Light(er) novel, Broken Contract

I definitely have a bad problem: too many plots and story ideas are in my head! ""OTL""

Anyways, since this is the case, I'm going to be writing a light(er) novel alongside Watchers of the Shadows as an experimental piece.

Why do I say it is a light(er) novel rather than a light novel?

Because I know very well that I still have more descriptions than most light novels...I can't help it. I like description. :'D [/gets shot] Of course, I'll be trying to cut it down, so my light novel will also be a learning experience for me to see what balance of description is best.

Also, I'm a bit of a sadist with my characters, so there'll definitely be some tragedy mixed in there.

As it is though, Broken Contract will definitely have more humor in it than Watchers of the Shadow, which is more of a grave novel.

Okay, so look forward to more Broken Contract soon~ I'll probably post up another part of the chapter before going back to Watchers of the Shadow. :>

[Broken Contract] Chapter One (part 1): Berry

[Broken Contract] 

Chapter One: Berry (part 1)

__________________________________________

Expressionlessly, Vaen looked at the cliff in front of him, then back at the map in his hands.

Five days, the man had told him helpfully. Five days north through the Spine and you’ll reach Lyar. On my honor.

Yet, it was already two weeks past, and Vaen had only just barely made it through the Spine. With the sun hanging high in the cloudless blue sky, he could see for leagues around the heavily forested valley. Jagged peaks of the mountains known as the Spine of Giants surrounded the valley on three sides. Not far east of where he stood a waterfall crashed down a rocky bluff and into a river that wound gently deep into the woods. However, there was no sign of any buildings, not to mention an entire city. He looked back at the trail that ended in front of him.


And this cliff was definitely not on the map.


 “Damn that old man and his honor!” Vaen cursed loudly, tearing the map into pieces. Glaring in the direction the pieces had scattered, he suddenly had an urge to turn back and spend another two months traveling through the Spine just to give the cheat a good beating. And take back his money. Reaching inside his black woolen coat, he took out a small leather pouch that clinked feebly as he shook it.


My four silver dales!


Tearfully, he returned the light pouch back to the inner pocket of his coat and turned away from the cliff. As much as he wanted to teach the swindler a lesson, he did not have enough provisions or money to last the trip back; there was no choice but to find his own way, now. Pulling up the fur-lined hood of his sable cloak, he strode back into the thick forest behind him, heading east. He remembered there had been a trail down into the valley not far down.

[Watchers of the Shadow] Synopsis

Prologue and part one of the first chapter is finally posted~ :'D

Watchers of the Shadow (tentative title) is a fantasy novel I'm working on. It is my first attempt at a novel, so any suggestions and comments are very, very welcome!! (Please? :'D) 

The story started off during this year's NaNoWriMo, but of course I did not finish it...... I was truly unprepared. Still, the attempt improved my writing significantly, and I think I have a clearer direction on the novel than I did before. Even so, what I am posting is the first draft! There may be many areas where I may have made grammatical mistakes and so forth, or I where the description is too static etc. Finding the best POV to write scenes is also sometimes a point of trouble for me... :'D Thus, critiques are loved~

Here is a tentative synopsis:

Avaris Etruscian is the youngest prince of Shaerone. Since the queen's death, he has fallen to a mysterious sickness that is slowly but surely taking its toll on his body. Even so, he has been sent to Belara as a sacrifice to help maintain the already strained peace between the two countries. But, there are dark currents brewing in his own country that he had not been aware of, and his company is attacked in the border. Pursued and driven close to death, he breaks through part of the centuries-old seal on magic, rediscovering a power that may just be what could save him––and let loose an ancient evil back into the world.

[Watchers of the Shadow] Chapter One (part 1)

            The bells tolled.

            Deep reverberating peals and the soft tinkle of chimes intertwined into a lament that could be heard for leagues around: from the towering spires and sprawling buildings of the city, to the terraced fields of the low hills surrounding, and to the thick forests far north. For a moment, the bellsong was all that could be heard. Birds quieted. The wailing wind  paused, as if holding its breath. There was only the song of bells, a song of mourning and tragedy.

            Avaris pulled back on his reins, turning back to look towards the south where the bellsong came, and where the city of Nessa stood. They were already half a day away, having set off at first light, yet they could still hear every sorrowful note clearly. Absently, he fingered the blue sapphire drop studded in his right earlobe as he did when worried. It had been his mother’s once, and usually her memory was enough to comfort him when he was troubled. But, this time, his unease only grew.

            I’ve never heard the bells sing so sorrowfully, he thought worriedly. It was a bad omen, on the first day of his journey. The bells were relics from an age of magic centuries past, found in the old abandoned buildings that have now become the thriving city of Nessa. Untouched, the bells would ring at precisely midday: every song different, but each, Avaris knew, a foretelling. Perhaps not many believed in the magic of the bells—or magic at all, for that matter—but Avaris believed,  and the bellsong worried him. What could it mean?

[Watchers of the Shadow] Prologue

King Zerain Malzareth, the fifth king of Shaerone, studied the dagger almost disinterestedly, his hard, lined face unreadable. The palm length blade was coated with dried, dark blood that crusted the plain linen that wrapped the hilt. But even so, he knew that the edge would be as sharp as the day it had been forged. A thick, gnarled finger traced the engraved “S” in the cold steel above the guard. Only one forgery would mark their creations so. He placed the dagger back down in front of him on the polished mahogany table, and he leaned forward, dark obsidian eyes fixed on the man kneeling on the crimson and gold embroidered rug on the dark stone floors of his study.  “What,” he said coldly. “is the meaning of this, Delos?”

Despite his bristly beard and tall, heavy build, Delos was only past his twenty-fifth name day, yet he held himself with a confidence that few would have been able to manage under the king’s hard gaze. He wore a mantle of dark sable fur over a silk, black tunic embroidered with fine silver thread. Heavy rings inset with colorful gems adorned several of his fingers, and a golden band around his temples with a dark amethyst that that hung between thick, low brows. Thick, dark black hair ended in curls at his strong jaw, set firmly and tilted high and proudly as he looked up at his king with dark, defiant eyes. “It was but only a small matter,” he said dismissively, his smooth voice with only the thinnest veneer of respect. “The peasants—”

“—Would not have a dagger made in the Saephes forge.” Zerain cut him off impatiently, eyes narrowing dangerously. “This was brought to me by the Belaran delegation. What was this doing in the ruins of a Belaran village?”

Mm....Bad habit come back again!

Sigh... I wrote 15,000 words, then rewrote everything. :'D

It feels like there are so many plots in my head, it's so hard to choose just one!

Well, I think I'll just go with the beginning I had in mind and keep going from there. If I really ever change it again before I finish, I swear I will...forbid myself from reading Yu Wo's blogs and novels for a month? (That really is a horrible punishment... D:)

Anyhow, will be posting up the new beginning shortly. The previous chapters were trial ones only! The ones that follow are the true chapters~ :>

Seraphel

“Is this really alright?” Seraphel Malzareth, princess of Shaerone, asked anxiously, shutting the door behind her quietly as she pulled down the hood of her cloak. “We’re really going to go through with this?”

“Do you want to go back to the Convent already?” Her brother arched a golden brow at her and grinned. “Missing your embroidery and dancing lessons?”

“I’d rather eat a toad first,” she said, rolling her eyes. “But how is this going to work? If we’re caught, Delos is going to have our heads.”

“Then let’s not be caught,” Avaris said cheerily, putting a finger over her lips. He grinned mischievously. “They will never know. Hurry, come.”

He led her in front of a tall mirror in the corner of the room, and Seraphel studied their reflections. They were twins, both just past eighteen. She and her brother had the same eyes of molten gold and the same wavy blonde hair that had come from their mother. While her hair hung loose in waves over her shoulder, her brother had his tied in a tail at the nape of his neck. He was even fairer than she was, Seraphel noted sullenly. “How are we going to do this?”

Avaris reached into the pocket of his coat and took out a small leather pouch, placing it in her hands with a smile. “A gift. Open it.”

Seraphel looked at him suspiciously for a moment before pulling open the drawstring of the pouch.