Hello everyone,
This will most likely the last update that I ever do for fanfiction. The reason for this final announcement was because I had plenty of people request that I inform them when I release my self published book. Well, at the start of this new year, I have taken the plunge. Dance of Frozen Death has been released on Amazon Kindle. Right now, it's just an Ebook. I'm going to work on getting physical copies ready as well. This is book one out of fifteen. Nine of those novels are already written. I wouldn't say that they're completely edited yet, but they are constructed. Book 10 is almost halfway finished as well.
Each book in the series is set in the Elpeasia Universe, which I describe as the strangest set of interconnected stories that you have ever seen. My plan for the universe is to publish three books a year. Two of the novels will be in the Written in Stone Series. One of my works will be stand alone. For this year, it starts out with Dance of Frozen Death in January, Above Heaven will be in May, and Vows of Blood and Honor will be in September. From there, I will continue this schedule for at least five years. From there, I'll see if I reach any sort of success and adjust my schedule accordingly.
I added a guide to my website which gives some information to the Nine Kingdoms of Ten, which is the world in which most of the Elpeacia Universe is centered around. It has a lot details on the greater world of Written Stone.
If you're interested in following my journey, I'll leave links to my book, my website, and my YouTube page. You know. As best I can with how this site messes with links. They'll be in my bio too. Also, I have an audio version of the first chapter it you want to listen to it. No audiobook just yet. I don't have all the time in the world. Also, I'll leave the first chapter here so that you can see if you're interested at all. Thank you all for supporting me this far. I wouldn't have embraced my love storytelling without fanfiction. It's kind of sad to leave it completely behind, but there comes a time where a person wants to write original stories.
Written in Stone Book 1 - Dance of Frozen Death: www . amazon dp/ B0BRFDVSGZ
My website: hgrandolph . com
Love of Storytelling YouTube Page: www . youtube channel /UCK4oXWDnYhXZNDDZ0kPa46g
Audio of Dance of Frozen Death Chapter 1: www . youtube watch?v =cIen5eMv83Y
Dance of Frozen Death Summary:
Facing an army of goblins in the northern tundra, Princess Pearl of Terragard watches her lifelong protector prepare to sacrifice himself for her. Desperate to save her beloved knight, the heiress makes the ultimate gamble. She uses her one wish from the Falling Star to summon a hero who could save them. To Peral's shock, the will of magic didn't choose a towering warrior covered in golden armor. Instead, a ballerina appears at the edge of the most dangerous battlefield in the world, bending the ice of the arctic with a wave of her arm.
Now trapped in a new world, the dancer December Evermore has to protect Princess Pearl and a disembodied knight as they travel home to Terragard. Unfortunately, little is as it seems in this strange reality of sorcery. With a dark prophecy hanging over her head, December must face a surprisingly familiar Earth that is determined to treat her as an enemy. She might not understand much yet, but the ballerina is determined to get her new friends to safety, to understand the connection between the different realities, and, most importantly, to find a way to dance in front of a crowd again. Unfortunately, her latest performance will require leaving a trail of frozen corpses in her wake.
CHAPTER ONE
Wish
Blood steadily dripped down to stain the pure white snow with a crimson warning of death. Despite her best efforts, the wounded girl could not stop the bleeding at her side. Like the frost below her, her white wedding gown became increasingly ruined by the liquid life flooding out of her body. Her voluminous dress fell all the way to her ankles. While stunning, the gown made traversing through the tundra's knee high snow difficult. The harsh brush of the wind against the exposed features of her shoulders, neck, and face made her attempts to flee increasingly strenuous.
Even while in agony, she was a young woman of unparalleled beauty. Her appearance was a perfect picture of regality with high cheekbones and a sharp chin which showed a natural sense of authority. The once flawless features of her face were now twisted in pain. Her button nose and smooth brow wrinkled in terror. All of the skin exposed to the freezing air showed a tanned body naturally blessed by the sun. The woman took great pride in the fact that she looked like a princess worthy to represent her beloved people. Any air of nobility had long since drained away when she was thrown into this life threatening crisis.
Bright blue eyes that matched the elegance of the sky narrowed to peer through the falling snow. She detected a wooden shack in the distance. The roaring wind caused her curly raven hair to fling wildly. It felt like nature was dragging cold fingers down her spine. Even with her energy rapidly draining from her shivering form, she forced herself to keep moving away from the angry growls behind her. A quick glance over her shoulder showed ugly creatures with leathery green skin chasing her. Their long noses and pointed ears identified them as goblins. They wore only brown loincloths, exposing their round bellies to the cold air. Despite their lack of clothing, they appeared immune to the freezing weather.
As she continued to flee through the piles of snow, the woman's exhaustion creeped in at the worst time. She tumbled face first into the frost. Any attempt to rise back up crumbled as her legs refused to respond to her commands. Flopping onto her back, the young woman saw the goblins approaching her recumbent form. They held up their wooden clubs. All she could do was cry out for assistance, "Sir Hellfire! Please help me!"
"Must you get into trouble every couple of minutes, Princess Pearl?!" A deep, grumbling voice that would cause most people to shiver in fear seemed to echo from the wind itself. Pure black flames which mimicked the darkness of a starless night burst between the downed woman and the drooling goblins. Once the fire began to fade, a knight in dark armor stood protectively in front of the princess. Twisted spikes burst out from every joint of his protective steel. Disembodied eyes that resembled burning coals peered through his sneering helm. The towering knight released an aura filled with malice as he watched the approaching enemies. "I didn't even get to finish off the last bunch before you begged for assistance once more!"
"Forgive me, Sir Hellfire!" Pearl clutched at her bleeding side.
"Of course, princess. I can never stay mad at you. After all, this is the meaning of my existence," Hellfire reached down to grasp the sword at his side. The sound of him pulling the blade free from its sheath mimicked the noise of tortured souls screaming in pain. Instead of metal, the double-edged weapon was constructed out of the black flames of hell.
Charging forward, he met the goblins with a swing of his weapon. Both he and the injured woman expected the blade's fire to consume their green foes. In response to the freezing wind brushing across the ice covered plains, his sword receded in on itself. Hellfire hissed as the snow continued to plow down upon him. He had fought too long in an area that rebelled against his element. Despite feeling the drain in power that came from being a fire elemental in a cold environment, Hellfire still trusted his skills in combat to protect him from his foes. While sidestepping one of the giant clubs swinging at his head, he parried the other bat attempting to crash down on his shoulder. The knight kicked the goblins away to prepare for his next attack.
Turning back to the first enemy, Hellfire stabbed his blade towards the goblin's skull. Before the sword could impale the green creature's head, the slobbering monster lifted its wooden club to catch the sharp weapon. The blade pierced all the way through the bat. Right as the goblin's face slipped into a confident snarl, the dark knight twisted his hold on his trusted saber to disarm his opponent. Instead of taking advantage of the new opening, he turned his attention to the other goblin. He swung his sword toward his second opponent to block the next attack with his stolen bat. Both of the timber weapons shattered upon impact. His blade remained perfectly intact.
Now free of the extra weight on his saber, Hellfire went for the kill. One final horizontal swing from his sword sent the first goblin's head flying. Before the decapitated skull could land in the blood soaked snow, the knight finished the remaining enemy by stabbing it in the chest. Ignoring the creature's desperate grasps at his armored gauntlets, Hellfire dismissed the dying enemy by flinging it to the side. With the violent attackers defeated, he knew that it was time to handle the other great threat to his charge.
After sheathing his blade, Hellfire trudged through the snow to approach the injured woman. Without waiting for her to respond, he pulled her out of the blood covered frost. Securing her in his arms, he began the trek towards the nearby shack. Pearl held onto his warm armor in a desperate attempt to stop her limbs from shivering before the frigid touch of the tundra. A sigh of relief escaped her trembling lips. Hellfire's heat made the arctic chill flee from her skin. Feeling stronger, the princess peeked over her protector's shoulder to see an army of goblin warriors approaching through the storm.
"Sir Hellfire," Pearl whispered. "They're coming."
"I am well aware, my mistress," the knight did not look behind him to examine the approaching enemies. "I had to abandon my attempts to hold them back in order to help you. Those two separate goblins must have been hiding in ambush to catch you as you fled."
"What will you do?" Pearl asked in worry while gazing into the burning coals that were her protector's eyes. The fire which she was so used to seeing within his soul seemed to grow dimmer with each passing moment in the freezing landscape.
"I will fight them all to the death," Hellfire declared.
"No! You mustn't! I can't stand the thought of losing you!" Pearl reached up to touch the golden necklace which hung from her nape. Her fingers danced around the small orb connected to the chain. A shining crystal star glowed defiantly against the raging storm. "Perhaps it's time to use the Falling Star."
"No. Your mother instructed you to only use it during the Darkest Hour," Hellfire kicked open the door to the shack.
"Is this not our darkest hour?" Pearl inquired. Hellfire placed her down onto the floor of the barren hut. While not the best resting spot, the thin, wooden walls protected her from the cool touch of the wind.
"For us? Yes. For Terragard? No. Not even close," Hellfire examined her wound. Shaking his head, he reached down to her bleeding side. The glow of green flames started to dance between his fingers. "Forgive me, but there is not much else that I can do."
Nodding, Pearl sucked in a deep breath. She readied herself for the intense pain which was destined to come. As soon as the viridescent fire touched her skin, she screamed out in agony. While Hellfire did mutter his apologies, he did not pull his hand away. Before the healing touch of the emerald blaze, the lacerated skin of her torso began to knit itself back together. The bleeding quickly stopped as scar tissue formed where the injury had once been. Even when Pearl was out of danger, the healing process did not stop. Hellfire continued his medical spell until the mark of his failure had been banished from the world. Only the soft skin of her side was left when he pulled his hand away.
"That was a waste of energy," Pearl argued. "I would have been fine with a scar."
"I would not have been fine with it. My role is to guard you, and I refuse to have you walk around with scars brought about by my inability to protect you," Hellfire stood back up. Reaching to his side once more, he pulled his burning blade free from its sheath. Pearl noticed that the flames were significantly weaker than the last time that he had used the sword. "I swear that I will allow no more harm to come to you. Ever again."
"And sacrificing yourself to do so will work out well for me in this situation?" Pearl shook her head. "There is no way that you can take all of them in your current state, Sir Hellfire. At least some will get to me, and even if that wasn't true, I would be stuck out here with no guide back to civilization. Despite what my mother might have said, I need to use the Falling Star now."
"No. Doing so will lead to devastating consequences," Hellfire turned to step out of the shack. "Trust in me, and trust in your mother. Neither of us will ever let you down, my mistress. Using your one wish will only bring about your end."
Without allowing the princess to argue further, he slammed the door shut. The knight wanted to protect her from the vicious sight of battle which was about to occur. Secured in the fact that Princess Pearl was at least temporarily safe, Hellfire walked back through the tracks that he had already made in the snow. Such a small action might save a little energy for the coming fight. He stared forward to examine the hundreds of goblins that were following the trail of blood Pearl had left in her wake. While most of the creatures were green like the corpses that he had left on the ground, a few were purple. There were even one or two silver versions of the strange monsters.
Hobgoblins and Kingoblins were far more powerful than the regular goblins. Under normal circumstances, Hellfire would not be concerned with the superior fighters. He would be delighted to cut down any fool who would dare to challenge him on the field of battle. Even now, the magical core in his armor pulsed in a deep desire for war. Despite his natural instincts, Hellfire knew that the situation did not favor him. Hundreds of enemies were charging down his lone, tired form while in an environment which constantly weakened him. With his mistress behind him, he could not flee. This would likely be his last battle, and he would end it by dragging all those who threatened his charge with him into the Beyond.
Hellfire could feel his chest throb in satisfaction at the knowledge that its longsuffering was finally over, "I wouldn't have it any other way."
Releasing a battle cry, Hellfire charged forward without fear. He met the army by slicing the lead goblin in half. Spinning around after the initial swing of his saber, he stabbed his sword forward to finish off another opponent. Unfortunately, his actions left an opening for a spear to pierce his side. Before he could continue his assault, the goblins rushed at him all at once. While not the smartest creatures in the world, the leather skinned fighters were intelligent enough to flank him. Hellfire found himself surrounded by several of his foes. They began to claw at him with their jagged, yellow fingernails. More than a few stray blades found themselves stabbed through his armor during the initial chaos.
Despite being wounded, no blood seeped out of the damaged steel that covered his body. Acting as if he felt no pain, Hellfire continued to fight with as much vigor as he could muster. Holding onto his sword with his right hand, he cut through every enemy that his tool could reach. Meanwhile, his free limb yanked any goblin that he could grasp, bashing them into another foe. While more enemies fell by his hand, his own injuries began to multiply. Dozens of large gashes were spread across his armor. Several different weapons ranging from swords, spears, and even splintered wooden clubs protruded his outer shell from all sides.
Through the chaotic struggle, Hellfire remained aware of his surroundings. More than a few goblins were ignoring him in favor of charging towards the shack which held Princess Pearl. Growling in rage at their cowardice, Hellfire focused what little remained of his magical energy into his sword. He created a wall of pyro that erupted from the ground behind him. All the goblins were forced to slide to a halt. The barrier's power was tied to his life force and would not fall until he did. The ugly beasts hissed in displeasure at the shield of inferno which halted their progress.
In response to Hellfire's efforts to protect his ward, every opponent on the icy battlefield threw themselves at him. They tried to overwhelm him with their superior numbers. Even with all of the knight's skill, he couldn't fight off the numerous monsters without his supernatural flames to help him. Weakened in the piles of blood soaked snow, he did his best to endure the onslaught while using only physical force to defend himself. That was a battle he lost. The goblins started to overcome him within a few short seconds.
From her spot in the shack, Pearl did not remain idle. She peeked through the cracks in the wood to watch the battle. A gasp left her lips when she saw the wall of fire jump between her and her protector. The princess knew that the barrier was to shield her, but not from the goblins. Sir Hellfire intended to pierce his own core. Pearl could only imagine the explosion which would follow. The inferno would reach high up into the heavens and evaporate all the snow in the area. None of the flames would touch beyond the barrier. She would be safe, but her protector would not survive.
Pearl reached out to pull open the door. Her mind raced with the idea of running out to help him. She stopped herself before stepping out into the cold. There was nothing that she could do to fight. She couldn't get past the wall of flames on her own. The princess only had two options. Either she could wait for the battle's conclusion and deal with the fallout of Hellfire's sacrifice, or she could use the Falling Star. Her still trembling fingers brushed against the center of her necklace. It had been passed down through her family for generations with the intention of stopping the Darkest Hour. While Sir Hellfire had ordered her not to waste her one wish on this situation, she could not let him die for her.
Perhaps if she made a wish that would help solve all of her problems, then everything would have a happy ending. Through the haze of blood loss and numbing cold, Pearl contemplated what her wish should be. She remembered stories of old which spoke of powerful warriors who fought for righteousness. That was it. If she summoned such a protector to help her in this time of need, then the brave hero could help prevent the Darkest Hour as well. Of course, it would be unbecoming of a princess to drag someone into such circumstances. Unfortunately, Pearl had to do something to save her beloved knight.
Lifting the glowing stone to her lips, Pearl carefully chose the words that she would use as a gamble to save everything, "I wish for the perfect protector to help us. Someone with a noble soul who will keep Sir Hellfire alive and help to prevent Terragard from falling during the Darkest Hour. Please, blessed Falling Star, grant me a kind, powerful hero with a burning heart of compassion."
The moment that her wish was finished, the Falling Star's glow intensified to the point of rivaling a small sun. Blinded for a second, Pearl closed her eyes until the light faded. When she could see again, she looked at the now shattered stone in her necklace. While her amulet remained dull in its death, the battlefield gained a new brilliance. A golden pillar of magical energy fell from the sky to slam down at the edge of the icy plain. The force of the summoning magic caused the fire wall to shatter at the arrival of the approaching figure.
All the fighting stopped before the strange, golden phenomenon. While the goblins which surrounded Hellfire looked on in fascination, the knight was cursing from his position kneeling in the snow. His entire suit of armor was covered in cuts. Several dozen weapons stuck out of his body at all angles. He had turned his sword back to his chest with the full intent of stabbing himself through the heart. Frozen before the sight of the Falling Star, Hellfire cursed his mistress for disobeying him. At the same time, he felt curiosity bubble inside him at whom the stone had summoned. Even the raging snow storm had ceased before the might of the approaching warrior. Everything in the tundra waited for the reveal of the person who was worthy enough to be pulled through the multiverse.
When the light died down, a heavy silence spread across the area. Instead of feeling overwhelmed with wonder at the inspiring hero that they had expected, they felt only confusion at the sight of the skinny woman in front of them. She had pale skin that matched the purity of the patches of snow which remained untouched from the gore of battle. Instead of garbing herself in armor, the new arrival wore black ballet tights. Her outfit covered her entire body below her collar. A dark tutu burst out from her waist to complete the dancing ensemble. Long white hair was pulled up into a tight bun. Crimson eyes blinked in surprise at her new surroundings.
Slowly coming out of her dancing pose, the strange woman looked around in astonishment. Words of inspiration eloquently left her lips, "Dude, what's going on?"
Thank you for all the support. I appreciate you. Do not despair.