And now we see what Ugu's reaction is to his forces' first brush with the True Mortal... ------ Chapter 22. "And so I will be sending several Hands of Temblors, perhaps even of Infernos, to teach a lesson to –" "SILENCE!" roared the King. Mombi stared at Ugu in confusion. "Y… Your Majesty?" He pointed his finger down at her and muttered two ancient words. The old witch, dressed in finery terribly unbecoming to her, suddenly hopped as though standing on red-hot coals. "Ow! [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome: Chapter 21
November 7, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Well, Our Hero had finally embarked on his real Adventure... ------ Chapter 21. I walked straight to the East, not looking back. Not daring to look back for a while. It had been almost impossible not to just blurt it all out, looking at her then, when I knew I might die before reaching Oz, that this might be the last time I saw her. But she didn't need that burden, even if it was something she wanted to hear, which I really didn't think she did. I was pretty sure she did like me as a friend, [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome: Chapter 20
October 31, 2014 By Leave a Comment
As the Heroes have started their move, so must the Villains... ------ Chapter 20. Ugu the Unbowed stood on the balcony overlooking the petrified Emerald City; halfway to the horizon the pure dead gray ended, in a line as sharply drawn as if by a knife, and the green of the surrounding lands began. "And so it begins." "Sire?" Cirrus Dawnglory – or, at least, the being who now wore his name and face – said, clearly unsure of what his King meant. "Ah, you are here. Excellent. Walk with me, [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome Chapter 19
October 24, 2014 By Leave a Comment
And at last our Hero is ready to really start on his adventure! ----- Chapter 19. Polychrome danced lightly through the corridors of the Palace, out the gateway, and laughed. For there were gathered all the people of the Rainbow Kingdom, from the smallest child to the eldest of the wise old women, all gathered to see the Hero off. Far, far away, down the Way of Light that ran from the dawn to the sunset, she could see the tiny figures of Erik and Nimbus, and the much larger shape of [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome: Chapter 18
October 17, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Iris had said he had some sort of final task for Erik... ----- Chapter 18. I felt the chill of the morning deep in my bones as I awoke. I never liked camping as a kid, and I don't like it any better now. Who was it who said that adventures were unpleasant things happening to people a long way away? I dragged myself out of the little tent and onto the remainder of the little shelf of rock I was on. I wasn't sure of the point of this little exercise, but you generally didn't argue with Iris [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome: Chapter 17
October 10, 2014 By Leave a Comment
A King must consider his actions... ----- Chapter 17. Iris Mirabilis looked down from the balcony at the very top of his castle, moonlight streaming down and turning the blue-gray skystone to silver. Far below, he watched a small blonde-haired figure in a private courtyard, practicing cuts and jumps and rolls, sometimes stopping to indulge in strange sequences of movements that did not immediately make sense to him. Iris raised his gaze slightly, noticed another figure, slight and swathed in shifting rainbow hues, [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome: Chapter 16
October 3, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Well, it's time for Erik to show something of what he's learned... ----- Chapter 16. "We're running out of time, I think." Iris nodded, surveying the training area with eyes that seemed to look far beyond the walls of the castle. "You have come far, and your words have convinced me that you do have some plan. In a week or two, perhaps, no more. Have you decided on what you will do when you leave?" "I'm pretty sure what I need to do. I have to cross the Deadly Desert alone, and even as a [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome: Chapter 15
September 26, 2014 By Leave a Comment
As Uncle would say, "Research is IMPORTANT!" ----- Chapter 15. "… and these notes were written by the Wizard himself, not all that long before Oz fell." She placed the thick sheaf of parchment on top of the least-wobbly stack next to Erik. The mortal could-be-Hero nodded absently, absorbed in sketching some sort of diagram or chart which, she could see, had already been re-sketched, modified, parts scribbled out and redrawn, with dozens of little notations that she couldn't really [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome: Chapter 14
September 19, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Time for the good guys to start moving their plans forward a bit... ----- Chapter 14. I sat down at the small table; this time it was just me, Iris Mirabilis, Nimbus, and Polychrome. "So… what's on the agenda today?" I said after a pause. "Nimbus tells me that you have… made considerable progress." The Lord of Rainbows' tone showed that there were still reservations in that assessment. "While we have many concerns, it is clear now that you have the potential and the will needed, and that – [ Continue reading... ]
Polychrome: Chapter 13
September 12, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Let's see how our Heroine views the Hero's progress thus far... ----- Chapter 13. Polychrome watched from the doorway as the group of Guards prepared for training combat. She knew that Nimbus and her father were deeply worried; Erik had the intellectual and, somewhat surprisingly, physical potential to be a good, perhaps even better than good, warrior, but when it came down to actual fighting, sparring with the men, the closest thing to real combat they could manage to give him… he [ Continue reading... ]
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