, "We grew up together in Texas. His brother was 
my best friend."

A female voice was heard in the hall outside the door, "Avast, me 
maties. Prepare to be boarded!" 

John and Doug answered in unison, "Shiver me timbers!"

Lucy entered the room. She gave Doug a very emotional kiss. She 
smiled at John. "Thanks for bringing this guy here. If I could get 
him to wear a peg leg, my life with him would be perfect."

John laughed. "I could just picture that."

Dr. Simpson sat back. "I'm done. Get dressed and get out of here 
before you corrupt more of the staff around here."

"Thanks doc. What do I owe you?"

"Don't worry about it. You opened my eyes regarding Myrtle. Of 
course, she is after me for my body."

 John shook his hand and hugged Doug. Lucy kissed him. She 
stated, "Next time you come to town, make sure you visit us."

John frowned, "You aren't going to invite me to the wedding?"

Doug laughed, "Yes, but only if you wear a pirates costume."

"I'm gonna buy you a parrot for a wedding present!"

Lucy laughed. On that note, John and Catherine left the room. 
Rover followed them, pausing only to look in each room. When 
they got to the car, Catherine turned to John. "The doctors in there 
were nasty to you.'

John laughed, "No, they weren't. You heard many inside jokes told 
in gruff voices that hid their real feelings. They are both very good 
doctors. Dr. Simpson saved my life once."

John started the car. He put it into gear and pulled out of the 
hospital. Catherine asked, "Where are we going now?"

"Off to the Sheriff's office. You're going to meet him sometime 
and it's best if I'm the one that introduces you."

Catherine sat back. Unexpectedly she stated, "You know my 
comment about you getting a bigger cock. Well, I gained some 
curves, lost about ten pounds, and gained two cup sizes on my 
breasts. My nipples have been hard ever since I left the woods."

"It takes a bit of getting used to, but you'll adjust. Pretty soon, 
you'll look in the mirror and not even think of the changes."

Catherine shook her head, "That'll never happen. You go from an 
A cup to a C cup instantaneously and then tell me about it."

He laughed, "Well, I've gone from six inches to eight, so I know 
what you are feeling."

"Eight?"

"Yes. Oh, and you've lost a day. You were in there for twenty-four 
hours."

"Damn, my parents must be worried about me. I promised to call 
them last night."

"Don't worry. Those kinds of things work out," replied John as he 
pulled into a parking space. He got out of the car followed by 
Rover. Catherine got out on the other side. She followed him into 
the Sheriff's office. 

John shouted, "I surrender. Which cell is mine?"

"John, I swear one of these days I'm going to throw you in the cell 
just for scaring the hell out of me."

The Sheriff came out of the back room and looked at John. He 
smiled, "It's good to see you again, John. You did a great job the 
other day."

"Thanks. That means a lot coming from you. I want you to meet 
Catherine. I'm giving her ownership of Jed's place."

The Sheriff nodded in the direction of Catherine before asking, 
"Are you sure that you want to do that?"

John nodded, "It was Jed's wish that I find the person to take it 
over."

"I take it she's one of you?"

Catherine asked, "What does that mean?"

"We get a lot of strange people that come through this town. 
Almost without exception, they all stop at Jed's. When Jed died, 
the whole lot of them showed up. Every one stranger than the 
previous one. I don't know what's behind it all, but that was the 
most peaceful this town has been ever since I became Sheriff. Not 
a single speeding ticket, argument, parking ticket, or drunk."

John nodded, "It was a nice ceremony."

The Sheriff nodded, "The whole town showed up. We never saw 
anything like it. I swear you could almost see Gods and Goddesses 
gathered around the body."

John looked thoughtful. He interrupted, "Well, I just came by to 
introduce you to each other. I'm sure she wants to see the store."

The Sheriff shook her hand, "Glad to meet you Catherine. I'll stop 
around the store later and help you get settled into the community. 
I imagine you'll need a house in the area. Myrtle's place is 
available. It would be a good place for you, particularly if you 
travel as much as Jed. I live right next door. No one will bother 
you there."

Catherine looked surprised, "Thank you, Sheriff. I'll look forward 
to it."

She followed John and Rover out the office. At the door, she 
turned and looked at the Sheriff for a minute. She got into the car 
quietly. "Every one talks like I'm moving here and taking over a 
store. Tell me about it."

John started the car, but didn't put it into gear. He stated, "Jed was 
our supplier. He made custom equipment that was appropriate for 
each one of us who received a medallion. He made my staff and 
this cloak." 

"He died at the end of summer. You are his replacement. As such, 
you will get the store. I don't know how it works, but a maker 
knows what equipment is needed before the person is even 
selected. I'm sure it is some kind of urge to create something 
specific. You won't be able to ignore it."

"I guess that is reasonable."

John continued, "Jed spent most of his time traveling. I don't think 
there is any part of the world he did not hike through. That 
includes the north and south poles. He assembled a very good staff 
at the shop, so if you take it over you won't really have to be here 
except when the urge calls you back. Again, I don't know exactly 
how it works."

Catherine asked, "Does it matter what I want to do? I mean, I may 
not want the store."

"I have no idea. What were your plans for the future?"

"I'm going to college to get a degree in business. Once I graduate, 
I'll open a business."

John laughed, "So you are going to do it in reverse. You're going 
to get a business and then get a degree in business."

John put the car into gear and headed to the store. Catherine was 
silent the whole way. Rover studied her carefully, as though he 
were memorizing her features. The trip to the store only took a 
minute. John parked in the parking lot. He got out of the car. Rover 
raced past him heading into the woods behind the store. John 
laughed, "He'll be back shortly."

Catherine went into the store and stopped as the magnitude of it 
overwhelmed her. She looked around in awe at the variety of 
merchandise displayed. The effect on her was almost sexual as 
chills ran up and down her spine. She had come here to cross 
country ski and now she was going to own this magnificent place. 
A clerk approached her as she stood there, "May I help you, 
ma'am?"

She didn't know how to answer. John saved the day by entering the 
store. He smiled at the kid who immediately recognized him. He 
turned to Catherine, "Excuse me a minute ma'am."

John said, "Call the employees that are duty over here."

The kid stuck two fingers in his mouth in gave a shrill whistle. 
People appeared out of nowhere and stood in a semi-circle around 
John. John smiled, "Everyone, I would like to introduce the new 
owner to you. This is Catherine. Catherine would you like to say a 
few words to everyone."

Catherine nervously cleared her throat. She stated, "This is all very 
sudden. This is an amazing place. I want to keep it that way. With 
your help, we will."

John had gone behind the counter and pulled out two envelopes. 
He walked over to Catherine and handed her one of them. He was 
left with one last envelope addressed to The Grand Druid. He 
stated, "This is yours. Jed wrote it before he died."

John handed the keys over to her and then left. Rover was waiting 
by the car. Catherine turned to see him driving off into the sunset. 
Somehow, it seemed fitting.