Ballads of the Protectors: The Beginning Analysis

Protectors killing a foul beast

Hey everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas filled with joy, laughter, cherished moments with your loved ones, and a fantastic start to your new year that sets a positive tone for the months ahead. During this festive season, I decided to take some much-needed time off from posting on the blog and other responsibilities. This break allowed me to immerse myself in quality time with family. It was refreshing to step away from my usual responsibilities and obligations, enabling me to recharge mentally and physically. I hope you enjoyed Ballads of the Protectors: The Beginning. The reason behind such a title is that this story takes place in the weird-west dark fantasy world that I created, a setting that serves as the foundation for the larger narrative arc of the novel I am currently developing. This unique world is characterized by its blend of Wild West motifs and tropes, along with horror and dark fantasy elements. I have had fun creating monsters and ghouls for this world and trying to see where I can utilize them the best within the story.

The infant- Lucas- is actually the protagonist of the novel. In the novel, we see him much older and with some experience in dealing with creatures of the night- hence why I added The Beginning to the title. My goal is for readers in the future to discover this short story and understand why Lucas was orphaned and why he grew up with the Order of Protectors.

The trail I go run in

Before I wrote this short story, I was actually writing one that felt similar to A Dance with Old Nick. To me, it carried the same themes and similar plot structure, so I decided to put that one away and perhaps include that story in some future volumes of short stories. I did not want you- the reader- to feel like you are reading the same story twice back-to-back. The idea of creating a short story set in the weird-west world of Terra Novus came when I was walking back to my vehicle, trying to catch my breath from a run. There is a biking and hiking trail that I like to run and walk on. It is very peaceful and helps me clear my mind when I want to relax for a bit. I want to create a sense of community and discussion around the world of Terra Novus. I am not as creative when it comes to names or world-building. Hence, much of what I have created with my imagination is not at the level of Tolkien or Sapkowski. Still, I believe it is simple enough for a good western with many gunslingers, rustlers, robbers, law-abiding deputies, and foul beasts. I hope you enjoyed it and look forward to more stories set in Terra Novus so that when the novel gets published- God willing!- then you will be immersed in the world. The themes I covered in the story were survival, desperation, family, protection, and fear of the unknown. Enrique and his family are caught in a cycle of desperation as they try to protect their livelihood and their lives. This theme is evident in Enrique's decision to face the creatures despite knowing bullets have little effect on them, emphasizing the family's dire circumstances. The familial bond is at the heart of the story. Josephine's protective instincts toward her baby and Enrique's concern for his family underscore the lengths they are willing to go to ensure their safety, even if it means death. The beasts killing their goats are the fear of the unknown; their shadowy presence and the ineffectiveness of traditional defenses highlight humanity's vulnerability against incomprehensible threats. How do humans thrive and survive in such an environment? One can also argue that faith in the supernatural could be a theme, as seen in the introduction of characters who mention 'protectors' and how they can eliminate dangerous threats. Then there is the character of Juanita- the town mage- who is described as a healer. One can imagine that her 'mage' magical powers revolve more around healing and the well-being of others, so is that how the magic system works in this world? Or is there more to it? There are also the supernatural elements of the protectors' undead horses and Enrique's glimpse of watching the ammunition they use glow a certain color before being reloaded back into the firearm. The story does not go deep into lore about the creatures or why protectors have undead horses, but this is something that will be addressed later in future stories.

William Stroman asks Enrique if he remembers stories of these protectors from when he was a child. We then learn that Enrique seems to come from a big city trying to settle in the Wild West. These protectors seem to have been around for years, taking out monsters and operating in the shadows. With this little information, we can guess that these monster slayers are not heroes—in the sense of public personas and public servants. The ending is gruesome and devastating, which works well for the horror genre, but as a writer, I do not know if it is even possible for a child to survive such an event. What I mean by this is the moment in which Josephine tries to toss her child to Enrique, her last effort to protect Lucas. In my mind, I was imagining a bundled baby in blankets while the father quickly grabbed them. I do believe, though, that the way I wrote it could be imagined differently by others. Let me know how you imagined it and if it was comical or strange of the picture that I tried to paint in your mind. Thank you for your support. As I prepare my second volume, I will post more short stories in the coming months!