View Part 6 All around Lorenzo vampires slept contentedly in the shadows while their prisoners remained wide-eyed, fearful and uncertain, hoping for some dashing liberator to spare them from this purgatory. No such solace would come to them now. They were beyond the reach of salvation. Lorenzo felt the need to submit to sleep but(…)
Writing
The Sparkling Dew On The Lakeside (Part 6 of 7)
View Part 5 The vampire horde was below deck and safely in the shadows just before sunrise. Dozens of captives lay gagged and bound close by, all living fodder for the vampires back in Deutermia. Lorenzo wallowed in one of the darkest corners and found that the images of Celestia were beginning to recede. ‘Have(…)
To See My Name In Print – A Writer’s Perspective
I’ve been writing since 1999 and although I’ve completed four novels and many short stories I have yet to have the honour of publication. I put this down to a combination of still needing to improve and for many years not submitting anything to magazines and publishers. In my defence I spent three years putting(…)
The Sparkling Dew On The Lakeside (Part 5 of 7)
View Part 4 My Dearest Lorenzo, I waited so long for you to come back but you never did. I never wanted you to go to war but I knew you were doing it only for me. My parents would never have let us marry, myself being a nobleman’s daughter and you a farmer’s(…)
The Sparkling Dew On The Lakeside (Part 4 of 7)
View Part 3 Erected in memory of my beloved Lorenzo Cyrano Father of Luca Born 11963 Died 11988 It wasn’t possible. Lorenzo considered this truth only briefly then dismissed it straight away. This grave belonged to a man named Lorenzo but it couldn’t be the same person. It was some cruel coincidence, some cheap trick(…)
The Sparkling Dew On The Lakeside (Part 3 of 7)
View Part 2 Graves, old and new, covered the cluster of small hills surrounding a long stretch of lowland. The oldest were made of wood with simple engravings, but the freshest disturbances of the earth came with a stone epitaph. Lorenzo found himself drawn to the far north to three graves in particular. The trio(…)
The Sparkling Dew On The Lakeside (Part 2 of 7)
View Part 1 Lorenzo emerged from the outskirts of serene woodland to find a muddy path leading downhill towards a village. He could make out two guards stationed on either side of the entrance; each clasped a spear in one hand and with the other they regularly passed an amphora back and forth. Even from(…)
The Sparkling Dew On The Lakeside (Part 1 of 7)
Disembarking on the shores of Valadomiar, Lorenzo trembled for the first time in decades. It was not the clamour of the sea breeze that animated his body – life had long since ceased to flow through his veins – but something dormant, lying deep within the barren wasteland of his stagnant heart was beginning to(…)
Amarstrea (Final Part)
View Part 5 Loven held his staff aloft before bringing it down hard on the ground. A cloud of pink smoke erupted and emerging from the vortex was a young man with long black hair, glistening blue eyes, untainted skin and rich attire. He dusted himself down as the enveloping smoke receded and soon halted(…)
Amarstrea (Part 5 of 6)
View Part 4 Loven spoke no words; he simply nodded, his eyes looked beyond Lily’s face to a large mirror hanging from the temple wall close by. Its surrounding was of intricate floral patterns on the surface of fine gold and seated before it, lost in the sight of her own reflection, was Lily’s sister.(…)
Amarstrea (Part 4 of 6)
View Part 3 Lily turned from Terence and was drawn towards the top of a small barrel. A pair of praying mantis were engaged in a mating ritual when, without warning, the female turned on the male and began to devour him. Lily grimaced at this display of nature’s cruelty. ‘What is this?’ she asked.(…)
Amarstrea (Part 3 of 6)
View Part 2 When Lily reached the bottom of the stairway she was surprised to find herself in a vast chamber filled with numerous races. Some seemingly invisible force kept them cordoned off from one another; the only obvious barriers between them were the distinct colourings on the temple floor. ‘What is this place?’ Lily(…)
Amarstrea (Part 2 of 6)
View Part 1 Lily had been in the Stalacts Mountains for three weeks when she noticed an eagle overhead, its far-reaching gaze combing the land in search of prey. As its shadow rose up the mountainside, Lily gasped at the sight of a clandestine temple. Only the entrance protruded from the rock face; the surrounding(…)
Amarstrea (Part 1 of 6)
The spiralling wind battered its way through the Stalacts Mountains, lifting fragments of dust and rock off the surface of an uneven and winding path before sending it cascading into the darkness of a perilous canyon. Close to the edge, Lily almost lost her footing as the constant breeze refused to yield. Feeling the chronic(…)
456 (Final Part)
View Part 4 Howard opened his eyes and found he was no longer in his bedroom. Overhead he could see the weak sun breaking through the branches of deciduous trees. His sense of smell was invigorated; so many scents he could pick up in the air, but one distant aroma seemed unnatural to him. Howard(…)
456 (Part 4 of 5)
View Part 3 Howard reached for the nearby handrail that led him upstairs. The four foxes that had secured the ground floor formed an orderly line at the base of the stairs. They didn’t attempt the ascension and for a moment, Howard believed he was safe. He reached the top of the stairs and made(…)
456 (Part 3 of 5)
View Part 2 Inside the house, Howard locked the door and secured five separate chains. No one would be getting in tonight, he thought. Howard looked outside and found it was raining again. He was eager for another look at the garden so made his way to the kitchen. From a distance he thought he(…)
456 (Part 2 of 5)
View Part 1 Mrs Jones had cleaned the house that morning but Howard had spoken little to her. He was lost in Churchill’s account of the Second World War; the events of the conflict with the brave young soldiers gave rise to Howard’s nostalgia once more. By midday he could read no more and, seeing(…)