Quedaar Map

This is a map of the continent of Quedäar, the continent upon which my story takes place.  All artwork is mine and original, and may not be used or reproduced without my express written consent.

Fear Interlude

              Fear.  How can so simple an emotion have so much power?  Fear can evoke a whole range of emotions and can make a man do things he never thought possible.  Fear can make a grown man cower like child scared of the dark, and it can give an all but fallen warrior the fighting chance to survive.  It can give an entire race known for its ruthless ways the power to dominate countless lesser races just for fear of what may come from acting against them.

         I’ve spent my whole life trying to understand this powerful emotion known simply as fear.  Decades of training, both physical and mental, have helped me to unlock the potential hidden under the surface of this paralyzing beast. I have learned to mold fear into an advantage instead of a hindrance.  Along with fear comes a rush of adrenaline and a heightened sense of awareness to your surroundings.  It gives you an edge that will push you to your limits and give you the needed skill to survive.

           Some say there is nothing to fear but fear itself.  I do not agree.  To the contrary, I feel that fear is something to embrace.  It has walked with me down many dark paths and has led me to many places I could not have been without it.  It has led me to victory in battle, warned me of impending danger, and held me in check when I would have jumped in over my head.

            No, fear is no enemy of mine--I have enough of those already—it is my guide along the path of life.  I welcome it's companionship.

                                    ~ Main Character (name pending)

Nightblade Prelude

What follows is the prelude to a book I began writing nearly 10 years ago, before life got busy and my interests in writing were pushed to the back burner. The story takes place on the world of Torand, on a continent known as Quedaär. It follows a young spellsword apprentice, a class that blends the fighting capabilities of a warrior with some of the spell-casting ability of a mage, as he learns to master his craft and find his place in a world teetering on the brink between peace and war. As it stands, it is already mapped out to become a trilogy, but only time will tell if it becomes more or less than that.  All artwork is my own unless credited otherwise. 

My mind often returns to the world of Torand and it's inhabitants, and the time approaches for me to rekindle the fire that once burned brightly in my mind.  If anything, time is harder to come by now than ever before, but the story has returned to the forefront of my mind and insists I return to the telling.  I am helpless to resist, and will continue to write so long as the story wishes to unfold.  I hope someday that the story reveals itself in full to me, and that you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it.


-J

Prelude 

In a dark corner of the tavern, the silhouetted figure of a man could be seen sitting alone at a table. Shrouded in darkness, he seemed more shadow than man, save for the glint of moonlight reflecting off his medallion through the window.

Though no larger than an average man, he gave off an aura of great power and strength.  He was dressed in black and had the hood of his cloak pulled down low so only the stubble on his chin could be seen when he tipped his head for a drink.  No one dared approach him except for the occasional waitress who was ‘persuaded’ by the owner to do her job and wait on the mysterious patron.

“A-a-anything else f-for you, s-s-sir?” stammered the trembling waitress, wishing sincerely that she had not come to work that night.  The stranger terrified her, even though he hadn’t spoken so much as a word to her all night.  She felt that if he so much as looked her in the eyes that her heart would stop dead.

“No.  That will be all, thank you,” He replied as he tossed a gold coin on the table.  His voice seemed to carry a faint Elven accent, but he was too tall to be an elf, even a Gold.  The elvish melody of his voice instantly calmed her fears but in its place brought forth curiosity.  She wondered who this stranger was and why he was here so far away from the Elven city of Moonstar.  Finding that her fear had taken leave, for the time being at least, she was able to speak more clearly to the shrouded man.

“I’m afraid I don’t have change for this.”

“I didn’t ask for any.”

“Now see here!  I’ll have you know…”

“Use the rest to get yourself as far away from here as possible,” the stranger interrupted, ignoring her mistaken assumption that the generous tip was prepayment for services rendered in the bedroom of a whore.  “This city will be a war zone in a matter of days.”

“My apologies, sir.  I didn’t mean to –“

“Just take it and go.  Quickly.  You don’t want to be here when the drow make their way into this city.”

“The drow?  Here?  That’s impossible.  Who are you, anyway?” she insisted, losing all inhibition as she reached out and grabbed his hand on the table.

“Nobody.  Just a ghost of a man and a shadow of a dream,” He said as he gently took her hand off his and traced an intricate pattern into the air before her eyes.  As the waitress began to shake daze from her head, the man stood up and walked toward the door.  Even as the doors swung shut behind him, the waitress was already beginning to wonder if anyone had been sitting at her table, or if she had only imagined it.

“Ms. Beth,” she called, as she walked over to the woman behind the bar that owned the tavern, “I think I need to go home early tonight.  I’m not feeling so well all of a sudden.”

“That shadowy man didn’t do anything to you did he?” Beth asked, concerned that her best waitress may be suffering the ill effects of a rogue spell caster.  She had seen the brief contact between the two and feared for what he may have done to her.  She knew little of magic, and as a rule didn’t trust those who used it.  “Jennie, are you alright?”

“What?” The waitress asked, still fighting the effects of a sudden daze.

“I said ‘are you alright?’  I’m concerned that man did something to you back there before he left,” she repeated, gesturing to the table he had been sitting at only moments before.

“Man?  What man?”  There hasn’t been anyone at that table all night.  Are you feeling alright, Ms. Beth?”

“I’m fine, Jennie.  But I’m concerned for you.  Why don’t you take the rest of the night off and go get some rest.”

“Are you sure?  I don’t mind staying.”  Even as she said the words she knew them to be untrue.  She didn't know why, but she felt a sudden urge to go.  To pack her bags and leave this very night, as far as she could run.

“I’m sure.  It’s slow tonight.  I can shut the place down.  Go on.  Enjoy that tip you earned,” she said, gesturing to the gold coin glinting in Jennie’s hand hoping it would trigger a memory.

“Um, okay,” Jennie said, staring at the coin as though she hadn’t seen it before this very moment.

The look on the girl's face as she stared at the coin furthered Beth’s concern for her, but she decided not to press the issue and waved goodbye as Jennie took off her apron and passed through the doors into the cool night air.  She wondered briefly who the stranger was that had visited them tonight, but pushed the thoughts out of her head as she realized a few of the men at the bar were shouting for more drinks.  

As for the man in black, he had again disappeared into the shadows of the night just as he had since the day he emerged from the Cave of Shadows some years ago, without a trace he had ever been there.