Holiday Surprise!

Happy Holidays! My gift to you is the first chapter of Protectors of Duval: Necromancer!

Chapter One

Trinity

The night has taken over the sky, and darkness has fallen over the forest my men and I are walking in. Sounds echo through the trees, and small lights pierce the darkness in the distance. Our target is ahead, the Solitary. The Solitary is a lone mountain full of the riches mined by my family’s ancestors long ago. During the revolution, it was captured early on, leaving the White Kingdom without its riches.

There’s a snapping sound. I turn around and look at my men. There are six of them; barely protected by the little armor I was able to give them. They’re scared. I can feel it. They’re trying to hide their fear from me. 

Another snapping sound echoed through the silence. I closed my eyes and allowed my telekinesis to feel the woods close by. There are comion in the woods, the camouflaged beasts of this area. If we do not disturb them, they will not disturb us. Suddenly, as I am about to retract my telekinesis, the comion start to transform.

I slowly reached towards the small of my back. Both of my hands grip the intended object, my knife handles. I squat down and listen, waiting to see how the events will play out. “Don’t be alarmed, but there are Logarian soldiers in the woods around us,” my voice whispered, alarming my men.

“How many are there?” a voice from the group of soldiers asked.

“Enough to bring our demise,” I responded, trying to keep my men on their toes.

Releasing the knife handles, I stood back up and motioned for us to continue forward. Pushing the brush out of the way, and continue through the maze of trees. Knowing we need to put distance between the Logarian soldiers and mine, I pick up the pace. I start to jog, careful not to make too much noise.

Ducking under and jumping over fallen trees, I advance forward towards the tree line. My soldiers starting to fall behind, taking a knee, I wait for my men to catch back up. I let my telekinesis feel the woods again. We’re completely alone in the woods. We’re safe. Standing up, we calmly walk out of the woods. A great wave of relief washes over me, knowing I brought my soldiers to safety.

The Solitary shooting towards the sky was a magnificent sight. I felt my eyes begin to water at the beauty of this mountain. Knowing I only was a scouting mission killed my buzz. I wished I had the full White Army with me so I could come down towards the mountain and crush all resistance and take back the gold mine for the kingdom.

I hear a whizzing past my ear, and then a blue flash explodes at my feet. Flying backwards and when I land flat on the ground my head is spinning. I hear muffled yells and the sounds of swords clashing. I slowly got to my feet and my sight wouldn’t clear. My vision soon came back to me, and I look around to see what happened.

The first thing I saw was four stone statues, two of which are men under my command. In front of me a dozen Logarian soldiers attacked my four soldiers who are huddling behind a weak force field. I reach behind my back and grab the two knives from the scabbard on small of my back. I focus my mind on the spot next to an enemy releasing a stream of intense flames at the force field.

Bracing myself, I teleport and my vision goes black for a split second. Quickly, my vision returned, and I instantly brought my knives down, stabbing the enemy. Stone expanded over his body, and I teleported to the side of another attacking soldier. Slicing with my knives, ending another life. Instantly teleporting again, I brought my knife down on another enemy. My strike didn’t kill her and I was pushed back by her telekinesis. She drew her sword and advanced towards me weakly. I teleported again, this time appearing behind the wounded soldier, killing her with my blades.

I glanced and saw the force field of my allies break, and another one was turned into a stone statue. A larger male soldier under my command punched the air and flames emerged from his fist. Our enemies scattered, then reformed and charged us. I twirled my knives then ran forward, feeling a need to save the lives under my command. I twirled in between enemies, like water dancing around rocks in a river. I killed a few, and wounded the others.

I slid over some ice, which someone had conjured, and fell to the ground. When I landed, I spun around and saw only one of my soldiers alive, the large male. He had a long handled double bladed axe and was swinging it to keep enemies away. There were only three more foes remaining, we could take them.

I teleport over next to my remaining soldier, “Back to back,” he grunts. I place my back so it’s facing his. I sense him swing his axe, so I glance backwards. A stone statue lies at his feet; a small smile was on my allies face. It was an unsettling sight. A scream snaps me back to reality, and I quickly turn my head. A female warrior is charging at me with a mace in one hand and a dagger in the other. I throw one of my knives, and then gave it a boost with my telekinesis. The knife pierced the warrior’s armor and kills her. I pulled the knife out with my telekinesis and spun around to face the last enemy.

Lightning flew by my head, my heart stopped and then it slowly started to beat again. I put one knife in its scabbard, outstretched my hand and focused. A tingling feeling started and left my hand; I glanced down and saw a small sphere of water. The last enemy started to transfigure into a comion. The foe’s weak now, defenseless, only focused on transfiguring. I took this small window of opportunity to attack.

Charging forward, my last standing soldier followed me loyally. I launched the water at the transfiguring enemy, but it was weak. I’m new to this transformation; it’s only a few days old. The water makes a small cut, and I reach my hand around to grab my knife. I grip the handle and teleport. I reappear above the soldier, now in full comion form. Flames hit the comion’s face, and I land knife down on top of the comion, then jump off.

“Good fighting, soldier,” I told my ally.

The man went to open his mouth but stopped. I followed his stare and saw an old man emerge from the tree line. He was in long black robes and had a gray beard and long gray hair reaching down his back.

The old man looked familiar, but I couldn’t place a name with his face. He had a staff in his right hand, but it had a curve towards the top, like a sickle. It was made of wood and looked to be very old. “Very good, you have much potential,” the old man muttered.

“Who are you?” I asked him, slowly gripping my knives tighter, unsure of what to make of the old man.

“I’m surprised you don’t know me, Trinity,” the old man said, extending his arm and opening his palm, releasing a ball of light that flew into the sky. The ball of light lit up the area, revealing blue flowers on the ground.

“How do you know her name?” the man next to me asked.

“I know all your names, for I am Draci the Malice!” the old man excitedly announced. He spun his staff and caught it in his other hand, now prepared for a fight.

Draci the Malice is generally unknown to everyone, but the only things we know for sure is he’s a Logarian ally. It was rumored he took over the Solitary single handedly. Some say he’s a sorcerer, but I know there’s no such thing on this planet.

Before I knew it, my lone ally charged Draci. His axe landed in Draci’s skull. I cheered quietly; Draci was dead. The axe slowly sunk through his body and revealed Draci was still alive, unharmed by the axe. Draci swiftly hit his opponent in the neck with the curve of the staff. My last remaining soldier turned to stone, and Draci turned to me. I focused my energy and teleported from the Solitary to the comforts of my bungalow on the edge of the Islands of Brohmn.

I hope everyone enjoys their day! Necromancer will be released within the next few days!

Luke

The First Sneak Peak of Protectors of Duval: Necromancer

Here's the first look at the sequel in the Protectors of Duval series, Necromancer.

Exiting the room, I walk down the passageway towards the ship’s cabin. Looking at the familiar walls, I flinch. It’s like my prison. Being a king never even registered in my mind on Earth. I thought I was a no one, but I had freedom. On this ship, I’m someone but I’m confined to this ship. Seeing the door at the end of the hall automatically activates my telekinesis, pure habit moves my mind to do this action, and the door opens.

There’s a lone person in the cabin of the ship.  He’s a mentor, friend, and my protector. I know him by a different name now that I’m king, but his role in my life didn’t change. “Hello, Elias,” I said, making my presence noticed.

“Hello, my Lord,” Elias replied to me. His hair, like mine, has grown down to his chin. His goatee has turned into a full short beard.

“You know I don’t like it when you call me that. It’s too formal for a friend, Elias,” I coolly replied to him.

He grinned and turned back to the endless black in front of us. Stars twinkled ahead, welcoming us into the vast unknown.  Duval’s out there, my kingdom’s out there. Only the future knows what’s in store for me. How much blood shed will there be? How many allies will I lose?

“There it is!” Elias suddenly shouted. I looked to him, he was pointing at the darkness ahead of us. I followed his finger and saw a small sphere in the distance. I squinted trying to focus on my homeland.

“Duval,” I murmured quietly. So much pain will be over. I can flit; I can focus on reclaiming my inheritance that was stolen from me.  Rebecca and Kaila will be so excited.

Necromancer will be released within the next few days. Keep an eye out for more sneak peaks!

Until next time,

Luke

My first try at Surrealism

Hey guys,

This is my first attempt at surrealism, so go easy and I hope you enjoy it.

“The Leech on John Smith" 

 John Smith slouches in his chair at the kitchen table. His mother sits to his right, his father to his left, his sister across from him. His mother, Hayley, picks up the bowl of mashed potatoes and passes them to John. John reaches out, accepting the bowl of food, the leech on his forearm bulging more and more each day. John plops a scoop of the potatoes on his plate and passes the bowl to his father, Phil.

“How was your day, John?” Phil asks curiously.

John twirls the peas and potatoes on his plate together in a spiral pattern. The bags beneath his eyes grow blacker everyday, his eyes more bloodshot with every passing minute. His skin is paler than the moon on a starless night.  “It was fine,” John mutters, hardly finding the motivation or energy to speak.

“How was Jane today?” Hayley asks, a tone of caution in her voice.

John continues to mindlessly twirl his food. His stare is concentrated in the potatoes. He starts to sweat, tears forming in the corner of his eyes. Hayley reaches out her hand to place it on John’s shoulder. Upon contact, John swats it away. “She was fine,” he mutters.

“Have you found anywhere that’s hiring?” Phil asks John, raising his fork to his mouth, placing the piece of meatloaf in his mouth. John shakes his head. Once he swallows the food in his mouth, Phil asks, “Have you checked the papers?” John nods.

Phil looks at the floor in the living room a few feet away. Newspapers are sprawled all over the carpet, covered in red sharpie. “They all require me to be eighteen,” John quietly says. He picks up a forkful of potatoes and peas for the first time of the meal.

“Jane’s father said that you could work for his landscaping business,” Hayley reminds John, who drops the fork on the plate. The noise quiets the whole house; the only sound is the small sucking noise from the leech.

John looks to the plate, trying to hide the tear that ran down his cheek. “I… I can’t,” John clearly says, “not after what I’ve done to Jane.” John lifts his head again, the moist trail of the tear still visible on his face.

“Can we stop talking about John and Jane for once? That’s all we talk about anymore,” John’s little sister Kate asks jealously. “You only care about his relationship and not mine!”

Phil looks to Hayley, both of them with a slight look of concern on their faces. “John and Jane are in a very serious point of their life right now,” Hayley carefully tells Kate, making sure not to upset John.

Kate slams her silverware on the oak table with a loud thud. “Just because he’s seventeen and I’m thirteen doesn’t mean his relationship is more important that mine,” Kate yells.

The table grows quiet as the parents try to figure out how to reply, minding both of their children’s emotions. In the silence, the sucking of the leech grows louder in John’s ear. “You don’t want a relationship like mine yet, Kate,” John tells his little sister.

“Who are you to say what I want?” Kate asks John anger flaring in her voice. John sinks back in his chair, pushing his plate forward, signaling he was done with dinner. “You always run away from everything, the fights you can’t win, the players who want to tackle you on the football field, and your problems.”

John quickly stands up. This took his parents and Kate by surprise. That was the fastest John had moved since the leech appeared on his arm. “I’m not running, that’s not an option anymore, because there’s no where to run to. When I walk down the hallways at school, I’m no longer the star quarterback, I’m that kid, the one who screwed up.  My friends constantly treat me like I need help,” John explains to his sister. Kate sinks back in her chair, her thoughts now twisted in her mind. “This was my mistake, let me turn it into a blessing. You all look at me with smiles and support, but even you, my own family, judge me behind my back. I know I screwed up, but instead of constantly chastising me for it, why not show me some support when I need it most?”

John stands there, panting. His parents sit motionless. It seems to be the parents are absorbing the words their son just threw at them. Kate sits in her chair, looking up at John like a sad puppy, head slightly tilted downward. The leech on John’s arm sucks more rapidly, feeding on John in his first retaliation against the way he’s been getting treated. “I… I just wanted to be like you, John,” Kate whispered.

John turns his head away; tears flowing openly down his cheeks now. “No you don’t, Kate. Trust me. You’ll lose your way of life; lose the people close to you even if they promised to stand with you. All you’ll really have is your partner. You don’t want to be tied down to someone this early in your life,” John says, his voice wavering, fighting back tears.

John recalls when the leech first appeared on his arm, it only took an instant. He was at Jane’s house and her parents weren’t home. Jane and John weren’t doing anything new, yet within seconds their lives had changed. They both knew they made a huge mistake. It took everything they had to survive the first few weeks, especially with the leech now on John. The incident didn’t change the way John and Jane felt about each other, but their mental states were constantly under attack from guilt and regret.

The leech on John’s arm has started to grow with the constant mention of the subject and the sudden memories. John’s starting to be weighed down by the leech at this point, and it’s only six-thirty. He doesn’t start to feel like this until after eight. That’s when Jane gets home from work. John doesn’t think she should be working in her condition, but the job is what seems to keep Jane going these days.

John now looks to his parents, who sit there silently, awaiting more built up rage to be thrown at them. “I’m sorry,” John sincerely tells them. The smile, acting like it’s nothing, but John knows he’s cut them deep. “Is Jane’s father’s business card still on the fridge?”

“Yes,” Hayley tells John. He walks to the fridge and takes the small piece of cardboard off the magnetized clip. Studying the card, it reads ‘Doe Landscaping’ and his number. John slowly pulls out his phone and punches in the numbers.

Hayley looks and Phil, both of them have pride for their son swelling within them, even for the situation he’s in. Phil walks over to John, placing his hand on his shoulder as he awaits an answer.

“Hello, Mr. Doe, it’s John Smith,” John says, fear in his voice. “Is the offer for the job still on the table?” There are a few moments of silent from John, but the smallest of smiles grows on his face. “Monday at six? I’ll be there.”

“I think you made the right decision, John,” Hayley tells him. John nods, not saying a word, then walks back to his seat at the table. He begins to twirl his food again, lost in his thoughts. The leech on John’s arm starts to grow again, this time on the fear flowing through John as he thinks of the future.

Until next time,

Luke