Tag: writing snippets

Flash Fiction Fridays: Orian

Ariel Paiement

This week’s flash fiction is about Dairdra and Orian from the Throne of War series. Enjoy!

~~~

Dairdra ran her fingers through the inch of warm water in the tub, watched the hot water cascade from the tap. How long had it been since she’d really enjoyed life? And how long had it been since she’d laughed so much in a day? With a man, no less. 

She’d thought the part of her that could enjoy a man’s company like that was long dead. After all, it hadn’t made an appearance since Crypt’s death four years ago. She’d resumed her duties as Queen and had taken onto her shoulders the role her husband should’ve had, and no one had questioned the pieces of her heart that were missing. Some days, those pieces, which were firmly planted in the Second Life when Crypt died, warred with the pieces of her heart that were still solidly attached to this world. 

No one had pushed her to pursue a match in the first year or so, but now everyone kept hinting at it, kept introducing her to different eligible bachelors. Why not? She was old enough to wed and finally hand over her extra duties to someone fit to shoulder them. But did she want to?

Not particularly. The reasons for that were a jumble though. First, she didn’t want to marry after losing Crypt. Her insecurities and fears of losing any new lover were too great. Second, she wasn’t sure if she would be happy taking the more traditional roles a Queen took, and she was certain that few of the men she’d met so far would be happy if she wanted equality in ruling the kingdom. 

But now all of those reasons were in a tangled mess at the bottom of her heart. Orian–the dark-haired, blue-eyed devil–was the man responsible for shaking her foundations and causing her to question what she really wanted. He had brought to life parts of her that she thought were well and truly dead. Somehow, though, he had done the impossible and had raised her battered heart’s hopes. 

She pulled her hand out of the bathwater with a groan. Claudius would love this. He’d be ringing the wedding bells with no further ado if she told him Orian had caught her eye. In fact, she was fairly certain her head councilor had been just waiting for her to take a shine to the prince since his arrival four months ago. Of course, if she was to allow Orian the chance to publicly court her, as he’d requested, she’d have to get the Council’s permission, and that meant informing Claudius.

She shook her head and began to strip. Well, it was an issue that would have to be dealt with eventually. She needed a partner and someone who would help her shoulder the burden. The crown was a heavy, lonely duty, and though she loved her people dearly, she was finally ready to admit that she wanted someone beside her. Just so long as that someone didn’t think she’d be happy with being demoted to silent supporter and mother. But she was fairly sure Orian wasn’t the sort to react to her that way. And if he was, she could always kick him back through the Gate he’d been sent through.

That was it, then. In the morning, she would tell the Council she intended to give Orian a chance. Sighing, she settled down into the bath. Until then, she would let the warm water soothe her troubled mind and her fearful heart. No sense in losing a good night’s sleep over this.

~~~

I hope you all enjoyed it! If you have something you’d like to see or a character you want to see more about in the flash fiction Friday posts, feel free to leave the suggestion in the comments or send me an email! I’m always open to hearing what you all are interested in reading.

Flash Fiction Fridays: Throne of Deception

Ariel Paiement

This week’s flash fiction is about Orian, a new character who will be a main lead in the series Throne of War, which follows the novella In Darkness Lost. The book series, starting with Throne of Deception, will follow an older Dairdra and Orian, a young man sent from another planet to gain her hand and her throne in marriage.

~~~

 Orian stared at the letter he’d received for a moment longer before crumpling it up and throwing it into the fire crackling on the hearth. As if he needed to be reminded what they’d hired him for. He’d been training for this since he was a child. They’d exploited his ability when they found him on the street, and now his sole purpose would be fulfilled. They were sending him off to do what he’d been trained for.

To deceive and lie to a woman who, according to the reports they’d received over the years, had been through more than enough sorrow. The last image that had been displayed on his holo just before the mission’s missive was sent through had been of a woman in her early twenties with lovely waves of black hair that he already wanted to run his fingers through. But what had really caught him about her had been the pain lurking in the fine lines around her eyes and in her straightforward gaze.

Dairdra of Argent. A singular woman. At eighteen, she had led her country through a war that one of their allies had started with no warning. She’d lost both her parents, and a year later, when the war had finally concluded, she’d lost her lover too. After all this, she’d retreated into hiding for a time, and his masters had fumed about how their plans were ruined. But then she had returned, and all had been right with his world again.

As right as it could be, anyway. He opened the picture on his holo device again and stared into the woman’s eyes. Though he’d never met her, he felt some sense of connection to her, a drawing that he couldn’t explain. But what did that matter? She would hate him when she discovered the lies he’d told her. He, who was no prince and who was a liar in every way, would be king, but he would be king of a throne of deception. And he would likely never be the king of her life. What an unfair hand life had dealt. The streets would have been kinder.

But the streets were no longer his. He was not Orian the street urchin. He was Orian of the Thirkians, the only living heir of the previous King and Queen, and he would ensure an alliance for his masters, one that he was certain would be used to exploit the young Queen into lending her aid to a ever-darkening purpose. Oh, he couldn’t confirm it because no one ever told him anything he didn’t have to know. He could lie better if they didn’t tell him why he was doing it. Or so they said. He’d never hated his ability more than he had ever since they had told him it was the reason for the lies he now lived, the reason for the lies that had granted him a throne. A throne of deception indeed.

~~~

That’s it for this week, everyone! I hope you enjoyed this. As I have more information about when Throne of Deception will be published and when it will be made available (in part or in whole) on Wattpad and Inkitt, I’ll let everyone know.

Work-In-Progress Wednesdays #21

Ariel Paiement

This week’s WIP Wednesday excerpt is from In Darkness Lost. I’m still finishing up some last edits, which I was kind of hoping I wouldn’t be doing at this point, but hey… Plans don’t always work out quite according to our wishes. So, this week’s excerpt comes from some of the newer content that’s been added or rearranged.

~~~

RUNNING didn’t help. Dairdra collapsed onto her bed, gasping for breath. Her sides cramped, and she sucked in deep breaths. Closing her eyes, she ran her fingers along the velvety smoothness of her comforter and tried to focus on the gentle current of warm air wafting from the fireplace. The air blew the bed’s gauze curtains against her arms, and the touch pulled her back to the present. She opened her eyes and blinked, her head throbbing.

The warm light of the fire played over the ceiling and gave the room a pleasant, cozy atmosphere. But it didn’t bring any comfort to her. Her chest ached and she buried her face in the silk pillow. Even the release of crying was denied to her, and she lay there, motionless, in tense silence.

She didn’t understand. Why did it have to be her mother? She was too young to shoulder her mother’s load or to take her place. She still needed the one parent who took time for her. She sat up and fisted the comfort in her fingers with a shuddering breath. She suddenly had to move, couldn’t stand sitting on the bed like everything was as it usually was. She moved down onto the floor and sat down.

Still restless, she rocked back and forth on her heels. How was it that one thing had so much power to destroy? Just one minute was all it had taken, and now her life had become a disaster.

She tried to find some bright spot, some hope to cling to, but she couldn’t find anything. Her throat tightened, and the walls of her room suddenly seemed so much closer, the room darker than before. She huddled there on her floor, drew her knees up to her chest. But she couldn’t seem to shake that lost, empty feeling settling into the pit of her stomach. Could anyone fix this? Or would she feel lost and empty forever?

Tears welled up behind her closed lids, then broke free of her lashes and dripped down onto the blue silk of her dress. Stop. This is a time for action and duty, not for crying. She should get up and go speak to her father about what she needed to do with her mother out of commission. She lifted her head and dashed away the tears. Sucking in a deep breath, she rested her forehead against her knees.

Work offered a course of action and a way to escape the growing darkness. She could throw herself into her duties, numb herself to the pain with work. But what were her duties? Her mother spoke of only the organization aspects of the job and the finer points of interacting with the court. She had no idea what else was required because what was required changed based upon what the King demanded of his consort.

Once again, she was reminded of how alone she was. That only added to the yawning void centering in her chest. Since she’d reached adolescence, she’d been dreaming of the man she’d marry. She’d had her hopes too, though she’d only spoken of it once or twice with her mother.

Those hopes had been encouraged, but nothing had come of them because she wasn’t allowed to wed until her eighteenth, a rite of passage she’d reached just a few months back. Besides, the man of her dreams and her secret fantasies had been nothing but a best friend and attentive servant since she’d met him on the day he’d entered the palace as her mother’s protegee. And she’d never felt the disappointment more keenly than she did now when nothing seemed certain anymore.

She rubbed her aching temples. Well, of that was a bridge she’d have to cross when it came to it. For now, it was pointless to add any other worries to the already insurmountable pile. She pushed herself to her feet and dragged her aching body to the bathroom. She hadn’t expected to be this sore from the day’s activities.

Maybe it was her body’s response to the shock. She hadn’t really processed everything that had happened until now, and suddenly she felt tired. Too tired to bother with anything. But going to bed and sleeping away the hours until this was over wasn’t an option.

She splashed cold water from the wash basin over her face and dried it. A quick glance in the mirror confirmed that it hadn’t done much to hide the red-rimmed eyes that were evidence of her pain. But at least she didn’t have tear stains streaking her face.

She turned away from the mirror and shuffled out of her room. Might as well get the things she needed to do accomplished. Maybe then she could collapse and give her body and heart a chance to accept what had happened today. She drifted down the empty colonnaded halls.

The halls were so pristine, and their white, splendid beauty made her heart ache. How could anything be so put-together while she was falling to pieces? It didn’t seem fair. The silver plants that gave Argent her name had always made her smile before, but now they didn’t inspire any emotion at all. They stood in their pots along the rows of columns, but their glittering beauty was distant now, not close and personal.

Everything was cold and distant, and Dairdra’s stomach dropped. She’d never felt loneliness so sharply. Would anything ever feel right again?

That question had no answer. The realization was almost enough to send her running back to her room again. At least there she could close the drapes and hide in darkness. At least her bedroom was a place she could let her control slip. Here, she couldn’t, and she had to bear the pain stoically. She had to be cold and distant just like the plants she used to love so much.

~~~

That’s it for this week! I hope you all enjoyed it. What have you all been working on? Feel free to share in the comments!

Flash Fiction Friday: Nimewe’s Recruitment

Ariel Paiement

This week’s flash fiction is about Nimewe, a character who will appear in the sequel to Pathway of the Moon. This is her graduation/recruitment day as one of the initiates into the Guard, an elite force that protects her planet’s holy sites and life source from the demons that live beneath the surface of the world.

~~~

She stared at the chromium stage where Middles would take the Oaths of the Guard. For a moment, she simply stared at the blinding sun glaring off the white metal. Was it really the day? Was she really going to walk across the stage with the other Middles to graduate from being between two worlds to being a full-fledged Guard with all of the privileges and weaponry that came with it?

Her gaze wandered out over the crowd as she waited in line, tried not to bounce in excitement. The look on her aunt’s face splashed over her in a cold wave, and her excitement snuffed out. She was really doing this, and no one in her family supported her. Well, not what remained of the family, anyway. Her parents would approve of her choice if they were still around to do so. They had fought valiantly against the Cursed when they first surged up to wreak havoc on all of the Sites of Light and those who kept them. And it had cost them their lives just as it might cost her life. 

She looked back at the stage and watched as Aura Mychaiel strode to the podium. Their Aura met her gaze for a moment with a knowing smile, and Nimewe shivered. The older woman’s gaze saw everything. Just like hers did. And she knew then that there was no other place for her. If she walked away, if she didn’t finish the last part of their initiation today, she would have nothing.

No one wanted someone like her, a half-breed between the Aurethel, Chaerel’s oldest people, and the Betweens, a small group of people who had fled Sedra, Mistress of Darkness, after she created them and visited untold horrors upon them. They claimed she wanted to build an army, that she was in fact doing so. No one knew quite what to make of them, but the common consensus had been that they, and eventually their descendants, were liars and entirely insane. That was, until the Cursed poured from the caverns and chased both Between and Aurethel to the skies where they now dwelt.

No one knew why the Cursed hadn’t come sooner, but nothing seemed to restrain them, so it was left to the Guard to protect the holy sites and the planet’s very life force from the daemons who sought to destroy it. That was why she was here. Why her parents had died. It was her heritage, after all. Her mother had been a descendant of one of the Betweens who had come to warn her father’s people. She had grown up despised simply because of her origin and her people, and that hatred had intensified tenfold when Nimewe was born. A freak, people had called her. And when her ability to perceive emotions and thoughts became stronger than that of most other Aurethel, she’d really become an outcast.

But the past was the past, she reminded herself. Enough thinking about it on a day when she was supposed to rejoice. Her enthusiasm returned. She would become a Guard today, and that was the one place where Between and Aurethel alike could coexist with no prejudice or hatred. There wasn’t room when they all faced death every day.

Really, that was what this graduation meant to her. Not a new position. Not prestige in society. No, it meant family. It meant acceptance from her peers and a real chance at friendship for the first time in her life. The loneliness was at an end, and her hard work would finally pay off. This really was it.

She strode across the stage behind the Middle in front of her, a broad smile slipping onto her face. Coming to a stop, she stood with feet spread and planted firmly on the chromium surface of the stage. From there, she stared out across the vast sea of heads to the glass walls that pulsated gently with the energy that kept their sky city aloft. Soon, she would leave this place to begin her new life back on the surface of the planet, fighting to protect a world she dearly loved for its beauty and vivacity.

Aura Mychaiel smiled at her and looped a rainbow-colored chord around her wrist with a soft laugh. “Head out of the clouds, girl. It’s your time. Do you accept the responsibility as one of the Guard of Chaerel and her Fountain of Spectrums to protect both the holy sites and the Fountain as well as the people of Chaerel?”

The words of the Oath sank deep, rooting into her soul, and her smile faded as the seriousness of the situation sank in with the Oath. She nodded, a lump in her throat. “I take responsibility for protecting Chaerel’s holy sites, Fountain, and her people. I swear to put my needs and desires, and even my life, down for this people and this planet we all call home so long as I live or so long as I am able to serve.”

“Welcome to the ranks of the Guard, Nim.” She squeezed her shoulder and pressed her forehead to Nimewe’s before moving down the line.

Nimewe’s smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Finally. It was done. She was one of the Guard.

~~~

That’s it for this week! I hope you all enjoyed. If you have something you’d like to see in future flash fictions, leave me a comment or shoot me an email! I’m always glad for the suggestions.

Work-In-Progress Wednesdays #20

Ariel Paiement

Hi everyone! I’m back from my missions trip to Romania, and this week, I’ve got a little glimpse at what I worked on during the flight over. This is an excerpt from Trader Prince of Aleshtain.

~~~

HE shouldn’t have been surprised that his father had gone behind his back on the matter of his possible bride. In fact, he should’ve anticipated this kind of stunt. Now, because he hadn’t expected it, hadn’t planned for it, he was sitting across from Princess Aledhia of Argos, looking like a Rith-cursed fool. Despite her attempts to converse, he’d barely spoken ten words to her since she’d shown up to present herself before him and his father in the throne room.

Anything had to be better than this. The princess was, admittedly, beautiful, but she was also blond, and he hated blonds. He much preferred dark haired girls with keen eyes and a quick wit. Like Rhubhian. But no, not her. She wasn’t an option, and he had to remember that. She wasn’t an option, why? Because of his father’s shadow-struck ideas of who was and was not acceptable. Maybe he should just forget what his father thought and marry the girl anyway.

Of course, there was just one problem with that. Even if he wanted to do that–and he had to admit that the idea was appealing–she probably wouldn’t have him regardless of the station it would give her. Too bad because he realized, as he stared at his food and listened to Aledhia’s high-pitched, soft voice, he desperately wanted her to want him. Life never played fair, did it?

“Your father said you were quite the administrator, my lord.”

He blinked and forced himself to focus on the girl in front of him, not on the one unwillingly awaiting his return to his quarters. His father had said what? “He exaggerates.” Mostly because he avoided administrating anything except his own investments, which had failed due to his father’s attempts to keep him under the royal thumb.

“You’re far more modest than I expected. Surely your father wouldn’t exaggerate so much?”

He would if it meant making a better match. And him, modest? Hardly. He was just a realist. He shoved a forkful of vegetables into his mouth to postpone the need to answer.

She tensed, but she held her open posture otherwise. She’d clearly been coached on how to appeal to men of the sort Aleshtain produced. Unfortunately, subservience wasn’t a good look on her. Or maybe it was just that she wasn’t the one he wanted submission from, and she wasn’t the one he wanted, period. He shifted with a frown.

She set her fork to the side and stared down at her lap. “Have I done something to displease you, my lord?”

“No.”

“But… I do not please you either?”

Rith take that cursed wobble in her voice. He could practically hear the tears in her dulcet tones. His fingers twitched against his thigh, and he glanced at the door. “No, it isn’t that… I just… I wasn’t expecting a visit, I’m afraid, and it’s put me off my usual charming self.”

She didn’t answer.

“It isn’t you.” Oldest response in the book, and the best way to say it really was her. “Really.”

“If it were, you wouldn’t tell me, would you?”

The first interesting thing she’d said all day. “Why do you think that?”

“You do not seem to expect your women to obey your every whim, and you do not seem the sort to make demands.”

How wrong she was. If he gave an order, it was to be obeyed, and giving orders was in his nature. He wasn’t unreasonable like the other men here, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t going to be in charge in his household. “I like a little bit of fire in my women, but you’re wrong about me. If you do something wrong, you’ll know.”

She didn’t meet his gaze. “Then why don’t I know what I’ve done to garner your cold reception? You say it isn’t me, but, with all due respect, sir, I think you lie.”

She had him there. Fine. He’d give her the truth if she wanted it so badly. “I have no interest in wedding you. My father wants this union, not me.”

Her brow furrowed “You think we are ill-suited?”

In every possible way. “Most assuredly.”

“You’re quick to judge, sir.”

“You think differently?”

“A marriage can work on respect, obedience, and some affection.”

He snorted and sipped at his wine. “That’s what you were told to say. I asked for your thoughts.”

“I have very few on the matter.” Her gaze flicked over him. “Except that I think I’d like the real you better.”

Perceptive. He smiled. “Sadly for you, you likely won’t ever see it.”

“Ever? Even if we wed?”

“I’d do my duty. But opening up and wanting you aren’t part of that duty.”

~~~

Thanks for reading, and I hope you guys enjoyed seeing what I’ve been working on in my spare time. What have you guys been writing lately? Feel free to share in the comments below!

Flash Fiction Friday: Lost Light

Ariel Paiement

For this week’s flash fiction, I have a piece about Sedra and her sister, Albrith. The piece takes place some time after Rith and Banach were killed.

~~~

The Pathway pulsated in the dim light after Sedra had sent all the soldiers away. Albrith rubbed her arms and stared at the portal with a frown. “Why are we out here, Sedra? It’s cold, and it’s past midnight.”

Sedra settled onto the grass with a smile and stared up at the moon. “Can’t I want to spend time with my favorite sibling?”

“Your only sibling now.”

“You shouldn’t sound so upset.” Sedra glanced up at her. “Rith was over the line. He started the war, and then he slowly went mad. You saved him from a much worse end.”

“Did I?”

“You were the light to his darkness for a reason, Brith.”

“I don’t…” Albrith trailed off and flopped down on the ground, her gaze still on the Pathway. Her sister wouldn’t understand. She didn’t even understand why she felt this way. But at the end of the day, she didn’t feel as if she’d made the right choice in being her brother’s executioner.

Sedra had been insisting since that day that she had to be the one to do it, that she’d be hailed in history as a hero. But if she was heroic, why did she feel so dirty? She’d always been close with Rith, and the awful look of betrayal in his eyes when she’d taken his life lingered in her mind. She doubted it would ever fade. He hadn’t seemed insane. Only resigned and hurt. Somehow, in ways she hadn’t even realized, the two of them had drifted apart. She’d chosen her older sister, and in doing so, she’d left her younger brother in the dark alone. Some sister she was.

“What are you thinking about?”

Albrith blinked and tilted her head back to look at the stars. Did he watch them from After with the gods? If he did, he probably hated her and wished he could strike her down for her sin. She shouldn’t have taken his life, even if it was in an attempt to spare him from an even worse life ahead. “I don’t think I made the right choice.”

Sedra stood and brushed the grass from her skirts. “What do you mean? What choice?”

Albrith shook her head and clambered to her feet. “Never mind.” She approached the Pathway with a sigh. “I just miss the days when everything was uncomplicated.”

“Everything could be uncomplicated again.” Her sister’s voice tightened. “I miss the days when it was simple too.”

Albrith frowned and continued to stare into the Pathway. Nothing would be simple ever again. She’d made her choice. It had been the wrong one. She turned to face her sister. Sedra’s palm glowed with light and frost. She contemplated her hand before looking back up to her sister. “It could be simple again, Albrith. I can make it simple.”

Sedra’s gaze held her in place, and she noticed the coldness lurking there for the first time. How had she missed it before. It was clearer than light. Rith had never been the one going mad. It was Sedra who had gone over the edge. She took a step back and shook her head. “I don’t want that. It’ll never be simple again, Sedra. I killed him, and he never even deserved it. Gods, I thought I was saving him.” Albrith drew on her light but released it a moment later. “I wasn’t saving him. He never needed saving. But I killed him trying to cure what was never diseased.”

Sedra snorted. “You always were so philosophical. Yes, you killed a man who was about as sane as they come, though sickeningly unambitious. Thanks for getting rid of him, by the way. Now you’re going to make sure that no one ever leaves this planet to tell everyone back on Riladia what I’ve done here.”

“You don’t have to do this.”

“Oh, but I do. You’ve served your purpose.” 

The ice grew, and words spilled from Sedra’s lips, but Albrith stayed frozen in place. How had she managed to mess up so badly? She swallowed back the tears. Whatever her death was supposed to accomplish, she deserved it. An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. A life for a life.

The cold blasted through her chest.

Her life for his life.

Her light snuffed out, and for the first time since her birth, darkness engulfed her world.

~~~

That’s it for this week, guys! I hope you enjoyed it. If you have something you’d like to see on Flash Fiction Fridays, feel free to leave your suggestion in the comments below. I’m always happy for ideas!

Work-In-Progress Wednesdays #19

Ariel Paiement

This week’s work-in-progress piece comes from Pathway of the Moon. In this section, Leo is scheming with Deira on how to get rid of the man Kiarhsu sent with them on their mission, and things don’t go quite as planned.

~~~

LEO eyed the man Kiarhsu had sent with them. Clearly, Kiarhsu hadn’t been taking any chances with this. Short of knocking the man out and portaling him to some place very far away, Leo had tried everything to lose the man. But Foren was smart and determined in addition to being massive. If they were going to get rid of him, then extreme measures would have to be taken.

Which was why he was now sitting across from the man, staring over a roaring fire and figuring out what to do. He couldn’t take the man by surprise here. Foren wasn’t dumb enough to let Leo get the upper hand here, where he was expecting it. He sighed. At least the man wasn’t paying close attention to the conversations he had with Deira. Which meant she could help him out.

He leaned over and tugged her into his lap, keeping his eye on Foren. The man rolled his eyes but didn’t stop them. Amadeira squirmed in his lap, and he caught the irritation in her brief glance. Well, she’d get over it when he told her what he had in mind. Leaning in, he made a show of flicking the tip of his tongue over the shell of her ear, gaining a furious hiss from Amadeira and a flat look from Foren. He tightened his grip on Amadeira and dropped a kiss to her neck before moving back up to place an open-mouthed kiss right beneath her earlobe. She couldn’t get much stiffer, and he fought down the apology. Finally, Foren looked away and grumbled something about not making a man look at what he couldn’t have. As soon as Foren had looked away, he eased up on the public display of affection and whispered in Amadeira’s ear. “We have to get rid of him. I need you to make an excuse to go into the woods a little ways. Then make some sort of noise that he can’t miss. I’ll take it from there.”

She bit her lip and wiggled in his grip. “L-leo, I need to relieve myself. P-please, may I?”

If he hadn’t seen the briefest flicker of a smile, he would’ve assumed she was terrified to ask. Foren’s sharp gaze settled on them again. Leo shrugged and let her go, forcing a grimace onto his lips. “Hurry up. And don’t think this gets you a pass on tonight.”

Foren grunted but didn’t try to stop Amadeira when she rose and hurried toward the bushes surrounding the clearing where they’d camped. He watched her go in silence before returning his attention to Leo. “You can drop the act. I know you’re soft with her.”

Leo raised a brow.

“Good thing she’s naturally submissive.” Foren folded his arms.

“There’s more than one way to train a dog.” He bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from taking back the words. He needed to sound callous, like one of the other Ishtralian men. Not like himself. Not like someone who cared.

“You think I’m stupid, Ryalin?”

“Not particularly, no.”

“Then don’t disrespect me by treating me like it. We’ve all seen the way you look at her. Like she’s your whole Rith-cursed world. Don’t know how she managed to gain such a high position, but I’ve almost never seen a man among us look at his woman that way.”

“So? Is there a problem with it? I find that humanizing her makes her feel cherished. Then she wants to obey, and it makes my life easier.” If only this man knew that his woman had followed him two days’ ride against his express orders just so she could be here now.

“I don’t have an issue with it.” Foren rested his hands on his knees. “I’m rather fond of the approach myself. I handle my own wife that way. But I don’t look at her like a love-lorn puppy.”

“I don’t look at my wife that way.”

“So first you thought I was stupid, and now you think I’m blind?” Foren scowled at him. “Your affection for her is going to get you hurt.”

“Really? And how will that happen, precisely?”

“You really don’t know what you’re up against.” Foren laughed. “Friendly piece of advice. Kiarhsu will use whatever leverage he can on you when he’s ready to make a move. And you’re going to cave like Ashkarith.”

Leo folded his arms. “I’m prepared.”

“So was the city. The defenders there still lost.” Foren picked up a stick and poked at the fire. “She’s your weakness. And you shouted it to the world from the day you arrived. I admit, I don’t blame you for claiming her publicly. Pretty girl like that? Any one of us would kill to get his hands on her. But broadcasting it? That was just plain stupid.”

~~~

That’s it for today! I hope you all enjoyed it. Have something you’re working on? I’d love to hear about it in the comments! Feel free to share.

Saturday Setup: Building Societies – Rank and Gender Factors

Ariel Paiement

Introduction

Last week, we discussed how language factors into your society. Now we’re going to talk about how rank and gender can play a role. There are many different ways societies deal with these two things. Just look around at the cultures around the world, and you’ll see that. So let’s take a look at some options you have.

Rank-based Societies

Rank based societies can be set up in a lot of different ways. It could be that the society is similar to Asian societies where elders and family authority figures are to be highly respected and obeyed (as a general rule of thumb). Or, perhaps, it is more a caste system like India has. The options vary and can result in a multitude of arrangements.

Once this is decided, of course, it affects all kinds of things about relationships with people. Since we talked about it last week, languages can be affected by rank. Some languages, like Japanese, use honorifics or have more formal versions of the same word to indicate great respect for those high above you in rank. This also can be done in a variety of ways, such as using prefixes or suffixes on names or using polite tenses. These are just a few options.

In the end, rank-based societies will focus entirely on whatever hierarchy has been set into place, and their rules will tend to center on it too. Many things end up being affected, so you have to consider how rank might affect your society if you choose this option.

Gender-Based Societies

On this one, it isn’t so much rank as it is which gender one is that determines honor, privilege, and part in society. This might manifest in a manner both patriarchal or matriarchal. Or, perhaps there is no organized patriarch or matriarch structure, but perhaps instead women and men have gender-specific roles and don’t step out of them.

This really doesn’t even have to be applied solely to those societies where one of the sexes is suppressed or mistreated, though it certainly could be the case. It may also apply to societies where men and women are equal but simply have different roles to play and things that their counterpart is able to do that they cannot, not because they aren’t capable but because it simply isn’t their place or concern. In this way, gender can be a basis for the society without degrading one gender or another.

Mixed Societies

Some societies may work off a system that mixes gender and rank. These societies may place the two genders into a class of jobs or roles they can play based on gender, give the genders rankings in relation to each other (ie: men outranking women or vice versa), and rank each gender against others of their own gender within the class of jobs and roles they’re filling (ie: one man outranks another within the government or a woman outranks another woman in a midwife practice.

Conclusion

Rank and gender typically do play some role in society. Even in a society that doesn’t focus on gender, rank does usually come into play because some sort of authority structure must be set up, and that necessitates having some people who have higher rank or authority than others. Taking the time to consider this aspect of your growing society will help to round everything out and give you a concrete idea of how the people in your story will interact with others around them.

Arguably, this is one of the most important things to figure out for your society because it affects your characters directly in how they will relate to people of the opposite sex, superiors, colleagues, and subordinates.

Have another way rank or gender can affect a society in world-building? Feel free to share it in the comments! If you have a question, feel free to leave that in the comments too. I hope this helps you and offers a sound place to start in determining these aspects of your society and culture.

Flash Fiction Fridays – Rithden

Ariel Paiement

This week on Flash Fiction Fridays, the flash fiction shows what it was like for Leo to receive his power for the first time.

~~~

He sat on the doorstep of their cottage, shivering, for a few minutes. He’d given up on crying and pounding on the door after there was no answer. Father wouldn’t let him in no matter how he begged, and he had some pride even if he was six. Not that it meant much. Everyone still picked on him even when he did his best to be seen as one of the strongest kids in camp. All because he didn’t have any power. All because he was UnInherent.

And once again, he hadn’t lived up to their expectations. The adults and the kids mocked him for his sensitivity and his hatred for their disgusting practices. He stood up and started walking through the dark woods under the thin light of the moon. He glanced up at it with a sneer. That moon that everyone here worshipped. How he hated it. It was the reason why his father hurt his mother. It was why his father expected him to grow up to treat his woman that way too.

Being six didn’t mean he was stupid. He could look around and figure out that, when they visited town for supplies, the women and children there didn’t cower away from the men in fear. This wasn’t right. He clenched his fists and picked up his pace, a pressure building in his chest.

He could leave now.

His father had thrown him out and told him to come back when he was ready to act like a man instead of a blubbering little girl. He had no intention of ever being the man his father wanted him to be. His mother was right. His father’s idea of manhood was warped. His father was no man. He was a monster.

Leo paused on the path leading to the lake where he and his mother often spent their summer days. If he left, he would be deserting her. His mother had been everything good and right in his world since the day he was born. No way could he leave her with his father after what he’d just seen. But staying meant he’d have to endure his father’s abuse himself.

He raised a hand to his stinging cheek with a snarl. This night was proof of that. After slapping him, his father had turned him out. It wouldn’t get better. Violence ran like blood through his father’s veins. And he couldn’t stop him yet. He was too small, too weak.

The ache and pulsing, stabbing pain in his chest grew. He pressed his palm to the spot over his heart with a hiss and rubbed it. Why did it hurt so badly? In his soul, the pain and horror he’d felt at seeing his father’s behavior tonight welled to the surface and blended with white-hot anger. His fingers dug into his skin through the thin cloth of his tunic. His father should pay. He should die for what he’d done.

He took another step on that road, deeper into the shadows beyond their house. The pain in his chest faltered then flared higher, accompanied by a searing under his skin. He staggered and stumbled into a tree on the side of the path. What was happening to him?

The shadows around him swam, and he shook his head. Surely he hadn’t been hit that hard? His father had made certain he learned just how to throw a punch so it would bruise, maybe even break bones, but not kill. Not the kind of thing he’d wanted to learn, but it was handy now. He rubbed at the spot where the pain centered just under his sternum and groaned. A hit to the head wouldn’t cause this.

He lurched forward one more step into the swaying, rippling shadows and collapsed. Fire licked through every nerve, and he curled into a ball with a scream. A ringing filled his ears, and he sucked in a breath. As he did, the darkness around him swirled and poured into him on every side. White heat pressed behind his eyes, and he released another scream before rolling onto his back. His chest heaved, and he coughed. The darkness pressing in around him came from within now, drowning him and choking him.

But still he drew it in, unable to stop. He sensed something else now too. Beneath his fingers, the grass wilted then withered. Cold slipped into him to ease the raging inferno, and he exhaled, his muscles relaxing. The darkness sighed out of him with his release of breath, and the heat receded, leaving behind only a tingle of warmth. He closed his eyes with a sob. What had that been? What kind of freak was he? 

He dug his fingers into the withered grass, opened his eyes, and sat up. On every side of the path, tiny winged forms lay still. The moon shimmered off iridescent wings of loraidhs and glowed in the blue plumage of the tails of kytlets. Cold fingers crept down his spine, and he stiffened. That glow inside him came from those birds. He bit the inside of his cheek until he tasted blood. He had stolen their very life force without even a touch. What was he? He stared down at his hands. Hands that should be bloody with all the death he’d caused tonight.

He stood on shaky legs. If he’d killed these birds, had he killed anything else? How far had this explosion of arcane darkness spread? His feet stumbled into motion, carrying him forward back toward the cabin before his mind had registered what he was doing. The lights still glowed, and he could see two shapes moving behind the curtains of the living room.

Leo collapsed on his knees with a tremulous sob. She was alive. He hadn’t killed her. His hands shook, and he glanced back at the forest. He might not have killed her tonight, but if he wasn’t careful, if he didn’t find a way to control whatever this was, he might in the future. His fingers dug into the damp earth of the path. His father might be a monster, but after tonight, he wasn’t so certain he’d fallen far from the tree.

~~~

That’s it for this week! If you guys have something specific you’d like to see on here, let me know! I’m always up for suggestions, so feel free to leave a comment for me.

Work-In-Progress Wednesdays #18

Ariel Paiement

We’re back this week for a sneak peek at some of the newest content for In Darkness Lost, which releases in paperback sometime in September (if I can manage to get it formatted in a way Amazon won’t mess up by then. Lol.) and in Kindle as soon as I’ve done one last comb-through for spelling and grammar.

~~~

CRYPT was in his room stretched out in his usual spot on his black-clothed bed reading a book. He looked up when Dairdra came in, his exquisite, ageless hazel eyes shifting colors as the sunlight filtered across them. His long, black lashes seemed to glitter in the sun. Dairdra paused in the doorway and observed him for a long moment. How long had she known him? It seemed like ages. But the feelings that welled up at seeing him now were unlike any she’d experienced before. Relief mingled with longing, but longing for what? For his comfort and support? Or for something more?

She’d liked him for years now, so the strange pang of wistfulness was nothing new. But the keenness of that longing had never been quite like this. She bit her lip and looked away. Her entire body felt too hot, and she tugged at her collar. What had she come here for, again?

“Dairdra?” His soft voice brushed over her like a caress. “Did you need something?”

Did she? Yes. But she wasn’t entirely sure what she needed. “I…I, uh, came to ask you to take a walk with me.”

“Really?” He flipped onto his back and sat up.

“My father told me to ask.”

He swung his legs over the edge of the bed and stood. “And you wouldn’t have asked if he hadn’t told you?”

“Well…I guess I would’ve.” She wrapped her arms around herself and stepped back. Her back struck the door, and she stopped. She had no reason to run from him. But she suddenly felt bare in front of him, as if his searching gaze could see everything she didn’t want the rest of the world to see. She couldn’t decide if that made her feel uncomfortable or safe. Her mind seemed to think it was uncomfortable because she’d moved without thinking.

He stepped closer, a smile playing on his lips. “So, what’s the real reason you’re here?”

“I don’t know.”

“You do.”

“I…” She bit her lip and pressed her palms to the door behind her. “I’m not sure.”

He smiled, and his hand rose before dropping back to his side. Even in private, he was careful not to push her or break limits. His smile took on a sadder note. “Your father wasn’t much comfort, I take it?”

She ducked her head and sighed. He’d already figured out what she didn’t want to admit to herself. She wanted comfort, and since she hadn’t gotten it from the one person she’d hoped to receive it from, she’d come to the only person she knew she could trust. At least he wouldn’t turn the cold shoulder. She loved her father, but the relationship was too distant. She still wanted his attention, but for as much as she hoped for it, she knew better than to expect it. So, she’d come to Crypt, knowing he was the only person whom she could trust to comfort her. She probably should’ve come straight to him instead of bothering to look for it from her father first.

She’d already known that he would take her grief and pain, and he would shoulder it with her instead of leaving her to drown in darkness and fear. Hadn’t he always been the one she went to when things weren’t going well and her mother was too busy? He’d been her support and confidante since she was thirteen years old and they first became friends. Now it seemed as natural to take it to him as it was to talk to her mother about it. And as usual, he might as well be a mind reader because he knew what she was thinking before she understood it herself. She truly didn’t appreciate him enough. “No, he wasn’t.”

~~~

That’s it for this week. What are you guys working on? Share with us all in the comments below! I’d love to hear about it.