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HAWK KENNELS
Since 1976
Neapolitan Mastiffs a Specialty
Pups, Studs, Training
Civilian, Police, Military, Narcotics/Bomb Detection Dogs
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A phone call in the night. Three hour time difference. 4 AM here. A
voice from the past. "A tip," said the half familiar voice. "Do yourself
a favor," it said, "check Giuseppe out."
The appointed hour found me standing at the fence, staring into the
foggy pasture. Then an apparition from the past floated out of the mist
and took my breath away. Huge. Gray. Prehistoric. What? A gargoyle? A tiger?
A dog? Then, clearly visible. He was everything the anonymous voice said
he would be: Primitive, terrifying, beautiful. In 1/10th of a second, all
my intentions never to breed again were swept away on the wings of desire.
I knew beyond a doubt I had to have a Neo like this one, and not having
a half a million to buy one, I could only breed to him. $2,000 cash stud
fee, but worth it. Check Giuseppe out. Perfection in gray. Experience the
legendary bond of the Neo.
It was a balmy spring day. Just outside San Diego. I was a young boot on
my way back to base after firing practice. The gray military bus was parallelling
the railroad tracks as it sped along, and occasionally, a break in the
trees and shrubbery would reveal a little collection of shacks or travel
trailers of itenerant laborers and gypsies. As we zipped by such an opening,
my attention was caught by a young girl in a red and black dress with long
hair going in the back door of a small house backed up to the railroad
tracks. Following hard on her heels was a massive gray dog. Huge head,
leonine presence, it was one of those scenes that the mind captures with
such clarity for some reason, trick of light, whatever, that they stick
in your mind forever. I realized years later, upon seeing a Neo, with sudden
conviction, that this was the dog I'd seen on that long ago day. Imagine.
All those years, stuck in my memory. Not every dog can pull a young sailor's
attention away from a girl and then stick in his mind for that many years.
What is it about the Neo that creates such a thrill of recognition on the
first sight? Some racial memory? Some dim relic of our primitive brain's
far-gone past, when our ancestors shared their campfires and their hunting
days with them? Who knows? His origins are lost in the abyss of time. Make
up any story you like. The truth is probably wilder than anything you can
invent. What we do know is that he reaches right into the heart of some
of us, grabs hold, and never lets go. And then some people are totally
unmoved, even repelled by his presence. Perhaps therein lies a tale. No
pun intended.
My name is Tazaar and my dog and I are standing on the rooftop of an apartment
complex in the downtown area. It is a clammy, cool night with a heavy fog
that makes it hard to take a deep breath. The dog sniffs the ground near
the stain of blood. The night allows me access to the site. The police
are gone. The coroner back in his office, sliding the drained body into
a tidy drawer until tomorrow. The dog is my own breed and I call him Rumor.
He sniffs intently, then suddenly, lifts his head and bounds towards the
edge of the roof. I yank quickly on his lead and he stops just short of
the stone edging. The scent is there. Aloft in the night air. The scent
of blood, carried beyond the roof is a flurry of dark wings and a bloated
belly. The smell is also of something foreign. A sweet, pungent smell that
lingers in the thickly hanging air. I feel that old chill growing inside
my heart, my lungs, my stomach. It grows until I can't help but shiver.
It escaped tonight, but it would be back. And when it returns, I would
need help.
I watched the girl and her dog from the shadows...Invisible to her. I had
watched the vampire feed and depart. Watched the Police come and scurry
about for awhile and go with the body. The girl had nearly surprised me,
so silently had she ghosted into view. Her dog held his interest for a
moment. A large cross of some kind. I recognized the ancient genetic mix
of molosser and Tiger somewhere in the witches brew of cross after cross
after cross. And just a subtle hint of the magic used in amplifying the
immune system and healing system of the dog. Superior smelling ability
as well. Once the dog looked around uneasily and whined softly to its master.
The girl glanced about breifly and said, "No, Rumour. Whatever was here
is gone".. The dog , however was not so easily convinced. Some how he seemed
to sense my presence and my respect for him went up a notch. The dog walked
over to me in my gargoyle form and sniffed. Then lifted his leg. My opinion
of him dropped a notch. Damn dog. As if the frigging pigeons ween't bad
enough. Every time I assumed human shape again, I had to bathe and scrub
heavily to rid myself of the mess. I had been removed from an ancient French
Chateau over a hundred years ago. I had been brought from Rome to decorate
the Chateau. I had perched on the Roman Villa for 1600 years before it
crumpled into ruin and I had been sold to the Frenchman.In the 1600 years,
I had only assumed human shape a few hundred times. Now, ever more infrequently..Every
thing becomes boring after awhile. It is so comfortable in this Gargoyle
shape. My old companions long since ossified into stone through inactivity.
Only their thoughts coming through as from a great distance in my dreams.
Suddenly it came to me, what I recognized about this girl. She looked so
much like my ancient Anna, from so long ago. Dead now these many centuries.
Fiercely I suppresed the urge to manifest into human shape and help her.
Best not to get involved in the affairs of breathing men. The litle bastards
could be troublesome when aroused. Not beyond them to level the entire
building if they ever became aware of my presence. Petty humans. So full
of fear of what they cannot label. No..best to remain in gargoyle shape..let
the girl fight her own battles. Though the Vampire who left only so recently
would be back. He too, had sensed me somehow. But not being able to discover
my presence, he had left. But I sensed the thought faintly.."I'll be back."
And when he comes, I thought, he'll know the girl and her dog were here,
stalking him. He would not be amused. 600 year old vamires are extremely
paranoid. That's the only way to get to be 600 years old. He would take
immediate steps to rid himself of the problem a human stalker. The dog
would not be much help to her if the bloodsucker found her.
I finally got to the roof. Sneezing from all the dust on the way up I got
to Tazy. "Sloppy eater ha?", I said looking down at the stain of blood.
Nothing. "You know, you should look into buying a sense of humor." I said
to Tazy. "Being so serious isn't good for one's blood pressure. Blood pressure,
get it?" Nothing. I turned my attention to the dog. "Good boy! Yes you
are! You'll get that flying possum next time. Yes I know, I think it's
not fair to fly too. They should stick to the ground like us." My dogs
now started popping up behind me. First the pointers, followed by the Bloodhounds,
then the Wolfhounds, and then the Bulldogs. I never developed my own breed,
I always thought that mixing a bunch of breeds to get an average isn't
as good as just relying on the specialized pure breeds. Instead I concentrated
on developing the one single thing I wanted in each of my breeds. I was
keenly aware that everybody else's Bandogs were far superior to any of
my dogs but everydoby else was also keenly aware that my Pointers could
air track better then any of their dogs, my Bloodhounds could ground track
better, my Wolfhounds were faster then any other dog and my Bulldogs were
more game and had a greater working drive and ability then any of their
bandogs. I was tempted to create my own breed a few times, by crossing
the Bulldog with some giant breed, but I never went through with it, my
Bulldogs were too precious for that. Instead I just rellied on everybody
else's Bandogs. And let the rest of the gang use my pure breeds in their
quest for the ultimate Bandog mix. My two Pointers, Pit and Bul, were their
names, got to the oposite edge of the roof and froze pointing in the air.
"Yeah, you can't fly either." I thought outloud. Speedy and Gonzalez, my
Wolfhounds, were more interested in greeting and playing with Tazy's dog,
they were sight hounds and there was nothing to see here. Droopy and Slobery
concetrated on the blood stain, Rumor was tired of. My Bulldogs, Sleepy
and Grumpy, just assumed their usual possitions, standing at my left and
right side. "Siiit!" I said. The Bulldogs and the Wolfhounds sat down,
Tazy's dog seemed unsure, looked back at his master and then slowly sat
down too, only the Pointers remained frozen. "Sit down!" They immediately
dropped their hind quarters but continued to point from a seating position.
"You're late." Tazy growled. "Nooo, I'm not." I replied. "Yes, you are."
"No, I'm not." Silence... "Care to elaborate?" Asked the increasingly frustrated
Tazy. "Sure." I said. "You see, while our friends and protectors the police
are fighting crime in the doughnut shop, Sniffy and Sneezy, who are frozen
4 blocks away from here in the direction Pit and Bull are pointing in,
are pointing towards us." "You mean..." "Yep, sadly he was smart enough
to figure out that my Pointers, who are surrounding him, will track him
no matter how fast or where he flies. Luckily he's not smart enough to
figure out what to do other than hang in the air between us and Sniffy
and Sneezy. I don't think there is much chance he'll lead us to his hideout
now that he's realized that my Pointers are positioned at all sides of
the wind, but I am quite sure he's got nowhere to go for the very same
reason. Now, where is my night vision thingy?"
First pigeons, then dogs. Now a wise guy. Arghh. Off to the side my dog
'Grim', also in the form of a gargoyle, was subvocally gnashing his teeth.
I could hear his stony thoughts, "Sure..no problemo..Your car?..oh yeah..
right..I could use some iron in my diet...grr"
I maintained silence. Subvocalizing around the girl could be a mistake.
her skill with the Tarot cards had given me pause. My natural paranoia
took over. I just hope Grim had enough sense to shut up. The girl looked
around with a puzzled expression, but seeing only the bulldog gargoyle
she shrugged and returned her attention to her new companion. While slightly
out of my sight, I could hear them quite well. I was impressed with their
plan..
I was beginning to wonder if this girl was Wiccan. It would be interesting
to discover if she had the tattoo..
And perhaps the man was not so simple as he endeavered to appear.I seemed
to remember a castle, long ago...an immortal named...what was his name...
And the girl...but no..her blocking powers were too strong. All i get
are misty visions...
Night time. My favorite time. The city never sleeps, but it slows down.
I stretch out my senses and gradually the voices of the people start to
filter in to me. The old couple across the way in the high rise, the old
woman complaining about Viagra.."I tell you henry, I'm too old for this
nonsense anymore.", she whines.. The female cab driver on the street twenty
floors below, laughing her ass off as usual about the comic book she's
reading by the light of the street lamp. At last I sense no eye nor ear
attuned to this roof, and for the first time in 25 years, I feel the softening
of the stone that heralds the return of flesh. I stretch to my 7' of height
and unfurl my wings. Beside me, Grim breaks free of the bonds of stone
and dashes madly around the roof, intent on marking every protrusion in
sight, down to the smallest pebble. 25 years of marking saved up, creative
juices flowing..no pun intended... "Fly over to the next roof and do that,
Grim, we have to come back here and live..O.K.???", I grouse.. Giving me
a profoundly hurt expression he huffs off on a short wing glide to the
next roof and proceeds to inundate every brush and shrub of the Penthouses
patio. 'Those people are going to be very puzzled come morning', I think
to my self with a chuckle. Thinking my chuckle the stamp of approval, Grim
proceeds to take a dump on the patio right in front of the sliding glass
doors. Seeing the unbelieveable size of it, i mutter to myself.."Oh no..I
hope this guy looks before bounding out of his penthouse tomorrow morning
for his jog around the roof like he always does." A sharp whistle brings
grim to my side, and we step off the roof into space and glide through
the city night, following the spoor of the vampire. I don't know why I'm
doing this. I hardly know the girl, the guy is a wiseass, I could be found
out and loose my resting place, hey..Who knows why we do anything? Dimly
I am aware of a determination to see the girl is not hurt. Why, I don't
know. We follow the spoor to the feed lots. The lowing of the cattle and
the smell of the manure taking me back in time to my boyhood, raised on
a farm. "Should have known he'd hole up here," I murmured to Grim as we
glided smoothly to a standstill under a slight overhang on the side of
the three story structure. "Plenty of fresh blood." Grim muses softly...A
fierce predatory light literally lights up his bulldog face as he looks
expectantly up at me... Ready to do battle. In his nervousness he begins
to prattle on as he always does before a battle. Hey Boss, did you hear
this one...Before i can say say yes, yes, a thousand times yes, he launches
into his stand up routine...
"A new priest at his first mass was so nervous he could hardly speak."
began Grim .. "After Mass, he asked the Monsignor how he had done. The
Monsignor replied, 'When I am worried about getting nervous on the pulpit,
I put a glass of vodka next to the water glass. If I start to get nervous,
I take a sip.' So the next Sunday the new priest took the Monsignor's advice.
At the beginning of the sermon, he got nervous and took a drink. He proceeded
to talk up a storm. Upon return to his office after Mass, he found the
following note on his door:
: 1. Sip the vodka, don't gulp.
: 2. There are ten commandments, not twelve.
: 3. There are twelve disciples, not ten.
: 4. Jesus was consecrated, not constipated.
: 5. Jacob wagered his donkey, he did not
bet his ass.
: 6. We do not refer to Jesus Christ as the
late J.C.
: 7. The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are not
referred to as Daddy, Junior and the Spook.
8. David slew Goliath, he did not kick
the s---out of him.
9. When David was hit by a rock and
knocked off his donkey, don't say he was stoned off his ass.
10. We do not refer to the cross as
the Big T!
11. When Jesus broke the bread at the
Last Supper, he said, "Take this and eat it, for it is my body;" he did
not say, "Eat me."
12. The Virgin Mary is not referred
to as the "Mary with the Cherry."
13. The recommended grace before a meal
is not: "Rub-a-dub-dub, thanks for the grub, yay God!"
14. Next Sunday there will be a taffy-pulling
contest at St. Peter's, not a peter-pulling contest at St. Taffy's.
The Vampire of course knows we are here. We are in flesh form now, and
no blood escapes his notice.He is the ultimate connoisseur of all things
blood. He is a cautious one. He knows we are are not prey. "Come out, come
out, where ever you are ", I call softly. No need to shout. Vampires have
keen hearing and echo location in addition to infra red vision. Vampires
can stand so still you cannot see them even though they are close. This
one moved slightly so he could be seen.
His rich baritone was alive with keen intelligence.. "Why do you stalk
me, ancient one", he intones sonorously. "I have no quarell with the stone
people, nor have I ever" "Lucky for you and your fanged friends", I answer
quietly. I nod slightly with the smallest hint of respect to take the edge
off my words. 7' of thousand year old muscle is nearly invulnerable. Nearly.
But the vampire is swift and stronger than a bull gorilla. I know I am
stronger, but any confrontation with a vampire is bound to be fraught with
danger because of his shapeshifting abilities and his keen intelligence..
Better to resolve this without bloodshed. There could more than one of
them. One, I could deal with on a good day. Two? No creature living or
dead could hold forth against two vampires working together. Although Grim
has a secret weapon. When his gargoyle form was poured...to ready him for
our long sleep, I added a little silver to the casting. just in case..
Some petrified oak to my own. Silver and Wood. The bane of the vampire's
existence. Best we keep this secret to ourselves. just in case.. The Vampire
knew something, but it wasn't sure what. Something about our smell was
definitly not appetising and this threw him off. Good. We would need every
advantage, and every surprise, if push came to shove. "There is a girl.",
I begin.. He looks puzzled, but holds his tongue. "Should any harm befall
her", I continue.."I shall be very unhappy..You won't like the results",
I finish in a voice so low the vampire turns his head slightly to c---
a sharp pointed ear in my direction. He frowns slightly at the implied
threat, but wisely restrains himself. If it were only me, I think he would
have jumped. vampires are arrogant bastards. But the prospect of facing
my formidable strength and Grims jaws as well, is a sobering thought for
even the strongest vampire. And this is no Vlad Tepes before us. Grim sees
the vampire eyeing him speculatively, and subvocalizes; "Yeah, and bring
on your pussy wolves". Grim smiling voraciously with 42 teeth, is a grim
sight. Pun intended... Grim cocks his head to one side in a signal we had
worked out years ago. He was telling there had been another vampire here.
And not long ago. Discretion being the better part of valor, I wisely brought
our conversation to an end. "Shes about this tall", I indicated a height
with my hand.. "And has a large mongrel. Leave her in peace, and my friends
and I will leave you and yours in peace." I didn't have any stone people
friends in the area that I knew of, but it couldn't hurt to make him think
otherwise. He nodded slightly . "Then we are in agreement", he purred.
The vampire, irritated at having been threatened by a dog, couldn't help
but add an aside. "I shall remember you my ugly little friend" he addressed
Grim as we turned to go.. "Yeah...sure...have your people call my people..we'll
do lunch" Grim yawned casually. The vampire's face darkened, and his lips
began to form a reply. But Grim chose that moment to pass a stupendous
amount of wind with window shuddering audio levels, drowning out the vampire's
attempt to reply. A few cattle standing near us dropped like a stone. The
vampire, impressed in spite of himself, nodded grudgingly to Grim. Quickly
covering his own face with a hankercheif and moving swiftly away. We were
gone before he could form a reply... Gliding swiftly into the night.
Note: Portions of the above five stories were contributed by Sharyn
and Jobe.
Origins of the Neapolitan Mastiff
Legends of the Neapolitan Mastiff
Stories about the Neapolitan Mastiff
My Mastini
Past Mastini
Other Mastini
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1222 so 38th st Tacoma,Wa 98418
phone 253.472.3704
fax 253.475.1194
