
TM: Hey. Thanks for having me here.
Host: Do you mind if I call you, Taurus?
TM: Not at all.
Host: I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but you have an unusual name.
TM: Yeah, it’s been brought up to me every now and again.
Host: Care to explain its origin?
TM: Truthfully, I don’t know the history. Let’s just say my parents weren’t what one would call conventional.
Host: Since you brought your parents up, can you tell me a little about them?
TM: They’re both dead.
Host: Sorry for your loss.
TM: Don’t apologize, it’s not like you had anything to do with their deaths.
Host: I know this might be a touchy subject to you, but can you tell us more about them?
TM: Well, since you asked nicely (smirk). They were archaeologists. Much of my childhood had been spent traveling the world with them. They were good parents, who’d taught me a lot about history… Not the stuff folks learn in school, but real history.
Host: Okay, you have my attention. What do you mean by real history?
TM: What you’ve read in historical books and museums are only the sugar coated versions of what really happened. We (mankind), are not alone, never had been. Creatures walk among us. Some look like us, laugh with us, are friends with us, but not what they appear to be. Then there are the others. Mean sons of b… I probably shouldn’t curse, right?
Host: Let’s avoid it if we can, thank you. But back to what you were talking about. Are you saying, for example, events like George Washington crossing the Delaware River to catch the Hessian force off-guard didn’t happen?
TM: Not at all. What I’m saying is that George Washington and his 5500 troops didn’t go across the river to fight ordinary soldiers. The Hessian had performed a dark ceremony the previous night, which would have given them the strength of ten men and made them unbeatable. However, the ritual left the Hessians weak and vulnerable for 24 hours period. The general’s spies discovered the truth and Washington took advantage of it.
Host: And you have proof of this?
TM: Do you have proof proving otherwise?
Host: Okay, moving on. Your profession is Relic Hunter, correct?
TM: That’s me, Taurus Moon: Relic Hunter (grin).
Host: You seem very proud of your occupation.
TM: I am. If you’ve seen the things I have, it would blow your freaking mind.
Host: Sounds like an exaggeration. Searching for old artifacts, doesn’t sound exciting.
TM: (Waving hands in air) Blow your mind.
Host: Can you give me an example of this… mind blowing experience?
TM: I once went in search of a cursed Grooved Sphere--a stone shaped like a ball. The sphere is around an inch in diameter, with a groove running parallel along the equator. Anyway, what made this Groove Sphere different from others was the fact it gave its bearer the ability to reverse aging. After I retrieved it from another dimension realm where giant chipmunks ruled… Long story, don’t ask… I gave the item to my customer, who immediately invoked the stone’s power. In an instant an 85 year old woman turned into a fetus.
Host: A fetus?
TM: I’m sure it wasn’t what the customer had expected. Poor thing writhed around on the floor like a fish out of water for about 30 seconds before it stopped moving. Good thing she’d paid me ahead of time.
Host: That’s cold.
TM: Hey, that’s why I don’t mess with these supernatural relics. You want to risk your life utilizing one, that’s on you, not me, buddy.
Host: Is this something that happens to most people who hire you to find artifacts?
TM: Not always, sometimes they have success, but for the most part, that’s rare. But having power changes a person and it’s never for the better. In the end, things always turn out bad for them.
Host: Yet, they continue to hire you to find these relics?
TM: It’s a gamble they are willing to take.
Host: And you can live with this?
TM: Like I said, it’s not on me, man.
Host: No remorse then?
TM: I didn’t say all that. If things go bad, I do try to do something to help when I can. I warn my customers of the likely outcome ahead of time. Hey, don’t you judge me.
Host: But…
TM: Don’t make me hit you.
Host: Alrighty then, moving on. Do you go on these adventures by yourself?
TM: I used to, but that proved too dangerous. So I hired a mage to tag along, his name is Gully.
Host: Mage?
TM: Possessor of magic. Gully taps into Was energy to perform his tricks.
Host: What is Was energy?
TM: Magic is a power source call Was. Some folks can access this energy.
Host: So magic is real?
TM: I tell you about a realm in another dimension filled with giant chipmunks, and you’re stuck on magic being real? Come on, man, let’s get past this.
Host: Can you tap into this Was energy?
TM: Nope, I’m just an ordinary Joe like most folks.
Host: So no proof to prove magic is real?
TM: You have any proving it doesn’t?
Host: Can me a skeptic.
TM: I’ll call you something all right.
Host: I think we’ve move off topic again. Any others travel with you?
TM: Occasionally I work with Professor Miles Coltrane, his bodyguard, Ayira, and John Henry.
Host: John Henry? Like the folk hero from the tall-tales?
TM: Not like the folk hero. Is. He looked really good for his age.
Host: Really?
TM: Are we going to have a problem again?
Host: No. What can you tell me about Ayira?
TM: She hot for one, but don’t tell that to her in her face, she might stab you. She’s from a village from South Africa?
Host: Interesting. What village?
TM: It doesn’t exist anymore. It was destroyed by dark magic as far as I know.
Host: Doesn’t exist? Dark magic? There’s nothing simple about you is there?
TM: Nope (grin).
Host: What exactly is Miles Coltrane a professor of?
TM: History, cultures, religions and myths. He teaches at Wayne State University in Detroit.
Host: Wow, he sounds pretty ordinary.
TM: He’s a powerful mage himself and he’s blind, but still somehow manages to read books without braille having to be on the pages. He resides in a living hotel called the Summerset that’s guarded by drunken gnomes living under boxes that aren’t really boxes.
Host: Huh?
TM: It’s complicated.
Host: You know, I think this might be a good place to end this interview. I want to thank you for agreeing to speak with me. Is there something you like to say to the readers?
TM: I appreciate you having me here today. And for you folks in need for supernatural artifacts, keep me in mind. I have a fantastic success rate and my prices are reasonable. Oh, but don’t blame me if you turn yourself into a goat or something. No refunds.
Host: Be sure read Taurus Moon: Relic Hunter and Taurus Moon: Magic & Mayhem available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble