Aldrea Alien's Blog, page 13

Rainbow Snippets: Threats raking at the skin

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is currently going through edits, so I’m going to share a little more by delving into chapter two.
With it being set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and following Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him, it’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

The beginning of chapter two…

He ran through the halls, not stopping to think of his direction. He skirted every dark puddle he could, leapt over bodies and scrambled to keep upright. His lungs burned, straining against his ribs. Both his thoughts and his heart raced frantically. He didn’t dare slow down to let either one settle.

In the spaces between his gasps for air, he caught the limping gait of another following him. The hound. How the man had managed to free himself from beneath the table, Henrie didn’t waste thought on.

“You cannot outrun me!” the hound bellowed, his voice echoing from somewhere far behind. “Sooner or later, I will catch you.” The words clawed their way through the halls to rake at Henrie’s back.

I’ll see you all with more of And the World Crumbled next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: Fleeing the room

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

Henrie let the blast die down in favour of conserving his energy.

“Are you done?” the hound asked, the bored note prickling Henrie’s skin.

“Almost.” He launched another blast, aiming at the wobbly table.

The furniture flipped into the air, slamming its whole length into the hound. The weight bore the man to the ground, pinning him in place.

His sword skittered across the floor, too far out of reach for the man to grab without first levering the table off, but too close to the hound for Henrie to consider retrieving it without confirmation that he was dead.

Rather than wait to see if the man would get back up, Henrie gathered the skirts of his robe and fled the room.

And that’s the end of chapter one. I’ll see you all with a little more of And the World Crumbled next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: No affect?!

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

Swiftly redirecting the inward pull of his magic, Henrie refocused it into a blast of pure energy turned upon the man.

The books and papers scattered atop the tables flew to the back of the room, scorched along the edges. The chairs that hadn’t already fallen now tumbled across the floor. The cupboard doors banged as though caught in a storm. One of the tables even started rattling, threatening to lift at the slightest shift in Henrie’s aim.

The man stood in place as if nothing was happening. The most he moved was in calmly redirecting a leaf of paper from smacking him in the face. His hair didn’t stir, even his clothes—too similar to that of a hound’s attire for him to be anything but—barely acknowledged the blast.

I’ll see you all with more of And the World Crumbled next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: Discovered!

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

Henrie inched out from his hiding spot, keeping his focus on remaining invisible. A part of him screamed to stay put, but he’d only a few cupboards worth of time to sneak out into the hall before the man thought to search behind the door with the same finesse he’d given the rest of the room.

The final cupboard door banged shut.

“There you are.”

Stiffening, Henrie slowly turned to face the man. He hadn’t made a sound, not one a human would hear, and he was still invisible, could feel the faint inward tug of his magic.

Yet the man was definitely looking right at him.

I’ll see you all with more of And the World Crumbled next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: Risking a peek…

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

The footsteps carried on into the room, halting at every other stride as if trying to pinpoint a sound.

Henrie risked a peer around the door, spying a human man marching deeper into the room. He would stoop at each table, checking with sword and hand as though he wasn’t certain someone couldn’t be hiding beneath. Was it really that dark in here for human eyes? He knew their vision was worse, but it surely wasn’t that bad.

Confident in his appraisal of the tables, the man moved on to the far end of the room. He opened one cupboard door with a jerk, jabbing his sword into the space before the door had finished swinging.

I’ll see you all with more of And the World Crumbled next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: The blood of others…

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

He pressed his hands to his face, trying to muffle his breath lest the figure was also elven. Only now did he realise his fingertips were sticky, coated in the blood of others. He fought to keep his breathing steady, but the scent of death coated his nostrils and tightened his throat.

The door swung inwards.

He flattened himself against the wall, praying the door would be enough to hide him. His body trembled uncontrollably, shaking each slow breath.

The flicker of his shield sputtered around him, its purple glow faintly lighting the door’s wood grain. He stared at those whorls and lines, focusing on drawing the shield into himself, relief almost taking his legs when the glow faded. He hadn’t used the technique for years, not since his childhood when he had longed for his transitioning to be over with. With luck, the magic still worked the same, rendering him invisible to everyone.

I’ll see you all with more of And the World Crumbled in the New Year. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: Not alone…

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

He leant against the wall, listening for the footsteps to fade, hearing only the opposite. Be the person friend or foe, each stride continued with no hesitation. Were they looking for stragglers? Did that mean everyone was dead? They couldn’t be. He had heard them directly above only moment ago and there were multiple levels beyond for them to climb.

Perhaps they’d been taken down and the person outside was a guardian searching for anyone who might live.

Henrie reached for the door handle, halting a hairsbreadth from the old brass lever upon hearing the steady pace faltering directly outside the door.

The latch clicked.

And the World Crumbled will continue next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: Footsteps…

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

Footsteps echoed from the way he had come, faint compared to the rest of the sounds echoing down the hall, but strong and purposeful.

Henrie dove through the door, slowly closing it behind him until the latch gave a barely audible click. He took in the room, searching for a place to hide. The options were few. Five solid tables with chairs left abandoned around them, some merely askew, the rest knocked onto their backs. A row of cupboards lined the far wall, too obvious to hide in and too heavy to squeeze behind.

And the World Crumbled will continue next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: Escape this death-trap.

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

His legs wobbled at the thought of her being amongst the dead, forcing him to brace himself against a closed door. Not his beloved Harry. Never again would he see the sparkle in her hazel eyes, feel the warmth of her smile, hear the grunting hiccup of her unabashed laughter. All of it stolen for some senseless reason that he couldn’t even begin to fathom. It—

No. Clutching the doorframe, he straightened. He couldn’t let the idea of her death consume him, couldn’t even believe it. Until he confirmed her passing with his own eyes, he would continue to believe she still lived. He’d reach her and escape this death-trap of a place.

And the World Crumbled will continue next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!

Rainbow Snippets: Unless…

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

He turned left, taking pains to tread around the puddles oozing across the floor. This path would eventually lead to the central tower’s main entrance. It meant a greater distance to travel, but it took him further from where the hounds were more likely to be.

Unless…

Did anyone currently guard the entrances? What about outside? What few windows the tower’s ground level had were also too high to see through. Were the gardens safe? Was… was Harriet safe?

And the World Crumbled will continue next week. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.

If you’re looking for more news of my books, be sure to “Like” my Facebook page and/or join me in my Facebook group!