Immortal Wars: Light, Blood, & Tears Part 6

Posted on February 18, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

(Disclaimer: A warning to those who continue.  This is a sequel to a previous story.  Both of these were written in the mid-1990’s.  While the first one was slightly edited and vanity press published, this one has not been touched in over 20 years.  I figure I should do something with it and people may get a laugh or fright from how I used to be.  Every author comes from somewhere, so this is part of my origin.  To that end, I am deeply sorry for whatever nightmares I will inflict on the literary world and the American English language.  Enjoy?)

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“I know that I’m not the one to tell you this, but you’re insane,” says Tegam.  He is in a room that is brightly lit and surprisingly cheerful.  The only pieces of furniture are a blue recliner, a few wooden chairs, and a large, soft bed that looks like it was made for over a thousand kings.  Each wall has a flawless, full-length mirror on it as well as many bottles of perfume and several pieces of sparkling jewelry.  Behind two of the mirrors are enormous closets that are really two converted bedrooms, which have been filled with clothes that range from, sophisticated to extremely kinky.

“I feel dirty saying this, but Tegam is right.  This plan of yours is totally illogical and depends completely on the forces of luck.  And you do remember that one of the immortals that we are going up against can manipulate that specific force with effortless ease,” argues Cybro in his metallic voice.

“I think it could work with a little bit more thought,” replies Draveon from one of the room’s corners.

“At least someone is on my side.  Even if it is Draveon.  Now, what is exactly wrong with my idea?” asks Adriana.  A second after she sits down in the recliner a strong zap of electricity knocks her onto the floor.

“Are you okay?” whispers Startrix as she helps her friend up.

“I’ll be fine.  Once I’m done castrating Tegam with a rusty pocketknife.”  She rubs the sore parts of her body and grabs Tegam by his neck with lightning speed.  She starts shaking him like a doll.

“Sorry.  But with all of those colored wires in the chair, I couldn’t resist crossing a few of them.  Why were those wires in there anyway?  Another one of your kinky little toys, Adriana?”  Adriana throws him clear across the room before sitting on a wooden stool.

“Because it’s a computerized recliner, dumbass.  Now, let’s go over this again.  When I land on Earth with Tegam, Cybro, and Draveon, we will separate into two teams.  I will try to find out more about Fate while the three of you cause some random acts of carnage.  The more property damage you cause the better.  Killing people are useful, but don’t do it too often because we don’t want the guardians to be too angry.  Sooner or later, the guardians will turn up and then we’ll kill them.  I forgot to mention this, but I suggest dividing their forces and doing one-on-one fights.  They are more adept at group strategies than single fighting.  Startrix will be in charge of the Black Tower while I’m gone.”

“What if we start to lose the battle?” questions Cybro.

“A war transport will be orbiting the planet.  If we are losing then I will call the ship down and release the Clan of Fire members that are in a cryogenic sleep.  There is absolutely nothing to worry about.  I have everything taken care of.”

“Does that last statement include yourself?  You were the one that let the Mars guardian get away during that first fight.  Or have you forgotten about that incident?  So busy blaming all of us that you forgot the fact that Fate escaped because of you.  He would have been one less annoyance to us if you destroyed him during our first encounter,” states the robot.

“I wasn’t ready to kill him, Cybro.  I thought I could have twisted him and turned him to our side.  At least I could have had some fun with him.  What was wrong with the idea of turning Fate to our side?  Comic book villains do that all the time.”

“You’re a bigger idiot than Hellax.  If he could be turned so easily, Solix would not have given him the right to use the Solstar medallion and lead the planet guardians.  Which brings up another mistake on your part.  You gave them the very weapon that could destroy all of us!” exclaims Tegam

“That I did have a reason for.  The weapon was only useful to Fate.  We had no use for it.  Besides, he saw, or at the very least he had an idea, what happened to Solix when it was used at full power.  The handsome runt is too scared to try and use it himself because he doesn’t think he is powerful enough to control it.  As for letting him go, I admit I may have made a tiny mistake.  But I’m not always perfection incarnate,” says Adriana, whose voice gets softer and lower with every word.

“Did you guys actually hear that?  The high and mighty Adriana is admitting her mistakes and she said that she isn’t perfect.  I guess hell has been thrown into the ultimate ice age,” Tegam laughs as he puts his arm around Cybro’s neck in a friendly gesture.  The robot gives him a sinister look, which makes the jester slowly remove his favorite arm.

“Did I wake up with a damn insult me sign on my back?  Why is everybody throwing insulting jokes at me?  I don’t deserve this kind of treatment!  Especially from all of you, leeches.”

“I thought you liked my jokes.  But that was when they were done on someone else.  The fact is that we don’t trust a plan that has more holes than a soap opera plot.  For this kind of mission anyway,” mentions the jester.

“I am your unchosen leader.  You have to trust my plans because if you don’t I swear that I will tear you up into so many pieces, it would take centuries for you to come back together.”  Adriana turns around and punches a hole in the one of the steel walls and the rest of the room shudders with the impact.

“Woah.  Are you going through that time of the month again, Adriana?  Because you sure are acting a little on edge and agitated lately.  You are usually more calm and easy going,” mentions Cybro.  The blond immortal rips off his head and holds it an inch from her face.

“Listen up, garbage can.  I am fine.  It is not that time of the month and I don’t think it would be any of your business if it was.  That is a woman’s private life and will not be shared.  I am simply going through some emotional problems that are quickly driving me nuts.  And you are not helping me!  Nod if you understand me, tin can.  Oh, I forgot.  Here’s your head, Cybro.  If anybody can explain why this is happening to me, I am all ears.  Any ideas, Draveon?  I’m sad to say that you are probably the smartest out of you four.”

Draveon scratches his chin and finally replies; “Mindtrigger did discover a good answer to this question when you went through this the first time sixteen years ago.  As far as we know, you are the first natural born immortal to have ever given birth to another immortal.  Psylon and Startrix have never claimed to have children.  Anyway, the strangest thing about your specific immortal physiology, Adriana, is that you could give birth every nine months.  Most beings have to wait a little while before giving birth again.  You can also nurse a baby whether you have given birth to a child recently or not, which isn’t useful, but very peculiar.  It would appear that you were designed to be an immortal breeder.  It goes along with the seduction abilities and the physical beauty.”

“Oh, great.  Not something that makes me want to smile and applaud, even though I like being a mother.  But how does the fact that I’m a natural baby machine explain my being very irritable?” remarks Adriana, who is looking at her body in one of the mirrors.  The thought of being made for the sole purpose of breeding makes her feel very insecure.

“Well, nobody knows about the exact effects on your mind.  This could be a long-term form of post partum depression.  I hope I don’t have to explain what that is to anyone in here because I am uncomfortable discussing this topic.  My father is the scientist.  Luckily, Mindtrigger has made a pill that could prevent these aggression attacks from happening again.  He just finished it three months ago.  I suggest that you go talk to him after this meeting and find out if anything is wrong with Kilanus.  She should be examined.”

“But Adriana has only one child.  She goes through this problem a few times every year.  Of course, she could have had a few hundred miscarriages that we would never know about.  She could also have a few more runts in other galaxies.  So what is our plan again, breeder?” asks Tegam with a laugh.

“I haven’t taken the calming medicine yet, prankster.  You gave a good explanation for my problem, Draveon.  Unfortunately, I have no choice but to believe you about that sole purpose of breeding thing.  As for the plan, it stays pretty much the same and very different.  Tegam and I will investigate Fate’s origin while Cybro and Draveon cause the usual destruction and chaos.  Rile up the cops and put a scare into the human populace.  When the guardians appear we will take them on one-on-one.  If we start to lose, the fight becomes every immortal for him or herself and we call in the war transport with our back-up troops.  How is that for a battle plan?”

“Sounds like the same plan you had before.  But I must get the one that stole my sword,” mentions Draveon in a menacing growl.

“First of all, the sword of light was stolen from the original guardians.  Fate simply took it back from you.  Second of all, you do not even think of touching the Mars guardian!” Adriana shouts while she stares up at her towering ally.  The size difference is almost comical as the five foot seven blond stares up at the man who is an entire foot taller than her.  In the end, Draveon backs off and leans against the far wall.

“That isn’t fair.  Why do you get the honor of killing Fate?  Your destiny is no longer linked to his.  As far as we are concerned, his death is now open to everyone that has a good shot.  Now I must be going and prepare for our departure,” responds Cybro.  The robot’s eyes go from deep black to neon yellow before he stands up and starts to leave.

“Hold on, metalman.  The honor of destroying the guardians’ leader is mine by universal right.  I lost the chance to slaughter Solix like a chicken and I let Fate escape when I had the chance.  But the only person’s hands that will be stained by the Mars guardian’s fresh, crimson blood is mine and mine alone.  Whoever gets in my way will receive a slow and painful death.”

“Very well.  I honestly don’t want Fate.  I want that cute Venus guardian.  I’ll see you guys in two hours for the lift off.  And we better get some roasted peanuts this time or I swear I’m going to complain to the pilot.  Why is nobody laughing?  Well, it was funny three years ago.  You people just don’t like the classics,” announces Tegam while he disappears in a puff of silver smoke.  Cybro and Draveon silently leave the two female immortals to speak among themselves.

“So, Adriana. . ,” Startrix says.  Adriana cuts her off by putting her finger to her own mouth.  The blond picks up her long, wooden staff that radiates soft, blue light and swings it in a wide arc around the room.  On the other side of the bed, something gets decked by the staff and knocked into the room’s open doorway.

“Not this week, Tegam.  Especially not after that stunt with the chair,” states the seducer.

“Ouchie.  Well, it was worth a shot.  Maybe Hellax is in the training room.  That guy falls for every trick in my book and up my sleeve,” laughs Tegam as they hear his footsteps disappear into the hallway’s gloom.

“He should not be allowed to go on this mission.  If he is away from Psylon’s weapon for more than three days, Tegam might turn on us.  We almost lost him several times before and you remember the trouble that we had finding him.  I say bring either Hellax or Mindtrigger instead,” insists the armored woman.

“No way.  Tegam has been kept under the morning star’s control for centuries.  After such a long time, the mind control should be permanent.  But Tegam is not important right now.  And you know just who the main man of this mission is.”

“Fate.  Why are you suddenly interested in his past?”

“Certain incidents over the past year have caused my interest to spark.  His immunity to the guardian weapons and fighting skills are identical to those of Kilanus.  Of course, both of them could be a newer, evolved species of immortals.  Every species evolves eventually.  If they are evolved then those similarities are useless and only help me get even more confused.”

“That is not hard to do lately.”

“Shut up, seer.  Do you remember what we tried about eight months ago in order to injure the guardians?”

“Yes.  Mindtrigger had created the robotic immortal hunter that was designed to attack specific immortal signatures.  We put in all of our genetic codes into its memory banks, so it would not be able to sense us.”

“Thank you, miss flashback.  A simple ‘yes’ would have been enough for me.   It’s not like we have an audience.  Anyway, I saw the final visual from the robot’s camera.  Once it scanned Fate, it stopped and had a slight nervous breakdown.  It noticed the genetic anomaly that Kilanus and Fate share and thought he was she.  Stupid machine couldn’t tell the difference between a male and a female.  It was amusing if I do say so myself.”

After a brief silence Startrix says, “You think Fate is the same child that you encountered on Earth when we returned.  Is he the one whose DNA was combined with Kilanus in your experiment?  That is what you said happened when you were on Earth seventeen years ago.  Even though you only told me about this incident a long time ago, I remember you telling me about it.  Am I right?”

“Uh. . . Yeah.  It would appear that my experiment has come back to haunt me.  That is why I want to make sure Edward Slane is the same child.  I could be responsible for his existence.  Taking his DNA might have turned him into an immortal.  Well, I have to go see Mindtrigger about those emotion pills.  But I have one more thing to tell you, my old friend,” answers Adriana as she takes a strange revolver, with white lightbulbs, out of the nearest closet.

“What is that for?”

“We never had this conversation.  The only things we talked about were Tegam, my battle plan, and what Draveon told us about my breeding talents.”  Before Startrix can grab the revolver, Adriana shoots the white-haired woman with a wide, purple beam.  Startrix lets out a curse as she collapses onto the bed.  The other immortal crushes the gun and walks over to the bed.

Adriana bends down to the sleeping immortal and whispers, “Almost like the last time.  Thanks to that gun, your memory of this talk has been erased forever.  You came too close to finding out what I think my connection to Fate is.  I will tell you the truth eventually.  But not until I’ve taken that son of a bitch’s soul and twisted it into what I want it to be.  Sweet dreams, Startrix.”

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7 Tips to Writing Character Biographies

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

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Sticking with the character biography topic, we’re going to look into a few tips for those who want to use this trick.  I’m sure this isn’t for everyone.  It’s a big plotter/planner tool alongside outlines and summaries.  You can also go a little too far with a character biography, which isn’t always a bad thing.  It all depends on how you use the information that you’ve carefully crafted.

  1. There aren’t any rules about character biographies aside from them having to be about the character.  Every author has their own method and style.  Some can be blocks of paragraphs while others are full essays.  You might just outline the character in a sensible chart to avoid extraneous words.  As long as you are happy with what you have created and can use it as a guide, you’ve done the right thing.
  2. While it’s fun to reveal these treats to your audience down the road or implement everything into the book, character bios are really for the author.  They exist to give you a sense of your cast.  Not only what they look like, but how they act, what they carry, and where they want to go.  This helps you when you’re writing because now you have an established path for the characters.  You can focus more on the overall plot and setting since the characters are clearer in your mind.
  3. Character biographies can help you pick out traits that you repeat too often.  In the middle of writing, you might not realize that 90% of your characters are brunettes because the descriptions are spread out.  Those that don’t fall into the main attribute might have avoided it because you described them near another, so you could see that problem before it occurred.  It isn’t only physical traits, but personalities and histories may be repetitive, so biographies can help you develop a variety.
  4. Subplots can be born from these biographies.  When designing the history and goals of a character, you will see possibilities for personal quests that run alongside the main one.  Perhaps they want to find a specific item or are trying to escape their old life.  It gives them more depth and an existence outside of ‘follow the main plot’.  Think about your own life and how you have your main job then you have either hobbies, side jobs, or extra interests.  You aren’t a one focus pony and character biographies can make sure that your characters aren’t either.
  5. Relationships can be clarified and shown how they will evolve as you create more of the biographies.  You may find that some characters share goals or have similarities in their past.  This creates bonds of friendship and a reason why they will get along during the story.  On the other side, you can see why characters will hate each other, so rivalries can be born.  For example, two characters may be going after the same goal, which only one can achieve.  They may be hero/villain or hero/hero, which changes the dynamic to something more dramatic.
  6. Don’t be afraid to change up your biographies.  These aren’t etched in stone, so you can change them as you write along.  Just like outlines, things become partially fluid once the real writing begins.  This is more to give you a general direction.
  7. You don’t have to use everything that you come up with in your character biographies.  These are born from brainstorming, which means you may have thrown more in there than you need.  You may think this is a bad thing, but it’s easier to whittle away at all of the information than to be moving along and find that you’re missing a piece.  Parts that you might leave behind are stories of the past, hobbies, and anything else that doesn’t have a big impact on the story.  You need these things to color your character and give them more depth, but you can go so far that scenes are practically drowning in unnecessary information.  What can you do with the unused material?  Fun things to share with the audience down the road.  People love behind-the-scenes stuff.
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Getting it Done with Writing Sprints

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

Hey, SE Readers. Joan with you today. Hope you’re enjoying this chilly, um, frigid February. Perfect weather for staying indoors to write. You’re …

Getting it Done with Writing Sprints
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Music of Legends of Windemere: Ritual of the Lost Lamb

Posted on February 16, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen

Coming to the homestretch here since Legends of Windemere: Ritual of the Lost Lamb is where things took an unexpected turn.  As you can see, Luke Callindor is in a lot of trouble.  This is the book where the heroes take a ton of psychological blows because things go very wrong.  The thing is that I didn’t find any songs that portrayed the despair correctly because I didn’t want to make it seem like a very sad book.  There is hope in here and a lot about how even a spark can keep one going.  So, I tried to focus more on that aspect for the music.

This is one of the songs that I played a lot for Luke Callindor.  It captures a lot of his evolution and character throughout the entire series.  I put it here because this book is where he got hammered and nearly everything came crashing down around him.  He isn’t the only one either.  All of the champions are battered and having to find a way to continue moving forward into the looming finale.

Played this one a lot during the scenes where characters were in physical or mental agony.  I really can’t think of any other way to explain it.  Again, there seems to be a spark of hope in the song as you listen longer.

We’re going with hope in the face of pain again.  Heroes need to be saved at times too, so you have to wonder who will do that.  It wouldn’t normally be another hero, but someone without powers that they can depend on.  That’s what all of them are going to need after this adventure.

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Is There a Point in Character Bios?

Posted on February 15, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

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I can already hear at least once pantser preparing to explain why they don’t do this.  If it helps, person with fingers at the ready, you’re right.  Character biographies don’t work for everyone.  They aren’t even universal because everyone has their own way of doing them because every author has different needs.  Some even change from story to story or as our own skills grow.  I know that I’ve been all over the map as you’re about to see.

Character bios are where I started since tabletop games were my first inspiration alongside fantasy books.  This resulted in my originals being more about numbers stats and basics instead of depth.  I had hair, eyes, height, weight, skin, and physical attributes with very little variety.  I couldn’t tell you what the real difference between a 4 and 5 in strength really was.  A 1-5 ranking was probably a dumb choice.  I added gear, personality, and skills to the bottom then left it alone.  I used this for Legends of Windemere too, but I had notes on other papers for evolution.  This system didn’t change for about 20 years because I spent most of my time doing quick outlines of other stories without doing any meaty bios.  By the time I came back to that tactic, I no longer cared about the physical stats.  I changed it to be a paragraph explaining history, role in story, goals, key events, general appearance, personality, and unique pieces of gear.  This gave me more wiggle room and it created the possibility of subplots as I wrote along.  It also reduced it from one character per page to 2-3 depending on importance.

The benefit of character bios is the same as any planning activity.  It gives you a direction to go with the character.  You get a sense of how they fit into your story and world.  The writing stage doesn’t begin with you shadowing an unknown figure, but walking alongside an acquaintance or friend.  Things may very well change as you go along because you don’t factor all story events into the bio.  It’s only a guide for that character.  One could even call it a starting point because things can be altered.  Everything from hair color to personality is fluid until you hit publish, so never think that your bio is the end of creation.  It’s only something you can go back to if you need to revisit a character’s origins.  If you have to stop writing that project for a long time then these can be very useful in jogging your memory.  This means you can add notes to it as well.  Whatever it takes to help you stay consistent.

Another use for character bios is with promotions.  You can easily turn one into a behind-the-scenes blog post or video.  People like these peeks into the process.  You can show how things changed from the origins, which tends to happen.  Turn in into a discussion or a lesson about the character instead of an info dump.  We avoid those in books, so it’s best to do the same when promoting too.  Of course, you can do this without a bio, but it doesn’t hurt to keep track of the evolution.  For your own amusement, you can go back and see how you and the character grew.

So, does anybody else create character bios?  What’s your style?

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Do You Participate in Prompts? Maybe You Should

Posted on February 15, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

Image by John W. Howell Hi, John here with you SEers. First of all, I wish you all a Happy Presidents Day on behalf of the Story Empire team. If you …

Do You Participate in Prompts? Maybe You Should
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Monster Hunters and Treasure Hunters: A Tale of Two Stories

Posted on February 14, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

Monster Hunter the Game

So, I’ve run into an issue with two series that I wanted to write way down the line.  One of them is an older idea that I keep tinkering with.  The other is a newer one that is very similar, which is part of the issue.  Both ideas are part of a theme of series/collections that involve the various groups in Windemere that operate either openly or secretly.  For example, I have the Phi Beta series that focuses on the mercenary school setting and the overall mercenary social structure.  Think I have Wraith Slayers as another one.  Let me get back to the real challenge with:

Monster ‘X’

Not the main title since I don’t like it yet.  This was a trilogy or short story collection that followed a band of monster hunters.  It reveals the inner workings of the monster hunting organization, which will be introduced a bit in War of Nytefall: Savagery.  By this point, they’re a more cohesive group with rankings, meeting buildings, and divisions across the globe.  They are the backdrop for the characters who have all been cursed by this mysterious beast that nobody believes is real.  The team leader wants to find it again and kill it in the hopes of being free.  Only problem is that the best way to do that is rise up to a rank that gives them access to the monster hunter archive, which may have information on the beast.  So, the first book would be about them doing jobs that will help them get what they need.  Second book would be the hunt and third would be something that happens after that.  Not sure if it’s going to be a bigger thing behind the beast, so that’s still in the air.

Of course, the real reason I’m unsure is because I don’t really have the characters.  My original plan was that it was being led by a woman or man who changes genders if something specific happens.  Kind of like Ranma getting hit by cold water turns him into a girl and warm water turns him back.  I no longer think this is a good idea.  Maybe.  I also toyed with the idea of it being a married couple who got merged together, so it’s not a single person changing gender.  It’s now two people trapped in the same body, but that still isn’t sitting right given today’s social atmosphere.  Lacking any other characters, I can’t figure out any other curses.  Think my major issue is that I can’t lock down the leader who I could just have weird things happen to them if they lose their temper.  At one point, I thought of it being an older Morgan from the Ichabod Brooks stories since this would be about 30-40 years after those tales.  She could be the middle-aged adventurer with bad knees now.  I even thought about the person she’s sharing a body with be Ichabod’s son who was her apprentice or something.  Maybe I’m overthinking this.

It doesn’t help that the following has been making better progress.

Treasure Hunters

I have no idea for a title and I’m still mucking about with this either being a treasure hunting organization or a specialized thief guild.  Not sure about the goal either, which is currently them wanting to find a legendary treasure horde.  Again, I wanted to do a trilogy or at least three short story collections.  The reason why is because I really like how the characters are flowing so far.  It’s going to be a team of 7, which sounds like a mistake because that’s tough to keep track of in a conversation.  Then again, look at the team that we have.

First, there are female coleaders with one being a female orc who is fairly blunt and straightforward.  The other is a halfling thief who used to be an assassin, so she has a habit of offering rather violent solutions.  She’s still getting used to the new gig.  They will have a female Dawn Fang who isn’t the most powerful of her kind, but she is very good at reading ancient texts and examining treasure.  A character I played once will be in there too.  He’s the adorable gnome named Berumbo who is also a cannibal with metal teeth.  Since he doesn’t talk beyond grunts, an ogre translates for him.  They’re the muscle.  I have two more male characters that I haven’t figured out yet.  One might be a mapper and the other a specialized caster since none of the others know magic.  I even have a few adversaries and rivals thought up.  Backgrounds are evolving for a bunch of them too.

It’s frustrating between these two.  I have a story thought up for Monster ‘X’ and characters thought up for Treasure Hunters.  Part of me wants to merge them to have these characters be the cursed ones, but then I’d lose something with the crew.  It means I no longer have a guild series too, which will be an itch that I want to scratch.  My other fear is repetitiveness since they’re fairly similar in that they are groups on a quest, but I have other stories like this too.  Maybe this is just doubt kicking in too.  Hopefully, I can take some time this year to sit down and think it all through in between outlining my next big series.

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Let’s Get This Winter Break Started. Seriously, I Really Need a Break

Posted on February 13, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

This was a fairly short week as far as work went.  That didn’t make it any less busy since I work with the testing center.  It makes sense that people are scrambling to run or make up tests before a break.  Thankfully, we made it through and now the break begins.  Though it does feel like last weekend was a century ago.  Days go so fast, but then it feels like the week is moving slow.  Time really is a mental construct designed by humans to make sense of the world.  That or to control the masses with a schedule.

I did have to take a day off for something with my son because it was time for a reevaluation.  This is an event that all special needs children go through, but I don’t know if it’s always every 3 years like here.  It can be harrowing because you see test scores and evaluations, but can’t tell if there’s more.  So, you go in expecting to have to fight for accommodations and defend your child.  Doesn’t help with a divorced couple since that can lead to not being on the same page.  Thankfully, my son is making amazing progress and proving that he’s in the right placement.  Took a lot of stress off my shoulders, which might be another reason why I practically collapsed around 10 PM Thursday.  Just felt like a bunch of weights were lifted from my body and I could let myself lie down.  His evaluation was certainly up there and I’m proud of all the progress he’s made.

Writing has made some progress and I might even finish Do I Need to Use a Dragon? by the end of the weekend.  I have 6 sections left and the Outro isn’t going to be that big.  If I can manage 3 today and 3 tomorrow then I’m done.  I have Monday morning before my son comes back for the week, so I can afford to be a little lax today.  Once this is done, I have to dive into outlining the next series.  I keep wanting to go back to War of Nytefall: Savagery for editing and I have tried it a few times.  Usually get 2 chapters in and then realize I’m making changes for the sake of changes.  That’s when I know I should stop.  Maybe this is what happens when I do plot synopsis, detailed outlines, edit the outlines, a slow first draft, occasional read backs, and then a meticulous editing run.  I’ve become so careful during the creation stage that I can’t bring myself to go back into editing after 1-2 times.  Feels like I should be scolded since authors keep saying to edit until you can’t look at it any more.  Guess I’m just odd.

I have plenty of small projects to work on too.  The treasure hunting thieves are becoming more interesting as the characters evolve in my head.  It was going to be a single short-story collection, but I’m seeing more opportunities here.  I’m questioning if I can call the group whose story takes place in a mercenary school ‘Phi Beta’.  That’s the fake frat my friends and I made up in college to be silly and stupid.  Since that’s the inspiration, I keep feeling like I should hold onto the name.  It’s just that it’s Greek letters in a fantasy world, which might work since I’ll have introduced an island with samurai influence on it.  This leads me to wondering if I should stick with the story that takes place within the Ice Crown where beings from other worlds exist thanks to the surviving angel of Windemere.  She was lonely and realized she could pull beings from dimensions, so she grabbed anyone who was interesting.  Then she disappeared, so the story follows a band of pirates trying to revive her because everyone is cursed by her vanishing.  I should really make a post on that one.

As you can tell, I’ve got a lot bouncing around in my head.  Makes me really wish I made enough money to survive and provide, so I could bring all of them to reality.  This is always going to be a permanent source of disappointment in myself.  I’m sure I’ll get some comments about why I shouldn’t be or something.  Be aware that I’m getting the 2nd Covid vaccine shot today, so I might be a little snarly in the afternoon.  This is also why I’m not 100% certain I’ll get writing done tomorrow.  I’ve heard that the 2nd shot can knock you out for a day or two.  Hopefully, I’m not one of the people who gets nailed, but I don’t trust my luck.  That’s why I have some movies reserved for Sunday.  They’re the live action Rurouni Kenshin films.  Only the second and third though since I already watched the first one.

Speaking of television, I haven’t watched much this week outside of the news.  I finished ‘Demon Slayer’ and then spent the ensuing nights writing and resting.  I started ‘Gungrave’ on Thursday, but only made it through 2 episodes.  Friday was the first day of break, so I went to hang out with a friend before I went into isolated author mode.  Not really sure what I want to really watch.  I’m holding back a bit since I saw ‘That Time I Was Reincarnated as a Slime’ and ‘Dr. Stone’ are getting new episodes soon.  In fact, ‘Dr. Stone’ has them popping up now.  I can’t touch that without my son though.  He really enjoyed it, so I won’t watch it without him.  Maybe I’m just tired, so nothing is striking my fancy.  I need a nap already.

Goals of the week?

  1. Time with son.
  2. Finish Do I Need to Use a Dragon?
  3. Consider beta readers and search for an artist.
  4. Start outlining Tales of the Slumberlord
  5. Organize ideas to see what goes into the next idea book
  6. Maybe finish the outlines for Ruins of the Zodiac Gods.  That will complete an idea book.
  7. Video games
  8. Reading
  9. Shoveling snow
  10. Snoozing
  11. Pizza at some point
Posted in Goal Posts | Tagged , , , , , , | 18 Comments

Dudley’s Desk Depot: Free Pen with Every Purchase (Wet Ink Not Guaranteed)

Posted on February 12, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

Yahoo Image Search

Welcome and what do you want?  A desk?  Sure, we have those as you can tell by the name up there.  I’m not Dudley.  My name is Dale, but I didn’t want people making dancer or chipmunk jokes.  So, do you want me to make you a desk or not?  Yeah, I’m the craftsman too.  I don’t wear this sawdust for my health . . . Sorry about the coughing.  Might want to step around that pulpy blob.

Lets get into the overall style.  Catch this book and thumb through while I tell you about our best sellers.  We have flat tops, which are simple and easy.  Roll tops are popular, but a paint to work with when I’m not in the mood.  Drawers all over the place if you need to stash a lot of supplies.  Oh, I can add hidden compartments to anything, but you need to tell me before I start the creative process.  Where was I?  School desks if you’re into the utterly simple or nostalgia.  Moving desks that uses wheels or can be folded up to be carried off.  I could do a lap desk, but those are boring and I hate making cushions for the bottom.  Really big desks are a favorite, but I add a fee for any back pain that I endure from moving it around.  Why would I get an assistant?  That’s a person and I don’t have the patience for such things unless they’re paying me.  Roll top?  Sure, but it’ll take a month or two.

Tapered legs . . . eh . . . Drawers . . . obviously . . . Wood type?  Guess we should go over that part.  Can’t make a desk without materials.  If you came to me then you don’t want plastic or metal or that fake stuff you find in stores.  You want a solid wood desk because you know quality.  My personal favorite is cherry wood because I like the color and refuse to do the staining.  Want to ruin perfection then you have to do it yourself.  Oak, maple, and ash are classics, which you can’t go wrong with.  We have a list of stains you can choose from there.  The best is cherry, of course.  I can also make a desk out of pine, but that comes with a smell.  What smell?  Rotten eggs and low tide.  What do you think it smells like?  Pine . . . Yeah, I can leave the bark along the edging like in the picture.  I did that long ago because I wanted to take a nap.  Good choice.

Now, the roll top is basic.  You need it to be foldable and go into the top section.  There isn’t much variety that I’m willing to put on that.  Smooth arches, squared, or reverse tapered are the fanciest.  The lock will go down here and only the front drawers will be open.  Sure, I can put a hole in that area for a laptop wire.  Why don’t I chop the legs off too?  If you have a desktop computer then you don’t want a roll top.  A laptop will be carried around anyway.  You can put it on the desk and plug it in once you sit down to do whatever you have to do.  Of course, I’m telling you how to do your job since you seem intent on telling me how to do mine.  Just trust me on this or we’re going to be here all day.

Now we have handles for the drawers . . . Diamond studs?  These are the things you grab and pull.  Diamonds will cut your skin or have to be constantly cleaned because you leave oil on them.  Just go with either wood or metal.  Sure, make them shaped like skulls or swords or whatever.  I’m not the one using it.  Now, anything else that you need on this desk?  No?  Good . . . Sign the contract and get out of my way until I’m done.  Thank you for your patronage.

Posted in Olde Shoppe Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Immortal Wars: Light, Blood, & Tears Part 5

Posted on February 11, 2021 by Charles Yallowitz

(Disclaimer: A warning to those who continue.  This is a sequel to a previous story.  Both of these were written in the mid-1990’s.  While the first one was slightly edited and vanity press published, this one has not been touched in over 20 years.  I figure I should do something with it and people may get a laugh or fright from how I used to be.  Every author comes from somewhere, so this is part of my origin.  To that end, I am deeply sorry for whatever nightmares I will inflict on the literary world and the American English language.  Enjoy?)

PREVIOUS ENTRY CLICK HERE

“It’s about time you showed up!” shouts Hydrana from the arena.  As Fate walks into the game room, he places his medallion on the bar.

“How about a practice bout?  You and me against the new drone warriors.  No powers and you can only use weapons if the robots drop them,” suggests Fate as he programs the arena’s computer system.  The door locks as soon as they take six steps into the training area.

“Okay.  After that, I talk and you listen.”

“Deal.”

A loud buzzer goes off and several robots jump through holes in the ceiling, in the floor, and in the walls.  They all have heavy gattling guns on their shoulders and swords instead of hands.  Occasionally, one of them spits out deadly razor blades with incredible accuracy.  As soon as the machines hit the ground, the guardians attack the training drones at full force.

“You have to give Infinity credit.  The new models look a lot more dangerous than the originals.  But they still break very easily.  They also seem to be a lot slower than the old ones,” announces Fate as he cleanly chops off a robot’s head with a karate chop.  Before that one hits the ground, the blond-haired boy flipkicks another of his attackers.  It clumsily topples backwards and gets itself impaled on a nearby robot’s sword.  When the guardian throws a third robot into the two of them, all three blow up in a small, yet very loud, explosion.

“Not bad, Eddie.  But this move is a whole lot better,” Hydrana laughs before spinning on one foot and destroying five robots with her other outstretched leg.  Once she stops spinning, a steel longsword goes smoothly through the redhead’s left shoulder from behind.  Instead of screaming in pain, like she would have done a year ago, she pushes off the floor with her powerful legs.  Both of the fighters slam into the wall, but only the robot falls apart.

“I don’t mean to ruin your fun, but you just lost your arm.”  The Mars guardian blocks two bullets with his right leg before giving a double-fist punching to one of the metal warriors.  When one of the larger ones grabs him by the arms and turns him upside-down, Fate kicks it with his heels repeatedly before he is dropped on his head.  This bigger robot has two rocket launchers on its shoulders instead of guns.  It fires both of its rockets at the guardian, but Fate jumps over one of the missiles and catches the other like it was a baseball.  He throws it back at the towering drone and the shot takes the robot’s head off.

“Here it is,” announces the redhead when she picks up her severed arm, which isn’t bleeding.  Two robots charge at her and she just smiles at them like a very hungry cat.  Once they get close enough to her, the Neptune guardian starts smashing them into circuits with her unattached arm.

“I said no weapons unless a robot drops one.  That includes any of your severed limbs.  Besides, it’s gross.”  The last of the drones jumps between them and attempts to put a large razor deep into the Mars guardian’s back.  But its head is crushed into powder when both guardians’ spin kicks it’s steel skull as hard as they can.

“Do you know that you have a razor blade stuck in your foot?” whispers Hydrana as she watches her arm start to grow back

“It hurts a lot more coming out of my heel than it did going in.  How long until your arm grows back?”

“Not long.  My best time is four minutes for a severed limb, but that’s if I force the healing.  Of course, this is a flesh wound compared to what that Palidor did to me last week.  Now, that was painful to the extreme.”

“I actually enjoyed twenty-four hours of you being entirely silent.  It was peaceful around here.”

“Of course, I was silent!  My head was missing!”

“At least it didn’t cut off anything that you used on a daily basis.  But it seems that a lot of problems have turned up over the past month.  Your head getting cut off and me getting killed are two good examples.  I think we’re getting sloppy, but I’ll talk to everyone about that later.  We can still work very efficiently if we have to.  Now, what did you want to tell me?”

“All of us have noticed that you’ve been putting a lot of unnecessary pressure on yourself.  Everyone, including me, is worried that sooner or later you’ll burn yourself out or become suicidal,” mentions Hydrana.

Fate picks up a color changing drink and some big, green slices of fruit before saying, “Have you been talking to SEAS about me?”

“No.  Why?”

“He told me to spend some quiet, relaxing time with Kelly.  So after this little meeting, I’ll be very busy doing absolutely nothing.  It might even help me regain some of my humanity, which I’ve been told I’m starting to lose.”

“That’s good for now.  But I have a long term answer to your problems.”

“I’m afraid to ask, but I guess I have no choice.  What’s your big idea?”

“A second-in-command.  Someone who is able to do some of your work and take a majority of the pressure off of your shoulders.  It will give you a lot more time to spend with the lonely Miracle.  When she said that she had missed you, it wasn’t only when you were dead in the comet.  You’ve ignored her for a long time and that is not helping you further your relationship.”

“Usually, I would ignore that statement, but you’re right this time.  Like I said before, a lot of great events seem to be happening lately.  But Kelly is the reason I’m going to take the next week off.  SEAS will be left in charge.”

“Hold it.  You’re dumb enough to put a machine in charge of us.  Listen to me, Eddie.  Everyone is with me on the idea of you having a second-in-command.  Even SEAS agrees with me.  Why not trust me for just this week?”

“You?  I knew there had to be some kind of selfish reason behind this idea.  And I thought you had changed over the past couple of months.”

“Why does everybody think that I’m nothing more than a spoiled brat?  In fact, I made up that whole bratty illusion because that was how my entire family wanted me to act!  So don’t blame me!  Blame them!” shouts the hazel-eyed immortal in a half-angry voice.

“Calm down.  Why do you think you should become my co-leader?”

“I’m a great fighter and I’m brave.  I also tend to keep a level head in battle.  No one on this base can fix or refit the space skimmers better than me.  Are those reasons good enough for you?”

“Bravery and incredible skill in combat are important to a planet guardian.  But they do not make a leader.  Draveon has those qualities and he’s nothing more than an oversized lackey for Adriana.  As for your cool under pressure behavior and your mechanical expertise, those can be useful no matter what rank you hold.  Of course, the way you handle responsibility goes against your case.”

“What are you talking about?  I am very responsible.  Ask anybody.  Except my ninth grade theater teacher.  I kept forgetting to memorize my lines and was always hitting on all of the cute guys.”

“This is not a joking matter.  The others on this base would probably agree that you show yourself to be very responsible.  But what if I ask your parents about your behavior?” whispers Fate.  The only reaction is total silence and an emotionless face replaces Hydrana’s once confident smile.

She finally gets herself under control before growling, “You have no right to go anywhere near that area, Fate.”

“Maybe not, but it has to be said.  When the rest of us went to tell our families about us being guardians, you went to a shopping mall.  Your parents don’t even know what has happened to you.  That was really immature behavior on your part.”

Suddenly, a geyser of boiling water smashes Fate into the ceiling and lets him drop onto a metal table.  Hydrana tries to punch him, but gets hurled over the distant bar by the blond guardian.  When Fate jumps onto the glass-covered bar, he sees the other guardian cowering in a corner and crying her heart out.

“You wouldn’t understand.  My parents never allowed me to do anything besides shop, party, and lounge around the mansion.  The only time I could play games was when they went away on their yearly three-month vacation and left me alone with the maids and butlers.  Unlike the rest of you, I was given everything.  But I hated it.  My parents gave me whatever I wanted, except their love.  My relationship with my parents is nothing more than a dog and its owners.  Even worse than that.  Unlike me, the dog gets love from its owner.  That was why I couldn’t, and still can’t, face them.  Well, that and the other thing that happened with my father.  But a sweet guy like you doesn’t need to know about those kinds of things.  Don’t you see that being a planet guardian was my only way to escape them?  Now that I’m up here, my parents are unable to hurt and control me anymore,” Hydrana cries between hefty sobs.  She lets Fate help her up and he brings her quietly to her room.

Before Hydrana goes into her aquarium filled room, Fate says, “Look.  I’ll let you be second-in-command on one condition.  You have to find some way to prove to me that you can act responsible.  I’d really like to see you confront your parents or do some kind of selfless act.”

“But . . .” she starts to say.

“No excuses.  I’m sorry for you, Hydrana.  I truly am.  But you have to be able to deal with your current problems before I can give you anymore.  It’s the best for the entire group and us.  Understand?”

“Yeah.  Can I tell you something, Eddie?  You’re a good friend that I never wanted.”

“I know.  Goodnight, Delila.”

If Fate listened through Hydrana’s door for a few more seconds, he would have heard her mumble, “Delila Mandervale III.  She’s dead, Mars guardian.  But it wasn’t as if she was ever alive to begin with.”

Posted in Immortal Wars | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments