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Monthly Archives: October 2013

A Questionnaire and a Link-Up

04 Friday Oct 2013

Posted by erinkenobi2893 in Uncategorized

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baroness emma orczy, completely random posts, confusing nonsense, insanity, j.r.r. tolkein, long rants, lord of the rings, madeleine l'engle, rambling musings, star wars, story dynamics, the scarlet pimpernel

Hello, friends. I was on Nanowrimo this morning, and I just happened to find my way, roundabout like, onto another author’s blog, where I found this questionnaire. Instantly, I was thinking, “oh, what a good idea! I am SO doing this!” And here it is, my answers to her questions:

  1. What was your first-ever piece of writing? A Robin Hood novel– my own take on the legends. It was fun, while it lasted, but now… *sigh* It has a problem with: lack of story arc, sprawling motion, pale characterizations, etc.
  2. How old were you when you first began writing? Eight or nine, maybe? Probably nine. But I didn’t start taking it really seriously until I was eleven.
  3. Name two writing goals. One short term & one long term. Short term? Catch up with these stupid Journals that I’m supposed to be editor for (the Journals are a short friendly newsletter with more stories than editorials. :-P) and actually get ahead on them. Long term? Get something I wrote published in a public venue, even if it be only over the internet as an e-book, and preferably sooner rather than later.
  4. Do you write fiction or non-fiction? Both, though I write more fiction than non. I just prefer making up my own worlds, etc…
  5. Bouncing off of question 4, what’s your favorite genre to write in? I like writing historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction… and preferably a combination of the last two, or all three! ;-P
  6. One writing lesson you’ve learned since 2013 began. Sometimes flowery wording just won’t cut it… though it does add to your Nano word count.
  7. Favorite author, off the top of your head! Probably J.R.R. Tolkien, though I also like a lot of other authors… 😛
  8. Three current favorite books. Ummm…. Let’s see. The Scarlet Pimpernel, by Baroness Orczy, The Lord of the Rings by Tolkien, and A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L’Engle. In no particular order ;-P
  9. Biggest influence on your writing {person}: My mother, and my best friend Iris. Iris is my kindred spirit and Earth Angel. Unlike me, she has a whole bunch of usernames. She’s known as “Irisbloom5” on Nanowrimo, “AnotherBook” on Fanfiction, and “Daylee15” on lego.com and/or Wikia. She and I have been writing together for about three years now. And Mom… sometimes little brothers are confusing or just plain don’t cut it (sorry, Sprite!) but Mom is always good for a review. She’s always been there for me, and I am absolutely going to dedicate my first published novel to her in an attempt to express my gratitude.
  10. What’s your go-to writing music? The Lord of the Rings Musical. Yes, there is a musical. 😀 It was in Britain and received mixed reviews. The tour through America was cancelled, though. :’-( And then there are the movie soundtracks by Howard Shore… and I would have others, had I more soundtracks. ;-P
  11. List three to five writing quirks of yours! Little habits, must-haves as you write, etc. Music, tea, occasionally a walk or bike ride, fresh air, and email or Nanomail. 😉
  12. What, in three sentences or less, does your writing mean to you? It keeps me sane, to be honest. Otherwise, my life would be unbearably dull. And it’s also very satisfying. You should really get out and try it! 😉

The Hero’s Dream, Chapter X

02 Wednesday Oct 2013

Posted by erinkenobi2893 in Shifting Tides Series, Tales of a Wandering Bard, The Hero's Dream

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alternate universe, bbc merlin, completed stories, shifting tides series, small rants, star wars, the hero's dream

Hey! I’m trying to catch up, desperately… I hope you all don’t hate me for not being faster… :-S

Anyway, this chapter: Obi-Wan reports to his master, to Padme, and to Siri, and then has the luxury of a little rant (partially inspired by Merlin’s famous… or infamous… one in the BBC show.) Enjoy!

[11/2/2013: Changed tagging to reflect current story status; aka, completed.]

Chapter X

                “Master,” Obi-Wan reported, via hologram, “they are gathering an army, as Padawan Tachi said. From what I heard, it is comprised of droids from the foundries of Geonosis as well as clones, from Kamino.” Qui-Gon put his chin on his fist, pensively.

“This is serious news, Obi-Wan.”

“Not the most serious I have, though.” Obi-Wan said. “The Sith do suspect that we have the organization we would need to fight back against them. The Council must be warned. They have to be cautious…”

“Obi-Wan, I will inform the Council. Don’t worry…”

“That is my prerogative,” Obi-Wan quipped, tongue in cheek. They both laughed. Qui-Gon looked hard at his apprentice.

“I should take it that you have a bad feeling about this?”

“Not such a very bad one,” Obi-Wan admitted.

“But a bad feeling, nonetheless.” Qui-Gon said. Obi-Wan smiled.

“One more thing. Sidious is going to Naboo in the morning, and I guess that this time that means that I’m going as well. I have a plan to get both Padme and Padawan Tachi out of the palace, if you can smuggle the queen-elect out with you.”

“That won’t be a problem, Obi-Wan,” Qui-Gon said firmly.

“I’ll meet you in the normal place then, tonight. We may be running late—I don’t know yet. After Padme is out of the palace, can you get her to Naboo? I’ll meet you there.”

“Will do.” Obi-Wan smiled.

“Thank you, Master. Over…”

“Oh, and Obi-Wan.” Qui-Gon said. “May the Force be with you.” Obi-Wan smiled again.

“May the Force be with you, Master. Over and out.” He cut the transmission.

Obi-Wan walked into Padme’s room, carrying her lunch on a tray. She looked up at him and smiled. “And how are you today, milady?” Obi-Wan asked, setting down the tray and scanning the apartment, checking it for bugs as he had the first time he had come into her room.

“Fine, I guess.” Padme replied. “Bored to death, though.”

“I have good news, then,” Obi-Wan said, smiling. “You’re going home tonight.”

Padme leaped from the bed and flung her arms around him, hugging him tight. “Oh, thank you thank you thank you! How are we getting out of the palace? Why tonight? Will you be coming too?” Obi-Wan gasped for breath in her overexcited embrace.

“Just let go of me for a moment and I’ll give you the details! You hug like a full-grown Wookiee.” Padme released him and he sat down, rubbing his bruised ribs. “There’s a system of tunnels leading out of the palace from the hall where we’ve been meeting with Master Qui-Gon. Few people know of their existence, and the Sith are not among that number. How did you think he was getting in and out?” Obi-Wan teased gently. “You’re going tonight because Sidious is headed for Naboo in the morning—the vicious, backstabbing toad—and he won’t be there to hear about your escape and the hunt until it’s too late. Maybe they’ll figure out how to get communications to a ship in hyperspace in our lifetimes, but for now it’s still science fiction. Besides, I’ll have some of my friends cover for you—maybe they won’t even realize you’re gone, if we’re lucky. The moment you’re out of the palace, Master Qui-Gon will take you to Naboo—this is the tricky part—and we’ll spring you on the crowds just as Sidious is making his condolence speech. That way, the Naboo will have a ruler whom Sidious will think twice about messing with in future. He’s too smart to miss the fact that you have leverage with the possibility of blackmail, so he’ll leave you alone.” Padme gasped.

“That’s brilliant!” was all she could find to say. Obi-Wan smiled slightly.

“You don’t live among the worst schemers in the galaxy for twenty-five years without learning something.” he said. “Oh, and I won’t be coming with you—I’m supposed to be attending Sidious, but I’ll slip away from the palace… Speaking of which, can you write out some directions so I can find your home? We’d better make that our rendezvous point and base of operations.” The next several minutes were spent in writing and memorizing directions, with Obi-Wan rapidly committing to memory Theed and its streets.

That night, after dropping Padme with Qui-Gon and repeating last-minute messages and injunctions, Obi-Wan directed his steps back toward the room where he had hidden Siri. He palmed open the door. “Siri?” he called.

The room was empty.

Obi-Wan panicked. Casting about through the room, scanning for any sign of life, he took a step inside.

Instantly, something dropped down from the rafters, tackling him. Obi-Wan struggled, but as he did so his hand came into contact with a thick mane of blond hair. Siri.

Obi-Wan gasped and rolled her weight off of himself. “It’s just me,” he panted, trying to regain his own equilibrium. “Sorry about that, I should have pre-arranged a signal with you.”

“Just knocking would be completely fine,” Siri said, throwing her hair back out of her face. “The Sith haven’t got the brains or the manners to knock, believe me.” Obi-Wan grinned, then turned serious.

“I have a way of getting you safely off-world,” he said.

“Thank goodness,” Siri quipped. “And none too soon. How?”

“Sidious is going to Naboo tomorrow,” Obi-Wan said. “He’s going to take me along with him… There are advantages to being his favorite personal slave, however few they may be.” He favored her with a quick, humor-bright smile. “What he doesn’t know, however, is that you will be on the ship as well, and once safely on Naboo, getting clean away will be relatively easy.” Siri gasped with shock.

“You can’t be serious,” she said, then registered a double take as she saw the determined expression on his face. “Wait, what? You’re planning to smuggle me on a ship with the most powerful Dark Sider in existence? What are you thinking?! He’ll sense my presence!” Obi-Wan leaned forward slightly, earnestly.

“No, he won’t. I can teach you a few shielding techniques that will allow you to hide your presence completely, or alter it if you so choose. I’ve been using them for years, it’s why the Sith never caught on that I’m a fully-trained Jedi. They won’t expect you to be trying to escape on Palpatine’s personal shuttle while he’s on it, which is what makes it so perfect.”

“What makes it so hare-brained, you mean.” Siri pointed out. She sighed. “Are you sure this is going to work?” she demanded.

“Yes,” he replied, perhaps just a bit too quickly. “Of course I am. I wouldn’t do anything to risk your life like this if I wasn’t absolutely sure it would work. Don’t you trust me?”

“Have you ever tried this ruse out before?” she pushed. Obi-Wan sighed.

“Well, no, not exactly. But I have been an undercover operative here for the past twenty-two years, and I wouldn’t be alive today if I made a habit out of being foolhardy.”

“Great,” Siri sighed. “So, basically, we have no idea whether this will really work or not.”

“I don’t do anything without thinking it through, ever,” Obi-Wan insisted. He sighed. “Listen, this is a very busy week for me. I have a full schedule. I have to get one young woman out of the palace already, which is hard enough, and she’s not even in high security holding, in which case it would be difficult but not impossible, I have crossed Sidious several times and was tormented for a few hours, not to mention that I’ve had some very unwelcome attention from two different Sith, and may have inadvertently landed myself on the radar in general due to a fight with a Sith apprentice, and I can not possibly get two women out of the palace without detection, so I must settle for smuggling them out separately, which has the added bonus that if one is recaptured the other may not be. And honestly, this is the best I can do right now. It’s been an insane week for me. You should have turned up another time if you wanted five-star service. It never rains, but it pours,” he sighed, shaking his head. Siri giggled at his tirade.

“From the way you were talking, for a moment there I thought you were someone important,” she laughed. Obi-Wan shook his head at her again.

“This isn’t a joke, Padawan Tachi,” he said, somewhat ruefully. Siri laughed again.

“Oh, really? Then who exactly are you?” she asked. Obi-Wan looked thoughtfully at the ceiling, frowning as he thought it out.

“Well,” he said pensively, “taking everything into account, and all things being equal… I’m the third most influential, second most powerful, and absolutely the most dangerous person on Coruscant.” The laughter died on her lips as she saw his expression.

“You’re serious?” she asked.

“You’d be surprised how many people’s destinies I hold in the palm of my hand. I’m the only thing that stands between them and death or torture. And I am not about to fail them, Padawan Tachi.” His face was stern, almost as if he was speaking a sacred oath. Siri thought for a moment before asking her next question.

“All right… so… what about tomorrow?” she asked.

“I’m afraid you won’t get too sleep much tonight,” Obi-Wan said apologetically. “I’m going to teach you how to cloak your presence tonight, then I need you to get up early tomorrow morning so I can get you aboard Palpatine’s shuttle and well-hidden before anyone else goes on board. Oh… one last thing. I have to ask your permission first, but the shielding technique—it’s one of the more restricted ones. It involves me wiping your memory of myself teaching you; no one is supposed to know who else knows this technique. You’ll remember being taught, but you won’t remember who taught you. I’ll also have to wipe your memory so that you don’t remember me telling you about the technique, either, after the mission is over, and my own memory of teaching you, after submitting a report to the Council so that they’re aware you know it. Neither of us will know that the other knows it. Understand?”

“I guess,” Siri said doubtfully. “You’ll be in my mind?”

“It’s very specific, not like a probe,” Obi-Wan cautioned her. “It’s for your own safety, and mine too, remember.”

“Have you ever done that before?” Siri asked. “Selectively wiped someone’s memory, I mean.” Obi-Wan smiled, half-mischievously.

“Yes, I have actually done that. It’s part of the reason I’m alive today.”

“Oh.” The silence dragged out between them for a long moment, then Obi-Wan took a deep breath.

“Lower your shields. I’m not always good with words, it’ll be easier to just show you.”

The Hero’s Dream, Chapter IX

01 Tuesday Oct 2013

Posted by erinkenobi2893 in Shifting Tides Series, Tales of a Wandering Bard, The Hero's Dream

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Tags

alternate universe, completed stories, shifting tides series, star wars, the hero's dream

Once again, the Hero’s Dream returns. Sorry about the wait, I was delayed… *sigh*

This chapter: Sidious makes a disturbance and Obi-Wan uncovers more evidence in the Sith plot. Enjoy!

[11/2/2013: Changed tagging to reflect current story status; aka, completed.]

Chapter IX

                Obi-Wan paused in the kitchen, leaning on one of the counters and smiling at the cook. “Hello, Steela.”

The Onderonian woman gave him a slightly pugnacious stare. “I suppose your being here means His Nibs wants his breakfast?”

“Yes, I’m afraid so. Please don’t try poisoning it. You should know better by now.” Steela huffed. Obi-Wan chuckled. “Don’t worry, the day will come when all our wrongs will be righted. I promise you that.”

Obi-Wan made his way to Sidious’s room, pushing the door open by pressing his back against it, then slipping deftly in before it could close, hooking his foot around the jamb and pulling it closed slightly faster. When he walked in, the Sith looked no less angry than he had before. Obi-Wan heaved a mental sigh behind tight shields. I should have known what was coming.

Sidious was sitting at his desk, acidic yellow eyes staring down at his papers, as if to burn holes in them with his gaze alone. Unfortunately, looks could not kill or destroy, and the papers remained as they were. Obi-Wan walked forward, icy mask in place, and put the tray down on the table. A split second later, Sidious had him by the hair, fingers twisting tight into the ginger locks on the left side, winding the thick auburn hair around his hand, pulling the young man’s face down onto a level with his. “You’re late,” the Sith ground out. Obi-Wan stared defiantly back at his tormentor, not offering any apology. Sidious suddenly let him go, flinging him back. Obi-Wan picked himself up off the floor in complete silence. He had outgrown childish temper tantrums years before. Sidious scowled at him. “You had better not be late tomorrow. I’m going to Naboo, and you will attend me. Be on the landing platform by the shuttle at dawn, or else I’ll have my guards drag your sorry hide on board, and add in a few whip lashes, to clinch the bargain.”

Obi-Wan stood up. Drawing himself up to his full height, which was not much compared to many, but was still taller than Sidious, he exclaimed, “You have a lot of nerve to show your face there—on Naboo—after what you did to them, kidnapping their queen-elect.”

“Enough, boy!” Sidious snarled.

“I suppose you’re headed there to offer your condolences for their loss of a leader, and to ‘suggest’ one or two candidates—all of whom are practically in your pocket! Well, not all people are yours to command, Sith. You may enslave our bodies and our minds, but our souls are still free!”

“I said enough, boy! Be silent!” Sidious roared.

“I won’t be silent!” Obi-Wan returned, shaking with cold rage. “Many people have died in speaking out against you, and I suppose I’m next, but I won’t be silent. You can’t kill us all and one day, someone is going to put an end to your tyranny—” Obi-Wan was suddenly cut off as his airways constricted. Instinctively, his hands went to his throat. Sidious stood up, getting up from his seat as he maintained his Force choke. Sidious was wheezing for breath, fuming with anger, but still controlling himself—the stranglehold on Obi-Wan was not too tight, just enough to keep him from inhaling, without causing permanent damage.

“Now you listen to me,” Sidious hissed. “I’m not going to kill you, Korzu. I can feel it—your anger, your hatred. For me? Ah, no, what a pity, it’s for that name, isn’t it? The Dark Side is within your grasp, and yet, it’s just out of reach. You’re not going to die. You’ll go on living, you hate this wretched existence, don’t you? I am going to make your life a living hell.”

“That’s what yours is, already, and I’m not going to give in,” Obi-Wan gasped. “I can’t suffer like you… I’m not evil like you.” Sidious almost tightened his grip, but he regained control again and released it instead.

“You are going to suffer,” Sidious hissed. “You will live with everything denied to you, the use of your gift, the light and dark both… and if I decide to kill you, you will die screaming, begging to die, just so that the pain will stop.”

“I will never beg you for anything,” Obi-Wan said contemptuously. Then the Sith attacked. The world went gray. Darkness rose up and consumed everything.

“Obi-Wan?” The voice penetrated the fog in Obi-Wan’s mind like the beams of a lighthouse. Obi-Wan didn’t move.

Go away, leave me alone, his mind pleaded. Let me sleep. I just want to sleep!

“Obi-Wan, come on. You have to wake up!”

Obi-Wan fought the urge to go back to sleep. Come on, Kenobi, he argued with himself, you’re a fighter. Don’t just give in and concede the battle! Listen to her!

Obi-Wan opened his eyes, blinking at the dim light in the corridor. Shmi was kneeling beside him, leaning over him. He was at the center of a worried-looking ring of slaves. Shmi sighed with relief as he opened his eyes. “Thank Heaven! I was afraid we’d lost you, sweetheart.” She turned irately toward the others. “Go on, go about your business. Give him some room to breathe. He’ll be all right.” Some of the others hesitated, but an angry look from Shmi scattered them like butterflies in a gale. “Go on, you!” she snapped. Shmi turned back to her adoptive son. “Why do you have to antagonize him like that?” she demanded. Obi-Wan sighed, sitting up.

“I don’t know. I just… I’m disturbed by the injustice surrounding this place. I can’t stop myself.” Obi-Wan slammed his fist into the wall in helpless rage; Shmi winced as his hand pounded the wall, making it shake slightly. An ornate mirror on the opposite wall cracked at the anger washing off of him in hot, furious waves. “When? When will all this evil, this vicious circle, end? When will the galaxy be free again?” Shmi pulled him close, holding him tightly.

“It’s human to be angry, son,” she whispered, “but you must also be patient.” A tear ran down Obi-Wan’s cheek, to be lost in her dark hair.

“I know. I just feel so sick inside. Why was I born like this, Shmi? I wasn’t born for this. If I can’t be free, if I can’t be a Jedi, then I’d be better off dead!” Shmi hugged him fiercely.

“My precious son,” she whispered. “No one deserves this, least of all you. I don’t have all the answers, sweetheart, but you’re the strong one. One day, things will be different. Knowing you, I feel sure that soon things will be changing. I wish you could be safe, but the danger would follow you wherever you go. You’re fated, somehow, Obi-Wan. You were born for just such a time as this, my son. And I can not help but believe that you were born to be our deliverer. Please, son, don’t let us down.”

“I won’t,” Obi-Wan whispered. “You have my word, mother.”

Obi-Wan slipped, wraithlike, through the halls, so well-shielded and concealed that he was almost a void in the Force, following Sheddra Azhrahai. The Sith Lord made her way through the halls and passages of the palace, completely unaware that she was being followed. Obi-Wan had an instinctive feeling about the Sith. He knew that, somehow, she was important. Beneath her lust for power—his power—her desire to have him her willing, mindless pawn—there was something else; something else was going on, beneath the surface. Obi-Wan’s intuitions were seldom wrong.

Finally, Sheddra found her way to a less-used part of the palace. Obi-Wan slipped into a curtained alcove behind her as she glanced around herself, checking to see if she had been followed and looking for someone. From the curve in her lip, a vicious snarl, Obi-Wan thought that, even if the follower had been a Sith like herself, the tail would have been instantly and mercilessly slain.

Obi-Wan sensed rather than saw a cloaked figure stepping out of the shadows ahead. Sidious. “Is the army prepared, Lord Azhrahai?” he asked.

“It is well prepared, though the clones will take time to complete their growth cycle,” Sheddra said. “The droids, however, are mostly already built. The Geonosians have been most obliging.”

“You have done well, Azhrahai,” Sidious said. Obi-Wan could hear a ghastly smile in the Sith’s voice.

“One thing worries me, though, my lord,” Sheddra said. “From what Xanatos said, I fear that the Jedi may not be as extinct as we once thought. The Jedi he accosted on Kamino was not a lone pair of saboteurs, working solo, but a team of spies. Who were they working for? Who were they reporting to? Who were they answering to? This points to organization, my lord. With no hierarchy, and leaderless, the Jedi are hardly a threat, not a very dangerous force to be reckoned with. However, organized, the Jedi become a very serious threat indeed.”

“Keep your mind on the army, Azhrahai,” Sidious advised, in a ghastly mockery of a fatherly tone. “The Jedi are my concern. I will take care of them. Continue with your work, Azhrahai. You are doing well indeed.” Obi-Wan did not wait to hear any more; he slipped away, back to his room.

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