In a seductive way: purred, simpered, coaxed, wheedled, persuaded, baited.
As an answer: As an answer: responded, retorted, replied, rejoined, answered, acknowledged.
[Source] [[Jack Teagle]
There’s a lot of talk out there about cutting back on these, but truth be told, everything has its purpose. If you feel it fits, try it! You can always change it later.
Our planet is lucky enough to have a large moon orbiting not too far away, which makes for very pretty moonlit nights. But for spectacular skies it might almost be worth trading in our moon for a ring like Saturn’s.
In fact, the earth did once have a ring - as part of the formation of our moon, ironically enough. When the planet Thea crashed into the earth, a titanic amount of material was blown into space. This went into orbit around the earth, forming a ring until it all eventually coalesced into our present-day satellite. This only happened because the material was orbiting outside of earth’s Roche limit.
In 1848, the French mathematician Edouard Roche calculated that if a large satellite were to approach too closely to a planet, it would be torn apart by the planet’s gravitational forces. This happens because the gravitational attraction of a planet on a moon is not equal. The planet pulls more on the side of the moon closest to it and less on the side further away. If the moon gets too close, this unequal pull can become great enough to tear the moon apart. Every planet has what is called a Roche limit.
Some astronomers believe that Saturn’s rings are material that was unable to form into a moon because it lies within the planet’s Roche limit. The gravitational pull of Saturn prevents particles from clumping together to form a moon. Another idea popular among scientists suggests that during the time when Saturn was first forming, it had one or more moons just outside its Roche limit. The bigger a planet is, the more gravity it has. And the more gravity it has, the bigger its Roche limit is. So as Saturn grew larger, its Roche limit grew, too. The limit soon moved past the inner moons and these moons soon broke apart. The remnants of the destroyed moons eventually formed the magnificent rings we see today. There may still be large pieces of these ancient moons within the rings. They would be much smaller than their ancestors but a thousand times larger than a typical ring particle. Another theory suggests that a few hundred million years ago - at a time when the early ancestors of the dinosaurs were roaming Earth - Saturn may have had no rings at all. The rings formed when one or more small moons wandered too close to Saturn. When they got within the Roche limit, Saturn’s gravity ripped them apart. After millions of years of bumping against one another, the pieces of moon were ground into the tiny particles that form the rings today.
If we had rings in the same proportion to our planet that Saturn’s are to it, it is pretty easy to figure out what they would like like from different places on the earth. From the equator the rings would be passing directly overhead. Since you’d be looking in the same plane as the rings, all you would see is a bright line arching from horizon to horizon. Here is what the rings might look like from Quito, Ecuador:
If we travel just a little further north to Guatemala, the rings begin to spread across the sky. The earthlight illuminating the dark side of the moon is many times brighter than we are accustomed to, due to the increased sunlight being reflected from the rings.
From Washington, DC (at 38° latitude), the rings begin to sink below the horizon, though they would still be an awe-inspiring sight as they dominate the sky both day and night.
At the Arctic Circle, the rings barely reach above the horizon. Seen here from Nome, Alaska, the brilliant rings illuminate the barren landscape scarcely more than a full moon would. Unlike the sun or moon, however, the rings neither rise nor set… they are always visible, day or night, always in exactly the same place.
Imagine how a ring system would impact the traditions and mythologies of various cultures depending on where in the world they were and how they saw the rings.
The sun set over a burning house. Books and furniture and bodies were consumed slowly at first, and then more quickly as the flame caught and raged hotter and faster. The smoke from the fire rose high into the sky, blurring the setting sun, and more smoke would soon be joining it; the library had caught fire and was quickly spreading throughout the large room.
Outside and in front of the burning house was a young woman, not yet twenty years of age, who hurried desperately to a nearby horse--a chestnut horse with fine hair and a saddle already fit to his back and bit in his mouth.
"Tapper, go!" Adelyli yelled just after swinging herself onto the horse's back. He responded to the verbal command and the tightening of her knees, starting off slowly because of the smoke and gaining speed when they reached the road, which held considerably clearer air. Adelyli looked behind her at the burning house and felt tears welling up. Her home was gone, and nothing would change that.
Fire consumed the wood in front of her, reminding her of the same fire she'd seen hours earlier. It burned and raged and cast strange shadows all around the area and danced in the firepit she'd prepared earlier. The heat warmed the front part of her body and left the rest of her wanting for the same warmth. In a way, she hated the fire. But it served a purpose, and that's all that mattered at the moment.
Adelyli glanced at the horse nearby. He was loaded with what few belongings she had been able to recover from the house. This same substance, this same energy that was currently warming her had also killed her grandfather only a few hours beforehand.
Light from the sun shone across the land. It was rising and she knew that the Sovidans would be rising as well to start their work. The Ciccans would be waking in a few hours' time to start their daily routine of worship. Well, most Ciccans. She knew a few that didn't follow the traditional ways.
A rustle behind her made her turn, but it was only a small rat, which quickly made its way over to the edge of the trail a few feet in front of her. The trail dropped off into a steep cliff that led to a lake, the name of which escaped her mind. The rat jumped off the trail and opened its small flaps of skin that served as wings and used the wind to guide itself to a small island near the middle of the lake, where rats were rumored to breed.
Adelyli sat up and made her way to the horse, which flicked its tail. His name was Tapper, for the way he danced lightly when he was irritated. He didn't dance now; he could sense her unusually somber mood. With good reason. “The world lost a good man last night.” Adelyli nearly startled herself with her own voice. She rested against Tapper's side and buried her head in his chestnut hair. Tears started falling down her face and sobs rocked her body. Loneliness settled in and she spent a good amount of time hugging Tapper's neck and crying.
The sun hit its zenith before she was able to eat anything. Her eyes were red and her nose runny from the amount of sobbing she'd done, and her heart still hurt. She suspected it would for a long time, until something covered the hole that was burned into it by fire.
While she ate by the coals that remained of her fire, she thought out loud. “Emhelp Parish is the closest city. Maybe I can find something there. A job...?” she snorted derisively. “I'm a scholar! Who is going to hire a scholar? I wouldn't if I were a shopkeeper. No one would hire a scholar...” she paused and considered. An idea came to mind and she sat up with a half-hearted grin, too tired to be a real grin.
“I stopped being a scholar when my mentor died. It's time for something new. It's time for a new me. A new Adelyli.” Too distracted with this idea and too tired and emotionally drained to focus on more than two things at once, she returned to Tapper and climbed up on him, forgetting about the fire she'd left open. Tapper responded to her gentle nudge and started walking up the path, traveling the way to Emhelp Parish that thousands of people had traveled before them. The path ahead was mostly dirt, with a small grass edge that led to the side of the trail. It gently sloped up for long stretches and then steeply climbed for short but tiring moments. Emhelp Parish was one of the famous fourteen floating cities, and it was one of the tallest.
Tapper climbed the trail easily; he'd been bred to do this and was reared by one of the best breeders in the area. His footing was sure and firm. Adelyli found her mind unable to stay on any topic for long except for the single resounding question that all must face at some point. What now?
The scenery changed drastically as they approached the top of the trail that led to a massive stone bridge, built by the best stoneworkers in an age nearly forgotten and shrouded in myth. The bridge spanned a gap half a league long and led to Emhelp Parish, a sprawling city-state that floated two leagues above the ground. The only thing connecting it to the earth around it was the bridge that Adelyli now crossed, leading Tapper by his straps.
The sun was steadily heading toward the horizon and dipped most of the city in a beautiful golden glow, which reminded her of a painting she'd once seen of each of the fourteen cities—except for XV2, of course—silhouetted against the horizon at sunset.
A man in silver armor with wings emblazoned across his chestplate approached her. His face was hidden behind a plate of worked iron with slits for eyes. A red plume came from the top of his helmet and he wore his sword slung at his hip.
“Name?” he asked. Adelyli felt nervousness suddenly appear in her stomach. His voice was gruff and serious, but also bored, as if he'd done this for far too long.
“Adelyli,” she replied. He took out a small flat wooden board and a quill and hesitated over the piece of parchment attached to the board, the tip of the quill hovering just over the top left side. “Can you spell that out for me?”
“A-D-E-L-Y-L-I.”
“Wyrms, that's an interesting name. Alright, Adelyli, welcome to Emhelp Parish!”
She nodded, relieved at his lack of further questions, and headed toward the city with Tapper at her side. She'd never been here before and so wasn't prepared for the soldier. It wasn't until she was at the city gates that she realized she could have asked him for help.
Indecision ran through her and she ran her hand through Tapper's chestnut mane. Someone brushed past her and she made the decision and turned around. Tapper stepped lightly, nervous. He didn't like turning around, and he wasn't used to the cramped city streets.
“Shh,” Adelyli whispered into his ear. He walked more easily and she led him back to the soldier, who was collecting more names from a large group of people dressed in clothes native to Zalden.
The light colors and the slit in the back between the shoulder blades gave them away. Once they were done, she approached the soldier, who recognized her.
“Adelyli, right? Lum?”
“I'm new. I've never been here before. What do I do?” she asked bluntly. The soldier laughed and walked to the east side of the bridge, the one closer to them, and sat down. She followed him and pulled Tapper closely behind her. The soldier rested his back against the small wall and took his helmet off. Light brown hair that had been shaved short and stuck up in strange places adorned his head, along with small ears and a straight nose and a face shaped like a heart. A scar traveled from his cheekbone up his eyebrow over his left eye. His bright eyes studied her face before he replied.
“Do you have any money?” he asked. Adelyli reached for the small bag strapped onto Tapper's side and took it off. She opened it up and quickly did a count on her money.
“I have thirty oen.”
“That's not much. You might be able to afford a cheap in around the outskirts of the city, but not much else. Why are you here? Lum?”
She eyed him nervously before replying. “My grandfather died. This is the closest city. So I came.”
“Oh. There aren't many jobs here. Because of the size of the city and how they can't really expand it much except upward, the growth is limited. But you may be able to enlist in the army!”
“The army?” she asked. He nodded and touched his sword. “It might seem intimidating, but the army could always use more recruits. And you seem young, so you're more adaptable than older folks. Women are more accepted into this army than any other. They make up almost twice that of the men! It's great.”
Adelyli frowned. She hadn't ever considered going into the army. The idea scared her, and Tapper could sense it. He tapped his front right leg and neighed.
“Sleep on it. All good decisions are made after a restful night.” The soldier stood up and nodded to her before returning to his post with his helmet on and board in hand. Adelyli stood at the spot and considered.
I have no options. It's either the army or some pitiful job as a maid or a job working at a pub—or worse, as a whore. Brothels aren't popular here because they're seen as demeaning to women and men, but that doesn't mean they don't exist. It would mean money. But at what cost? The more I consider it the more sick I feel.
She shuddered at the thought of taking up a job at a brothel. Her grandfather, if he'd been there, would remind her of her duty to be accepting of all people, but not all behaviors, and certainly not that, even for money.
Tapper looked at her with his large brown eyes and she sighed and walked at his side back to the city gates. They entered Emhelp Parish with uncertainty in their steps and nervousness in their hearts and stomachs.
-----EMHELP PARISH
Adelyli led Tapper through the small, cramped streets that were paved with flat stone. Small shops were sandwiched beside smaller homes with tiny windows and several floors. Each building had at least two stories, if not more. Several had so many that she had to crane her head back to see the top. Most buildings had a green stripe along the side of the door, although some had either red or a blue.
Curious, she touched a green stripe on a small pottery shop and found the paint fresh. The street by then had mostly emptied out, leaving her with only Tapper to talk to.
A small pub ahead caught her eye. The sign above it was of a scholar with a large gold book in one hand and a large flagon of drink—probably whiskey or ale—in the other. She approached it and tied Tapper to a small wooden pole a few feet away from the door.
She stepped into the small pub and glanced around. Only a few people were still there; most that had steady work were still at their job, and those that didn't had trickled in for an early night. Either that or the pub just wasn't popular; she wasn't familiar enough with any of the city to make much of a judgment. The pub had a cozy feel that made her feel welcome and oddly warm.
The man behind the counter had pointy ears and multiple earrings on them--part Ciccan, she figured. He had gold hair and brown eyes and was in his middle years and was wearing a white apron over a gray shirt. Long brown pants covered his legs, and stout boots shod his feet.
“Not from around here, are you?” he asked. He had a melodic voice that surprised her.
“No. I stand out, don't I?” she replied.
“A scholar from that little village? Delia? The clothes give it away,” he told her. She looked down at her red-and-brown garb and smiled sheepishly. The bodice was red, but the furry jacket that covered her back and shoulders was brown, which matched the brown belt at her waist. Her pants were red as well, which tucked into brown leather boots that gave good footing on dusty old stairs.
“What do you need?” he asked kindly.
“A place to stay. And a... recommendation. I need a job. Or a position. Someone told me to join the army,” she replied.
“Lum... alright. You can sleep here if you like. It'll cost three oen though. Why do you want to join the army?”
“I don't want to,” Adelyli told him instantly. She frowned and sat down heavily in a nearby chair.
“I don't want to,” she said again softly. “But I need something to keep me going. Or else I won't go anymore.”
The barkeeper walked around the long table and sat down across from her, resting his arm heavily on the wooden table, one of many that filled the small pub. Four chairs at each table, and a candle at the middle of each one.
“You look like you need more than rest. You look like you haven't eaten in days and are relying on whatever pack animal you have to take care of you.” He extended his hand and Adelyli shook it. She frowned when she realized how right he was; her grip was slack and weak and her eyelids were drooping. She was exhausted.
“I'm Gaven.”
“Adelyli,”
“Lum. Can I call you Alli?” Gaven asked. She nodded jerkily.
"I recommend a good night of sleep. Did you bring a horse?"
"Yeah... he's out... side." It was a struggle just to get the words out. Gaven nodded and went outside, while Adelyli struggled to stay awake. He exited the door and her eyes closed, drifting into sleep.
Sunrise filtered in through an open window, combined with the fine wool blanket, she was nice and warm and not tempted to move anytime soon. Eventually she opened her eyes and looked around the room, a sudden awareness that she didn't know where she was came to mind and made her sit up hurriedly.
The room was small and sparsely decorated. A mirror, sink, pitcher of water, chest, and the bed consisted of all the items in the room. The mirror, sink, and pitcher of water were all located on the opposite side of the room.
She stood up and crossed the room. Her hair was a mess, and her breath smelled horrible. The pitcher of water provided a nice waking face wash and had enough water left over to help her tame her hair.
Once she was done, she headed downstairs and saw Gaven resting by the fire. The rest of the room was empty.
“Alli, Emhelp Parish is one of the last places you want to be right now. There's major political unrest going on," Gaven said when he saw her. She walked down the stairs and sat down in a chair.
"I don't have anywhere else to go," she said softly.
"Did you see all those weird stripes of paint on the doors?” he asked. She nodded and he continued.
“There are several factions that are trying to wrestle power from the king. He's trying to hold them off, but the city is turning into a democracy and the majority is rooting for a new system of government--it was designed for a dictatorship. I'll spare you the details for tonight, but this is not the place you want to stay. It doesn't seem like you have much choice though, am I correct?”
Adelyli nodded glumly, but something he said made her pause.
"Tonight?"
"That wasn't the sunrise you woke up to. You slept for a day. Tired girl. But I figured you didn't have anywhere else to go and warned you anyway. You came here for the classic excuse, right?”
She shrugged, unsure what he was referencing, and stifled a yawn.
“A new start. To renew yourself?”
“Yes.”
“Well the traditional method is to dye your hair and join the army. But you don't seem much like an armswoman.”
“I want to train so I won't be caught defenseless again,” she replied with force that surprised her. She realized both her hands were clenched into tight fists and a lock of auburn hair had fallen over her eye, half-hiding Gaven from view. Anger, hurt and fear pulsed inside of her, which was startling. She wasn't one to get heated up. He nodded, seemingly unaffected by her sudden fierceness.
“Then join the army. But understand this; the new start you're looking for may never come. Some pasts can't be escaped.”
Adelyli exhaled slowly and nodded. Gaven shrugged and stood up, noisily backing the chair up on the wooden floor. He walked around her and went behind the bar. She twisted in her chair and watched him pull a large bucket up and fill it with water from a keg in an alcove that had been built into the wall. Once the bucket was full of water, he plugged the keg back and stooped down and grabbed a strange waterskin with a complicated lid.
A thick gooey brown liquid was poured into the water, which he then stirred with a spoon. Adelyli approached it cautiously, curiosity infecting her. She looked at the water and Gaven gestured to the water.
“Do you want to dye your hair?” he asked, looking into her eyes. She nodded and he pushed the bucket toward her, lightly enough that the contents didn't slosh much. Adelyli gathered her hair and turned around. She pressed her rear and legs against the bar and leaned back. Gaven put his hand on her forehead and pressed her head into the water. The water was cold and she drew a startled gasp at the feeling. She tried to stand up, but Gaven's thumb on her forehead kept her down in the water.
“Stop struggling, it'll take a few for the dye to soak into your hair. Just sit still.” Gaven pressed down harder and she forced herself to relax as much as she could and accept the water soaking into her hair, and the cold feeling that was soaking into her skin. She felt those strange itchy bumps start up on her arms and grunted.
Gaven removed his thumb from her forehead and she stood up and shivered as the cold water slid down her back and into her clothing. He took the bucket of water and walked over to a nearby sink, which he dumped the contents into and set the bucket back underneath the bar counter.
Adelyli examined her hair and noticed that it was already several shades lighter. Emotions stirred up inside her at the sight of the new color. Confusion, hope, and fear all mingled together.
“You can sleep in the upstairs room for another night, if you like,” Gaven told her. She nodded and fished the three oen she owed him from her bag. He took the coins and pocketed them without a word.
Adelyli turned and walked out of the pub, heading for Tapper, who was in the same place she'd left him. He watched her approach and was still while she took her bag off of him.
“There's a stable you can take him to just down the way,” Gaven said from the doorway. She hadn't noticed him following her out of the pub. He pointed down to his left—her right—and said, “Better hurry though. It's getting late and places don't stay open for long here. Too many nightfolk.”
“What are nightfolk?” she asked nervously.
“Robbers. They climb the rooftops and jump from one roof to another. With a tiny, packed city like this, can you fault them? There's not much sense in robbing from the ground, with all the twisting, small alleyways. So they use the roofs.”
Adelyli looked up at the roof and saw someone looking back at her from across the street, on top of a sewing shop's third floor. He had dark hair, a pointed chin, bright green eyes, a straight nose, and was wearing all black clothing. When he noticed her staring back, he hurriedly put a black hat on over his face.
Gaven touched her arm and she jumped and looked at him. She glanced back where she saw the man, but he was already gone.
“See what I mean? Better to be gone and inside,” he muttered. "If it's so dangerous at night, why was Tapper protected?" she asked. Gaven grunted and walked to her side. Together they walked down the street to a nearby stable while Tapper matched their pace. There was barely enough room for the three of them on the road. A lanky man named Kork took Tapper inside a well-built stall with plenty of food for Tapper and a large water trough. Tapper happily started eating while Adelyli paid Kork the five oen he required.
Gaven eyed Tapper appreciatively and gestured in the direction of the pub. Adelyli nodded and the two of them walked out of the stable and onto the deserted street.
The night in the city was depressingly dark. Very few lights remained lit, leaving large pools of darkness in the streets that she was sure were infested with all manner of strange things. Robbers, thieves, murderers, rapists. Suddenly she felt glad that Gaven was with her.
They made their way back down the street to the pub. Neither of them were willing to talk, and Adelyli liked it that way. Her eyes kept trailing back to the rooftops, wondering if the movement she saw was imagined or not. When they reached the pub, she decided she didn't really want to know.
“Second floor, first door on your left, in case you'd forgotten or weren't paying attention. But first, stay and eat a bit.” Gaven pushed a small plate toward her and she found herself reaching for the food before she could think about it. Something changed in Gaven's face and she faltered, resting her hands on either side of the plate without touching it.
That look bothered her. Expectant and gleeful in a sickening sense.
“What's wrong?” he asked sincerely. The beat of her heart pounding in her head made it difficult for her to give a straight answer without stuttering.
“What was that look for? What's in the food? Poison?”
“That's a mighty fine horse you have,” he drawled, his grin slowly widening. He moved toward her and she noticed a knife in his hand. Fear seized her and she watched him approach her and imagined the knife sliding into her skin, cutting up her internal organs.
Gaven pressed the knife to her wrist and she winced at the small amount of blood that slid onto the countertop. He brought another knife to her neck and said, “Leave the horse in the stable and sleep soundly through the night. If you're still here by sunrise, I'll kill you. Either way, I get the horse. I gave you a day because I'm merciful, but this time you won't be so lucky. I want that horse, and I'll do what it takes to get it.”
Desperately she thought of a way out of the situation, but none came to mind. She nodded fearfully and nearly cut herself on the knife held to her skin.
“D-deal,” she stuttered. Gaven smiled and smashed the plate with his fist. The food went flying and hit the wall behind the counter, dissolving part of the wood with acid. Adelyli sat there and said nothing, hardly daring to breathe. He moved off and she glanced at the doorway, wondering if she dared move. Her heart beat loudly in her ears and she made her choice; she quickly darted for the doorway, slamming the door behind her. The night was cool and the air was chilly and smelled of all manner of rot, but that was the least of her troubles. She ran as fast as she could to the stable, afraid that her footsteps were so loud they would echo through the streets and draw attention that she couldn't afford to have.
Kork tried to bar her way, but she shoved him aside, nimbly swinging herself onto Tapper and jerking on the reins. He kicked the door open with his front feet and galloped away, heading for a different route that would hopefully take them through the streets and onto the bridge and out of this city. Less than two days and they were already on the way to somewhere else.
Dark shapes on rooftops followed her as she galloped away, heading as fast as Tapper could go toward the gates. The same soldier that had greeted them earlier that day was dozing fitfully, curled up against the side of the bridge. He woke with a start as they approached.
“Whoa! Lum! Wait,” he stared at her while she panicked. The gate was closed, Tapper had stopped, dark shapes were chasing them and now watched them from the rooftops, and somewhere Gaven was probably looking for them.
“Wait, I know you. You're Adelyli. You came in just a few hours ago. Why're you leaving now?” he asked.
“Someone's chasing me, trying to steal my horse,” she replied hurriedly, glancing around. She felt like crying. This was ridiculous and horrible and all she wanted right then was to go home and crawl into bed.
“You ran into that friendly barkeeper Gaven, didn't you?” Before she could reply, he continued. “Lum. Just your luck. He lures in unsuspecting travelers and demands they give him his due or he'll hurt them. Usually he just cuts them on their arm and then is mysteriously missing the next day when his dues are supposed to be paid. If he'd actually carry the threats out, we could arrest him, but he never does so we can't do it. He'll find his due one day soon.”
"I slept through the next day so that may be why he is actually carrying out the threat this time," she admitted. He nodded and noticed her panicked look.
"I'm a guard. He can't do anything to you without going through me, and he wouldn't dare that."
Adelyli barely heard any of this, but relief slowly trickled into her as she understood what he was saying. She nodded and sighed in relief.
“Lum? Your hair is a different color. Are you gonna join the army?”
She shrugged. He pulled out his board and quill and wrote something up on it and then handed the piece of parchment to her.
“What's this?” she asked, examining it.
“The name of the commander you need to talk to if you're going to join the army,” he replied. She read it closely with a little difficulty from the sparse lighting.
Guardsman Markis Li'lu to Squad-Captain Arissina Li'lu
Found a young woman named Adelyli who was attacked by that oaf Gaven, recommending that she see you for voluntary army service.
At the bottom of the letter he'd drawn a triangle with a circle at each tip. Adelyli re-read the parchment again just to make sure she'd read it right.
“Arissina is on the opposite side of the city, where there's a large field used for military training. Go there as fast as you can and give her that parchment,” Markis told her. She nodded and turned Tapper around and headed for the opposite side of the city as fast as he would carry her safely in the dimly lit alleyways.
The noise of Tapper running through the street made her scared that she'd draw more attention than she already had. The same dark shapes that had followed her to Markis were now following her to the warcamps and were able to keep pace with the horse. Because of the narrowness and unfamiliarity of the city, Tapper had to slow down often while Adelyli tried to figure out where they had to go.
After a stressfully long time of riding, they found the field. The city street widened considerably into a large square with a large archway and an iron gate that led to a vast open field. The square was empty.
The iron gate was open partially and a guardsman wearing polished steel armor stood in her way. She dismounted and shakily delivered the parchment to her. She read the parchment, saluted, and moved away from the gate. Adelyli led Tapper through the gate, her fear mounting.
Wyrms, what have I gotten myself into?
The field was covered in grass, a short green plant that was common in this area of the continent. It grew easily and long in some parts of the field and was cut short in others. The field was roughly an oval shape and had neatly aligned tents in one area and siege equipment in the other. Details of books that she'd read popped into her head and she remembered the story of siege equipment and how they'd been found. Engineers had found several of them in a strange steel box inside of an even stranger granite building with objects in clear boxes and strange alien writing everywhere. They'd dismantled the equipment, put it back together, and created their own versions of it.
A soldier with long brown hair walked up to her. She wore a leather cap, a leather vest, a white shirt underneath the vest made with fine wool, long pants, stout boots, and had a sword at her hip. Her brown eyes studied Adelyli curiously.
“A scholar, here? Interesting. What brings you, lum?”
Adelyli wordlessly gave her the parchment and waited while she quickly read it.
“Adelyli. Sent by Markis to see Arissina? Lum. This has been an interesting night. Follow me.”
Relief spread through her at those last words. She followed the soldier across the field to the other side, passing latrines, a public bathing pool that made her blush furiously, and a small armory. Spears, bucklers, shields, swords, bows, and a large stock of arrows were all present. Adelyli followed the soldier closely, not wanting to get lost here, where she stuck out so easily with her scholar's clothes.
Everywhere had scholars and they all belonged to a Scholar's guild. The uniform was nearly universal and so the reputation had spread through the years. Most scholars were respected, but occasionally they were hunted down because they used history and an extensive knowledge of past events to guide kings. Unfortunately the history they knew so well was fairly short, and the myths and legends became more distorted as time went by.
They approached a tent with a single occupant inside. A woman with blonde hair and orange eyes—a trait that came from a Ciccan ancestor—welcomed her into the tent. Her silver armor sat in a neat row beside her bed in the middle of the room and a small table along the back wall was adorned with maps and pieces of parchment. She wore a pair of brown shorts—pants that came down to the knees—and a white shirt that covered her to her hips and to her shoulders on the sleeves. Her hair was done into a loose ponytail, with strands of hair loose in a few spots. Overall it was a more relaxed look than what she was expecting.
Adelyli handed her the parchment and waited for her to say something. Arissina—Adelyli wasn't sure who else it might be—read it carefully and nodded.
“I'm glad Markis was awake at his post. I'm his sister, Arissina. I lead these soldiers. I've got little time to rest as it is and it's a busy day tomorrow. What do you want?”
Adelyli swallowed before speaking. “I want to join the army. My grandfather was killed by... some people, I'm not sure who, and I want to learn how to fight so I can get revenge.”
“Revenge isn't the best goal, but it is a fiery one. We need one more person in squad three, so join up there. Look for a woman named Limara.” Arissina walked over to the table and put the parchment on the side, yawning along the way.
“Where do I sleep?” Adelyli asked.
“There should be an opening in the tents near the city. Find somewhere and prepare for duty as soon as the sun is up. Tomorrow we're learning archery, so suit up appropriately.” Arissina's voice made it clear that she was dismissed, so Adelyli saluted clumsily and exited the tent.
Several people had gathered around Tapper and were admiring him and his nice coat. Adelyli wondered what they were doing up so late at night and why they weren't sleeping if tomorrow was such a busy day.
“Are you the owner of this fine horse?” an old man asked. Adelyli nodded and he smiled. “I'm the stablekeeper for the army. I'll take him to his stall for the rest of the night. Lum?”
“That's fine...” she trailed off while he walked away with the horse. Tapper moved reluctantly and was warily flicking his tail from side to side. Adelyli turned to the left and walked down the row of tents, passing the armory, the bathing pool, and the latrines, finally arriving at the row of tents. One of them was closed, but the other one was open and had three people already inside of it. She entered cautiously and saw several people sitting on their mats, a large gray blanket made of cotton and wool that could be wrapped around the body like a scroll.
Three women looked at her simultaneously. One was short and stout with a large bosom and black hair. The second had blonde hair with brown edges that made Adelyli wonder if she'd had her hair dyed. She had long legs and a short torso and was muscular in her arms and stomach. The last woman had brown hair and was the same build as Adelyli.
“New recruit?” the first asked.
“Yes,” Adelyli replied.
“You get that mat,” the third said, pointing to the mat in the corner of the tent. Adelyli took her shoes off and walked over to it. She sat down on it and curled up, pressing her knees against her ribs and wrapping her arms around her legs. Tiredness washed over her like a wave and she nearly fell over right then.
The struggle to keep her eyelids up mounted until she finally gave in and fell asleep in an unfamiliar place, surrounded by strange people and a lifestyle opposite to the one she'd led before. She rolled onto her side and fell asleep, still fully clothed.
-----EMHELP PLAINS
The rustle of movement in the tent woke her with a start. Her heart hammered inside her chest and her eyes searched frantically for the source of the movement. The three women she shared a tent with were already gone and had left a bowl of food—grapes, some bread, a slice of meat, and a skinny orange thing that she wasn't familiar with—but no note. Her stomach growled just then and she hurriedly ate the food and exited the tent, sliding her shoes on just outside the opening.
Once she had them on, she looked around the tent and saw that most people were scrambling to get armor on and prepare for whatever they were doing. The sun was just barely tinting the horizon purple and tiredness still dragged at her movements. Her body seemed to beg her for more rest.
A light wind brushed past her and she followed it to the armory, where a man was standing. He was large and had scars on his neck and hands, along with a long beard that was braided and tied off with a red band.
“What's yer size?” he asked gruffly. Adelyli hesitated when she realized that she didn't know.
“Uh... I don't know. Can someone fit me?”
“I'll fit you,” he replied. She colored and nodded and took her scholar's jacket off. He shook his head, paling slightly, and pointed to a small room beside this one. “No, I was kiddin'. Go in there.”
She curiously walked into the other room and looked around. On the walls of the wooden room were army gear of all sizes. She grabbed a cloth top and dark pants that would fit her and quickly undressed in the corner, hoping that no one would come in. Once she was done, she walked back into the main room carrying her scholar outfit and hoped that her cheeks weren't on fire.
“You're really new, aren't you? You're supposed to bathe first. Lum. Too late now. Get some armor on, and a bow, and report for duty.”
Adelyli picked some armor, tied her now-blonde hair into a bun, and slid the armor on. It fit well enough. Once she was done, she exited the armory, keeping her head down and her eyes peeled on the ground to make sure she didn't trip on anything.
Two massive toes came into her small field of vision and she looked up into the face of a giant creature. It was huge, tan, and had multiple horns coming out of the top of its head. It wore armor that was rusted in some parts, but mostly well cared for, and had a large cleaver at its side.
“H-help!” Adelyli yelped. The creature shoved her to the side and entered into the armory, where sounds of a struggle started. The field in front of her was in total chaos, with hundreds of the creatures attacking the soldiers, who were quickly forming into formations and trying to strike back at them. Screams, yells, and the clash of sword on sword and weapon on armor drowned everything else out. Adrenaline surged inside her and she looked around for a weapon. A small dagger nearby caught her attention and she grabbed it and stood up to face another of the creatures standing over her.
It puffed its chest out and aggressively took a step forward. Adelyli took a step back and glanced behind her, at the edge of the field. The lake was nearby, but only a stream was beneath her.
The creature snickered and raised its arm. She raised her dagger as if to block the blow, but the creature stopped and toppled onto its side; an arrow stuck out of the back of its head. Just as she smiled in relief, another arrow smashed into her armor, directly in her sternum. She felt the armor crumple under the heavy blow and saw the creature with the bow in the distance, grinning wickedly at her. It turned and started firing into the stable, killing the horses. Blood from her wound dripped onto the ground in front of her; part of the armor had collapsed and had punctured into her sternum. Vaguely she noticed that she was pitching backwards.
Air whipped her hair in front of her eyes and she fell over the edge of Emhelp Parish toward a small but deep stream below. The world flipped upside down and everything became hazy. From afar, people paused on the road to watch in startled horror as a soldier with blonde hair fell nearly a league with nothing to catch her.
Raavin sat on his bed, the broken crown lying on the ceder table on his left. His sheets were crumpled on one side of the bed in a pile, where his feet would be. Bandages were wrapped tightly around his arm and head, and around his waist.
The tension in the air was almost palpable. Adelyli sighed, waiting for it to break. Ever since he'd shown her the history, things had been different. He wouldn't look at her. Part of her was angry at him for it, and another part of her was terrified of what he'd told her. Their chances had been grim before; now they seemed nonexistent.
Kiara sat nearby, twiddling a stick idly between her hands. She was restless from the lack of movement. It was noon, and the day kept waning slowly on. Everyone else was attending to Zeon and asking her questions, or preparing the funeral arrangements for Linzi and Camjin.
From structure and plot to heroes and characters, your story must have everything in place if it’s to connect with the reader. Follow our guide to storytelling success.
Pacing is a crucial component of fiction writing. After all, it’s important to keep your readers “hooked” throughout your story. Whether you are just getting started in writing or looking to break into fiction writing, you’ll need to know the basics of...
Answer all these questions and you should have a fully-developed character for your audience to connect with.
A strong character can carry a weak plot; but a strong plot can’t carry weak characters
Of being smacked around by trials, tribulations, dangers, traps, sickness, temptation, and all the horrors of life? As God told Joseph Smith while he was stuck in jail, it’s for our experience. Ultimately whatever happens to us is a result of living among billions of imperfect people, the vast majority of which do not know the truth, or because we’ve been disobedient, or because we need to grow.
But why? Why do we need experience? I just want to lay around all day and take naps and watch Blues Clues.
You’re not here to do that. You’re here, ultimately, to become converted to the gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s said that only the pure in heart will see God. The reason for this is that they’re the only ones that will be able to. The pure in heart will see God because they’ll have learned the lesson of life and what it means to be converted. They will be graced to do so because they are willing to do whatever it takes to do so.
We came here to receive a mortal body so that we could experience mortal life. Before that we were spirits, and before that, intelligences. We, as far as I know, have always existed in some manner. Now we have this rented sack of meat, this sacred incredible body, and we have to learn how to bend the body to the will of the spirit.
Ultimately that is our biggest, hardest lesson. Because your spirit, the part of you that came from Heaven, knows the truth and chose to obey God and come down here to Earth is already hard-wired to obey God, the closest we can be to God is to get as close as we can to who we were back in Heaven. Once we do this, once we understand that the body is carnal and sensual and often wants exactly what is worse for itself, and we learn how to make our Spirit’s take control, we’ve achieved one of the most important steps to lead us to become an overall better person.
The best form of mastery is self-mastery. The warrior that does not know himself, does not know who she is or what she wants, is the warrior that will not fight with everything they have, because they don’t have everything to fight with. It’s only when we align our will with that of God’s that we have any chance to do any good here. Yes, we can do good on our own, of our own merit, for our own purposes, but it is laughable in comparison to anything we could do while we’re on God’s side.
Another view on this is that we find who we were to lose who we are in God so that we become a new creature. That’s what spiritual rebirth is. And because emotions are rooted in spirit, not flesh, we are totally remade when we are reborn of spirit.
The point, brothers and sisters, is to learn to trust God, wholly, fully, totally, having all faith in Him and His words.
I read old posts like this (this was posted 6 months ago) and wonder where that Jordan went. I want to write stuff like this again. I miss doing it. It helped me so much to write like this.
Free Word Processors that Offer Writers a Distraction Free Space
I have these in my last post, but I wanted to pull them out and highlight them on their own. These are designed specifically for writers, with tools for writers (word count, timers, etc), and offer a space that as I understand it, has fewer distracting buttons and cancels out most computer-related distractions (aka the internet).
Q10
FocusWriter
WriteMonkey
NanoWriTool
RoughDraft (No longer being updated as of 2009)
So, if Word is making you crazy, try one of these.
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