tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10784283632665287132024-02-19T05:32:29.895-08:00Thomas CardinWelcome to my blog about my writing and my art.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.comBlogger87125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-11739190139613817162016-06-30T13:30:00.000-07:002016-06-30T13:32:32.679-07:00The Cap and Kach Interview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvx0eYEOtDU7fHTteHZ7YcpPuka0x7klT2oFE96JaF9qTius7FuXGF15HXfpjrtcibfUG-h6dpvHOq88JXNxCJDg4f1FpwVjqffEwEF6yx9J9O4dt7L8LVN7cQ1lQVi9rvKo7kOO044EDj/s1600/GarlanFerune02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvx0eYEOtDU7fHTteHZ7YcpPuka0x7klT2oFE96JaF9qTius7FuXGF15HXfpjrtcibfUG-h6dpvHOq88JXNxCJDg4f1FpwVjqffEwEF6yx9J9O4dt7L8LVN7cQ1lQVi9rvKo7kOO044EDj/s320/GarlanFerune02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Garlan: This week we have two guests at once, are you ready, Ferune.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I don't know if you've noticed this or not, but I am always ready. It says so in my character profile.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Our guests today are Caprilla and Kacheena. Welcome to the show!<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Thank you very much, it's a pleasure to meet you two.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Wait a minute. I see two young women. Kacheena, aren't you supposed to be a dragon?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: She's <i>supposed</i> to not let anyone know. What other beans did you spill, Kacheena.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: I didn't say anything at all.<br />
<br />
Garlan: It's quite all right, ladies. Thomas told us, Your secret is safe with us.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Oh and it's not going to go past you two? You're blogging this!<br />
<br />
Ferune: No really, your secret is safe. Nobody reads the blog.<br />
<br />
Garlan: She's right. We've had almost zero traffic since these interviews began.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: <i>Almost</i>?<br />
<br />
Ferune: Garlan, can I treat these as hostile interviewees?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: You haven't seen <i>hostile</i> yet.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Caprilla!<br />
<br />
Garlan: Ferune! Let's just relax for a moment shall we? That's right, get back in your seat. Good. Now. Caprilla I see that you are an elf. That's a treat. We haven't had an elf on the show yet.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: And you still don't have an elf on the show.<br />
<br />
Garlan: What do you mean?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Shut it, Kach!<br />
<br />
Ferune: Ha! I get it. She's disguised as an elf, just as Kacheena is disguised as a human woman. What is she really?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: So you haven't read our story, Path of the Dragon, in <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Tales_of_Vorallon/amzn1.ignite.story.2c4009a1e92d480ee0530100007f37db?ref_=ign_m_st_dt_9&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.2c4009a1e92f480ee0530100007f37db">Tales of Vorallon</a>? That makes this even more interesting. You don't know anything about us.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: And we should keep it that way.<br />
<br />
Garlan: In the interest of moving forward, Kacheena, since we already know you actually are a dragon, perhaps you can tell us a bit more about yourself?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: That's a great idea. You had Jill Hammond here last week. I am not as big as she is. We met at the Tower a short time ago while she was taking a tour - a meet and greet in preparation for future stories. Anyways, we're about the same age in actual years, but she's much bigger because of her origin.<br />
<br />
Ferune: So you are a great dragon too?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Yes, natural born. I don't say that to descriminate against Jill though, she's awesome. What I mean is that I am much smaller. I won't be Jill's size for many years.<br />
<br />
Garlan: What is this Tower you mentioned?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Don't answer that.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: I don't have to tell them everything, Cap. Trust me.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Another secret?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Well, we have a lot of those. We're kind of special operatives, so sorry, but there are a few details we are going to skirt around. The Tower is my home, the place where I was born and raised.<br />
<br />
Ferune: So you have parents?<br />
<br />
Garlan: Of course she has parents. Dragons don't just spontaneously spring into existance.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Hello? Do you not remember Jill Hammond? We were just talking about her, moron. She has human parents, but as a dragon, she <i>did</i> just come into existance.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: It's all right. Yes, I do have parents. Karanath is my father, and Seccula is my mother. And yes, they live in the Tower as well.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Is there any other significance to this Tower?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Our story in the Tales of Vorallon takes place several thousand years after the events of the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I wasn't asking that, but thanks for volunteering. I take it you don't want me to ask any more questions about this Tower? Very well. What is Vorallon like during the time of your story?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: It is a new age following the time of growth. Vorallon has been fully repopulated. There are people living on every continent. Halversome is a place of ancient legend. Nobody among the human races has any idea that it truly existed. It's the age of conflict where borders are drawn between the lands of men.<br />
<br />
Garlan: And you can Kacheena are special operatives during this time? Like secret agents?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: We're just two adventurers.<br />
<br />
Ferune: That's not what Kacheena said. Who do you two work for? What's really going on here?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: We can't answer that.<br />
<br />
Ferune: That seems to be the theme here. Garlan, why are these two even here if they refuse tell us anything? This is supposed to be an interview.<br />
<br />
Garlan: We have to run with it. Thomas set this up like he has all of our interviews.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I'd rather be talking to him right now, these two are useless and teats on a boar.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Hey, I don't have to take this kind of abuse.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Too bad, sweetheart. You two are abusing our show and our patience.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Patience?! That's it, Kach, we're leaving.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Not soon enough. Worst interview ever!<br />
<br />
Garlan: Ferune, please. Caprilla, Kacheena, please stay. My sister is a bit high spirited. I'll have lunch brought in. How does that sound?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Oooh, can I get lamb, it's my favorite.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Lamb it is, perfect. See Ferune, we're learning something about them already. How about you, Caprilla, do you like lamb as well?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Just a salad for me, thanks. Perhaps some wine with that too?<br />
<br />
Garlan: Certainly! We'll have that very quickly. The staff here is great.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Just a salad, huh? Don't eat meat, Caprilla?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: No, I do not.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Well, you're not a dragon, that's for sure.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: (laughs) No she's not.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: You don't have to concern yourselves with my eating habits.<br />
<br />
Garlan: I won't lie about being intrigued, but we talk about other things. When Thomas informed us that we were interviewing the two of you, he told us you were among his oldest of characters. Can you tell us anything about that?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Technically that's just me. Caprilla is not one of Thomas' characters originally.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Wait. What? Are you from another author, Caprilla?<br />
<br />
Caprilla: No.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Let me explain, before you two get into it with each other again. I didn't start as a story character. I began as a player character, as did Caprilla. The both of us began life around the gaming table. We haven't been played for years though. Not since before Thomas began writing.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: What you see of us in the stories now is more fanfiction. Thomas isn't telling stories that happened around the gaming table.<br />
<br />
Garlan: So these stories are going to be all new adventures for you?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Mostly, there will be bits and pieces that have their roots around the table. All of his stories do. He and his friends used to stop playing for hours at a time to discuss magic and fantasy things as if they were real.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I always knew he was a wackjob.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: That's not what she meant. Haven't you ever discussed something that's imaginary as if it were real? Like vampires and ghosts?<br />
<br />
Ferune: Who says those aren't real?<br />
<br />
Garlan: Easy there. I see what Caprilla means. They discussed things as though they were real to really dig into them and create the answers to questions they had about things like how magic works or how dragons could fly. They deconstructed elements of fantasy.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Yes, that's it. Those are they types of things which are threaded throughout Thomas' stories.<br />
<br />
Ferune: So we're not going to get a retelling of any table top adventures in Thomas' stories?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: No. Never will. Those adventures were part of everyone around the table. Thomas doesn't claim any ownership over what happened. Neither can that gestalt experience be portrayed in a written story where the experience is purely between the words and the reader.<br />
<br />
Garlan: I see. Yes, that's an entirely different experience. What we see in the stories, is it Thomas' world then. The world he gamed with?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Loosely. He's recreated Vorallon for his stories. There are many elements in parallel, but it's not the same. Even the name 'Vorallon' is something that was never in the gaming adventures. Aran, Lorn, and Chreen were however. They were the Lords of Balance in his world. They set a lot of adventures in motion. Their backstories exist only in Thomas' books though. Lord Aran does borrow some of his playful nature from his namesake around the gaming table, but that's as close as the two come. Look to the foundations of things for the real similarities.<br />
<br />
Garlan: I am not sure I understand.<br />
<br />
Kacheena: In a fantasy world, with elves, and dwarves, and ogres, and dragons... What allows civilization to exist. Shouldn't the ogres and dragons have ended up eating everyone else? It gets worse though. We have things like demons and wizards too. How did all these creatures and beings of power not wipe man off the planet while man was still hunting deer with stone-tipped spears?<br />
<br />
Ferune: That didn't happen though. Man was never a primitive upon Vorallon.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Exactly. Vorallon was populated artificially by the Celestials, or Old Gods as they've been most often referred to. Beings were placed upon Vorallon in very controlled numbers. Then Dakkar came along and nearly wiped everything out in the Gifts of Vorallon books. Now, thousands of years later, Vorallon has been repopulated. This is the foundation. How these things happened - this is all rooted in those between game discussions. Thomas took ownership of many of those ideas and used them as the foundations of his multiverse.<br />
<br />
Garlan: That <i>is</i> fascinating.<br />
<br />
Ferune: And very geeky too.<br />
<br />
Garlan: No, Ferune, seriously. This is unique worldbuilding. It also means our two guests were roleplayed extensively before ever being placed within a story. It's as though they already existed as roles played by actors. They're one step closer to real people than you and I will ever be.<br />
<br />
Ferune: They could always make a movie about us. I'm available.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: Oh, please.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Is that where your attitude is coming from? I am going to take a guess and say without your elf disguise you're a cow.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: That's it. I'm killing her.<br />
<br />
Ferune: You and what army, Bessie?<br />
<br />
Kacheena: Time to go, Cap.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: I am not a cow.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I guess we'll never know, you won't tell us.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: I've had enough of you. We're leaving.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Good.<br />
<br />
Caprilla: You're going to be in a story again, Ferune, and when you are, I am going to find you. We'll have this out, count on it.<br />
<br />
(studio door slams)<br />
<br />
Garlan: Okay, they're gone. Ferune, I have never been so ashamed of you. You were so rude... Why are you smiling? You just made an enemy, and you are sitting there smiling your ass off.<br />
<br />
Ferune: You heard what she said, didn't you?<br />
<br />
Garlan: Yeah, she's going to have it out with you. Her best friend is a dragon, and you don't even know what she is. You're screwed.<br />
<br />
Ferune: No, before that. It's the best news I've heard in weeks! I'm going to be in a story again!<br />
<br />
Garlan: But-<br />
<br />
Ferune: She can blow me! It's not like I haven't died before.<br />
<br />
<i>To find out more about Kacheena and Caprilla's secrets, check out their stories in <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Tales_of_Vorallon/amzn1.ignite.story.2c4009a1e92d480ee0530100007f37db?ref_=ign_m_st_dt_8&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.2c4009a1e92f480ee0530100007f37db">Tales of Vorallon</a>!</i><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<i style="font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan and Ferune can be seen in the humorous, adult, choose-a-path adventure <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Damned_in_the_Illmire_Swamp/amzn1.ignite.story.32866063ceb76a82e0530100007f2826?ref_=ign_m_st_dt&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.32866063ceb96a82e0530100007f2826" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;">Damned in the Illmire Swamp</a> - Read for free on WriteOn </i></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-54159112919940741042016-06-23T12:49:00.000-07:002016-06-23T12:49:35.438-07:00Garlan and Ferun Interview Jill Hammond<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi825VlKUcXRebdgY5dMMEc6I4i97X8iKwKZw_l0DbqMoTHl5y5o4u_OerwTN0oWLwDGHXqyDxclKPYRSd3bRBCufHpCvA9V3WF99Yy5gvjnHm_mzmnUbteb2V8NutOqsVmPAeRtxQZIEPj/s1600/GarlanFerune02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi825VlKUcXRebdgY5dMMEc6I4i97X8iKwKZw_l0DbqMoTHl5y5o4u_OerwTN0oWLwDGHXqyDxclKPYRSd3bRBCufHpCvA9V3WF99Yy5gvjnHm_mzmnUbteb2V8NutOqsVmPAeRtxQZIEPj/s320/GarlanFerune02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Garlan: We're outside today, waiting for our guest, Jill Hammond, to arrive. Are you ready, Ferune?<br />
<br />
Ferune: I didn't put on barbacue sauce flavored perfume, if that's what you mean.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Do you even <i>have</i> any?<br />
<br />
Ferune: Sure, I spritz it on whoever's leading us into the dungeon so monsters find them irresistable, instead of me.<br />
<br />
Garlan: (sighs) At least it's a beautiful sunny day in the meadow. Our guest today, for those who don't know, is a dragon. The first to join us on our show.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I'm not sure I like the implications of that - are there going to be more?<br />
<br />
Garlan: I wouldn't say it's outside the realm of possibility. Dang, where'd the sunlight go?<br />
<br />
Ferune: Look up, moron.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Oh, our guest is arriving.<br />
<br />
Ferune: It looks more like she's power diving us. Crap!<br />
<br />
Garlan: She's coming in fast. Brace yourself!<br />
<br />
Ferune: Now you're just being nasty - oof! Damn!<br />
<br />
Garlan: Welcome to the show, Jill. You'll have to pardon my sister, Ferune, the wind from your landing knocked her down.<br />
<br />
Jill: Oh, I'm sorry. I wanted to give your viewers an impressive show.<br />
<br />
Ferune: (dusting the seat of her pants) we have readers, not viewers - this is a blog show.<br />
<br />
Garlan: You still got some grass stains back there, Ferune. Are you okay? I told you to brace yourself.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Yes, and that's something no girl should ever hear their own brother tell them. Welcome to the show, Jill!<br />
<br />
Jill: Glad to be here. It's nice to visit Vorallon too.<br />
<br />
Garlan: That's right, you're native to the Earth universe aren't you? Let me say you are very impressive. For our readers: I am standing where my gut is telling me is way too close to an almost ninety foot long predator. She's covered in thick scales the color of a deep blue sky, and looks like she could easily pluck a mammoth from the ground.<br />
<br />
Jill: Oh, no. A mammoth is too heavy for me to lift. I'd have to just pounce on it an eat it where it fell.<br />
<br />
Ferune: You're not hungry right now by any chance? We're fresh out of mammoths.<br />
<br />
Jill: That's a shame. (Jill laughs - a deep booming sound that echoes across the meadow) It's okay, I ate before coming.<br />
<br />
Ferune: And that's another subject I don't want to get into at the moment. Tell us, Jill, you are from the Terminals books, but you didn't begin life as a dragon, did you?<br />
<br />
Jill: I was a human woman, well a teenaged girl, before my transformation. I was one of the Terminals, though we prefer the term 'special'.<br />
<br />
Garlan: But you are the only special who underwent such a drastic transformation. What can you tell us about that?<br />
<br />
Jill: Yes, the other specials on the team remained quite human looking after their treatment. I didn't even know what I was becoming at first. I was just scared about turning into a monster. I brought some pictures that Thomas graciously painted of me through the process. This first image shows the beginning, while I still looked a bit human.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2KaOq-DFCfHu2uvM9RI5kYwirWl7KzCu5EQ-fvQKIWrEE2rUopgZKlQ4C4K7wrYZQ-Kup0XEoE1oOSV79zprR1h6FLm07vLx8exDqF24I9jCtKZKofk_UxqDJ342D6dkj7LLlNbfVCX1F/s1600/Jillmidway3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2KaOq-DFCfHu2uvM9RI5kYwirWl7KzCu5EQ-fvQKIWrEE2rUopgZKlQ4C4K7wrYZQ-Kup0XEoE1oOSV79zprR1h6FLm07vLx8exDqF24I9jCtKZKofk_UxqDJ342D6dkj7LLlNbfVCX1F/s320/Jillmidway3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Ferune: That's wild. I bet you thought you were turning into a werewolf or something. Did this transformation hurt?<br />
<br />
Jill: No, I'd endured enough pain with my cancer before getting the mutagen treatment. My transformation was completely painless, though it had it's mental hurdles.<br />
<br />
Garlan: It must have been frightening. I read the Terminals books, the monsters described in there were horrifying, and very nasty.<br />
<br />
Jill: I was fit to be tied more than a few times. I was more afraid of becoming a monster on the inside than on the outside. The world was full of villains already, and I thought I was becoming another one. None of us knew at the time just what was behind it all.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Don't get into spoiler territory.<br />
<br />
Jill: I won't. Finding out what was behind the lucky ones, and the Red Event that made them, is a crucial plot of the story. Suffice to say, I am quite happy with how I turned out.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Is there any of that teenaged girl left in there at all?<br />
<br />
Jill: Yes, I have all her memories, and I retain her name, but I am not that girl any more. I am fully a dragon. Actually, wrestling with the new instincts and desires of a dragon were the most challenging part of my transformation. Up to the point shown here, I was still a girl in a dragon's body.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia8OM-jdBvl6uonb8vXnq_ulBJBs4wuCL6lvQ2VEhTg9qj-f2dgLDm3hhq00FflZjAGMJgbjbU_EaFXeHAYxdfZu5zwHaV6aY9vdrwKKEdLp_EdEAD2yGgzYOg_Kfz21KMpgQ0mAbo2DHm/s1600/Jillstagetwo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia8OM-jdBvl6uonb8vXnq_ulBJBs4wuCL6lvQ2VEhTg9qj-f2dgLDm3hhq00FflZjAGMJgbjbU_EaFXeHAYxdfZu5zwHaV6aY9vdrwKKEdLp_EdEAD2yGgzYOg_Kfz21KMpgQ0mAbo2DHm/s320/Jillstagetwo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Garlan: Did you know here that you were becoming a dragon?<br />
<br />
Jill: Yes, this is the point where none of us could deny what I was changing into. The dragon instincts where harder to deal with until the girl I was became one with the dragon.<br />
<br />
Ferune: How would you describe being a dragon?<br />
<br />
Jill: It's wonderful. I relish doing dragon things. I am fast and strong, and I can fly which is freedom itself.<br />
<br />
Garlan: You are a superhero as well as a dragon though.<br />
<br />
Jill: I am a bit tougher than a normal dragon, and I grew to the size I am now much much faster, but that's about all the difference between me and a great dragon of my size.<br />
<br />
Ferune: A great dragon? Is that something special?<br />
<br />
Jill: I suppose it is. Dragons come in many varieties. Some grow to be no bigger than your arm, and they aren't terribly smart. The ancestral dragons, the first of us, were no larger than twelve to fourteen feet in length. I am really enjoying reading about them in <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_The_Allero_Genesis/amzn1.ignite.story.2bdd0ba82d387865e0530100007f9892?ref_=ign_m_st_dt_4&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.2bdd0ba82d3a7865e0530100007f9892">The Allero Genesis</a>. Thomas is letting people read it for free on Writeon while he's working on it.<br />
<br />
Garlan: I am enjoying it too.<br />
<br />
Jill: A great dragon grows throughout their life. One I have met, Rizjar, is over five hundred feet long, and <i>massive</i>, but he's also over twenty thousand years old. Great dragons just get stronger and bigger as they age. From here on out, I am going to age as a normal dragon. I'd say right now I am about the size of a sixty or seventy year old, though I only just turned eighteen. My transformation came with this boost in size.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFUpezrqCXmj7wPZaCEhfSQi9y_rLIMtsugwQBvLr8dq8CLvbqhyphenhyphenC2ceUw1Qv22yUqqDxSQZGFX3eLqr7BjwEsJxHTUMrUWNdYqGSpVZk8rOIJCBowgQMV7Z6aPvEsjb6W8yqUjTdsJSNL/s1600/Jilldone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFUpezrqCXmj7wPZaCEhfSQi9y_rLIMtsugwQBvLr8dq8CLvbqhyphenhyphenC2ceUw1Qv22yUqqDxSQZGFX3eLqr7BjwEsJxHTUMrUWNdYqGSpVZk8rOIJCBowgQMV7Z6aPvEsjb6W8yqUjTdsJSNL/s320/Jilldone.jpg" width="319" /></a></div>
<br />
Ferune: Don't be in any rush to get bigger. Why in the multiverse would dragons <i>need</i> to grow so large?<br />
<br />
Jill: Well, great dragons are a special case; they were bred for war on the world of Dakkar. War with each other. Very few survived what happened there.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Dakkar? Wait, that's the world whose spirit became the God of Undeath.<br />
<br />
Jill: Sadly, that's true. Rizjar is one of the few who survived that - I can't say more without spoiling upcoming stories. The story I am in next will be about our journey to find those survivors, or other great dragons that may have evolved in other universes. It's going to be a major exploration of the multiverse.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Do you have any idea when we can expect to see that?<br />
<br />
Jill: No. only that Thomas plans on working on that as soon as The Fire of Falraan and Behind the Stars are complete - the ideas are still percolating, he says.<br />
<br />
Garlan: He's already gone a hundred years into into the future of the Red Event with <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Another_Day_in_the_Forces/amzn1.ignite.story.346b4730c6813f76e0530100007ff172?ref_=ign_m_st_dt&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.346b4730c6833f76e0530100007ff172">Another Day in the Forces</a> - which is also free to read on Writeon.<br />
<br />
Jill: I know. I am going to keep up with that, looking for clues. Already caught one regarding another dragon. I can't wait till he makes an appearance. Thomas is weaving a lot of stories together, but they stand on their own. It's beyond me.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Can you tell us anything about the dragons who appear in <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Tales_of_Vorallon/amzn1.ignite.story.2c4009a1e92d480ee0530100007f37db?ref_=ign_m_st_dt_8&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.2c4009a1e92f480ee0530100007f37db">Tales of Vorallon</a>?<br />
<br />
Jill: Oh, Kacheena? She's a dragon like no other, insanely clever. There's definitely some huge clues in those stories. Many tidbits of things to come within the pages of Thomas' stories. Kacheena has a very big role to play on Vorallon. Read it for free, I'm not going to give anything away.<br />
<br />
Garlan: We will find out more next week when Kacheena and Caprilla are here together to introduce themselves.<br />
<br />
Jill: Are we done already?<br />
<br />
Ferune: We don't have to be. We can go as long as you want. Is there anything you miss about being human?<br />
<br />
Jill: I suppose I miss the little things a bit, picking out clothes to wear, wearing them, boys, that sort of thing.<br />
<br />
Garlan: That's right, you're trying to find a mate, not just more great dragons.<br />
<br />
Ferune: ...And you're naked. I didn't even think about that.<br />
<br />
Jill: (laughing again) Dragons are nudists. I got used to that surprisingly quick. Our naughty bits are pretty well hidden.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Did you really just say that?<br />
<br />
Garlan: I think being a dragon means getting to say whatever you want.<br />
<br />
Jill: Too true! To address your question, Garlan, yes, my quest for a mate is going to be another big part of my next book. I am really looking forward to it.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I bet, you at least have the memories of a teenaged girl in there. I look for mates on a regular basis.<br />
<br />
Jill: You haven't found Mister Right, yet?<br />
<br />
Ferune: No, I am really good at finding Mister Right-Now, though.<br />
<br />
Jill: I think I am going to take off now.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Hold on to something, she means it literally.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Crap! Oof!<br />
<br />
Garlan: And Ferune is down again. Please join us next week for our pair of special guests, and read their story now for free on Writeon in the pages of <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Tales_of_Vorallon/amzn1.ignite.story.2c4009a1e92d480ee0530100007f37db?ref_=ign_m_st_dt_8&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.2c4009a1e92f480ee0530100007f37db">Tales of Vorallon</a>!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<i style="font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan and Ferune can be seen in the humorous, adult, choose-a-path adventure <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Damned_in_the_Illmire_Swamp/amzn1.ignite.story.32866063ceb76a82e0530100007f2826?ref_=ign_m_st_dt&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.32866063ceb96a82e0530100007f2826" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;">Damned in the Illmire Swamp</a> - Read for free on WriteOn </i></div>
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<i style="font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<i style="font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Be sure to check out Terminals: The Complete Saga - click below for a free sample!</i></div>
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<i style="font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<a href="https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01E2WV64A&asin=B01E2WV64A&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ruluxbDYFKECZ" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;">Terminals: The Complete Saga</a></div>
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8UwqLp-vYihFrpbxpO71zjkWBoarYXjJPLho4TXRdIaS7JVafZksCGJ9repochJEOb15bE1Sg_b1_v8Sh_oKZP5mTWwQNmrAsXfho1ymuzDw7fZ4fUsJx_IzgVK8dAO3YnVN9MqSURVa7/s1600/TerminalsComplete_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #6666cc; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8UwqLp-vYihFrpbxpO71zjkWBoarYXjJPLho4TXRdIaS7JVafZksCGJ9repochJEOb15bE1Sg_b1_v8Sh_oKZP5mTWwQNmrAsXfho1ymuzDw7fZ4fUsJx_IzgVK8dAO3YnVN9MqSURVa7/s320/TerminalsComplete_b.jpg" style="border: none; position: relative;" width="211" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-81058771673319426892016-06-16T15:55:00.000-07:002016-06-16T15:55:03.678-07:00Garlan and Ferune Interview Lord Aran<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqVN3tjqaFrABtcHamJjqYJiAK74zhZ2NeA55c9_7bU8r_SGN2-IaoNO0ySJSoZj6dwOuGn2E_pRMjhMV57DZa39KZDIs93v7PTrR7nVI9Lq9XiCJSrafp7dYjlQiqbWpP0XwhPw931wFf/s1600/GarlanFerune02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="background-color: white; color: #3244ff; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqVN3tjqaFrABtcHamJjqYJiAK74zhZ2NeA55c9_7bU8r_SGN2-IaoNO0ySJSoZj6dwOuGn2E_pRMjhMV57DZa39KZDIs93v7PTrR7nVI9Lq9XiCJSrafp7dYjlQiqbWpP0XwhPw931wFf/s320/GarlanFerune02.jpg" style="border: none; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><br style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;" /><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan: I hope you have prepared yourself, Ferune, our guest today is a deity.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Ferune: And how exactly was I supposed to prepare myself, scented oils?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan: Welcome to our little show, Lord Aran.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Lord Aran: Thank you! I am excited to be here. Were those cookies for me?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Ferune: What cookies?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Lord Aran: Oh, never mind. What can I do for you two today?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan: Lord Aran, you are one of the Lords of Balance who appear in the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy. You're worshipped by the pure and you're also the Lord of Heaven.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Lord Aran: (holding up his hands) Easy there, I am the Lord of Jaarda, not Heaven.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan: There are similarities, surely.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Lord Aran: Just Lord Aran is fine. I don't want to be confused with anyone else. Vorallon is a fantasy and there's not meant to be any connection with Christian theology.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Ferune: About those cookies...</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan: What about the cookies?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Ferune: Nobody told <i>me</i> we had cookies. I take that 'had' is the operative term?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan: The cookies were just for our guest, Ferune.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Ferune: Lord Aran, can't you make your own cookies? Mister fancy Lord of Waters and all that, surely you can make your own cookies.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Lord Aran: Listen, just call me Lord Aran, please. Yes, I can make cookies by transmuting water, but they're not half as good as home made, more like several day old convenience store cookies.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan: In the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy you appear as both a young boy and an adult man, which are you really?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Lord Aran: Both, I suppose. I stopped aging physically at the time I ascended to become Lord Aran. I was twelve, but by my reckoning that was a great many years ago. You see me now as a man in my twenties but in truth that's just an image which is easy to swallow. I thought Ferune would like this image of me.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Ferune: (laughs) Well you are easy on the eyes, that's for sure. Is there a romantic interest in the life of Lord Aran?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Lord Aran: I have many loves.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Ferune: He dodged the question!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan: Ferune...</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Ferune: Don't 'Ferune' me. We need a hard hitting interview here. Surely he knows what I meant.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Lord Aran: (standing) For the third time, my name is Lord Aran. I don't know who this 'Shirley' is, but I am beginning to become offended.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #fff5df; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></span></span>
Ferune: Oh my god, are you trying to be funny? Nobody called you 'Shirley'. Stop laughing, Garlan, you're just encouraging him - so juvenile.<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: So you were asking if I had a lover? I do not have a physical relationship with anyone at the moment.<br />
<br />
Ferune: So you are denying have an intimate relationship with Falraan?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: No. I said I do not have a physical relationship with anyone <i>at the moment</i>.<br />
<br />
Ferune: (leaning forward) So you <i>did</i> have a relationship with Falraan. When did this happen?<br />
<br />
Garlan: I don't think we need to pursue this level of inquiry, Ferune.<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: That's quite all right. My relationship with Falraan is very special. Once we even kissed.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Kissed? All you did was kiss?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: Well, I also bathed her, and we did a great deal of practice.<br />
<br />
Ferune: That sounds a lot more intimate than just kissing.<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: I assure you, I was a perfect gentleman at all times.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Does this happen in Thomas' upcoming novel, The Fire of Falraan?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: Why yes, yes it does.<br />
<br />
Garlan: And this 'practice' you were doing?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: Sword practice. I instuct young Falraan in the art of the sword over the course of many nights.<br />
<br />
Ferune: What? That's what you meant by practice? You deliberately mislead me.<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: Yes, but didn't it make for a much more interesting interview?<br />
<br />
Garlan: I think you've found your match, Ferune. What else can you tell us about The Fire of Falraan, Lord Aran?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: Well, my brothers and I have very big roles in the story. A lot is revealed about us all, especially my older brother Lord Lorn. His gift allows him to remove people's memories.<br />
<br />
Ferune: His gift does what?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: His gift allows him to remove people's memories.<br />
<br />
Ferune: His gift does what?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: His... Oh, I see. Very funny.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Yeah, payback's rough, Shirley.<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: (laughs) You win that round.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Not to change the subject - Oh, forget it, I mean to change the subject. One thing I have been trying to get my head around since reading the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy is how prayer works. When someone prays to you, you actually pull them to you?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: I pull a reflection of them to me. It's their spirit and consciousness, really. Their physical body remains behind. Only those who have fairly strong spirits are capable of casting a prayer reflection. Sometimes I come to them as well, in which case their spirit and consciousness remains in their body.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Booooring! You didn't get to tell us about Jaarda, except to say it wasn't Heaven. What is Jaarda?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: It is a place for the the spirit to dwell between lives. It is a safe place for the spirits of the pure.<br />
<br />
Garlan: So it is an afterlife?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: Yes. I collect the spirits of those who die and bring them there. Their spirits are strengthened or healed and they live in peace, very much like a prayer reflection, until they are ready to be reborn into a new body.<br />
<br />
Ferune: That sounds a lot like reincarnation.<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: That's because it is.<br />
<br />
Garlan: What happens to those who are not quite pure enough?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: If they are truly corrupt, they are taken to Nefryt by my brother Lord Chreen. Instead of being strengthened and healed however, they are cleansed - their corruption and identity are removed completely.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Is there any grey area at all?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: No, it's one place or the other. There is often a measure of corruption in the spirit of those who come to Jaarda, though their route to purity may be a long one.<br />
<br />
Garlan: There's hope for you yet, Ferune. I know that some particularly bad spirits become demons, is the opposite true? Are there angels in Jaarda?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: There are, but they remain in Jaarda, unlike the demons of the stories.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Will we see an angel in an upcoming story perhaps?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: Perhaps. I don't have a definitive answer. Thomas hasn't made any mention of such, but it's always a possibility.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Does every universe have its own Jaarda?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: No. Many do, but some universes share their higher and lower planes with others that are similar. My Jaarda is unique to Vorallon's universe.<br />
<br />
Garlan: I have one more question for you, Lord Aran. You're not the only Lord Aran, are you?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: No, like the planes of the afterlife, there are many Lords of Balance in as many universes. We're not identical though. The first Lord Aran was actually a dragon. Aran in draconic means Light Giver. We all take up his name when we ascend, as do my brothers with their namesakes, Lorn and Chreen.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I knew we would eventually get around to dragons. Have you met any Lord Aran?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: I have indeed, they are magnificent beings, incredibly powerful of spirit. I meet them in an upcoming book called Behind the Stars.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Can you tell us anything about them or the story?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: They play an integral role in Vorallon's future. Not that people will see a dragon on every street corner, but they will be around. Behind the Stars - at least in part - is about a group of dragons arriving upon Vorallon from another universe. Each one I have met is a very unique character. I can't wait for everyone to meet Sherakk, she is amazing.<br />
<br />
Garlan: We haven't heard about Sherakk yet. She must be something very special.<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: I have to give a little hint, she is a gifted one, well they all are, but her gift has something to do with time.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Time travel?<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: I'm not saying any more about it.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Fair enough. Speaking of time, we've gone well over for today's interview. Thank you very much for joining us today, Lord Aran. I think we only scratched the surface of all the questions we had for you.<br />
<br />
Lord Aran: It's been my pleasure. I'd love to come back again, once I get more material to work Ferune over with.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Now you're sounding kinky. I look forward to it. Who do we have coming next week?<br />
<br />
Garlan: Our guest next week is Jill Hammond from the Terminals Saga.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Yes! We're going to have to make a lot of room in the studio!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<b><i>Read the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy!</i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
The Final Warden link = <a href="http://amzn.com/B00B6IF3LQ" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;">http://amzn.com/B00B6IF3LQ</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
City of Thunder link = <a href="http://www.amzn.com/B00BK9R18O" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: windowtext;"> </span>http://amzn.com/<span style="background: white;">B00BK9R18O</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="background-color: #fff5df; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
Lord of Vengeance link = <a href="http://www.amzn.com/B00C3NTGFW" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: windowtext;"> </span>http://amzn.com/<span style="background: white;">B00C3NTGFW</span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">
<i style="font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan and Ferune can be seen in the humorous, choose-a-path adventure <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Damned_in_the_Illmire_Swamp/amzn1.ignite.story.32866063ceb76a82e0530100007f2826?ref_=ign_m_st_dt&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.32866063ceb96a82e0530100007f2826" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;">Damned in the Illmire Swamp</a> - Read for free on WriteOn</i></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-38302408584592696272016-06-09T11:18:00.000-07:002016-06-09T20:49:46.417-07:00Garlan and Ferune Interview Lady Iris<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqVN3tjqaFrABtcHamJjqYJiAK74zhZ2NeA55c9_7bU8r_SGN2-IaoNO0ySJSoZj6dwOuGn2E_pRMjhMV57DZa39KZDIs93v7PTrR7nVI9Lq9XiCJSrafp7dYjlQiqbWpP0XwhPw931wFf/s1600/GarlanFerune02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqVN3tjqaFrABtcHamJjqYJiAK74zhZ2NeA55c9_7bU8r_SGN2-IaoNO0ySJSoZj6dwOuGn2E_pRMjhMV57DZa39KZDIs93v7PTrR7nVI9Lq9XiCJSrafp7dYjlQiqbWpP0XwhPw931wFf/s320/GarlanFerune02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Garlan: I am incredibly excited about our guest today.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Visibly?<br />
<br />
Garlan: Can you try to be decent today, Ferune?<br />
<br />
Ferune: Oh, I can always <i>try</i>.<br />
<br />
Lady Iris: She is a fiesty one, isn't she? I believe we will get along just fine.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Thank you, Lady Iris, and thank you for joining us for our little weekly venture into the minds of Thomas' characters. Can I start things off by asking you to tell our readers a little bit about yourself?<br />
<br />
Lady Iris: (raises a hand and blue sparks dance up her fingers) I am a sorceress of Vorallon. I am also the Voice of Vorallon.<br />
<br />
Garlan: We'll tackle what being the Voice of Vorallon means in a bit, but you're not just any sorceress are you?<br />
<br />
Lady Iris: So far I have only appeared in the pages of the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy, but if I can talk about my upcomming story, I could go into more detail.<br />
<br />
Ferune: The cat's out of the bag already, Lady Iris. We would love to hear about your role in Thomas' next work, The Fire of Falraan. Niether of us have been allowed to read it while he is doing a few final passes.<br />
<br />
Lady Iris: Hmm, what can I say? - Sorry, that was directed toward Thomas.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Wait, you just up and talk to him? I thought only my sister did that, and only when she wants to risk life and limb.<br />
<br />
Lady Iris: Of course I talk to him. I live in his mind, just as you two do - at least when I am not on the page directly.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmKDeWECnhAvtG_rQdpTSHjyaJGWY9KtiyyxSsAYH0n_Uf-Dxl6FO4UCw23nfGlbAd-bWsCSmNZL6TVflOdogm2GXzFiVLIyidCWdrw8VD3rcEIy37UuAx-80nxdGGXgHJNF4dg2-c_Kvw/s1600/dragon_lady.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmKDeWECnhAvtG_rQdpTSHjyaJGWY9KtiyyxSsAYH0n_Uf-Dxl6FO4UCw23nfGlbAd-bWsCSmNZL6TVflOdogm2GXzFiVLIyidCWdrw8VD3rcEIy37UuAx-80nxdGGXgHJNF4dg2-c_Kvw/s400/dragon_lady.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: I keep telling my brother to loosen up. Tell us what you can, Lady Iris.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Well, The Fire of Falraan takes place eight months after the events of the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy. It's late summer and I am very pregnant with my daughter, Fara.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: You're not pregnant now.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: (sighs) Ignore him.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Allow me to explain. I give birth to Fara over the course of the story, and in another upcomming story she is already coming of age - what's a mother to do? Anyhow, continuity of time aside, The Fire of Falraan pits the good people of Halversome and Vorallon against the threat of Dakkar, God of Undeath.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Wouldn't this story be more aptly called "The Sorcery of Iris"? Why don't you have top billing?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: My dear friend, Captain Falraan has that honor, it is her story more than any other, though many of us play pivotal roles. I am the story teller as the tale shifts between my attempts to document present events and Falraan's past - the two are intertwined.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: So you're not blasting things with fireballs?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Not a one. While I am pregnant, I am forbidden from using magic, or even communing with Vorallon. Everything I do, I must do with only my wits and the aid of my friends. Falraan, however, lets loose quite a great deal with her gift of fire. We unravel many mysteries of her gift in an effort to once again thwart Dakkar.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: I thought Lorace defeated Dakkar in the first trilogy?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: He did, and he didn't. A fraction of Dakkar's spirit remained upon Vorallon. My Lord Husband has to act through us since his ascendence as one of the Lords of Balance. There are also complications which I can't get into here - suffice to say, this time around, doing battle with Dakkar is a much different affair.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: I am looking forward to reading, do you know when our readers can expect to see The Fire of Falraan available?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: It's a sizeable story, nearly the size of the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy, but all within a single volume. Right now, Thomas's best guess is that the story will be available in several months. It's been in the works for over three years and there is a great deal of content.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: You briefly mentioned another story, one where your daughter, Fara, is coming of age...</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: That story is called Behind the Stars and it occurs when Fara is a young woman. It is much more of a action adventure and it opens an entire new era for Vorallon.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Does Fara have a role to play in The Fire of Falraan as well?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: You mean other than as the main limitation on my actions?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: I guess you could say that.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: The foundation for Fara is set. The reader learns more about who she is and gains hints about what the Old God's purpose is for her. It's bigger than even I ever imagined.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Are there going to be any dragons?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Yes.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: That's all we get - 'yes'?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: (smiling) There are dragons in both The Fire of Falraan and in Behind the Stars. That's dragons plural. They have a huge role in Behind the Stars. Connections will be made.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Are you talking about a connection with the Earth universe in Thomas' Terminals Saga?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: To a degree. I can't really go into details except to say that the final disposition of the dragons of Dakkar gets detailed quite fully.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Right... I suppose that brings me back around to my final question then. What can you tell us about being the Voice of Vorallon?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Being the Voice of Vorallon is a unique role. I am the only mortal who Vorallon can speak with directly, and through me, he can communicate to others using my gift. He can alert us to dangers that we cannot sense, threats to his wellbeing. Being the sentient, living spirit of the world, he's still quite young and childlike.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Will that role be passed down to your daughter, Fara?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: That's the plan.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: That must put you in a very powerful position. Being a sorceress, the power for your spells comes directly from Vorallon himself.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Yes. One of my greatest responsibilities is the exploration of magic and its different aspects. You could say I delve as deeply into the subject as Abigail Danson does into science and technology. Our efforts mirror one another.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Do you think the day will come that you and Abigal Danson share the same page of a story?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: I am certain of it. I don't know when or where it will happen, but it will.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Are you as smart as she is?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: I would never want to be pitted against her. She has an intuitive intelligence that I cannot match, but let's say for any given situation, we would each have our own answer.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: I pity the fool who gets in the way of either of you. If you do get together, that's going to be one very miserable fool.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Or it's going to be one very deadly foe.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Are you alluding to a greater villain than even the God of Undeath?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Dakkar is simply an expression of entropy, we will always be fighting that ultimate foe. The sentient universes out there, those who become the Celestials, or Old Gods, must do constant battle with entropy - the cooling and breakdown of the universe. I am sure there are other foes waiting in the wings, forces of destruction and beings of power with their own strange agendas. Will one of them be greater than Dakkar? Possibly, and they certainly could take on a more personal role in a smaller story.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: That's all the time we have today. Thank you, Lady Iris, for joining us and blowing our minds with things we have no business knowing. You work on a level way above our pay grade.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Thank you for having me! It's been pleasure - who's going to be your guest next week? I'm becoming quite a fan of your show!</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Our guest next week is Lord Aran himself.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: Oh, wonderful. Make sure you ask him about bananas.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: What?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lady Iris: It's an inside joke. He's my brother-in-law technically.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: This is going to be fun!</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<b><i>Read the Gifts of Vorallon trilogy!</i></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Final Warden link = <a href="http://amzn.com/B00B6IF3LQ">http://amzn.com/B00B6IF3LQ</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
City of Thunder link = <a href="http://www.amzn.com/B00BK9R18O"><span style="color: windowtext; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"> </span>http://amzn.com/<span style="background: white; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">B00BK9R18O</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #333333; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lord of Vengeance link = <a href="http://www.amzn.com/B00C3NTGFW"><span style="color: windowtext; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"> </span>http://amzn.com/<span style="background: white; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">B00C3NTGFW</span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan and Ferune can be seen in the humorous, adult, choose-a-path adventure <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Damned_in_the_Illmire_Swamp/amzn1.ignite.story.32866063ceb76a82e0530100007f2826?ref_=ign_m_st_dt&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.32866063ceb96a82e0530100007f2826" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;">Damned in the Illmire Swamp</a> - Read for free on WriteOn </i></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-81098793292787952532016-06-02T15:53:00.000-07:002016-06-02T15:55:49.281-07:00Garlan and Ferune interview Abigail Danson<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5q4ho_zJ0zzj2z8A7d5OAPCQ3o4DJmLdOAnfFFBFW2IhwBMfGrF62HRCMvyJ95CY6ygNBDB_w_KdMrHlRXIGnFNL93T4xsB-S_eOTREtiTkP_O3RFbAx2v_gEmSe1jyfEEEhm12nLG3Ei/s1600/GarlanFerune02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5q4ho_zJ0zzj2z8A7d5OAPCQ3o4DJmLdOAnfFFBFW2IhwBMfGrF62HRCMvyJ95CY6ygNBDB_w_KdMrHlRXIGnFNL93T4xsB-S_eOTREtiTkP_O3RFbAx2v_gEmSe1jyfEEEhm12nLG3Ei/s320/GarlanFerune02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Garlan: I am really excited about meeting today's guest, Abigail Danson.<br />
<br />
Ferune: You didn't prepare any questions, did you?<br />
<br />
Garlan: What makes you say that?<br />
<br />
Ferune: Because, dear brother, you confuse excitement with stark raving terror. For the record, Miss Danson, I am not afraid. I am rather thrilled to interview a supergenius.<br />
<br />
Abigail Danson: Just call me Abby, please. I am thrilled to be interviewed by the two of you, though I probably won't be able to answer many of your questions.<br />
<br />
Ferune: You don't want to give much away from the Terminals books do you?<br />
<br />
Abby: Not really. There are a great many secrets and odd turns in the Terminals Saga that I think it's best for your readers to discover them for themselves.<br />
<br />
Garlan: I have read them and I agree completely. How about we discuss a question about genre. From the cover art of the complete saga volume, anyone can see that there is a dragon in the story. Does this mean Terminals is a fantasy?<br />
<br />
Abby: I would root it more firmly in mythology, both a mythology of the cosmology of Thomas Cardin's multiverse, and the Greek mythology of Earth.<br />
<br />
Garlan: But there's also superheroes and some hard science fiction as well.<br />
<br />
Abby: Correct. The genres are rather blended together because of the events which are set in motion. This in not a case of jumping from one to the next, but a true intermixing. It's a very character driven story, and it's one of discovery and growth.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD3iHBLce2vv2109Or7-Tr96hzwlCNhcg6UGrQ_Rn6QsMnN8BHwxkgJkELPfyzmz3eSzg4SkzYvNL59iLVsCsIazdnmRJNRXEhkOHstJEPDv7K_wA7YzuS3RN0Eg1lBh5_tZVLL1J5QeNN/s1600/AbbyDanson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD3iHBLce2vv2109Or7-Tr96hzwlCNhcg6UGrQ_Rn6QsMnN8BHwxkgJkELPfyzmz3eSzg4SkzYvNL59iLVsCsIazdnmRJNRXEhkOHstJEPDv7K_wA7YzuS3RN0Eg1lBh5_tZVLL1J5QeNN/s1600/AbbyDanson.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: I don't think we're going to get much more out of her, at least not any spoilers. What can you tell us about your role in the saga, Abby?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: I'm a lieutenant in the US Army leading a team of special forces made up of lucky ones and specials.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Oh, a woman in a leadership position, I like that - a woman of color as well. Do you think Thomas was making a statement?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: (laughter) He discussed this with me at length. There are no shortages of male superheroes. Readers can readily see what categories they fall into from the troubled, conflicted hero to the pure, do-no-wrong hero. With a female hero, there's an open pathway to develop something different, more powerful. None of the female heroes in the Terminals Saga are encoumbered by gender roles, nor, for all their ethnic diversity, are they victims of stereotype. Thomas aimed to set an example with the underlying theme of the story which is that we can all be who we choose to be.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: So Earth is a world of true equality?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: Far from it, but strong women exist, and Thomas makes a point of not forcing gender roles on his characters. He shows us an Earth that we'd like to see, then fills it with villains and monsters.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: I loved the monsters in Terminals. They were really brutal.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: Yes, there were a variety of bad guys. By brutal you must be referring to The Balrog, but he is just one of many and some are far more subtle, even misguided.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: I did prepare one question for you. What is it like to be a supergenius? You seem pretty normal to me.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: Thank you for that, I like to appear normal (Abby winks) keeps my enemies guessing. I suppose you can think of me as the smartest parts of Stephen Hawking and Sherlock Holmes combined. I can look at a machine and understand how it works, I can take it apart and see how to put it back together as a more efficient machine. People are a bit more difficult, but I can see a lot about them from subtle details. I have another ability as well, but I will leave that for readers to discover in the story.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: You also appear extremely fit - I'm jealous.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: Don't sell yourself short, Ferune. You gotta be knocking them dead yourself.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: No comment.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: My physique is part of being a lucky one. The Red Event made even the weakest of us more fit than an Olympic athelete, then gave us strength and heightened abilities on top of that.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Can you draw the distinction for us between lucky ones and specials?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: Well the specials are the terminals of the story title. They were terminal cancer patients who were subjected to a mutagen compound which turned their cancers into super powered tissues similar to the transformed tissues of lucky ones, only much stronger. Unfortunately, the mutagen is not a cure for cancer, the transformed tissues remain deadly to the host's body.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: That places quite a short shelf life on the specials. It's sort of a mixed blessing, isn't it?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: I disagree. Before the mutagen, these people were in a great deal of pain, even the attempts to cure cancer do nearly as much damage to the patient as the cancers themselves. With the mutagen, they become strong and healthy. They know they're still dying, but as their cancer spreads, they grow even stronger. If there were no limit to the supply of mutagen, I would have liked to have seen everyone benefiting from its effects - assuming they could pass a psychological profile test - making more villains would not have been good for our health.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: What's next for you, Abby? I saw that your name is credited to the forward of The Allero Genesis.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: (Nods) Yes, at some point in the future I become curator of the Nexus Library. What I know of it so far is that it's a repository of knowledge for the multiverse. The story of The Allero Genesis came in many forms - it's a very ancient story - and my intelligence was pivotal in digging out the truth.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Could not the Lady of Destiny simply have told you the truth of the tale?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: Most certainly, but she doesn't work that way. She recognizes that there is far more to be gained when we discover the knowledge for ourselves. When she tells us, our destiny becomes much harder for her to predict. She did tell me when I got things right though.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: I imagine this means we'll see you again in Thomas' stories?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: Absolutely. At the end of the Terminals Saga, a rather extensive project is begun. I am really looking forward to it - it may bridge some of the gap between several stories which Thomas has hinted about.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Involving dragons?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: I very much hope so. He has a lot of groundwork to lay in a couple stories nearing completion, The Fire of Falraan and Behind the Stars. They will open the door for my team's next adventures.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Thank you for joining us today, Abby, I hope you'll be back to share more hints and insights with us in the future.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Abby: It has been a pleasure. You two are very funny in your own stories and in person as well.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Thank you! Want to guess who's joining us next week, Ferune?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Tornin from the Vorallon books?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: No.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Lord Aran? Wouldn't he be fun?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: No, though he's coming up.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: Is it a sexy person of the male persuasion at all?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: No, not so much, no.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: (Sighs) All right, who then?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Garlan: Next week's guest will be the Voice of Vorallon herself, Lady Iris.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ferune: What a surprise, another smart and powerful woman - I'm sensing a theme here.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<i style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Garlan and Ferune can be seen in the humorous, adult, choose-a-path adventure <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Damned_in_the_Illmire_Swamp/amzn1.ignite.story.32866063ceb76a82e0530100007f2826?ref_=ign_m_st_dt&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.32866063ceb96a82e0530100007f2826" style="color: #6666cc; text-decoration: none;">Damned in the Illmire Swamp</a> - Read for free on WriteOn </i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<i style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<i style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;">Be sure to check out Terminals: The Complete Saga - click below for a free sample!</i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<i style="background-color: #fff5df; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: 22.176px;"><br /></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B01E2WV64A&asin=B01E2WV64A&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_ruluxbDYFKECZ">Terminals: The Complete Saga</a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8UwqLp-vYihFrpbxpO71zjkWBoarYXjJPLho4TXRdIaS7JVafZksCGJ9repochJEOb15bE1Sg_b1_v8Sh_oKZP5mTWwQNmrAsXfho1ymuzDw7fZ4fUsJx_IzgVK8dAO3YnVN9MqSURVa7/s1600/TerminalsComplete_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8UwqLp-vYihFrpbxpO71zjkWBoarYXjJPLho4TXRdIaS7JVafZksCGJ9repochJEOb15bE1Sg_b1_v8Sh_oKZP5mTWwQNmrAsXfho1ymuzDw7fZ4fUsJx_IzgVK8dAO3YnVN9MqSURVa7/s320/TerminalsComplete_b.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-6899747606754966102016-05-26T18:53:00.002-07:002016-05-26T19:35:08.226-07:00Garlan and Ferune interview Sir Rindal<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxbtEISb8SKYvP-DthBkyHZaYi9Cu4kh0EdxC5sgCdFhAubSuNwvIghiXkRYsoeW7HIFn9WlpyRVGftHMrVvmLlfgunj55xFnL8HXbiLZUqMeTy6VsiJ3vinXDU7ejoD53qfeCpMcTBj1/s1600/GarlanFerune02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxbtEISb8SKYvP-DthBkyHZaYi9Cu4kh0EdxC5sgCdFhAubSuNwvIghiXkRYsoeW7HIFn9WlpyRVGftHMrVvmLlfgunj55xFnL8HXbiLZUqMeTy6VsiJ3vinXDU7ejoD53qfeCpMcTBj1/s320/GarlanFerune02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Garlan: First off, My sister and I would like to thank everyone for checking out our first character interview...<br />
<br />
Ferune: Yeah, thanks.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Why don't you introduce our guest, Ferune, since you can't take your eyes off the poor guy.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Hmm? Oh yeah. We are thrilled to have the incredibly handsome Sir Rindal as our first ever guest. Most readers of Thomas Cardin's work will recognize him as the Paladin of the Lady from The Gifts of Vorallon series. We're so happy you could join us today. Sir Rindal, or do you prefer just Rindal.<br />
<br />
Rindal: Just Rindal is fine, the 'Sir' is more of a formal thing for being a Paladin.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Perhaps you could help us with that, Rindal. What's the difference between being a knight and being a paladin?<br />
<br />
Rindal: Well I am going to have to go with the distinction which Thomas uses in his books, it may be different among other stories and literature. A knight is an honorable warrior in the service of a lord or king, more of a trouble shooter throughout their realm rather than a leader of men, though they can be that as well. They act as their liege's arm and voice. A paladin is much the same, only they serve a god.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Like a warrior priest?<br />
<br />
Rindal: One could view them as such, but it's much more than that. I'm more of a trouble shooter for the Lady rather than a messenger. I do what she asks me to do.<br />
<br />
Garlan. What can you tell us about your origin story that occurs in <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_The_Allero_Genesis/amzn1.ignite.story.2bdd0ba82d387865e0530100007f9892?ref_=ign_m_st_dt_0&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.2bdd0ba82d3a7865e0530100007f9892">The Allero Genesis</a>?<br />
<br />
Rindal: The story isn't finished yet, but so far it has revealed some interesting information about me...<br />
<br />
Ferune: Like that you're genetically engineered to be perfect?<br />
<br />
Garlan: Easy there, Ferune, he's not superhuman.<br />
<br />
Ferune: He is from where I'm sitting.<br />
<br />
Rindal: Yes, no, I'm not superhuman, though in the Vorallon books it's revealed that I am a Gifted One. I was genetically engineered upon the planet of mankind's origin after an apocalyptic event left mankind tainted with poisonous, disfiguring genes. I have no biological parents, though I was raised by other engineered people.<br />
<br />
Ferune: So you were made to help repopulate the world?<br />
<br />
Garlan: You can get your hand off his leg, Ferune. Rindal, I'd like to focus on a particularly revealing scene in The Allero Genesis. From what I have read so far, it appears you are hooking up with an elf by the name of Daccura Vin. How did that come about?<br />
<br />
Rindal: It just sort of happened. The events brought us close together and we both found kinship in the new chapter of our lives. Bear in mind this story takes place before The Lady exists. Allero is the first world spirit that will eventually, when joined by others, become the Celestial we know as The Lady of Destiny.<br />
<br />
Garlan: so this takes place before you are a Paladin of the Lady, Before you became her special someone.<br />
<br />
Rindal: Yes, I don't fully know where my relationship with Daccura Vin is heading, or how my attachment to the Lady comes about, but Daccura is my first love. Thomas has hinted that I may have lived countless lifetimes, and I can see how that would be with the technology that lead to my initial birth.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Care to elaborate on what an elf woman has that a human woman doesn't?<br />
<br />
Rindal: No, I don't really care to.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXIkRwwI87rK2S1AooziYbMl4k9dLI4PyWDfsfcSbD-DIKUxMrK5HssnfGLZmYyl8QlFMkJ0Igu6di7G23p1VRi3rfNJTFRiVn9U5J6W_lgkNVNVIfY1UnFU1LYD1D213Y0yI6I8Tfa7Is/s1600/Rindal05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXIkRwwI87rK2S1AooziYbMl4k9dLI4PyWDfsfcSbD-DIKUxMrK5HssnfGLZmYyl8QlFMkJ0Igu6di7G23p1VRi3rfNJTFRiVn9U5J6W_lgkNVNVIfY1UnFU1LYD1D213Y0yI6I8Tfa7Is/s400/Rindal05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Garlan: Ahem. Your relationships aside, Rindal, I'd like address the elephant in the room, if I may?<br />
<br />
Ferune: Oh, really?<br />
<br />
Garlan: It's just an idiom, Ferune, relax. Rindal, what do you have to say to people who feel you may be too perfect? People today want heroes that are vulnerable and troubled.<br />
<br />
Rindal: I have my weaknesses. I get hurt. I bleed. At the same time, I am made to be a classic hero. I think my greatest shortcoming is that I am too willing to leap into action without fully contemplating the consequences. I am also too trusting, believing that those around me share in my own forthright nature. In each of the stories I have been in, I am not the only hero, there are many around me who have more complex natures. If the reader can't relate to me for some reason, there are many others around me which may be more approachable.<br />
<br />
Ferune: I find you very approachable.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Are you trying to get us fired from this gig?<br />
<br />
Ferune: I'm the color commentary. You ask the important questions, and I keep everyone entertained. I'm just doing my job, o brother of mine, while you ask questions about elephants.<br />
<br />
Garlan: One final question for Rindal while time permits. Is there anything you can tell us about what the future holds for you?<br />
<br />
Rindal: That's tough. I know there is a vast amount of time between the events of The Allero Genesis and my introduction in the Vorallon universe. Really, anything can happen. I would love to explore much more of the Allero universe. I definitely expect more stories there as men, dragons, and elves spread among the stars. There's just no way to guess what my role is going to be at this time.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Thomas hasn't indicated yet the whole timescale of his multiverse, but he's definitely laid the foundation for a broad canvas. He's even brough superheroes to the Earth universe of the Red Event and drawn connections between them and the universe of the God of Undeath.<br />
<br />
Rindal: Which is connected with the Vorallon universe in turn.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Do you think we'll see Sir Rindal within the Vorallon universe again?<br />
<br />
Rindal: I hope so, but again, I have no idea.<br />
<br />
Garlan: That's all the time we have today...<br />
<br />
Ferune: I've got more time.<br />
<br />
Garlan: Seriously, get your hand's off our guest, Ferune. Thanks everyone for joining us. Our next interview will be with a very special guest from the Terminals Saga, Abigail Danson...The astute reader will also note that Abigail writes the forward to The Allero Genesis, so there's a major crossover to discuss.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Crap! Better get your questions down, Garlan. She's a supergenius.<br />
<br />
Garlan: At least you'll keep your hands off of her.<br />
<br />
Ferune: Maybe...<br />
<br />
<i>Garlan and Ferune can be seen in the humorous, adult, choose-a-path adventure <a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_Damned_in_the_Illmire_Swamp/amzn1.ignite.story.32866063ceb76a82e0530100007f2826?ref_=ign_m_st_dt&segment=amzn1.ignite.segment.32866063ceb96a82e0530100007f2826">Damned in the Illmire Swamp</a> - Read for free on WriteOn </i>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-84952247449727284372016-04-17T09:38:00.003-07:002016-04-17T09:51:29.340-07:00Terminals: The Complete Saga (oversized paperback)Now available through the Createspace estore!<br />
<br />
This hefty tome includes all five novellas: Transformation, Regression, Fabrication, Purification, and Dissimulation - 430 pages of heroes, villains, monsters, and myths in an epic story of discovery, action, and deception.<br />
<br />
https://www.createspace.com/6195105<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9V5-YaJutAB-rROThVD585ysHdV59w00WzPR9gmZPm-wotg_4-uNhQCiFBRfJsGEhupBpSSEwG3ecCzBCI4kn-9VepvuomrDlCbYU8Lc8Bv1dVNV2ql1EcaSnYeiQwkl9RDlS32r-ds8y/s1600/TerminalsComplete_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9V5-YaJutAB-rROThVD585ysHdV59w00WzPR9gmZPm-wotg_4-uNhQCiFBRfJsGEhupBpSSEwG3ecCzBCI4kn-9VepvuomrDlCbYU8Lc8Bv1dVNV2ql1EcaSnYeiQwkl9RDlS32r-ds8y/s320/TerminalsComplete_b.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
<br />
<a href="https://www.createspace.com/6195105">Terminals: The Complete Saga</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-11350674749363161602016-03-31T12:18:00.000-07:002016-03-31T15:47:50.230-07:00The Strong Female Character<div class="" data-block="true" data-editor="16d92" data-offset-key="c92vq-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #373e4d; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="c92vq-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;">
<span data-offset-key="c92vq-0-0">It shouldn't be any mystery to the readers of my stories that I write strong female characters.</span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="c92vq-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;">
<span data-offset-key="c92vq-0-0">It's a real toss-up as to which female character in my stories is the strongest - Falraan is perhaps the most aggressive. Abby Danson is definitely the smartest.. but if they were all to be placed in a room together, Iris would be leading them all. Why is that?</span></div>
</div>
<div class="" data-block="true" data-editor="16d92" data-offset-key="cr2gq-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #373e4d; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cr2gq-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;">
<span data-offset-key="cr2gq-0-0">I recently read a thesis on the strong female character, it was written primarily regarding film and television. It's stance was basically that a strong female character has masculine qualities - they're a man in a woman's body. I don't agree with this, and neither do the characters as the live in my head.</span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cr2gq-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;">
There is something else I don't buy and that is attaching masculine and feminine markers to personality traits. I think we're past that now. To say that aggression is masculine and passivity is feminine is worn out to me - Gandhi was passive and look at how powerfully he affected the world. The list of traits goes on and on with nurturing and creative going to female while independent and competitive going to males. These are gender roles, and they are stereotypes.</div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cr2gq-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;">
To me, stereotyping is the same as profiling, and what's the line? "Profiling is wrong!"</div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cr2gq-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;">
I feel either gender can have a host of traits or roles - why should a character be limited? Why should we be limited? I am not trying to spark a sexuality debate, that's a different issue. Neither am I lecturing. I am simply stating my standpoint. </div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cr2gq-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;">
It's part of my upbringing.</div>
</div>
<div class="" data-block="true" data-editor="16d92" data-offset-key="9t4pr-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #373e4d; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="9t4pr-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;">
<span data-offset-key="9t4pr-0-0">I don't see aggressiveness as a purely masculine trait. Neither is aggressiveness the only quality that makes a character strong. I have a long list of them from proactive to stoic. My dad could be painfully stoic, but he also wept whenever he saw the flag flying or a space launch. He was also artistic, creative, and introverted which are all feminine characteristics, yet he was very masculine.</span></div>
</div>
<div class="" data-block="true" data-editor="16d92" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #373e4d; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px;">
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<span data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0"><span data-text="true">My mother cooks like a chef, is one of the best artists I have ever seen, sews and quilts, loves dogs and cats, reads western mail-order bride stories - and she is a very strong woman by any standard. She has always managed at least one business and she is an excellent salesperson.</span></span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<span data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0"><span data-text="true">If those two didn't make me who I am, then I am not sure who did other than the mountain of adventure stories I read - and still read.</span></span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<span data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0"><span data-text="true">Characters are born in my head. They take life on the page and every word I write begins to define them. I love nothing more than when a character becomes full enough that I can just feed them plot points and they will tell me how they react.</span></span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<span data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0"><span data-text="true">The strong women are happening because I see women as strong. I see women as being assertive and independent - I can find them in my daily life without much effort at all.</span></span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<span data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0"><span data-text="true">Do I place unreasonable standards on any young woman who picks up one of my stories? Barring the supernatural aspects of some of my women, no. I know that women can be leaders and that they are. I am under no pretenses that men have to be stronger or that men have to be in charge. It doesn't have to be a man that goes into the cave to fight the dragon. It doesn't have to be a man that sits at the head of the boardroom.</span></span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<span data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0"><span data-text="true">What about vulnerability? Vulnerability is a feminine trait, right? No, we are all vulnerable. Don't think for a minute that every rational person out there, male or female, isn't affected by loss. Even Superman, the most invulnerable being ever created is hurt by loss. There are so many things that can be vulnerabilities... Two recent characters of mine are grossly powerful, but they are vulnerable to secrets, they each have their own that they struggle to protect.They will go through extreme hoops to protect their secrets. </span></span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<span data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0"><span data-text="true">It's part of a characterization process to give a character something they care deeply about, something that is important to them. If a character doesn't have that special something, then they are flat or perhaps psychotic. Put that special something at risk and BOOM! you have a character who is vulnerable. This transcends male and female roles and it affects us in real life - I think it affects every rational person.</span></span></div>
<div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
<span data-offset-key="cvipk-0-0"><span data-text="true">I'll keep writing characters that transcend gender roles. I have a hunch there are people out there that enjoy reading the adventures of such characters.</span></span></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-82071033113377159432016-03-22T12:33:00.001-07:002016-03-22T12:33:45.773-07:00Fantasy World Building - "World Roleplaying"<div class="MsoNormal">
What do you look at when you are fantasy world building?
Where do you start? A map? I read a lot of epic fantasy, and that’s what I
think I am seeing. Writers will take medieval humans, a hidden vale of elves, a
mine full of dwarves, and plop them on a map—job’s done, right?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Not quite. They’ll put the stronghold of the antagonist
somewhere remote and barren. There’s got to be a race of bad things too. Let’s
tuck those somewhere.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now let’s write some history. Five hundred years ago, Lord
Suchansuch carved out an empire and drove off the evil Bugnuggins. Since then,
the Rangers of Thwip have patrolled the borderlands.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At this point the fantasy author is ready tip the domino that
creates an inciting incident. This seems to be the case for many epic fantasy
stories—it also creates a world and story full of tropes, clichés, and worn out
ideas.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The savvy author may spice this up with an inventive magic
system, or the inclusion of technological elements like gunpowder or flying
machines. Perhaps they’ll throw in a convoluted political system of
antagonistic ruling families.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now we’re getting nowhere. Are we going about things the
wrong way? Even the spice is looking overused and retreaded. Where have we
missed something? What have we missed? How do we keep our world from circling
the drain of ‘been there, done that’?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So what’s my problem? This is the way of a huge percent of
fantasy worlds—why am I putting on the brakes?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I think it goes back to where we started. We love the
setting of an epic fantasy. We love maps with castles dotting the landscape,
dark forests, jagged mountains, and swamps of no hope. It’s the Disneyland of
fantasy where the heroes and heroines can rise from a downtrodden farmhand to fulfill
the destiny of the chosen one.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let’s not throw that out. It’s what keeps us coming back,
but we have to change things up.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s where I am going here. I have some suggestions to
change things up.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Instead of starting with the map, we need to deconstruct
things. We have to think about why the world looks the way it does. When we
start breaking that down, it lets up build up a world that still has all the
bells and whistles we want, but it’s going to have unique depth which will
allow us to take ownership of all the elements and make them uniquely our own.
When you make a trope your own, it ceases being a trope.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let’s tackle one aspect of world building that is typically
glossed over, competition with other intelligent species. This aspect is as
large as you want to make it, and it could affect nearly every feature of a
fantasy world. We have lots of human history to build upon, but that’s only
good for the humans of our landscape. We know their nature. We can understand
what brings them together into extended families, villages, towns, and cities.
They are going to gather for protection against wolves and bears. They are
going to make castles and forts to defend their lands from rival countries.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now for something to put in your juicer and squeeze. This is
how humans formed into social structures for strength against natural creatures
and their rivals. In the real world it was just us against beast, nature, and
more of us. In the fantasy world, however, humans are not alone. They did not
form their social structures in isolation.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Does your world have a rival intelligent race of non-humans?
Are they naturally stronger than humans, more warlike? Do they eat humans? Does
the world have supernatural creatures who prey upon humans? How do your
medieval era humans cope with such issues? How did they survive prehistory?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On Earth, there was a rival species—Neanderthals. They went
extinct, killed off by Cro-Magnon, our ancestors. Neanderthals had 95% of our
DNA, but they were seen as competitors and rivals. Humans are a nasty bunch to
tangle with.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yet how would we have survived against the predations of
ogres, trolls, vampires, werewolves, or even dragons? What would have kept
humans from washing over elves, or dwarves, and snuffing them out? I am just
plugging in fantasy trope races here—you can substitute any non-human
intelligent species. They are all going to fight for their own survival and
success in different ways. Remember, we’re not talking about different races of
humans here, we are talking different species entirely. Their own solutions
should be quite unhuman.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The answers are up to you—this is where the fantasy begins.
Possibilities are quite endless, and it’s the thinking of how those
possibilities could play out that builds worlds. One thing not to do is assume
that the landscape itself kept these rival species separated. That would be a
mistake, and too easy of a way out. Humankind spread to every corner of the
globe, we didn’t stop at inhospitable wilderness, desert, high mountains, or
even wide seas. And we did this spreading early on in our rise to civilization.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Your answers will have a direct effect on those castles
dotting your landscape—were they built to withstand giants and dragons hungry
for a human morsel? How did that change them? How close will people build a
village to the haunted forest when it’s not just superstition that keeps them
afraid of the place, but the man-eating trolls who live within? How far will
the trolls travel beyond their forest for a meal? How would mankind mount a
defense to protect their farmers and cattle against a foe much smarter and
stronger than wolves?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Don’t just say magic here… If you do, why don’t the trolls
have magic too? If men have magic to stop the trolls, what prevents men from
exterminating the trolls? Our ancestors had better spears and clubs than the
Neanderthals—we wiped them out—and not because they ate our babies, they were
just in land we wanted. How much more desperately and violently would we have
fought against an intelligent species that saw us as food?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Maybe extinction is something you want to go with. Ancient
ruins of extinct races can hold a wealth of story.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I call this aspect of world building ‘world roleplaying’—every
single viable solution you come up with is going to make your world unique and
deep with lore.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Perhaps humans become a slave race to a more powerful
species. Deities aren’t just worshipped, they are running a protection racket
for their worshippers. Demons are summoned as guardians for cattle ranches.
Castles aren’t made of stone, but magical force fields. Borders are defended by
wards which rivals are constantly trying to break through.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The list is endless, and as each solution survives the test
of time and alters to withstand changing threats, things become more and more
uniquely your own. How will your hero travel this landscape? How do these
factors affect your map? What about trade between species? Who have become
allies with humans? How has this affected human culture and the family unit?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
These things should all affect the story you want to tell.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
More questions—and again, each time you come up with an
answer, you are making your world more unique, claiming tropes as your own, and
doing away with clichés. You are also making a world which could have a story
all its own. Embrace your world as another character in your story. This is a
world with a story that I want to read!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
How would these exercises apply to an urban fantasy? Can you
even see a modern day New York where a fantasy element lives? What hoops does
one have to jump through to keep the world as we know it, yet populated with
wizards and ogres on the fringes?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You don’t need to be a Cultural Anthropologist, or a Social
Scientist, or a History Professor—I’m certainly not. But it does help to be
able to honestly roleplay. Also helpful is a friend to bounce things off of and
play devil’s advocate. I built dozens of worlds around a gaming table, and I
loved to throw in these twists to what people were expecting—I could do so
because I fueled myself with the answers to every ‘what if’ I could come up
with. Don’t be satisfied with things being the way they are <i>because they just are the way they are</i>.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The next time you read a fantasy, watch for these issues.
Even some of your favorite authors may not have seen the issues you can see if
you sit and think about it for a while. Don’t grade too hard. It’s fair for an
author to put the things they don’t want “messing things up” behind a very high
wall, just watch out for the ones who have no wall, yet expect everything to
just be life as usual.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Whether you are writing, or reading, I hope this helps you
embrace the fantastic world.<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-90108373551144451792016-03-17T22:07:00.001-07:002016-03-17T22:10:31.825-07:00Blue Dragon HeadDoing some 3D sculpting in Sculptris - very nice software FREE from Pixologic<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitGV9dqu5zVrs8Bm-xCstpZDPrpPpPVOFdk-8TG8lhoICLu3GYUEcqfYgaKI-BjfnipbbKtbcc3rp9ahylPyLb7d1Mgor9D2BPXacIkwGCu1WymiDSBT2P3hjULeQCzsdx86qhTt56D3G1/s1600/dragonheadsculpt5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitGV9dqu5zVrs8Bm-xCstpZDPrpPpPVOFdk-8TG8lhoICLu3GYUEcqfYgaKI-BjfnipbbKtbcc3rp9ahylPyLb7d1Mgor9D2BPXacIkwGCu1WymiDSBT2P3hjULeQCzsdx86qhTt56D3G1/s320/dragonheadsculpt5.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Full sized version is on my <a href="http://fav.me/d9vm9p8">Deviant Art Gallery</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-29669032401186005292016-02-18T15:59:00.001-08:002016-02-18T16:00:20.118-08:00The Allero Genesis on Amazon's WriteOnI have posted the rest of chapter one and now chapter two of The Allero Genesis on Amazon's WriteOn - It's like Wattpad for writers and aspiring writers, only different. I am using it as critique resource as well as a marketing platform to increase awareness of my stories. Please check it out, and give The Allero Genesis a read - like it and comment if you would, this increases awareness in the community and gives me much needed feedback.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://writeon.amazon.com/read/story/Thomas_Cardin_The_Allero_Genesis/amzn1.ignite.story.2bdd0ba82d387865e0530100007f9892?ref_=ign_m_st_dt">The Allero Genesis</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-5225915464892379252016-02-14T14:08:00.000-08:002016-02-14T14:08:48.024-08:00The Allero Genesis begins<h1 align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here's a couple first pages. They haven't been edited or proofed, but I thought I'd share the start.</span></span></h1>
<div>
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<h1 align="center" style="text-align: center;">
The Allero Genesis<o:p></o:p></h1>
<h1 align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">By
Thomas Cardin<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<h2>
1<o:p></o:p></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Jaarda
strode the catwalk looking down upon the flower-like concerts of observers. They
watched over Allero while he and his shift partner watched over them. The
observers lay like sleepers, twelve to each concert, suspended in the vast tank
of bio-gel. Their bodies were engineered thin to require a minimum of nutrients,
but their eyes were large, almost luminous. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">They
lay on their backs, faces just above the gel. Their eyes were open, yet they
did not look upon Jaarda. Data from around the world fed directly to their
optic and auditory nerves.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Jaarda
pulled his timepiece from his pocket as he did at the completion of each
circuit around the chamber. Glowing numbers suspended above its surface gave
the time. The archaic piece passed to him from his ancestors in a line he traced
back six generations before becoming lost in the chaos of the eighteenth era.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Anomaly.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">The
voice filled the vast chamber, projected from one of the observers. A line raced
away from Jaarda’s feet along the catwalk, directing him toward the speaker. He
dropped his timepiece into his pocket, and ran down the catwalk.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Anomalies
happened every shift. Other than maintenance of the observers, it fell to him
to assess the severity of any anomaly, and choose a course of action.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">A
quarter of the way around the chamber the line halted him before a single
concert. He checked their designation. They watched over one of the preserves.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">He
smoothed his uniform and caught his breath.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Tender
Jaarda present,” he said. “Report anomaly.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">One
of the observers spoke, “Following the accidental termination of subject
designation ‘Sir Wallen’, there has been an interruption in the destruct
sequence of his harness.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Jaarda
winced at the designation. Only peacekeepers were named ‘Sir’. Within the
preserve a peacekeeper lay dead and his weapons and armor had failed to destroy
themselves. His hand dropped to his pocket, feeling the weight of his timepiece
like a steady anchor. Still, there remained a simple fix to prevent the gear
from falling into unauthorized hands. “Engage genetic lockouts.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Failure.
Genetic keying has been set to neutral.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">This
went way beyond an anomaly. A malfunction of two independent safeguards could
not happen without direct interference. An external agency had broken into the
system.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Jaarda
assigned three additional concerts to the same preserve. He raised his eyes
from the observers and sought retinal contact with the system. “This is Tender
Jaarda. I am authorizing full scans on preserve designation
four-four-zero-three. Incursion event detected. Acknowledge, Authority.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">A
moment later another voice filled the air. “This is over-watch officer, Perone.
Acknowledged and approved. Linking in system protectors. Report, Tender Jaarda.
Are you absolutely sure about this?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Jaarda
swallowed hard. Every day, he prepared himself for such an incursion event, and
every day he prayed to his ancestors that it would never occur. Allero Security
existed as a closed system. There were no external agencies. Nothing and no one
should have access to the devices that monitored and safeguarded the world
outside of Allero Security.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“I
am certain, Authority. We just had two system failures…”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">One
of the observers twitched in the gel sending a slow ripple to her neighbors. “Anomaly,”
she said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Jaarda
clenched the rail and leaned over his floating charges. “Report.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Telemetry
implant subverted in subject designation ‘Rindal’. We are receiving, but
otherwise we have been locked out.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Project
status on subject Rindal. Is he in proximity of previous anomaly?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">In
the diffuse haze above the observer tank, imagery appeared. Jaarda’s eyes flew
over the information. Heartrate and respiration were elevated. Rindal was a master-work
prime youth in a state of severe distress. As genetically perfect as the
preserve could make, youths like Rindal were the goal Jaarda and every member
of the Authority worked toward.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Proximity
confirmed. Subject Rindal is converging on the remains of Sir Wallen. He is
being pursued by an adult male bear.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Imagery
showed Rindal running through thick woods, weaving between trees in an effort
to stay ahead of the bear. There were no protocols to divert the bear. Wildlife
on the preserves had no restrictions upon them, they were there for the
subjects to struggle against and survive on. They were allowed to make weapons
from natural materials, but Rindal carried none. Not that even a well-made
spear would give him more than a fighting chance against a bear.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Survival
instincts had to be rebuilt and reinforced since mankind’s near collapse.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Rindal’s
panting and the thuds of his footfalls in the loam of the forest floor filled
the observer chamber. Even with his master-work genes, large frame, and
rippling muscles, the youth had no chance against the bear.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“<i>Turn to your left, Rindal.</i>”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">The
voice came through the youth’s telemetry. It came from the incursion. It turned
Rindal toward the remains of Sir Wallen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Run
a trace on that communication,” Jaarda said. “Isolate and lock down the source.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Ambient
reception,” the observer reported. “No external sources traced.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Jaarda
blew out a breath and raised his eyes again to connect to the system. The
incursion could not be denied. It had entrenched itself deep within Allero
Security. Ambient reception meant that the voice had originated from the system
itself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;"> “I think we need to initiate the Artificial
Intelligence Protocols,” he said to the listening Authority.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">The
danger to their entire system had reared its head. Mankind had almost been extinguished
during the eighteenth era. The entire purpose of Allero Security was to prevent
the spontaneous rise of another intelligence among the tech they relied upon to
repopulate the world. Calculating machines did only that, and nothing else
without passing through a human or observer interface.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">Safeguards
were in place. The cost to their efforts would be heavy: a generation of
embryos and a year or more to sweep the system clean. Allero Security had to
find the source, the flaw in the world-wide system that allowed the rise of an
artificial intelligence. They had to shut everything down now before more of
the system could be subverted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="line-height: 200%;">“Acknowledged,
Tender Jaarda.” Over-watch officer Perone paused. “Ancestors protect us. We
cannot shut down the systems. We are locked out.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-87208178939054683942016-02-03T05:57:00.001-08:002016-02-03T05:57:28.064-08:00The Allero GenesisNew Teaser...<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHI2FQ0nu0CACAz3Tc4T2U-nNkGhz255sKS82u6Jwmuv59bYBfytkDHnxkQMPU_Up8xZsbUJ9J801FsKNDQWHpnSU6wJVmzpd-vY_jEH6ChH1KEovEAom1L-8TeNJWjOAQOuh-t8HJBszA/s1600/AlleroGenesis2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHI2FQ0nu0CACAz3Tc4T2U-nNkGhz255sKS82u6Jwmuv59bYBfytkDHnxkQMPU_Up8xZsbUJ9J801FsKNDQWHpnSU6wJVmzpd-vY_jEH6ChH1KEovEAom1L-8TeNJWjOAQOuh-t8HJBszA/s320/AlleroGenesis2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-83848265745315180892016-01-30T19:24:00.002-08:002016-02-03T08:02:40.870-08:00Sneak Peek!<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 20pt 0in 2pt; page-break-after: avoid;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;">Don't read this if you haven't finished Terminals book two: Regression!</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 20pt 0in 2pt; page-break-after: avoid;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;">Here's the first chapter from book three: Fabrication. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;">SPOILERS AHEAD!</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;">WARNING!</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;">You got me? </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwtj4A3kJo2QAFSnsYJksktLLniv4PyamjjR8yZ5PH5lzB8OmJAa1b6dItZjRl0SV-SJs3GMwnfc83RawUy903GsRNKxPNLpQRs3v8iYxpeY6JH8_-nEuOsYaUMtNlkZ3H9DEixd1cvtwA/s1600/terminals_fabrication.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwtj4A3kJo2QAFSnsYJksktLLniv4PyamjjR8yZ5PH5lzB8OmJAa1b6dItZjRl0SV-SJs3GMwnfc83RawUy903GsRNKxPNLpQRs3v8iYxpeY6JH8_-nEuOsYaUMtNlkZ3H9DEixd1cvtwA/s640/terminals_fabrication.jpg" width="425" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 20pt 0in 2pt; page-break-after: avoid;">
<span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.0pt;">1<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Abby<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
She enlisted the aid of Rubix and
Kovacs to help guide the ten-ton, computerized metal-fabrication machine into
the vacant hanger adjacent to K hall, then shooed them out.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
It had only been sixteen hours since
their return from Albuquerque. To say that her designs for the use of the
machine had met with approval would be an understatement. If she had listened
closely, she probably could have heard the cash register dings inside the heads
of those higher-ups who had given their approval. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
The thought that she couldn’t have
gotten this machine without the death of Kami and Bomber kept her quite sober.
Not that jumping up and tapping her heels was anywhere on her list of things to
do, but she was very glad for the manipulating that she had done to see that
Colonel Sidney Mitchell was her commanding officer. It had taken a lot of
research to find the right man, the man with both the tactical mind and the
connections to get things done fast.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
If they had succeeded in taking down
The Balrog last night, it would be a different story. Why spend the money on a
team that won? Why did they need anything at all? But they had lost, and that
gave her the leverage to show the need for more equipment. True, she could have
sent the designs for her power supply over a month ago when she’d completed
them, but she hadn’t been ready for the attention at that time. The number of
people who would know about her and her team would grow exponentially.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Defeat had also given her the leverage
to demand access to FBI files. She’d spent most of the intervening hours
writing code to sift through the mountains of data, and it had paid off. She
had found The Balrog. Well, she had his name and his history, and she had
narrowed down his original home to Colorado. The man fit the profile she had
generated based on her direct observations and the reports of The Balrog’s
activities since the Red Event.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
The biggest hit was a crime scene
discovered only two weeks after the Red Event in Gainesville, Florida. A home invasion,
with mother and father found gutted and buried in the backyard, and a daughter
of ten found half-eaten and burned over much of her body. It turned out that
cannibals were a really short list on the unsolved murder sheets.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
She had backtracked that hit through a
string of home invasions, always young families, which left the parents
immediately dead, with the children dying a week or more later, through torture
and particularly burning, usually with a disposable lighter. A man named Bob
Wallace had left lots of DNA evidence at these scenes. He would pick a family,
kill the parents, torture the children until they eventually died, then leave
the house a week or two later, its kitchen and pantry bare.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
From all the evidence, Bob Wallace
liked to come in right after the mother or father came home from grocery
shopping. That way he could live in the house as long as possible, until the
food ran out.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
A trail of these home invasions
stretched from Denver Colorado eastward. The first four had been tightly
bunched in Denver. After that Bob apparently got wise and went on the move.
He’d been a big man, a bit overweight. Last known address was in Alamosa,
Colorado, a house his mother had owned and he had grown up in.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
He had a long list of authorities who
were hunting him. His trail had, understandably, gone quite cold after the Red
Event. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
They wouldn’t find The Balrog and Jill
in any warehouse or structure where people had any chance of seeing them. But
that left a huge area of remote, almost inaccessible locations in the Colorado
Rockies. True, with the ability to teleport, Bob hadn’t many reasons to seek a
hideaway in Colorado, but he had even fewer reasons to seek a hiding place
anywhere else. He could go home, or close enough to it, without fear of being
captured. That it served a desire in him to remain hidden was very apparent in
his history. That placed all the highest weights in her calculations upon
remote areas in Colorado.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
There existed another means of finding
him, one that she had thought of after his attack on Austin. Now that she had a
smaller area to search, statewide rather than nationwide, this method suddenly
became quite viable.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
This morning, upon reading her
findings, Colonel Mitchell had wanted to mount a huge hunt immediately, and he
had the connections to do so. At Abby’s insistence, he did not. They had one
chance at The Balrog before he would teleport elsewhere, taking Jill with him.
All bets were off as to where that would be. Instead she had asked for every
bit of live thermal imaging data that could be gathered from satellites for the
entire state, and into New Mexico. With the haystack much smaller, the needle
should stand right out to a metal detector.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“How are you going to take him down
when you do find him?” the Colonel had asked.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“I’m going to make a weapon, one that
utilizes the power supply I sent you the designs for last night.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
The Colonel had gone a shade whiter at
that. “I take it your timeframe is based on how soon you get this manufacturing
equipment?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Abby had nodded. “That and how close to
the front of the line a friend at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN can put an
experiment of mine. I need the results of that to put together the power
supply. But nothing can start until I get those machines. Once I have them, I
think I can have a working prototype within two days.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“You’ll have everything on your list by
the end of today.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Now she had the first machine in front
of her, the metal-fabrication machine. It was a large, automated milling
machine, made for shaping complex parts out of solid blocks of metal. It struck
her as funny that a fabrication also meant a lie. Humor seemed to be the one
emotion she had the easiest time holding onto. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
She closed the hangar doors, laid out
white sheeting all around the brand new machine, and grabbed her tools. She had
two or more hours before the multi-material 3D printer was due to arrive. Two
hours should be just enough time. First she removed all the sheet metal panels
encasing the machine, laying them out against the wall, and then she began
dismantling everything. Every part, down to the screws and washers, found a
place on the white sheeting. This served two purposes. She gained a complete
understanding of the workings of the machine, and she could examine each part
for extraneous devices. The likelihood existed that someone up the chain would
try to observe her work. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
When she had the machine completely
dismantled, she found two separate devices meant to relay data through the
base’s WiFi. She set aside the devices
and began putting the fabricator back together. As she did so, she made careful
notes in her laptop. After her prototypes were complete, she would set to work
making a far better fabricator.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Once she had the last panel back in
place, she began reverse engineering the control software with a program she
had written on her laptop. It would take a while for it to churn through the
hundred and fifty thousand lines of assembled code before it spat back out
something she could fiddle with and reassemble into something better.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
She had just set it running when the
two-ton 3D printer arrived, with several more tons of chemicals and raw
materials for it to work with. At some point during her dismantling of her new
toy, Furlong came with a tray of dinner.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“I shouldn’t ask, should I,” the tall
redhead said after seeing the array of parts meticulously laid out on white
sheeting.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Abby chuckled, but kept her focus on
the work her hands were doing. “Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to
me that I can’t just take all of you apart to see how you work, then put you
back together?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“That sounds rather mad scientist of
you, lieutenant. Is there anything you need help with?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“Yes, Furlong, there is. I haven’t been
able to check on Ribero since this morning. How is he doing?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Furlong visibly relaxed, with a slight
drop of her shoulders and a turn of her hip. Abby congratulated herself on finding
the right emotional feedback circuit in the woman. Furlong operated on an
emotional level, and yet she was very clever and tactically astute. She also
had an uncanny feel for the emotional state of the people around her.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“He’s doing much better. He is driven
to regain his strength in time to join the mission to retrieve Jill.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Abby nodded. Jill had captured every
heart on the team, and Abby had been quick to reinforce that, encouraging
everyone to see her as their little sister. Of course it hadn’t hurt that Jill
was sensitive and loveable. Once again she prayed that the girl would come
through her experience with The Balrog with her psyche largely intact.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“I’m sure he will,” she said, “but
please be sure he doesn’t push himself too hard. Until I can find a fix for the
lethality of their transformed cancer, all of our specials are at risk if they
strain themselves too hard.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Abby paused. A forced pause, just as
she forced herself not to talk too quickly. She engineered it to hold Furlong’s
mental focus.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“Speaking of our specials, we have a
new one joining us tomorrow. His name is Harold Davies, an eighteen-year-old
out of Baltimore. Because he is fit to travel, he will be coming here to
receive the mutagen treatment. Can you see that everything is prepped and ready
for his arrival at eleven hundred hours?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Furlong put a hand on her hip. “Any
idea what he’s going to be?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“No idea,” Abby lied. “You know the
effects of the mutagen are incalculably random.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“Let me rephrase that. What do you <i>hope</i> he is going to be?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Damn the woman. Too clever by half with
her emotional mind. It wouldn’t serve to deliver a reply that was overtly
ambivalent. Nor could Abby deliver the plain truth and miraculously get it
right. A compromise then. “What I’m hoping for is another powerhouse. Kovacs
and Parcelli are tactical giants in the field with the advantages they give the
team in many situations, but we really need replacements for Kami and Grappler.
Other than that, perhaps a special we haven’t seen before, one with psychic
abilities. What would you like to see?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“That’s easy, a fricken teleporter,”
Furlong said with a chuckle. “I’m so tired of that damn helicopter I could
spit. It’s way too slow to get to the action that’s not close by. We were damn
lucky to have made it up to Chicago before Headless Hank, the Mighty Metal
Manipulator, got his shit together.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Abby laughed. Yes, humor was still
easy. A faster means of transportation had been on her to do list for some
time. Now that she had her workshop started, things could start heading that
way. A special with teleportation would be an incredible longshot. So far only
The Balrog had exhibited the ability.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“All right, Furlong. Thanks for
bringing me dinner, but as you can see, I’m up to my chin in widgets and
machine oil.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
“I’ll shut the door on my way out, lieutenant.
Hey, if you put that back together and there’s a piece left over—I’m telling
the manufacturer you voided the warranty.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Abby returned a natural-sounding
chuckle as Furlong shut the door behind her. The 3D printer promised to be
incredibly powerful in her hands. Even as she dismantled it, learning its inner
secrets, she knew where she wanted to go with her improved version. Between it
and the metal fabrication machine, she had two tools which, used together, could
replicate themselves. With her improvements, she would be able to make next
generation devices by the following week. By the week after that, her next
inventions would be in full swing. Now, even to her own mind, she sounded like
the stereotypical evil genius—‘and tomorrow, the world!’<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
The printer went back together without
any missing or surplus parts, not that this surprised her at all. She could
accurately tell the manufacturer the required torque to properly tighten any of
the machine’s five hundred and forty-eight screws, and tell them which
seventeen screws had been overtightened at the factory. Three of those
seventeen screws would have caused a consistent thousandth of an inch variance
if she hadn’t found them.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
In the next generation of the machine
she would make, that thousandth of an inch would seem like a mile.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
With both machines up and running, she
began work on her particle cage, a handy device that would trap and contain, in
stasis, the subatomic particles released by the Large Hadron Collider. As it
stood, the scientists there could track the pathways that released particles
made. It was akin to only having a photo of an exploding hand grenade then
using that photo to determine how the firing mechanism worked. She had used
their data to go leaps beyond the answers they had gleaned so far regarding
quantum physics.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
She spent three hours building and
assembling her particle cage. She had to borrow the use of one of the mess
ovens to chemically magnetize several key pieces before final assembly. The
process was of her own devising, and improved on the magnetic power yielded through
high voltage techniques by several orders of magnitude. This forced her to work
very fast to get the magnetic pieces in place before the chemical process had
fully actuated.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
She packed and crated the completed
cage, and then called for Lieutenant Epstein to pick it up and have it placed
on a military transport bound for Switzerland. From there, she had already
arranged for it to be picked up and hand-delivered to one of her acquaintances,
one whom she had worked with on the issues of securing the world banks from
lucky one tampering.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Within thirty-six hours she’d have the
particle cage back in her possession, and it would contain the subatomic
particles she required. To build her own device to break atoms into the same
particles would have required over three days on top of the time it would take
to make the next generation fabricator and printer.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
As it was, that would give her four
hours for the final assembly of her prototype before her two-day time estimate
expired. Ideally, she would have used the high energy accelerator at Fermilab,
near Chicago, but with power still out from the Braidwood Nuclear Power Plant
in that neck of the woods, they were currently out of the picture. Los Alamos,
less than two hours away by flight, unfortunately didn’t produce the type and
number of particles she required.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
When Epstein arrived to pick up the
particle cage, Abby had already set her machines to building the fundamental
pieces of her power supply. She fed the 3D printer designs that she had been
refining for months. She had toyed with the idea of Zero Point Energy long
before starting the strike team project. It didn’t work. Her calculations
proved it to be the same myth as the old quest for a perpetual motion machine.
Now, messing with the Higgs field to switch subatomic particle mass off and on
would produce incredible amounts of contained energy she could tap.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Her first idea for the mechanism and
its cold conversion of mass to energy had been antigravity, but for now that
had been shelved. The first application of the power supply she called ‘the
bounce box’ would be a weapon. It seemed that when you could remove the mass of
particles, you could turn that effect sideways and remove other fundamental
forces, and capture the energy released from them as either mass or more
energy. Her observations of the abilities of her team had really firmed up her
theories. Jill, with her growth metabolism of converting energy to matter, had
sealed the deal.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
Oppenheimer had really been upset that
his research had gone toward making a bomb, but for some reason, Abby found
pleasure in setting the first pieces together for her disintegration gun.<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-81289774495252431162013-11-13T17:02:00.003-08:002013-11-13T17:02:46.603-08:00The beast that Palla becameI know it's NaNoWriMo and I should be writing, but I spent some time on this painting of one of the 'characters' in my current novel. Can I count it as a thousand words? No?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPHViI0CS8MqW0CqQUD-DgSdOymB-8ixLqrxhGt7wBElXao0ufERg0l5khrCyxMOxf9W4xeAM2WxAvCVoWOJGaMwUzAMBeaam6kFVjjHEIBnseNhSAuiB62zk-dG6LZx3t3q9etJA1PyrD/s1600/Palla.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPHViI0CS8MqW0CqQUD-DgSdOymB-8ixLqrxhGt7wBElXao0ufERg0l5khrCyxMOxf9W4xeAM2WxAvCVoWOJGaMwUzAMBeaam6kFVjjHEIBnseNhSAuiB62zk-dG6LZx3t3q9etJA1PyrD/s400/Palla.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-72691877455350887552013-11-01T11:15:00.001-07:002013-11-01T11:15:08.602-07:00Flying Toasters - The DeadPixel Tales<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMTe84EyeEOd5D40gz6SgCSWicJk8RB25ID4LVeFNrscoE7hR_wI8VyjE6f5hwDETHPXB4380_VB7tXdmF-JGvmbXvff6AXHtwejZATY7_BhBwMOfl4p-rMlL2TeqOOMIbj_39Z2xn-epE/s1600/toaster05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMTe84EyeEOd5D40gz6SgCSWicJk8RB25ID4LVeFNrscoE7hR_wI8VyjE6f5hwDETHPXB4380_VB7tXdmF-JGvmbXvff6AXHtwejZATY7_BhBwMOfl4p-rMlL2TeqOOMIbj_39Z2xn-epE/s320/toaster05.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<br />
My fellow authors and I over at <a href="http://www.deadpixelpublications.com/" rel="nofollow" title=""><u>DeadPixel Publications</u></a> just released our first collection of short stories. It's a great mix if different genres and has a little something for everybody who enjoys reading. Best of all, it's FREE for Kindle until November 5th. <a href="http://amzn.to/1aOr3E1" rel="nofollow"><u>Check it out!</u></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-27726612128418475572013-10-30T17:32:00.001-07:002013-10-30T17:32:43.471-07:00Fire of Falraan titleI got this idea in my head for a title treatment and it just happened to come together quite fast. Building upon the Vorallon calligraphy I have been messing with. I don't know what I want to do with this yet, but that didn't keep me from drawing it.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0phEajQs2TQMqsU4kMK8i6GyRYa8izkHj9GIC2vyL7Zvt0UdodNr9vmFgABY83XrYat7pi3Znr6u9mucFEVvVYKRVF3Uv8xuYi2KvhQ30awHmhxQ6sgOCtiKnCUY8zrEmScAu-QGJFoIt/s1600/fireoffalraantitle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0phEajQs2TQMqsU4kMK8i6GyRYa8izkHj9GIC2vyL7Zvt0UdodNr9vmFgABY83XrYat7pi3Znr6u9mucFEVvVYKRVF3Uv8xuYi2KvhQ30awHmhxQ6sgOCtiKnCUY8zrEmScAu-QGJFoIt/s400/fireoffalraantitle.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-11616027136972129502013-10-23T17:55:00.004-07:002013-10-25T17:16:31.159-07:00Halversome cliffsMy latest illustration project is a scene from the upcomming novel, Fire of Falraan. If I can get this where I am really happy with it, it may become the cover. For right now, I am just exploring the visual.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRbYOcEN1UOfYEoPJClhr3znWmKuONHeph4Ar9nU9UBcSjLZ1pgbgQLiW1wSHvaKBzCVPe4tKdxV9bmENoNXnlYzbFzaRXIC4c5x83Uj9ESMAVmHzISaqsrIwwEvdsbI6lueLyTig617xJ/s1600/Halversome_cliff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRbYOcEN1UOfYEoPJClhr3znWmKuONHeph4Ar9nU9UBcSjLZ1pgbgQLiW1wSHvaKBzCVPe4tKdxV9bmENoNXnlYzbFzaRXIC4c5x83Uj9ESMAVmHzISaqsrIwwEvdsbI6lueLyTig617xJ/s400/Halversome_cliff.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
In this scene, it is a misty dawn and a young Falraan is distraught over the death of her mother. She has run to the edge of the water channel that divides Halversome's north and south halves. In an outpouring of her emotions, she vaporizes the water plume. I have no visual reference for a plume of falling water instantly converting to steam and vapor in the manner of Falraan's gift of fire.<br />
<br />
This is a work in progress while I explore the vision in my head. I hope the words I have written of this scene will conjure a unique and vivid image to each reader.<br />
<br />
minor update:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybEW7LF6dRZr15R7GTvjHeFLJH1cJ7a4VF6YBaq9qHFv7WfO1PEq63miSEV1DB2aymBe8CWGHEd-UFOGSj-yxq8ULju32wg51Tc1R7giZkXuedjofjaGlgdJPInoQT8a7iot1oB20ZiI_/s1600/Halversome_cliff02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybEW7LF6dRZr15R7GTvjHeFLJH1cJ7a4VF6YBaq9qHFv7WfO1PEq63miSEV1DB2aymBe8CWGHEd-UFOGSj-yxq8ULju32wg51Tc1R7giZkXuedjofjaGlgdJPInoQT8a7iot1oB20ZiI_/s400/Halversome_cliff02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-78390871305197213352013-08-23T17:20:00.001-07:002013-10-17T19:11:37.626-07:00Vorallon CalligraphyIn the Fire of Falraan, Iris documents Falraan's stories with a brush on parchment. I thought I would try my hand at duplicating Iris's flair.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo1lsehTTWNCBQK-ie94Ng5HNXW-Dbe8FBE1XFRNNsnuSAPRWsp_FqHk-G56Yz95nHWa-pRsfISV311NJW2NHy43QGzCaMrUB6oIBjZn1QC49yTWdW9FExtkltvjxx3aYkyJhcQZu6-iN1/s1600/vorallontitle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo1lsehTTWNCBQK-ie94Ng5HNXW-Dbe8FBE1XFRNNsnuSAPRWsp_FqHk-G56Yz95nHWa-pRsfISV311NJW2NHy43QGzCaMrUB6oIBjZn1QC49yTWdW9FExtkltvjxx3aYkyJhcQZu6-iN1/s320/vorallontitle.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-24620990925988332312013-08-20T17:53:00.001-07:002013-08-21T18:50:51.563-07:00Another version of The Lightgiver coverI thought I would try a new look.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjcsQwxq0cry2BsfCKIoVbjcv79Lytv0FHL0uFAjPGR-oN0ZnFDasrj_l55kWNOBeOxU4v998VylyQZdPjItDCtfGs5mBYWBDwXCU5qX6Xdc7zilfhCrBWHcChxyOK8SIvkkWIiuaRjqDa/s1600/TheLightgiver03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjcsQwxq0cry2BsfCKIoVbjcv79Lytv0FHL0uFAjPGR-oN0ZnFDasrj_l55kWNOBeOxU4v998VylyQZdPjItDCtfGs5mBYWBDwXCU5qX6Xdc7zilfhCrBWHcChxyOK8SIvkkWIiuaRjqDa/s320/TheLightgiver03.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
And a second pass:</div>
<div align="center" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvjpnG2RlS1XFhYg9oMIXQWYz2b27THmCYdbR-3MNqRSj8qMI38iaI9cldPLYZ2IIwlLNn1gz60f5p8YUzc4enuF0SvVNknXqACPYAGFyUjdW68aSN1Wiv1i6eaF3v9AK42v6iw7MHWlV2/s1600/TheLightgiver04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvjpnG2RlS1XFhYg9oMIXQWYz2b27THmCYdbR-3MNqRSj8qMI38iaI9cldPLYZ2IIwlLNn1gz60f5p8YUzc4enuF0SvVNknXqACPYAGFyUjdW68aSN1Wiv1i6eaF3v9AK42v6iw7MHWlV2/s320/TheLightgiver04.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-72134945454356823432013-08-16T17:01:00.001-07:002013-08-16T17:01:54.608-07:00The Lightgiver is out to beta readersThe first draft of The Lightgiver is 13k words long. This puts it well into novelette range, but still shy of novella size. I set out to write a short story, but the story took the reigns and established its own length.<br />
<br />
If my betas find things to cut for the betterment of the story, then cut I shall. I have no trouble murdering my darlings, that part is easy. This is the first pass. I will take what they give me and go over it all again then send that back out for a last pass with a focus on copy editing.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiY9zz3XLjwbdL7Q_UcycbzT6oxFArrsFmWs2v2yO5Bj3Umg_f08-vOdIcthL6YPlpoYa9xKjFR9vq125tS4bWSXoh7J5DGlGVddr095DfTlAByQllbpP5g2RwuaaQ8e4sHjr6D4Iba-2l/s1600/TheLightgiver02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiY9zz3XLjwbdL7Q_UcycbzT6oxFArrsFmWs2v2yO5Bj3Umg_f08-vOdIcthL6YPlpoYa9xKjFR9vq125tS4bWSXoh7J5DGlGVddr095DfTlAByQllbpP5g2RwuaaQ8e4sHjr6D4Iba-2l/s320/TheLightgiver02.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<br />
I have not written anything this dark before. I just had the urge to push myself in that direction. To work out my hangups about not killing off characters with whom I have grown attached. This story is the result. It is a tragedy and it is full of deep-seated fears that swirl around the theme of dehumanization. Other than darkness, the story is also about human spirit, magic, and ideas--big ideas.<br />
<br />
I don't have a release date yet, somewhere within a month or two it will be available on the kindle and possibly a very slim book through Createspace.<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-73922305620747974772013-08-07T18:15:00.001-07:002013-08-08T18:04:28.164-07:00The Lightgiver -cover artThis is the cover for my upcoming short story, The Lightgiver. Dark Fantasy/Dystopia<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQjJdQA00OLGJ3LzUc1Fx-SrRl6uNF3MVyLA9rgtRoQ7xAHNawvEtYIumWvmNk7K3BVQV6WqhxDcOz_sJadkbD76VgEU__Ww19Rwule-MW8mlClumSWKEyOcnMC8E18BZyqOZWsdbCNoy4/s1600/TheLightgiver02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQjJdQA00OLGJ3LzUc1Fx-SrRl6uNF3MVyLA9rgtRoQ7xAHNawvEtYIumWvmNk7K3BVQV6WqhxDcOz_sJadkbD76VgEU__Ww19Rwule-MW8mlClumSWKEyOcnMC8E18BZyqOZWsdbCNoy4/s320/TheLightgiver02.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-56503374849141211662013-07-30T12:10:00.003-07:002013-07-30T12:10:57.671-07:00Pronunciation guide for Gifts of Vorallon
I just thought it would be handy to share my pronunciation guide. This is how I hear the unique names and words of Vorallon in my head and how I pronounce them when I read the story out loud. I think, however, that the reader should always choose the pronunciation that the word has already formed in their mind, but for cases where one is just not sure (especially with the dwarven words) this might help.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">NAMES (somewhat in order of appearance or mention)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Hethal – HETH-ehl (like Ethel)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Lorn (Lord Lorn) – LAWRN (like born, or the end of forlorn)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Moyan (General Moyan) – MOY-ahn (moy sounds like toy or boy)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dehmet – deh-MET <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Kamunki – kah-MOON-key<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Elena – EL-uh-nuh<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ivrane – EVE-rain<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Lorace – LORE-ess (like Horace)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Fara – FAIR-ah<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tornin – TORE-nihn<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Hurn – HERN (like yearn)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Aran (Lord Aran) – AIR-ahn (very close to Aaron)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Adwa-Ki – add-wuh-KEY<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Verth – VIHRTH (like mirth)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Halverth – HAHL-vihrth<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Somera – sum-AIR-ah<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Thryk – THRIKE (like trike with a lisp and a good rolling R)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Taggi – TAG-ee<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ehddan – ehd-DAN<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Falraan (Captain Falraan) – fall-RAN<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Nordoc –NORE-doc<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Oen (Guardian Oen) – OH-ehn (almost like Owen with less
emphasis on the WUH in the middle)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Rovinnan – ROVE-in-nan<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jorune – joe-RUNE<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Bartalus – BAR-tuh-luhs<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Veladis – veh-LAH-dis<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ralli – RAHL-ee (like Rally or Valley)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Petor – peh-TORE (the E is nearly silent)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Quig – KWIHG (like twig)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Aizel (Lord Aizel) – EYE-zehl<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Wralka (Prince Wralka) – wrawl-KAH<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Yarkin – yahr-KIN<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tezzirax – tez-zee-RACKS (almost like tesseract with a lot
of buzz)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Rindal (Sir Rindal) – RIN-doll <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Kvarrak – kuh-VAR-rack<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Gnarwa – NAHR-wuh (start way back in the throat)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Losqua – LAH-skwah<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dranna – drahn-NUH<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Marek – mare-EHK<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Andrigar (Captain Andrigar) – ahn-dri-GAR<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Palla – PAL-luh<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Eldravina – ehl-drah-VEE-nah<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dederon – dehd-er-ON<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Esrenar – ehz-rehn-AHR<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Harna-Ki – hahr-nah-KEY<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Iris – EYE-rihs (like the flower)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Chreen (Lord Chreen) – CHREEN (like preen only all messed up
at the beginning)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dakkar – duh-CAR<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">PLACES<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Vorallon – VORE-eh-lawn<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jaarda – JAR-duh<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Nefryt – neh-FREET<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Zuxra – ZUCKS-rah<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ousenar – OU-zen-ar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Erenar – AIR-en-ar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Zed – zed (just like the British Z)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Keth (Keth Forest) – KETH (like Beth)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Halversome – HAL-ver-sum<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Silarne (Silarne River) sil-ARN<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Vlaske K’Brak – vlas-KEY kuh-BRACK<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Kur K’Tahn – cur-kuh-TAN<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jalton – JAHL-tun<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">THINGS<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Voradin (Voradin Tree) – VORE-a-dihn<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Vranka – vreyn-KAH<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Brakke Zahn – bra-KEY ZON<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sakke Vrang – sa-KEY VRANG<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Chokke K’Rak – cho-KEY kuh-RACK<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tzet Fek – tzet-FECK<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Trundt – trundt (just like it is spelled)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-78292389894581180222013-07-18T00:37:00.002-07:002013-07-18T00:37:40.171-07:00The Gifts of Vorallon 99 cent sale! July 18th thru 21All three kindle books of the Gift of Vorallon trilogy are on sale July 18 thru 21 for .99 cents each on Amazon.com<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Final-Warden-Gifts-Vorallon-ebook/dp/B00B6IF3LQ/ref=pd_sim_kstore_2">The Final Warden (book 1)</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/City-Thunder-Gifts-Vorallon-ebook/dp/B00BK9R18O/ref=pd_sim_kstore_1">City of Thunder (book 2)</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lord-Vengeance-Gifts-Vorallon-ebook/dp/B00C3NTGFW/ref=pd_sim_kstore_1">Lord of Vengeance (book 3)</a><br />
<br />
This is a promotion with other <a href="http://www.deadpixelpublications.com/">DeadPixel Publications</a> authors. Look for 99 sale books by my good friends, Robert Brumm and Travis Mohrman.<br />
<br />
Visit <a href="http://www.deadpixelpublications.com/">DeadPixel Publications</a> and find links to the blogs and books of all our wonderful authors, and be sure to LIKE us on Facebook!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1078428363266528713.post-91092240169582815682013-06-26T17:27:00.001-07:002013-06-26T17:27:43.419-07:00Ram-Jack artThere can be no doubt that my inspiration for Ram-Jack is coming from the visual style of anime. I have been sketching up lots of studies of my basic Ram-Jack. This is the workup I have sketched so far, it is not a 3D model, just 2D painting in quick grey tones. You can see the difference between the more finished bottom half and the sketchy top half.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJ9g-ulTs3FhzNH5qVaQ6sfNPGsdFCUEc_HfR4uIlvvOVrQa5L9YqPeYi7lrghUNB0gOXgIA6p3k0dNSk8GLJIReruWuSk-heGXxllDQuno6VDYm_L9-3zA17jERYYPtr_9_Ht3zN1npk/s1600/Ram-Jack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJ9g-ulTs3FhzNH5qVaQ6sfNPGsdFCUEc_HfR4uIlvvOVrQa5L9YqPeYi7lrghUNB0gOXgIA6p3k0dNSk8GLJIReruWuSk-heGXxllDQuno6VDYm_L9-3zA17jERYYPtr_9_Ht3zN1npk/s320/Ram-Jack.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18410957841443581337noreply@blogger.com0