Stand By Me - Florence + The Machine

Save One

 

Save One

Dark the night and grim the day

When rose the standards for the fray.

On winds of death the threads did sway

When a dragon led their Heart astray.

With gleaming eye and gloating tongue, 

The vile dragon breathed, “Save none.”

And so the dreadful deed was done

And all the cities fell, 

Save one.

Soldiers marched to beating drum,

A battle they had all but won,

To a city once called Heart’s Desire.

A city now engulfed in fire.

This city was the final stand.

The final bastion in the land.

The last seat of nation’s power.

To Heart’s Desire, Kingdom’s Flower,

Marched they ever on and on.

Now city sieged upon a hill.

Ash and smoke the air did fill.

With shattered hearts and broken will,

The people watched with blinded eyes

And on deaf ears poured out their cries.

All brought low and led astray.

In chains they went, now torn away

From hope and light upon that day.

Prince of darkness smiled on.

Day of shadow, night of wrong.

Virtue wailed in mournful song.

None escaped that day,

Save one. 

A single soul escaped the snare.

The fate of bondage did not share.

With all the flock they did not stay.

A single soul that slipped away.

Sole survivor justice swore.

The start and end of this great war.

To free all those still trapped inside

The dragon’s talons ‘fore they died.

One hundred more the one acquired.

With gold and glory they were hired.

“Let no one sleep,” the leader said.

“Until the evil here is dead.

All that answered this my call,

You fight with me, you fight for all.

From plague that rots unto the core,

Let us be free forevermore.

May each be paid with golden throne,

But serpent’s head is mine alone.”

With one great shout and sword held high,

On wings of hope they all did fly.

Went they back to Heart’s Desire.

Back to the city of flame and fire.

Same are both the end and start,

For every act flows from the Heart.

Brave the warriors, bitter the fight.

They fought with all their strength and might.

Even with no end in sight,

They fought on and on throughout the night.

The dragon laughed in scornful jest.

“How worthless is this foolish quest

To go against so great a foe!”

Defeat the creature did not know. 

The hero and the villain clashed.

The sky was filled with blinding flash.

When eyes could see the ending clear,

Joy replaced all doubt and fear.

Dead the dragon’s body lay.

Serpent’s head free and decayed.

Cheering filled the dawning day

When greatest evil was waylaid. 

Chains once bound now broke away.

Souls were counted, lives were saved.

The people free to live and thrive.

The plague was dead and all alive.

Save one. 

One hundred rallied to the call.

An evil dragon made to fall.

A kingdom saved upon the hill,

But a single soul was missing still.

One single soul was the price

Heads were counted once and twice

Their leader bold they could not save

The one under the dragon’s grave

Years have passed and none now read

Of this once monumental deed.

The name was lost and none now know 

Who brought down that mighty foe. 

Save one. 

Fear Not This Night - Jeremy Soule

This summer is off to an adventurous start. Kicked off May with a wedding, the Renaissance Festival, volunteer work, AND meeting another co-author! 

As usual, I have way more hobbies than I have time for so life is always a little bit of everything. 

Earlier this year, I did a 70-mile walking challenge and earned a medal for it. I signed up for another one to keep the momentum going. 

(Leaning into the old hag in the woods look)

I'm trying to get back into reading more. I have so many books on my to-be-read pile, it's inexcusable. Having recently gotten back into GuildWars2, I picked up some of the lore books and am currently working my way through those. 

Writing - is it possible to count all the notes I've made instead of actual writing? Cause I did way more of that trying to sort through and organize ISC than I did actual writing. 

Piano is... in a lull. Meaning I haven't been practicing like I should. :p

My plants are growing, I think. Only a couple have died so that's progress. Some are even starting to bud! 

It's been a month of making new friends. New guild members. New coworkers. New family members. People I should have been friends with a long time ago, but let fear keep me from reaching out until more recently. 

(Look at that! I finally met DJ and the world didn't even explode!)

It's been a month of reconnecting with and supporting old friends. The friends whose families were in rough situations. The friends who had surgery and/or scary medical emergencies. The friends who went through significant loss. The friends going through major life changes. The friends sharing news of incredible joy or success. 

Life gets busy. It's always busy. You don't get many moments to stop and catch your breath. And when you do, something always seems to come in to take it a way. Take a breath. In. Out. Slow down if you can, but don't stop. Life can be beautiful and wonderful and magical and meaningful, but you have to be looking for the light in the darkness. You can do it. I believe in you. And if you need help, I'm here. Never alone. 

"Courage, dear heart." - C.S. Lewis

"Dawn is just a heartbeat away

Hope's just a sunrise away." 

- Jeremy Soule

 ~ Always Hope ~

Queen's Gardens - Christopher Larkin (Hollow Knight)

Get Up - All Good Things

 

I see you. I know you're tired. I know you're weary. 

It's been a long day. A long week. A long year. A long three years. A long eleven years. You see it. I see it. It never ends. It never stops. Oh, how you wish it would stop. How your tired heart aches. 

It will end, eventually. You know that. I know that. We know the war has already been won. But not here. Not now. Not yet. Until then, you're not done. We're not done. 

Rest. 

Then get up. 

“It’s going to be okay. Things will get better. Anything’s possible, as long as you don’t give up. You’re doing a good job.”

“We’re not sparring here, bud. Get up.”

"It doesn’t end here.” He stood up. “If you’re ready to keep going.”

"We're going to change things, you just wait and see. Just trust me. Things will get better. That's a promise."

"I can't believe that you of all people would be ready to give up! No."

"There's no such thing as hopeless."

"Good doesn’t battle evil because it is easy. Part of being the good guys means doing the hard things, even if no one else will. Even if we fail. Because there’s always the chance we won’t."

"As long as you try, that's all I ask."

"Giving up when everything in you is screaming to quit is not strength. Continuing to live and hope and trust and fight for what's right is not weakness. So what if it looks hopeless? I will keep fighting."

“Grief has its place, but you can’t let it consume you. Get up.” He stepped up and offered a hand. “Get up,” he repeated.

"Oh, I’m not finished yet. We’ve got a war coming, remember?"

“We watch out for each other, remember? You’re gonna be okay. Things will get better. That’s a promise.”

“I won’t give up! Not here. Not this place. I have to keep going."

"How many times are you going to stand up?”

“At least once more."

"Always hope. Always."

Eyes up, guardian. You're not alone. 

When you're ready... 

Let's go. 

"These trials make us who we are, who we are, we are

We're motivated by the scars that we're made of

These trials make us who we are, who we are, we are

We take our places in the dark

And turn our hearts to the stars"

Trials ~ Starset

Hope - Shinedown

Hah! I swapped it around on you. The title song is further down.

Hi, friend! ^_^

We did it! We finally finished writing Ice Sword Chronicles: Book One start to finish! YAY! WOOT! HUZZAH! 

So the story continues. We still have a ways to go to finish the whole thing. While I was writing/editing the thing, I still haven't technically revised it yet. I finished the first draft and it has many, many errors and placeholders I need to go back and fix. But it's done! I realize it took forever. I apologize. It's been a busy year (on top of the last 15-ish years). I still got it done and that's what counts. 

(One of my favorite random lines from Fire Sword Chronicles)

That being said, let me shift gears for a second. Do you remember the feeling of change in your senior year of high school or maybe your last year of college? That feeling you get right before a move or job or relationship or appointment or milestone? A feeling of change approaching. Almost like you can see the curve in the road, but you can't see beyond it? You can feel the shift in the wind. You can hear the rolling of thunder and see clouds gathering on the horizon. That feeling. The knowledge that change is on its way. While you can take steps to delay it, you know you cannot prevent it. Change is inevitable. 

I told you when I came back to this blog that I would not be here for long. I knew I could only keep writing until the next life event knocked me down or simply took up all my spare time again. Every season has a timer. Change doesn't have to be good or bad or big. Change can just be. I don't know exactly what's coming, but I know it's just around the corner. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air. 

While I would love to keep writing no matter what happens, that is not realistic. I have other priorities and obligations I must keep. Writing is a hobby to me and sometimes it falls to the bottom of the never-ending list of things to do (even when the story ideas are still there). I can say I will continue writing while I have the time and motivation for it. I think I will always be a writer at heart. 

The last time a significant life change hit, I left without saying goodbye. Well, that’s not entirely true. You were given very minimal warning. I marked the end of college and start of marriage, but I didn't expect to be gone for so long. I disappeared for years without an explanation. I don't want to let that happen again without at least expressing my thanks while I have the chance.

Rediscovering this blog, following all its affiliate links, driving down memory lane, seeing the old me while figuring out the new one - it's all been an amazing adventure in wonderland these last couple years. I never imagined I'd actually win NaNoWriMo and completely write two full books. Yes, I know all the hot water NaNo is in. I ain't touching that with a 39.5 foot pole, but let me have this. This was a childhood dream come true. Twice. I'm not officially participating this year. I might still do my own novel writing challenge at some point and not tie it to NaNo. Still figuring it out. I still have stories to finish and it has been an effective way to finish them. Just not this year. 

I did imagine that ISC would be a fully written book, but I didn't know all the work that would go into it. So many times, I wished I could transplant the vision in my mind's eye onto paper (or screen) without having to sit and muddle through all the details. Hours upon hours of work. Blood, sweat, and tears (so many tears; I sobbed over these fictional people) went into writing this. Is it published (or even publish-able) yet? Absolutely not, but this is the closest it's ever gotten! Of all the times I started and stopped, this is the most brought to life it's been since my co-authors and I started it back in 2009. I'm quite happy with that. These last two years have been a blast writing ISC again. I loved getting back into our old characters and watching them grow (or backslide, in Hanna’s case). I do hope it continues, but we'll see how it goes. It would be amazing to actually finish the full story. I have so many plans and arcs and words and details to add. Still hoping I can keep it to 3 books and not 4 or more. 

I know my co-authors and I were all very different people when we started ISC back in 2009. My aim with this re-write was to keep the spirit of adventure, the calling for glory, the weight of destiny, and the comradery that is built when friends overcome trials together. I was aiming for epic battles, witty dialog, serious questions, and comical moments. Questions of faith, salvation, humanity, justice, freedom, morality, identity, friendship, trust, truth, bias, free will, life, sacrifice, meaning, suffering, hope, love, loss, good, and evil. I am reconstructing a snapshot in time with the scraps that were left behind. My goal was to forge a path ahead while still respecting the writers and characters of the past. At the end of the day, what I create is based solely on my perspective. All the characters are fictional. The words are echoes. The settings are imaginary. I care about this story. I do. A lot. But it does not belong to me alone. I hope my co-authors of yesteryear can see my intent and forgive my shortcomings when I miss the mark. *salutes* O7

(You got this, Hanna. My beautiful, brave, powerful, fragile, lost, broken, Hanna. You'll find your light in the end. We hope.)

Losing SilverAngel in the midst of all of this was incredibly difficult. Losing my father was difficult too. Watching my home get invaded and go to war was difficult. There's no real way to explain it other than each loss hit differently. They all hit. And they all hurt. My heart still hurts. I don't wish that kind of pain on anyone. I won't explain it any more than that. 

I got to meet up with one of my co-authors again on this journey. By all accounts, we should have been complete strangers. But we weren't. We were friends. We're still friends. Thanks for being awesome, Misty. I'm glad the friendship is still there, even if the memories sometimes aren't. XD Love ya! (:

(Of course I wore black with pigtails, how else was she going to recognize me? :P )

And thank you, friend. 

Gentle reader. Silent watcher. I know you've been watching. You're not as invisible as you think you are. I might have never heard a single word from you, but I know you're still there. Still watching. Thank you for stopping by. It has been an honor to write for you. Thanks for following along with my silly little stories. It may not mean much to you, but it means the world to me. Wherever you are, wherever you go, I'll be cheering you on. I wish you the very best in life. Always. 

Who knows, maybe I'll still have plenty of extra time and get to keep writing and posting. A lot of things have been making a comeback lately. Maybe I can too? What is life, if not full of surprises? Whether I get to keep writing or not, it has been an honor. Don't worry. This is not the end of the story. It is only the end of the chapter. *bows* Thank you, friend. Maybe I'll see you around. 

Never Alone

Now, if we’re all reasonably okay with how Book One turned out... <_< >_> *seeing no complaints because no one's reported back that they've finished it yet* Who's ready to take on ISC Book Two? Enjoy the mood we're diving in with.

And yes, I'm building ISC Three's playlist too. Always writing with the end in mind. Enjoy the music. This is gonna be an interesting scene/arc when I finally get to it.

"Head full of questions, how can you measure up?

To deserve affection, to ever be enough 

for this existence. When did it get so hard?

Your heart is beating, alive and breathing

And there's a reason why 

you are essential, not accidental

And you should realize

You are beloved

I wanted you to know

You are beloved

Let it soak into your soul

Oh, forget the lies you heard

Rise above the hurt, and listen to these words

You are beloved

I want you to know you are beloved"

~ Beloved - Jordan Feliz

(Language warning for the following video, but I think it's worth watching.)

~ Always Hope ~