Elaina J. Davidson's Blog, page 371
December 22, 2015
Fantasy Writer!
On one of those quiz sites, this came up. Seems I am doing what I should be doing :)
95 000+!!
Thank you so much for visiting!
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The King's Challenge #142
TKC 142
I am the one who dares ask, “Why exactly are they our enemies?” No one else seems capable of speech.
Horin gets to his feet and places his hands on the table, leaning onto them, causing the burgeoning muscles in his shoulders to bulge. “They are slavers.”
Well, truth is, always we have lived under the yoke of slavery in some form and, yes, this makes slave masters our enemies, but I have the distinct feeling Horin is on about something far greater than our understanding of the concept.
“Explain that,” Siri murmurs quietly, moving forward to lay a gentle hand on Horin’s arm.
He smiles at her, although it isn’t so much appreciation for her support as it is a gesture filled with sadness. I glance at Lyra, to see her watching her ‘brother’ as if she is already grieving his loss.
“The Glonu are world-builders. This means they go out there to find empty worlds and prepare them for habitation … and sale. When ready, those worlds are auctioned to the highest bidders, and there are many governments and councils willing to pay. World-building requires much labour, though, and such cost is crippling, even if the future pay-out is astronomical. Slaves, therefore, and they are taken in the most diabolical ways you can imagine. Those slaves remain bound into eternity; for death transforms them in working ghosts, and those go on to lure the living.”
“So the Ilfin decided to put a stop to them?” I ask.
“Not only the Ilfin; many races, many worlds.”
“Are the Glonu world-building here?” Kay demands.
Horin lifts his hands from the table to spread them. “They have already succeeded. They are now everywhere. Many others came after the first influx, and more arrived after the last ceasefire.” He gazes then directly at me. “Damin, do you know why they tested for the talents in Porlese?”
I close my eyes. “They were searching for Ilfin.”
“Ilfin were searching for Ilfin. Anyone without talent is either a Glonu or already a slave to them and deserves only death. That was why they were throwing people from the cliffs.”
I am the one who dares ask, “Why exactly are they our enemies?” No one else seems capable of speech.
Horin gets to his feet and places his hands on the table, leaning onto them, causing the burgeoning muscles in his shoulders to bulge. “They are slavers.”
Well, truth is, always we have lived under the yoke of slavery in some form and, yes, this makes slave masters our enemies, but I have the distinct feeling Horin is on about something far greater than our understanding of the concept.
“Explain that,” Siri murmurs quietly, moving forward to lay a gentle hand on Horin’s arm.
He smiles at her, although it isn’t so much appreciation for her support as it is a gesture filled with sadness. I glance at Lyra, to see her watching her ‘brother’ as if she is already grieving his loss.
“The Glonu are world-builders. This means they go out there to find empty worlds and prepare them for habitation … and sale. When ready, those worlds are auctioned to the highest bidders, and there are many governments and councils willing to pay. World-building requires much labour, though, and such cost is crippling, even if the future pay-out is astronomical. Slaves, therefore, and they are taken in the most diabolical ways you can imagine. Those slaves remain bound into eternity; for death transforms them in working ghosts, and those go on to lure the living.”
“So the Ilfin decided to put a stop to them?” I ask.
“Not only the Ilfin; many races, many worlds.”
“Are the Glonu world-building here?” Kay demands.
Horin lifts his hands from the table to spread them. “They have already succeeded. They are now everywhere. Many others came after the first influx, and more arrived after the last ceasefire.” He gazes then directly at me. “Damin, do you know why they tested for the talents in Porlese?”
I close my eyes. “They were searching for Ilfin.”
“Ilfin were searching for Ilfin. Anyone without talent is either a Glonu or already a slave to them and deserves only death. That was why they were throwing people from the cliffs.”
TKC Collage 12 - Damin
After 14 posts under Part 5, here is the first collage :)
Please feel free to catch up on all the episodes by clicking The King's Challenge Page.
December 21, 2015
The King's Challenge #140 and #141
TKC 140 and 141
Horin proceeds to tell us the tale of times before. Lyra and I listen to every word and, by the time Horin finishes, the others are crowded into the cottage and listening also.
“Massin is an empty world, because it is a massive sphere. The population we think of as huge is pretty sparse given the landmass available. Long ago there were even fewer walking this earth and when others from the heavens saw how much space there was, this became a coveted world. Fortunately it was left alone for a long time - one cannot simply see a world and take it, not according to the laws out there - but it was marked and known.
“War came to the heavens and civilisation fought civilisation there, until one day the remnants of a particularly terrible battle fled to Massin. Their enemies followed, but they were too late, for the ring of mountains thrown up here were impenetrable. It was created of both stone and technology and therefore difficult to sunder. The mountains became a shield wall, and the protection extended as a rounded force field into the sky also. This is why we call it Arc. The shielding arcs from mountain top to mountain top.
“Those who fled here were and are beings able to manipulate light. They have true form, but few see them, for they employ light as a mask. They were called the Glonu, and we know this name from legends past, although few hear of that history in this present. Do not make the mistake of regarding the Glonu’s light as something benevolent.
“According to the ancient tales, the Glonu fought the Ilfin for territory until the Ilfin were driven into the uplands, into the plateau mountains, into the cold. Between lay the plains, regarded as neutral territory. This is true. There was a mighty war enacted between the two races on Massin, and the Glonu were victorious. Both sides agreed to maintain the neutral territory, for both sides required a period in which to renew strength. That war was the last in a string of battles that began elsewhere in space and continued here. There were other battles on Massin, between the raising of Arc and the creation of neutral territory, but history records only the last war that forced people to live either east or west.
“Yes, I see you realise what it means. The people of the plateau are the Ilfin, the enemy that tracked the light beings to this world. We are the Ilfin. Every breathing man, woman and child possessing one or more talents is able to track his or her lineage right back to ancient time … and is Ilfin, not Massin bred. We, however, are not the enemy. We came to end the Glonu, for they are made of darkness and not of light.
“Much time has passed and today one cannot tell an Ilfin from a Glonu or a Massinian. Today we look the same, and thus there has been a truce in place for millennia.”
Horin pauses there, before saying, “Maybe we would have continued living in peace, if divided as a civilisation, had not the asteroid changed the way of it. The moment its danger to this world was marked, was also the moment Ilfin talents began to rise again to the fore. To halt its path or alter its trajectory, we required the magical technology of the Glonu - the Spire inside their Arc. They needed Ifin to enter, for our talents were needed to connect with and employ their technology. Technology fails, understand, but inherent talent cannot be removed. Thus we needed each other, but we remain enemies.”
Silence descends when he ceases speaking.
No one is able to saw a word.
Horin proceeds to tell us the tale of times before. Lyra and I listen to every word and, by the time Horin finishes, the others are crowded into the cottage and listening also.
“Massin is an empty world, because it is a massive sphere. The population we think of as huge is pretty sparse given the landmass available. Long ago there were even fewer walking this earth and when others from the heavens saw how much space there was, this became a coveted world. Fortunately it was left alone for a long time - one cannot simply see a world and take it, not according to the laws out there - but it was marked and known.
“War came to the heavens and civilisation fought civilisation there, until one day the remnants of a particularly terrible battle fled to Massin. Their enemies followed, but they were too late, for the ring of mountains thrown up here were impenetrable. It was created of both stone and technology and therefore difficult to sunder. The mountains became a shield wall, and the protection extended as a rounded force field into the sky also. This is why we call it Arc. The shielding arcs from mountain top to mountain top.
“Those who fled here were and are beings able to manipulate light. They have true form, but few see them, for they employ light as a mask. They were called the Glonu, and we know this name from legends past, although few hear of that history in this present. Do not make the mistake of regarding the Glonu’s light as something benevolent.
“According to the ancient tales, the Glonu fought the Ilfin for territory until the Ilfin were driven into the uplands, into the plateau mountains, into the cold. Between lay the plains, regarded as neutral territory. This is true. There was a mighty war enacted between the two races on Massin, and the Glonu were victorious. Both sides agreed to maintain the neutral territory, for both sides required a period in which to renew strength. That war was the last in a string of battles that began elsewhere in space and continued here. There were other battles on Massin, between the raising of Arc and the creation of neutral territory, but history records only the last war that forced people to live either east or west.
“Yes, I see you realise what it means. The people of the plateau are the Ilfin, the enemy that tracked the light beings to this world. We are the Ilfin. Every breathing man, woman and child possessing one or more talents is able to track his or her lineage right back to ancient time … and is Ilfin, not Massin bred. We, however, are not the enemy. We came to end the Glonu, for they are made of darkness and not of light.
“Much time has passed and today one cannot tell an Ilfin from a Glonu or a Massinian. Today we look the same, and thus there has been a truce in place for millennia.”
Horin pauses there, before saying, “Maybe we would have continued living in peace, if divided as a civilisation, had not the asteroid changed the way of it. The moment its danger to this world was marked, was also the moment Ilfin talents began to rise again to the fore. To halt its path or alter its trajectory, we required the magical technology of the Glonu - the Spire inside their Arc. They needed Ifin to enter, for our talents were needed to connect with and employ their technology. Technology fails, understand, but inherent talent cannot be removed. Thus we needed each other, but we remain enemies.”
Silence descends when he ceases speaking.
No one is able to saw a word.
December 19, 2015
The King's Challenge #139
TKC 139
As Horin speaks those words, three forms materialise in the space around us.
They are ghostly and yet there is the suggestion of armour and ancient weapons, as if they were warriors before death took them. Their faces are indistinct, but they have long hair and each wears a helmet. Cloaks swirl around then.
They bow to Horin.
“I have not seen them like that before,” Lyra whispers.
“Who are you?” I ask. The hairs on my arms have spiked.
Horin stands and bows his head. “They are of those who attempted to end the imprisonment here. Our people.”
One steps forward then, holding an ethereal sword upon open palms. Kneeling on one leg, he lowers his head and presents it to Horin.
Lyra is as astonished as I am.
Horin accepts the offering. As he touches the otherworldly weapon, it solidifies into a real length of shining metal. “Thank you.”
The man rises again, smiling. Although his features are unclear, the smile isn’t. By the stars, this is strange.
The ghost’s attention shifts to me as I formulate that thought. Horin laughs lightly. “Damin, where do you think that saying comes from? By the stars?”
A cold shiver passes through me. Who is the Delver here?
Horin winks at me … and sheaths his sword. Magically, a scabbard is there at his waist to accept as he does so.
“How?” Lyra breathes.
“Leave us,” Horin murmurs, and the three forms dematerialise.
“You are the leader they have been waiting for,” I say.
Horin rejoins us at the table. “Actually, I have been here before and lost my weapon in a battle. They kept it safe until my return. Yes, I led them then and I shall lead them now.”
Lyra is so pale I begin to fear for her, but she demands of her brother, “And when were you so-called here before?”
“A thousand years ago,” Horin says quietly. “That was the last time we fought. Now it begins again.”
As Horin speaks those words, three forms materialise in the space around us.
They are ghostly and yet there is the suggestion of armour and ancient weapons, as if they were warriors before death took them. Their faces are indistinct, but they have long hair and each wears a helmet. Cloaks swirl around then.
They bow to Horin.
“I have not seen them like that before,” Lyra whispers.
“Who are you?” I ask. The hairs on my arms have spiked.
Horin stands and bows his head. “They are of those who attempted to end the imprisonment here. Our people.”
One steps forward then, holding an ethereal sword upon open palms. Kneeling on one leg, he lowers his head and presents it to Horin.
Lyra is as astonished as I am.
Horin accepts the offering. As he touches the otherworldly weapon, it solidifies into a real length of shining metal. “Thank you.”
The man rises again, smiling. Although his features are unclear, the smile isn’t. By the stars, this is strange.
The ghost’s attention shifts to me as I formulate that thought. Horin laughs lightly. “Damin, where do you think that saying comes from? By the stars?”
A cold shiver passes through me. Who is the Delver here?
Horin winks at me … and sheaths his sword. Magically, a scabbard is there at his waist to accept as he does so.
“How?” Lyra breathes.
“Leave us,” Horin murmurs, and the three forms dematerialise.
“You are the leader they have been waiting for,” I say.
Horin rejoins us at the table. “Actually, I have been here before and lost my weapon in a battle. They kept it safe until my return. Yes, I led them then and I shall lead them now.”
Lyra is so pale I begin to fear for her, but she demands of her brother, “And when were you so-called here before?”
“A thousand years ago,” Horin says quietly. “That was the last time we fought. Now it begins again.”
