Saturday, September 3, 2022

Zephyr's Flight - Coming Soon

 

Hi, again …

Some very nice words and a 5-star review from Ellie Mitchel for the upcoming Zephyr’s Flight 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, Bookish Beyond.

From her review:

“There were many things which I ended up liking about Zephyr’s Flight, some of which are listed below.

  • “Firstly, the world-building was fantastic. You get an immediate sense of the intricacy of the world, its key cultures, and their core beliefs.
  • “I loved the writing style. It proved to be very detailed and created vivid pictures in my mind’s eye.
  • “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.
  • “I also really liked the mythology included, of the old legends about Astrid’s people and the dragons.
  • “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.
  • “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.”

Thank you, Ellie!

Current schedule for Zephyr’s Flight is later this year, and other novels in the series soon after.

… Ray



Saturday, January 25, 2020

Rowan the Brave



Main Characters

Rowan, a peasant boy who becomes a king by his own hand
Gwendolyn, a peasant girl who becomes a queen
Circe, goddess of magic and seduction
Cernunn, a sorcerer who uses magic to elevate himself to the god of the hunt and battle
Felix, king of Fennrock

Setting

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.

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.

The Story

Act 1
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.

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.

“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.”

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Thinking of Gwen, Rowan says, “Worship as you choose, but remember the one who built it for love of you, and protect it.”
 
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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Act 2
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.

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.

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.
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.

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.

Circe has another deception in mind. “Now that the king is dead, invite Rowan back.”

“Rowan does not love me.”

Circe shakes her head. “All that he has done, he has done to win your love—but a god has manipulated him.”

Gwen is hurt and then enraged. “Are you that god?”

“No, of course not. I care for you.”

“Another like you, then?”

“I have always acted in your interests.”

“And in your own.”

“I never asked you to compromise your virtue,” Circe says.

“Of course not. If I acted without virtue, my vice would attribute to you. Again, you leave me little choice how to act now.”

“Then accept the crown.”

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.

“No,” Gwendolyn says. “Free me. Find another protégé. We are done.” She stalks out in search of Rowan.

Circe gives the kingdom to the evil priest, but the people of the kingdom despair and reject him and Circe.

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.

“You cannot fathom the horror I will unleash,” Circe says.

“And you do not imagine the weapon I have forged,” Cernunn replies.

Act 3
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.

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.

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.
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.

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.

“You have filled your temples by deceit and set up this cruel contest. You are unworthy of worshippers,” Frigg says.

In unison, Cernunn and Circe complain. “You do not have the power to undo what gods have wrought!”

“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.”

“Yes, yes, of course,” the gods reply.

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.

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.

Circe and Cernunn first harangue their protégés with lightning and thunder to kill the other to no avail, and then argue with each other.

Frigg descends and confronts them. “You have both failed to defeat the other, and both godheads are forfeit.”

“But she did not defeat him!” Cernunn cries.

“But he did not defeat her!” Circe shouts.

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.

Enraged, Cernunn rushes Rowan. In a battle that sets the forest ablaze, Rowan defeats the Minotaur using Seranil, the sword Cernunn had given him.

Circe aims to bite Gwen and kill her, but Gwen crushes the little snake. With Circe dead, Rowan frees Gwen from her bindings.

“I am yours by right of combat,” Gwendolyn says, not trusting Circe’s words that he still loves her.
Rowan kneels, thinking she still mourns the old king, and acts honorably. “Milady, I accept only what is offered freely and not by obligation.”

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. (*)
Gwen leans over, takes both of Rowan’s hands, and holds them to her heart.

“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.”

Rowan and Gwendolyn return together to defeat the evil priest of Circe and accept the people’s invitation to rule Fennrock together.

The curtain falls.

One from the audience hears the story and says, “No one is strong enough to give up a crown for a virtuous cause.”
To which a Singer replies, “It happened once. That is why the story is famous.”

(*) In the epic poem, The Song of Rowan, 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 Book of Sonnets contains fragments of their conversations.

Synopses of the Major Songs


The College of Singers holds as its sacred duty the transmission of the collective knowledge of the entire culture. Acting from that mission, the Order of Ancients preserves some tattered manuscripts in their archives. Some, such as The Fool, are simple stories found intact, while others, such as Rowan, are epic poems with many gaps.

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.

Three of those stories follow.

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Special Words and Terms



The publisher may remove this from the printed books, so I'm including them here just in case.

Bolthorn: The frost giant of the mountain people. Maternal grandfather of Odin.

bracer: A cuff or arm guard to protect an archer’s forearm from the bowstring.

Chiniferra: The holy book of the Sulerians, Turajii, and Quarajii; believed by the devout to be the literal word of God.

Clanough: Meeting of clans from different valleys.

consumption: Tuberculosis; a chronic wasting disease of the lungs with a likelihood of death if untreated.

cuirass: Armor that covers the chest. In this case, padded leather for practice with sword and staff.

daemonberry: 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.

dilettante: Someone concerned with unimportant things.

Eastern Eighth: Just as “quarters” describe sections of Branwyn, “eighths” describe one-half of a quarter; in this case, half of the Cathedral Quarter.

flitterbie: 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.

Fólkvangr: The heaven for those fallen in battle who will enjoy eternity with Freya rather than Odin.

Freya / Frigg: 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.

graxes: A two-legged, wingless raptor about the length of a person’s arm.

jenalei: 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.

Juro: The World

kata: A training exercise consisting of a pattern of set moves, often with weapons.

moon(s): Three moons orbit Juro, each with various names depending on the culture.
Lon: 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.
Elein: Sister Moon. Smaller than Lon, with a slightly faster orbital period. Reflection of Radha, epitomizing community and civilization.
Fures: 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.

Norns: Beings who decide the fates of gods and men.

Odin: King of the gods of the mountain folk and provinces.

packet boat: A small ship with a regular schedule. In this case from Stoneport on the south coast to Ravenna.

semaphores: 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.

Sessrúmnir: The hall of Freya in Fólkvangr (heaven).

stenifer: Tree with high alcohol/alcohol sap and wide branches like a fir tree.

Thores and Edmund: Mythical heroes of Altona and the Provinces.

tree resins: In this instance, myrrh from a small tree used as medicine.

Valhalla: The heaven of those fallen in battle and chosen by the Valkyrie to enjoy eternity with Odin.

Valkyrie: 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.

vambrace: Armor to protect the forearms and wrists; padded leather for practice with weapons.

wheezit: Winged flier with six legs and four wings, about the size of a person’s little finger; they serve to pollinate the native plants.

Sunday, March 18, 2018

New logo

Hey!

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 here.

Thanks
... Ray


Friday, November 24, 2017

Contenders for new cover

Hi. ...

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.
You can take a survey survey here.







Saturday, June 11, 2016

Part 1 - 1.3 Swallowtail


1.3.1 Discovery of the Horde

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.

“Please, mother.”

“Not alone.”

“But hunting is poor. Only for one night.”

“You’re fifteen, hon, and it’s too dangerous outside the valley to be by yourself.”

“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.”

“No. Not unless you bring Selina or another female Rider.”

“But they’re on duty. Mom, please.”

“No.”

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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. But I had to, mother, she thought. The old one clearly wanted us to follow him. Someone may have been injured or required help. Mother will understand. She pursed her lips. And if she doesn’t, well...

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.

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.

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.

A few meters away red eyes lifted from their work tearing at the bodies below them and moved slowly toward her with low growls. Wild dogs, 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.

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.

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.

Astrid turned to the old dragon. Why the urgency? she wondered. She would certainly tell the Inverness Council of the battlefield and the invaders, but they were still many leagues from home. Why would the old one bring me here? 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. 

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.

Astrid shook her head. “There’s nothing I can do.”

The old dragon took off, and she mounted Little Wing to follow.

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.