We’ve seen this before, but as the next e-book I’ve got planned is the finished version of Rebel Revelations, I thought it might be nice to revisit the first chapter.
Of course, regular readers will already be familiar with the first two books in the series, Rebel Princess and Rebel Priestess.
Pain. Darkness. More pain. The memories of the past year blended into one another in a great rushing wave of torment that finally broke on the soft smooth linen shores of Iskendar’s royal infirmary. Kai emerged with a coughing squeal from dark dreams of imprisonment to find herself not shackled on a filthy cold stone floor, but lying on what had to have been the softest bed in all the world.
She looked about herself in a daze, noting that things certainly had taken a turn up for the books. Instead of slime dripping walls and the howls of other prisoners, there were warm wooden walls lined with shelves upon which potions and poultices were stacked. It was so quiet too, peaceful, the only sounds being the cheerful chirping of the love bird in a wicker cage by the window, and beyond that the low hum of Iskendar’s citizenry going about their daily lives.
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Sometimes it takes a conflict to solve a conflict.
Chapter seven of Rebel Revelations everybunny! Enjoy!
After days of sulking in misery, avoiding all those she knew and those she did not, it was the unmistakable noise of conflict that finally drew Kai out of hiding. The granite barracks lined a large arena used for the purposes of training and they were often filled with aggressive manly shouts that Kai had learned to ignore for the most part as she took refuge atop the stone structures, where she was not visible from below. She suspected those whose business it was to know such things knew where she was, but they left her to her own devices, for which she was grateful.
She was laying on her back, warming herself in the midday sun when the sound of steel on steel interrupted her reverie. In between the clashing of blades, utter silence. That was exceptional. Her curiosity piqued, Kai peered over the edge.
Below, two feminine figures circled one another. It did not take long to recognize Constance, and, to Kai’s great pleasure, Queen Rael. Kai’s bottom did not sting anymore, but her pride stung deeply.
For days every move had reminded her of that blonde woman’s easy domination of her. Constance had made a fool out of Kai, and Kai could not forgive that. Rael on the other hand, Rael was the best fighter Kai had ever known. She would soon put that uppity wench in her place.
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My dear readers, allow me to make up for the misery of a broken game by resolving the cliffhanger you were left with in the last chapter of Rebel Revelations…
Kai breathed deeply, watching Constance closely. The woman seemed disinclined to move out of the bed, probably because she knew all too well that it would be the work of a moment to catch Kai if she ran in her weakened state.
Her mind whirring furiously, Kai drew herself to her full height. Perhaps there was a way out of this. Perhaps there was a way to convince Constance that punishment was not the answer. She would not end up over this woman’s lap without a fight, that was for sure, though the fight did not have to be a physical one.
“What am I going to do with you, I think that is a better question,” Kai said, her tone forthright and assured.
Constance quirked an eyebrow in surprise. “What on earth do you mean?”
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In which you can’t keep a good woman down, but you better be careful when getting a good woman up…
Fingers of dawn began to creep over the horizon of the great city of Iskendar, but someone was up before the sun. A young woman dressed in dark leggings and an oversized tunic crept along the parapets of the royal castle, a slim dark silhouette against the faintly lit skies. There was a slight limp in her gait, and a slight rattle of breath as the effort of sustained motion seemed to cause her some distress.
“Bloody sickness,” Kai swore to herself as she stopped and wiped her mouth and nose on the back of her sleeve. Illana said she was no longer contagious, but she certainly was still feeling the effects of the illness. Illana had also told her to rest, but there was no rest for the wicked, and there was certainly no rest for Kai.
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I wasn’t going to post another chapter quite this soon as I’m currently quite busy working on the sequels to Finn the Devourer, but how could I ignore such impassioned pleas? A special thanks to those of you who comment, it’s incredibly enjoyable watching my lovely readers squirm *grin*.
Kai yowled as Constance’s hand descended on the back of her neck and squeezed hard as she dispassionately surveyed the damage Kai had inflicted. Kai looked too and saw that the ring of teeth marks welled with blood. She marveled at the fact that Constance had not made so much as a squeak as the wound was inflicted. She was every bit as tough as she looked, perhaps tougher.
“As I said earlier, panic leads to silly things,” Constance noted grimly. She was not addressing Kai directly, indeed Kai was suddenly very much aware that she had all the effect on Constance of a gnat bothering an elephant. She suddenly felt dangerously insignificant, and it was not a pleasant feeling.
She made to draw away, but escape was impossible. Constance’s grip was like a vice on her neck and no matter which way she squirmed and wriggled she was held in place. This was not how things were supposed to go.
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Chapter three of Rebel Revelations!
“Is duty a prison? Perhaps it is,” Rael mused as she sat draped elegantly over the chair next to Kai’s bed.
Kai frowned, failing to comprehend the turn events had taken. “You left Iskendar, you didn’t want the duty, remember? And so did Lucy. Why are you both back here? You could have gone anywhere, done anything…”
There was a squeal in the hallway, a loud, piercing shriek and a moment latter a harried knocking at the door. Illana opened it and a harassed looking nursemaid with a chubby baby in her arms rushed into the room. The tense expression on her face made her look more like she were holding a bundle of dangerous explosives rather than a baby.
“I’m so sorry, I can’t get her to settle…” she said in pathetic and weary tones.
The baby, which had been scissoring its arms and legs like a starfish as it squealed loud enough to pierce ear drums stopped at the sight of Rael and stuck its chubby little arms out towards her.
“It’s okay, bring her to me,” Rael said.
Kai looked dumbfounded as the nursemaid placed the baby in Rael’s arms, where it immediately began cooing gleefully.
“He knocked you up. That bastard knocked you up,” she exclaimed. Violet stopped cooing at the loud noise and gazed at Kai curiously.
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So… tired.. must.. post story…
If there are errors in this, forgive me them, I should be in bed, but I’m not! Why? Because I just can’t help myself, that’s why.
Thanks to all who bought Rebel Priestess already, you rock!
Kai sat on her bed, glaring out the window at the white fluffy clouds as if they were the minions of the insufferable woman who had dared to lay hands on her, who had dared keep her from the one she loved.
“You will pay, Constance, you will pay. What kind of a name is Constance anyway? The name of a dead woman, that’s what kind of name it is,” she muttered to herself furiously in a tirade that had not stopped since Constance had strode out of the room so confidently hours ago.
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Which were just passing byyyyyyy…
So remember the other day when I was all, ‘I’m going to write an ebook for the next series’? Well, it turned out that posting is just so much more fun. I’ll probably still turn this all into ebooks eventually, but for now, enjoy the ride!
Regarding the comments issue which some people are having, this new and awesome site allows you to comment both on blog posts (this thing you’re reading now) and story pages (the thing you’ll be reading when you press ‘read more’.) They’re different things entirely however, so if you make a comment on the story page, it won’t show up on the blog post, that’s just the way things are – like sands through the hourglass.
Pain. Darkness. More pain. The memories of the past year blended into one another in a great rushing wave of torment that finally broke on the soft smooth linen shores of Iskendar’s royal infirmary. Kai emerged with a coughing squeal from dark dreams of imprisonment to find herself not shackled on a filthy cold stone floor, but lying on what had to have been the softest bed in all the world.
She looked about herself in a daze, noting that things certainly had taken a turn up for the books. Instead of slime dripping walls and the howls of other prisoners, there were warm wooden walls lined with shelves upon which potions and poultices were stacked. It was so quiet too, peaceful, the only sounds being the cheerful chirping of the love bird in a wicker cage by the window, and beyond that the low hum of Iskendar’s citizenry going about their daily lives.
“Good, you’re awake,” an elderly medicine woman dressed in light purple robes welcomed Kai back to the land of the living with a warm smile and a gentle touch. “You’ve come through the sickness well.”
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