THE VORTEX: BOOK III OF THE ALBAN SAGA - Working on Chapter 7

 

The Vortex: Book III of the Alban Saga

Below, I've included a short excerpt from the beginning of chapter 7. Those of you who have read the other two books in the Alban Saga will recognize the characters in this section.

Chapter 7

 

During a long and restless night, Bea had been swimming amidst layers and layers of dreams on a stream of subconscious thought. As her mind finally slowed, it came to rest on a vision of her with Aran on the last night she’d spent at her family’s estate – the night before leaving to confront the Druid Priestess, Brenna.

   Brenna had been the one who had caused the deaths of her grandmama Elizabeth, her grandmama’s chum, Marta Pottinger, and Fergus Lister, a long-time friend of the family. All three had been in their nineties, but were still healthy and vibrant. Bea had found them in their beds along with a note from Brenna. In it, she admitted to ending their lives and had taunted Bea to come to the Cave of Dreams alone and face her. Bea had been devastated beyond belief at what had happened and never would have made it through the weeks that followed if not for her two dear friends, Anu Grenn and Aran. 

Seeing Aran in her dream, Bea suddenly recalled how strong her feelings had become for him. It was the first time those feelings had resurfaced since that night, and she knew why. She had not had room in her life for anything but her obsession with stopping Brenna.

Anu and Aran had begged her not to confront the powerful Priestess on her own. However, Bea would not be deterred. So Anu, who had been Bea’s Druid instructor on the Orkney Isles and a powerful Wiccan in her own right, convinced Bea to at least remain awhile and spend the next several weeks training for what lie ahead.

While working with Anu, Bea had no time for Aran, but afterwards, the two finally had their chance; and that was the moment that Bea was visualizing in her dream. The two of them were sitting together at the center of an ancient oak grove on her estate having a picnic. They had eaten good food and sipped a dram or two of fine whisky. They’d even laughed a bit for the first time in weeks.

As the night went on, she and Aran had held each other close . . . comforted each other . . . and they had kissed . . . for the first time. Recalling that single kiss lingered in Bea’s memory and deepened her feelings for him even more. However, it also dredged up the sting of worry and fear within her because she had no idea where he was or what had happened to him since they had been separated inside the Vortex. It was almost too much to abide, and the panic of that thought awakened her. Her eyes flew open, and as they did, she sensed the coolness of tears gliding down her face. Brushing them away, she sat up and wrapped her arms around herself in comfort. Then she noticed someone sitting on the floor nearby. She turned her head slightly and saw the venerable prophet, Erin.

He reached out with his gnarled, wrinkled hand and lightly touched her shoulder. His eyes were warm with care and concern as he muttered, “Ye alright, lass?”

“Aye, I will be . . . just need a minute, though.”

Erin poured a cup of tea for her with lots of sugar. Bea accepted it and cradled it in the palms of her hands.

Erin waited for Bea to speak. He had noticed her tears, but he’d also caught sight of a faraway look in her eyes as she softly slid two fingers across her lips. He couldn’t help but ask if she had been dreaming about Aran.

Bea simply nodded as he said, “Ye have feelings for the lad, aye?

 

New Quote: Medieval Character's Awakening in Chapter 7

Below, I have included another quote from Chapter 7 in my latest fantasy/science fiction novel, "M".

This quote is from one of the famous medieval characters that remembers how he was awakened in the year 2022. It is a pivotal moment in the book. Enjoy!

Chapter 7 Quote

I had been submerged in a pool of thick, all-consuming blackness since time unknown, moving in and out of a surreal unconsciousness, etched with bits of life and snippets of moments long past. My gods had clearly abandoned me, but the lady whose face I’d first seen eons ago entered my desolation at moments, providing some small semblance of hope and sustenance within the molevolant blankness that enshrouded me. Days, months, years, upon years, upon years passed as I floated somewhere between life and death with little understanding and no final decision on either. Until one day…the earth shook.

It was just a night, or two, or three ago, I’m not sure really, but I can now recall it in great detail - the desperate sound of my first breath sucked into my lungs, the rapid hammering of my heart against my chest, and the total confusion and unsettling dizziness of coming out of such an immense, deathlike trance. And amongst all this, the earth continued to tremble and beat against me. Pieces of rock struck my face and body from above, and my mind began to register the rumbling of rocks, breaking away and falling to the ground; then a wrenching motion beneath me was followed by a loud and thunderous shattering of stone. I was almost thrown from where I lay.

Then, as rapidly as it had begun, everything ceased – the sounds, the violence, the fury, the quaking. I finally dared to crack open my eyes but was still met with total and unending darkness, a darkness so complete that my mind began playing tricks on me, issuing forth bright flashes that gave no warmth, nor did they allow me any discernible vision. Without knowing it, I had been grasping the sides of the platform where I lay so firmly that my fingers ached. I released them and slowly brought my hands up close to my face, but no matter how hard I stared, I saw nothing – no movement, no fingers, nothing.

My breath quickened. Panic set in and overwhelmed me. I had no idea at that moment who I was, where I was, or what had happened to me. I simply remained still and reticent, unable to think or act rationally. A few more moments passed – a few more breaths deeply inhaled – then I knew I had to move. I had to do something.

It was unbelievably difficult. Every muscle, every joint, even my skin screamed from the pain of immobility, but I persisted and finally rose to a sitting position. I was sweating from the effort and felt weak and shaky. I didn’t know if I could continue, but knew I must. I again gathered my strength and swung my legs over the edge of the platform. Then I scooted forward, not knowing how far it was to the floor below. I felt around for something to drop over the side and found two items. One seemed to be some type of head adornment, possibly a crown, the other, a small ring. Curious. Then I dropped the ring and could tell that the floor was only a short distance away. I prepared to lower myself off the platform by first hitching up the long, thin cotton garment that inconveniently hung down to my ankles. Turning over, I lowered my feet over the side very slowly and hung on to the opposite edge of the platform. I couldn’t quite reach the floor with my feet and knew that I had to let go. I didn’t have the strength to control my fall. I felt my arm hit the crown as I fell, causing it to strike the floor with a sharp, metallic sound. I landed with a thud, knocking the breath from me, and lay still until the muscles in my chest relaxed enough to allow me to breathe comfortably again.

Whatever energy I’d had at the beginning of all this had almost entirely left me. There was no way I had the strength to stand, so I started crawling, cautiously reaching ahead with my hands to protect myself and feeling my way forward. As I did, I caught my garment with my right foot and tore off a piece of the hem. It didn’t concern me. I just needed to find a way out of this terrible blackness.

I could tell from the sounds echoing from wall to wall that I must be in a chamber of some kind, probably underground, and I could only hope that it had an exit. I moved forward on trembling limbs until my hands detected a wall. I followed it for a short distance and discovered what I’d been looking for. There was an opening. I felt around for something to throw and found a pebble. I threw it into the opening, and it took some time to land. It had to be a passageway. I crawled through.

I soon reached what felt like a stone stairway. I blew out the breath that I’d been holding and after a short rest moved forward again, crawling upwards. It was extremely steep for a stairway, but as I progressed, I was rewarded. Just ahead of me was a slightly less dark shade of black. My heart jumped, and my adrenaline kicked in, pushing me onwards. Reaching the end of the stairs, I passed through and sat on a flat surface. The fresh, cool night air shocked and invigorated me, and as my eyes adjusted, the moon’s silver rays lit up my surroundings. I could see that I was sitting on the floor of a circular room with two tall archways on opposite sides. I sighed and took a deep breath then crawled to the one on my left. Through the opening, I could just see a grassy knoll, a glorious night sky, and the moon that had lit my way. I immediately fell to the ground and spread myself out on the luxurious grass, letting out a heavy sigh of relief. It wasn’t long at all before I slept. When I opened my eyes again, the sky and moon were gone, and I was shivering. A dense and moisture-laiden fog had rolled in.

I could tell that I was stronger after the rest that I’d had, but regardless of my newfound energy, I knew that I had to find a way out of this fog or die, especially considering the flimsy cloth that covered my body. I returned to my hands and knees and started moving again. The ground seemed to be slanting downward, and soon my hands touched another slab of rock. I crawled forward and found a second one, slightly lower. I was on another stairway, less steep but much longer. It hurt my hands and knees to continue, but I did. When I reached its end, I scrambled forward a few more feet and then fell over, exhausted and completely spent. I curled up on the wet grass and closed my eyes. I knew that I was done and that whatever was to happen now was not up to me. It was up to the gods.