Gaia: A Work in Progress

Draft Plan

2006-09-02T06:26:00.000+08:00

YO all!

Woo! finally finished! update is a day early. i've abandoned the write-something-and-see-what-it-turns-into-approach but have decided to plan and imagine it out first. i've got as far as the setting, and some of the characters and background history but i've yet to pound out a solid plot. Blergh! i've been up all night so i'm off to bed, here's what i've written so far; Enjoy and please comment intelligently.

Jaala

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Plot outline

Settings

The Southern Frontier-Near human settlements; centered in the Town of Kata-nas’ta
The Elven Capital the trading center of the Continent.
Gaia’s port city (Translation: “The Returning”) A Major Trading Gateway for the Sea Elves to rest of the Elven continent.

Background/history

About 200 – 150 years ago, the border towns started to boil over partially due to pressure from the human king, partially due to famine and drought; human persecution of Half breeds were at an all time high; Many of these desperate people turned to Banditry to try and support themselves, preying on isolated Elven farmsteads (as Elven technology depends on jewels and crystals {worth a lot to humans but are very mundane to elves} to power their lights, heating etc.) looting, burning and killing. The Elves retaliated in kind. However as protectors they were bound by their nature and their oath not to kill unless necessary; those involved in the raids, were one by on hunted down, mentally tortured by transferring all the trauma their victims felt and experience onto them and then releasing them to the families to work as slave-servants (maimed in such a way that they could NEVER fight again) until they dropped or broke free of the mental torture loop they were locked into by repenting ,earning the forgiveness of the families and repairing all the damage they had done; when they had they were released back into the human society or given the option to stay on in the Elven nation- most never did and so died of old age working for the families they hurt- experiencing everyday as they when about their tasks the day that they attacked and killed the families from the point of view of their victims. Some fortunately went mad, and were released back into the towns.

Things got to a head when one group, whose aim was not only to loot and gain quick profit but also to gain control of the entire border area eventually carving out a tiny kingdom for themselves; calling themselves A’Ak-Krass (translation: “The Implacable Enemy”) led by the son of a dangerous political elf exile started taking captives to sell in the slave markets, in particular they targeted female children age range 20-80 years/cycles which brought premium prices in the slave markets of the west- the rest they raped and/or killed. They took particular pleasure in leaving one member of their intended family alive brutally tortured to spread their message of fear. In this manner they managed to gain control of large areas of territory in 2-3 years/cycles

The Eldars response (took awhile from the human point of view-instantaneously from theirs) was to put Danir (a member of the Gaiaen Royal family: in elven society you climbed your way to your top to be a royal-> all their leaders were and are expected to be the best in everything especially in their respective areas of specialization. The high ranked you were the more talented you were expected to be-and the fewer mistakes you can afford to make. Those that were even the slightest bit incompetent were quickly removed and usually exiled or “forgotten” i.e. accidental deaths by common consent) in charge with the freedom to deal with the outrage in anyway he saw fit.

Danir’s response was brutal and instant:

1. All the members, sympathizers of the A’Ak-Krass and any one even remotely related to them were to be ruthlessly hunted down and killed slowly no matter who, what and where they were by elven assassins. Their corpses were displayed publicly with the notice in the local language explain who, what and why they were killed.

2. Any Bandits or thieves were given the choice to commit suicide or to be fed the trauma of being a victim of a bandit attack and sold back to the very same slavers they sold the elven children to.

3. The Half breeds as a Race were to be eradicated or absorbed if possible into either the human or Elven Society. Those children that had enough Elven Blood in them to survive in Elven society were taken in and adopted. The rest (unless they had an elven sponsor of good standing to vouch for them) were stripped of their Elven heritage, all manifested birthstones were shattered, their links to the overmind ^{(must be renamed)}broken. Those that were stripped, just faded away, having lived many spans beyond the average human- on the genetic component of being an elf remained in them. Even those who were fully assimilated into human society were hunted down and were stripped or if able, were allowed to rejoin elven society. Those that refused and did not want to be stripped were forcibly relocated (or instantly executed if they still refused to co-operate) to the new towns that were springing up on the orders of Danir. Only those who were very wealthy, powerful/very well connected or they deemed useful escaped but were made to report to an elven Eldar every cycle (if they failed to report or carry out finish the tasks they were assigned to they were killed). In this manner, the elves gained a net work of spies scattered throughout the human nations

4. Those areas/ towns under A’Ak-Krass Control were forcibly evacuated and razed to the ground. Its population was re-housed in new towns (quickly and sturdily built) under military control.

5. He passed new laws, stating that the birth of any half breed was illegal and property of the elven state. Any marriages between elves and humans was illegal; the pair caught attempting it was to be subjected to be stripped (elf) made into a slave-servant for life. All existing marriages between elf and human were still valid unless one or both parties wished otherwise.

6. Decided it was time to end their isolationist policy and started preparing envoys to be sent to all the human empires/nations with the ultimate end of setting up schools to exchange information and educate humans about their culture so that they would not be a feared (and therefore dangerous) mystery, bogymen but rather be seen as a race of benevolent until provoked people in the hopes that they would refrain from trying to attack/declare war on the elven nation.

7. A through list of missing children was compiled and teams of two/three comprising of a healer and a warrior and a negotiator were sent out with orders to find and reclaim the children. They were also under orders to mop up any elements of half breeds and A’Ak-Krass missed by the experts and to gather as much information about the human culture, nations, customs military strengths, classes etc. as possible. And recommend possible and viable ways of dealing with them.

All this was accomplished in a Cycle, with Danir gaining much prestige from it but also unwittingly gaining a problem that was to dog him for the rest of his life.

The result of all these measures was that:

As a race half breeds were virtually extinct, they once were numerous could be found any where and everywhere, but where now mostly concentrated in the border area between the elves and the humans.
Humans were slowly losing fear of the elves sometimes to their advantage sometimes not, trade was and information/ideas were slowly being exchanged between the two races although intermarriage was strictly discouraged especially by the elves.
The traditionalist elements although muffled were far from silent to the relief of everyone in the Ruling Gaiaen Family.
the border areas were no longer the cesspits of both nations but rather peaceful and law abiding areas that were quickly turning a profit (once the elves had adopted the human custom of taxes)

Characters so far…

v Ae’thri

A half-breed with connections to the Gaiaen Family; her father is Ora the Male Twin of the Pair of Merchant Twins. She is verbally mute but has an impressive Telepathic range, true to her heritage. Her mother is also a half breed; with more elven blood in her than normal half breeds; and is sister to Bacchan who is her guardian. Born with pointy ears and silver hair characteristic of her “race”, she is very intelligent but unfortunately nobody seems to realize that; often to her advantage.

v Bacchan

Commonly known as “the Boar” and famed for his blustering temper and loud rages. He is Ae’thri’s guardian and Maternal uncle. An armor maker by trade specializing in the making of amour from what humans call “Capris” (a corrupted elvish word meaning Dragon Dung-capris is exactly that).

Bacchan, a widower-his wife is never spoken of; is of the race of half breeds originating from the border towns. His Ancestors were exiles from the Elven nation usually for serious crimes, i.e. stealing, killing, (rarely) political (i.e. screwing up major assignments producing results which the Eldars ^{(NB must rename)} deem unfixable and dangerous.), importing drugs and humans seeking a quick profit, a new start, or exiles deemed unfit to remain in human society; in short the very vigorous dregs of human society.

v Tomas

Son of Bacchan and a petty trader by occupation; He owns a pawnshop two streets away from his uncles shop and is also his uncles capris supplier. How he gets it is not known but is suspected to be linked to the notorious A’Ak-Krass group (which is technically impossible was they were wiped out 200 years ago). Sly, cunning, Intelligent, Mercenary, lecherous, he has few redeeming qualities.

v Danir

2^nd son of Legolas and Gaia; carries the title of Warrior Protector of the lands. He is in De Facto Command of all elven military, having clawed his way up there. He is outwardly the perfect elf, always acting in best interests of the nation, upholding and preserving elven tradition and seems to be his mother’s (The Lady Gaia Warrior-literal translation) right hand man but inwardly he sometimes wishes he could break free of his mothers grip as he does not agree entirely with her views of the world and how the nation should be governed. He does not wish to be Danir The Warrior Protector (expected as soon as he shown the talent of the fighting arts) but accepts it as part of his place in the world. He wishes he could have been a scribe like his older brother Eskh’thri.

v Rosmerta

Danir’s Girlfriend; affectionately known as Rosa they have had an on off relationship for the past 200 years, met during the A’Ak-Krass insurgency, Rosmerta was one of those assigned to clean his quarters by the town council. Rosmerta is a widow with 2 grown up kids. One is a wheat farmer and owns a farm in the flatlands near the capital; the other is a cadet-soldier in the palace guard-a largely ceremonial (by Elven standards) army. She is a plump, warm cheerful, practical, down to earth and warm woman who loves kids and is currently fostering a few children orphaned by the bandit raids. She now runs an inn in the town of Kata-nas’ta, and regular visits her sons every deca (100 cycles) in the capital.

v Darius

Son of Danir and Rosamerta. Unwittingly conceived some 90 years ago in the heat of battle celebrations. Is unaware of who his father is but believes that he died in the raids before he was born. Rosa and Danir are fully aware of his parentage though. He is baby faced and extremely sweet natured, caring, responsible with a strong sense of duty BUT also is quite dirty minded and likes to chase the ladies and has a very sharp and sarcastic tongue which he doesn’t hesitate to use

Excerpt from a scene from Chapter 2

2006-09-02T03:00:00.000+08:00

They gleamed in the sunlight, bright ruby red. Glistening almost; where the water hit them. White fire and surreal glowing coals... The filtered light cast eerie shadows on the dank wall. A stealthy movement. Shadows poured out of the hold IT had made. "At lasssst…" It gloated exultantly. "MINE!!" The ground trembled with the bellow of its Master returning to its lair. Clutching them to its breast, it sighed in relief. What it had sought for so long, it had found. Sitting back on its haunches, it crooned softly to itself, silver hair falling across its face. Flicking it out of the way, it frowned in annoyance…something is not right here….

A malevolent eye gleamed dully in the darkness. The master casually snaked his head out and with a silent audible crunch, it was no more. A belch of contentment escaped his lips, scorching the cave ceiling. He smiled peacefully dreaming pleasant dreams, twitching his wings slightly in his slumber.

* * * * *

The noon sun beat down mercilessly on the bustling crowd. A pie seller's cry mingled with the raucous of squabbling seabirds. Hordes of scraggly street kids, jumped off the wharves, splashing and swimming in the harbor waters. The incense of a passing priest masked the noxious fumes coming from "Bacchan's Fine Stressa Garments"

Ae'thri leaned against the rough wall behind her, heat baking the wits out of her head. She dozed off briefly, only to be jolted sharply awake by a rap to the side of her head.

"STOP YER DOZ'ING!!" growled Bacchan her uncle. "Keep them eyes peeled or ah'll peel them for you. If yer wish to st'ff yer gob t'nite, yer did better be busy with that skaining!!" The toa rasped irritably against the precious raw capris he was carding, wobbling fleshy arms. "That skint flint fat peeg wishes to have sixty skeins by tomorrow!!" Shifting his heavy bulk around in frustration, Bacchan muttered almost inaudibly "although I d'ont no how in the name of the seven gods are we going to finish them in time!!" His chair creaked in protest, setting the counter rattling.

Ae'thri sighed, rolling her eyes excessively. HE had been testy as a boar with a sore tooth ever since her cousin had failed to disembark from the shop "Bloody Mary" yesterday. A check at his shop a few streets away had turned up nothing; only boarded up windows and a cobwebbed interior littered with rats droppings. Good Riddance. She hated him. Hated his too handsome face, darting eyes and oily smile. His hands had a tendency to wander to closer to her for her comfort. The days were much, much easier to bear since he left a year ago. A smile curled the corners of her lips as she worked. What if that RAT never came back? That. Would. Be. Nice.

CRASH!!! startling her back to reality. Bacchan glared at her "SKAIN FASTER GIRL!!" He roared, rapping her head again "'nd keep them eyes peeled fer Tomas, yer cousin. 'e should be along any minute now" Ae'thri winced, cringing a little, glowering at him. Fat Pig! Sullen but obedient, she picked up speed using the copper logaar needle to pass the rapidly solidifying capris from the crucible through several holes on a copper stand before feeding the raw fibers into the spindle. Boar Bacchan!! savagely turning the spindle handle. Uncle or no, he is a FAT PEEEGG!! Ae'thri silently stretched aching back muscles wishing that she could stop for a while. The crucible burbled merrily as they worked on in silence.

"Good even, Good Folk" Ae'thri blinked in surprise. The afternoon had lost its ruddy glow. The green cloaked stranger's soft dulcet tones chimed with the tinkle of the front door bell. Broad hat brim sat low, hading his features. Water dripped off his cloak.

Instantly on his feet Bacchan was all smiles; squeezing his tubby self out from behind the counter indicating with a florid bow a door on the left. "This way to the display room good Sir" Ae'thri tilted her head to one side, gaze curiously regarding the stranger. Why is his cloak wet? The stranger paused in mid step, swiveling his head around to return her quizzical gaze. Because, little sister; from where one just stepped from, it was raining. Ae'thri found herself nodding wisely. Touching his hat brim to her, the stranger allowed himself to be ushered off the display room.

Page 1

2006-08-28T18:37:00.000+08:00

Chapter One

* * * Danir * * *

Leaves drummed on the roof. Wind whipped-they swirled in a frenzied dance, their iridescent colors dazzling in the rain. Watching through the shuttered windows-Yep still raining- Thunder crackled overhead, rattling the little traveler’s shelter. Nasty storm at that- the surrounding forest trembled in sympathy. Well it doesn’t look like I did be going anyway in a hurry. Lovely. Best thing about being on leave, is not having to rush around like a beheaded fowl. Danir grinned impishly in the gloom. But unfortunately My Sweet Rosa and the delights of her warm kitchen will have to wait a while longer.

“Mmhhmmhmmhhh…” nickered Wicked derisively –Sweet Rosa won’t be sweet anymore when we get there, she has no tolerance for tardiness. We’re two days behind schedule due to your scenic meanderings all over this silly forest. We‘ll make better time in the air.

Yawning; Catlike. Danir regarded his horse quizzically-Oh? A day of nonstop flying? There are no rest stops, from here to the border town of Kata’nas-ta where Rosa’s farm is located. It’s all Lopar infested Mountains from here to there; as a dragon flies and not a suitable flat strip of smooth ground to make a landing, ‘lest you wish to break a leg.

Yes I can-clicking his teeth decisively at Danir-while you were busy visiting your family for a duta cycle ⁽^{roughly ten years)}I trained. Head down, busy snuffling around in the saddlebags-Do not change the subject. We can use the sky road once this storm has died down.

“OI!” Danir flung his boot at Wicked-stop eating all the rations! You dimwitted fool sired by a lopar!!!- Nimbly sidestepping, he dragged off his loot with his teeth to the far side of the small shelter well out of the reach of Danir’s staff to eat.-it’s 7 days to Kata’nas-ta! We are already on short rations due to your greediness!!

Wicked stamped his hooves impatiently on the hard floor-that’s because you insist and absolutely insist on dragging us through the length and breadth of this Loparing country-Butting in Danir sweetly added-That is why you have legs. Wicked tossed his mane expressively- I suppose your legs don’t work so that is why you have to sit on my back everyday from dawn to dusk. hm? - “Mhmmm...” Mouth crunching appreciatively; cheeks stuffed with honey oatcakes, he continued.-you might enjoy this trip but one does not-unfolding his wings out, he shook them-these are not for show you know-dryly he continued-you try wrapping your arms tightly with a piece of cloth and wearing it for a whole day. That is how those dratted wing wraps feel like, specially designed or not.Claustrophobic.

Coolly ignoring Wicked, Danir stretched out lazily on his bedroll- judging from the way the wind is crying outside, this storm looks set to last a couple of days, I am going to be stuck here with a Fool of a companion for 2 days at least-putting his hand to his heart theatrically-oh Fates save me!! -The horse swished his tail irritably-oh stop that and cut it out!! you’re not…- Cutting out any futher comment from Wicked; Danir acidly continued-whose sense has deserted him. We are traveling by foot, incognito because we do NOT wish to be saddled with “requests” from the Eldars who would count it as a “great personal favor” if we could perform “certain task”s for them; By the Fates! We are On LEAVE! We have a Dec-ta^{(A Century)} of leave! Before we have to go back to work!! .It doesn’t help that self same Jillani ^{(a kind of slow moving near mindless herbivorous sloth)} brain companion has also taken it into his head to guzzle up all our food knowing full well we are two du-day’s ^{(a week comprising 10 days)}from the last restocking station with an appointment to keep. Throwing a sardonic smile at Wicked-Certainly Nobody can accuse you of being too clever.-

Wicked winced -Jillani brain? –; wisely choosing to let that pass, he drank thirstily from the water bucket –Danir have you told your mo- “bbbuuurrpppp” –ther yet about Rosmerta and Darius? Please excuse one; oatcakes extremely are tasty!! Coming over to nuzzle Danir’s hair, he blew gently into Danir’s ear-Darius will come of age during the next cycle. Avoiding the problem won’t solve it. The Lady will not be pleased at you for keeping a secret from her for so long, I’m surprised she hasn’t found out about it and confronted you with it, but I’m sure she will accept Darius, he is of her blood after all. Darius is your son.

Sighing in exasperation –I know I know, no need to remind me again- Danir affectionately stroked Wicked’s neck. you silly fool of a heart-brother. I promise I will introduce my son to my mother before the next cycle, before he comes of age; when he is ready. Go to sleep. We have ridden hard today to outrun the storm we need rest. As if to demonstrate, Danir yawned widely and promptly closed his eyes feigning sleep to avoid further discussion. Wicked stared at him for a moment.-hmmph. We will talk later- before settling down on a pile of fresh straw.

-I wonder what would mother make of Darius,

Welcome!

2006-08-28T12:16:00.000+08:00

To improve my writing skills i started this blog where i'm required to think coherently and in an organised manner in order to wack out proper sentences instead of a-dog-shitting-all-over-the-place style that I'm used to. Please pardon the odd mish mash of formality and colloquial language i use- :S my writing skills (and brain) are very rusty. I will get better with time- I promise. Because I'm a very lazy monkey struggling (not struggling hard enough) with a procrastination problem updates sometimes will be sporadic as i kick my self in the arse and try to ignore the-granny-in-my-head-who-is-doing-the-kicking at the same time. I think i will aim for a weekly update of at least 1000 words (about a side of A4) or more (because classes will be starting again soon). Start small and think big. Please Comment! I'm Always actively seeking constructive criticism- I can never get better if you don't. News, events and comments will be posted in the sidebar (as soon as i figure out where and how to work it)

As for (the usually obligatory and cliche story of...) where this story/saga sprang from; it sprang (tastelessly) from a contrived Mary Sue daydream between My lead female character and Legolas from Lord of the Rings. From there it grew, first i added character background, then built on that and expanded the world, added customs family, friends and history keeping it all in my head. Hopefully it makes sense written down.

Enjoy! Jaala

P.s please ignore the granny-in-my-head, she's basically a harmless old biddy but extremely annoying, she'll never give me any peace if she does'nt get her say.