Category Archives: Books

Rough Drafts of finished works

Pathway to Destiny

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    The crowd screamed and pushed against the line of soldiers with glazed over eyes. The soldiers were keeping a small semi circle of dirt clear in front of a platform that stood about four feet from the ground. On the platform three people surrounded by soldiers sat in chairs. Mark sat in a chair in front, Casandra and Dybin sat in chairs behind and to either side of his. Mark Chasarue sat disinterested watching the spectacle.
    A man with black matted hair was brought out in metal chains. He was dirty and malnourished from being in the prison cell for a month. The robe he was wearing was white when he first arrived in his cell but now was a reddish brown.
    Larso Denkan looked into the cold gray eyes of the blonde man on the platform. He knew he would find no mercy in them, they were as cold as the steel they resembled. His recent decisions began to flash into his mind, the reason he was here. The chain of events that had led to this.
    Things had been bad in Toolay for a long time. There was no work, there was no law, there was no help of any kind. Rumors were spreading of this new world, a land of plenty. People there had lots of space to move freely about, there was plenty of food to eat, and soldiers to protect them from those who mean harm. It was a dream come true to Larso who had to fight for everything his whole life. So he rushed to the most beautiful woman in the village, Mara, whom he had loved since he first met. He asked her to join him in the new world, he promised her she would never have to struggle again. They married quickly and fled together in a boat and arrived with thousands of others to this new promise land.
    When they arrived it was not as he had hoped. Too many other migrants had arrived with his same dream, and with them bandits and outlaws looking to fleece the new world. They had no place to live, and no work to go to. Mara became bitter and resentful towards him, at least back in Toolay she had land to farm for food. She was with child when they arrived in the new land, and had given birth to a beautiful baby girl. A baby girl who cried day and night, and would not be comforted. A baby that cried like all the babies cried in the migrant encampment. It cried because it lacked safety and security, warmth and food. The baby never stopped crying.
    Larso couldn’t take it anymore. Everyday he went with a hundred others to the square and looked for work, but there was never any. He begged alongside the widowed and orphaned for money or scraps of food. Mara, who was once the most beautiful woman in the village was starting to look more like an old shrew. His heart broke, his spirit broke. He saw the sellers in the square, the baker, butcher, fish merchant, all of them doing well while he starved and lost everything. The resentment and jealousy began to stir deep within him til he decided to strike out.
    He took a loaf from the baker, but the baker came after him with a knife. Larso wrestled the knife away and stabbed the baker, killing him. Then he took what money the baker had on him, and the bread he stole, and ran back to Mara. Mara screamed when she saw the blood, he was a monster to her. She fled with the child into the migrant encampment, he never saw her again. Two days later the soldiers arrested him. All he could think of was Mara’s beautiful face, twisted in a scream of horror as she clutched their child close her. He missed them so badly every part of him was filled with sorrow, at least they were not here now to witness this.
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Original X-roads-2003

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Chapter One
 

    We had landed on Cross Isle, which was in the center of Caslitak. We stood in the center of a cleared space in the perfect shape of a circle, which was odd almost since there was a thick forest surrounding it. There was only smooth grass here, and tall ominous looking trees looming all around.
    I stepped through the gate and glanced around, Daemon and Sertoff had walked in before me. The feeling of Darkness increased, there was a chilling cold the kind of cold that only Darkness can bring. It was stronger than the feeling I would get on Earth when I would walk outside my door, I felt more as if we were heading for our deaths. And what was more, was the fact I couldn’t feel Cas or Zariaha here. I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, this feeling of gloom and doom surrounding us. I glanced up at the sky which was a lilac color, it’s lighter shades blending into pink as the darker ones faded into a more royal purple. There was one light blue sun in the sky, it was amazing to look at. I have never seen anything quite like it, it was a crystal, mystical type of light blue. You could see the heat fumes around it making swirls of silvery blue atop the surface. It had dark spots, not many but a few, they had turned a darker shade of light blue, almost a dark dulled cyan. The grass and leaves here were Turquoise, but other than that it seemed like a normal place.
    My thoughts were interrupted by Jabetto walking through the gate. He glanced around, “Big change from Earth huh?”.
    “Uh huh.” I nodded and glanced at Mesiaha who was the next one through. She passed through the gate then glanced back as if she was leaving something behind. It must be her sister or something, she’d left nothing there. She looked up at me in a dumb-struck glance, and suddenly I noticed it too. There was something missing, she looked as if she was lost.
    I set Jamie down on the ground and glanced at Sertoff, I drew in a deep breath then exhaled. The thought of going into any towns and talking to people gave me the creeps. I really felt as if the whole world was filled with a negative energy, and everything in and on it was negative. Sertoff seemed almost at home, he stood motionless, expressionless facing the north.
    “Well someone has to go inform Emperor Kilji of our arrival.” Daemons pendant seems to have changed somewhat, the voice is lower. And I could hear the electronics inside it working, not very loud, almost like a whisper.
    Sertoff turned to us, “Wait here.” He started to walk off towards the circle of trees in the north.
    A feeling crept over me, urging me to follow him, growing stronger with every step he took towards the trees. “I wanna go too.” I voiced out loud bracing myself for any kind of reaction from Sertoff.
    He seemed angry as he slowly turned back to face me, his cold blue eyes staring. He studied me for a moment then nodded once and stood perfectly still, as he waited for me to catch up with him.
    I followed him away from the others, soon we were at the surrounding trees. I noticed now that they made a complete circle around the field, though once inside… The trees seemed to stretch into a never-ending forest. I began to get flash backs of Zaria Forest, “Where are we going?” I asked him. It was more to get my mind off the forest than curiosity.
    “Emperor Kilji is over one thousand years old,” Sertoff began to brief me. “He didn’t get that way by letting strangers in to see him. I fought for him, and still hold the rank of General in the Kilji Army. Without his permission, the rest of the group can’t go beyond the trees.”
    “You’ll just fight for anybody if the price’s right, wont you?” I half teased.
    “And for the right price, you’ll kill.” he scoffed as he turned his cold eyes and stared me down.
    I drew in a breath and looked back at the trees trying to warm myself from his gaze.
    “Try to restrain yourself in front of the Emperor. I don’t want to have to do it for you.” he started walking faster.
    I rolled my eyes and caught up with him, soon we emerged from the trees. It was basically the same as the field before, though on the horizon I saw a black castle. It glinted in the blue suns’ light with a sort of metallic hue, a greenish crystal type mist surrounded it. It must be some sort of force field or something, they really don’t want anyone getting in here. I wonder why.
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The Hauntch Shop

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The Intro

 

     Hi, my name is Julia, and I run a Hauntch Store. Before we go any further, yes little giggling children call my store all the time asking if I’ve seen their bare haunches on display in my windows. But this is not a Haunch store, this is a Hauntch Store. I know what you’re thinking, so what is a hauntch? And that’s exactly what I was asking myself just two months ago.
     “Miss Julia Deardhorn?”, an aging rounded man held out his hand towards me. “I am Albert Finkenstankle, your great aunt Gileda Deardhorn’s solicitor. That is to say, I’ve called you here for the reading of the will.” His white bristly sideburns were almost standing on ends as he leaned backwards and motioned towards the door. “Of course,” he continued as I walked towards the doorway. “There is only you and Tabitha.”
     As I reached the doorway and glanced in, there was a small room lined with bookcases. The bookcases were filled with stacks of paperwork and old law volumes. In the center was a dark, heavy, wooden desk. The desk cluttered from every angle with paperwork, and small objects meant as paper weights. To either side of the desk sat worn comfortable red leather chairs. I noticed to the right, glancing up at me with great curiosity, a slender orange tabby cat. She resumed her curled up position as Mr. Finkenstankle pushed past me.
     “Please do sit down.” he motioned to the empty chair as he shuffled through papers. “And so it was.”, he pulled out a stack of papers and begin to read through them. “On the passing of Gileda Wastborn Deardhorn, the whole of her estate and store front property on the dock is to be shared equally between her long time companion and friend Tabitha Wilkinson.” He paused motioning to the cat. “And her surviving niece, the last of the blood line, Julia Grace Deardhorn.” he did not look up but continued to go on.
     While legal terms flew above my head and out of my mind, I glanced at the cat. She rose her head up a bit glancing at me, and winked.
     As she laid her head back down I was pondering how many times I had ever seen a cat wink. My thoughts were interrupted by Finkenstankle clearing his throat.
     “And do you have any questions, before I take you out to see said properties?” he watched me.
     “You said I had a store on the docks?”
     “Yes, quite. The Hauntch Store.”
     “What exactly is a hauntch?” I interrupted.
     “I, umm, err…” Mr. Finkenstankle began fumbling for words. Upon clearing his throat he continued, “Well you are aware of how eccentric your great aunt was?”
     I replied flatly, “I was not aware, of any such thing.”
     Finkenstankle fumbled for words again, then figured out what to do. “Perhaps it’s best, if I just show you.”
     We pulled up to the first row of many one story wooden shacks. They started off with one row facing a pier, then each row sat behind it. The front of one building was the back of another, unless you had waterfront property. Finkenstankle assured me that the most desired property was the waterfront one.
     The structure sat on a foundation of creaking old wood, that literally faced out openly to the water. There was no guard railing at all, however in diffrent places there were spots to tie up a boat. There was unfortuntaly, no place to tie up a boat near my store. Mine was Sixteen Seventy Three, which looked like Sixteen Seventy Four, and exactly like Sixteen Seventy Five. It looked just like all the Sixteen Seventies that I saw, actually. Old, weather-worn, wooden planks made up the exterior walls. A single, rusty, metal roof connected all the buildings together. Each store had it’s own small window, the size of an adult face. There was a solid wooden door for each front entrance.
     “There’s no signs on these doors.” I remarked.
     Mr. Finkenstankle wasn’t feeling chatty anymore.
     As I glanced over at him, I noticed he was shaking slightly. A small look of fear was present in his eyes as he stared into the vacant window. Then he quickly pulled the keys out his pocket and thrust them into my hands. “I have an urgent matter I must attend to, urgently.” He excused himself suddenly and began to almost trot away.
     “How odd.” I muttered, as I watched the back of him now sprinting out of sight. I grabbed the golden brass door knob, and paused. This doorknob looked brand new, there wasn’t even a smudge on it besides mine. The first two keys didn’t work, but the third one let me in.
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