Kickass Anthology

KICKASS ANTHOLOGY was produced in order to raise funds for the medical recovery of our friend and colleague, author Eric Arvin.

All artwork, both written and graphic, was donated free of charge. The copyright to all artwork remains with the authors, and they may publish their own stories or drawings  simultaneously elsewhere or enter them in competitions.

Publishing services were donated by Mugen Press.

All proceeds from this anthology benefit Eric Arvin.

DISCLAIMER: These stories are a work of fiction. Any persons, establishments, organizations, locations or events that resemble real life do so by coincidence alone. No parts of this book may be reproduced by any means by anyone other than original authors except for a short paragraph intended for publicity purposes. Original authors may re-publish their own stories and artwork.

Pirating
this book is not only illegal, it’s also unkind. If you pirate this book, you’ll get bad karma that includes but is not limited to venerial disease, parking tickets, writer’s block, unwanted weight gain, hair loss, bad luck in love, and wrong heat levels in in both erotic fiction and Chinese restaurants.

Purchasing
this book as a gift for others garners good karma. You will feel that special glow that makes energy flow your way and you’ll
just know
when a good thing happened to you as a result of this small act. Because, just like words on a page, small acts add up to a big result.

Mugen  Press ©2014

P.O. Box 11061

Pittsburgh, PA 15237, USA

[email protected]

www.mugenpress.com

ISBN:

MANY THANKS TO MANY PEOPLE

This anthology is a product of love, sure – we all love Eric – but it’s also a product of my hubris. Almost a year ago, I decided that a fundraiser anthology would be a good idea, but I wasn’t aware that Dreamspinner Press was elbows-deep in producing one! I figured someone has to do it. I’ve been reading about indie publishing, I’ve gone through the editorial process with Dreamspinner Press… it didn’t sound so hard. What could go wrong?

“It sounded like a good idea at the time.”

The book you now hold in your hands, or see on your e-reader, wouldn’t have happened had it not been for the generosity of heart of many people. Writers and illustrators alike are listed on the cover – I couldn’t include all of them in metadata because CreateSpace allows only 10 - and the section that follows will name every single soul that volunteered in the production of this book.

What a variety  of stories– so many moods, settings, textures and colors. Not a single bad one in the bunch. They all have one thing in common: a weaker, smaller guy gets into a bad situation. Using his wit, grit, and guile he perseveres, be his opponent ever so strong or the odds seemingly hopeless. This is a book of kickass characters doing the right thing, the hard thing. They persevere, they think, they strive until they get their way.

Like Eric, they’re kickass.

I’d like to thank my husband Scott for putting up with my fluttering about like so many feathers on the wind. This is just a phase – the Anthology is now published, and life can resume once again. All I can do is look at him with a grateful smile and say: “Thank you, dear. It sounded like a good idea at the time!”

KICKASS CREDITS

Editor: Kate Pavelle

Authors

Jade Crystal

Nancy Hartmann                           

Tali Spencer                                          

Jackie Keswick                            

JP Kenwood                                          

A.L. Boyd                                                        

Mia Kerick  & Michael J. Bowler

Sophie Bonaste                                         

Keira Andrews                                          

Jonathan Penn                            

Angela Irvin-Young

Amy Young

Brandon Witt

Illustrators

Connie Bailey

Tara Bluhm

Fiona Fu

Eleanore Pavelle

Kate Pavelle

Taomi

Editing and publicity volunteers

Brandilyn Carpenter

Rebecca Cohen

JP Kenwood

Jackie Keswick

INTRODUCING ERIC ARVIN

Since I don’t know Eric personally, I reached out to his sisters over Facebook and asked for a few words that would help us fans and readers know him as more than an author, or a friend-of-a-friend, or a guy who’s working through a difficult time.

Also, I was hoping for some dirt. Like, did he used to short-sheet his sister? Did he bring spiders inside? Stuff like that. Brothers have a certain reputation to uphold. Let’s see how Eric stacks up as a brother, then!

From Angela:

I was asked to describe my brother so here we go.  Growing up with four brothers and two sisters there is always something going on, but living in the country you become more than siblings. You become best friends and confidants.  As a family we have been going through different medical conditions for the last 40 years, but we have always stayed together and focused on knowing that in the end all we had was each other. 

Eric was the funny one in the family. He seemed to always have a funny comment or facial expression to go with the moment.  Even me being younger I could see a difference in Eric.  Whether it be a look in his eyes or a gesture he made, you could tell he thought longer and harder than anyone else, always coming up with a twist. 

I remember once as kids we had some friends over for a sleepover.  So being close friends we decided to pitch two tents (boys in one girls in the other) and sleep outside.  Well of course with Eric’s imagination the night turned into an adventure.   We started out walking out the lane and Eric had seen eyes glowing in the woods.  Picture 8 kids running screaming back to our tents.  As the night went on the scarier it got with Eric’s imagination.  Hearing sounds seeing objects or shadows.  We started telling stories all gathered together in one tent. Someone’d seen a spider, and everybody herded through the small opening of the tent screaming trying to be the first one out.  Not until we all got out - or so we thought - we turned to look back at tent and had seen Eric peeking out from a ton of crumpled covers with a look of astonishment and us all realizing we had trampled over Eric! The “every man for himself” mentality had kicked in. 

The look on Eric’s face was hysterical and a moment I have never forgotten, and I am sure Eric hasn’t either.  I have so many funny stories about Eric - like the time he was being chased by a barking voracious dog, only to realize when it rounded the corner it was a little ankle bitter, a wiener dog, but the speed at which Eric was running and the look of horror on his face as he jumped in the van has been unforgettable.

Eric has so many qualities: from funny, sensitive, caring, loving, being a great listener, to overall being a great brother.  Growing up we were at each other throats sometimes, like normal siblings, but as the years have progressed I have gotten one of the best big brothers and best friend a girl could have. 

Eric has this ability to listen and you actually see that he is listening and his whole focus is on you.  Even him fighting as hard as he has and is continuing to fight, he still puts you ahead of him when you need an ear to listen.  Every day is a battle to fight harder than the day before, but Eric is a fighter. He is our Hero, and we as siblings are the privileged ones.  I hope I have helped showing Eric is so much more than an author.  He is a son, a brother, an uncle, a friend.  He is an inspiration to each and everyone of us. To be one of the privileged ones, to have been given the chance to be his sister, by that I am truly blessed.  Love u my brother Eric till the end of time. <3

From Amy:

As the youngest of seven siblings, I had plenty of influences in my life. Eric, however, has had a big impact. While others my age were watching MTV, I was watching Star Wars for the fiftieth time or being introduced to Rocky Horror. While they were listening to Hanson or 98 Degrees, I was rocking to Madonna and Cindi Lauper. Others wanted to be the latest TV sweetheart, while Eric and I were raving about how divine Anjelica Houston was as Morticia. 

This alikeness continued on throughout my college years. After watching Eric learn art and history and travel, and having a passion for those things myself, I ended up going to the same college as he did. He majored in History and had a minor in Art History while, I did the reverse. When I enrolled in college, he told me how amazing his advisor, Dr. Martin, was and took me to meet him so that I could hopefully have him as well.

It was because of Eric introducing me to that advisor that I found my calling. I walked into my first class with Dr. Martin not knowing what I wanted to study, and walked out an hour and a half later an Art History Major. It was in part because of the Eric's rapport with many of the college professors and board members that I received a grant. 



All his life Eric has been creative. In childhood he would walk around our yard, listening to music and living out stories in his head. He loves to immerse himself in art of any form; to discuss it. To this day Eric and I bond over art, music, and movies any chance we get, be it discussing the cinematography in Lord of the Rings or fangirling over Maleficent. 



Eric's creativity is matched by humor. If there is a story to be told, it is ten times funnier when Eric tells it. You know a person is funny, when they can tell a story - and often are asked to tell it - many times over many years, and it never gets any less amusing. You can always count on Eric to make you laugh. And should you need to talk, Eric is always willing to listen. 

Even with all the troubles Eric has had in his life, he still manages to pull through.

Not that all days are good. Some are bad, some are okay and some he has you holding your sides laughing at his impersonation of what someone once did or said. Throughout all of it though, he has managed to keep putting his own art out for others to live in for a while. He is without a doubt one of the strongest and most inspiring people I know.



Eric, I consider myself lucky that I have such an amazing, talented, strong person in my life. I am proud of all that you have accomplished. I am proud of what you will accomplish. I am proud to call you my brother. I love you and believe in you forever.

THE GIFT OF ODIN
Anonymous

IN THE ANCIENT DAYS there came a time when men were ready to abandon hope.

“Our fate has been written. Our doom has been set. What is left but to bow our heads, go off on our own, and accept whatever shall come?”

At that point the Eldest spoke, in tones that were low and slow, to remind them all of a truth:

*   *   *   *   *

“All men have heard of the gods of Asgard, and how they’d compete to see who might give the finest gift to we who dwell below. All of the gods engaged in this sport, save one: Odin, the All-father. For he never felt the need.

“It began in the beginning, when the world was new, the gods were young, and man was barely born. In that day everything –from the flight of the smallest bird to the ending of time itself – was set by the whims of the Norns: bound up in their iron web of Fate.

“Even the gods had to go before the Norns to claim their special gifts. Thus it was that Thor claimed his strength of sinew, mighty above all others; Loki, his quickness and changeability; and Tyr, the keenness of eye that made him the god of war, and also of justice. One by one they went, and one by one they knelt, until it came the turn of Odin. But the Allfather did not beg some single gift or power. Instead, he demanded the right to drink from the springs that fed the great world-tree, Yggdrasil. There were three such springs. They were sacred to the Norns. And the Norns were ill-pleased with this request.

“Nevertheless, the boon had been promised. It couldn’t simply be withdrawn ... and so instead they determined to charge a price.

“Before he sip from even the first of the springs, Odin must pluck out his eye and lay it at the feet of the Norns. To the shock of all the gods he did this, and thus dipped his cup and drank from the Well of Wisdom. And knew he had chosen aright.

“Very well then, the second price would be steeper. Before he might drink from the second spring, Odin must hang from the World Tree itself, exposed to all the evils the Worlds contained, for nine full days and nine full nights. Only then might he come to the second spring.

“Now this was enough to kill even a god. And Odin had drunk from the Well of Wisdom; he knew that better than any. But he understood other things too. And thus he did so hang, for nine full days and nine full nights, pierced to the Tree by his own spear.

“When the ordeal finally ended, he collapsed to the earth ... but he made his way over, and dipped his cup, and drank from the Spring of Memory; and thereby learned of the sacred runes, the ways and means of writing.

“As to the third price – the third test – no man can say, for of this Odin would never speak. This only is known: before that day he was as hale and strong and sound as any of the other gods; but ever after his beard and brow were gray, his hands would shake, and often he was seen to walk with a stoop. But it was a price he never regretted, for this was the Spring of Making: the well and font of creativity.

“He sipped from the sacred waters, and a light came into his eyes that had not been there before. He looked upon the Norns. He smiled. And then, before they might speak a single word of forbidding, he took the mingled contents of that cup and he cast it out upon the winds, that it might be shared by we who dwell below.

“In that moment the web of the Norns burst all asunder, and the Norns themselves disappeared to whatever hidden place they now reside.

“For with wisdom the ways of fate can be foreseen and understood.

“With memory and writing the lessons we learn need never be forgot, even from now unto the ending of the world.

“And with the Making ... Ahhh, with the Making, the problems we see can be solved, in new and different ways. Ways that even the Norns could never have dreamed.

“There is no immutable fate. No unchangeable destiny. Our wills are free, and our decisions our own.”

And that was the gift of Odin, the Allfather, whom men and gods revere.

AUTHOR 

The author of this story wishes Eric the best possible recovery, strength, and hope. There is no immutable destiny, no unchangeable fate.

ILLUSTRATOR

“The Sacrifice of Odin,” Lorenz Frolich, 1895