Guest Art Feature: Formal Night Locust and Kalara by Raeliyah

I've been very busy with convention prep and projects, which has meant no time to continue writing on the beta draft!  This makes me a very sad panda.

Luckily, Sam aka. Raeliyah has done more amazing art of Kalara and her present day bodyguard, Night Locust, that I can share with you all in the meantime!

I just adore the detail Sam put into their outfits, like the embroidery in Night's vest and the flames in Kalara's armlet, as I'm always talking about how she enjoys flame motifs to reflect her Southern heritage.  She drew a very attractive Night Locust as well.  Very lovely job on his face!  I haven't drawn this character much yet (aside from that one time), so seeing another artist take on this character has helped me form a better mental image of him for myself, also.

You can see more of Sam's work at her tumblr and read more of her amazing Exalted fiction here, as she's written some fun stories in the setting, also!

I hope to get back to this project soon.  I just need to survive DragonCon and other deadlines!  In the meantime, if you haven't caught up on the beta draft of The Uncrucified yet, you can do so here.  Happy reading!

Beta Draft Ebook Files Now Available!

Look who's figured out how to use Scrivener's compile functions!  You can now find PDF, MOBI, and EPUB file formats of the beta draft of The Uncrucified! Happy day!

Download your preferred file format here.

For your convenience, the PDF version  even has bookmarked chapter breaks. Yay!  I'll update each ebook file as new chapters become available, but they may be slightly behind the blog releases.

Enjoy this newfound convenience and remember to come back and comment on the individual chapters, if you can!

The Uncrucified [BETA] - Chapter 2 - Dream Eaten

RATING: PG
- Mature Themes

Reading Alternatives:

• Comment on Google Drive instead.  You can save this chapter in an ebook file format for any ereader at the link.  Click File>Download As to download in your favorite format.

• Access the entire Google Drive version of Beta chapters here.

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The exuberant Djali became her constant companion during those first days of uncertainty. The talkative boy made the loneliness of her abandonment by Auntie Sweets more bearable, as did the constant company of the other Scraps around her age in their barracks.

Despite the canvas walls that barely counted as walls, Kalara had a tiny space all her own, unlike the crowded bunk beds she’d shared with others at Auntie’s orphanage. A bit of charcoal pinched from the hearth at mealtime and sharpened with a piece of shale helped Kalara customize her own side of the canvas with a ten year old girl’s vision of the sun and moon with haphazard trees on the horizon, a bit of comfort in the deep tunnels where they barely ever got the chance to see the surface.

As Djali had promised, life as a Scrap wasn’t so bad. The children filtered out of their quarters at the sound of a bell in the morning, each one given a path and a task for the day. They carried water and supplies to the workers deep in the Iblan mines, delivered messages along the lines, and, most importantly, crawled into the spaces the adult workers couldn’t. A nimble child could crawl into the space between a cart and a wall and remove a jammed rock from the axle. Tiny bodies could crawl into nooks and crannies to survey new resources that might lie just beyond a crevice they would otherwise have to blast open.

The Uncrucified [BETA] - Chapter 1 - Sweet Children

Welcome to the first stage of the Beta draft!  After listening to feedback on the first arc of the Alpha draft, I've decided to rewrite a fairly significant portion of the beginning in Gem.  Prepare yourself for more of the city and more of Djali, who was pretty popular during initial feedback!


RATING: PG
- Mature Themes

Reading Alternatives:

• Comment on Google Drive instead. You can save this chapter in an ebook file format for any ereader at the link.  Click File>Download As to download in your favorite format.
  
• Access the entire Google Drive version of Beta chapters here.

---

The gods took no more notice than usual on the day that a slave named Kalara was born in the dusty slums of a basement in the city of Gem. The cycle of a soul began anew, as it always did, the web of destiny continued as usual without tangles, the weavers pleased with their work. The sun moved overhead, Sol Invictus forever journeying on his sure path across the skies of Creation. If he noticed her then, he made no motions to show it. Her fate seemed settled the day she was born to a pair of slaves in an underground tenement of Gem.

If she had a last name when she was born, she would never learn it. The most the child would learn from her real parents was the melody of a lullaby sang softly in Flametongue.

Shiyan, shiyan, teyah. Sleep, sleep, my child, for the moon will always set and the sun will always rise.
The Lady Moon will spread thy dreams across the sky.
Shiyan, shiyan, teyah. Sleep, sleep, my child.
For thy days require rest.
The Lord Sun rises on those truly blessed.

Only the melody would remain in her mind, a final momento of parents Kalara would never know. She hummed it to herself as she watched the priests cover their sunken faces with black veils, muttering the prayers of Rest and Succor for their spirits. In time, she would remember only those black, motionless veils instead of her parents’ faces.

VISUAL GUIDE: The City of Gem

Welcome to the City of Gem!  Before I continue re-writing The Uncrucified, I wanted to familiarize myself with the many locations before I move on to the next draft.  The rule book for the South leaves a lot for our imaginations to fill in, so I wanted to fill in those gaps for my own writing and art purposes with this write-up and visual guide!

For further reading on Gem, as the following is only a brief summary of 
key visuals and concepts for my own purposes, be sure 
to check out the official rulebook on The South!

The City

As far south as south goes lies the city of Gem, a city warmed by the winds of the elemental pole of Fire and held together by the industry and greed of its inhabitants.

Founded by the industrious miner, Rankar I, who struck precious stones on a dig, the city rests in the caldera of an ancient volcano, Rankar Peak, nestled in the Fire Mountains, a chain of active volcanos stretching from north to south across the region of the South. Citizens inhabit the surface of the caldera as well as great subterranean markets filled with all kinds of wonders.

Unlike the other major trade center of Chiaroscuro, Gem would evolve completely without the aid or luxury of First Age technology.

(Click for a full view)

The Despot

Rankar I would become known as the Despot, the ruler of the city who would monopolize the gem trade for himself and raise his business associates to the status of noble. With their combined interests, they would keep a stranglehold on the economy and wealth of the city. Despots would come and go in a series of uprisings over the generations, but the role of the ruler would always remain along with the Houses, keeping a balance of power till current times under the rule of Kolar III, the alleged rightful heir to the original family line of Rankar I.

The Despot's palace is the most prominent landmark of the city, a structure so tall that it exists both partially underground and above the surface in a prime spot with the most shade inside the caldera. Underground, a long avenue usually frequented by guards, slaves, and citizens leads up to the palace, which is adorned with decorative Glowstones for illumination. Statues of the previous Despots line the main gates of the palace.

Whoever the Despot is at any given time, this ruler and their family remain the sole proprietors of the gem trade in Gem. Anyone caught buying or selling gems without their consent is liable to be put to death.

The Red Stone District

The red light district of the city caters to all manner of wants and desires.  Red silk drapes on the windows and decorative Glowstones cast the area in a surreal light, welcoming people into a bawdy dream.  Interests range from mundane encounters to interludes with gods and demons in the more exclusive brothels.

The Sunken Bazaar

The main market stretches across the expanse of a large lava tube with the central district dedicated to the Despot's gem trade and the noble houses demarcated by bright silks.  Alongside gems, one can find items from all over Creation.  The farther from the central district one is, the less upstanding (and less safe) the shops and area become.

The Sun Market

Above the surface during the hot hours of the day lies the Sun Market, the black market where one procures any illegal items that might draw suspicion normally.  This temporary market exists only from sunup to sundown during the hottest parts of the day when nobody ventures forth.  Most merchants keep themselves cool by covering themselves from head to toe or using magical means to withstand the sun.

Design Notes: I imagine this market to be made of makeshift tents and questionable quality goods, unlike the Sunken Bazaar with its more permanent decorative carts and stalls.

The Mercenary Market

This flesh market specializes in the procurement and selling of soldiers and mercenaries, of which there is a high population in the city. The Guild participates most widely in this area of industry.

(Click for full view)

The Gemfolk

Social status can be fluid in Gem.  A slave might strike rich upon discovering a large gem in the mines or from the favor of someone already in power.  A wealthy individual might sell a family member into slavery if they can't pay their business fees, which are owed to dubious collectors.  Because of this precarious social fluidity, most Gemfolk don't discriminate between new and old wealth.

Outside of the crushing schedule of sleep and work, most citizens find respite in a regular cycle of festivals, feast days, and weddings or the amply available brothels and gambling parlors available to citizens from all walks of life.

Design Notes:  I envision the upper class quarters having more ornate methods of utilizing Glowstones for their residential areas by using intricately crafted lamps and glass to cast colorful light in their areas.  Meanwhile, the lower class quarters can't afford such finely crafted luxury and must rely on raw unadorned stones and holders for their light sources.

The Noble Houses

Each noble house represents a trade that bolsters the monopoly the city holds over the wealth of the South.

The Despot controls the gem trade, while House Arbani arms the military with their black powder guns. House Circla provides the manpower in soldiers and gladiators, while House Sahlak provides succor and secrets with their brothels and dream parlors. House Iblan specializes in silver and gold refinement and distribution, while House Trasti provides a backbone of banking and gambling in their palatial casinos.

The houses try to gain advantage over each other and regularly rail against the rule of the Despot, but all need each other for Gem to remain the bastion of wealth in the deepest South ruled by the element of Fire and untameable desert.

Design Notes: I've included a portrait of a character representing the head of each noble house on the top-right of each section dedicated to the noble houses on the sheet.

On the section for House Arbani, I've included a strip on the bottom for real-world maker's marks. I imagine House Arbani has a house sigil they stamp on their widely available line of guns.  However, I imagine Arbani Halan, the house founder, has a personal insignia he uses to mark the guns crafted by his own hand which are not available for sale.  Such treasures are only available as a personal gift from such a fine craftsman who would never profane such an item by selling it, as the rulebook states.

• Download a PDF of this visual guide here (6.17MB).
• Find the individual images with links to their original sources here.
• Find the blank template of this guide here.

Fan Art Feature: Koh and Kalara by Raeliyah

Camp NaNoWriMo has come around again for July and that means I'm doubly motivated to get working on The Uncrucified!  I've set a Camp NaNoWriMo goal for myself of editing, reading, and working on this story for a minimum 30 minutes every day.  I've already been massively productive, which you can see a blow by blow of my Camp NaNo progress over at my personal tumblr.

I've started on some really cool inspiration sheets for the setting I intend to share here, but until they're ready to share as a complete collection, enjoy another fan art feature of Raeliyah's work!  She did this fantastic portrait of Kalara wining and dining dignitaries with her merchant prince, Koh.  Most people don't know that they are actually one and the same person, but she cleverly convinced her Circle's Night Caste to pose as her alter ego to throw off her growing list of enemies.  

In a hilarious turn of events, the two are rumored to be lovers.  Talk about self-love!

I love Raeliyah's attention to detail with Kalara's gold makeup and fantastic outfit.  She even remembered to include Koh's glasses, which are a momento of Kalara's father.

Fan Art Feature: Kalara Vadras by Rage-Halo

While we wait on more story to be written, I thought I'd feature some of the amazing art inspired by The Uncrucified!  I commissioned Rage-Halo on DA for a simple portrait of Kalara.  He surprised me with this full colored lovely!

I haven't quite defined the designs on Kalara's artifact flame pieces just yet, which made this a special treat to see what the artist did with them! I always imagined them appearing similar to the Indian matchlock weaponry I've seen with ornately styled panels in metal, wood, and shell.  For the curious, I've saved all the weaponry references for Kalara onto my story's board on Pinterest.

I think this green vest dress is becoming iconic for her as well. I'll have to play with a fully body shot of it sometime!

Go Favorite Rage-Halo's piece on DeviantART here.

EDIT: Rage-Halo did another gift art piece of Kalara I thought I'd add. So cool to see her doing the gun-fu I haven't had a chance to draw her doing yet!