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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2014 17:15:38 GMT -6
Welp, due to a request from someone *cough*ora*cough* I've decided to post bits of my new novel Earthen up for people to read. Keep in mind this is a first edit and was thrown together in the space of a month for NANOWRIMO, so it's still sloppy and unworked. Please, don't hold back and let me know exactly what you think (if anyone actually reads it)
PROLOGUE
The wailing of a small child shattered the illusory silence of the forest. Held in shaking arms, it was desperately shushed by its mother, rocked to and fro in an effort to bring calm, to tell it that everything was going to be ok. But safety was a leisure that lied far from the shadows of that forest, the mother knew it and from her the baby knew it too, and cried. Shadows emerged from the darkness, taking forms of garbed and painted men that stalked the forest like animals. Low to the ground they kept their ring like prowling wolves. Shoulder to shoulder their eyes gleamed bright in the darkness. The trees leaned away from their presence, weaving their branches together to create an entangled wall around the wild survivors, to protect them from the cracks and shouts resonating behind the shadows, drawing nearer.
The darkness bloomed red as a lit arrow shot through the darkness and pierced the wall. The cries grew louder as the tree screamed and even the protective warriors winced at the agony in the cry. Immediately more arrows followed the first and soon the night was ablaze, casting shadows that stretched and groped for any life they could catch. The wall gave way as men, cloaked in cold metal and leather stormed the clearing, firelight flickering cruelly off their raised weapons and sharp armour. With a war cry they charged in unison towards the small group of survivors, who huddled around the woman and her child with unexpected ferocity.
Chaos broke open as the two parties met each other in the burning clearing. The odds of the battle were one sided from the beginning, the advanced weaponry crippling even the tenacity of the strangers, who fell under the slashing metal of the soldiers’ swords and arrows. Blood painted arcs in the clearing as both soldiers and tribesmen were slain. A lifeless body slumped to the ground in front of the mother, the jagged slash that bared his ribs dowsing her with scarlet blood. The baby screamed and the voice of the mother joined it in the night, drawing the attention of the last warrior standing.
Kneeling alone in a circle of his fallen brothers, the aged man lifted his weapon to his lips and blew. An old flute carved from wood, the sound was a pure drop that resonated soulfully throughout the forest, driving the shadows back momentarily. The world silenced for an eerie second, the trees blowed yet no sound could be heard, until there was a pop in the ears of every man and woman as the world came back into focus. The enemy wavered slightly before surging forward again, the front soldier raising his sword, swinging it down with enough brutality to cleave the old man in two, to his waist. He died with a smile on his lips, hidden by the bloodstained flute which he refused to release. The crying of the baby was what brought the attention back to the clearing, the again the front solider turned with his sword raised to silence the interference and its mother. Before the weapon could fall, the solider fell first, as a black spear erupted through his chest. Lifted off his feet, he was shaken like a child’s ragdoll, nothing more than an annoyance as the lifeless corpse was tossed across the clearing to sprawl at the base of a tree. The roots hungrily laced over the body and tugged it underground as the soil gave way.
The world took a collective breath as all eyes turned to the new threat, soldiers raised their swords and the mother hugged her child closer, lips moving in silent prayer. A Unicorn, furred coat black as burnt coals had stepped into the clearing. Its head towered above even that of the tallest of men and the darkness of its eyes sucked all the light out of the clearing. The fires went out and the breath was released as slowly, wraiths appeared amongst the trees. Unicorns of all shades, from purest white to a black so dark it shone a poisonous purple in the sickly light. They’re hooves were of purest gold, and the lengths of their horns could rival that of a man’s arm, coiled tightly into a weapon of deadly beauty.
There was no chaos in this battle, it was a silent massacre as the Unicorns spread and ghosted on silent hooves, horns flashing and teeth pointed and rowed like needles grated and ripped. There was a deadly and terrifying grace in the vengeance of the Unicorns, those who had come to protect at the calling of their Keeper. Friend was no longer distinguishable for foe and it was no longer a priority as men scrambled over the corpses of their enemies and comrades alike to escape. None were so fortunate, and were either felled by the primal beasts or strangled by the trees, the very forest coming to life to dole out its vengeance, greedy after the blood that had already been drenched into its soil.
The trees wore necklaces of blood by the time the last of the soldiers had been slaughtered. The horns of the Unicorns gleamed wet, though not a drop of blood dared mar their purest coats. The trees whispered of events in hushed tones, of the red tinged night, and of the two sets of lungs that continued to breathe in the forsaken clearing. The mother and her child remained, hugged against the trunk of the tree by its drooping branches, saved from the touch but not the sight of the massacre. The baby, exhausted by its own fear had been lulled into an uneasy sleep, held close to its mother’s chest. The tree released its protection as the fallen pair where approached by the black Unicorn, its intelligent black eyes starless and cold. The last two members of the Kimdrel tribe drew together as the black being paused and snorted, breath misting in the suddenly chill air. A semi-circle formed behind the scene, the warrior beasts silently watching their leader for his decision.
The human mother drew a quick breath and tilted her chin to face the Unicorn, though soon found her face lowered with tears in her eyes, unable to face the beauty of the creature after seeing such bloodshed. It was a terrifying moment as the Unicorn, copying her movement, lowered its head, tapered horn a hairs breadth from her chest, dangerously close to her heart. Her breath caught, as did her heart as the nostrils of the Unicorn quivered, sniffing at the coveted bundle in her arms. “Please,” she begged; her voice no more than a hoarse whisper. The Unicorn raised its sharp gaze to meet hers, its twisted horn scratching a thin line up her cheek, drawing a single drop of blood which balanced on the tip of the horn, before splashing onto the baby’s forehead soundlessly. “Please, do not harm him,” she tried again, afraid to lose the gaze of the Unicorn.
Slowly, the black eyes closed and the creature leaned forward until the tip of its horn rested on the forehead of the mother, it was a movement of intense control, the show so tender that not a single drop of blood was spilled at the touch. A ring of light quivered from the tip of the horn, enveloping the human pair. A shaky breath was released as the mother also closed her eyes, surrendering herself to the touch of the Unicorn, letting the warm light enwrap her in all its purity.
The trees whispered in excitement as light flooded the clearing, a wind stirred and all of the beasts shifted eagerly, heads tossing and hooves stomping on flesh and dirt. When the light faded it did so slowly, softly buzzing out of existence until only the night and the Unicorns remained. Now there were two new Unicorns in the clearing, ringed by the dead. A fallen mother, creamy white with the shadings of the first pink sunset in her silken fur; and by her side a little solider boy, silver as the water of a tumbling waterfall from his horn to his tail. Golden eyes flashed open and blinked, taking in a world which suddenly seemed so very different, and on his side he felt the warm muzzle of his mother gesturing for him to stand.
Soundlessly and following the shadowed leader, the Unicorns disappeared one by one into the night, and in their trail followed the newest of the Unicorns, silently and ghostly as the rest. And in the clearing the old man still smiled, and the shadows were released to gorge on flesh and blood.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2014 21:08:40 GMT -6
50 shades of Unicorn It's absolutely lovely, fantastic, favoloso. Sounds like these Unicorns are pretty metal. Maybe some explanation on the lore might help some of your audience. It would explain some things better, besides just saying that they live in a mythical land. But I still loved it.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2014 5:29:28 GMT -6
Awww -squish- Mmm, thanks! I'm going to abuse you and get you to help me heaps with this, if you continue reading. :3
SECRETS
“Damn Kae and his secrets,” Ellias scoffed, scrunching up the crisp parchment in her hand angrily. Her orders were as ambiguous as always, and as usual in his letter her master hadn’t even taken the time to ask how she was doing. While she was by now used to the strange missions she was constantly sent on in his name, the contents of her most recent letter bordered on absurd, certainly suicidal in the least. At the beckon of her master, she had been given the task of the capture of one Unicorn, alive and kicking, in all its carnivorous frenzy. She had a better chance of swimming in a pool of piranhas naked and coming out unscathed than surviving the Umbreil Forest, and with a Unicorn in her grip of all things.
Ever since the Weice Revolution had ended, the Umbreil Forest had become a place avoided by all sane men. The Evening Clearing, where the last of the Kimdrel people had been slain in a final and bloody battle was legend, and feared. Even fifty years after the war the forest hadn’t forgotten the taste of blood, and unwary fools that travelled into the forest unprepared seldom travelled out again, certainly never in the same mind with which they entered. When the Kimdrel ships had arrived on the North Coast the soliders of Brynn were in no way prepared for the unknown enemy. The cause of attack was never clear, nor were there many words spoken between the two sides. With the Kimdrel came a force ne’er seen by the likes of the citizens of Brynn. The Tribes People brought magic as their shield and sword and way of life, they brought diviners and prophets and sorcerers that could twist a man’s skin inside out during battle. And with the Kimdrel came the Unicorns, sacred and deadly creatures that could hardly be believed for their beauty or their accuracy and love of battle. They were their mounts, where the soldiers of Brynn rode fine stallions; a Kimdrel warrior on a Unicorn would rival him on otherworldly levels.
When the Kimdrel brought their magic, the land beneath their feet became touched, and the Umbreil forest, the site of their last stand, became permanently marked by their presence. Still the trees whisper and taunt travellers, plucking them into the canopies or dragging them underground to rot, still the Unicorns which remained even after their masters had fallen plagued the shadows of the forest like ghosts. Only a fool would enter the cursed forest, but better a witty fool than not, and especially one with a purpose.
“He’d better have a damn good reason for doing this to me,” Ellias muttered, putting off the inevitable by distracting herself with threats to her master. “If I lose an arm to some bloody Unicorn, I’ll tear his balls out and feed them to a goat.” The event of course was most unlikely; if she was caught by a Unicorn it definitely wouldn’t stop at taking just an arm. Besides, for all Kae’s stupidity, technically he had raised her, and she still owed him that debt.
Sighing, Ellias leaned back against her rest, the solid trunk of a tree and looked at the crumpled parchment in her hands. Unfolding it with slow care, she reread the words again to be sure, then couldn’t resist rolling her eyes as the sheer absurdity of the request. “What does he think he’s going to do with a Unicorn anyway?” she murmured allowed, folding the letter with more care this time, and tucking it into the loose sleeve of her leather jerkin. Shielding her eyes with a hand, she glanced at the sky, lips pursing in thought. It was mid-afternoon now; luckily she had been on her way to Ranadin when she was swooped by her master’s messenger falcon. Ranadin was a coastal town, it was inevitable that she would pass the Umbreil forest on her way, and as such she was close enough now not to worry about the distance. Alone and at her pace, Ellias wagered that if she were to pack her camp now and leave, she’d reach the outskirts by nightfall. Camping by the Umbreil forest by night, even on the edges sounded like a death trap. It was immensely safer to stay at her camp for the remainder of the day, and use what time she had left to prepare for the forest. Setting off at dawn seemed like a much more attractive prospect.
She had a fire going already, with a skinned rabbit roasting on a spit. In the previous town, she had also spared herself the luxury of a few fresh potatoes, and one of these was cooking now, wrapped in a broad leaf on one of the rocks she had ringed her fire with. Other than that, her stock was pitifully low with no extra meat to show, a single potato and some chestnuts she had been intending to roast for dessert. She’d have to keep them now, for as long as she could.
Resigning herself to an apparently inevitable afternoon of hunting, Ellias stood with a stiff groan. Bark and dirt clung to her pants and wrapped jacket, so used to travel they were worn and thin in most places, though she’d never considered getting new ones. Her hair, blonde and subtly curled was home to a combination of leaves and dirt, since she hadn’t taken the time for a bath, similarly, her face and the rest of her skin had seen better condition too. The only part of her attire that gave Ellias any image of worth was her weaponry and the obvious care that was put into each and every aspect of it. The bow slung on her back was long and carved intricately by delicate hands. Yet it was strong, a war bow like the ones used during the War, with a draw weight seemingly much too heavy for a girl as slim and petite as her. But the bow was carefully oiled and the rich ochre of the wood shone with vibrance, as did the depictures carved into it. On her right wrist was a jade and leather wrist guard, and the only piece of clothing obviously well maintained. And while it was only the bow and quiver on her back that were visible to those who looked, the same care had been shown to the dagger in her boot and the slip-knives hidden up her slightly over-sized sleeves. Careless in appearance but never in action, Ellias had been trained to look one thing and act as another from birth. If anyone had a chance of finding and capturing a live Unicorn in the Umbreil, it was her, and she knew it as well as Kae did.
Unslinging her bow, Ellias did a quick turn of the clearing she had chosen for a campsite. Flat and encircled by sparse trees, it was open while still providing some cover, and an unhindered view of the stars. Every night she sent her prayers to the Allier, the fallen star spirits, and all her life had been connected to the sky and stars in a way that had never been rivalled by anything. Sleeping under a starless sky seemed unimaginable, sleeping even under a roof was a chore that she lusted to avoid where possible. The light of the Allier couldn’t breach stone walls, or so she heard, the canopy of the Umbreil. The land was quiet and straining her senses, she detected no outside forces. Still, she took the precaution of kicking out the fire, as much as a pain as it would be to light it again in the dark, it wasn’t worth being caught and questioned. Her missions for Kae were frequent and she was surprisingly well known, more so because her methods of completing missions, in all their varying criteria, weren’t always considered ‘ethical’ by most civilized men. So while some company didn’t seem too bad, it wasn’t worth the trouble. Turning after one last glance, Ellias set off into the woods for a hunt.
The traps she had set earlier that morning were the first things she checked. One snare had managed to catch a fat pigeon, though she suspected with disappointment that most of it was just feathers. All of her other snares either hadn’t been sprung, or had failed. The hand-made fish hooks she had cast out in the deep riverbed that flowed all the way into the forest and to the ocean gave more reward, with a fish caught on one and a small crab that had somehow managed to hook and spear itself onto another. It was a disappointing haul in total and for the amount of time she wanted to spend in the forests, was probably ample for meals accompanied with her current stock. Now it was simply hunter’s lust that pulled her bow off her shoulder to stalk down some meat.
A deer trail, though she did find one, was something too long and unpredictable to follow, so instead she busied herself with the prospect of another bird to add to her pigeon. Stringing her bow, she ran her hand over the smooth wood in a loving caress. Years of violent training kept her feet silent as she glided over the debris, avoiding dry leaves or sticks that sought to foil her.
A fluttering to the right drew her attention, a flash of black through the trees that she recognized as she drew nearer, using the shadow of a young Ash Maple for cover. A young jackdaw was pecking at the leaves, flipping them over carelessly and solely focused, as youths often are before they learn caution, on the possibility of food. Releasing a breath as she drew an arrow from her quiver, Ellias smiled at the familiar feeling of power in her hands. It gave her comfort, knowing that she could and did defend and care for herself. She enjoyed it, having that power. It was probably one of the more negative traits she had adopted from Kae as a youngster. Feathers from a speckled Snow Owl fletched the ends of her arrow as she strung it on her bow. They were of good quality, sharp and barbed with curved tips for catching her prey and not letting go. Arguably, it wasn’t a bow made for hunting. Or, at least not hunting animals.
Her breathing naturally slowed, years of training steadying her fingers as she raised the bow to her cheek. She released with a reverberating twang of the string and watched with grim certainty as the arrow flew true and landed in the bird’s eye, killing it instantly. It was always cleaner to shoot prey through the eye, so she had mastered the technique long ago, it simply seemed more professional. Striding through a patch of growth, she knelt at the fallen creature’s side and deftly plucked her arrow out, the barbs unfortunately bringing the bird’s black eye with it. Grimacing, she flicked off the slimy orb and filed her arrow back into the quiver on her back, there was time to clean it later in the evening.
Placing the two fingers of her right hand on the bird’s breast, Ellias’s eyes slid shut in silent prayer for the spirit of the bird, urging it to find shelter in the light of the Allier. Then, with nothing else to hold her then, she gathered her kill and made for camp.
Dinner was a rather sombre affair. Having to leave again for dry tinder after her fire died out in her absence, Ellias spent the better part of an hour first trying to restart her fire, then placing her spitted rabbit back on to cook. Thinking of the fat Jackdaw made her mouth water, but the meat on the bird would keep longer than the skinny rabbit she had already cooked. With a healthier supply of food stocked, Ellias was altogether more prepared, though no more eager to venture into the forest the following morning.
As the silver moon revealed the Allier in the sky, the shadows of the earth stalked around her fire and danced in the moonlight, waiting for their chance to strike. The glint of a knife shaking in her hands warned them back as well, as did the hooved mount the human shared her camp with. The brother of Unicorns, albeit it weaker and mortal, were feared alongside their horned kin. The creatures of light were no friend to the shadows of the Earth. Detecting a presence, the horse shook its head and snorted. The shadows retreated.
That night was cold enough that Ellias sat awake by the fire for the longest time, unable to sleep. When the last of the flames had licked out and the glowing coals were the only thing separating her from the shadows in the trees, Ellias drifted into an uneasy sleep, plagued with demons she could never see or touch, always dancing out of reach of her fingers. Shouting out for help, or answers, the trodden ground beneath her feet turned to mud and sucked her down, further and further into the cold earth. She was swallowed screaming, hugged by the cold earth and food for the worms.
She woke the next morning in a cold sweat, fear causing her heart to race like the fastest horses of Bealliya. It was a moment before she could convince herself to move, taking the time to school her breathing, scolding herself for fearing over a nightmare. Sitting up, she rubbed a hand over her tired eyes with a sigh. She could feel the sun on her face already, so she’d slept later than she’d intended. Then sun had already fully risen out of the sky.
Moving with more haste now, Ellias stood and dusted off her clothes. Packing up camp was always faster than setting it up, and in under an hour she had rolled her bed, tacked up Kyledi, her mount, and kicked out the last traces of her fire from the night before. Double, then triple checking her weapons cache, Ellias’s hesitation grew as she accepted that there was now nothing stopping her from leaving, except herself. Striding over to Kyledi, she stroked the mare’s velvet nose for a moment, unable to take comfort in the familiar scent of horse, when all she could do was wonder if a Unicorn smelt the same. “Unlikely,” she muttered in disgust. “They probably smell of roses, or fresh blood.” Not taking the time to dwell on the unusual comparison, she swung up onto the bay mare and kicked her forward. The longer she stayed in the clearing, the more reluctant she would be to leave.
Riding had always managed to calm her nerves in the past, but now as the Umbreil appeared as a dark smudge on the horizon she felt a shiver up her spine. The dark swathe grew until it towered above her head, a netted and impenetrable mass that allowed nothing in, and nothing out. Dismounting on the outskirts, Ellias’s feet sunk into the damp earth and remembering her nightmare, she quickly stepped onto more solid ground. Taking an apprehensive breath, the girl surveyed the knotted forest with disappointment, there was no room to fit a horse through the tightly woven gaps. She’d have to go on foot. Remounting, she backtracked until a more stable ground was beneath them. The plains would have plenty of grass for Kyledi to feed herself on, so even if Ellias didn’t return on time she had no reason to fear for her horse’s wellbeing. Unburdening the mare, she stored the tack behind a tree, where it would hopefully remain safe from the elements and any thieves that blundered through. Then, with a final farewell to Kyledi, Ellias turned back to the forest alone.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2014 16:58:52 GMT -6
a Jackdaw it had to be a Jackdaw
I do enjoy this very much, especially the descriptive hunting and agh! I do ask for more. I'm not sure of how much help I could be, but I could try.
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