“So,” I said to Cricket, trying to appear nonchalant, “you’ve been reading.”
She regarded me with a look of utter disdain. Of course she’d been reading. “First, I read the safe books, and I learned to bind the monsters between the pages.”
As if in response, the bookshelf at her side shuddered, its heavy tomes shifting in place. I took an involuntary step back toward the stairs.
“Then I read the others,” she continued. “I didn’t sleep for four days. I know all of Deinaros’ secrets, and some he didn’t even know. He wasn’t all-knowing, after all.”
I had walked the tundra and the steppe. I had crossed the mountains of the North, starving, mad, and alone. This would be no different.
Chapter LXIII: The Last, Lonely Harbor
We are racing to the end of Journey to the Water! You can read this latest chapter right now on Patreon, or wait until next week for it to show up here.
Not much to report this week; I’m working on rereading Journey to the Water and will have a new chapter for you on Patreon tomorrow. Last week’s chapter will be up here on Wednesday.
I’m also thinking about posting some of my editing notes, if that’s something you might be interested in? Editing your own work is a skill that takes time and practice to develop (and you should always, always have at least one other set of eyes on it before it’s done), and maybe my notes and commentary might be helpful–or you just might be curious. I won’t pretend that I have all the answers, but I spent several years in academia, and I’ve developed a pretty good critical eye. I’ll see what I can round up for Friday.
When Bran had healed, and warriors from other clans of the forest folk began to arrive in small bands from elsewhere, I turned south again, my hands empty. I had been unable to secure the ritual knife, and I had decided, for better or worse, not to try to take it with me back to Deinaros’ tower. I had contended with gods before, and on occasion even emerged victorious, but I did not wish to confront the god of the grove. The knife belonged to the people of the forest, whether it was being kept from them within the silver tree or not. It was their choice and their duty to take it by force, if they saw the need, and not mine.
My duty was to confront Deinaros. He had lied to me about the knife—it did not belong to him, and by all evidence, it was not the creation of his teacher Maponos. It was a gift of the god of the grove, to be given and taken away as his divine whim dictated. What other falsehoods had he told me? I had been so eager to follow his orders, to finally have someone to give me a heading on this directionless journey I had undertaken these past years, that I had swallowed his word whole. I had even received a warning from Ashoka, champion of Phyreios, reappeared after all this time. He had said not to trust Deinaros. I had dismissed him. Having been deceived by his gods, I thought, Ashoka was too wary and too willing to believe frightening stories told by superstitious townsfolk. I thought myself wiser, having seen more of the world. I had been wrong.
“There’s a harbor,” Cricket said, “the last harbor in the world, where the sea shatters boats upon spires of rock and ice, and the wind howls with the voices of all the lost souls slain there.”
Chapter LXII: Farther Shores
Eske is off on what might be his last adventure. You can read this chapter right now on Patreon.
If you’d like to support your local-ish bisexual weirdo this Pride month, my Patreon is only $3 a month, or you could buy a book!
I’m off to the library to print off my draft of Journey to the Water and make a substantial contribution to their operating costs in the process. While I start my reread, I’ll have a new chapter for you all up on Patreon tomorrow, and last week’s chapter will be here on Wednesday. That’s pretty much it for news this week. After how busy May was, I’m looking forward to June being a little more quiet.
I’m feeling rather like the proverbial broken record, but we’re still here:
I caught up to Bran just as the last of the daylight bled from the evening sky. He was a shadow in the darkness of the woods, his movements fearful and erratic, pain driving away his accustomed calm. I tore a length from the hem of my shirt and pressed it against the spot where the arrow protruded from his skin. Without light, I did not trust myself to remove it without injuring him further.
I held his reins and spoke to him in soft words. I told him he was safe, and the pain had to be endured but would soon pass, and he had nothing to fear from the dark. I hoped everything I said was true.
Good morning! It’s Monday again. I hope you can rest for the holiday.
I had a great time hanging out with the alien interns at Studio Moonfall on Friday:
I was also at Graveyard Gallery’s AniMAYhem on Saturday! It was a busy weekend to conclude a busy month, and I’m ready to take a break. I think my next event isn’t until July.
In the meantime, I’ll be editing Journey to the Water. The next chapter will be up on Patreon tomorrow, and last week’s chapter will be up here on Wednesday. I hope to have a better idea of a release date soon.
Also, the newsletter will go out Friday! If that’s something you’re interested in, you can put your email in the box at this link. Be sure to check your inbox for a confirmation. It’s only one email a month and does include pictures of my cats.
Just a couple of petitions this week, because we have to keep trying:
Tomorrow, May 24th, I’ll be featured in a Meet the Author event at Studio Moonfall, 5031 7th Ave, Kenosha, WI! I’ll be there from 4pm until 7pm if you want to hang out with me, talk about books, and check out the shop. It’s a lovely place and I’m so excited to be there. Here’s a link to the Facebook event if you’d like more information.
Then on Saturday, May 25th, I’ll be at Graveyard Gallery’s AniMAYhem outside of Faklandia Brewing, 3807 S Packard Ave., St. Francis, WI. The market runs from noon until 5, and there’s a cosplay contest afterward at 6! Here’s a link for more information.
It’ll be a busy weekend to conclude a busy month. I hope to see you at one or both of these events! Then I’m going to take a break for a month or so.
Space Whales Press 