Elaina J. Davidson's Blog, page 351
April 17, 2016
The King's Challenge #277
TKC 277
The trapdoor entry into the Spire is in a grove further from the action.
As we head towards it, the fighting retreats from us and eventually dying away. The Glonu do not follow. It is clear to me they are under orders to guard the Spire at all costs, to remain in place before it; it is also clear the trapdoor entry is unknown to them. The new arrivals from the stars have no idea there is another way in.
The entire team is soon with us. Once clear of the Spire, they are no longer seen as a threat.
“Stupid,” Damin mutters under his breath.
Gennerin huffs his agreement.
I pull the green shield back until it becomes a small sphere of influence around us. “This was made after,” I say, kneeling before the hidden door set in leaf mould and damp earth. “They are unaware of it.”
Damin is about to heft it up … when a light fills the small clearing.
I swing around, knowing both the quality of that light and the sense of presence emanating from the glow. “Sassen?” I whisper.
The ethereal woman who once appeared to Hanna and me when we were alone inside Arc takes on form nearby.
The five soldiers train their weapons. “You cannot touch her. Lower your weapons,” I state, and they lower, although everyone is on high alert.
“Lady, it is a trap,” Sassen whispers. “Do not enter there.”
Arms akimbo, I face her. “I recall you telling me not to trust the ghosts of Arc and they have proven as allies. Why should I trust you now?”
“Were they allies?” she murmurs. “They have moved on, but is it not also true that you are the last of a host that entered this place? Were the ghosts fighting for you or were they drawing you towards the Glonu? Think carefully.”
She has a point, but I saw them kneel before Enris. They gifted him his sword; they fought at his side. Squinting at her, I say, “You are waylaying us. Why?”
The trapdoor entry into the Spire is in a grove further from the action.
As we head towards it, the fighting retreats from us and eventually dying away. The Glonu do not follow. It is clear to me they are under orders to guard the Spire at all costs, to remain in place before it; it is also clear the trapdoor entry is unknown to them. The new arrivals from the stars have no idea there is another way in.
The entire team is soon with us. Once clear of the Spire, they are no longer seen as a threat.
“Stupid,” Damin mutters under his breath.
Gennerin huffs his agreement.
I pull the green shield back until it becomes a small sphere of influence around us. “This was made after,” I say, kneeling before the hidden door set in leaf mould and damp earth. “They are unaware of it.”
Damin is about to heft it up … when a light fills the small clearing.
I swing around, knowing both the quality of that light and the sense of presence emanating from the glow. “Sassen?” I whisper.
The ethereal woman who once appeared to Hanna and me when we were alone inside Arc takes on form nearby.
The five soldiers train their weapons. “You cannot touch her. Lower your weapons,” I state, and they lower, although everyone is on high alert.
“Lady, it is a trap,” Sassen whispers. “Do not enter there.”
Arms akimbo, I face her. “I recall you telling me not to trust the ghosts of Arc and they have proven as allies. Why should I trust you now?”
“Were they allies?” she murmurs. “They have moved on, but is it not also true that you are the last of a host that entered this place? Were the ghosts fighting for you or were they drawing you towards the Glonu? Think carefully.”
She has a point, but I saw them kneel before Enris. They gifted him his sword; they fought at his side. Squinting at her, I say, “You are waylaying us. Why?”
Sanctum Sale!
To celebrate the launch of The Nowhere Sphere, all three Lore of Sanctum books have been marked down to a mere 99c each!
Now on pre-order - launch date 4 MayThe Nowhere Sphere
99c as well until 4 May!The Nemesis BladeThe Echolone Mine
Now on pre-order - launch date 4 MayThe Nowhere Sphere
99c as well until 4 May!The Nemesis BladeThe Echolone Mine
April 16, 2016
The King's Challenge #276
TKC 276
It was never going to be easy, and that is borne out when we hit the ground running.
We landed on the far edge of open territory before the Spire; between us and it a host awaits. Weapons are raised within seconds, as well as shouts. There is only one objective, to reach the soaring tower and, to that end, I throw my hands up.
The eerie green shield both Horin and Enris deployed erupts from my fingers as a bird in flight and becomes an ethereal wall between us and them.
“Go!” Damin hollers.
We go.
We cannot concern ourselves by those taking the flanks; I concentrate on getting to the Spire with Damin, Gennerin and Marian. The shield, I am aware, will aid the others for some while, in the form of wings, but eventually the Glonu will discover the chinks.
Now is the time to be swift.
Even in the darkening it is obvious the Spire is plastered shale. I did not notice that before, as Lyra, but my attention then was for what lay inside, not on the outside. Sending out feelers, I reach for the weakest points, the areas where we will insert our explosives.
Suddenly I come to a halt.
Gennerin nearly runs into me, controlling the involuntary action just in time, and he grips Marian’s arm as she almost hurtles past us.
Damin, heaving, demands, “Why are we stopping?”
“The weakness lie below,” I tell him. “We need to get inside.”
“The trapdoor you used before?”
Nodding, I say, “It will be heavily guarded. Call the others back to us. We go together.”
“Damn it, this smacks of failure,” Damin mutters. “Changing a strategy is what gets soldiers killed.”
“They are not all soldiers and if we do not change strategy, Massin will be Glonu territory within a few days,” I snarl back at him.
Gennerin blows a silver whistle, the screech painful on the ears. Lowering it, he murmurs, “Allin and Ross know the whistle; they will ring the others to us.”
It was never going to be easy, and that is borne out when we hit the ground running.
We landed on the far edge of open territory before the Spire; between us and it a host awaits. Weapons are raised within seconds, as well as shouts. There is only one objective, to reach the soaring tower and, to that end, I throw my hands up.
The eerie green shield both Horin and Enris deployed erupts from my fingers as a bird in flight and becomes an ethereal wall between us and them.
“Go!” Damin hollers.
We go.
We cannot concern ourselves by those taking the flanks; I concentrate on getting to the Spire with Damin, Gennerin and Marian. The shield, I am aware, will aid the others for some while, in the form of wings, but eventually the Glonu will discover the chinks.
Now is the time to be swift.
Even in the darkening it is obvious the Spire is plastered shale. I did not notice that before, as Lyra, but my attention then was for what lay inside, not on the outside. Sending out feelers, I reach for the weakest points, the areas where we will insert our explosives.
Suddenly I come to a halt.
Gennerin nearly runs into me, controlling the involuntary action just in time, and he grips Marian’s arm as she almost hurtles past us.
Damin, heaving, demands, “Why are we stopping?”
“The weakness lie below,” I tell him. “We need to get inside.”
“The trapdoor you used before?”
Nodding, I say, “It will be heavily guarded. Call the others back to us. We go together.”
“Damn it, this smacks of failure,” Damin mutters. “Changing a strategy is what gets soldiers killed.”
“They are not all soldiers and if we do not change strategy, Massin will be Glonu territory within a few days,” I snarl back at him.
Gennerin blows a silver whistle, the screech painful on the ears. Lowering it, he murmurs, “Allin and Ross know the whistle; they will ring the others to us.”
TKC Update (April)
Hello!
As you may have noticed, we caught up with the missing King's Challenge episodes, despite continuing renovations. You may have noticed also that new work has taken my attention from keeping it up. This month I have approved and published the Spanish translation for Ancient Illumination (Llamada ancestral), have put up a short, romantic fairy tale (Minstrel of the Water Willow) AND published the third book in my Lore of Sanctum series (The Nowhere Sphere) - been kinda busy!!
Now that the publishing side is calmer again, we will catch up on episodes. We are nearing the end ... and then this book too will need to be prepared for publishing :)
Come back later; the next episode will be up in an hour or so!
As you may have noticed, we caught up with the missing King's Challenge episodes, despite continuing renovations. You may have noticed also that new work has taken my attention from keeping it up. This month I have approved and published the Spanish translation for Ancient Illumination (Llamada ancestral), have put up a short, romantic fairy tale (Minstrel of the Water Willow) AND published the third book in my Lore of Sanctum series (The Nowhere Sphere) - been kinda busy!!
Now that the publishing side is calmer again, we will catch up on episodes. We are nearing the end ... and then this book too will need to be prepared for publishing :)
Come back later; the next episode will be up in an hour or so!
April 15, 2016
Come with me to NOWHERE!
FINALLY! Volume 3 of the Sanctum series is now published!
It is available on pre-order at the moment and the paperback will be ready tomorrow.
Blurb
At the time of Tianoman Valla’s Naming, a blue sphere hovers in the scrying bowl, along with a silver cathron in an ebony floor. The time for that future is due, for beyond realms and the known universe, a mighty manipulation begins, and it assumes the form of blue spherical space.
This is a Nowhere Sphere.
Tianoman is kidnapped and taken to the place where a silver cathron knocker lurks in the darkness of a polished surface, where also a crucible swirls in vapour, creating within an entity that cannot be permitted life.
An entire planet is vaporised and souls scream for release in the aftermath. As Torrullin Valla’s memory returns after the event on Echolone, his ability to forgive is buried in the layers time has laid down in his mind, and now he needs to care, to feel again, to forgive. He must travel the void created by anti-matter to find not only Tianoman and the other Vallas, but also Elianas Danae.
Elianas is taken in the unleashing of mighty manipulation, for he must suffer most.
In Nowhere, everything that moves in hearts, minds and souls will become the answers Torrullin requires to again known himself. It will also unmask the Danae.
AmazonSmashwords
April 14, 2016
Llamada Ancestral!
I hit the 'publish' button this morning for the approved Spanish version of Ancient Illumination!Thank you to Carla Leguizamon Theodule (I know there are accent marks missing!) for a stellar translation!
Ancient IlluminationLinks for the Spanish translation to follow :)
Ancient IlluminationLinks for the Spanish translation to follow :)
April 13, 2016
The King's Challenge #274 and #275
TKC 274 and 275
Dusk is upon us as we skim the treetops. We will be at the Spire in a few minutes and everyone is tense, especially the women.
I study them. We are all strapped in for the ride, but hand movements and shifting eyes reveal their anxiety. Leaning forward as far as I am able to, I draw their attention.
“Siri, you must stay aboard no matter what happens out there. I may have need of your healers’ talent soon. Please.” I know Siri Mur can be stubborn and hope she hears me.
She glances at Kay, who nods imperceptibly. I notice Damin’s eyebrows shoot up. Stupid man; he has not yet understood about Kay and Siri. Siri looks to Damin next, who stares steadily back at her. I choke back laughter when she sticks her tongue out at her brother.
“I will remain here,” she murmurs, nodding at me. “Why bring me, though, if I am to stay behind?”
“Because you are safer with us.”
“Really?” Her eyebrows hike up.
“Yes,” Damin growls, causing Kay to flick him a look.
I focus on Marian. “You have to be with us. I believe you know why.” The Messenger inclines her head. She is able to collapse rock; we may need her. “Hanna,” I smile, “you will not like this …”
My saviour and tracker grins back. “I will watch over … the shuttle.”
She meant to say ‘Siri’, but knows that Mur will become obstinate.
Damin speaks then. “Artur, Hal, Allin and you, soldier, secure our left flank as soon as we hit ground. Kay, Joseph, Ross and you, mate, take the right. Commander, you will be with Iniri and myself. You, soldier, stay with the shuttle, and be on guard at all times. Shoot first, hear?” He points to the three added soldiers in turn. “Marian, you remain in the rear. Keep low.” He glances around, meeting each set of eyes. “We move fast, but it will be dark and the terrain is unfamiliar, so be careful also, do not stumble if you can help it.”
“Your helmet visor has night vision,” Gennerin puts in. “Tap here twice.” He shows us how to access the added vision. “Tap once if you need to turn it off. Do not stare directly into a light source or you will be blinded.”
We are all in Ilfin uniform, gear included. “What does this do?” I point at a red toggle set into the side of the slim pack we will wear on our backs.
“A parachute,” Corporal Allin says. “Handy for escape from a high point, but it will also lift you if deployed from the ground. A last resort, however.”
“Pull only when heavily under fire, then shoot for all you are worth down upon the enemy. You will have seconds only before the parachute drags you to earth again,” Gennerin murmurs.
“Twenty seconds!” The navigator hollers from the cockpit.
Instantly nerves flutter as flying ants in my belly. By the stars, Iniri was a priestess in another life and Lyra was a country girl. What do either of us know about warfare? My left hand warms without warning. Looking down, I see light leaking through my clenched fingers, but it is no longer Lyra’s light, the elemental kind. This is green; this is the orb’s magic. I now possess the Warrior within.
Damin is looking at me. He understands the Warrior does not live long. Whatever we were together in a past life and became again here on Massin will soon have no meaning. Our future will not be lengthy.
I blink as realisation dawns. This is why I have it. This is why I am the orb. Enris must live, for he is the heir, the future king. I am expendable.
The shuttle descends, the door opens, the ramp lowers. Harnesses are undone, we stand.
Damin strides across the small space. He grips me to him and kisses me. “I love you,” he says as he releases me.
I cannot answer because Siri stomps through us to grab Kay’s face, bringing his mouth to hers to kiss him deeply. “Live, hear?”
He offers a lopsided grin before lifting his gaze to Damin. Then, shrugging, he heads to Joseph and Ross.
Laughing, I drag Damin into position.
The shuttle lands.
Dusk is upon us as we skim the treetops. We will be at the Spire in a few minutes and everyone is tense, especially the women.
I study them. We are all strapped in for the ride, but hand movements and shifting eyes reveal their anxiety. Leaning forward as far as I am able to, I draw their attention.
“Siri, you must stay aboard no matter what happens out there. I may have need of your healers’ talent soon. Please.” I know Siri Mur can be stubborn and hope she hears me.
She glances at Kay, who nods imperceptibly. I notice Damin’s eyebrows shoot up. Stupid man; he has not yet understood about Kay and Siri. Siri looks to Damin next, who stares steadily back at her. I choke back laughter when she sticks her tongue out at her brother.
“I will remain here,” she murmurs, nodding at me. “Why bring me, though, if I am to stay behind?”
“Because you are safer with us.”
“Really?” Her eyebrows hike up.
“Yes,” Damin growls, causing Kay to flick him a look.
I focus on Marian. “You have to be with us. I believe you know why.” The Messenger inclines her head. She is able to collapse rock; we may need her. “Hanna,” I smile, “you will not like this …”
My saviour and tracker grins back. “I will watch over … the shuttle.”
She meant to say ‘Siri’, but knows that Mur will become obstinate.
Damin speaks then. “Artur, Hal, Allin and you, soldier, secure our left flank as soon as we hit ground. Kay, Joseph, Ross and you, mate, take the right. Commander, you will be with Iniri and myself. You, soldier, stay with the shuttle, and be on guard at all times. Shoot first, hear?” He points to the three added soldiers in turn. “Marian, you remain in the rear. Keep low.” He glances around, meeting each set of eyes. “We move fast, but it will be dark and the terrain is unfamiliar, so be careful also, do not stumble if you can help it.”
“Your helmet visor has night vision,” Gennerin puts in. “Tap here twice.” He shows us how to access the added vision. “Tap once if you need to turn it off. Do not stare directly into a light source or you will be blinded.”
We are all in Ilfin uniform, gear included. “What does this do?” I point at a red toggle set into the side of the slim pack we will wear on our backs.
“A parachute,” Corporal Allin says. “Handy for escape from a high point, but it will also lift you if deployed from the ground. A last resort, however.”
“Pull only when heavily under fire, then shoot for all you are worth down upon the enemy. You will have seconds only before the parachute drags you to earth again,” Gennerin murmurs.
“Twenty seconds!” The navigator hollers from the cockpit.
Instantly nerves flutter as flying ants in my belly. By the stars, Iniri was a priestess in another life and Lyra was a country girl. What do either of us know about warfare? My left hand warms without warning. Looking down, I see light leaking through my clenched fingers, but it is no longer Lyra’s light, the elemental kind. This is green; this is the orb’s magic. I now possess the Warrior within.
Damin is looking at me. He understands the Warrior does not live long. Whatever we were together in a past life and became again here on Massin will soon have no meaning. Our future will not be lengthy.
I blink as realisation dawns. This is why I have it. This is why I am the orb. Enris must live, for he is the heir, the future king. I am expendable.
The shuttle descends, the door opens, the ramp lowers. Harnesses are undone, we stand.
Damin strides across the small space. He grips me to him and kisses me. “I love you,” he says as he releases me.
I cannot answer because Siri stomps through us to grab Kay’s face, bringing his mouth to hers to kiss him deeply. “Live, hear?”
He offers a lopsided grin before lifting his gaze to Damin. Then, shrugging, he heads to Joseph and Ross.
Laughing, I drag Damin into position.
The shuttle lands.
