tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43687515213421979122024-03-21T07:20:08.029-07:00Science Fiction Fantasy Novel: SingerDiscussion blog for the Science Fiction and Fantasy book series, Singer. Incudes Dragon Rider, Princess, Slave and Empress. Your comments are invited.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-43090721487394465602022-09-03T16:14:00.001-07:002022-09-03T16:14:35.699-07:00Zephyr's Flight - Coming Soon<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Hi, again …<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Some very nice words and a <b>5-star
review</b> from Ellie Mitchel for the upcoming <i><a href="https://bookishbeyond.com/index.php/2022/09/01/zephyrs-flight-the-dragons-war-book-1/">Zephyr’s
Flight</a> </i>novel. That’s the first in the Singer fantasy series I’ve been working
on for so long. Ellie is a excellent independent reviewer who posts her reviews
on her blog<i>, <a href="https://bookishbeyond.com/index.php/2022/09/01/zephyrs-flight-the-dragons-war-book-1/">Bookish
Beyond.</a></i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">From her review:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“There were many things which I
ended up liking about <i>Zephyr’s Flight</i>, some of which are listed below.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<ul type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Firstly, the world-building was fantastic. You get an
immediate sense of the intricacy of the world, its key cultures, and their
core beliefs.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“I loved the writing style. It proved to be very
detailed and created vivid pictures in my mind’s eye.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“The tension-building was well executed. You really do
feel like you’re sitting at the edge of your seat at times, needing to
know what happens next.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“I also really liked the mythology included, of the old
legends about Astrid’s people and the dragons.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“In addition, I thought the bond between Astrid and
Zephyr was sweet and profound from the start. They can share each-other’s
emotions and pain, as if they can communicate between their souls.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“The story unfolded gradually, exploring Astrid’s
adventures as she endeavours to search for her lost father, and to become
a rider. Every chapter furthered the story along nicely, with not a single
scene wasted.”<o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ul>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Thank you, Ellie!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Current schedule for Zephyr’s Flight
is later this year, and other novels in the series soon after.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">… Ray<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJDgzc94n62R5SazigeANvtcZKjG5KriYz03PZ2Nyszum61D-mJvH2Fszpho9kshlXHuzq1xc88R37hRV8nRlnbKOFsk3VPuwVsvxg-EHlW7pShl9kj4EjHObwD6tezPDagG_ErdqIqRkZWSrL22FiDDm7c0PRomvrJn4_d26yWV0vPs1iKKnAyt8f/s3345/Singer%20Zephyr-s%20Flight%205x8_BW_400%208.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2475" data-original-width="3345" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJDgzc94n62R5SazigeANvtcZKjG5KriYz03PZ2Nyszum61D-mJvH2Fszpho9kshlXHuzq1xc88R37hRV8nRlnbKOFsk3VPuwVsvxg-EHlW7pShl9kj4EjHObwD6tezPDagG_ErdqIqRkZWSrL22FiDDm7c0PRomvrJn4_d26yWV0vPs1iKKnAyt8f/w400-h296/Singer%20Zephyr-s%20Flight%205x8_BW_400%208.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-8745136133236635002020-01-25T20:41:00.000-08:002020-01-25T20:41:46.452-08:00Rowan the Brave<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<h3 style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 24.0pt;">
</h3>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc494158183"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc494158083"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc494158183;"><i>Rowan the
Brave</i>, or simply <i>Rowan</i>, is a small part of the epic poem <i>The Song
of Rowan</i>. The complete poem is presented in a series of seminars at the
College of Singers as lessons in virtue that resonate with audiences. Too long
for a performance, the Order condensed the major events in Rowan and
Gwendolyn’s lives, making the story more digestible to the laity.</span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<h4 style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc494158083;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc494158183;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc494800152"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span>Main Characters</a></span></span></h4>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; text-indent: -.25in;">
Rowan, a
peasant boy who becomes a king by his own hand</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; text-indent: -.25in;">
Gwendolyn, a
peasant girl who becomes a queen</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; text-indent: -.25in;">
Circe, goddess
of magic and seduction</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; text-indent: -.25in;">
Cernunn, a
sorcerer who uses magic to elevate himself to the god of the hunt and battle</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in; text-indent: -.25in;">
Felix, king of
Fennrock</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<h4 style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc494800153"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc494158184"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc494158084"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc494158184;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc494800153;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Setting</span></span></a></h4>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
Our play is set in the highlands of
Mimm, just over the hills. Here, the old gods of nature and wonder have fallen,
and new deities are rising from the mix of cultures as societies intermingle.
These new gods are petty, vicious, and ambitious, just like the people who
venerate them, and they compete for the love of worshippers. But the greatest
challenge to the gods is yet to come.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Within this conflict, two gods fight for prominence: Circe,
the goddess of magic and seduction, and Cernunn, the god of war and the hunt.
Both are competing for the worship of humans.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<h4 style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc494158085"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc494158185;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc494800154;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span>The Story</span></span></a></h4>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="page-break-after: avoid; text-align: center; text-indent: 0in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial Black","sans-serif";">Act 1</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
The tale begins with Rowan and
Gwendolyn, both sixteen years old, walking hand in hand—childhood friends in
the bud of romance. Gwen is a talented weaver and hopes for the freedom denied
to her family by their peasant status. The peasant girl kisses the young farmer
and runs home to her neighboring farm.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The stage splits into two scenes: Rowan training a horse on
one side and Gwendolyn weaving a tapestry on the other. He confides his desire
for Gwen to his horse. She discusses Rowan’s strength and handsomeness with her
cat. Between the two scenes, Cernunn enters, rubbing his chin.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“What a ripe opportunity avails itself to me,” Cernunn says
in a stage whisper. “Both have such passion! Passion I can exploit like the
gods of old. But I must intervene before they bond.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Cernunn schemes to use Rowan to
gather worshippers, and in trade, he promises the farm boy the woman of his
choice—Gwendolyn. Rowan does not know she already loves him. Cernunn sees no
cost in this game and only needs to string the boy along.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The god arranges a scene with Gwendolyn and a handsome
weaver to make Rowan jealous. He tells the boy he can guarantee Gwen’s love by
demonstrating his selfless virtue through building a temple—to Cernunn, of
course. He spirits Rowan away and hints to goddess Circe that Gwen is available
as a protégé, thinking the girl is dumb and lazy and a tool for him to exploit
Circe.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Like Cernunn, Circe plots to reclaim a place as a major
goddess by winning more converts. She listens to Cernunn and takes Gwendolyn as
her protégé. Her strategy is to parlay Gwen to a position of influence where
she can advocate for the worship of Circe. When Rowan is away building the
temple for Cernunn, Circe lies to Gwen that he cannot love her unless she
learns to weave gold. The peasant girl objects, knowing the boy has no need for
wealth. But he is away and unable to speak for himself. Circe arranges for Gwen
to be spirited off to a patron in another village where she can learn to weave
gold. Gwen continues to send messages to Rowan. But the goddess intercepts and
destroys them, substituting other messages saying Gwen does not love him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gwen still pines for Rowan and plans to return home to find
him. To prevent her from rejoining Rowan, Circe attempts to kill him, but
Cernunn intervenes. Enraged, Circe kills Gwen’s parents to make sure she has
nowhere else to go. Unable to communicate with Rowan, Gwen believes he has
forgotten her and cannot return her love. She quickly learns to become a
successful weaver and attracts people to the stories of Circe she depicts in
lace and fabric. But the stories are images of Gwen’s romantic ideals of love
and virtue. Circe’s followers grow.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rowan completes the temple for Cernunn. However, the small
temple becomes a sore in the side of the local villagers, who come to destroy
it. Cernunn expects Rowan to fight them and girds Rowan with special weapons to
defeat them. But Rowan’s virtue stops him from harming innocents. Instead, he
enjoins them to worship in the temple as they choose. They must only promise
not to damage it, and instead maintain it as a refuge for the needy. He asks
only that they consider Cernunn as a worthy god for providing them a place to
worship.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Thinking of Gwen, Rowan says, “Worship as you choose, but
remember the one who built it for love of you, and protect it.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Cernunn is angry with Rowan’s open-mindedness and enchants
some local thugs to attack him. Rowan defeats them, and his fame as a defender
of freedom of religion and speech spreads. Worshippers come to Cernunn and
build more temples.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rowan cares little for fame and instead pines for Gwen. To
prevent him from returning home to find her, Cernunn tells him Gwen has left
for a distant village to build a career without him. To make sure Rowan remains
ignorant of Gwen’s fate, Cernunn destroys his family’s farm and banishes his
parents. Cernunn continues to endanger innocents, so Rowan must grow in power
to protect them. Cernunn’s name grows along with each of Rowan’s victories.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gwendolyn hears of Rowan’s exploits and thinks of him often,
but Circe deceives her again. The goddess tells her Rowan has forgotten her,
but she can attract him even from far away if she becomes a weaver for the
local duke of Evandell. There, her weaving will become famous, and Rowan will
hear of her. Gwen complies and becomes attached to the noble family, including
their young daughter, Sophie. Sophie is betrothed to their gentle but older
neighbor, the benevolent King Felix of Fennrock.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Through Gwen’s influence, the family begins to worship Circe
and spreads her faith through the dukedom. At each step, converts build larger
and larger temples to Circe that become very popular and raise much money.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On the other side of the land, Rowan becomes the leader of a
troop whose mission is to defend the temples that foster freedom. Word of
Gwendolyn sweeps the country, but Cernunn tells Rowan that to be of any
interest to her, he must have a bigger reputation.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Another split stage ensues, with Rowan and Cernunn on one
side and Gwen and Circe on the other. In echoing soliloquies, Rowan and
Gwendolyn lament that life has taken them far from the things they loved most.
They wonder if they have the strength to go back and face rejection from their
one true love. Fearing the threat to their influence, Cernunn and Circe rush to
manipulate their protégés and protect their new worshippers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="page-break-after: avoid; text-align: center; text-indent: 0in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial Black","sans-serif";">Act 2</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
In a tragic accident arranged by
Circe, young Lady Sophie dies. Gwen becomes closer to the royal family, who
adopts her and pushes her to marry the neighboring King Felix to complete the
alliance. The goddess has already planned Felix’s downfall and a new marriage
to one of her own evil priests. From there, Circe can command worshippers from
the throne. Gwen moves to Fennrock so Felix can court her. Soon after she
arrives, the people learn to love Gwen and support her marriage to their king.
Circe’s plans appear secure.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At Circe’s connivance, Gwen begins to tell herself that the
arranged marriage to Felix is her fate. She tells herself that she is talented
and worthy in her own right and need not cling to her childhood fantasies.
Unaware Circe has killed or manipulated those she loves, Gwen reasons she
should exploit her new opportunities. In her heart, she knows she still loves
Rowan and must give him a chance. She hears tales of him in battle and
conquest, but each step in his career takes him further from her. Gwen is
demoralized and questions her choices, ready to succumb to chaos.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Cernunn eyes Fennrock and the weak King Felix. He sees this
as somewhere he can project his influence beyond Circe and increase his
standing in the pantheon of gods. Knowing how much Rowan loves Gwen, he
calculates that he can redirect Circe’s followers. Cernunn arranges for the
neighboring baron to attack Fennrock and overthrow Felix. The baron invites
Rowan and his men to join them, offering him whatever he wants from Fennrock—which
would be Gwen. During the dinner, Cernunn offers the baron’s resources to
Rowan, but he must kill the baron to get them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rowan is only twenty-five years old but is now hardened and
disillusioned. He knows King Felix of Fennrock is a good man and believes Gwen
loves him. To betray the baron, his host, would be dastardly. Rowan declines
both offers and defies Cernunn. Instead, he pledges his warriors to King Felix
to defend Gwen and Fennrock against the baron’s troops. Rowan retires to become
a lone warrior and fights for hire, famed for his virtue without naming Cernunn
as his benefactor. Cernunn becomes enraged and kills King Felix, which also
benefits Circe.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The death of Felix clears the way for Circe’s evil priest to
command Fennrock with Gwen as his queen. With Gwen ready to accept the crown,
Circe thinks she has won. But Gwen is despondent, tormented by marrying only
for power, and pines for Rowan.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Circe has another deception in mind. “Now that the king is
dead, invite Rowan back.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Rowan does not love me.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Circe shakes her head. “All that he has done, he has done to
win your love—but a god has manipulated him.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gwen is hurt and then enraged. “Are you that god?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“No, of course not. I care for you.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Another like you, then?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I have always acted in your interests.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“And in your own.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I never asked you to compromise your virtue,” Circe says.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Of course not. If I acted without virtue, my vice would
attribute to you. Again, you leave me little choice how to act now.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Then accept the crown.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gwen now understands Rowan did not attack the king because
he had learned of the god’s betrayal and denied his patron. She must do the
same.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“No,” Gwendolyn says. “Free me. Find another protégé. We are
done.” She stalks out in search of Rowan.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Circe gives the kingdom to the evil priest, but the people
of the kingdom despair and reject him and Circe.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Circe and Cernunn are both powerful with many worshippers
due to Rowan and Gwen, but are enraged that their protégés have abandoned them.
But gods are resourceful. They make a bet: if Rowan defeats a dragon of Circe’s
choosing, he will win Gwen, and Cernunn will become the god of the lands. If
Rowan loses, Circe will rule. But they allow each other one spell. The gods are
both proud of how they have manipulated their humans and each other.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You cannot fathom the horror I will unleash,” Circe says.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“And you do not imagine the weapon I have forged,” Cernunn
replies.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="page-break-after: avoid; text-align: center; text-indent: 0in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial Black","sans-serif";">Act 3</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
The gods set their pieces near the
caves of Merterra. Gwen is bound to a tree with a magic chain. They tell Rowan
she is in danger and set him to the challenge. In secret, Cernunn gives Rowan a
sword forged by the gods—Seranil—that can cut and kill anything.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Circe invokes a fire breathing dragon, one hundred meters
long and sheathed in scales of adamantine. It is invulnerable, able to destroy
the entire world.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Cernunn laughs and casts a spell that transforms Gwen into
Circe’s dragon, leaving it chained to the tree. He believes Rowan will now kill
Gwen by mistake, which will cause Circe to lose.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To counter this, Circe casts a spell so that Rowan appears
as a hunter and unrecognizable to Gwen. She tells Gwen he is an evil dragon
slayer and to fear for her life.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By this time, the queen of the gods, Frigg, has heard of the
deaths caused by the dispute between Cernunn and Circe. But a dragon that might
destroy the land is too much, even for a deity. Frigg descends and halts time
to chide them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You have filled your temples by deceit and set up this
cruel contest. You are unworthy of worshippers,” Frigg says.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In unison, Cernunn and Circe complain. “You do not have the
power to undo what gods have wrought!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You are right, of course. But let’s be clear. Whoever fails
in defeating the other will lose their godhead, fall from grace, and return to
natural form.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yes, yes, of course,” the gods reply.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Frigg smiles and appears to Rowan as herself and says only,
“Remember.” Rowan hears but does not understand, knowing only that he has
committed to slaying the dragon to save Gwen.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rowan stalks the fearsome beast and watches it. The dragon
tries to scorch Rowan, but gentle Gwen is within and hopes only to stop him
without hurting him. Although Rowan has not seen Gwen for years, the dragon’s
eyes and movements remind him of her and her virtue. He remembers Frigg’s words
and, having sacrificed everything but his love for Gwen, drops Seranil, his
magic sword. The dragon makes no move to attack him but instead opens her paws,
claws turned upward. Rowan approaches and caresses the dragon’s muzzle.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Circe and Cernunn first harangue their protégés with
lightning and thunder to kill the other to no avail, and then argue with each
other.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Frigg descends and confronts them. “You have both failed to
defeat the other, and both godheads are forfeit.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But she did not defeat him!” Cernunn cries.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But he did not defeat her!” Circe shouts.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Mimir, the memory of the gods, appears and recites their
bet. “Whoever fails at defeating the other . . .” When finished,
the Fates come and change Cernunn and Circe into their natural forms. Cernunn,
the embodiment of unquenchable lust for power, took the form of a Minotaur.
Circe, the spirit of sorcery and seduction, took the form of a tiny, poisonous
asp. Gwen and Rowan return to their own forms as well, with Gwen still chained
to the tree.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Enraged, Cernunn rushes Rowan. In a battle that sets the
forest ablaze, Rowan defeats the Minotaur using Seranil, the sword Cernunn had
given him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Circe aims to bite Gwen and kill her, but Gwen crushes the
little snake. With Circe dead, Rowan frees Gwen from her bindings.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I am yours by right of combat,” Gwendolyn says, not
trusting Circe’s words that he still loves her.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rowan kneels, thinking she still mourns the old king, and
acts honorably. “Milady, I accept only what is offered freely and not by
obligation.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They are both free to love each other, but they are
tentative and formal. They have not seen each other since they were very young.
Frigg helps them by showing them what each has done in memory of the other:
Gwen in her weavings that told the stories of them as children, and Rowan in
his battles to defend freedom in her name. Then they share thoughts they have
had of each other. (*)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gwen leans over, takes both of Rowan’s hands, and holds them
to her heart.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Of all those in my life, no one has risked more for me than
you. Of all the kings and gods who have touched my life, no one has given me
more than you. Of all those who have cared for me, no one has loved me more
than you. I loved you first as a boy. When you left, I loved you as a memory.
Then, when I heard no more of you, I loved you as a wish. But still I loved
you. If you leave me now, I will love you as I have my whole life.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rowan and Gwendolyn return together to defeat the evil
priest of Circe and accept the people’s invitation to rule Fennrock together.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The curtain falls.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One from the audience hears the story and says, “No one is
strong enough to give up a crown for a virtuous cause.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To which a Singer replies, “It happened once. That is why
the story is famous.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(*) In the epic poem, <i>The Song of Rowan</i>, a year
passed before the couple wed. During that time, they grew to know and love each
other. Within the archives at the College of Singers, the <i>Book of Sonnets</i>
contains fragments of their conversations.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-78825145706798358872020-01-25T20:33:00.000-08:002020-01-25T20:33:18.739-08:00Synopses of the Major Songs<br />
<div class="1stinchpt">
The <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Hlk536639564">College of Singers </a>holds as
its sacred duty the transmission of the collective knowledge of the entire
culture. Acting from that mission, the <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Hlk536639577">Order of
Ancients </a>preserves some tattered manuscripts in their archives. Some, such
as <i>The Fool,</i> are simple stories found intact, while others, such as <i>Rowan</i>,
are epic poems with many gaps.</div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
To construct a coherent story, the Order must on occasion
interpolate between passages. While attempting faithfulness to the original
intent, some creative license is needed. Their understanding is that these
myths and stories are parables—teaching stories with a moral. The added
material stresses the benefits of a virtuous life and the consequences of vice.
And by so doing, they illustrate the tragic flaws of all humans and human
cultures.</div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
Three of those stories follow.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-91535777230634610852020-01-08T00:55:00.000-08:002020-01-08T00:55:03.340-08:00Special Words and Terms<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<h2 style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-list: none; text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc27438277"><span style="font-size: small;">The publisher may remove this from the printed books, so I'm including them here just in case.</span></a></h2>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Bolthorn:</b> The
frost giant of the mountain people. Maternal grandfather of Odin.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">bracer:</b> A cuff or
arm guard to protect an archer’s forearm from the bowstring.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Chiniferra:</b> The
holy book of the Sulerians, Turajii, and Quarajii; believed by the devout to be
the literal word of God.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Clanough:</b> Meeting
of clans from different valleys.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">consumption:</b> Tuberculosis;
a chronic wasting disease of the lungs with a likelihood of death if untreated.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cuirass:</b> Armor
that covers the chest. In this case, padded leather for practice with sword and
staff.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">daemonberry:</b> A
small bushy fruit that grows best in the winter. The fruit has a flavor of
liquor and thyme due to the high concentration of alcohol. The concentration
increases as it gets colder.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">dilettante</b>: Someone
concerned with unimportant things.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Eastern Eighth</b>:
Just as “quarters” describe sections of Branwyn, “eighths” describe one-half of
a quarter; in this case, half of the Cathedral Quarter.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">flitterbie:</b> A
winged four-legged flier, about the size of the hand. They are very colorful
and omnivorous, with a diet mainly of wheezits, jenalei, and daemonberry.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Fólkvangr:</b> The
heaven for those fallen in battle who will enjoy eternity with Freya rather
than Odin.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Freya / Frigg: </b>Queen of the
gods. In some regions of Juro, Frigg is an aspect of, or sister of, Freya; goddess of love
and hope; in some sects is another name for the One God.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">graxes:</b> A two-legged,
wingless raptor about the length of a person’s arm.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">jenalei:</b> A small
white plant with a high concentration of alcohol in the sap, that thrives in
the cold and winter. The open leaves catch seeds drifting past and store them
in a pod of neutral fluid that preserves them. It grows everywhere but the
glaciers and the lowlands of the South and North.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Juro:</b> The World</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">kata:</b> A training
exercise consisting of a pattern of set moves, often with weapons.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">moon(s):</b> Three
moons orbit Juro, each with various names depending on the culture.</div>
<div class="glossary" style="margin-left: .75in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Lon:</b> Mother Moon. The largest of Juro’s three moons, with the
largest orbital period. A reflection of Lakshmi, epitomizing fertility and
abundance; aids in the preservation of the world.</div>
<div class="glossary" style="margin-left: .75in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Elein:</b> Sister Moon. Smaller than Lon, with a slightly faster
orbital period. Reflection of Radha, epitomizing community and civilization.</div>
<div class="glossary" style="margin-left: .75in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Fures:</b> Brother Moon, the demon moon, or the war moon. Smallest of
the three moons but brightest, with a red cast. A reflection on the courage and
strength of Durgha.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Norns:</b> Beings who
decide the fates of gods and men.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Odin:</b> King of the
gods of the mountain folk and provinces.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">packet boat:</b> A
small ship with a regular schedule. In this case from Stoneport on the south
coast to Ravenna.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">semaphores:</b> Unique
tattoos around the eyes or on the temples that mark the wearer as a dragon
Rider. Sometimes laced with iridescent pigments that glow with the Rider’s
emotions, they help to communicate with the dragons.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sessrúmnir:</b> The
hall of Freya in Fólkvangr (heaven).</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">stenifer:</b> Tree
with high alcohol/alcohol sap and wide branches like a fir tree.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Thores and Edmund:</b>
Mythical heroes of Altona and the Provinces.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">tree resins:</b> In
this instance, myrrh from a small tree used as medicine.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Valhalla:</b> The
heaven of those fallen in battle and chosen by the Valkyrie to enjoy eternity
with Odin.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Valkyrie:</b> Female
goddesses who chose from those who die in battle who will spend eternity with Freya
in Fólkvangr or await Ragnarök with Odin in Valhalla. In stories often
portrayed with wings or riding winged horses.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">vambrace:</b> Armor to
protect the forearms and wrists; padded leather for practice with weapons.</div>
<div class="glossary">
<br /></div>
<div class="glossary">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">wheezit:</b> Winged
flier with six legs and four wings, about the size of a person’s little finger;
they serve to pollinate the native plants.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-38787266699766391892018-03-18T09:56:00.000-07:002018-03-18T09:56:54.677-07:00New logoHey!<br />
<br />
I wonder if you can help me select a new logo for my books. If you'd like to help, please fill out the survey <a href="https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/G3BDJY5">here</a>.<br />
<br />
Thanks<br />
... Ray<br />
<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-7254997786602649242017-11-24T13:09:00.001-08:002017-11-24T15:03:12.334-08:00Contenders for new coverHi. ...<br />
<br />
The new book is in final edit and I need help deciding on the cover idea. This first book is about Astrid who rides dragons and sings to them. Let me know which you prefer. They are not released yet. The ones with the Fiverr watermark are very preliminary, but your comments are solicited.<br />
You can take a survey <a href="https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/N7XJ255">survey here.</a> <br />
<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-56499083641467802422016-06-11T14:50:00.002-07:002016-06-11T14:50:50.532-07:00Part 1 - 1.3 Swallowtail<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<![endif]--><i><b>1.3.1 Discovery of the Horde</b></i> <br />
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid pushed her empty plate from her. She had come home
for a late dinner after a day of exploring the Spine and began another argument
with her mother.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Please, mother.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Not alone.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But hunting is poor. Only for one night.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You’re fifteen, hon, and it’s too dangerous outside the
valley to be by yourself.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I’ve been over every inch of the mountains, mom. It’ll give
me a better start tomorrow morning. Please, mom. Little Wing will be there to
protect me.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“No. Not unless you bring Selina or another female Rider.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But they’re on duty. Mom, please.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“No.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid pursed her lips and turned. “We’ll see,” she mumbled
and slammed the door of their little cottage. Just outside waited her dragon and
without so much as a hello, she mounted and took off.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Little Wing carried her along the volcanic core of the
Spine, the impassable mountain range which divided North from South. The late
spring meant poor hunting: the deer stayed under shelter and the smaller game
like rabbit and fox remained too exhausting to track. The clouds to the west
warned that a hard rain would come tomorrow, so she planned to use the window
of good weather to explore. But her mother would not let her venture so far
alone. Instead, they joined the dragons on the highest peaks to watch the
sunset and make their plans.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The clans called them Swallowtail when Astrid and her dragon
flew together; partners but not Riders. Every Rider had a part to play in village
life as hunters or couriers to neighboring valleys. But they did not invite her
and she did not expect them to: Riders thought her too independent, and she
thought them too arrogant and condescending to the dragons. Except for her
oldest friends, Selina and Finn, she rarely crossed paths with Riders. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
She was happy as long as she remained free and not constrained
within the high cliffs surrounding Inverness, and each day found her further
from home. But now a day’s ride presented the same barrier to her explorations
as the valley walls once did. The constraint produced another fight with her mother
and another reason to run away.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To give herself time to think, Swallowtail joined the
dragons to enjoy the dramatic sunset signaled by the oncoming storm clouds. Two
gentle kicks from her heel told Little Wing to roll over and dive a thousand
feet to a high ridge with a clear view west. They landed and jostled the others
for position. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As the sun approached the horizon, an older dragon flew
erratically before the group, and then dashed away to the northeast. Astrid and
the dragons watched but did not follow. The old dragon came back and squawked for
attention, and this time all but Little Wing took off and pursued him. When the
old one came back a third time, it was clear what he wanted, and Swallowtail
followed. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The old one sped to the northeast, high above the Blois
River. This is where she wanted to go but was told not to, and never overnight.
Even if she turned back now she would still be late and needed an explanation
for her mother. <i>But I had to, mother,</i> she thought.<i> The old one
clearly wanted us to follow him. Someone may have been injured or required help.
Mother will understand.</i> She pursed her lips.<i> And if she doesn’t, well...
</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One-by-one the other dragons returned home or landed to enjoy
the setting sun until Swallowtail followed alone. At sunset they neared the
northern edge of the mountain range where the Blois spilled over the falls into
the foothills of Cherryth. There were no true borders here, only ragged lines
on the maps indicating where passage south was dangerous for all but trained
climbers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Little Wing carried Astrid past the hills and over regular
rows of conical tents and flickering orange campfires. Beyond the fires, they glided
over a plain where men slept in the open. In the dim light of Fures, the
smallest moon, they glided toward a dark funnel that meandered across the field.
But her dragon pulled up short when they hit a wall of flies which choked them
both and left them unable to see. Her dragon fluttered to a landing and snorted
to clear his nose. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid dismounted and recognized the funnel as a tornado of
crows with vultures circling higher overhead. She walked toward it and stepped
on something soft. A gust of wind swept past and the stench of rotting meat
struck her like a blow, and she realized where she stood. This was a field of
battle where the fallen men and horses lay unburied. Unable to control her
revulsion, she retched.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A few meters away red eyes lifted from their work tearing at
the bodies below them and moved slowly toward her with low growls. <i>Wild dogs</i>,
she thought and remembered the warnings that dogs were not shy of humans like
wolves. Terrified, she ran to Little Wing and mounted. As he took off, his
claws raked the wild beasts that jumped to bite his legs.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Little Wing settled on a hillock near the old dragon. After
retching what little remained in her stomach, she crawled to the edge of the
cliff to observe. She could not discern the dark shapes moving in the gloom she
sat and waited for another moon to rise.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When moonlight from Lon flooded the scene below, Astrid gasped.
Thousands of armed men wove their way through the foothills and up the Blois River
Valley, the same river which passed through Inverness many miles to the south.
Huge machines crowded the narrow mountain trails: engines of war known only
from stories, projectile weapons that could loft stones the length of three
hundred men. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid turned to the old dragon. <i>Why the urgency?</i> she
wondered. She would certainly tell the Inverness Council of the battlefield and
the invaders, but they were still many leagues from home. <i>Why would the old
one bring me here? </i>She had no answer for him and prepared to mount Little
Wing and return home when a piercing shriek sent chills up her spine—the cry of
a dragon. Immediately she put her hand on Little Wing’s muzzle to stop him from
crying out in response. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After Elen, the third and brightest moon, rose above the
horizon Astrid recognized a frail and sickly dragon struggling against the
heavy chains which bound him. The old one that had brought them looked at her
and cocked his head as if expecting her to explain this horror or stop it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid shook her head. “There’s nothing I can do.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The old dragon took off, and she mounted Little Wing to
follow. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A single wingbeat aloft the chained beast wail again, and her
dragon replied before she could stop him. Soon after she felt something hit her
saddle and her dragon screeched. She reached back to find a crossbow bolt
embedded in the thick leather behind her leg, pulled it out, and stuck it in
her boot. </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-18356188494327478062016-03-24T10:56:00.002-07:002016-03-24T10:56:44.049-07:00There was a history before History ...<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<i>“...There was a history before History, </i></div>
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<i>Of a time before we wandered the land like beasts,</i></div>
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<i>Before we descended into chaos,</i></div>
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<i>When Juro wore our civilization like a crown</i></div>
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<i>And women flew like birds;</i></div>
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<i>A time when we knew the ages of the stars,</i></div>
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<i>Before we forgot who we were.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>"It is our task to remember,</i></div>
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<i>If not what we once knew, </i></div>
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<i>At least to remember that we once knew it</i></div>
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<i>And to remind others so that we will </i></div>
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<i>Not descend so deeply into chaos again."</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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This is a passage from the convocation ceremony of the College of Singers. On this day, Astrid became a Journeyman and took her stage name as Singer.<i> </i></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-69223506492383892772016-02-24T10:46:00.000-08:002016-02-24T10:46:27.276-08:00Political Map of JuroOur setting for the Singer Saga approximates the Middle-Ages in Europe - but with dragons!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMHEeDt87SFd3iTjMEw5_9YSkVR1hdWb0vW4BhchtbhTja4LEZPaEtpqQC1_biFVsql9kFhfV3mWexqlZAZDpJe7gbICaYtecUpB01jVIyyDliKj-lR-R381U5SNoHk4IOnS_M80zVIM/s1600/J10-Political-small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMHEeDt87SFd3iTjMEw5_9YSkVR1hdWb0vW4BhchtbhTja4LEZPaEtpqQC1_biFVsql9kFhfV3mWexqlZAZDpJe7gbICaYtecUpB01jVIyyDliKj-lR-R381U5SNoHk4IOnS_M80zVIM/s640/J10-Political-small.jpg" width="528" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-49334265072251416062016-02-03T22:29:00.001-08:002016-02-03T23:18:55.097-08:00Maps of Juro: 1 Overview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Here's a map of Juro, the setting for Singer saga, to orient you. I'll post a map of the political boundaries soon. A larger size is posted to the right.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I'd appreciate any comments you have.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
... Ray </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiabujERaYprqH5Je2jZNpxNJ2E7SfrHCYnqX_uhoDmjYAgdfObhrS26GLvz9BGN5T9DFhU2fij1Fgc8Hmt_tNisAC6cGheMBkdMbt6DNpoQmn8XwTdHKnbCiaxCkdwSL6wSI3BLSBEGb8/s1600/X10-3-overview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiabujERaYprqH5Je2jZNpxNJ2E7SfrHCYnqX_uhoDmjYAgdfObhrS26GLvz9BGN5T9DFhU2fij1Fgc8Hmt_tNisAC6cGheMBkdMbt6DNpoQmn8XwTdHKnbCiaxCkdwSL6wSI3BLSBEGb8/s640/X10-3-overview.jpg" width="512" /></a></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-88208835899686156562015-12-22T10:43:00.000-08:002015-12-22T10:43:16.592-08:00Part 2: The North, 2.2 Escape<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Dee!” her mother called. “To me!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Diana stumbled out of bed, groggy after her birthday party
that had stretched into the evening.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With one hand on a rapier, her mother reached out with the
other and took Diana’s hand. “Hurry, child! To the tower.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Diana looked back to see dark men with heavy swords break
down their front door and put their home to the torch. She tore loose from her
mother's hand and ran back to her bed to retrieve her new bow and quiver.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A dark man raised his sword and Diana cowered, but a rapier
parried the sword, and her mother thrust the point into his chest. Diana
watched the man stagger back, his eyes fixed on hers and his hands on the
bleeding wound in his chest. He groaned and sat hard on her bed and fell back. Kathryn
pulled Diana behind her as another attacker swung his blade and Kathryn ducked.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Run!” her mother ordered and Diana ran outside and hid
behind the open door, her hands over her ears so she could not hear the sounds
of clanging blades and death.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Kathryn ran outside the door and looked for Diana. She
closed and latched the door and found Diana behind it and reached out her hand
again and they ran to the tower.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A thin fog hid their escape. But when they reached the moat,
the tower was in flames, still bravely defended by her father’s archers. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A neighbor in mail approached with blankets. “Milady, the
archers are a diversion,” he said. “It cannot hold. We must ride to Richard and
the militia.” They stole through the forest to waiting horses upon which the
small band fled, running for her father’s camp fifteen leagues to the east.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Richard's camp was too far for the horses at gallop without
resting, so nine leagues from the camp they stopped at the estate of an ally
for fresh mounts as a thick fog began to rise. Diana’s mother dismounted, ran
to the house, and banged on the door while the guards formed a cordon around
the front. Lights flashed from inside and her mother’s brother William came to
the door.</div>
<h3 style="display: none; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc422229293"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.1.1.</span></span>Diana Flees to Uncle’s
Home</a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376881819"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc378184078"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc389903183"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc390173068"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428696516"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428734736"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299544"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431773874"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431852564"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431903608"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170313"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170528"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432183987"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432510823"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc433743002"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc437441705"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc437623184"></a></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Katie,” her brother said, “what in heaven brings...”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“No time, Will,” Kathryn interrupted. “Our home is in
flames. I fear they are close behind.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Eddie!” William yelled to a ranch hand. “Fresh horses!” He
turned to Kathryn and stepped aside. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Come, inside with you.” He turned his
head and called the housemaid, “Julia! Bring blankets for our guests.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Kathryn and Diana entered the great room and warmed
themselves by the fire.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Where are Elsa and the kids?” Kathryn said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Staying in Wikkert with Uncle Ed. It will only be us and
the ranch-hands to defend.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Before fresh horses could be saddled, the dark men caught up
to them. Kathryn stuffed Diana under a heavy desk and then helped defend the
house. It was all a jumble of “There!” and “Duck” and the ‘thunk’ of arrowheads
in wood. Diana knew she was of no help with her bow and arrow and so helped by
bringing arrows to the defenders and staying out of the way. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When fire reached the rafters, they knew the house was lost.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The roof will only last a few minutes, Katie,” her uncle
said to her mother. “They only need to keep us pinned down inside while the
house collapses around us. There’s a hatch under the kitchen pantry. When you
close the hatch, it will hide itself. That will give you about ten minutes.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You can’t stay here, Will,” her mother asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“We’ll make for the horses and take those nearest to glory.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“It’s suicide. Come with us.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Will shook his head. “Not enough time,” he said. “Your
escape needs to be defended or there will be none at all.” Will grabbed Kathryn
and hugged her. “This is not your place to die, sis,” he said, then looking at
Diana, “or hers.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Without another word, Kathryn kissed her brother, grabbed a
firebrand, and led Diana to the escape tunnel. She opened the hatch in the
pantry floor and they climbed down a ladder to a dirt tunnel. When she closed
the hatch, debris fell on top to hide it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Diana, when we surface we’ll not be able to talk. Keep your
eyes on me. Do you remember the signs?” This was a child's game to communicate
during hide-and-seek using the same hand signals as the militia in battle.
Diana nodded. And Kathryn signed, <i>Never surrender. Promise me.</i> Diana
nodded again and crossed her heart.</div>
<h3 style="display: none; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc422229294"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.1.2.</span></span>Diana and Mother Hide in
the Woods (POV:D)</a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428696517"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428734737"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299545"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431773875"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431852565"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431903609"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170314"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170529"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432183988"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432510824"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc433743003"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc437441706"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc437623185"></a></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The tunnel led them through a quarter of a mile of tangled
roots and warrens. When they rose through the exit hatch, Diana looked back
through the fog to see the house and barn engulfed in flames. Kathryn grabbed
her hand and they raced for the safety of the forest. Just after reaching the
edge of the trees, Diana heard a ‘whoosh’ and her mother fell hard. Kathryn
rose to one knee but needed Diana's help to get on her feet.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“What is it?” Diana asked using the hand signs.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“OK,” Kathryn replied in sign. “Hurry! Hurry!” But Diana
knew something was wrong. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Without horses, they could not outrun the attackers.
Exhausted and stumbling through the darkness, Diana’s mother found the hollow
trunk of a burned out tree in a thicket at the bottom of a dry stream bed far
off the trail. At Kathryn’s instruction, Diana gathered brush to sweep their
tracks and used it to hide the entrance to the hollow trunk. And there they
hid. Kathryn pulled her cape around them both to keep the chill of the cold
rain and fog away.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Did your father tell you of the dragon riders?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kathryn asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yes, mother,” Diana said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Did he tell you of a dragon rider named Astrid?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“No, mother.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Well, there was a beautiful young girl who rode a dragon
named Little Wing…”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Diana listened to another of her mother’s fairy tales and
shivered in her mother’s lap until Kathryn’s voice softened and they drifted
off to sleep.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="scenechange" style="text-align: center;">
***</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Diana awoke in silence in the dark, still in her mother's
arms. She felt the wetness on her left shoulder and reached behind her to feel
the sticky fluid. It was blood. Her mother did not respond when Diana prodded
her and she was ready to cry out, but then saw torches approaching through the
brush outside their hiding place. She raised her bow and stuck the arrows in
the dirt next to her, point down. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At the sound of footsteps in the nearby brush, she quietly
nocked an arrow. She was no good at ten yards, no good at two, but she might
have one shot, one chance at a target a few feet away. When the boots of an
attacker stopped in front of their hiding place—boots of soft leather tooled at
the heel—she struggled to pull the arrow back, aiming at the entrance to the
hollow trunk. Her fingers hurt and shoulders trembled, but she held her
position until she heard the sound of boots no more. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When the attacker had passed, Diana relaxed the bow and felt
the pain in her fingers and shoulder. Her mother remained quiet and needed help
quickly, but Diana was bound to their hiding place, knowing the trackers would
capture them if she tried to escape. There was nothing she could do but wait
helplessly in the cold mist and cry quietly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>...to be continued ...</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>(c) 2015 B. R. Strong, Jr.</i></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-14346027643907882232015-12-01T09:30:00.000-08:002015-12-22T10:38:40.321-08:00Part 2, The North: 2.1 The Troubles/Pastoral<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<h2 style="mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc433742998"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc422229289"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc433742998;"><span style="color: #280099; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Black"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Black";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Troubles</span></a><span style="color: #280099;"></span></h2>
<h3 style="display: none; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc422229290"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.1.1.</span></span>Diana and the Sheep</a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376881816"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc378184075"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc389903180"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc390173065"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428696513"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428734733"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299541"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431773871"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431852561"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431903605"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170310"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170525"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432183984"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432510820"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc433742999"></a></h3>
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“Mother, when!” Diana asked. It was her eleventh birthday
and she'd not had a proper party in at least, well, at least a year.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Soon dear, patience,” her mother said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Patience was not one of Diana strengths and she meandered
through their farm house in her party dress. Dawdling about her mother's
bedroom, she inspected the dressing table and the jewelry box with ivory inlay
that always fascinated her. Mother told her the inlay was carved from dragon
tooth, and father wove fantastic stories of dragons and the brave heroes who
rode them and their palaces of carved stone and wood in the high mountains to
the southeast. They were only stories of virtue and adventure for little girls,
but she still wished they were true. She held the box in the sun to see the
opalescent sparkle and smiled, then put it gently back in its place.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Wandering outside, Diana walked the small trail to the coral
and pasture in the Amboise hills, still green from the late spring rains. She snuck
into a tent erected for visiting stockmen, found the farm manager, Ted, and sat
next to him. He faced six men: three appeared to be farmers from Limint to the
north with rough hands and open-faces, three others were perhaps from Cherryth
in the east with dark skin and short stature who surveyed her with narrow eyes.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“For my son and his new wife,” said a ruddy faced man from
Limint. “We need a flock to keep them away from the town.” The others smiled </div>
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<br /></div>
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“And the groom away from the tavern wenches, I’ll wager,”
his companion added and they laughed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ted cleared his throat. “There’s a lady present, gentlemen,”
he said. The men turned in surprise to see young Diana in her party dress while
the dark men scanned her without turning their heads.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Why, thank you, sir. No one has ever called me a gent
before,” a man from Limint said with a big smile which raised more laughter. He
dipped his head toward Diana. “Beggin’ your pardon mam, no offense intended,”
he said. Diana nodded though she did not know what he apologized for. The men
turned back to their conversation.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Ah, then. How long will it take,” the first man asked. “How
long before the heard will be self-sustaining?”</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Four years,” another said. “It will take four years for the
herd to support your son and his new wife.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Two,” Diana said idly. The men ignored her with indulgent
smiles and the dark men scanned her again.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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“Four years,” the man repeated loudly to the group without
looking at Diana. “Three litters in four years, two per litter.” The other men
nodded their heads in agreement.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Two years,” Diana said just as
loudly. “You start with one male and two females. Two years and you will have
four extra rams and one sheet of wool to trade. The rams are food except for
the alpha. You'll start with one acre...” The men interrupted her and began to
argue loudly, some seeming to agree, others to disagree. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The first man laughed at her, unable to ignore her . “Keep
to your needle point, little girl. This is man's work.” he said.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Diana flushed with anger and stomped her foot, but the men
ignored her and returned to their discussion. Ted was quiet but smiled at Diana's
pique. Infuriated, she walked to the side of the tent and opened the tent flap
with a view of her large flock of healthy sheep. She whistled for her dogs
which immediately came to sit at her side. The men turned at the whistle, rose,
and went to admire the sheep.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Richard de Cherbourne, Diana's father, entered the tent and
the visitors immediately complimented him for the flock, but he waved his hands
to quiet them. </div>
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<br /></div>
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“Please sirs, if your interest is sheep, the owner stands
there,” Richard said and pointed to Diana who still stood at the open tent
flap. “But I must steal her away for a while first.” He walked over to Diana.
“Hon, it's time for your party,” he said and leaned over to pick her up to
carry her to the house. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Before they left the tent, Diana looked over Richard's
shoulder to the astonished stockmen and, avoiding the temptation to stick out
her tongue at them, said, “Ted can negotiate the terms of sale...” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But the dark men did not reply.</div>
<h3 style="display: none; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc422229291"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.1.1.</span></span>Richard Gives Diana a
Birthday Gift</a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376881817"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc378184076"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc389903181"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc390173066"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428696514"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428734734"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299542"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431773872"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431852562"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431903606"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170311"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170526"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432183985"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432510821"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc433743000"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc437441703"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc437623182"></a></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Outside the tent, Richard spoke to Diana. “I need to ride
east, hon, and will miss your party,” he said and handed her a long package
wrapped with colorful parchment and ribbon. “Happy Birthday.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Before the wrapping paper hit the ground her gift was
exposed, a small version of the bow and arrows her father’s archers bore,
though without fancy decoration or colorful string or fletching.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“It's not a toy, girl,” he said, “just a start. We can
practice when I return.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was perfect. “Oh, thank you, papa!” She hugged him hard
and kissed him on the cheek and forehead.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Lass, I must go now,” he said. “Let's hurry, or you'll miss
your party.” Richard walked her to their house, kissed her and rode away.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Diana could hear the children gathered for her party and
took a step to join them, but the bow fascinated her and she went back outside
to the coral to test it. Standing three yards from a post, which she thought to
be a suitably large target, she nocked an arrow and raised the bow. The
bowstring was stiff and thin and hurt her fingers. Her shoulders were not
strong enough to pull it to her chin, so that when she released the arrow it
fell to the ground only a few feet in front of her. <i>Papa was right, this is
no toy,</i> she thought<i>.</i> After failing a second attempt as well, she
stared at the bow with a frown.</div>
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With pursed lips she glared at the bow. “We are not done,
you and I,” she said, looked at the bow, and walked to her bedroom. She put the
bow and quiver in the middle of her bed where her guests would not find them
and left for her party.</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>...to be continued ...</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>(c) 2015 B. R. Strong, Jr. </i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-26560280173573266192015-10-31T10:45:00.002-07:002015-10-31T10:45:36.734-07:00Cover design contest! Help me out, please.Hi ...<br />
<br />
I'm working on a cover design for Singer: Nemesis. The design idea uses one of the symbols from that novel - "a circle of serpents" that is used as a token of vendetta and a signal that vengeance and violent retribution is imminent.<br />
<br />
Help me out here. Any suggestions are welcome!<br />
<br />
Just click <a href="http://99designs.com/book-cover-design/vote-t4ajtk">here</a> to see these great designs ...<br />
http://99designs.com/book-cover-design/vote-t4ajtkUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-12298579729059608532015-10-27T23:59:00.001-07:002015-10-27T23:59:50.947-07:001.2.2c First Flight<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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“It looks like you did it, hon,” Jorie said to Astrid. They had
awakened that morning to fresh shoots breaking the ground, a few with fresh
berries.</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Don’t tell anyone Silena helped,” Astrid said. “She’s
afraid they will ask her to be a farmer at the Choosing and pressure her not to
ride.”</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“We promise dear,” Skye said.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Little Wing pushed his way past her and made ready to take a
mouthful from the garden. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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“Hey lazy, you need to wait!” she said and pushed his head
away with her hip. But she smiled knowing that she and her friends would be
less likely to spend their lives working the compost heaps and Little Wing
would be less likely to spend the rest of his life in Inverness.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="scenechange" style="text-align: center;">
***</div>
<h3 style="display: none; margin-left: .55in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-indent: -.3in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431162802"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc430686305"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376882386"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc430686305;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc431162802;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.1.1.</span></span>Swallowtail</span></span></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376881792"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299508"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431773838"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431852528"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431903572"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170277"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170492"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432183951"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432510787"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc433742966"></a></h3>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid blew the fresh drift of snowfall off of her drawing
of the western mountains of the Spine. She’d hoped to catch the perfect sunset,
and brought the chalks of red-orange and yellow, the same as she used for water
colors in the summer. But this afternoon the sky was hazy and overcast and
there would be no drama in the sunset. Only a few lines were needed to
distinguish the peaks of the trees and spires of the craft shops from the snow,
and a few more to mark the footpaths that etched dark lines in the valley
heading toward the village center like rivulets collecting into a river. The
view was similar to the woodcuts in the Manor House that showed the dramatic
spires of the Western Mountains and deep valleys except that glaciers now
replaced the rivers. The only color she needed was the blue for the Blois River
that split the valley floor below her. </div>
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<br /></div>
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“Welcome,” Astrid said as Little Wing sat beside her and nuzzled
his head under her hand to invite a scratch. </div>
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<br /></div>
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He had gotten <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">stronger
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garden the Elders had built at the south end of the valley. </span>But Little
Wing seemed itchy today, unable to settle down and sit quietly by her side to watch
the sunset. His muscles twitched and he rose and sat back down. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“What is it?” Astrid asked, but Little Wing only honked.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With a start and a shudder, he rose and walked to edge of
the valley wall, then looked over the edge and spread his wings. He turned to
her and honked to get her attention and did something he had never done before.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Little Wing jumped off the edge of the cliff.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid rose immediately to see if he had hurt himself. But
when she looked over the edge, Little Wing rushed past her racing up from the
valley floor and knocked her on her butt.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
High above her, Little Wing raced across the valley with the
erratic flight of a mayfly rather than the smooth glide of a dragon. He dove
and barely missed the treetops as he pulled out of his dive, then flipped and
spun with aerial maneuvers. Other dragons came to watch and immediately took
the lead. Little Wing followed and learned.</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
As the sun set and the moonlight from Lon and Elen lit the
valley, Little Wing landed near Astrid. He kneeled and lowered his head in the
dragons request for her to ride. She had no saddle or bridle but trusted him.
And together they flew. </div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">When the next Choosing came, Astrid simply appeared
in her riding leathers and the Elders logged her declaration to ride.<span> </span>Her people called them Swallowtail and they
remained together for years—until the Tops.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><i>...to be continued ... </i><br />
(c) 2015 B. R. Strong, Jr. </span></span><br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-11742407982905262862015-10-19T18:27:00.000-07:002015-10-19T18:38:11.513-07:001.2 Partners, 1.2.2/b For My Friend<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #073763;"><b>1.2.2 For My Friend </b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Into the evening, the crowd edged their way to the map to
point out the neighboring valleys where their relatives lived and the exotic
places at the edges of the map that they knew only from stories. While they
oohed and aahed, Astrid wandered the Manor Hall, her hands running across the
intricate carvings on the columns that told the story of their trek from the
South to flee the tyranny and slavery of the Old Empire and woodcuts of their
beautiful valley. And as she wandered she sang softly to a harmony that seemed
to emanate from the walls.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When the sun set and the crowd thinned, Skye came to Astrid.
“Time for bed, hon.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The pair left the Manor House followed by the hum and Astrid
turned to see her little dragon on the roof, still humming to her melody. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<h3 style="display: none; margin-left: .55in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-indent: -.3in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431162800"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc430686303"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376882384"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376881790"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299506"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431773836"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431852526"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431903570"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170275"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170490"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432183949"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432510785"></a></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid and Skye walked home, past the craft halls built into
the cliff faces and the homes along the trails to the valley floor, each
transformed into masterworks by the craftsmen that their fertile valley could
afford.<span style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> And c</span>arved on each
doorway lay the history of the family or craft that lived within.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Entering their house, Astrid quickly grabbed the remains of
dinner before her father could return it to the pantry.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You’re late,” her father said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“We stayed at the Manor House, hon,” Skye said. “People kept
coming to see Astrid’s geography project.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Little Wing was there on the roof,” Astrid said with her
mouth full.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jorie looked at his wife and raised his eyebrows. He turned
a chair around to sit opposite Astrid. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Hon, we need to talk,” he said. “The
Choosing will come and—”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I don't care,” Astrid interrupted, shrugged and took
another bite of dinner.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You like to draw,” her father said. “There is an
apprenticeship open in Pottery now.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid rolled her eyes. “There is no sunset on a vase,
father,” she said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You might add one,” her mother replied.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid paused mid-bite and looked away as if considering it,
and then shrugged.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Skye looked at Jorie again. “Your teacher said you might be
a Rider.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Really mother,” Astrid replied with disdain and rolled her
eyes again. “Riders are all lazy and arrogant, like they are special. And they
treat the dragons like beasts.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Her father smiled at her perception. “Not all,” he said.
“Your mother rides.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Mama’s different,” Astrid said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Skye smiled broadly at the compliment. “There's time yet,
dear, but think about it,” she said. “You will need to do something.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I'll think about it,” Astrid said to please her parents then
immediately forgot. When the last morsel was gone, she frowned and sighed, and toyed
with a pea left on her plate and sighed again.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“What’s the matter, girl?” her father asked. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Papa,” she said slowly, “Little Wing is sick and can’t
fly.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Even a little?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Not even a little.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I think it’s the herb, hon,” Jorie said. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Wolfberry,” Skye said, removing the dish from Astrid.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Dragons need it every day,” he said. “That's why they only
live in a few valleys.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“He’s not strong enough to search for it outside the valley
like the others,” she said quietly, watching her moccasins trace imaginary
patterns on the floor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Maybe he just needs
more of it than the others,” Jorie replied.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid's face brightened. “Why don’t we grow it here?” she
asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“It will not grow in the valley, dear. They tried many times
and it just withers.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But he’ll die, papa,” she said with worry in her voice.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Maybe not. I think he’ll just stay small. The dragons bring
some to their elders and they will share with him.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“He will not steal from the old ones,” she said, “and
there’s not enough fresh when they are done. He wants to fly with the others
and he’s sad all day long.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“How do you know he’s sad?” Skye asked, but Astrid just
shrugged.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I do not think we should intervene,” Jorie said, “It’s just
their way.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Humph,” Astrid said, glaring at him with her hands on her
hips. “Well, it’s not <i>my</i> way,” she said and stormed out to her room.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="scenechange" style="text-align: center;">
***</div>
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376882385"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc430686304;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc431162801;"></span></span></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376881791"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299507"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431773837"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431852527"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431903571"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170276"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432170491"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432183950"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc432510786"></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I give up,” Selina said and kicked a clod of dirt. “We’ve
tried everything.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Just one more,” Astrid said. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This was their fourth attempt to grow wolfberry in the
valley and the summer was almost over. Each time they planted they varied the
fertilizers and supplements. And every night they stayed in the grove near the
garden with Little Wing to protect the shoots. But the plants did not grow
strong: they died, just like the hundreds of other times the valley folks had
tried to raise wolfberries in the valley.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“It's not your fault, Astrid,” Finn said. “It's the soil.
They failed to grow it here hundreds of years ago and gave up trying.” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“One more try, Finn,” Astrid said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Selina shrugged and dug her shovel into the dirt to continue
the furrow. “I wish I had a partner like Little Wing,” she said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“He’s not really my partner,” she said and planted a shoot
of wolfberry and covered it carefully. “He's just a friend.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Phew!” Finn said and held her nose. “What is that stuff?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid looked at her markings on the bag. “Eggshell and
guano."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“He could be your partner,” Selina said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid frowned. “No,” she said, “he can’t fly, and even if
he could he's too small to carry me.” Astrid looked at Selina with a shy smile.
“You want to ride too, don't you?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Oh, more than anything!” Silena replied with excitement but
then quickly frowned. “But the dragons don't seem interested in me at all.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“They're not interested in most of us,” Finn said. “Little
Wing seems to like you, he...”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Silena interrupted. “He'd pick, Astrid,” she said. “He
follows her around like a puppy.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Only sometimes,” Astrid said. “When he's bored, or hungry,
he finds me. The dragons ignore him and the valley folk treat him like he’s a
tree in the middle of the trail.” Astrid looked down.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“In the way?” Finn said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yeah,” Astrid said and stopped planting. “Like me
sometimes.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Why do you think that?” Finn asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I don't know what I want to do.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The Choosing, huh?” Finn said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid nodded. “Everyone else seems to have some grand
purpose and I just want to draw.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“And sing,” Selina said with a smile. “Choosing should not
be a problem: they always need people to turn the compost heap.” Astrid pinched
her nose and looked away</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Selina pointed to Astrid’s latest batch of fertilizer. “It
can’t be worse than this,” she said then stabbed the shovel into the dirt
again. “If you want to stop them from choosing for you why not declare to be a
Rider?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Without a partner?” Astrid replied with a frown.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Sure, why not?” Selina said with a grin. “Just stall.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Is that what all these experiments are about?” Finn asked
and cast his hand over the failed wolfberry plots. “So you can ride?” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid nodded, her head still lowered. “I want Little Wing
to fly. Then maybe…” She looked up to Selina’s face with a smile. “You could go
to them,” she said. “You could find a stray.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Silena opened her eyes wide. “Really? Search the wilderness
for a dragon?” she said. “My dad says it’s a cruel life out there in the peaks
without valley folk. And mom says the boys out there go wild and unfit for a
young lady.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Oh, so you’re a lady now?” Finn teased and Silena swung the
shovel at him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Jenks would find you,” Astrid said, talking about a young
Rider.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Silena blushed and frowned. “I'm jealous of him,” she said.
“He’s partnered with a dragon already and they’re off flying most of the day.”
Her voice softened. “Don't worry about the Choosing, dear. You have time, and a
mission will come to you. That is, unless Little Wing whisks you away first.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“How do you talk to Little Wing?” Finn asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I don’t.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Finn frowned at her. “Little Wing always seems to be there
to meet you,” she said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“When <i>he</i> wants, not when I want,” Astrid said.
“Really, Finn, I don't do anything.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Silena stopped digging and crossed her arms on the shovel.
“Some people say you are The One, the Speaker to Dragons.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The what?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Your mom didn’t tell you?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“No.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The old ones think a person will come that can communicate
with the dragons and lead them.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid smiled. “Good luck telling dragons what to do.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Some people say it’s you, that you're The One.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Why, because I sing to them?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Silena shook her head. “Because they listen.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid was quiet with a distant look in her eyes and then
she looked at Silena with a playful grin. She puffed out her chest and waved
her arms like a warrior. “I command the dragons,” she said with as deep a voice
as she could muster, “Fly, my minions!” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Selina looked down. “Don’t make fun of me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t start the rumor.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid put her hand on Selina’s shoulder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It’s not you,” she said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It’s just a silly idea. They're not a flock
of birds to follow each other or a human.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They talked into the night as they worked and fell asleep
tucked under the little dragon’s wing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<br />
<div class="scenechange" style="text-align: center;">
***</div>
<i>...to be continued ...</i><br />
(c) 2015 B. R. Strong, Jr.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-11949198960011681892015-10-09T09:47:00.001-07:002015-10-09T09:47:52.833-07:001.2 Partners. 1.2.2 The Map<b><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-size: large;">1.2.2 The Map</span></span></b><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The next afternoon after school, Vinga knocked at the door
of Astrid's cottage.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Greetings Rector,” Skye said. “What brings you?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Is Astrid home?” Vinga asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Not yet.” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Good,” Vinga said. “We need to talk. I worry for your
daughter, Skye.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Skye gestured Vinga to join her at the fire to sit. “Astrid?
Why, dear?” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“She is inattentive in class and spends all her time with
her sketchbook,” the teacher said. “And that silly little dragon pesters her
constantly. I may have to hold her back a year.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Furrows appeared on Skye’s brow and creases in the tattoos
around her eyes:<span style="mso-font-kerning: 16.0pt;"> semaphores they called
them, patterns of iridescent pigments that changed with the Rider's emotions
and helped them communicate with the dragons.</span> “I know she seems a bit
childish, but I am certain she is learning.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I am not so sure,” Vinga said. “Her geography project was
due today but she skipped class.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“That's not like her,” Skye said. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Vinga continued. “Without knowledge of our geography she
will not be able to navigate the mountains to the neighboring valleys. She
cannot become a Rider,” she said. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Skye only half-listened to Vinga’s lecture, concerned
instead that Astrid had not told her she would be absent from school. “She
never declared to be a Rider,” Skye replied.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I know,” Vinga said, “but she and that little dragon have
a…special relationship and at the next Choosing—”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Little Wing is too small to ride,” Skye interrupted.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yes, but—”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid’s father, Jorie, stuck his head into the door and
interrupted them. “Skye!” he said with a big grin on his face. “Come, Skye. You
need to see this. Hello, Vinga, you too. Come!” He took them both by the arm
and led them down the cobblestone path to the Manor where the crowd overflowed
into the square.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Skye turned to her husband. “We didn’t hear the bell, what
is the emergency?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Over here,” Jorie said and led them through the crowd until
they reached the long north wall of the Manor, the single wall without windows
and shutters that could not be opened to the weather. Everyone there looked at the
wall and in front of it stood Astrid.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The wall was covered from end to end with spring flowers, a
flood of colors and a sea of green. Skye looked closer. A field of green ivy surrounded
a wash of blue hyacinths with a wide stripe of white and gray lisianthus
splitting the green into upper and lower parts. Tiny red, yellow and blue
flower petals stood out from the white and green. Skye and Vinga stared with
open mouths at a map of their entire continent—in flowers. <span style="mso-font-kerning: 16.0pt;">All of the villages of the mountains were
displayed as well as the large countries to the north and south.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-font-kerning: 16.0pt;">V</span>illagers
nudged Skye and Jorie aside to get a closer look. “Is this us here, Inverness?”
one asked pointing to a small blue-bell by the eastern edge of the white
camellias. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid nodded. “And these are Andeer and Briey,” she said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Her classmate Finn pointed to two neaby flower petals. “And
Winterthur and Vernier here.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“My cousin lives in Vernier,” Selena said and smiled.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“And Cherryth to the north,” Astrid said pointing to the
bright green spray of leaves that separated the mountains of the Spine from
Suleria displayed in pink carnations and Tur in blood red belladona.<span style="mso-font-kerning: 16.0pt;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Vinga stared at the map and cocked her head. “There is too
much white,” she said softly and turned to Astrid. “I think Tur is much bigger
than the Northern City States, Astrid.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But not as important,” Astrid replied.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A young boy pointed to the big splotch of red to the northeast.
“Really?” he said. “Is Tur really that close?” Tur was the home of the
Quarajii, the barbarian Hordes of their nightmares.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yes, Kel,” Skye said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“That’s scary,” Kel said softly with a frown and stared wide
eyed at the red smear that looked like it would naturally flow south to the
mountains. His smile and those of the other children vanished.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Elder Leana pushed her way to the front of the crowd. “Do
not fear, child. It’s nonsense and not a map. See here,” she said and waived
her arms. “There’s open ocean to the north, and should be blue not white. And
most of the mountains are green and not covered with snow like the map shows.
Take no mind of this foolishness.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Skye glared at Leana as she studied the map and turned to
Vinga. “If Leana weren’t such a good healer,” Skye said, “we’d not listen to
her at all.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The boy's mother grabbed him and gave Skye a disapproving
glare. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Don't fret, now,” she said to the boy, “they cannot enter
the mountains...”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But what if they do?” the boy asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“…And if they do, the Riders will take care of them.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But what if…” the boy asked, his voice disappearing into
the crowd as his mother dragged him away by the arm.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Finn leaned over to Astrid. “You might have used a less
dramatic color for Tur,” he said. “No one wants to be reminded how close the
Quarajii live.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I’ll grant your
daughter some artistic license here,” Vinga said and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>shook her head in wonder. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“What is this?” she
asked pointing to a sky-blue carnation on the west coast of the southern
continent.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I don’t know,” Astrid said, “But something should be
there.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Why dear?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid shrugged. “I don’t know. Something pretty belongs
there.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Skye smiled and leaned over to Vinga. “Still worried?” she asked.
Vinga pursed her lips and shook her head slowly and Skye continued “It appears
you are a better teacher than you thought,” she said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Much better,” Vinga replied, still staring at the map that
showed places she had not taught them about.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
...to be continued ...</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(c) 2015 B. R. Strong, Jr. </div>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4368751521342197912#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;">[1]</span></span></span></span></a>
rector: teacher, usually head of the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>school</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4368751521342197912#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="FootnoteCharacters"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><span class="FootnoteCharacters"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;">[2]</span></span></span></span></a><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The title 'Honorable' is a courtesy in
referring to teachers, like “Mister or Madam.”</div>
</div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4368751521342197912.post-35926575206972507002015-09-29T14:42:00.000-07:002015-10-09T11:40:23.032-07:00Beginning the story of Singer. Part 1, Singer: Dragon Rider<i>I'm posting the first part of the new series, </i>Singer,<i> today. This is the opening segment from Part 1, Singer: Dragon Rider.</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
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<h2 style="mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299500"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431162794"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc431299500;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Black"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Black";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Witness</span></a></h2>
<h3 style="display: none; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431162795"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299501"></a></h3>
<div class="1stinchpt">
The child brushed a mosquito from her forehead while she
wove a crown of flowers from the daisies and poppies that grew along the bank
of the river. Her horse nickered and leaned against its brother that drank from
the river, a tributary of the Thomulk River that split Sinefora into halves:
the western half the breadbasket of Sinefora; the eastern half a wilderness of
endless plains beyond which lay the slate cliffs that fell to the Eastern Ocean
nearly a mile below.</div>
<div class="1stinchpt">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Her horse nickered again and she heard an answering nicker
from across the river where no one should be.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Father!” she called and ran to the bearded man who finished
laying out their picnic.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yes, Makashti,” her father said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Father, come,” she said and led him to the bank of the river. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The girl and her father watched as a family of primitives
walked upstream along far side of the bank. They were dressed in leathers with
fur trim meant for the cold of Tur not the temperate climate of Sinefora. The
man carried a large pack on his back and led a horse which dragged two poles
which dragged behind it and upon which lay a burden. The woman’s only
decoration was feathers tied to her long braided hair. She carried a child in a
sling at her breast and another in a basket on her back. Two children, walked
with them, one Makashti’s age who watched her from across the bank.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Quarajii,” her father said. “From Tur.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“How did they climb the slate cliffs?” she said referring to
the defining feature the eastern border of Sinefora.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Her father reached out and plucked a mosquito from the air.
“Do you know the only creature that lives on more kinds of terrain than this
insect?” The girl shook her head. “Man, and the beasts he brings with him. If a
four-thousand foot cliff cannot stop this mosquito, it will not stop the Qu.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Where do they go?” she asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“To live,” her father said. “The North must be getting
harder for them.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Where to?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“South. The Quarajii have old dreams of the South, beyond
the Spine,” he said and pointed to the high mountains that separated the North
from the South. “But the Spine will stop them.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Makashti pointed to the burden the horse dragged behind it
which appeared to be a sick or elderly person “They care for one another,” she
said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yes. But it will not help them,” he said. “If they do not
die in the Spine they will turn north to Sinefora where the governor will kill
them.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Why?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“If the Qu come, the Horde will follow. Sinefora is the only
barrier to the Horde entering Sularia. And if the Horde comes they will scrub
the land like locusts, and leave nothing standing. The Emperor will come and
lay waste the rest.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But there are other places they can go?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Her father shook his head. “To the south is the Spine and
mountains they cannot cross. To the east is the Eastern Ocean. To the west are
the fast rivers of Cherryth and the Northmen who will stop them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Makashti feared for the children. “Will you tell the
governor?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Perhaps not,” he said and sighed. “But I fear more will
come. This may be just a trickle of the flood to follow.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“If the governor sees them, will he kill them?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Not if there are millions.”</div>
<h2 style="mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299502"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431162796"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417728975"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417730430"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417757357"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417757788"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417758220"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417771311"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417771723"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772134"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772546"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772956"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417773357"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417773758"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417933038"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417728976"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417730431"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417757358"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417757789"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417758221"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417771312"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417771724"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772135"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772547"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772957"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417773358"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417773759"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417933039"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417728977"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417730432"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417757359"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417757790"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417758222"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417771313"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417771725"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772136"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772548"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417772958"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417773359"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417773760"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc417933040"></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc431299502;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc431162796;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Black"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Black";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc431299502;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc431162796;">Partners</span></span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Eighteen years later and a thousand miles to the south in
the high mountains of the Spine, another young girl had a vision of a different
future: a future that would intersect Makashti’s. </i></div>
<div class="scenechange" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="scenechange" style="text-align: center;">
***<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431162797"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc384480759"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428696478"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc428734696"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431299503"></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Astrid reined her dragon to fly against the beam of sunlight
that broke through the clouds, hoping to hide within the thunderstorm from the
fire-breather. Until the sun fully set, they would weave through the rose
tinted clouds amid flashes of lightning to evade the predator. It was cold up
here and a late spring. A drop of rain stung her cheek and she quickly leaned
over to hug her dragon and let the rain arc over her.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They had flown deep into the mountains of the Spine to free a
female dragon from the fire-breather’s lair. Astrid would be the first of her
kind to see a reclusive female, but only if they avoided being lunch for the
much larger hunter. For the moment they were free, and she closed her eyes to feel
the wind in her hair and smell the crisp damp air. She opened her arms wide
with the exhilaration of the chase and sang. From far away she heard someone
call her name, but she knew they could not leave their shelter in the clouds
just yet…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Astrid!” the voice called to her from just a few feet away.
Her arms still outstretched, she opened her eyes to see the rector<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4368751521342197912#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;">[1]</span></span></span></span></a>
and the entire pod of twenty students staring at her. Their laughter burst her
day-dream; she blushed, and drew her hands into her lap.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Astrid, what is the name of our mountains?” the rector
asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Uh …the Spine,” Astrid stammered, struggling to drag her
attention back to the class.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“And where are we from?” the rector asked. Many children
raised their hands, but the teacher kept her focus on just one. “Astrid,
please.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The Old Empire,” Astrid said, but did not look up this
time, instead concentrating on adding a tint of rose to the clouds in her
sketch of a dragon flying through the clouds at sunset.</div>
<h3 style="display: none; margin-left: .55in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-indent: -.3in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431162798"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc430686301"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376882382"></a></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Spring came late again this year and Vinga had taken the
children outside to the walnut grove rather than stay inside the stuffy Clan
Manor where they had been cooped up during the long winter. Spring came later
each of Astrid’s twelve years, but this spring was here—she could smell it and
could not wait for school to end. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While Astrid sketched and hummed, the lesson continued.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“See here. Our mountains separate Suleria and
the Old Empire,” the rector said, pointing to a region near the north-east of
the mountain range. “And this is our valley, here.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-font-kerning: 16.0pt;">But Astrid</span> was
back in her own world, detailing the dragon in her sketchbook and singing
softly. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Honorable Vinga,<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4368751521342197912#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;">[2]</span></span></span></span></a>
why did our people leave the South?” the boy who sat in front of Astrid asked.
This was the new boy in school and the focus of attention of all the young
girls, and like them, Astrid stopped what she was doing and looked up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“It's not written, Finn,” Rector Vinga replied. “We left
long ago with only our clothing. The elders tell us that we were once slaves
that were freed by a miracle of the One God.” She waved her hands to the floor
of the valley and its tan checkerboard of tilled land. “Who taught us to farm,
children?” she asked and showed a drawing of their first years in the valley. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“We took this knowledge from the South,” Finn. “But the
pictures show we grew corn, and now we grow wheat. Why?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Corn grows better in a hotter climate in the South,” Vinga
said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But the pictures show that we grew corn here when we first
arrived…” Finn said.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-font-kerning: 16.0pt;">Astrid</span> stopped
listening and drifted back into her own world, singing softly as she captured
the oak grove in her sketchbook. From within the grove she heard a low hum in
harmony and she stopped and looked up. A head poked out from the leaves of the
tree: huge, with teeth as long as her arm and eyes as large and green as
melons. It was small for a dragon, perhaps five yards tooth to tail.<s><span style="display: none; mso-font-kerning: 16.0pt; mso-hide: all;">.</span></s> The
other children heard the rustle of the leaves and turned to see the intruder
and gasped. Vinga stopped her lesson. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When Finn turned, the huge beast looked at him, flared its
nostrils and inhaled slowly and deeply, eyes now as bright and red as
pomegranates. Their fairy tales had told the children what to expect
next—incineration<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4368751521342197912#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;">[3]</span></span></span></span></a>—and
there was no time to run. Finn stood up in defiance to shield the smaller
children, but then closed his eyes and cringed. The beast put its jaws a few
inches from Finn’s face and— </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 41.75pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">—<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span>knocked
him on his butt with a puff of air, not flames. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The beast chuffed a few times, which for a dragon was
laughter, and all the children laughed with him: all except Finn who remained
unseared but with a red face and embarrassed smile. Everyone knew the dragon's
joke but Finn: dragons did not breathe fire, at least not outside the world of
myth.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Thank you ahh…,” Vinga said, looking at the dragon. “You
are excused.” It was small for a dragon and she waved her hand as if to push it
back into the trees.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“His name is Little Wing,” Astrid said though dragons could
not speak their names to humans.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Thank you Little Wing,” the rector said, not asking how
Astrid knew his name, and returned to her instruction. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The dragon purred at the attention, his eyes pearlescent. He
did not leave but instead returned to his place in the walnut grove and
continued to hum in harmony to Astrid's song. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“She will become a Rider,” said a teacher observing the
dragon's prank.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But she is too young,” said another. “And the dragon is too
small.”</div>
<div class="scenechange">
<br /></div>
<div class="scenechange" style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc431162799"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc430686302"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Toc376882383"></a></div>
<div class="scenechange">
</div>
<div class="scenechange" style="text-align: center;">
***</div>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<i>...to be continued ...</i><br />
(c) 2015 B. R. Strong, Jr.<br />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4368751521342197912#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;">[1]</span></span></span></span></a>
rector: teacher, usually head of the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>school</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4368751521342197912#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="FootnoteCharacters"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><span class="FootnoteCharacters"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;">[2]</span></span></span></span></a><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The title 'Honorable' is a courtesy in
referring to teachers, like “Mister or Madam.”</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4368751521342197912#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="FootnoteCharacters"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><span class="FootnoteCharacters"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lohit Hindi"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: FZSongTi; mso-fareast-language: HI; mso-font-kerning: .5pt;">[3]</span></span></span></span></a><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>… or, burned to a crisp.</div>
</div>
</div>
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