Casmar and Duke

Origins of the game of Kings; excert taken from

THE TALES of CASMAR and DUKE

"The first day of the Fair of Merd saw a swarm of people entering the walled city of Germaine to set up their stalls in the marketplace. Jugglers, courtesans, artisans, storytellers, and vendors of every commodity imaginable thronged the plaza, each vying for the attention of the passerby.

"Chance for gold! Play the game of Kings! Double the contents of your purse!"

In one corner of the market sat an ostentatiously-attired young man. Before him was a gaming board set with curiously-wrought playing pieces which gleamed in the late morning sun.

"Chance for gold! Play the game of Kings! Double the contents of your purse!" Few of the passersby did more than momentarily glance at the board. One onlooker, however, stopped in his tracks and surveyed the table with puzzlement written upon his face.

"Try your luck, sir?" queried the young man.

The potential customer, a large barbarous sort, shrugged his brawny shoulders, and took a seaton the provided stool, which groaned ominously. Even sitting down, he towered over most people. He scratched in turn his hairy pot-belly, his long mop of dirty-brown hair, and the matching beard which grew wildly from his broad face.

The young man withdrew from a pocket of his cloak a large deck of cards which he began shuffling flamboyantly as he explained the rules of the game. *

*Originally written by Michael T. Smith and Don Walker

Michael's Book

The Unpublished Tales of Casmar and Duke by Michael Thomas Smith. Here's my Preface:

These are the unpublished works of my brother-in-law, Michael Thomas Smith. I encouraged Michael several times to get his voluminous work out of his head and onto paper, but the depths of his procrastinations were fueled by an overwhelming depression since the death of his wife, Kathirene. Before his own death in 2009, our relationship had become considerably strained, due to his procrastinations to follow through on even the most mundane of tasks in his personal life.

We can never take back the harsh words spoken nor deeds done after a loved one has passed on, so it was with my own regrets. However, about a year after his passing, I came across a folder that had been packed away in the back of our closet of Michael’s most prized imaginative writings. I vowed to myself that his story would, in some form or fashion, become known to others.

These stories are about the misadventures of two friends, and take place in an ancient fantasy realm called: The Land of the Seven Empires. Inspired by Fritz Leiber’s tale of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, Michael’s two main characters were loosely based on himself and a close friend of his named, Don E. Walker. In fact, it was both Michael and Don themselves who first collaborated in conjuring these stories into being, but Michael who later developed their detailed background histories and genealogies further.

Along with the stories is a map, I drew from rough sketches by Michael. There was even a time when Michael and I created the actual board game of KINGS; which was the vehicle that brought the two main characters together. Our game-making venture later fell through, but it was quiet an adventure in itself to invent and craft. The rules of the game are provided in an appendix as another insightful example of Michael‘s complex thinking.

It is my sincere hope the reader will enjoy these brief stories as much as those of us who first heard them told.

MICHAEL IS PUBLISHED!

   As promised, I found a format and have finally been able to "Publish" my brother-in-law's "fantasy adventurers who end up finding friendship".  CASMAR and DUKE: The Lost Tales by Michael Thomas Smith, my by line as "editor" for my 'Preface', 'About the Author', 'Appendix' and compilation of his work.  I have the original manuscript and Mike's digital version on disc.  
   This is also a precursor to publishing my own works, but I feel I owed him a promise now fulfilled.

NOW! on Amzon.com's KINDLE devices.

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(I'm currently awaiting final formatting and notifications.)

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It Never was

IT was meant to be a very complicated game from the very beginning. Cards told you which piece to move, Dice told you how many steps you were allowed, and each piece had its own distinctive move and purpose, and history; as well as discs that could be placed on some to enhance move duration!!! READ THE BOOK as the instructions are provided and were inspired by Michael's story CASMAR AND DUKE: The Lost Tales.

Sorry, No Copies Follow.

To my shame. After his passing I was so distraught and angry; about how his last few years were lived, and his death itself. When cleaning out his apartment, much of his own things had been sold or discarded and when I came along to clean up after him I followed suit, and did the same thing. Yet, weeks/months later I became eaten up with the regret that I had discarded what precious little I did come across: ancient poems from his college years, portions of his role playing story notes, and beginning chapters of a fantasy novel about Casmar and Duke. My only redeeming quality in this matter is that I have come across Chapter One of his story. My raw thinking at the time was that I could not allow myself to “waste” my time finishing his life when my own life, and novel need completion. Now, how much of my own life will be discarded upon my passing? I am all the more pressured to publish my first novel. Though there is a small homage to him I can never undo with did; I’m sorry Michael.