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Friday, May 14, 2004
I've never really thought about publishing my story on a blog where it'll be open to the rest of the world and inevitable criticisms but heck, it's kinda fun seeing my story unfold in this blog because I can get to update weekly and my friends can get to give feedback. One word of caution though, if my story's already uploaded, I won't change because everyone'll inevitably offer words of advice and I'll never get to finish my story but nonetheless I welcome all feedback and hopefully learn something from this enriching experience.
Special thanks to Sarizah for recommending this site to me...it sure is cool!!! ;O)
** Ahem, I'm not the most hardworking of persons at the best of times and my updates have...ahem become lesser and lesser to the point of no updates but I'll try my darnest to update, so keep a lookout!
Tks.
Posted at 01:47 am by arrowhip
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Monday, May 17, 2004
Power pulsed within the Orb, a myriad of colours creating a halo around it and illuminated the face of a young woman who seemed barely past her twenties. She gazed thoughtfully at the Orb, then with a sigh, wrapped it in a piece of velvet.
With that accomplished, she turned to two hooded figures standing behind her and gave a curt nod. In the silence of mutual consent, the figures made a gesture with their hands and vanished from the tower with a flick of their cloaks. The young woman paused for a moment, the Orb still within her hand, her dark eyes caught by the ruby sunrise made bloody by numerous wars over the years.
"Farewell, old friend." She said softly, then willed herself from the ancient tower that she had come to love, never to return.
* * *
All Ash ever wanted was a full stomach every night and occasionally a bosomy lass to warm his bed. After all, he reflected, he wasn't asking for too much. Just a simple life with simple pleasures. And not spending half his life as a soldier.
Judging from the ravaged wound in his stomach though, Ash figured that he probably had not long to live. Maybe it was just as well for he was mightily tired of fighting all the time. Ever since that renagade Adept, Glennas, decided that he'd rather be evil than good, times had not been exactly peaceful. Of all the creatures he could use for his fighting forces, Glennas had to use trolls, werewolves and all manner of foul creatures that would reduce a grown man to tears. Losses had been great and the Darkness that started when Glennas had summoned his evil minions now crept ever so steadily over the land of Arthenia.
Ash felt his vision dim but he didn't want to go. Not just yet. Not until he had seen his last sunrise. The sun rose in all its majestic glory, red from blood shed in the past night. Then suddenly, as if a second sun followed in its wake, a brilliance of lights lit up the sky with colours of every hue, named and unnamed.
As Ash breathed his last, he imagined he saw three shooting stars streak across the sky.
"What a beautiful day." He muttered happily to himself as his world became dark and sank into oblivion.
Posted at 10:28 pm by arrowhip
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Friday, May 21, 2004
The Council of Elves, Men, Dwarves and Merpeople sat in contemplative silence, wearied by too many battles and burdened by haunted memories. The Merpeople especially looked uncomfortable for they had assumed a human form in order to come onto land for this meeting. Though they could last long without water, they would much rather be where water was.
No one spoke until Gandrig the Dwarven King stood up, his formidable frame compensating for his lack of height.
"Majesties all." He started in a quiet voice that bellied his fighting prowess in battle, "Long we have fought this war and much we have lost. But with the death of Glennas the Dark Adept, surely it is the end..."
"It is not." An equally quiet voice interrupted.
Everyone turned as a hooded figure stepped into the circle formed by the Council, pushing back the hood while doing so and revealed a woman of ageless beauty and a cascade of golden hair down her back.
"Who are you?" King Orion, King of Men, stood up indignantly, "And how dare you presume to trespass into our Council?"
"Calm, Orion." Mithrien, King of Elves, placed a warning hand on King Orion's arm, "let us hear what this prophetess has to say first."
At these words, the woman turned and smiled at King Mithrien.
"Perceptive you are to see my true identity, your majesty." She inclined her head with a smile that King Mithrien acknowledged with a nod of his own.
"My name is Larissia and I bid you to hear me out for I bring you not glad tidings but what awaits you in the future."
"Made-up stories more like it." Someone muttered from the group of pages standing near the door which earned indulgent smiles from everyone except Larissia who pointedly ignored the jibe.
"Much as you may have hoped, the Dark Adept, Glennas is not truly dead for his spirit still lives on."
"That's impossible." King Gandrig narrowed his eyes at her, "His ex-colleagues had already finished him off at Crystal Reach!"
"Physically speaking, yes. But he is not so easily destroyed. He is considerably weakened, that much is true but his spirit will not rest until the Orb is his."
"The Orb, you say?" King Mithrien raised a skeptical eyebrow, "Was it not destroyed when the 3 Adepts used it to fight Glennas?"
"The Orb like the Adepts are not of this world, your majesty," Larissia informed him, "it was created by the Season Gods before the world begun to strike a balance between good and evil. It cannot be destroyed unless the Season Gods are prepared to leave this world behind and move on to other worlds but it cannot be used for total good or evil because that will disrupt the balance and cause chaos."
"So you are saying that the Orb was not destroyed at Crystal Reach after all?"
Larissia nodded. "Yes, but somehow, it can't be found. I should know, I looked all over Crystal Reach but there was not even a sign that the Orb was there, except for the big crater the Adepts made when they were battling it out."
Queen Risea, leader of the Merpeople, who barely offered her opinion before now spoke up in a rich voice,
"If that is the case, then where is the Orb?"
Larissia spread her hands helplessly, "I cannot tell, the Orb has chosen to hide itself from my arts."
"But what has this got to do with us?" King Orion questioned her, "As far as I'm concerned, the Dark War is over and it's time for us to pick up the threads of our lives!"
Larissia looked at him with something akin to pity, "you still don't understand, don't you? Even if you pretend that the Dark Adept is not going to return with a vengence, your descendants will surely regret it when the time comes."
King Orion's eyes narrowed dangerously, "are you threatening me?"
"No," Larissia replied coolly, "I'm merely stating a fact, whether or not you like it."
"Will you two stop bickering?" King Mithrien sighed with exasperation, "We are all now troubled enough without you two adding to the headache as well."
King Orion looked as if he wanted to argue further but wisely kept his tongue.
Larissia, however, was determined to make them understand, even if they threw her into a dungeon. "Please, you have to believe me. If you choose to ignore my warning now, it would be too late when the time comes."
For a moment, everyone looked uncomfortable and nobody spoke until Queen Risea stood up gracefully. She walked to Larissia with a gliding elegance that came from centuries of living in her Kingdom in the Sea and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Peace, child." She said, "We will discuss this anon, so why don't you wait outside for our reply?"
Larissia wanted to grind her teeth in impatience but she knew that she had to wait. After the horrific Dark War, everyone was wearied of being on guard all the time. She knew that even before she came here to warn these people.
"Alright," She conceded, "I'll wait, but I beg you all to weigh this carefully for the fate of the world and other worlds as well lie in your decision."
"We will." Queen Risea promised as she waved at the group of pages at the door to open it.
Stepping out, Larissia wished that people would take her more seriously. She may be a prophetess who predicts the uncertain future but in her opinion, it was always better to be safe than sorry. Besides, the vision of doom had been unusually clear, unlike her customary fuzzy ones. That was what prompted her to come here today to warn them beforehand.
As the door closed behind her with a dull clang, Larissia surely felt an inexplicable coldness creeping into her heart.
Posted at 01:51 am by arrowhip
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Wednesday, May 26, 2004
After what seemed like eternity, the door to the Council opened.
"The Council bids you in." The page who had opened the door told Larissia in a lofty tone that irritated her but she kept her face neutral. It would not do to lose her temper, not now, not here.
Standing in front of the Council did not help matters either for King Orion was scowling darkly at Larissia. She sighed, it was going to be a long session.
"We have discussed the matter thoroughly and we have decided to hear you out, Larissia." Queen Risea told her gently, "Why don't you explain further what this is all about?"
Larissia inclined her head in mute respect.
"At the Beginning before all worlds," she intoned, "there were 4 Gods, later known to us as the Four Seasons Gods, Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. They were given a task by the Universe, mother of all creation and were told to create worlds where life could prosper."
"Can you please get to the point?" King Orion demanded, "We have better things to do than to hear you recite the religious texts."
"Will you please keep quiet?" King Mithrien said in an exasperated tone, "We're trying to listen here."
Similar requests from his fellow monarchs soon silenced the King of Men though he still looked as if he would like to say more.
"And so," Larissia continued as if she wasn't interrupted, "The Four Seasons created world after world, finally coming to our world of Arthenia. They liked what they created so much that they made this world their home and created an Orb of Power to balance Good and Evil for even then, Good and Evil was present.
But the world they had created could not bear their weight, so the Four Seasons decided to move on and leave the Orb of Power behind to safeguard their beloved world. Yet the Four Seasons could not leave the Orb unguarded so they chose a representative each and empowered them to protect the Orb.
Hence, for years after that, there were always Four Adepts to represent the Four Seasons. When one Adept dies, a new one is identified by a birthmark on the right shoulder. The mark of a tree for Spring, sun for Summer, leaf for Autumn and the white mark of snow for Winter.
The Adepts were loyal to the Four Seasons and never strayed over to Evil for they were all noble people until Glennas was chosen as the Adept of Winter. He was born power-hungry and not even the goodness of his fellow Adepts, Luthiea, Sophianna and Tylandel could dissuade him from making a pact with Evil.
His fellow Adepts knew they had lost him for good when he started the Dark War to snatch the Orb of Power and twist it to his evil ways so they took the battle to him and fought him bitterly with the help of the Orb."
Here Larissia paused, sadness written all over her face, "though Glennas perished in the battle, his fellow Adepts also sacrificed their lives."
At this point, King Glandrig spoke up, "Then what do you mean when you said that the Dark Adept will rise again?"
"Though his physical body had been destroyed, his spirit wasn't. He had been immensely weakened but he has not forgotten his defeat at the hands of his fellow Adepts. He will rise in revenge once he has recovered his strength."
"Then what of the other three Adepts?'' King Mithrien asked in a subdued voice.
"They will return as well for their time on this world is not finished and be reborn again in new bodies."
"I don't think my nerves can stand any of this." King Orion muttered.
"Shut up, Orion." Queen Risea told him distractedly.
Posted at 10:59 pm by arrowhip
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Friday, May 28, 2004
"If what you say are true," King Mithrien observed, "then what must we do to prepare for this impending disaster?"
"We must look for the three Adepts who had been reborn." Larissia told them, "I am even now searching for them with my mind but I can't seem to find them, no matter what."
"Did you not say before this that the Adepts can be identified by a unique birth mark?" Queen Risea asked shrewdly, "maybe we can launch a wide search for newborn babies with such birth marks."
"That'll be fine as long as the Adepts stay on this world." Larissia replied, "my only fear is that they decided to move beyond this world into the Mundane world of Earth instead."
"Now that's a fine thing to say!" King Orion gave her a blistering look, "how are we to look for them among so many people?! It'll take ages!"
"The Orb will have to be found," Larissia decided, "only then will the Adepts be located."
"Alright, assuming you're right. Where on Arthenia are you going to locate the Orb then? You've said it yourself that the Orb was lost at Crystal Reach."
Larissia's proud shoulders slumped, "I've thought of that previously." She admitted, "but I simply can't think of anything." She raised pleading eyes to the monarchs, "that's why I came to your Council, my strength alone is not enough."
"And here I thought you were here to warn us. What kind of a warning is it if you can't provide us with a solution?" King Orion pointed out nastily.
"That will be enough, Orion." King Mithrien admonished him, "can you not see that the lady is distressed? Why do you insist on adding to her burden?"
"Because I've had enough." King Orion declared, "My people has suffered too much too long. I'm their King for goodness' sake! I have a responsibility to give them peace!"
"But you also have a responsibility to let them know about this menace." Queen Risea pointed out gently, " you can't keep them in the dark just because you choose to delude yourself."
"At least give this lady a chance, Orion." King Glandrig said, "What harm could there be in preparing ourselves for contingence? It's always better to be safe than sorry."
King Orion sighed in vexation and looked around at his fellow monarchs and Larissia. Finally he rolled his eyes heavenwards and told them in a long-suffering voice,
"Alright, I'll play along for now but," He waved his finger in the air pointedly, "anytime this sounds like a hoax, I'm leaving."
The grins in response to his declaration were gratifying but King Orion can't help but feel they were all being taken for a ride.
Posted at 03:01 am by arrowhip
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The waves lapped gently at the coast, leaving crystal droplets of water where they had touched. As the waves begun their next lap, a shining object washed up onto the coast and caught the attention of a little girl who was playing along the coast of Crystal Reach. Though she was only seven summers old, a child by the estimation of her people, the humans, her green eyes somehow looked wiser than her actual age. A fact that unnerved people a little whenever they looked at her for it seemed that she could look straight into their hearts and discern their darkest secrets.
She had no family and depended on the village she was born in for food and shelter. For want of a better name, the villagers named her Megan and treated her well.
Megan moved closer to the shining object that had been washed up the coast of the lake. It was round and was fairly pulsing with light from within. Curiously, she picked it up and brushed the wet sand from the object which turned out to be nothing she had ever seen before. It was as if a small rainbow was trapped within a small crystal ball. As she lifted it up to see more clearly in the diminishing sunlight, a halo of light suddenly glimmered around the crystal, then expanded to include Megan in its sphere of light. She gasped in surprise but kept her grip on the strange object. Strange images whirled in her mind's eye, showing her horrific scenes from a struggle of power between a group of three people and a single lone man.
As if he could feel Megan's eyes on him, the single man turned and looked right at her. His face was exquisitely carved like a marble statue, beautiful but twisted by the ugly expression that dominated his face.
" So you are to be the Orb Bearer." His cold voice resounded in her mind, " You will not live then, child."
He made a gesture with his hand and a dark ball of fire appeared over his clawed hand, " Die!"
"No, Glennas!" Another voice rang out as he drew back his hand and threw the ball of fire directly at Megan.
A shield of pulsing rainbow colours suddenly appeared in front of her mind's eye, causing the dark fire to dissipate over its expanse.
"Go child, and be safe." The same voice murmured gently in her mind.
The images blackened and finally disappeared from her mind, leaving it numb and Megan feeling like she had run around her village a thousand times.
As she collapsed onto her knees, a shadow fell over her. Mustering what strength she had, Megan lifted her head to gaze straight into the aqua eyes of a woman whose golden hair seem to cascade down her back like a waterfall.
"I..." was all Megan could manage before she fainted dead away.
Posted at 10:01 pm by arrowhip
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Monday, May 31, 2004
Fifteen years later...
Megan stacked the firewood neatly against the little house that she had shared with Larissia the prophetess for the past fifteen years and stretched luxuriously, yawning as she did so.
"Dinnertime, Meg!" Larissia called from inside the house.
"Coming." Meg gave one last stretch before she made her way into the little house that she had called home since the day Larissia found her unconscious at Crystal Reach.
Sensing untapped power within the little girl, Larissia then made Megan her apprentice but made her promise never to tell anyone what had happened that day at Crystal Reach.
"Arthenia is still in danger, Megan." Larissia explained after she had told her all about the Dark Adept and his ex-colleagues, "The jewel which you picked up that day is no ordinary jewel but the Orb itself. I have no idea why it chose you as Orb Bearer but no one must know of it or this world will cease to exist."
"What must I do then?" Megan had asked, her green eyes grim.
Larissia gazed at her with fathomless blue eyes, then reached out to smooth her auburn curls.
"Such a burden for one so young." She murmured, then sighed, "You must guard the Orb with your life and what arts I can teach you. There will come a day when the Orb will reveal where the three remaining Adepts are and we must find them or we can never defeat the Dark Adept when he rises again."
"When will Glennas rise again then?" Megan wanted to know but at the mention of his name, a cold wind seemed to fill the little house and the candles flickered madly.
Larissia threw a nervous glance around but maintained her composure.
"We don't know, Meg but it will be nice if you don't mention his name so often. Names are often the catalyst to inviting unwelcome shades...if you know what I mean."
Megan never mentioned his name again but in her mind, the image of the beautiful but cruel face often rose unbidden and she wondered how a mere human like her could stand against so powerful an adversary.
Posted at 01:37 am by arrowhip
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In the world of Earth...
Joani Ng sighed and stared hard at the computer screen, willing the blinking curser to give her some form of inspiration. Anything at all.
Nothing happened so Joani rolled her eyes heavenwards in exasperation and decided to take a walk instead. Maybe that'd clear her mind a bit and she'll be able to write the copy for the advertisement when she returned. And maybe, Joani mused wistfully, by the time she returned, the copy would have been written to perfection, all ready for publication in tomorrow's newspapers.
Joani exited her cubicle and was about to go to the pantry to make herself a cup of tea when an unusual sight stopped her in her tracks. A pointy eared vision stood in the doorway of her supervisor's room, his hand raised as if to knock on the door. He had long blond hair that was half gathered in a tail and he was dressed in forest green that would have blended well if he were in a forest.
The problem however, was that they were not in a forest but in an office where costume parties are almost non-existent.
Joani blinked her eyes in confusion and looked at the strange man again. As if by sleight of hand, the man was now dressed in a grey shirt and black pants, normal clothes by any estimation but highly bizarre since she could have sworn she saw an elf a minute ago.
Joani frowned at herself, maybe she was getting a little too stressed. Perhaps she ought to take a holiday or something but by george, that was one fine male specimen in her supervisor's room at this very moment. Joani pursed her lips thoughtfully and threw a mischievous glance through the doorway of her supervisor's room where the drop-dead gorgeous man was talking with Mr. Tan, her supervisor.
It was going to be a wonderful day.
Posted at 09:12 pm by arrowhip
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Thursday, June 03, 2004
"Oh my gawd, he's so cuuuute!"
"Cute? He's gorgeous!"
"Who's gorgeous?'' Joani asked her females colleagues with wide-eyed interest.
Her colleagues stared at her in astonishment, "Are you sure you don't live on the planet Mars?" One of them said exasperatedly, "How can you not know that we had a new colleague in the office since this morning?!"
"I know that there was a drop dead gorgeous guy in Mr. Tan's office this morning but I didn't know he was to be our colleague." Joani protested mildly.
"Joani, my dear." Elaine, the female colleague who had spoken now said sagely, "you really ought not to go around with your head in the clouds, you know."
"My job sort of requires me to do that, Elaine." Joani replied wryly, "I'm a copywriter, remember?"
"Oh my gosh, here he comes!" Corrine, another of her colleagues squealed shrilly.
Joani cringed inwardly at the exaggerated enthusiasm.
The vision she had seen that morning strolled past nonchalantly as if he was unaware of the universal admiration. Yet, he was not unworthy of such fervent appreciation for he looked like a prince straight out of the fairy tales. Dark blond hair framed a face that could only be described as beautiful, exquisite as was every feature. He was not overly muscular but had a body that gave mute evidence of regular exercise. He was taller than Joani but not by very much for Joani was considerably tall herself.
"What's his name?" Joani asked Elaine who was staring enrapturedly at his back.
"Wha..what?" Elaine broke out of her reverie to give her a glazed look.
Joani patiently repeated her question and Elaine's clouded eyes cleared, "Oh, his name. I think it's called Luke."
Joani rolled her eye heavenwards.
* * *
Joani's first encounter with Luke was not pleasant, to say the least.
At one of their weekly meetings, Joani was innocently presenting her newest concept when Luke spoke up for the first time.
"Utter nonsense." were what he merely said but was enough to send blood rushing to her head and made her see red.
"Really?" Joani raised an eyebrow, "How so then?"
Her colleagues, hearing the steel in her deceptively calm voice, braced themselves for the inevitable storm.
Luke stood up and expressed his opinion, several opinions actually, about her standard of work and her general lack of imagination. He was eloquent and often waved his arms to emphasize a point. Mr. Tan looked very impressed. Joani was not however and she listened to his oratory with narrowed eyes and smoldering expression.
Finally he ended his speech with a flourish but no one dared to clap for Joani was looking as stormy as a thundercloud.
"Well...what an interesting observation. Mr. Luke Skit." She replied icily in response to his unspoken challenge, evident in his hazel eyes, "I'll do well to remember all that you said then."
"Erm...errr...well, the meeting's over then." Mr. Tan said brightly and proceeded to usher his staff out of the room. Joani followed him but gave Luke the evil eye before she left the room.
A raised eyebrow was all that met her eye.
Posted at 02:50 am by arrowhip
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Monday, June 21, 2004
Joani sighed with relief as she stepped out into the humid Singapore air. It was another long day at work all thanks to Luke Skit who made her work that much harder and challenging. Since that day when he spoke up on her work, Mr. Tan had been gleefully pitting them against each other as if he was determined to squeeze the last of creative juice out of them.
Joani frowned at the thought of her impertinent mentor. If only there was some way she could lay her hands on both Luke and Mr. Tan without getting into trouble...
Suddenly shadows flashed in front of her and a sweet scent filled the air. Acting purely by instinct, Joani lashed out at the nearest shadow and was gratified by gasp of pain from her attacker. Joani was not exactly a martial arts expert but she had taken lessons from one of her good friends and was glad that he had insisted she take self-defence lessons for her attackers were now melting away from her fists and kicking legs.
Just when Joani thought that she had won the fight, she suddenly felt dizzy. Putting one hand to her head, her steps faltered and her vision blurred. As if sensing her weakness, the shadows loomed closer. Joani made a feeble attempt to beat them away but it was to no avail for her hand was caught in a firm grip and she seemed to hear someone hiss in a voice that one only heard in nightmares,
"We've got you now, my lady..."
Joani passed out.
* * *
Cheerful chirping was the first thing that Joani heard when she regained consciousness but she didn't immediately open her eyes. In her mind, Joani tried to recall what had happened before she passed out but could only remember the fight and how the cloying scent had made her dizzy in the end.
Could she have been kidnapped? Joani wondered, but dismissed the idea as preposterous. Why would anyone even remotely consider her? She was the only daughter of her family, that much was true but her family, though comfortable was not exactly well-off. Joani frowned at the impossible stupidity of her kidnappers and nearly jumped out of her skin when a familiar male voice murmured into her ear.
"Finally awake, my sleeping beauty?"
Snapping her eyes open, Joani found herself staring into the azure depths of Luke's eyes and falling into them despite herself.
A twig snapped and the spell broke, releasing Joani from the inexplicable power of Luke's eyes.
"Still busy courting ladies, I see." A wry voice noted, bringing Joani's attention to the speaker as she struggled to raise herself onto her knees.
She blinked.
A tall young man unconsciously posed in the clearing of the forest. He wore a green tunic with a bow and bow sheath filled with arrows slung across his back. He was not so much handsome as he was beautiful for his blond hair shimmered like gold and his features were quite exqusite, to say the least.
Then she saw the pointy ears.
And from what she knew, elves were definitely way out of reality and only part of her imagination. Slowly, Joani let her eyes travel around the forest clearing and finally landed on Luke. A second glance revealed pointy ears like that of the stranger and Joani's eyes widened.
Luke who had been watching Joani, spotted the danger signs of immense shock. As he reached a comforting hand towards her, Joani's eyes glazed over and she toppled over in a faint.
As he held Joani gently in his arms, Luke, also known as Lucian to his people in the world of Arthenia, gazed in perplexity at his brother, Leolas.
Leolas shrugged, "don't look at me." He told Lucian, "I only know how to handle ladies when they're awake."
Lucian scowled at his brother and looked at Joani in his arms.
It was going to be a long day ahead.
Posted at 03:21 am by arrowhip
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A stem of rose in my hand, the tip of it barely touching, pouring my soul into ink.
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A Figment of My Imagination...
Plot:
A fantasy epic that chronicles the journey of Good, Evil and Love.
List Of Characters:
Luthiea/Joani: Adept of Spring
Sophianna/Sophia: Adept of Summer
Tylandel/Eugene: Adept of Autumn
Glennas: Adept of Winter
Lucian: Prince of Elves
King Brian: King of the human kingdom in Arthenia
Cath: A human librarian from Earth
Larissia: A prophetess
Megan: Larissia's apprentice
Celeste: Eugene's girlfriend
David: A professor at Harvard University
Vansel: A werewolf
Gabrielle: A werebeing, one who can morph into anyone that she has seen
Note Worthy Mentions:
Sweet Dreams By Sarizah
In Site By Audrey
Own Scribblings By Yours Truly
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