King Arthur on Easter Island? It’s probably not the first thing anyone thinks of. It wasn’t my first thought either when I saw the call for stories for the King of Ages anthology. But I did want to do something different so I started thinking about where I had been and what might be fun – but also fit into the themes of the Arthur stories.
I’d been to Easter Island a few years ago. A week of exploring the island, the Moai statues, the quarry where the topknot “hats” where created and the volcano areas. It is a place unlike any other I’ve been where the wind blows constantly, the diet is one of fish that are caught offshore, brought in and carried literally across the street to the restaurants and market. The pace is leisurely, except the days where petrol is brought to shore from larger boats – when there is congestion at the stop sign leading to the boats.
After visiting, I did lots of research on the history of the island. There are many unknowns still today and I continue to watch the developments as they excavate the statues.
One of the most memorable places on the island are the upper most cliffs above the islet. There are knee high caves with glyphs carved into nearby rocks marking the time of the birdmen and where they trained. This part of my story is based on history. During this time period, there were competitions to see which clan leader would be the leader for all clans during the next year. Finding and returning with the first sotty tern egg was the prize.
When I thought back over this contest, I recognized that Arthur’s stories have contests and quests – and that I could use this similarity to craft a story using the same characters but in a different time with a different type of challenge.
But I also wanted to pay homage to some of the movies I’ve seen, in particular, Excalibur, and in thinking back, the scene at the bridge between Lancelot and Arthur has always been one that struck me. And I drew some inspiration from that for the fight scene.
I’m not sure where other writer’s draw their inspiration or how their stories come together but mine tend to be bits and pieces of things I’ve seen, places I’ve been or little details that are locked away in corners of my brain – waiting to come out and become part of a story.
I hope you enjoyed the story and others in the anthology. My thanks to David for inviting me to his blog and to Josh and Uffda Press for the opportunity to be a part of this anthology.
C.A. Rowland
www.carowland.com
www.mostlymystery.com
https://twitter.com/writer4993
Author David Wiley 