So, I've been hard at work with The Dragon Tamer. As hard as I can be, anyhow. I've got about 12 chapters written, though mostly still in raw, short form, with just bits of broken up scenes and summaries. However, I've edited the first 6 chapters to where they read like a book. I'm not going to polish them all, but I will get them readable. I figure most of you are getting tired of waiting and a chapter a week will give me both editing and writing time. So, starting next week on Fridays (no set time, my life don't work like that), I will begin posting. If I get bogged down, I'll go to every other Friday, but I already had a lot of this written in summaries so it's going pretty quick. Yeah, that's right, it's finally go time!
The first post will be the appendix. May not seem like much, but there's a lot of info there. Nothing to ruin the story, but there's a massive world I've been building for over 10 years. Nearly 20 if we go back to the birth of Roscrow's character, who was the start of all of this, BTW, and he knows it. I had to build a whole damn world for him to live in, with a chick for him to fall in love with, and he likes making mention of it whenever he can. Damn elves and their fourth wall breaking. A select few of you were fortunate enough to have read the very first version when it existed on another site. The story is immensely different than it's been before in any version, but I am really enjoying it now. Feels right this time. Pieces are clicking together. Characters feel more real, the world is more alive. Still have some spots I'm working out but I should hopefully resolve them by the time I get to them. All the major players are still accounted for. Some characters have changed species (looking at you, MCs!), some have changed names, some have changed roles. Not all the bad guys are evil, not all the good guys do good things, and the gods, well, they work in mysterious ways.
Buckle up, folks. Or don't. Restraints might be a problem when everything is on fire!
Just as a taste to wet the palate, have an exurb and I'll see you all on Friday.
When she met Garold’s eyes, she felt every muscle in her body freeze. Her will was channeled, directed, forced to a scene she could not break away from.
"I severe your Bond," a voice she did not know spoke within her. “Kill your Rider.”
The monster turned wide, deadened eyes upon his once Bonded. She saw the man’s face clearly, saw the oozing Bond rent by unnatural means, could see the dragon’s own reflection in the horrified eyes of his most beloved Rider.
"Fandell," the man whispered, staring up at fangs so fearsome that they cut him near cleanly in half.
The anguished screech came from the dragon's soul. Shaking its head, the beast turned those bloodied fangs upon itself, tearing at its limbs as if trying to feed an unending hunger. When at last it had taken off all that it could reach, all that it could stand, it lay and labored in an ocean of blood until the last of its agonized breaths sent its spirit through the ring, sucked away from his Bonded, forever to know he belonged somewhere. Belonged at some time; at the moment before the Tamer had spoken, to repeat the sin eternally.
S’re’s eyes were wide. Haunted. So distant that Garold actually did not know if she was of this world anymore. Scarcely did she breathe in shallow gasps. So pale did she become that she might as well have been of the spirits she saw in his eyes. Every bit of her knew that what she saw was the ultimate violation of a Tamer’s powers and every hair stood on her body.
Garold’s face grew uglier with his wicked smile. “I’m glad to see this little treasure actually works.” Finally breaking contact- which had really only been seconds but had felt like a lifetime- he looked down at the ring on his finger, an ugly piss-yellow stone inset to a plain iron band. “See, it's called a Ring of Resolve. Such an unassuming name. I picked it up on the Black Market a while back. I was told it carries the soul of some tortured dragon or something and that a Tamer can't control you when you wear it. Seems it works just fine. And it’s about to pay for itself.” When he looked at her again, she looked down at anything else, making him chuckle. “I already like this thing! Now, you be a good girl and do as you're told, and I won’t make you look at it again.”