Dark Redemption: Overview

"Jake! Are you sure this is a good idea?" The sound of Alannah's hiss barely made it to the freckled boy's ears. Alannah, better known as Al, frowned and narrowed her eyes as she placed the bracelet around her left wrist.

"Have I ever steered you wrong?"

"This had better work!" She glared over at her best friend, who could only smile. This was the moment he'd been waiting years for, but Al wasn't so sure. Both teenagers closed their eyes and plunged into the darkness. Moments later, Jake opened his eyes and blinked.

"Uhm, Al?" He looked around for any sign of his best friend, but all he saw was a cloaked figure who was quite a bit taller than he was and obviously male. He turned towards the being. "I don't think we're in Gale's Games anymore..."

And so the adventure begins...

As the dynamic duo begins to travel the world of Almendrim, strange things begin to happen. There's a war brewing in Sininen over who's going to be the next ruler of the free world and there have been rumours in the East that an ancient magic is growing more and more powerful. Back in the "real world", things start to go awry and a young mage who possesses the ability to travel between planes tells Al and Jake that the fates of both worlds are intertwined. Even worse, Kwaitkowski's research manager told them that they only have a set amount of time in the virtual world. Can Al, Jake and the others find a way to stop this terrible force from being released and get back to their world before time runs out?

In this epic tale, you'll see a variety of old friends, such as Ashiaro, an experienced ranger; Eirhian, a jaded healer who has her own agenda; Mark, a young bounty hunter; Tem, a snarky mage who can control time; and Synistra, an ancient being with an insatiable desire to unlock the secrets of the past.

You'll also meet new characters, such as Ceryn, a young female assassin who's too pretty for her own good; Rochben, a knight who is committed to upholding justice... and of course Alannah, Jake and the rest of their friends and family.

Stay tuned for more information!

Quest for Echelon's Ring

So, I got an idea for a story and it's about a pair of bounty hunters (Elisha and Lin) who go on this quest to find a ring that belonged to one of the great historical figures of their land, a man named Echelon. I'll eventually end up posting the story here, so I'm not going to give you any spoilers, but a little glimpse into who's who and a teaser...

Elisha (No. 958): A nineteen-year-old bounty hunter who was raised on the streets who narrates this piece. He's an expert at things like picking locks, gathering information from strangers and is a pretty bright young adult. He is one of the Shieniel, who are people who have had some sort of encounter with the non-physical world. His choice weapon is a sword, though he rarely uses it. He also carries around exploding canisters and poisoned darts for ranged attacks.
Lin (No. 843): Elisha's eighteen-year-old partner, a fellow bounty hunter. Her expertise lies primarily in the physical aspects of the job and she's in really good physical shape. Before she became a bounty hunter, she was just an average citizen of the town and Elisha hints at the fact that she originally took an apprenticeship to help take care of Nemo, her younger brother. Her weapon of choice is a blast pistol and for close range, she usually fights unarmed.
Jordan: Identification number unknown. He was the bounty hunter who originally trained Elisha, but since then, he has left to go on a search for Veritas, or Ultimate Truth. It is revealed that the sword that Elisha now wields used to belong to Jordan and was probably given as a gift at their parting.
Mark: ID number unknown. A fellow bounty hunter and close acquaintance of Elisha. It is revealed that Elisha loaned him his "time-keeper" (basically a watch).

A few additional notes:
Veritas: Otherwise known as the Ultimate Truth. Only Shieniel can properly seek it and really only a few Shieniel are interested, as most believe it is a highly theoretical and not very practical area of interest.
Shieniel: People who have had some sort of encounter with the non-physical realm. They're often treated as outcasts to society, especially since people forget that there was a time when everyone was a Shieniel. Elisha and Jordan are both Shieniel.
Luaniel: People who have never encountered anything outside the physical realm. They make up about 95% of the current population. Lin and her family are Luaniel.
Echelon: Elisha explains this myth within the context of his narration, but Echelon was a town elder during the time where people were beginning to become Luaniel.
Melekhiel: a mysterious being. You'll find more out about him in Elisha's narration.

And... now for a teaser! This is just the first two paragraphs.

I don’t know what brought me here or even why I decided to stay. This whole place is a bit of a creepy castle, like the kind you read about in stories about medieval times with knights and princesses and dragons. To be honest, I never cared for much of that. No, I was always caught up in the practical aspects of life, like where I would find my next meal. Living on the streets is hard, even if you do happen to land a good paying job as a bounty hunter.

I didn’t always start out as a bounty hunter and I guess that’s not even what I really am. Not truly, anyhow. Jordan was the one who gave me this sword and taught me just about everything I know. He helped me get my first job, but since then, I’ve moved on. He helped me find my place in a society where everyone treats us badly because we are different. Actually, what am I spending time telling you this for? He doesn’t even come into the story that I’m about to tell you. In fact, I haven’t seen or spoken to Jordan in about three years. Last I heard, he went off on some quest for Ultimate Truth or, as he called it, Veritas. My story actually starts much later than that.

So there you have it. I think this story will actually get done pretty soon because I actually have a clear idea of where it's going.

Substitute Teacher, Part I

In Snapshots (chapter one), I make the reference that Sharpe was out of school and missed a staff meeting. Here's what happened on the day he was sick...

MPAA Rating: Mild PG for language
Characters: Sharpe, Alton, later on this will include the usual culprits surrounding RHS including staff and students alike...
Word Count: 699
Summary: Right before Snapshots Through Time, Sharpe is forced to stay home sick and chaos ensues as there is a different substitute for each class. There's also the issue of the staff meeting after school...

Sharpe tried to stand up but only a moment later he was sitting back down, the tips of his fingers resting gently on the side of his head. The side of his head was throbbing and if he did not lie down, it would only get worse. He should be leaving for school in less than ten minutes, but the thirty-some-odd-year-old man sincerely doubted he would make it in today. He bit his tongue slightly in an attempt to concentrate better and figure out the last time he had been absent from classes. It had only happened a few times since his university days; the chemistry teacher did not get sick easily and nor was he one to stay home if he knew he was not contagious.

“Damn.” Sharpe leaned back and fell onto the bed, letting his head hit the mound of floppy pillows he had set up. He had no choice other than to call Josiah Alton and request a substitute teacher be sent in. In all the years he had been teaching at the school, he had only been absent a grand total of twice. Once was an incident involving a close acquaintance from high school and the other time, Josiah Alton had insisted upon him staying home. Unless he was contagious or somehow a danger to other people, Sharpe adamantly refused to get someone else to teach his classes.

In his mind, few people were competent enough. Surely Josiah Alton would be able to handle the material, as would Laura Clarkson, but could either of them keep his classes in order the way he did? Likewise, Hugh Avery had a firm grasp on the thermodynamic principles he was covering in his sophomore chemistry class... and he could supervise the AP lab. The few people who Sharpe viewed as able to discipline his classes would likely not understand the subject material; he put some level of trust in Shaun Ackerman to keep classes in order. There was a strong doubt in Sharpe’s mind that the history teacher knew about enthaply and entropy and how to explain that to a bunch of sophomores and juniors.

He managed to sit up enough to reach for the phone and dialed the Josiah Alton’s cell phone number. When he placed the phone within a few inches of his ear, he was greeted with Josiah’s warm, but level voice. “What’s going on?” Josiah seemed surprised to be receiving a call from Sharpe.

“Could you find a substitute for me?” Sharpe would have spoken more formally and completed his thought, but he was having a hard enough time thinking right then; he did not see it necessary to maintain his usual sense of dignity. Around him, the dim lights in his apartment flickered a couple of times and he made a mental note to have them fixed as soon as he could manage to climb up on the ladder. As if that would be happening any time soon.

“Sure. Everything alright over there?” There was a certain pause in Josiah’s voice that conveyed his concern. He knew it was unlike Sharpe to miss school for anything; the current chemistry teacher had been like that even as a teenager.

“Fine.” Sharpe clipped his answer into a one-word response; to anyone who had met him before, it would be blatantly obvious he was lying, but right now, he could hardly care.

On the other side of the line, Josiah scribbled a quick note down on a piece of paper and frowned. “If you’re sure...” With his other hand, he stroked his salt-and-pepper colored beard a few times. He knew Jedediah wasn’t likely to take care of himself very well; after all, he and Sherry had raised Sharpe from the time he was fourteen onwards. “If you need anything, call Sherry. And I mean it.” Alton found that his sentences were truncated also. After that thought, Alton hung up the phone.

Sharpe set the phone down on the receiver and climbed back into bed, rubbing his left temple. It would be best if he could rest; he could already tell that today would be a very long day.