[Book Launch] – Episode Two: Rise of the Black Doves, Volume 4

Good morning, afternoon, or evening everyone, we’re back and good God it’s been cold out recently, really looking forward to summer this year, which is a first, usually I love winter over summer, especially October when the seasons really start to shift and everything falls into those auburn shades which happens to be my favourite colour by the way, it’s gorgeous – It’s nice just to take a walk alone sometimes, to take off and just be in your own head for a while, I love it. You know I have this weird system to know when the seasons are changing, beyond that of my own senses of course I rely on my plain red jumper, one that I bought when I was working in retail, but as much as I love it, I can only wear it in the winter. During the summer I would boil if I were to wear it but over the years, I’ve noted that there always comes a day when I put it on, go outside, I get about half-way to my destination only to swiftly take it off, or vice versa and have to go back to fetch it if it’s cold, it’s on those days when I know it’s gone from summer to winter or winter to summer…There is a useless piece of information to start this article off with, other than that I’ am happy to be writing again, it has been a while I know, I’ve lots to cover and am excited to do so, but before I get into this essay, I want you to know that I was hoping to post this much, much sooner than the 13^th, there are a number of reasons as to why I’ve taken so long to make an update, for starters I ran into some issues surrounding our overlords Amazon and my binding associates Ingramspark, I’ll touch on this later but I just thought it be worthy to note right off the bat…So, it’s 2023, it still feels like 2020 in all honesty, all you have to do is glance at the News or go online for an hour or two to see what the world seems to be spiralling toward, is it hell? The bowels of insanity maybe or something worse? I mean did you see the Grammys? I happened to flick past it when the performers were literally worshipping the devil or were trying to summon something from the depths of the underworld while the elite just cheered it on as if everything is normal. I didn’t watch it all, like I said I flicked past it but I bet if I had continued to watch I would have ended up with grey hair or an aneurysm. It’s almost impossible not to feel disgusted or appalled when you see what is going on, while we’re dancing and celebrating people who do nothing, in Turkey there are thousands upon thousands of broken families who’ve just experienced an earthquake, I read a few days ago that a little girl was recently rescued having been buried alive for days with her little brother who she was keeping calm and safe. I’ll leave a link below to where you can easily donate, I know money is tight for us, but these people are suffering, and even a little is a lot. I do hope this little girls story becomes famous though, let’s make sure she and her family are made comfortable from now on, let’s celebrate her courage and ability to survive, people like her deserve to be heard from not people who parade online (usually on Tik Tok or Instagram) making millions of dollars by disrespecting themselves, but this is all I see, we’re truly living in Clownworld, but that doesn’t mean WE have to be swept up with all the degeneracy, so long as we do our best to treat each other with fairness, kindness and respect, collectively we can turn this around, and what better place to start than Christmas or within the first quarter of the year at least. Speaking of which, I might have been the only asshole alive to decide to lose weight over the holiday period; Why did I choose to do this? Well, I noticed during last November I was getting a bit round at the midriff, I was feeling heavier in that area which is unusual for me because I rarely sit still, and it doesn’t follow genetically, my Mum is a blonde ninja and my Dad is Iron Man, so I lucked out in the gene pool, but this does not mean I cannot pile on the pounds and quickly fall out of shape, you have to take care of yourself whoever you are. I noticed the weight gain in the mirror while peering through the curtain that is my hair these days which is in need of a pair of scissors…Or hedge-trimmer come to think of it, and I said to myself “Huh, that wasn’t there before,” so I made the decision to go easy on the tasty treats and instead overload on blueberries and bananas, even made the effort to go on some runs late at night or in the early hours of the day while everyone is sleeping, and over time it worked, I’ve no roundness anymore and the blueberries have given me the strength to lift a car! It only took a couple of months or so (the car lifting thing was a joke by the way don’t call the government) but I’ve achieved a flat stomach again and combining the intake with some light exercises recommended by one of my friends who I swear descends from a Viking warlord, I’ve started to see a six-pack coming through, and it feels so good! Things like this have a positive effect on you mentally and physically, and if anyone is going through something similar, if anyone is struggling with body image or dietary problems and are actively working to become healthier, I’m proud of you, keep going, don’t give up even when life gets you down and ignore anyone who tells you otherwise, you’ll make it if you stick at it and you’re going to be okay in the future. These topics aren’t what I usually talk about on here, so if you’re new to my website or blog, I usually talk about my book work and the creative process, this is what I’m going to be doing today it is my specialty. I do love talking about films, games are a wonderful outlet, horror which happens to be my favourite genre especially if it leans into the science-fiction category. I’ve an unhealthy fascination with the Alien franchise and the Batman character, I thoroughly enjoyed the most recent adaptation directed by Matt Reeves, and I adore the bat suits Ben Affleck wears in Batman versus Superman, I know people give that movie a lot of flak (some criticisms are indeed fair) but there is a lot the production gets right, besides, Batman IS the best of the bunch in the hero department and that’s just a fact, I dare you to challenge me on that, he just is. Art in general is discussed here, I occasionally write reviews, this reminds me that I really want to talk about one of the most profound games I’ve ever played, if not ever since the last 30minutes of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty for the PS2; It really had me staring at the screen in complete shock, the game just waiting patiently for me to make one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make in a virtual space, the game is called Soma, and wow is it effective, and terrifying, inspired by the book Aion written by Carl Gustav Jung which I’m currently flicking through trying my best to understand it, but holy hell does it get you thinking. Aion definitely is:-

“The book that will give you nightmares for the rest of your life”

Dr Jordan Peterson

Soma is a simple first person, puzzle solving, horror game with only a handful of characters therein. I love Catherine Chun, voiced by the wonderful Nell Mooney, she serves as one of the leads gracing you with assurance and kindness even when the nightmare gets real, but it is in the moments when she is unplugged from you, when the game creates a sense of horrible dread, something which is hard to achieve these days. When you do reach an area when you can commune with her though, as the player, you feel a tremendous sense of relief because you know she’ll be there to guide you through the next area, it’s in the silence however when you’re navigating this decrepit, underwater complex in the pitch black, tip toeing around monstrosities that I find hard to even describe, where you want Catherine in your ear. She’s fun, sassy, caring, logical and empathetic without her the game would be…Well you wouldn’t have a game… Soma, truly has made me lean into religious philosophy over the past few months, it’s the only game that has inspired some religious insight and astrological conversation from those who know the subjects, and for those who don’t know, I am an atheist, not because of certain trends or believe I’m above anyone else, no, I’m not at all above anyone, I do actually want to believe in something, I am constantly searching for answers and questioning things about myself, my place, what’s out there and why? And an atheistic stance is where my mind takes me, as if I’ve been washed up on an island and until a stronger more compelling tide/argument comes along to carry me elsewhere or if I witness something outside of our known reality that cannot possibly be explained with science and/or critical thinking, I think I’m going to stick on my island for now, to stay with this outlook however bitter and cold it might be, especially to those who do believe in an afterlife or some kind of higher-power. I’ve also started reading a book which will never be adapted into a film or an audiobook (this is why I grabbed it) because it’s narrative ONLY works in the one format and this is something I’m a little jealous of, it exploits a books unique power making it its own. When entertainment mediums use their strengths to the highest degree, it cannot be replicated elsewhere, and this stands out to me. If you’d like an example of what it is I’m babbling on about, check out my article 69 titled, The Irreplaceable: Final Fantasy VII. FFVII is one of my all-time favourite games, it’s almost insulting to call it a game as matter of fact because it’s a story, one of the best I’ve encountered, but what this story does better than any other, is that it uses the game aspects to tell said story in such a way that it only works in a gaming format. Do have a read through that article to get a better sense of this, even if you’re not a fan of FFVII there is still a lot in there that I think you’ll find it interesting; The same principles apply to the book I’m talking about, it’s called, House of Leaves written by Mark Z. Danielewski. From what I can tell this early on is that it’s all about liminal spaces and what it would be like to be trapped inside one, diving into a form of horror I had not even properly considered until now. I think I will review this book at some point in the future, it is well written and very compelling, doing things that no other book has done before, and you’ll see what I mean when/if you get into it. Moving on, one thing you’ll be quick to discover about my tiny corner of the internet are my enormous rants that will convince you I’m a complete psychopath – I wrote what was described (by a friend) as a thesis, on why Rings of Power, the new Lord of the Rings TV show produced by Amazon in 2022, is an absolute insult to what J.R.R. Tolkien envisioned, Tolkien, the grandfather of everything epic fantasy, a realm that only exists in the way it does because of him, and RoP is a slap in the face, it’s an embarrassment and the show and I, well we…How do I put this without using a string of swear words…Rings of Power and I, had a fight, similarly to the scrap I had with the final two seasons of Game of Thrones, and Captain Marvel, and Alien: Blackout, and the last ten minutes of the Resident Evil 2 Remake…Goddamn I overreact when I’m angry…If you’d like to read some of these rants and others like it, if you’d like to see how nuts I truly am, the best place to go is the website (it’s linked below), click on the articles tab and do a little scrolling. I’ll recommend the LOTR one called The Last Bastion, not only do I tear it apart but I dive into the roots as to why our entertainment is rotting, I go into a little history with where the corruption started and Rings of Power is simply a symptom of this dreadful movement, heck I saw the signs of this when I was 19 hence one of the many reasons why I am building my own untouchable series, but I never thought it would get this bad, but I do my best to explain in article 84 The Last Bastion, I did my best not to just break it down but to give reason why this is happening and believe me it was a task to write – I had to do it twice in fact, because upon the first completion, the file somehow became corrupted and wouldn’t open, so I had to start over. It was a nightmare, but I think it is worth your time if you’re passionate about modern culture and what is happening with our entertainment industry. Upon saying that, I think I’d like to change gears a little for 2023 and at times highlight some of these small accomplishments in life, the losing weight thing for example, because it is the little things we do on a daily basis that makes a huge difference. My God I’ve just realised, I’m three pages into this post and I’ve not even started with the meat of this article, I’ve so much in store for you today it’s hard to know where to begin, but this is article number 89. Beyond my book work this Blog is turning into an archive, a catalogue of essays which I am proud of. I think I’m gonna do something crazy when I reach 100 articles, like do a sponsored cave dive or base jump, whatever it is it will have to be something that involves heights because heights do get under my skin…Much like cauliflower cheese, fuck that dish!…Don’t get me wrong, I can handle climbing, I have willingly walked into stressful situations to test how well I’d fare, many people do this, I’m not special, but when you’re bereft of a safety rope so high up or when you find yourself among the clouds, that’s when I get a bit tetchy, that’s when bold becomes stupid and it’s at that point when it could all end with but a single misstep. Tell you what trumps heights though and that’s confined spaces, crawling through caves for example or having to swim through dark underwater tunnels, good Lord, if you asked me to do something like this it wouldn’t matter who you were, I’d tell you to “Go fuck yourself” or I’d ask for a huge, huge sum of money because no! The idea of being trapped, unable to move is for me utterly traumatic, it puts me in a panic, this only emphasises the bravery of that young girl buried in the rubble, I cannot stress this enough, give her anything and everything she wants from now on, I’m not kidding…Furthermore, I understand why people do daring things though, we’ve all done crazy things and there is a reason for this, and to my understanding that reason is to feel more alive, much like with pleasure and pain they are never far apart, it’s all about perspective. The closer you are to danger or death the more you appreciate safety and life, look at any scenario however wonderful it may be, there is always a flip side to the coin, the ying yang is real, the only question you need to ask yourself is; What risks are you going to take a chance on, and how are you going to increase the chances of your success opposed to failure? We all walk this path; the blanket is over us all. Not taking a risk might I add, not doing anything can be much worse than failure, stagnating at first doesn’t seem to have that much of an effect in the moment, but over time it’s horrific. I actually wrote an article quite a while ago now, it’s a favourite of mine and it’s a shame it doesn’t get many reads opposed to that silly Voyage Media post I made, which is my most popular one, yet it is my most dull; It’s article number 66 called, Be a Combatant not a Spectator, it’s about going for the things you’re passionate about, it’s about deciding to take a risk and enter the arena to show the world what you’re made of, it doesn’t matter what it is, whether you’re a writer, a musician, an actor, an athlete or even a gardener, it’s important you find that one thing and get out and do it, be a combatant, and yeah, when you enter the arena you’re going to get beat up, you’re going to make mistakes, you’re going to lose, don’t worry it happens to us all and it hurts when you’re on the floor wounded, but you learn so much in those moments, your behaviour defines you; Are you going to stay on the ground, are you going to let this defeat keep you pinned?…Hell no! It has been a while, years in fact, but my time to enter the arena has come again, I was crushed the first time, I’ve learned my lessons and have come back more prepared. If this were a colosseum, I’d be standing in that long corridor waiting to come out, I’m not a spectator at the moment, I’m a combatant, and it’s terrifying, the change is terrifying. I’ve been feeling a sense of this for quite some time not only with my passion project, but with my job circumstances. I’ve taken steps to change my current occupation, which was no longer serving me, it never served me creatively if I’m completely honest. As daunting as all these decisions are, I am so glad I’ve been making these moves, I was uncertain for a long while but now that I’ve landed a couple of interviews in roles that are pretty lucrative, enabling me to make a lot more money, granting me time away for actual getaways and the freedom to keep up with this creative endeavour – my sword and shield which I call The Ancestral Odyssey, I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to focus more attention on this passion project and so should you work on yourself, and if you haven’t found that passion, that spark, don’t go looking outside, this is a misconception because it’s not out there, it’s not in some far away country or in another town city or person, it’s IN YOU and it always has been. Anyway, fingers crossed things fall where they should for you lovely people, fingers crossed this new line of work can handle my craziness, not even that asylum in Serbia has the power to hold me, but that is a story for another time. Right, enough rambling because today is a big day, today is the day I deliver you a promise, one that I made over a decade ago, something I’ve been working on since 2011, I’ve gambled with something I consider to be the most precious thing we as human beings have…Time…And I hope it’s all been worth it but only you can decide that, all I can do is wait and see, but as always before you continue, let’s uphold our tradition and go fetch yourself a drink, go on, I’ll wait. I’ve gone with that Naked blueberry smoothie, seriously I think I’m addicted to these little suckers, grab yourselves something, come back and I hope you enjoy the first article of 2023, apologies it’s late, you’ll soon see why, it’s called Book Launch.

Today is launch day, what else can I say, today is the day I walk out into the arena (metaphorically speaking) and make Episode Two of The Ancestral Odyssey: Rise of the Black Doves, Volume Four, available from The Amazon Store in Paperback and Kindle Editions. There is nor will there be a Hardback Edition for quite some time because the Hardback will contain volumes 4, 5 and 6, just like the Hardback of Episode One: The Utopian Dream contained volumes 1, 2 and 3, the pattern will continue all the way to Episode Five, where it will come to an end and I can retire – To step away from everything, to log off permanently and live for as long as I have left in peace, knowing I’ve done all I can do. It is coming, I’m still a ways away yet, there are still many chapters to finish and hurdles along the way for instance, I’ve recently lost my editor, Mr Alan Hamilton for one, who departed from the project honourably and professionally. I’m in the market for a new editor, one I can afford and can work comfortably alongside. It will take time to find one because I am also (as previously discussed) in the process in training for a bigger and better job, and editors only accept huge sums of cash. I tried paying an editor with cookies and hugs once upon a time but eventually he had to hold up a sign that said, “I do not accept cookies and hugs,” to which I had to go to work in a job that at first served but did nothing for me creatively. Currently however, Volume Four is done, I am ever so happy to have arrived at this point, it has taken so much time, money, and sacrifice to get this far but it is finally available, please please please pick it up if you enjoy epic fantasy, if you’re into engaging, complex stories with a wide variation of characters, protagonists that are dangerous, impossibly strong villains, creatures large and small and grand colourful worlds full of wonders and dangers, then I believe this series might be for you, if not, that’s fine too, I recognise my style doesn’t sit with everyone, but if you happen to know someone who may be interested, help a brother out and pass a link on, that would be ever so helpful and I would appreciate it. On that note, I’d like to add that over the Christmas period I was working on a re-re-re-re-launch of Episode One, I know I vowed not to do this EVER again, but I found an error that just rubbed me the wrong way and I couldn’t sleep until it was smoothed over. The error was a typo, ‘lead’ which was meant to read as, led. Although I learned that this was partially acceptable, in the same vein as read and read sometimes referred to as an irregular verb (don’t you just love the English language), regardless I could not let this be, I felt the itch and when I tried to convince myself it was fine, it really wasn’t, it never is, when something is off, when something doesn’t feel right it tends to niggle you at first, but given enough time, that niggle turns into an uneasy feeling, it grows and grows from a whisper into a shout and before you know it it’s deafening. I know this, I’ve been through it, and the only option you have is to take action; Someone I’ve been speaking to often over the last few months, got back to me after I pointed this niggling doubt out to them, and they said “Duncan, who cares, it’s fine, people know what you mean, no one is going to be put off by this, calm your tits.” After pointing out the fact that I don’t have a pair of tits (if I had I wouldn’t be able to escape the shower), I succumbed to taking action and made the fix because I DO care about the quality of this work, so much so that I am prepared to go back to the start, over something as simple as a typo, why? Because I’m off my fucking rocker that’s why! Not only did I correct the error, but I went through the book again not only once, but three times and holy shit did I kill myself doing this because Ep1-Dream is huge, seriously you can use the Hardback Edition as part of your daily weightlifting workout routine, it’s a big heavy thing that sends shooting pains right into my chest whenever I look at it; One of my friends even uses it as a doorstop. A while ago I went round his house, I sit down while he makes us a drink and there it was, the book, not on his bookshelf where it was last, but on the freaking floor, holding the door open! If I hadn’t history with this chap, I might have been inclined to take offence, but fortunately I’m not made of marshmallows and let it slide. But I did settle down with the error, I got into the work starting on page one line one, I went through it chapter by chapter, I re-read it, refreshed my memory on the events and character arcs, re-published it in each format which is a bit pricey but this is something I will gladly spend my money on, and as a result I’ve grown to love Ep1 even more, despite its launch day back in 2016 being a complete and utter disaster. Despite it not being perfect like I had envisioned, it still serves as an effective beginning to The Ancestral Odyssey, eliciting emotions through its characters and core message found in the story, one that is far from over. I’d like to talk about TAO’s content further, but this was where I hit a wall with Amazon, when I was re-working Ep1 back onto the market. Amazon got in touch with me, writing one of those long e-mails that’s signed by someone important at the bottom of the page, I do this when I mean business too, except I go one step further and sign the letter in BLOOD so they know I’m not dicking around, but anyway, they hit me with an official letter, saying that they were concerned that the work did not belong to me, that there is a potential threat of plagiarism going on here. To sort this out they wanted me to check off a security list, to prove that the material was mine, but the list only applied to those who had been published via traditional methods. Of course, I’m not willing to go down that route, no one is going to tell me what to do, how to do it and in what order, I’ve a major issue with authority, so doing this independently is and always was my best option, and I told them that, that I was an independent. I provided as much information as I could, and it turns out that this was enough, I really shouldn’t underestimate my e-mailing skills, when I hit that enter button I do it with a fist dammit. The fear however stayed for a while, the fear of knowing that someone could quite easily take something away that’s so precious is a fear I do not want to experience again, it’s a level or two away I suppose from losing your child in a court of law, this feeling terrifies me, it literally freezes and puts you into a state of panic, and being left in that state for a few days at a time does nothing but flood your system with pure anxiety, I got a bit twitchy and at times paranoid, nothing is able to calm you down, not even my adopted cat, nothing, until the problem is solved, and thankfully it was. Once that battle was won, I ran into yet another problem, this one involving my friends over at Ingramspark and Volume Four’s title set-up process. The problem hit me once everything was sorted, everything from story, structure, layout, formatting, cover, table of contents both physical and digital (believe me this takes an enormous amount of time) it was all ready to go, and I began the publishing phase which is essentially seven to eight pages of form filling and uploading your work in the ways that makes it easy for them to manage. I wish it was a simple matter of drag and drop, but it’s not, it’s so far from that simple it makes me laugh so hard I shoot milk out of my nose, even when I’m not drinking milk this process is tedious and fiddly, but once I had everything finished, once I had gotten to the end of this stage and wished to proceed with the publication, I was hit with the error, an error that forced me to start all over again…Baring in mind I am also wading through the sea of job hunting, this hiccup was just another gut punch I had to contend with. It’s okay, I’ve been punched so many times in this field before I barely feel it anymore, it’s more frustrating than anything but it’s in these moments when I do question everything, I question the path I’m on, my endurance, my patience, it’s in these moments when I tense up and squeeze my fingers together…I had to start over, because the page count exceeded the limit in contrast to the trim size by seven pages. There really was nowhere I could go; I had backed into a corner; Either I a) Started over and re-plan with a new trim size in mind. b) Start over having shaved off seven pages or c) Reach out to Ingramspark to see if I could bypass this. Naturally I tried to bypass the problem because I’m lazy ugh I mean because I thought maybe there was a ways around it professionally, all I needed was the height to stay the same and for the spine to grow a fraction wider, but after some communication with Ingram (which took a week) I learned that there was no way around this, so reluctantly after the biggest sigh known to man, I rolled up my sleeves, re-opened the work in Word and made the edits little by little. This took…Ages…Seven pages worth of strategical cuts across both Paperback and Kindle editions is no fucking joke, it took forever, one day I actually went without eating, just a few cups of coffee and an old boiled sweet I found on my desk…It was raspberry, it was amazing, I want more, might be addicted, seeking help, I’m in therapy…But finally, that page count was trimmed down and this enabled me to continue and I restarted the publishing phase, this time it was successful and I was also able to find a Promo code that gave me a discount on the cost, which was a nice little bonus. From there I hopped onto KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) which is an Amazon service and uploaded the Kindle, only took me a few hours but I timed it’s release with when the Paperback was to go live.

Yeesh, anyway, that’s the incredibly dull story of what I went through with getting Ep2-Rise out, it’s always the last few bumps which hurt the most because you’re so close to the end, and hopefully this edition will be it, unlike Ep1-Dream which as I keep saying was even more of a nightmare and needed endless do-overs the most recent of which happened in December. Not all chapters are well constructed, some even with repeated do-overs are rather weak, but had I known what I know now, then I would have constructed it in a better way, but there is a clear beginning, a middle and an end, there is conflict here, there is mystery, world-building is at work throughout, there are intense moments and there is plenty of excitement to be found, as there is a compelling love story which certainly tugs on my heartstrings, even to this day it’s hard for me to read some scenes and not get a bit emotional. One of the biggest, most emotional moments for me, is the scene when Isabelle is rowing away from Teo on the dock, the Dark Rogue, who has been caught by the authority, a Peacekeeper. Teo is seeing her off to complete the final part of her mission and is essentially, caught, pinned down, not even a Dark Rogue could see him/herself out of this situation without a fight and is on his way to be executed, by a mean spirited man named Calias Harken – Upon rowing away, across this channel, Isabelle stops, she freezes, her thoughts, her feelings compiling into one singular act that defies all logic and reason. She stands up, having made the decision to destroy her reputation, turn her back on her faith, ignore her task which is so close, and dives into the icy water, to go back to Teo, to side with (from Krondathia’s perspective) the enemy. Teo and Isabelle had been separated before in the story, but this time it’s different, this time the likely hood of them seeing one another again is final, and Isabelle learns her most valuable lesson, that people, human connection, Teo’s love and the feelings he brought, is more important than the prophecy of a utopia, more important than glory and ascension, and I hope this translates, I hope this message didn’t just sail by because it’s not some prophecy or force of magic that will bring balance to this world, it’s love, it’s as simple as love for one another it really REALLY is the answer to all of this, it’s the way forward in Equis and it’s the way forward in our world and I stand by that. There is also a moment between our boys Lethaniel and his horse Seridox, and this one never fails especially when I know what happens in the future beyond Episode One; It’s when Lethaniel is surrounded by enemies, having walked straight into a trap set by Ridian, Lethaniel is outnumbered, outclassed, it’s a truly dire strategically lost situation to be in regardless of how skilled you are with a sword. Lethaniel has never lost a fight toe to toe, but he has lost battles before and this one was an insane wake up call, especially when children were used as human shields by the demonic Xavien. The only chance Leth and his men have is to fall back into an old, abandoned fort, to seal the gates and fend off the enemy as best they can with what they have, but the moment comes before the gates are sealed when Lethaniel realises that Seridox’s best chance of survival is on the outside rather than inside, so he makes the decision to let him go. This moment really does get to me, it was hard to write and to read, because Seridox is not just some horse Lethaniel rides around on, Seridox is his own character, he behaves in a way you’d come to expect another lead would, he has personality and preferences, loves and fears. When Lethaniel says goodbye to Seridox they both know that this might be it, that this is potentially the last time they’ll see one another, and it brings me and hopefully you to an emotional standstill. There are many other moments of course in Ep1 and so many more to come in future instalments that I promise you, but these two scenes thus far standout as an emotional anchor. Friends often say when I try to explain this “But you know what’s going to happen,” to clap back at this, most of the time I say “Yes, yes I do know, but not always,” that’s the excitement of the writing phase, you may have a plan or an outline, but sometimes the story or the characters you happen to be dealing with get trapped, sometimes your mind runs with the flow of the story and you lose control, and as a result, characters can fall when you do not want them to, and it sucks, it sucks times a million, it’s like they take on their own living breathing personas in the writing and will dictate to YOU what is to happen, there is a reversal of power if you respect this phenomenon, a relationship between you and your story, the stronger the character, or perhaps the more unpredictable he or she is, the edgier it gets when filling the page, because I try to embrace their character. Much like acting, you get into their headspace, it’s intoxicating, Ridian Messiah for example terrifies me, he serves as one of the main antagonists in Ep1-Dream and is back with a fucking vengeance in Ep2-Rise, he is so unpredictable, stirring a side in me that sometimes I do not know what to do with, there is no compromise with him, he’s dangerous, he’s scared of nothing and is always three steps ahead of those we are cheering for. This idea of allowing the characters more control in Ep2 was one of my driving forces and something I’ve been looking forward to experimenting with; Whereas in Ep1 I had to adhere to some hard rules, to tell a classic story to earn my way into this field, and even though I still take risks, if you’ve read it you’ll know what scenes I am talking about, but you do end up with the black knight versus the white knight, you do see a water mage stand toe to toe against a fire mage, you see a clash between those under the banners of red against those under the banners of green and blue. I had to reign in my creativity and let it out when appropriate and Ep2-Rise is not only my chance to do this, but it’s a celebration of the unbottling of creativity, I’ve so much to tangle with. I hope these methods garner the same effect on the wonderful person reading this article right now, as it did me when writing every day for 11 years to bring you to this point, I really am excited and would love to talk further about this next instalment, but before I do we need to rewind, we need some context. I do not wish to spoil Episode One: The Utopian Dream, I do hope you pick it up and give it a chance, so please read on from here with caution because I will be entering spoiler territory while explaining where we last left the world of Equis. I am happy to share this, happy to talk about this, happy to know you’re keen to read.

So, where did we leave off? I think the best place to start is with the key characters; Lethaniel Presian and Braygon Augiene. Lethaniel, General of the Norkron army, a Visarlian Knight (with the help of his friends, The Shields of Krondathia and the elusive Dark Rogues) defeated The Dovidian Covenant led by the cunning Ridian Messiah, who disappeared after the desperate battle at Korthak Bridge. Lethaniel and Braygon were last seen assembling in the courtyard of Xiondel City months after the triumph, to ride out, to search and to destroy the splinter groups of this invading force that were once unified and threatened to replace Equis with a new world order, one where the Norkrons of Krondathia were to be stripped of all power, and are instead subservient to a Covenant of rulers from different lands – Their Norkron wealth raided, their heritage burnt, their bloodlines cut, their faith to be scattered to the winds never to be restored. Ridian and his ilk have good reason as to why they want this nation destroyed, it is revealed at the end when a suspicion of doubt in regard to the Norkron faith is destructive rather than restorative. Lethaniel, hailed as a hero after the war, tries to convince Braygon to remain in Xiondel City, to rest after the ordeal he faced inside the capital of Ivulien, in the grand city of Davune within Castle Tithis, for within this fortress Braygon and his lifelong friend, Mathias Sious, had been sent to assassinate those who had orchestrated the invasion, to cut the head off the snake so it could not strike again, and they were met with otherworldly forces, forces they stood little chance in defeating; Not only were they outclassed but they witnessed the ancient dead rise before them, they encountered a masked man called Juroot Narsidous also known as the Magpie, and were toyed with by a young girl aged ten approximately, named Cephie Melias, with distinct blood red hair. She demonstrated Glyph abilities (magic) like they had never seen before, abilities that dwarfed the powers of their highest ranking Norkron Glyph Wielders could amass, perhaps Cephie was even more powerful than their Star Caller, Isabelle, essentially the finest magic wielder in the world. Cephie was able to move Braygon and Mathias effortlessly through doorways/portholes and manipulate the very fabric of reality, she was able to distort their equilibrium to the point of uncertainty and madness, but Braygon, the only one who was allowed to walk away from this fight for reasons you will come to discover in Ep2, was convinced it all happened, and that Mathias IS still out there somewhere despite the fatal wounds he suffered at the hands of the wicked Magpie, who used one the most lethal weapons ever invented, the Rapier of Doom. Side note – Rapiers are horrifying, when used properly they can slip through joints in armour, run through chainmail with practically no effort and pierce flesh like it were butter, it doesn’t matter if you’re stacked with muscle, it makes no difference to the tip of a rapier. People often gravitate to longswords in fantasy and for good reason, they are seriously effective and magnetic to look at and write about, they’re cool weapons and the go-to choice for most modern-day heroes, but in reality (and my Ancestral Odyssey is grounded in reality) rapiers would have a professional soldier strip his or her armour off just in order to move more freely, because that is what increases your chances of survival, you need to be able to move and move swiftly. In reality you’d put your longsword down and try to arm yourself with something similar, in Mathias’s case at the end of Ep1, he instantly knows he’s in trouble, he does not drop his weapons because that is all he has, but from what I’ve learned about medieval combat, the rapier is a weapon you immediately back away from, it takes an enormous amount of skill and courage to engage with it, your best chance (if not armed with a rapier yourself) is to try and hold the opponent still, stop them from dancing around and finish them quickly. Sorry, rant over, moving on – Once reunited in Xiondel, the pair, Lethaniel and Braygon, ride out of the gate together with a legion of Norkron soldiers and Dark Roues behind them, Riagel and Draygo in their ranks, they’re tasked to secure not only their own country, but the rest of Equis from Ridian (who was in league with the Magpie and Cephie) and what was left of his ilk. The year we left off on, was 1512. Braygon, promoted to Commander, believes Mathias is still out there, and to have a final confrontation with those he’s fought against, figures that he’ll find a lead or perhaps some closure to what he was exposed to in Tithis. As for Isabelle Verano, the 23^rd Star Caller of Krondathia (the High Priestess), she returned to the source of her power, to the Column Temple, the house that resonates with twelve Celestial entities, the Gods among us, and asks for their help. When they fail to answer her plea, when she fails to release them from their walls, she is shown a way through the temple, to the very top to where she sees the ruin of the world. Unable to live with her failure, unable to live without those she has lost and haunted by a nightmare she’s glimpsed through her fragmented Visions, she chooses to take her own life, figures that perhaps Krondathia need no Star Caller, that it would be for better for all, and leaps from the top of the enormous temple. When falling, her Counterpart, the cat Pandora having travelled with Isabelle in secret all the way from Xiondel City, watches her owner die, her green eyes lighting up before the death on impact leaving the question open as to what spell was cast in those final seconds. Krondathia may have been preserved thanks to Lethaniel, Starillia may have been left leaderless, the terrifying Vision of the future never to come to fruition thanks to Isabelle, but Ivulien is left without a governing body, Jureai and the Chimera Order fell in the wake of the rise of Chieftain Kronix, the leader of the maniacal Salarthian Clan, and his weapon Xavien also known as the Demon Man who grows hideous and more demonic with each day that passes, he who is under the influence of a Blood Angel, a terror hidden in the burning wastes of Sand who is yet to be uncovered and challenged by our heroes. Ledera, and most of its settlements are left wrecked, as are the hearts of what remains of our protagonists, each one having suffered the pain of destruction, over the loss of good friends and dear loved ones, but there is still hope, hope to salvage a win, and repair the damage that has been done, and it starts with riding out to meet what is left of the enemy; This is where Episode One: The Utopian Dream ended, not on the mountain of a heroes victory, but at a place of uncertainty in an aching world. Please note, that I left out an incredible amount of story within this description, this extremely brief summary of Ep1-Dream, is but a glimpse of what goes on and how we arrived here, there are so many characters and story threads I chose not to sew in, a myriad of wonderful and tragic moments which I believe gives the story its weight and power. I’ll admit the work is not the best by a literary standpoint, I was a very young writer when I created this book and also, I did not have access nor the network to obtain the best assistance through the editorial and publishing phases, but I did my best at the time, it’s a strong start and only gets better from here, because now ladies and gentlemen, now, I can speak plainly about what you should come to expect from Episode Two: Rise of the Black Doves, Volume four.

To start with, you will notice that Ep2 begins about 11 months after Lethaniel and Braygon left Xiondel City. During that time, they have been busy, they’ve been busy battling, cleaning up, doing what they set out to do with their new allies, the Dark Rogues (arguably my favourite faction in the Odyssey for a multitude of reasons), hunting down the splinter groups one man, one camp, one squadron at a time. Starting in Krondathia, in the lands our boys are familiar with, they strategically spread, sometimes they move as one whole or split tactically depending on the terrain and their opposition. The Norkrons systematically remove the chances of any formidable resistance mounting, using their superior fighting skills and technological weapons of war precisely and effectively, and with the assistance of the Dark Rogues, this happens all too easy, however, Ridian Messiah remains lost, his whereabouts never having been picked up after the battle at the bridge, and Kronix, Chieftain of the Salarthian clan always finds a way to slip through Norkron fingers. The more Lethaniel forces his way from landmark to landmark, the more ground he captures and secures, the more desperate Kronix and his dwindling ragtag legion becomes. When chapter one opens on the cusp of year 1513, you will be at Rivers Finn, on the border of Jureai. Lethaniel has successfully hunted down Kronix, he is nearby, his Red Snake army is close and ready for war, their final stand an inevitability at this point. All our heroes need to do is to engage and win just one more fight, all they need do is capture this last territory and the threat of war or an uprising would be eviscerated. I thought it was important to show this moment in the book, I think this is what readers of this story would like, to see Lethaniel and Braygon battling together as they once did as young men in their late twenties, because when you reach chapter two, you will learn that 20 years has passed, and the year is now 1532. They’re older, they’re wiser but does this mean they’re now less dangerous? No, in fact in both of their cases they’re stronger, less forgiving, grizzled and fiercely capable to deal with anything. Trust me, when you get to Volume 6 you’ll see how far they’ve come in terms of skill and power, how relentless both Braygon and Lethaniel are and how brave they have to be when you consider what it is they’re up against, because if you thought they had met their most ruthless opponents in Ep1-Dream, if you thought they had been tested, guess again because what is coming will frighten you, I know it does me. Also, the world of Equis as you know it has changed, not geographically, but there are new areas, certain places have advanced, other locations are not even around anymore more due to the war, but something new is happening, someone else has risen to power, and she is not to be underestimated, she’s a wrecking ball, she’s on a journey and she is coming for what you’ll grow to love. You can expect a reversal of power in this next instalment, you can expect to have what you know undone, and you can expect an ending (not in Volume Four) unlike anything you’re prepared for. The book is going to throw you off, it’s going to shock you, you really will not see it coming until it’s too late. Volume Four is a light re-introduction to The Ancestral Odyssey, I had to write it this way because it has been a long time since we were here, but from a narrative perspective it had to be tackled at this angle, it was absolutely necessary not just to start off the story in the strongest possible way, but to give the new characters a natural way into the readers minds. Lethaniel and Braygon are still our leads, but they do give over a lot of page time to a new cast of characters, characters I know will resonate, I would not have made them significant if they were not.

Not only will you be re-introduced to Lethaniel and Braygon, but you’ll spend more time with the Dark Rogues this time around, Draygo more specifically in this case, he certainly attains more page time in Rise than Riagel does, but you do get to see how the pair operate together and by comparison when they’re parted. Dark Rogues are great, they’re independent, witty, and brave, and when they are scared, they’re usually bluffing their bravery, but they have the remarkable ability to amass and cripple armies with but a fraction of the numbers, using stealth, strategy, new technology and the lay of the land to overwhelm their foes. Where Norkrons and Dovidians and other neighbouring nations use tried and tested strategies, influenced by what I’ve read up on, things like the Roman, British or Greek empires, Dark Rogues (although perfectly capable of working as an army when they’ve gathered the numbers) use tactics not written in books, they often act with a sense of spontaneity, they’ve often understood the lay of the land before even engaging in combat giving them the edge, this means they know what diet works for them, they know the inhabitants, everything from plant life to the lumbering beasts wandering around, they’ll use all of this to their advantage if needs be. Dark Rogues are not always honourable, noble, or always outright good, and will often break the rules and do questionable things to increase their chances of victory, making them extremely cunning and unpredictable allies and adversaries. This reminds me of a scene in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King in fact, it’s the scene when King Theoden catches Eowyn falling head over heels for Aragorn, in Rohan (who wouldn’t, let’s be honest it’s Aragorn) and Theoden says when seeing the look of love on her face “I am happy for you, he is an honourable man”and then proceeds to explain why it was actually Aragorn who won the Battle of Helms Deep, or at least it was he who kept hope alive for Gandalf to show just in time. Aragorn was the one who displayed the quality of a true King and Theoden recognises his own weakness, only to later redeem it at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. It’s a good moment between Theoden and Eowyn, a testament to what they’re fighting for, honour, love and the future; But in a lot of cases in my own work, removing a few characters from this equation because there are honourable men in my series, but for the most part, my male heroes do not deserve that same sentiment Theoden gives Aragorn, especially for the Dark Rogues, they indeed are capable of being honourable and self-sacrificing, in the long run you’ll see in some of them that that’s their journey to earn such qualities men like Aragorn already possess, but mainly, Dark Rogues are rude, snappy, childish, dishonourable, pragmatic, cocky and they find loop-holes to win. In some ways I like it this way, for when they do act heroic it’s all the more impactful, because usually, they’re scallywags. For an example, I assume you’ve seen some of the Pirate movies, let me draw your attention to a scene in Dead Man’s Chest, when the Kraken is swallowing the ship and Jack Sparrow shows up at the last minute to make that shot, to detonate the powder when the mission seems lost. This is a brilliant scene because it’s somewhat out of character for Jack, we know who he is, we know it’s not in him to be heroic and brave, but this moment shows a level of growth and he IS in fact capable of saving the day, putting it simply. It is possible for my Dark Rogues, as mad as they are, to do the same thing, it’s just a question of when and how? Food for thought. This brings me to Riagel and Draygo, their dynamic is something special in many ways not only because it stems from a real friendship but it speaks their differences in how they approach life – For example, there is a reason Riagel dunks on Draygo so often, calling him a pussy, or a weakling, Riagel doesn’t actually mean these things, not deep down, Draygo in fact is the only one who has bested Riagel, Draygo was able to match Riagel’s strength with his speed and from that moment in their backstory, respect was assembled as it often happens with guys. When Riagel takes the piss out of Draygo, it usually comes from Draygo’s emotional expression; Draygo is in love Chloe (don’t worry you’ll meet her in Ep2), he always has been, but their relationship never found its feet, so they separated, but love always remained, despite Draygo not being the best partner, despite Chloe’s constant expression of concern, concern for his choices and line of work, despite the distance and other interests that got between them, they always, always no matter what the circumstances (and believe me the circumstances are extreme) have room for each other, it’s just a question of when they’ve the space and time to re-connect. Draygo never forgot her, he draws both his strength from her and his weakness, it’s one of life’s great conundrums; Speaking from the male experience I can vouch for this, the right woman has the ability to make you punch through a wall, she will stir up enough emotion that will have you fighting to the death just to see her, but this power can be turned on its head, it can blind you and fog your vision; For if she is in trouble, you can easily lose sight of the bigger picture and you’ll behave in ways that require a Riagel to slap you back into gear or sometimes fight with. Any male reading this will be able to relate, any male who has felt this way would sacrifice himself for her eleven times out of ten, it’s innate in us, it’s just there, it’s what we do, and this is what is presented in The Ancestral Odyssey, not in Volume Four although the situation is hinted at, but in later instalments given a slight Duncan twist. Draygo is fierce, he is swift, he is bonkers, like a crazed version of Legolas just without the beautiful aesthetic, and there is nothing he would not do to keep Chloe safe should she find herself in danger. This causes friction between himself in Riagel, where Draygo can be emotional, Riagel is the opposite, he buries his emotions, he bottles them, knowing that one day he will burst and feel the gravity of what he has seen and done, but he figures the time is not now, he must retain this sense of feeling for when the enemy is defeated, because the enemy does not harbour the same sister emotions, they employ evil and evil is strong, evil is corrosive and the only way to fight it, is to employ the same tools. This is the difference between Riagel and Draygo, Draygo uses his emotion to fight, while Riagel retains it. I am curious, what do YOU think is the more effective way? I know our circumstances are different what with us living in reality opposed to this fictional book but if you can, empathise with this pairs situation and ask yourselves who has the right method? This level of thinking makes Dark Rogues more human in a lot of ways, not saying the other characters aren’t human but where Lethaniel and Braygon have been trained over many years, typically entering routines as youngsters having the bad sides beaten out of them, Dark Rogues have come from the wilds and bizarre backgrounds receiving different conditioning; We’ve all a dark side, Dark Rogues (sometimes referred to as Drogues) just tend to feed their daemons more often than most of us, embracing their bad side instead of expelling it, knowing that the time may come where goodness and all its traits are powerless to stop threats that embrace the worst in nature. They embrace ingenuity, they’re adaptable and free; When we saw them last, they and their base Sentinel, which too is evolving as they are, were entrenched in the depths of Tthenadawn Forest, and their armour and weaponry was reflective of the environment. When we meet them in Episode Two, they’re scouring the burning deserts in search of an ancient evil buried therein, their attire has transformed from forest green into scorched earthen leathers and beetle husk hides, their diet has had to adjust along with their shelters and tools moving forward. These things are important, world-building is important, the environment dictates how we dress, what is best to eat, what inhabits the locale, what the people or culture is like and so on; It’s also a chance for you and the creator to show off some imagination. Start with what you know, so in this case if we’re in a desert or wasteland environment, roll up your sleeves and learn about said locations, make a coffee and have a night in, watch some documentaries, learn about the place’s history, the dangers, the creatures that live in that area, this is your base, this is where you as the writer begin. Once you’ve a good understanding of what it is you are dealing with, you can then colour in and what do I mean by this? Well, where reality can be blunt and set in stone, as creatives we can exaggerate, we can invent, we can amplify what is there and that is the beauty of doing what I do, I can set my imagination free, however, it is important not to go too far, you have to be careful not to go overboard to the point of absurdity, keep your ideas in check but remain playful, and this rule applies to every area you find your characters in. This is what draws the lines in the sand between what makes a good writer and a great one, it’s knowing on somewhat of a spiritual level, when to push the strides in your imagination and when to rein them in. It is actually easier to paint an environment similar to that which we have here on Earth because you have a starting point, you’ve an example, it’s when you try to invent places totally made up from scratch that is a challenge. I’ll face this task in Episode Four-Rainbow Dawn, if you’ve read Ep1-The Utopian Dream, you would have heard stories about The Realm of Theed and one day you will go there, but it’s still a concept right now, it’s still ethereal in my own head, it has a history, sure, when it was part of the Mythorigin timeline it was once a beautiful place, that much is clear, but what it is currently in The Ancestral Odyssey period, it’s a dark, mysterious country, a country few have gone to and returned from successfully undamaged both mentally and physically. I’ve been edging closer to what Theed looks like and I’ve some wicked ideas in the works as to what environment it will shape itself into, I’ve been asking questions for years such as; What lingers in the mist and in its deepest crevices? How do you get there? And what is at its core? I’m making progress with it, some of the gaps have been filled in, but I’ve still a lot of work to do, we’ve still Ep2 and 3 to get through, we’ve time. This aside, I am looking forward to delivering you more of the story surrounding the Dark Rogues, they being rather elusive in Episode One, the reader unsure with whether or not they could be trusted, and although that aspect is still alive and present in Rise, you will see them in a new light, see them come face to face with forces that even they may shy away from, and struggle to fight. Not all battles can be fought with by blades, bows, speed and strength, sometimes the demons live and manifest inside us, and that to me is a battle infinitely harder than the physical, and that is what I believe is the ultimate test of a man or woman on the path to becoming heroic – Learning to master yourself, make peace with the past, living in the moment and preparing for the future. So, let’s take this emotional battle further, imagine an entity that can exploit your greatest fears, your biggest insecurities and crippling weaknesses and with those that reside in friends and loved ones; Should a being possess such powers, to reach inside and toy with you on an intimate, emotional level, able to walk through the door into your dreams, invade your most private memories, just imagine the damage it could do should it be malevolent, and then ask the very real, very serious question; What could it be after? What makes the individual, man, woman, or child so significant, that a being of such powers wishes to manipulate, change or extract, to what end and for what purpose? To me, that’s terrifying and even though you may not get all the answers in Volume Four, you most certainly will be given a dose, and by the end of Volume 6, it will all be made clear leaving YOU the reader (hopefully) with two words, two words that scare the shit out of me…What now?

There are a host more characters which I am excited to introduce, some from a creation stand-point are older than those who appeared in Episode One-The Utopian Dream, remember, the first vision I had for The Ancestral Odyssey started with Episode Three-Seeds of War, but when I got round to starting it in University, in 2007, I realised I could not just have them as they were, they needed building, they needed establishing and to fit around the world they were born into – So that was the reason I went back twenty-years, I needed some history, so when they were to enter the frame, it would come across as natural, fluid, and organic opposed to just being dropped into the fray. Sorry to digress; They’re all great characters in their own right, all with admirable qualities and flaws, no character is perfect, none are beyond defeat, I do have a Documentary I made a few years ago that covers them in greater detail, it came out the same time as my Live-Action Trailer, both can be found on my Bitchute, YouTube and website, so if you’ve some time to kill, do have a look, I don’t expect you to sit through it on such a glorious day, I’ve just looked outside and it is nice out; Links are below for convenience, the Documentary is called The Making of RISE: A Year for a Moment, it’s a little over an hour long, I made it using deleted footage from a Sony PXW FS7, and a handful of mobile phones. The trailer, although it’s only a few minutes long took me a year to make, longer to save up for, to put it together, to pay the cast and crew, to location scout, storyboard and so on. It almost destroyed me making this, I had many sleepless nights and days where I wanted to just throw in the towel and quit, but fortunately I didn’t, and I’d do it all again, because it’s what I love doing. A lot of thought and care has gone into this, and I know you’ll like the new cast in Rise, even if they do questionable things they’re compelling and so different from one another. I’d like to cover Nielata Vou to start with because she is someone you have actually already met. If you’ve read Ep1-Dream allow me to take you back to Chapter 52 – Blood Before Gold, remember the baby girl who washed up on the shores of Cuether, picked up by Jeffery Vou who was recently threatened by Lourd, the leader of the Long Coats who wields a goliath spear with enormous reach? Nielata was that baby in the basket, now she has grown up and she has not been sitting still, she goes from being one of the brightest students through education, finds herself enrolling in the Gaia Academy (Gaia – the Glaphiar Arts Institution Academy) on the path to becoming a Glyph Wielder which she eventually achieves in her late teens, and is tenacious enough to push forward to a higher status among her peers. When we meet Nielata for the first time, she is on her way to becoming one of the twelve High Councillors, one of the highest positions in Krondathia short of The Eldor and Star Caller, not to mention she worked as a X.C.W.D. detective (Xiondel City Watch Department), for a year; She’s a high achiever, she is reaching for the stars with so much ambition inside of her, but with all this accomplishment, it has opened a door of jealousy, jealousy toward those small few with more status than her, she suffers from a mild case of delusion of a perfect life having gone through it ticking off boxes, instead of actually having experienced real emotional moments, she may think like she has but she’s still young, so accomplished it’s partially blinded her from what IS important, such as genuine relationships built upon powerful connections, instead she seems to be trapped in something artificial, something forced and rushed only to fill a void she feels within, and this textbook, clinical lens she uses, is her downfall.

We’ve Glenn Straff, a farm boy born in Pura, raised in Krondathia. If you would like to know where Lethaniel’s precious bottle of red wine came from, Bilineenya, it comes from the Glazed Vineyards, where Glenn and his family are from. Glenn is your best friend, he’s the man to fall back on, he’s optimistic, noble, and level-headed. He’s one of the leads in Ep2-Rise and delivers a powerful side to the story. He’s an underdog, often outshined by men larger than life existing in a new unit, one that uses black powder-based weapons, rifles, pistols, and explosives. Again, I do not mean to pull you back to Ep1-Dream, if anything I want to get away from it, but it was the utilisation of new technologies and weapons that turned the tide of the war in Norkron (Krondathia’s) favour. Well, these primitive rifles that were once similar to the musket of our time, have been given passage to advance, and because this is a fantasy, because I am not fastened to the walls of reality, I have taken slight liberties with the advancement of such technology while also keeping it within the realms of believability. Glenn’s pod, the Firehands, are not walking around with modern-day weaponry that would make swords and shields obsolete, no, they are armed with a variety of different rifles depending on their combat style and skill level, that fit around the stage their culture is at, at the time. Think of our own industrial revolution on the brink of the end of a medieval age and meld it with a touch of steampunk. Marinate the dark ages of swords and shields with a pinch of industrial machinery and splice it with some Ancestral Odyssey fantasy, and you’ve the birth of something rather unique and to my mind, something quite compelling and wonderful. My good friend, Mr Will Towns who I do need to re-connect with soon, when drawing some of the characters that appear in Ep2, did a lot of work on these technologies. You can find the sketches in the Gallery section of the website; We’d often get into long conversations about what this particular character has access to in terms of technology, what resources have they in store but more importantly, it’s not making a character to simply look cool/attractive, but the things that stand out, in this case Glenn’s weaponry and armour are a result of the world he has grown up around and the occupation he has fallen into. This is what we writers call world-building and it is crucial to creating something believable when readers are immersed in an unreal setting, there are rules you have to know and learn, some can be stretched and played with depending on the circumstances but often you have to adhere to these rules, otherwise whatever you come up with, well written or not, will not be taken very seriously, and your story will suffer as a result. When writing Glenn and Cephie in some cases I had to really be careful not to break the lore, both characters were on the cusp of doing this and it’s hard because you want to give readers those moments of shock and awe, you want to shatter expectations, and there are ways to do this, you just need to consider…Everything…Everything that has come before, every rule you’ve constructed and give room for the possibility for this awe to happen. I think many writers of fantasy feel like they can just do as they please because their chosen genre is fantasy and because fantasy is not real then all bets are off, in fact this is NOT the case, this is so far from the case my head starts to melt, especially when idiots say; “It’s fantasy anything can happen.” The rules and boundaries you set are everything, through world-building you can create subtleties and hide loopholes which is another form of skill which takes time to learn, but I cannot stress that you have to respect the world you’ve crafted and give consequences to actions and explanations to magics and technologies. Glenn, specifically is a good guy, there is not a bad bone in him but do not mistake this for weakness, he is surrounded by men and women who are icons in comparison, this makes him rather relatable, he doesn’t have much in the ways of political power, he does not have an IQ to match a Master Professors, he does not have the ability to wield Glyph from his fingertips, he is not a legendary Knight who rides on the back of a white horse nor someone who can call Celestial agents from the ether, he’s a rifleman, someone who simply wants to prevent bad things from happening to good people because HE has seen and experienced a pain that would otherwise break most people, yet he has found a way to rise above this trauma and stand-up when all others wouldn’t be able to. This gives him an unwavering spirit, granting him the courage to throw himself into hopeless situations just to help others, this does not mean he doesn’t have challenges and trials to overcome, he certainly does, and in some cases he does fail and disappoint, you’ll soon learn this, but he refuses to wallow and sit still, a trait I believe is worth embracing especially as a competing man, and any man worth his salt knows that you cannot sit still, you have to keep moving and striving towards the things you love and wish to achieve, this is not a tip it’s actually a prescription because if you don’t, the consequences of not moving/building are horrifying.               

Next in line is Denzel Suade. This chap was difficult to write for a multitude of reasons, please allow me to explain, this segment is rather wordy, but this is important; The first issue being was the obvious, relatability, and I am not talking about the skin-deep things that we all as human beings go through, no, I am talking about particular mindsets. I’ve spoken about this before in articles prior, but I cannot currently point to any off the top of my head, I write an absurd amount, please forgive me. But as writers it is important to imbody our heroes, our villains and side characters, we need to know how they think, how they behave and what they do, this gives us a foundation to build upon, in actual fact, the character of Alessa Coldan who you will meet in Ep2-Rise begun this way, she is an actual person, someone I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in real life, and bouncing off of her mannerisms and personality I constructed someone fictional who fits within the confides of this story. Alessa is not the only one, but Riagel too, Riagel (his name isn’t really Riagel in real life) is one of my closest friends, someone who has and I shit you not, saved my life twice, once out at sea, the other when I fell deathly ill in my early twenties, had he not made a phone call when he did, I’d likely be buried by now or forever hooked up to tubes. We’ve had our fights and disagreements, sure, don’t we all, ours just happened to involve swords that one time, I kid you not, but Riagel as with Alessa are real, their traits captured and realised in a fantastical setting. It sometimes brings tears to my eyes to know such amazing people, I had to pause just now to reflect because honestly, I don’t know what I’d do without them, I’d probably break…Back to it…Now, I’ve never seen combat, I’ve never had a gun forced into my hands and ordered to kill people (and hopefully will never be in that situation), I’m not a soldier and by extent, I’m not a Knight who rides around on horseback, like Lethaniel for example, but I have competed as an athlete, I’ve stepped into a stadium full of people, walked onto the track alone, looked into the eyes of my opponents often who were much bigger and stronger than I was and still walked off having claimed victory. I promise I am not using this segment to brag, I’m not, I hate people who do this, I respected my opposition and learned not to underestimate anyone, but this has happened in my life, as I’ve had a dose of military training – I’ve learned how to march, how to grapple, how to throw a punch (it comes from the shoulder), how to use knives, swords, bows (love the bow and arrow) and spears. I’ve also been in situations where people have wanted to cause me physical harm; Side note, I’d much rather be damaged physically than emotionally and always have, reason being, it’s relatively easy to recover from say a laceration or a broken bone (of course it depends but hear me out) the pain is almost visible, it’s just a matter of time and seeking the proper treatment, but emotional damage has the power to sit with you forever, and treatments do not come from a bottle, it’s all taking place in your heart and your head, and that from experience never leaves, not really, instead you make room and carry it with you, like the loss of someone due to a death, for example, I still think about my grandmother, I still think about friends who are no longer here who are not experiencing life on this beautiful day; It’s impossible to rid yourself of the sadness and return to who you were, emotional pain changes you. Physical pain can leave scars too and I am not dismissing it, those who have been wounded at war have my utmost respect, but for your regular day to day person, physical pain can scar, I’ve a beauty across my side, the nerve endings are shredded but this by comparison is easier to deal with than psychological damage. So how do we crazies ugh I mean writers, write people we’ve no real-life experience in actually being, well as I explained, I’m not a soldier but I have had brushes with danger (and the law, does that count?) I have competed and so on, small experiences are there so what we do is we take what experiences we have and we not only learn and research them further, but we amplify them, or at least this is what I do, and from there once you’ve established their type you can then (like a painter) add the wonderful layers of human traits those very real, very relatable things. Seeing as we’re using Lethaniel as an example, he is of high military status, he’s extremely skilled arguably invincible when you put a sword (or two) in his hands, he’s overly confident which can also be viewed as a weakness as well as a strength, he’s diplomatic, sensitive to the well-being those who serve under him and understands that when power is granted to the right people, overwhelming good and prosperity can come from it. These are largely his positives and work toward his character. Because he is/was especially in his earlier years highly competitive, he often makes irrational snap decisions, running off his gut reactions instead of perhaps taking a moment to calm down, this was demonstrated when he was young and in training with Syen Kaaz, because Syen was the better choice to take the position of General, Lethaniel thinks in his naivety, that if he topples Syen physically (which he does building upon a prideful record of zero losses and hundreds of victories), he would elevate his situation, but in fact it has the opposite effect and does him more harm than he realises, paying for this weakness dearly…Dearly in Episode One, when Ridian Messiah literally baits him out into a scenario our hero cannot hope to walk away from unscathed, exploiting his irrationality and exposes a level of gullibility, because Ridian is cunning, because Ridian is a worthy, fearsome opponent, better at what Lethaniel does without even trying. I would love to dive into Ridian’s traits, because I’ve experienced what it feels like to be outclassed by people who are naturally gifted, to be outright overpowered and defeated and I am telling you, the emotional pain, the fear of that as I’ve described never leaves, and this is where Ridian comes from – As the writer he was constructed through the realisations that there is always someone out there better than you, that no matter how good you think you are at something, however hard you strive, fight and soldier for, you will meet someone who will outmatch you, and in those moments your character will not only be tested, but exposed because it’s not what happens to you that’s important, but it’s how you deal with it afterwards and that my friends, is Ridian’s purpose in The Ancestral Odyssey. Mild spoiler, I know a lot of you want to know what would happen if Lethaniel and Ridian met with swords in hand, I had a message not that long ago posing this question, and without giving too much away, you will learn the outcome of such a stand-off. Right, with all that explanation to chew on, let’s get back to talking about Denzel and how he was a challenge. To start with he is extremely intelligent, he’s almost a super-genius, and I am not a super-genius unfortunately, I am just your regular ol’genius, so it was a great reach to get inside the head of such a mind, unlike Lethaniel where I could draw upon some character nodes, Denzel doesn’t have as many I can latch to. When writing his segments, I really had to shut everything off, every distraction around me from the open window near my desk, I needed to pull down the shutter, my phone needed to be switched off, my music had to be muted so I could write carefully, it was a real struggle in some instances and although I feel like I’ve done a good job in Volume Four, come the later volumes I suspect I might look back in years to come and have a re-think. Only time will tell. The second issue is who/what is Denzel’s struggle or opposition? Putting Denzel in a room with someone that matches or perhaps trumps his intelligence was the logical choice and I’ll explain why in a moment, but it took so much thought, creativity, and focus, so much had to be considered because showing intelligence is exactly that, it needs to be shown and not (necessarily) told. I had to ask myself before the story had even been mapped, what do the geniuses of this world struggle with? What problems keep them awake at night? How do these types think and what are their mannerisms? If you’ve ever spent time with people who have an enormous IQ, you’ll be quick to note that they seem somewhat detached, I’m not saying this is how it is for everyone but from my experience, when you are engaged with them and are intrigued to ask questions, they often feel distant, as if they are careful with how to word things taking long pauses between answering, you can almost see the gears behind their eyes ticking and turning. The challenge only increases when they engage with each other! Denzel Suade, does come face to face with someone with an intellect that rivals his and at first it was frustrating for me to construct their scenes often leading into the void, but whence I got going with it, once I’d found a base/topic they could work on, it did feel like poetry – When I had a compelling narrative to build around, when I had the two characters face to face, sizing each other up in their own gentlemanly fashion, it just poured out of me. It’s important to note that even enemies can maintain chemistry, this will be demonstrated too in Glenn’s story, it does not become apparent in Volume Four, but by the end you’ll see the connection he has with someone you’d never expect to find, it’s beautiful, it’s born from tragedy and it’s haunting to learn, at least I hope this is what you gather from the material. I find this interesting because if you look at yourself, if you try to picture or imagine your villain, your rival and do this long enough, something strange starts to happen. You’ll learn that your perceived opposite your nemesis to go to the extreme, has more in common with you than what is uncommon. Your counter is likely similar to you, likely they are interested in the same things as you, even operate in the same profession but differ on some key issues, one leans slightly left, the other leans right. I brought up the ying yang earlier, well it works as a layout for heroes and villains, for you and for me. As an author, in charge of so many different characters of all walks of life, as someone who studies this on a regular basis mixing real human traits in with the throes of fantasy, it’s all I want to do, there is so much you can learn and in turn create. When you first meet Denzel Suade, he is in a pretty rough place, a place which is relatable, he has a simple job but it’s something he enjoys, but this simple life of his, wallowing over relatable problems swiftly shifts into something much larger, he receives an invitation from Caleb Atheriax, the Master Professor who is in need of his help, yet this is not the first time Denzel has received an invite, he has been ignoring the Professor for months, and yes this IS the same Professor that we didn’t get a chance to meet in Ep1, a Professor hailed as an extraordinary mind who by the end you realise is in league with Ridian Messiah and by extension the Magpie, and even though Denzel is not in possession of this information, he still knows the mind of Atheriax because his mind is a similar one; He can see him for who he really is and it quickly becomes apparent that the Professor is working on something, a formula, he is creating something that is unnatural and can interrupt natures law – His experiments having moved on since Ep1, he was after all the one responsible for figuring out how to raise the ancient dead in Tithis, a frightening prospect and Atheriax has progressed, his hands his business entrenched into everything enabling him to enlist eyes and ears everywhere, nowhere is safe, and worse he has the backing, the affection and trust of the Norkron people, he’s seen as a great man among them with ultimate freedom to contend with, and only Denzel, the man who delivers packages for a living, can see it. Only Denzel knows a madman fiddling with the laws of nature, playing God with forces we have no right to meddle with because Denzel has that same level of intellect, and has chosen to walk away from it. That’s the difference between them, that’s the tiny yet significant step that separates one from the other. Denzel has chosen to walk away, chosen a normal life while the other, Caleb is tampering and it’s that dynamic that defines this battle of minds.     

Now, let’s talk about the stranger. You will meet him very early on, during the year of 1512, there will be a gap in the story before you meet him again, but when you’re reintroduced in 1532, he has obviously aged, he is a man now somewhere in his late twenties to early thirties, it’s purposefully unclear because I am an asshole like that and want to keep you guessing. There are blatant gaps in his past that do not make sense and or aren’t covered, but I assure you, there is and are explanations, they are not plot holes nor will it turn into an incomplete story. He’s a loner, a wanderer entering one of Krondathia’s distant, backward settlements called Harloth, a place that has been left alone by the major authority in Xiondel. Its people do not make or produce much, nothing of great significance anyway so it often slips under regular surveillance. Harloth is under the boot of a brutal Minister with an inflated ego, and sinister tendencies towards anyone that cross him, meeting any resistance with terrible cruelty, until this stranger, this broken man sets out to change things, for reasons open to interpretation. This might be to forward of me, hell, maybe what I’m about to say might be considered a push toward a spoiler, but I suggest you read this characters segments carefully, of course I want you to read it all carefully there is so much going on between the lines, things that appear insignificant at first but suddenly become horrifically significant later, things you will likely not pick up on until it is too late and in that moment you’ll see what this has all been leading to. Some of these arcs and story threads do not conclude until later Episodes, this is another subject for a later article, but it’s true, a lot is concluded in Episode One and Two, a lot does arise and come to an end, but some stories carry over into the sequel, into Episode Three-Seeds of War, which I have started by the way, I’ve been on and off with it recently but I’ve a lot planned for it, a lot is in the works, and I am excited about continuing this ancestral journey; Why? So I cannot only exercise this fire inside me, but perhaps ignite something in others, whether it be the push needed for you to get going, to make that stroll into the arena, or simply to give you an escape, because life can be hard at times and we all need a means to retract, and all I’m doing is nourishing what I feel in my heart, so maybe you can indulge. The strangers story is a diverse one, whence it’s concluded in Volume Six you might be thinking it’s bleak, but in some of his segments real warmth is found, where there is love that’s earned, love for others and of life, a reflection of how short and how precious it can be, and I know I’ve been building Episode Two up to be this dark twisted story, and it most certainly is that because now is the time do it, but there are moments of beauty in here, whether it be consoling an animal in its last moments, repairing something for someone that’s always been broken, shining a beautiful light over an entire city, going through hell and back just to get a glimpse of someone special or helping someone out of trouble even when the risk is high, even when he or she doesn’t even know who helped them, true heroes are the unsung ones, those that do not do it for fame or for bragging rights, but the courage and selflessness exists in them, and these moments are present in this strangers story. It’s unfortunate actually because although you get a good dose of the stranger, he really doesn’t come into himself nor transform into his most powerful self until much later, which is annoying because he has some of THE coolest most shocking scenes in the story, growing from someone who begins quite vulnerable, as frail as anyone else, but morphs into something extraordinary not through magic wielding or swishy combat skills, but through the act of sheer will alone, something I believe we all feel at times in our lives, the feelings of powerlessness, unable to make any sort of difference in a world run by the hateful; Well I am here to tell you that that’s not true, you are capable of making a difference, you do possess a power untapped or otherwise and it does not require a distinguished background, all you need is the will to act accordingly when in calm or painful situations because believe me it makes a difference. This is what stranger brings to the table, a journey not just of the physical evolution, but the emotional growth of character, and this applies to us all who are walking our paths, only when we wade through the baptism of fire, we rise; It may take time to reach the reveal, do trust me his story arc is fucking huge, big things really have small beginnings, it’s one which will leave your jaw on the floor and was an absolute dream to write, but as I keep saying, the later Volumes still need to be edited, formatted and published, until they are released, you’re just going to have to sit on his introduction and all those open ended questions for a little while longer.

For this next portion, I recommend you check out that silly Documentary I mentioned earlier, The Making of Rise: A Year for a Moment, it’s a bit rough in places I’ll admit, after all I was working with old, second-hand pieces of equipment and was fuelled on a strict healthy diet of cheese on toast and coffee, I am really good at making cheese on toast by the way. If I were to make the Documentary again I’d certainly make steps to cut it down and shift the volume in certain places, perhaps turn the music down as awesome as it is, it does at times overtake my dumb voice, but if you start watching from mark 30:16 to mark 41:00, it’s a section dedicated to my Star Callers, the centre piece of The Ancestral Odyssey and in truth what really sets this story apart from all others, for as you will hear in my speech, we’ve not seen Star Callers before, they’re close to sorceresses and High Priestesses I suppose, but they’re different in a variety of ways, defined by type, sign, artistry and of course personality. So, the question that is likely on your mind if you’ve read Ep1-Dream, is if Isabelle ended the line of Star Callers, how are there more Star Callers? This is indeed covered in the book extensively, but to give you the incredibly short answer, a country as prestigious and religious as Krondathia, it needs a strong hierarchy. Because the faith, Starillia, has acted as the glue of their great society since The Awakening Ages, a replacement is needed to sew hope together – Even though Isabelle did not name a successor and believed whole-heartedly that the religion would die without this mark of tradition being upheld, the Priesthood took it upon themselves to force things, and believed that someone else could fill the role of Chosen/Star Caller. They began their pilgrimage instantly after finding the body of Isabelle, they scattered into groups searching for the one, and returned weeks later not with a single child, but seven.

Telsi Canis Clewvier the 24^th – Born 1511

Isolde Pistol Beatrix the 25^th – Born 1502

Alessa Antares Coldan the 26^th – Born 1503

Donna Mu Klade the 27^th – Born 1507

Kina Aldebaran Serisa the 28^th – Born 1513

Kayna Aldebaran Serisa the 29^th – Born 1513

Amanda Pollux Lesil the 30^th – Born 1506

These seven children demonstrated and continue to demonstrate remarkable Glyph talent, each special to their own, each able to commune and call upon the twelve Celestial entities, making them Star Callers. However, prophecy states that there can only be one and this is cause for divide among the populace, this is where the threat of civil unrest lies in Episode Two: Rise of the Black Doves. Again, this is covered extensively but to give you a brief overview, two different cultural factions have arisen within Krondathia, the differences are small but significant. On one hand you have those who fall into camp Norkron, people who still have faith in Starillia, that the Celestial bodies are our allies, and the utopian paradise will be ushered into existence by the Chosen Star Caller. Then you have the Requorns, men and women who have lost their faith and put more stock into manpower and technological advancements. No side is good or bad, but there is a divide here, a new cultural movement in opposition to an older one. As a result, Star Callers although still exonerated are not marvelled in the exact same way as we saw in Ep1, they’ve gained more autonomy but lost some of their prestigious status, and this opens the gate for me to get creative with how they interact with other characters, the public and more importantly with each other, a facet I had been looking forward to exploring for so many years when mapping out Ep2. Because we are dealing with seven Star Callers in this instalment opposed to the one, the dynamic has changed, they are the Seven Candidates, and they’re in competition with one another, or perhaps they were in competition for the position of Chosen, the person granted power and the responsibility to continue the line in her image and to deliver the utopia; It’s only when one of the Star Callers, the one who is considered to be the favourite, the golden child nicknamed Big Sis, goes missing, is when it falls upon Alessa Coldan, the woman who shows leadership qualities who instigates a follow up investigation into the missing Star Caller, to learn why she disappeared, to discover where she went and more importantly to address the foul sense of dread they all have been sensing, someone or something who is much like them, but not, and its power is growing, its eyes are on them but it’s not striking, it’s just watching; Why!? This is what the Star Callers have to discover for themselves, each brings something new to the table, their own personality, armour, weaponry, talents, and unique magic sense. Their adventure does not keep them in one place, they have to learn to work together, they have to move and exploit their individual skill sets and to draw courage from one another when this being, this Glyph Spectre shows itself. Furthermore, within this segment of the story, as a creator I expanded on the rules of the magic, you’ll learn more about it, see new and creative ways in which it can be used depending on the Star Caller. For example, Donna Klade is a pyromaniac, it’s obvious here that she is more comfortable wielding fire, creating one of the most destructive casts in the series, it’s called Little Red. Amanda Lesil is a clairvoyant, meaning she is more in her own head and sometimes inside the heads of others, able to read rooms, enter a place called The Space, do not worry you’ll learn about this in the book. Kayna is nicknamed the Inventress and re-constructs something called the Pathian Vector to assist travel and navigation, and Telsi is on the brink of building a Phantom Blade, a hangover experiment from Ep1-Dream conducted by Glyph Wielder, Miranda Simbidia. The point being, each Star Caller is different and each one fares positively or negatively depending on the situation, and believe me, the situations change taking you to places you’ll never expect; You really are in for a ride with this one, it’s so exciting when it picks up speed. I remember writing those scenes, one in particular in Volume Six where I was left in pieces, like broken glass, I have never…NEVER written with such a pace before, a scene so swift, so exhilarating, the ferocity had my hands shaking! That’s never happened before and I’m anxious that I won’t feel that sensation again. The only way to get to that place again is to pour even more energy into Episode Three-Seeds of War. I think I am going to knuckle down and do some writing on Ep3 sometime soon, I really want to make a move with it, it has a cracking opening, one that you will not be expecting, involving one of the lead characters who happens upon a situation that surprises even him. I keep making notes, I never leave my house or go out without my black notebook, because if I happen to forget it, that’s the day when I come up with a sweet idea, only to get home and lose the memory. Just the other day in fact I was in a bar drinking a pint of wine, and I swear I spent more time jotting down notes than actually hanging out and enjoying my drink. Better that than being on a phone I suppose, there is nothing more annoying than going out, sitting down and everyone gets their phones out, or gets it out and plonks it on the table so it’s in sight…I wish people would leave their devices alone, unless it rings leave it be guys come on, be with the people you’re with in the moment, time is important, everyone is addicted it’s kinda alarming when you see people in restaurants, going by on buses, sitting cafés just staring into their phone screens, I wish this would change…But that day however, I did complete a few sketches, I doodled a few pages in one of the Oxford parks, I’m excited to portray this hero turned villain, someone who has gone through some serious augmentation involving some rare technology that appears in Ep2, you’ll see how it fares come the end, I’ve really gone through lengths to make this technology (which is a stretch) believable in this real yet unreal world. This new villain really is something to be scared of and in some moments, to feel sorry for. I’m rambling, you’ve no idea what I’m talking about, my head is in the clouds again as always, where was I? Ah yes, just to finish up, the Star Caller story is the centrepiece, much like with Ep1 where Isabelle was the focus, in Ep2 this follows and it’s Alessa and the other seven that are the beating heart of Rise, I really hope you enjoy it as much as I have writing it, I cannot wait for you to see where it is they go, who they’re up against and where they leave off.

Having spoken so long about these new characters, as exciting and as interesting as they are, I always drift back to Lethaniel, back to Braygon, to Isabelle, Riagel, Draygo, Seridox, Master Eran and sigh Ridian, yes, he scares me, he’s a villain but he’s, my villain. I miss these characters sometimes and it’s so strange, I miss them like they are real people when they’re clearly not, I’ve been with them for so long they’re part of me in some ways, I can enter their mind-sets instantly, I can assimilate them and their circumstances – I do not even have to think about it anymore it’s just like breathing, and I love writing them. There is a moment in Episode Two (no spoilers don’t worry), where one of said characters listed above has not featured, nor has even been mentioned on the page for an enormous amount of time, to the point where you’ll doubt reading them again, and then there they are, there is their name again in the black on white, and I felt it tingle up my spine leaving me grinning from ear to ear; So happy I was to be writing them again and in that moment I re-discovered why I love doing this. This all may sound interesting to those who are curious about the creative process, and it is, I enjoy reading and learning about others in the arts, it doesn’t even have to be other writers, but any creative outlet I am keen to know more, not only because it’s nice to talk and to learn about it from someone, but it also broadens your own experience, it allows you to empathise which opens up doors in your mind that you never even thought were there…When trying to write this next portion I actually paused, I needed a moment to think about what to call this, and sadly all I could call it was growth, sorry, as cliché as it sounds that’s what I arrived at, self-growth; Then I applied it to my characters…They too are growing, they too are not locked in a moment in time, and this is where it gets upsetting as the creative because with life comes lots of things beyond happiness and joy, they’re challenged, they’re fearful sometimes cursed with the changing of the times. Apply the same rules of life that WE live by to the characters that fall onto the page and you open up a world of extremes. In Lethaniel’s case for example, in Ep2-Rise, not only is he exposed to a new threat, and if you thought battling his deranged brother in an ancient crumbling necropolis was the height of his trials, you are gravely mistaken, no, Lethaniel is dealing with multiple threats some that go beyond the physical, beyond the ways of the sword in Rise. Simply put, Lethaniel standing toe to toe against someone with sword in hand is an easy problem for him to solve, he spent the best part of Ep1-Dream proving that he is unstoppable whence he’s armed with a sword, sure he is challenged at the end when in confrontation with Othello, but Lethaniel survived, he walked away from that fight only to be crushed later emotionally, it wasn’t the physical battle that put him on his knees, it was what came next which is truly…Traumatic. In Rise, in the sequel, it is wise as the creator not to do the same things again, you can remind your audience about how effective they are, but if these characters are anything like real people they will behave as such, as a writer in control this comes naturally, it just boils down to structure. As the saying goes; There is no such thing as a bad idea, it’s about execution. So to progress Lethaniel’s character I put up a hurdle that he’ll struggle with, something relatable that just may get around his strength, and I know that’s a hard image to muster, Lethaniel is our hero, he does not beg, he does not plea, he does not back down, he’s physically strong, mentally however, is something we’ll engage in with Rise on a more personal somewhat intimate level, I promise you, the payoff is both satisfying and devastating, he is challenged even with a reduced page time compared to Ep1, he is up against not only a new threat, but a trial which requires psychological endurance, something that is what is considered to some, to be the worst pain a human being can experience, something I hope will never come close to experiencing because I do not think I could take it…I’d just die…But THIS is part of Lethaniel’s journey in TAO, this is his test as a man, as a warrior, as an ageing Knight, as someone who has seen the worst in humanity, who has walked into the valley of the shadow of death, having lost people, people he will never see or hear from again where he will stand up to men, women, monsters or deities and say “No!” Even when all hope seems to have been lost the true test of a hero is when he rises to be the symbol he needs to be – It’s at this moment, it’s here where he experiences the other side of the coin from the darkness to the gift of life. I wish this was all in Volume Four, I wish you could see the end of Ep2 as I have, and you will, just know that this story is far from over, do not delude yourself in thinking that TAO is out of steam because we really are just getting started. We’ve still Episode Two, Three, Four and…Five…And when it comes to Episode Five-The Chosen Kindred, when I get a glimpse of a scene or a moment in this final instalment, it stops me in my path, like a jolt to the heart it makes me realise I am in way over my head, and you’ll get a small serving of it in Ep2 and a bigger glimpse in Ep3…Ep4 is a mess but Ep5 from what I’ve put together is going to be something else. It’s wicked.

One thing to note before I enter the final stages of this post which I’ll admit has gone on way to long, I’m going out for coffee after this, but I do need to talk further about the Hardback Edition of Episode Two. I’ve taken a massive risk releasing the Kindle and Paperback in its current form for two reasons; 1) Volumes 5 and 6 have not been edited and Volume 4 is mighty, the Paperback alone is over one-thousand pages which in turn compromises the idea of releasing a family of books following on from the template Ep1-Dream set, and that family is x3 Kindles, x3 Paperbacks and one Hardback that contains everything to the Episode. I am sure I can continue with the Kindle and Paperback Edition tradition but am unsure with whether or not I can hold all of Ep2-Rise inside a single Hardback due to its size. It is true that Volume 5 and 6 are a little shorter in comparison to its earlier instalments of Volumes 2 and 3, but even given that grace, unless some serious editing takes place with these latter Volumes, it looks as if I won’t be able to release a single Hardback of Episode Two, I’ve ran the numbers three times from a realistic standpoint, and two other times predicting the results of editing and at a stretch further editing and it doesn’t seem possible…Which sucks, because I had the aim to release a consistent series…I will likely have to consider other options, I am on the hunt for a new editor, e-mails have been sent, when I find her or him I will push for a face to face meeting, I really want to have a sit down over a scone (cream first, jam on top, fight me), and talk about how to approach this thing. 2) This is something all writers and artists struggle with, and that is learning to let go. I’ve spoken to so many creatives I’ve lost count and they ALL say the same thing, so it is nice to know I’m not alone, but you work on something for so long and then the day comes to release, but there is just one more thing to do, just one more thing to touch up, it’s not ready. From experience this is often a good thing, it means that you care, it means passion has been poured into this thing and you want it at it’s best before you send it off into the world, like taking your child to school for the very first time, making sure they’ve their lunch, making sure their uniform is neat and they’ve everything they need. I do not have children, a lot of obstacles are in the way at the moment, but I have dreamt of having a little girl someday, it is a fantasy I’d like to make a reality, I’ve even juggled with some names, but I think I need to see her when she arrives before I can properly name her, we’ll see. I’d love to read to her every night; I’ll teach her not to feel small when the world seems so big and scary. I’ll teach her that stars had to explode to harbour our lives, so when you look up, you’ll know that part of the galaxy is within you, that each glint is special, and that she can make a difference; Be the star in your own universe, shine as brightly as you can, and others will want to be in orbit. I’ll make sure no one messes with her, and I’ll raise her to be a warrior, a lioness…A Star Caller…Someone who will surpass me in every way, and I’d want her to. In a mild way, I think this is true of passions you put out into the world, you want to give them the best chance of success, but here is the kicker, you’ll never be ready, it will never be ready, all you can do is your best and let it go. It’s an important lesson to learn, falling into the same category of the illusion of control, no one is ever in full control no matter the situation, and when things go wrong, when things go bad which inevitably, they will, you need to hold onto what little you DO have control over. I had the idea to release Episode Two all in one, everything from Kindles, Paperbacks, and the Hardback, but because this has taken such a long time, I changed my plans and decided to release it piece by piece, it’s one of many strategies and does have its benefits, but it also has its flaws. For example, Volume Four’s story is now set in stone, sure I can go back and adjust any surface level errors like typos and grammar mistakes, but I can’t adjust the narrative, and I hear you; Why release a book if you’re unsure of the narrative? I hear you screaming at me. Thing is I am sure of the narrative, I know it’s strong, I’ve learned my lessons from Ep1-Dream, I still bare the scars I cannot get away from it, I made mistakes and corrections have been made to the best of my ability. But (there is always a fucking but) if I come across something I may have lost track of in Volumes 5 and 6, and that piece of story directly effects an instance in Volume Four (which it likely will because it’s all connected), I will not be able to go back and course correct, as the writer in this circumstance, I will HAVE to get clever and creative, and weave the adjustment in on the spot. Depending on how deep this flaw goes, will depend on the repairs needed for the story to come across as natural and organic to the reader. It can turn into a nightmare if this happens, this is why usually, usually writers get the entire story edited before they enter the publishing stages, to avoid these holes if and when they appear, they can really mess you up and put you into a spiral. Given my situation I think releasing Volume Four now, is wise, it’s not what I wanted to do, but I am more confident in my abilities, I am not a rookie anymore, I’ve still a lot to learn, sure, but I know enough to navigate this maze. Doing it in this way also builds up suspense and tension for what is to come next, opposed to giving everything all at once that can come across as daunting, releasing this thing in bite sized portions is advised, from a marketing point of view. So there are pro’s and con’s to this, I am just not sure I’ll be able to continue the series in the ways I would have liked, you may even see a Hardback Edition of Rise of the Black Doves part one and part two, that might be a likely scenario. With all this said, do not worry, one way or the other it will be released, I will get it done, this is something I really want to accomplish, as I said earlier, I am doing this by myself, no one is going to walk this path for me, I chose it, I chose to claim as much control as I could hence the reason why I wanted to do this independently, but even tilting it all in my favour, I’ve still lost to a certain degree, it’s just a question of how to respond, and that my friends is a key take away of this article, a lesson we all must come to terms with, even Lethaniel; Sorry to pick on him yet again, but he is one of my best characters and it only deepens with Rise. In Dream he sort control so he could do great and noble things, he does everything right to the best of his abilities, he does all he can to make the right moves, and yet, in the end he finds himself alone, lost, confused, suffering in huge amounts of pain in darkness…It’s tragic, having won essentially every encounter if you consider death being the ultimate defeat, he never lost, his record of hundreds of fights and zero defeats something he held so high in pride, means nothing by the end, he still finds himself broken, holding onto someone who had a genuine connection with him, someone he failed to save…I cannot imagine what that feels like, I can empathise greatly with what’s going on, that’s why I’ve explored it in Dream, but you cannot actually live entirely in their shoes, you can only occupy a space for a moment and I’ve sat with it, and it really does tear me to pieces. This is where I reflect on what is to come, this is when I fast forward to Rise and it’s ending, and it only hurts more. I ask myself why I do this, why I bury deep and uproot this trauma? Well, I think it stems from the light and dark analogy; The darker you tunnel the brighter its counter, and I hope these lessons translate, it might not appear this way in the immediate, as I’ve already said when it comes to Rise this is just the first third, but in its entirety, when and if you travel with me through this ancestral odyssey, and we reach Episode Five, it will all be worth it.                    

There is so much I haven’t talked about in this article, so much; Each character I’ve briefly covered isn’t isolated, they are surrounded by others; Glenn for example is part of a pod of military personnel who you’ll get to know, all with their own quirks, personalities, likeable and unlikeable charms. Nielata is a politician with detective tendencies who is mingling with an array of leads with high status, to the secondaries and…Thirdsies…I just made that word up. Some characters you’ll even remember from Ep1, Clarisa Viel for example who ran the Travellers Corner Bar in Harbours Edge, the gal who ran into Isabelle who used a fake name, yes, she made it, perhaps not in the ways she imagined but she’s present and has a daughter, Amber. The Dark Rogues, Riagel and Draygo are not the only fellows you follow, you get to meet others such as Roland, Stephan, Chloe Auger aka The Silken Spirit and the incredible Catherine, leader of this rebellious group, she too is inspired by someone real. The Star Callers are typically surrounded by each other, smearing the page with their royal dignified chops and words of wisdom. The stranger does not sit still for long, he is always on the move, meeting a character who was but a child in Ep1 and is now grown into someone of immense power. You’ll be re-introduced with our golden oldies, Braygon and Lethaniel, and someone else they have to contend with, Keira Marsay, that’s right, everyone’s favourite character from Dream, Alexius had a niece, and she is wonderful, ditsy, smiley and bubbly. This is actually something I’ve been noticing when it comes to the feedback, I get from Ep1-Dream, everyone loves Alexius, and everyone (so I’ve been told) shed a tear when he was atop Imrondel’s wall. I re-read this scene often and it does still sting – He didn’t have to be there, he didn’t have to involve himself in any of it, all he was, was a Knights esquire, someone who carries and delivers messages, and yet he fights with as much ferocity as the trained personnel and does so often intoxicated or high on rolling weed. Never does he allow his lack of skill bring him down, and this tracks, it took many arrows to topple him, he never gave into fear, even the mighty Seridox, Lethaniel’s brilliant steed who oozes personality, let Alexius saddle up and take the reins. I kid you not, but when I had to continue writing into Volume Three, Alexius’s lack of presence was noted, I genuinely missed him, and still do. So, to continue his journey in spirit comes Kiera, the female version of Alexius who indeed has very big shoes to fill, you know it, I know it and so does she. If you feel I’ve shared too much, I really, really haven’t, I’ve just scratched the surface here, the river of this story as a whole is wide and deep and I’m itching to get the ball rolling especially now with Volume 5 and 6. It’s frustrating for me, because I’ve been working on this for so long, back when The Ancestral Odyssey was not even called The Ancestral Odyssey; Did you know The Utopian Dream was originally going to be called The Perfect World, and Rise of the Black Doves was originally going to be called Old Future, I’m so glad I had the chance to grow. All of this was started in the early noughties and was birthed onto the page for the first time in 2007. It took a long time to write Ep1, and it was finished in 2011 close to 2012. From there I began to reach out to Literary Agents and Publishing Houses to no avail. I can only be gut punched so many times before I get sick, so I began to study and look into the Self-Publishing market and realised that it was a better fit for me, the choice of more freedom with all the work, opposed to less freedom but less work, the choice was obvious. I was able to make Kindle Editions in 2016, later I created a tome, the Hardback Edition (which contains Volumes 1-3) then I made the Paperbacks. Later I re-released everything in 2020 during the lockdowns, there was no way in hell I was going to waste my time doing nothing, I had to keep busy, movement is life. In 2022 I did it all over again in preparation for Ep2 which has been in the works ever since Ep1 was finished initially, in 2011. I remember running down the stairs in my parent’s house and seeing my Mum and my Dad in the living room, and I said, “I’ve just started the sequel,” it’s a small but treasured memory, but I had no idea what I was getting myself into, I was very young and very naïve. Nothing is ever straight forward; It’s not just about writing the story, giving it an edit and proceed to publication, you come across many hurdles, life gets in the way of life, you as the artist suffer, you have to contend with those things that erode us all, you’re always learning and evolving and that influences your craft. Travelling Europe, flying to Australia, and exploring Thailand heavily changed my thought processes for the better, it was a wild and intense time, part of me sometimes goes back to those places, whether it be standing in the middle of a forest alone at night, climbing a mountain under the sun, sitting under the stars, swimming a lake with no one around for hundreds of miles or wading through thick snow before an ominous mountain in the distance called Dragons Reach. I’ve left pieces of myself all over, harboured fond and sad memories, this life is a journey and I sometimes stop and wonder what I’m doing, what is this all about? It’s okay to say “I don’t know” sometimes, it’s fine not to have all the answers, so long as you’re searching for them, so long as you’re still breathing, still thinking, you’ll make it no matter where life takes you, truth is happiness lies in the moment. Sometimes it’s a struggle, at times it doesn’t flow nor make sense, it is possible to be bogged down with your own creativity or passion, it can get heavy, people presume that when you’re doing something you love, you’re alright, but they do not see you in the early hours, or on those days when you’re mentally struck and need some time to reset. It’s much like a partnership when on this road, not always are the days clear, or an even better analogy is that you feel like a director in charge of a play or a film, your characters are your actors, the world you created is your set, and you need all the parts to move in accordance with your vision. I’ve this fantasy actually, a dream, that one day I will see some of my characters walking around on an actual real-life set, I’d love to call “Action” and see a scene unfold, just to stand there and be there in the presence of a moment straight out of the books, my God, that would be a dream come true. But if that is ever to happen or be given the chance to happen however small, it starts by filling up that page, and I’ll continue to fill up more pages despite the days where nothing is working, when creativity is stifled. It’s true I’ve many more pages to pour over, to cheer over, to feel excitement for, to be fearful of, to express anger, experience sadness the whole rainbow of human emotions will decorate each Episode, and promise to deliver its own unique theme while building upon the core message of The Ancestral Odyssey, which is…Inheritance, inheritance of what I consider to be the most important thing in this life, and that is our blue planet, the very ground we walk on, the water we drink, the fires that warm us and the winds that sing us off to sleep. If it wasn’t for the order of the cosmos none of us would even be around to contemplate existence in the first place, and if we squander this Earth, if we poison it and fail to preserve the skin of the planet, the thin crust we all live on, we ruin not only a miracle of an opportunity but we prevent future generations from adding layers of connection to what it means to be human; This is what is important, life is what is important, existence, consciousness, empathy and everything it is tied to, and if the corrupt inherit the most precious thing to us all, bad things will ensue and it’s up to the selfless, the dignified, the heroes, and heroes come in so many forms to rise to the challenge and fight against those who wish to do harm, not just for themselves and their time, but for those that haven’t yet come into the world; What can be more heroic than that? It all boils back down to inheritance and I am ever so happy to have written to you today to explain this to you, it’s been an absolute pleasure.

Thank you ever so much for taking some time out of your busy day to reading this article, I really do appreciate and value you, and I hope I’ve piqued your interest just enough for you to make a purchase or perhaps drop a link to someone who might like what I am offering. Whether you start from the beginning at Episode One-The Utopian Dream or if you decide to jump straight into Episode Two-Rise of the Black Doves, you’ve my heartfelt thanks and I’m sure I can scrounge up some extra cookies and a hug if I happen to see you in person. Of course, I do hope you make an investment, but please be warned that this is not the happiest of stories, it is dark and deals with a wide range of adult themes. I know you already know but I do not enjoy writing such scenes, I do at times need to take a step back and surround myself with positivity and lighter thoughts, and to remind myself and by extent remind you the readers, that this IS a fantasy, it’s not real, it’s not based off real life events, the characters although some have been built upon real people, they are not exact mirror reflections of said person or circumstances. This is created for your entertainment, to deliver a thought-provoking message, it has been designed for you to immerse yourself in, to escape in, to laugh, to cry (in the good way) and to be excited about. I apologise in advance if some scenes are far too lifelike for you, I do not mean to offend or upset anyone, that is not my intent, but if you feel this is not for you, if it’s in any way having a negative effect, do what you have to do, put the book down and leave it alone, I understand, or pass it on, write to me if you feel like you need to; If I can I will put your mind at ease, my e-mail is listed below, I’m not hard to find or reach. I won’t lie, I am rather busy at the moment but give me some time and I will respond. If you feel angry and want to write me (and this has happened before), that’s quite alright too but please if I may, refrain from name calling, I’m as human as you are and don’t like to be shouted at or worse labelled as something I’m not, with that said I hope you understand. I’ll be sure to keep you posted on the progress of Volumes 5 and 6, rest assured they have been written, they are completed, they just need some professional editing. It will take a while, but all good things come to those who work and wait. This is a big day for me, I’ve worked hard for it, but I’d be a fool and selfish of me not to thank everyone around me, everyone close to me, I owe each and every one of you so much, there is no way I could have gotten this far without your continuous support, which reminds me, huge shout out to my most recent helper Mr Mathew Bevan, who appeared last minute from the ether to assist on the emblem design, the image that appears on the front covers, I designed it but lacked the skill and software to make the effects I needed. Mathew, you really made it into something special, I really enjoyed catching up with you, I could not have achieved the look myself, so thank you so much for your contribution, I hope to see and talk to you again soon in person for drinks and later projects. Big thanks also to Alan Hamilton, such a shame we could not continue with the editorial of Volumes 5 and 6 but I understand why you had to leave, you’ve taught me so much, I’ll miss you, and I wish you all the best in the future, take care good sir. Oh, before I sign off for the day, I’ve still a desire to make a short film, it is not off the table even though it seems so far away, my focus is on the books, it’s on settling into a new job, maybe I’ll have some news in a few months, the crew are still in touch and are on board, but in the meantime, I’ve gently hit the pause button to course correct. Now, go and be an absolute star and pick up Episode Two-Rise of the Black Doves Volume Four, on Kindle or in Paperback, I’ve worked solidly for years to get this out and although this does not merit your attention nor your hard-earned cash which I encourage you to prioritise, my only goal here is to gain just one more reader or inspire just one person. If you feel like going that extra mile do drop me a review when you’re finished with it, tell me what I’m getting wrong, tell me what I’m getting right, do not be scared if you think you’ll hurt my feelings, you won’t (unless you’re really mean), I understand that if you want to be successful or if you put yourself out there in any way shape or form you have to develop a thick skin. I’ve been doing this a long time to receive both praise, negativity even hatred, and although I do not hate these people back, I find myself slightly confused as to where the hate comes from. I do hope such people they find their calling; I do want what’s best for them and perhaps for them to reach out in the future with something more constructive to say. So long as people are honest, I will appreciate whatever is said in private or in the public space. If you do not hear from me in a while, it’s because my mind and body need a rest, I do want to get away for a bit, maybe visit a writers retreat or find some time to relax in a cabin in the woods, a few of my friends have told me to do this, they’re worried that I’ll burn myself out, but I will be back at some point in the future to continue with new articles and updates on later instalments. Again, thank you for reading, it means so much to me, I genuinely hope you took something positive away from this essay and can relate with what I prattle on about; The goal of every writer is to capture the essence of the human experience, it’s why I do what I do, it becomes less and less about the fantastical side and more about what it means to be us, living here and now in the moment. I love to empathise and practice empathy toward those who are close and who are distant, in doing so I’ve broadened my horizons and feel like I’ve grown into something stronger than what I was. Speaking of, before I sign off, something amazing has happened, my good friend Jemma (the spitting image of Snow White), someone I met in Austria while I was travelling off the grid, is finally coming to UK, permanently, to live with her husband in London, but she will be making regular trips to Oxford where I live, and I am ever so excited about this, we’ve only been in person for a few hours, but we were able to keep something going for so many years, I remember talking to Jemma while I was out at sea, working on farms, being stitched up in hospital and when sleeping under bridges, I cannot wait to hang out with her again in a normal setting, she’s always been there. Another good friend of mine, Liz, is now back in my life after ten years of radio silence, we hung out for years in our early twenties not in a romantic way, but in a drunken mess kinda way. It really was a shock to hear from her I thought we’d just drifted too far apart when she moved to Japan, we just lost touch; We’ve so much to talk about now though, especially her 8 month year old son who she named Wilfred, Wilfred is the name of the cat I adopted from next door and now he never leaves me alone, while writing this article in fact he has been on my lap for the majority of the time making holes with his claws in my shirt – Oh if you’ve a cat, I encourage you to put on bird or fish videos on YouTube, turn up the volume and just watch them, Wilfred cannot get enough of it, it’s so funny when he checks behind the TV just to make sure. Anyway, Liz and Jemma are back, Ep2-Volume Four is out on Kindle and Paperback, when I’ve more updates I’ll be sure to post them, I’ve a new job to secure which is important, my belly is gone and I want to keep it that way, again thank you for reading. Take care of yourselves, see you soon. PEACE!

E-mail – taotome@outlook.com

Twitter – @MegasTeque

Official Website – http://www.taotequevault.com

Promotional Material YouTube – www.youtube.com/channel/UC-nc_VEmC27AIz6pP51UVkQ

Promotional Material Bitchute – http://www.bitchute.com/channel/x9K5vwi2SsNu/

Author Page UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B01JMZ2BE6

Author Page US – https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B01JMZ2BE6

Donate to Earthquake Survivors – https://www.oxfam.org.uk/oxfam-in-action/current-emergencies/turkey-and-syria-earthquake-appeal/?crm_event_code=23IGSGNA14&pscid=ps_ggl_Google+-+Emergencies+-+Turkey-Syria_Earthquake+-+Turkey&&msclkid=67bac06580dc1ccdfaaba38f9c48667d&gclid=67bac06580dc1ccdfaaba38f9c48667d&gclsrc=3p.ds

D.W.Gill