Michael DeAngelo's Blog

Greetings, traveler!

Though I’ve been quiet, that’s not to say that a whole lot hasn’t been going on (in fact, it’s kind of the opposite).  I’ve got a lot to talk about today, so I’m going to try to hammer them in kind of quick.

I had talked before about how Quantum Quest was going Live on my Twitch channel, and last week, we had our inaugural session.  We had three other players join yours truly, and we were able to play a more streamlined version of the game, while introducing the mechanics to those viewing, and to explore some of the other fun things that are going to happen in that session.  We also had a situation where I was being virtually waterboarded, but we won’t need to talk about that…

If you do want to see how it went, feel free to click here, or on the video thumbnail below.

Since then, I spent a considerable amount of time enhancing it even more, reaching out to our would-be “celebrity” players (read: Team Tellest members and our affiliates), and putting things together on the stream deck I run to make everything run smoothly.  And at the time of this writing, I also have Kev working on doing something really cool: a dice roller that connects from Discord to OBS, effectively letting the players roll the dice remotely in order for everyone to see it on screen!  Fingers crossed Kev doesn’t rip out his beard hair trying to figure that all out.On the Declan side of things, I do need a little more time to write the story.  I’ve been working on a few other things for so long that I haven’t yet had a chance to really dive into that as much as I wanted to you yet, but I’ll certainly be working on it soon.

Some of those projects have been editing projects for other writers.  It’s been a quiet month as far as promotions have gone, which is a little unusual.  That’s why I’ve been able to skip a newsletter here and there, as they’re usually sponsoring the newsletter and kind of forcing my hand to get one out.  The editing projects have definitely been helping to keep the lights on though, so I’m very thankful for that.

One other big thing happened this past week:

Luna ended up going viral for the first time, and we had a video that cracked 1 million views.  Then 2 million views.  Then…This ended up affecting Tellest in some fun ways.  I had more than triple the downloads of my books than any other day in the last 90 days.  We heard from some media companies that wanted to ride the wave, too, but at the time of this writing, we didn’t land anywhere just yet.

We’ll see if Luna ends up letting all that fame go to her head, but in the meantime, let’s see what else we’ve got going on.

Wyrd Witch Wands

A fairy or hedgewitch wand with green leaves and pink flowers, painted to match the earthy tones of the ukanite sphere at its base.

Tellest Etsy

It’s time to catch up, which means I’ve been working on a lot of new battlemaps for the Etsy store.  Below, you can see our Bridge Over Foggy Cliffs, Savanna Crossroads, and Campsites maps.  We’re going to work on getting a lot more ready ahead of the upcoming conventions we’re going to be part of!

Tellest Battlemaps

I’ve got a few of my maps done, but we have this map from our partner, Knightly Lore Maiden, that I’ve been sitting on for a little while too.

This map and its variants are available on Patreon today! Talking Tellest

We’re running on a bit of a delay with Talking Tellest now, as we skipped the two weeks that I would normally put together newsletter content.  That’s great though, as it will give me time to make sure everything is prepped properly.  This week, you’ll be seeing the Ren Faire Talking Tellest’s, as we’ve got plenty of history as attendees, but we’ll also be going as vendors very soon!

This video is already up on YouTube, so please enjoy by clicking the blue link above!Riddle and Reward!

We’ve got a tough riddle that not a lot of people ventured a guess for.  Try your best to figure this one out:

From earth I’m born, from fire raised, and water helps me come of age.
I give King’s power, provoke men’s fear, I’m an extension of soldier’s rage.

If you think you know the answer, do be sure to take a guess.  You can reply to this email or click here to send me your answer.  Remember, I don’t care if you’re right or wrong.  As long as you send me any attempt, I’ll enter you into the drawing to get yourself an Amazon gift card or a four-pack of Tellest posters, or a $5 coupon for a Wyrd Witch Wand on our Etsy shop!

For this riddle, we’ll need your answer before the end of the day on Friday, June 28th, in order to have you entered in the drawing.

The WhispersWe are currently all caught up on the Whispers voting, but we’re getting into the next writing phase.  I’m going to try to write over the next two weeks or so in order to get the next chapter covered.  You’ll see the vote pieces will be gone below, but you can still read everything to get caught up, since this is still an active project.If you’re just starting off with The Whispers, you can simply click here or on the button below in order to be brought to the Tellest website where you can begin the story.  Once there, there is also a link to the following chapter. Declan’s latest choice was within the tenth chapter.If you were all caught up, and are just getting back into The Whispers, you can resume from here We’ll have more coming for The Whispers soon.  Thank you for helping me create this adventure!

That’ll be it for today, but we’ll have much more to talk about in the weeks to come.  Thanks for letting me take up some real estate in your mailbox, and I’ll see you soon!

The post Tellest Weekly Newsletter – June 27th, 2024 appeared first on Tellest.

Greetings, traveler!

We’re taking care of a very special Tuesday newsletter blast today because something very special has happened: the latest Tellest Kickstarter has launched!

Matt and I have spent the last year making 50 gorgeous tabletop battlemaps that game masters can bring into their campaigns, and they’re available at very affordable prices here.  If you are a D&D or Pathfinder nut, these maps might be a quick way for you to add to your experience.  And even if you aren’t, you might know someone who is.  Please help us spread the word so that we can keep doing things like this, and continue to bring new experiences to tabletops all over the world!

Today is the best day to move on this deal, because we have a day-one backer level that will get those who pledge a bonus five maps, as well as an earlybird deal to get the maps even cheaper!

Just click below to be brought to the Kickstarter page.

Back the latest Tellest Kickstarter – 50+ Battlemaps

Remember, you won’t be charged until the campaign is complete, just before Christmas.  And these maps will be available for download before Santa hops in his sleigh, so it makes for a great present as well!

Thank you so much for helping us to bring other corners of Tellest to life.  We’re excited to make magic with you again!

Our weekly content will be short and sweet today because we want the focus to be on the maps.  Please enjoy.

Wyrd Witch Wands

We’re usually pretty consistent about what we put out on these newsletter blasts, but you know what hasn’t been consistent?  The weather!  Well, I guess it’s been consistently rainy.  There haven’t been a lot of opportunities for Rhianna to get any really nice pictures of the foliage outside, so we’re digging back a little farther in our timeline for this adorable little Barn Owl Wand.  A bit of larimar adds to the magic here, and might help this little fellow take flight, to a new wielder!

Tellest Etsy

If you’re looking for a dark elf to grace your computer desk, Iliana, a Vision in Black is ready and waiting!  This is the latest of our portrait projects that we’ve done with artist barn-swallow, and Iliana joins a host of other great characters from our series.  This delver was one of our fan favorites, so we expect to see some nice attention on her here!

Tellest Battlemaps

I am very happy to announce that the fiftieth base map, Savanna Crossroads, is officially complete!  We are 100% a wrap for the base-level of our Kickstarter with that in mind, but we have to wrap up at least one variant for this map, which I’ll be doing tonight on the stream.  This map feels a little barren, but that’s by nature.  And yet, we still managed to get five points of interest jammed into the crossroads, and without feeling as though they’re unnatural.

This map will also be available on our Patreon, but if a one-time buy sounds more up your alley, be sure to check out the Kickstarter!

I’ve also been working on not just our 51st map, but our 52nd, 53rd, and 54th as well.  That’s because the next map I’m working on is a huge tavern that sits on an island in the middle of the forest, and I wanted to make sure that I could adequately represent it.  That ought to be something fun that I can show off on Wednesday’s stream.

Talking Tellest

It’s kind of strange to think that we’re 22 episodes into Talking Tellest, and we’re just now getting to the point that we’re talking about the Strain.  It’s a rather fundamental part of the Tellest universe, and though we’ve seen other things that amplify character powers to an insane amount, the main focal point of the Strain is that there are people born with powers.

Rhianna and I talked about the Strain, how it came to be, and some of our favorite people who are afflicted with such powers.

This video will be live on Thursday at 3PM EST.

Riddle and Reward!

It’s our last email of the period before the Riddle and Reward expires, so make sure you get your guesses in soon!

What is something you create, even if you do nothing?

If you think you know the answer, do be sure to take a guess.  You can reply to this email or click here to send me your answer.  Remember, I don’t care if you’re right or wrong.  As long as you send me any attempt, I’ll enter you into the drawing to get yourself an Amazon gift card or a four-pack of Tellest posters, or a $5 coupon for a Wyrd Witch Wand on our Etsy shop!

For this riddle, we’ll need your answer before the end of the day on Friday, December 1st in order to have you entered in the drawing.

Thank you very much for taking a peek at this newsletter.  Hopefully the shift in days didn’t send you off balance.  If you can, don’t forget to check out our Kickstarter and help spread the word.  We would really appreciate it!

Cheers, and be well.MikeWant to get Tellest newsletters delivered directly to your inbox?  Click here, and get your free Tellest books as well!

The post Special Tellest Newsletter – November 2023 appeared first on Tellest.

Wild Magic, a Tale by Michael DeAngelo
Chapter One: Feel the Flame

 

He remained vigilant in the sight of danger, still standing, though all his brothers had fallen to the sorceress.

Had he been made from flesh and bone rather than straw, perhaps he would have been burned by the sun.  As it stood—as he stood—nothing would burn him that day.

A bolt of lightning streaked across the courtyard, and the straw training target remained unflinching.  Luck was on its side, for a powerful sage had come to its aid.  The lightning struck a hidden shield, static electricity zapping across its surface, a scratching discharge reporting in the air.

“No, no, no,” Gaston said from the overlook.  “We talked about this, Miss Kreegan.  No more last-second flourishes; no more twists on the plan.  This is your training, and we’re here to see that you can accomplish what we set out to.  Now again, but with the correct spell.”

The wizard’s tone was coarse.  Those in attendance had seen it all before, and over weeks and months, they had heard his words of encouragement slip into ones of exasperation.  Gaston Camlann, a great archsage, was still pleasant during any other interactions with Adelia or anyone else in Forsynthia, but when it came time to train in spellcraft, it was almost expected that there would be some ongoing frustrations.

“At least it’s not me hiding behind a shield anymore,” an onlooker said.  Trevor ran his hand through his hair as though he expected some of it to be standing up.  The electric hum in the air stuck with him, even after weeks of relinquishing his task to the scarecrows.  He looked at his father, who remained preoccupied with the forge.  A hiss of steam entered the air as he doused a fiery sword in the slack tub.  It was a sure thing that Lydick didn’t hear his son.  Aggravated, Trevor took a step forward, a grin already lifting his lips as he planned a teasing remark.  “If you don’t need the straw, I’m sure there are a few horses that might want a second breakfast.”

“Quiet, you,” Gaston called out from above.  “I’d have Lucinda turn you into something a little more silent if I didn’t think you would keep making noise some other way.”  The woman at his side snickered at the idea.

Lucinda leaned forward, her purple dress sparkling in the sunlight as she withdrew from the shadows.  “Go on, dear,” she said.  “If for no other reason than to have this be the last that we hear Mister Camlann prattle on about ‘fire this’ and ‘flames that.’  We believe in you.”

The young sorceress blew out a fretful sigh, shaking out her hands as though she exerted power through her body, rather than calling upon the arcane arts through the aether.  Adelia passed a glance at everyone in attendance, one at a time.

“Maybe if everyone acted like Lydick instead of staring at me, this wouldn’t be so difficult,” she muttered.  Still, she knew there was nothing that would take her out of that moment.  Adelia was as exhausted with the routine as everyone else.  If she could bring flames into existence at her behest, she would have.  They only seemed to come when she least expected them, and even then, their arrival was far and few between.

She shook her head and steadied herself, trying to remember all the things Gaston had taught her.  Some magic came naturally to casters, she knew.  Other spells had to be coerced through the veil.  Adelia positioned her body, extending her arm, hoping that a new stance might help to kindle the flame.  She uncurled her fingers, letting her palm face the straw dummy, the target visible just above her thumb.

As she visualized the fire roaring to life in front of her, the world around her grew darker.  It was a play on her mind, she understood.  The sorceress knew to fight past that trick, that it was nothing more than a shift in the aethereal plane she could see through.

She found her focus, pushing forward with her hand as though she were drawing out the power of fire from deep within herself.  But there were distractions—memories of times she wanted desperately to forget.  She squashed them down, knowing she could never ignore them completely.

Adelia concentrated while the heat climbed up her arm.  She closed her eyes, trying to ignore the frightening feeling.  At any moment, a flame would burst from her hand, and…

A smattering of sparks fizzled less than an inch away from her skin, and all went quiet as everyone pondered if she’d even made a genuine attempt.

“Well, I tried,” she said, hoping that adding a little levity would leave the situation less embarrassing.

“Try again,” Gaston insisted.  “We can be here as long as you need to be.  But we are going to see that you summon up your flames.  It will ensure that—”

An audible sigh left her lips, and Adelia bowed her head.  “I do not want to do this, Gaston.”  She looked up at him and placed her fists on her hips.  “We’ve done this for weeks—months, even.  We all know that I have a problem with it.  I can’t get past it.  And you know that fire frightens me, but you still push me, day after day.  I’m tired of it all.”

In the overlook, Gaston paused, shaking his head.  He knew it was a stressful subject, but he remained aware of the deeper lessons it would unlock if she could conquer that study.  “It’s actually been over a year, young lady,” Gaston explained.  “And I know the problems you have with it.  Fire haunts your memories, and it reminds you of terrible times to even think about having to cast it.  But consider this: I am not trying to teach you to cast it so you can be a force of destruction.  I am trying to show you how to conquer your fears.  Eventually, you will run across an enchanter who does not have the same aversity to fire you do.  You’ll find yourself face to face with a score of archers who want to burn down this town we’ve built.  You have a history with dragons, don’t you?  Who is to say that the next one you run across doesn’t try to burn you to a crisp?  What shall you do then?  Cower behind rocks or a tree and hope to be forgotten?  No, Adelia, you can be so much more than that—you are more than that.  I need you to reach deep inside and tell yourself that there’s nothing to fear.  You control the flames.  They do not control you.”

The sage turned to Lucinda and muttered something quiet to her.  “Maybe this will work for you, Miss Kreegan,” Gaston said.  “We know you prefer your spells to have a dash of lightning or icy elements.  But what would you do if your opponent was impervious to those characteristics?”

Lucinda, the salacious woman at Gaston’s side—purely platonic in their relationship, the sage liked to point out—approached the railing of the overlook and set her own magic to work.  Not quite the battle caster that Gaston was, or that he was training his pupil to be, Lucinda had excelled at, or perhaps perfected, the art of transformative magic.  She reminded Adelia often of the true nature of her spells.  After all, even magic couldn’t permanently change the state of things without constant intervention.

Still, Lucinda’s power allowed her to change the very nature of an object—or a creature, in some cases—affecting multiple properties at once.  When Gaston explained his premise for how the dummy should react, Lucinda adjusted the straw-filled opponent and added a flourish for good measure.

A rogue wizard would make an effective foe for the sorceress adept, even if it wasn’t real.

“Use your imagination,” Gaston said as Lucinda’s magic took shape.  “Picture this…this fiend endangering you and all your friends.  He’s shielded himself with potions of insulation and warmth, but you can tell he’s not immune to fire.  One stray blast—fire of any sort, really—will put him out of commission, and we can celebrate your skills.”

Adelia rolled her eyes, though she bowed her head to hide the reaction.  The sage always meant well, but his words of encouragement sounded more like chastisement in his exasperated voice.  Begrudgingly, she also waited for the shift of Lucinda’s polymorphic spell to conclude.  Adelia already had her arm outstretched again, desperately hoping she could put all the talk of flames behind her.  All she wanted was to be done with training for a time, but she knew Gaston wouldn’t give up on her so easily.

She waited, watching as the colors shifted before her.  The straw dummy had been cinched together with a long-sleeved shirt and a torn pair of britches, a mishmash of grey and brown that wouldn’t have looked appealing on a handsome fellow, let alone the dowdy scarecrow.  But before the shape completed changing, Lucinda had picked out a color.  Of course, it was purple, a shade not so different from what the older arcanist wore that day (and most days).  Adelia had once thought of it as a plum color, though a bit more regal and vivid.  The scarecrow, on the other hand, donned an outfit that looked like a dull violet or a darker lavender.  Adelia arched her eyebrow, trying to think of where she had last seen vestments that looked like mulled wine.

Lucinda finished crafting the faux man’s look, and a fuzzy, almost draining feeling washed over Adelia.  She had seen someone who looked like that before, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.  It wasn’t quite the same—the structure of his face was far different, but the combination of the fellow’s slicked-back black hair and his horseshoe-shaped mustache, together with the purple color, had memories flooding back to the young sorceress.

Though the color somehow had reminded her of the man, her recollection was muddled with shades of grey.  Everything was awash in light, as though she were seeing the memory skewed by sunlight hitting water while she was beneath the surface.  The man walked across a field, a hulking figure behind him, covered in a cloak.  He approached the house, but somehow hadn’t seen her.  The man in the plum-colored robes turned his head in her direction, and Adelia gasped.

She hadn’t summoned a flame or any other magic from the aether.  The aspirant sorceress stumbled back, haunted by memories she couldn’t quite comprehend.

Gaston realized at once that something was wrong.  He gripped the railing, watching the way his pupil reacted.  A moment later, he muttered something to Lucinda and then called on her to act immediately.  Lucinda fumbled for a moment, surprised by the order, but she undid her enchantment.  The color drained from the straw target, as though it were bleeding into the ground.  Faux flesh gave way to the fibrous innards of the dummy, and in seconds, the target was back to looking like it had before she had affected it with her magic.

It was too late, it appeared.  Gaston watched as emotion came over his apprentice, and she shied away and eventually spun about completely.  Adelia walked away at first, but as she considered the embarrassment of the situation, she began jogging away as well.

Even Lydick sensed that something was wrong at that point, and the rhythmic hammering that rang out in the courtyard stopped, leaving an unusual silence in the place.

“What did I miss?” the stringy blacksmith asked his son.

Gaston, not afraid to let himself look foolish, hurried from his spot on the overlook, running along the keep’s corridors with his robes hiked up just enough to allow for safer travel.  He rushed down the steps, his cloth shoes barely reporting at all, and when Trevor looked his way, he almost seemed to float down the stone stairs. Gaston reached the courtyard a moment later, already a little out of breath, and turned to the keep’s exit, watching as Adelia made her way to the wildflower fields outside Forsynthia’s keep.  The sage only slowed his pace when he saw the little, black-furred creature following behind her.

Merlin, ever the girl’s shadow, must have watched that day’s training in secrecy, but he was ready to let her know he would look after her.

Adelia, breathing unsteadily, hurried on, her gaze set on the path away from the keep.  Merlin could tell by her pace that something was wrong, and he skittered into place to follow her.  She grew accustomed to the feeling of being stalked by him and would feign surprise when he emerged from behind a topiary guardian or a dense cluster of flowers.  But that afternoon, it was as though she were far away from the place which she had called home for a year of her life.

She couldn’t wrench the thought of the strange man from her mind.  Adelia stopped, looking down at the long path leading from Forsynthia to the hewn stone gate that led farther into Daltain, but she imagined a different field.  A flatter wilderness was before her, with some crops growing to her side, rather than the exquisite flowers and hedge creatures.  Adelia watched the stranger’s confident approach upon the grass.  There was no path, and, she recalled, there were never any visitors.  His approach portended terrible things.  As she stared, her vision withdrew, and she saw the door that framed his arrival.  She looked away, trying to offer a warning to those with her, but she couldn’t see anyone in the house.  When she looked back, the man was in the doorway, the shadows resting upon his face, leaving him looking monstrous as it hid his eyes.

Adelia gasped at the sight of him, but she watched as the imagined sight faded away, the memory—if in fact that was what it was, for it still felt out of place—ripping and tearing, allowing pieces of the real world to pierce through.  A stabbing pain pulled her from her thoughts, and when the sorceress looked to her side, she understood why.  Merlin looked up at her with his large, curious, golden eyes, his claws burrowed into the skin above her knee.

She blew out another sigh, but a smile was already forming as she considered her own little guardian.  “I’m sorry, Merlin,” Adelia said as she bent down to scoop him up.  “I was someplace else.”

The cat didn’t seem to mind, and as she brought her arms closer to her chest, he nuzzled against her.  His purrs already filled her with a sense of calm, and she let her chin fall just above his head.  Merlin moved about, rubbing his brow and his neck against her jawline.

Rooted once again in reality, Adelia considered her surroundings.  She saw the gatehouse far in the distance, framed by the trees that acted as a natural border surrounding Forsynthia.  She knew she was farther down in the wildflower fields than she usually traveled.  When she looked at the ground, she realized she was standing atop some of those flowers—not admiring them from the side as she usually did.

Her arms lowered as regret filled her thoughts.  Gaston would never berate her for such a thing, especially once she was given time to explain herself.  But she knew how much the wildflowers soothed his soul, and she sighed at the thought of his disappointment.

Merlin understood her lowered arms as a suggestion to move along.  He leaped from his perch and sprang from where he landed, avoiding any of the flowers in the manicured cluster just off the path.

Adelia chuckled to herself and shook her head, knowing she had no such agility to perform those same impressive acrobatics.  “Here I am, stranded on an island all alone, and you just left me,” she teased the cat.

“You’re not alone,” she heard from a compassionate voice behind her.

Keeping her feet in place as they were, Adelia twisted and looked over her shoulder.  Gaston was there, his wide-brimmed, buckled wizard hat hiding his eyes somewhat as he bowed his head.  It was a polite gesture, meant to assure his pupil that he didn’t mean to intrude, but the abrupt and awkward preceding minutes left Adelia unsure of how he felt.  Gaston was a great caster, and an even greater study of people, but he wasn’t always successful at hiding his emotions from those around him.  Adelia could often discern his true feelings just by looking into his eyes.

Though she often tried to keep her own emotions in check, she allowed a steadying sigh to pass through her when she saw that her teacher wore a sympathetic gaze instead of a judgmental one.

“I’m sorry about the flowers,” she said, looking down at the crushed flora at her feet.  She was surrounded by asters and poppies and cornflowers, and as she took care to turn about to face the sage, she realized that she’d trampled a path right over many of them.  She hung her head, even more ashamed than she had been.

“There’s no need to apologize,” Gaston said, reaching out to her though he didn’t dare to step from the path into the cluster of flowers.  “It should be me that is asking for your forgiveness.  I often see you as your potential, and I sometimes forget that you’ve gone through much these past few years.”

He sighed and led her gaze back to the gatehouse farther down the road.  “You know why I enjoy these wildflowers more than some perfectly planted flower beds with roses and daffodils?  There’s some ruggedness to them.  There’s some chaos.  But they still come together beautifully.  They’re like people, really.  If you leave some of them be, they can grow into something breathtaking.  Certainly, I can refine the edges, but the flowers grow on their own.  Adelia, you’re not always going to grow just the way I expect you to, and that’s not fair of me to require it.  No two flowers ever grow the same, so it’s unreasonable of me to think that you should blossom in what way I intend.  I know you’ll better yourself under your own power and your own time.”

“Thank you, Gaston,” Adelia said.  “And for what it’s worth, I know that you’re looking out for me.  It’s just that…”

“I don’t want you to freeze,” he said.  “It frightens me to think that even after all we’ve accomplished together, there are still some things that surprise you.  What exactly did you see when Lucinda conjured the image over the training dummy?”  He waved the question away, knowing that he walked a very dangerous road in reminding her of the fellow.

Adelia was already answering, though.  “It was like I had seen him in a memory, only…it wasn’t my memory.  It was all beginning to come back, and I think… Gaston, I think whoever that man was, he was who killed my family.  I think I failed to protect them.  I think if perhaps I had known I had magic before, I might have been able to save them.”

“Nonsense,” he said, considering what she said, but thinking more to the man she described.  “Your family didn’t…”  He bowed his head and cleared his throat, patting her on the back.  “Your family didn’t perish because of anything that you did.”

That did little to placate Adelia.  “All I remember is the fire that scorched through the house.  I couldn’t get them out, Gaston.  And even though I can’t quite make out what happened, the image of the blaze stays with me always.  How am I supposed to conjure flames when they stole everything from me?”

“I will continue trying to help you understand that,” Gaston said.  “Perhaps we can show you some of the good that can come from flames.  There’s nothing quite like huddling next to a fire with a fine book, right?”

“Gaston,” she said, trying to inspire some quiet.

“And you spent some time in Viscosa.  Don’t tell me you had none of their freshly baked bread.  You can’t make that without a stove.”

“Yes, I understand,” she grumbled, rolling her eyes again at the thought of how many other ideas he would come up with.

“Someday, perhaps we can charter an airship for a voyage unlike anything you’ve ever seen.  There are some captains who churn their enormous balloons full of flames to keep it aloft.  It’s truly a sight to behold.”

Adelia looped her arm around his and spun him about.  “That’s about enough of that,” she said, turning back toward the keep.

The old sage chuckled and gently tapped his pupil’s hand.  “In all seriousness, my dear, you never have to doubt yourself.  Look,” he said, pointing toward the south of the keep.  Several buildings had taken shape there over the last few months, and while many more of their recent refugees had taken solace in temporary housing within sturdy tents, a plan was in place for the city of Forsynthia to continue growing.  “You made that happen—one girl with compassion, clever thinking, and unrivaled courage.  I know that if calling on fire magic is meant to be, it will happen in due time.”

He waved his hand, dismissing the topic.  “But enough of that,” he conceded.  “We’ve talked about it for far too long.  I think the next time we address the issue, it shall be on your terms.  Only…”  He paused, slowing his steps as he considered his next words.

“Only what?” Adelia wondered.

“Miss Kreegan,” Gaston said, having chosen his words, “I believe you are growing beyond the limits of these basic teachings.  What shall I do with you when it will be you who could teach me the magic that you’re capable of?”

She playfully scoffed.  “Surely there’s some grand spells you have been hiding away from me.  You like to show off your elemental magic tricks, but I’m sure you have some other incredible enchantments, like pulling a meteor from the sky or causing an arcane explosion that consumes everything around for miles.”

“Now, now,” he said.  “What kind of man do you take me for, thinking I would exercise such wonton destruction?  Besides, I have nothing to hide.”

Almost as soon as he spoke the words, a songbird tweeted out a tune that let him know he should stop walking to provide a suitable perch.  At once, a little bluebird fluttered up beside him and took a rest on his shoulder.

“Oh, hello there, Homer,” he said.

The tiny bird continued to sing, and Gaston nodded and hummed in reply.

“Nothing to hide, eh?” Adelia asked.  “Speak plainly.”

Looking at his pupil, the sage saw her arched eyebrow and knew that she understood far more than he expected.  “Hmm,” he said and nodded as he turned back to the songbird.  “Very well.  It seems my pupil cannot be so easily fooled.  Go on, Homer.  What have you to say?”

The bird looked back and forth between the two arcanists, as though it realized the relationship had undergone a subtle change.  It fluttered its wings, as close to an avian shrug as it could muster.

“You told me several days ago about the carriage from Atalatha that you were expecting,” the bird said, its voice a mite deeper than Adelia expected.  “Well, a vehicle bearing the phoenix sigil is on its way toward the gates as we speak.  It’ll be here by sundown, certainly, unless they pause to eat or rest on the road.”

“Ah, that is good to know,” the sage said.  “I’ll be sure to reward you for your superb scouting when I return to the keep.”  That was enough to satisfy the bluebird, who ducked low, springing from Gaston’s shoulder and diving toward the ground to pick up momentum.  As Homer flew into the sky, back toward the keep, the sage turned to his pupil.  “And I suppose in the interest of not harboring secrets, it might be important for you to know who is on the way and why I’ve summoned them to Forsynthia.”

Adelia waved her free hand and shook her head.  “You don’t have to include me in every one of your secret plans,” she said.  “I’ll be happy just knowing you’ll have your thumb on someone else for a while.”

Though he knew it was a tease, he still harrumphed at the implication.  “If you must know, this is an extension of your plan, Miss Kreegan.  You’ll recall that our prisoner, who you thwarted many months ago, still hasn’t told us anything.”

“Thoro?” she asked, though she knew there was no one else who Gaston could be speaking of.

“At what point do we start looking at ourselves less as a prison and more like one of the country’s worst inns?”  He sighed and bowed his head.  “And yet, I’m finding it more exhausting than he is, I think.  You and I are not cut out for interrogation.  Especially not against him.  Somehow, he finds the strength to avoid questioning no matter what we do.”

She hummed to herself, half trying to pull her mind from the thoughts of torture and half in contemplation of their inability to do just that.  “We don’t really do much to inspire him to speak.  And it seems like by the time he’s ready for it, he’s back to being unable to do so.  Lucinda and I can’t keep transforming him into someone who has a…a…”

“You’re right,” Gaston said.  “Which is why I’ve summoned help from a talented healer from Atalatha.”

“A healer?” Adelia repeated, a little intrigued by the prospect.  “So, when you and I both admit that we’re a bit understated at interrogation—”

“Torture,” Gaston came out and clarified.

“—your plan is to make our would-be assassin feel better?”

“Well, we’ll start with our ongoing problem,” the sage replied, an uncomfortable chuckle leaving his lips.  “If we’re able to ensure he can’t simply wait out our questions before his tongue shrivels back up, perhaps we can finally outlast him.”

“I think it might be time to give up on Thoro,” Adelia said.  “We know he came here on a terrible mission, and by luck he was stopped.  That should be enough of a victory.”

Gaston muttered to himself before looking at his pupil again.  “I’m not satisfied with what we’ve learned so far.  Ippius never had a strained relationship with the rest of Draconis.  I must know why we were targeted—and here, in Forsynthia, no less.  He came here for Lydick, you understand.”

Adelia nodded, recalling the fear that welled up inside her when they opened the door to Gaston’s chamber and saw Thoro within, holding his dagger to the throat of one of their friends.

“To be honest, this is my last-ditch effort,” he confessed.  “I’ve been fighting off Edric and the Knights of Gardone for weeks—perhaps months—at this point.  Thoro’s target may have indeed been our blacksmith, but it was Edric who he nearly killed.  They want him so they can perform their own interrogation.  And my friendship with Edric has been taxed by our inability to produce any answers.”

He sighed as they reached the archway leading back into the keep.  “Why don’t you go along then?  Perhaps Lucinda has some lessons she can impart on you while I prepare a proper welcome for our new arrivals.”

An embarrassed chuckle shook Adelia.  “Maybe there’s another nightmare from a past that I can’t quite remember that she can chance upon.”

“That’s the spirit,” Gaston teased.  He nudged Adelia further and turned about when she passed beyond the portcullis housed within the archway.

“Do you need a break from me or from her?” Adelia ribbed back.

“Have a pleasant afternoon, Miss Kreegan,” Gaston called out as he walked down the path.

Adelia took a steadying breath as she watched the sage withdraw from the keep.  The courtyard wasn’t as crowded as it could have been, she realized.  The refugees from Sungarden sometimes filled it with livelier entertainment or even goods as they attempted to adjust to life away from one of Daltain’s capital cities.  It had been a difficult road for some of them, but going down the other direction would have led to persecution.  The choice was made clear, even if they hadn’t been the ones to make it.

It was just a handful of residents of the keep who basked in the sun.  Still, they were the people who Adelia spent her time with every day, and she almost couldn’t bear to show her face to them after her embarrassing reaction earlier.

While she stared through the portcullis, her little black shadow reappeared.  Merlin meowed at her from outside the gate, but he wasn’t trapped in the slightest.  He pushed forward, squeezing between a gap in the lattice pattern.

Adelia smiled, always charmed by the quirky feline.  He didn’t spend any more time trying to earn her affections, the cat skittering past her as he entered the courtyard.  Adelia spun about to follow him with her gaze, when she noticed she wasn’t the only one that was close to the exit.  She jumped at the sight of Lucinda, who popped back a bit at the reaction.

“And now it seems I have two scares to apologize for,” Lucinda said with a snicker.  “I must say, young lady, I wasn’t expecting you to react in such a way to Bartleby.”  When Adelia responded merely with an arched eyebrow, Lucinda stepped back and swept out her hand toward the straw dummy.  “Your target for the afternoon?  I figured he needed a name.  Although with such a frightened reaction, perhaps he should have had a more apt name, like Skull-cracker or—”

“It’s all right, Lucinda,” Adelia said.  “You couldn’t have known I would be scared.  He just… He looked like someone I think I’ve seen before.”

“Of course, child,” the haughty woman said.  “Well, I am sorry.  Here I took a perfectly fine day and soured it.”

“That’s not true,” Adelia replied.  “It was bound to be a struggle as soon as we knew I would be fighting against myself trying to work my way through any fiery spells.  I just can’t seem to tap into the arcane for that kind of magic.”

“And you shouldn’t be forced to,” Lucinda said.  “It’s as I say, dear: you can try to change the form of something, but eventually it always returns to the shape it needs to be.  And in your case, that’s someone who doesn’t want to bother with flames.”

“Thank you, Lucinda,” Adelia said with a smile.

“Now, now,” the plump sorceress replied.  “I don’t think that Gaston’s reasoning is without merit.  There’s something beneath the veil that worries me about your reaction to fire as well.  We just want to be certain that in the face of it, you don’t find yourself in more trouble than you ought to.  You can’t always pull the stunt you did with the magistrate at the signing—summoning ice and casting a new look upon it to have it look like flickering flames.”

Adelia stared at the other arcanist for a while before gently touching her shoulder.  “Gaston was just telling me he would be busy attending to some visitors to the keep.  He wanted to know if you perhaps had any new lessons for me.”

Though a thin smile was upon Lucinda’s lips, she narrowed her eyes while she folded her arms under her chest.  “My, you’ve learned a few little tricks of your own, haven’t you?  Like how to avoid parts of a conversation you don’t want to deal with.  I wonder who you picked that up from.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Adelia pushed back on her, but a moment later, she opened her eyes wider, uncovering another revelation.  “You’re doing it right now, aren’t you?”

Her smile parted, for Lucinda was at once shocked that she had been found out and proud of her protégé.  “You are too smart for your own good, you know?”  She spun about, sweeping a strand of her grey hair out from in front of her face as she drew deeper into the keep.  “Truth be told, I believe we’re at a place where I might take lessons from you, dear.”

“That can’t possibly be true,” Adelia insisted.

Lucinda chuckled.  “It may be a point that you’ll never quite have control over transformative magic as I do, but while I excel at that, I’ve never really put as much effort into some of the other spells or even schools of magic that you’ve dabbled in.  True, I could pull something out of the aether in a pinch, but you’ve come so far in so short a time.”  She hummed to herself, stopping just before she passed beneath an archway that led toward the steps to the second story of the keep.  “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever been this proud of someone before.”

Adelia bowed her head at the flattery, but she sensed something else in what Lucinda was telling her.  “You almost sound sad to say it,” she thought.

“Well, truth be told, I feel as though I’m not needed here as much as I used to be.  Miss Kreegan, I trust you’ll keep this between us, but I’m considering leaving.  As I said before, there’s not much more by the way of arcane knowledge that I can bestow upon you, and…”  She blew out a frustrated sigh and spun back around toward the girl.  “Master Camlann was a fun diversion for a while, but he’s proven to be a bit more resilient than I expected.  And while I’ll always enjoy a game of cat and mouse—as you did, if I’m not mistaken—eventually, the cat has to eat.”  Even Lucinda seemed to almost blush at that scandalous remark.  She waved her hand as though to shoo away any embarrassing thoughts.  “What I mean to say is that I’m not ready to pursue him to the ends of the world when it’s clear he’s more enthralled with you.”

She threw up her hands as the words she spoke resonated in the courtyard and she heard them again.  Clasping them together, it was almost as if she were trying to pray.  “That was explained poorly, and I’d like to try again,” she said, almost eliciting a giggle from the aspiring sorceress.  “Adelia, you are like a puzzle Gaston is trying to understand.  There’s a riddle about you, and it goes beyond just your hesitation to work with fire.  There’s a deep, resonant question about just why you’re as powerful as you are and how you accomplished such magical prowess without study.  Your teacher, bless his heart, will go to the ends of the world to figure you out, because he sees in you—as I do—the beginning of something incredible.”

Those kind words were perhaps the most solemn that Lucinda had ever sent her way, and Adelia felt bare having heard them.  Tears fought their way to the rims of her eyes, and Lucinda moved forward to give her a shoulder to lean on.

“Oh, were you only a handsome old wizard who wanted me to stay nearby,” she teased.  “Chin up, dear.  I won’t be going anywhere for some time.”

The post Wild Magic – Chapter One Preview appeared first on Tellest.

Greetings travelers.  It is with heavy hearts that we must announce that there have been significant layoffs here in Tellest.

No, the writers and the artists and everyone are safe (for now).  But the characters have proven to be much too expensive, so we’ve had to let some of them go.

That’s not to say that we’re going to let our stories dry up, no.  We’re just going to be making the conscious decision to hire replacement characters who are more affordable.

From now on, all human characters will be played by this lass:

All dwarven characters will be played by this little guy:

All gnolls will be played by this handsome fella:

And of course, goblins and gremlins will be played by this adorable scallywag:

I am aware that we have plenty more races than that, but we’ll have to make due with them for now.  We do, however have an understudy who is currently learning the roles of all other Tellest characters.

Thank you for your understanding as we make our way through this very troubling time.  With these cost-cutting endeavors, we should be able to begin saving up money for our next big dream project: an all-kaja production of Cats!

The post Tellest Announcing Layoffs appeared first on Tellest.

Greetings travelers!

A post like this has been a long time coming. I’m honestly a little embarrassed to talk about it, because it has been so long since an official post. Did you know that the last State of Tellest we ran took place in 2020? Multiple books have released since then, and we did an immense amount of other work outside of the regular releases, so this newsletter is going to cover some of the accolades we’ve had, and some of the things that we have coming up. I’ll make it worth your while, too, as we’ll have some goodies to talk to you about toward the end of this post.

Stories Added to the Catalog

You can’t talk about a literary universe without talking about the books, so we’ll start things off there. Over the three years since we’ve released a State of Tellest, we’ve released two new books. The first is D’Aprile’s Fools, which received some nice responses from Outstanding Creator Awards, as in 2021, it received the Best Writing in Fiction award for the Winter season, came in second place for Best Fiction Book, and had many honorable mentions in other categories.

 

 

We also released Tales of Tellest: Volume 2, which introduces readers to 24 new stories in the Tellest universe, from five authors, and it moves the overall tapestry of the world along in some very interesting ways. And even though we had released that book, we had also been hard at work releasing more stories for the universe as well. We’re already well on our way to filling the pages of our eventual Tales of Tellest Volume 3

Upcoming Books and Stories

Of course, where we’re going is just as important as where we’ve been, and we have a lot to talk about there as well. At the time of this writing, I am in the process of editing two books which we are trying to release later this year

The first is the novelization of Quantum Quest. This story has been a long time coming, and after a lot of work, many cuts, and a lot of bonus scenes, it’s nearing completion on my end before it goes to the editors (I actually sent it out late last week). It’ll be great to show that off to players so that they can see that, even though Quantum Quest is a relatively simple game, it can still have an interesting backstory behind it.

The second book that we’re working on cleaning up and getting out into the world is the trilogy capper for Ancestral Magic, Adelia’s series. Wild Magic is an immense story that sort of serves as Adelia’s odyssey, bringing her as far from her home as she’s ever been, and helping her to learn more about herself, her history, and her powers. This book was much tighter from the beginning, so it shouldn’t need as much cuts and stitches. We’re looking forward to bringing Adelia’s story to life as well.

After that, my focus is going to shift to Silver Serpent’s second book. I had already nailed down a decent chunk of that story back in 2020, but life pulled me away from it, and I decided to focus on D’Aprile’s Fools instead. I have been eager to get back to Silver Serpent for quite some time, because there is a much broader part of the tapestry that those tales tell, and the heroes that we follow there are very compelling.

If I manage to wrap up Silver Serpent in an acceptable amount of time, I may shift over to The Whispers once more, as we left that story unresolved. There was a reason for that, however. Where last we left Declan, he had suffered a grand defeat. In all that time, we don’t know where he left off, but my suspicion is that when he wakes up, he’ll have even more voices in his head than he did before…

After The Whispers, I’m going to try and cap off the Thunderfury Saga as well. All of our characters from the Tales of Tellest series ought to be getting their third books before long, and I’m excited to show Bolt’s wrap-up because we do some awesome things with him and his story.

Now, one of the things that has eluded me for a while is The Maelstrom, which is the second book in Icarus’s saga. I’m trying to get it done right, and that means I take my time with it a bit more than I probably should. I write in strange circumstances with that book, but I think we’re going to have to tweak what we’re doing there in order to bring it back in house and hurry up production on it. Time will tell.

We also have our very first children’s book taking shape, and we’d like to do all we can to get that prepared for Summer if we can. As we rely on the work of an artist to help us realize that project, things are up in the air with that based on his schedule. We’ll let you know more once we get that wrapped up.

Circling back to Wild Magic, as that is the first trilogy capper that we will have released in ten years, we are going to go all out when it comes to promoting it. There’s going to be an immense push to make sure people are aware that Tellest exists, and to try and continue to bring fans into the fold, where they can see a world that grows by leaps and bounds every year.

The Art of Tellest

One thing that we never, ever stop is the art that we continue to pull together for the Tellest universe. Whether it’s character art, concept art, or cover art, there has always been a tremendous amount of work that is done to make sure that fantasy lovers can immerse themselves in the world of Tellest. This expanded to things like maps and sigils in 2019 and 2020, and since then, we’ve made the entire world interactive on World Anvil.

 

The World Comes Alive

One of the ways we have begun using the art is on our Etsy shop. Over the past eight months, we’ve stocked the Tellest Etsy store with hundreds of items, from posters, to mousepads, to stickers and bookmarks. We’ve got more things than ever that we’re showing off, and we’re becoming a one-stop fantasy shop that you can truly lose yourself within.

 

Patreon Updates

Part of the reason that we even thought to make an Etsy store to begin with was that we were trying to add value to the Tellest Patreon, and give people even more reasons to want to support our little fantasy world. We added things like the sticker club and the poster club to Patreon to make sure our biggest fans would receive awesome content every day, monthly, and ongoing. Tellest patrons can also get items from the Etsy store at a nice discount.

One of the things that we did this year was introduce Tellest Battlemaps to both Patreon and Etsy. At least twice a month, my brother Matthew and I put out a new battlemap that you can use for your tabletop games. At the time of this writing, we’ve already got 13 battlemaps out, with 45 variants to those maps that you can get on Patreon.

Wyrd Witch Wands

And those are not the only items that we added to the Etsy shop and the Tellest Patreon. One of our biggest new items are Wyrd Witch Wands, which is Rhianna’s newest project, and something that brings her immense joy. Rhianna crafts these beautiful, one-of-a-kind wands out of wood, clay, and precious stones, and really brings magic into this world.

But one of the coolest things is that we’re planning on integrating it a little more deliberately into the Tellest universe, as Rhianna has been working on a story that ties everything together very nicely. She has been working like mad during her downtime to build up her inventory, and we are looking forward to showing all of those off more as we build up our brand.

Quantum Quest

Now, looping back to Quantum Quest… Our novelization is not the only project we’re working on when it comes to our dungeon crawling side project. We’re making moves with the Tabletop versions of Quantum Quest again, and are going to be really focusing on getting Reinforcements out this year. While we have to live with COVID (one of our friends was sick for a week with it just last month), we know that we can’t hold onto this expansion forever, so we’re going to let it out into the world later this year as we launch our Kickstarter for it.

And not only that, but we’re looking to begin showing previews for our second expansion, which adds to the game’s mechanics in some very cool ways. Quantum Quest will always have an element of luck to it, but this adds more tactical value to the game, and we’re excited for folks to experience what we have to share.

TowerSphere

Now, Quantum Quest isn’t the only experience that we’re working on anymore. In 2022, we also introduced the concept of TowerSphere into Tellest. It’s a sporting event that begins to take the world by storm, and though it will certainly be present in stories going forward, we’re also working slowly but surely to turn it into a game that you can experience on your table as well. And we’re going all out on it, making tremendous strides toward branding to make sure that you can find your favorite teams and root for them on the table, in stories, and beyond.

Fan Expo 2023

One way that we can bring all of this together is by getting in front of the people who take the magic we put out into the world and multiply it a hundredfold. It has been three long years, but Tellest is doing what it can to make it back to a live convention later this year. For our big return, we’re planning on breaking out all the stops. Everything you see up there plus some is what we’re planning on bringing to the convention, though we certainly have to be aware that space is limited.

With that in mind, for some of the items, most notably the ones that are more “produce on demand”, we are going to do things a little differently than normal. That’s why we commissioned Francois to create this incredible brochure for us:

Right now, that might look a little small and busy, but that’s going to be a pretty sizable 11×17 brochure, and it’ll hit on a big chunk of what we do—yet not even all of it. You’ll notice that TowerSphere isn’t mentioned anywhere, nor is there a sign of our upcoming children’s book. But Tellest is growing by leaps and bounds, and this will continue to be something we refine over the years.

 

Riddles and Rewards

For all those who are here on the website who have not subscribed to the newsletter, one of the things that we do on the newsletter is something called Riddle and Reward.  Anybody is free to enter, and I don’t even need the right answer for you to qualify to be a part of our drawing.  The person who is randomly chosen is given their choice of reward, which as of right now is one of the three of these:

A $5 Amazon eGift CardA 4-pack of Tellest postersA $5 coupon to use on one of Rhianna’s wands on the Tellest Etsy store

Let’s take a look at the most recent riddle I ran:

I cover cities and destroy mountains,
I make men blind, yet help them see.

The answer we were looking for here was sand. But even if you would have said “shoes”, I would have entered you into the drawing.  Everyone should be having a good time!

And of course, every week I’m also showing off tons of great Tellest goodies, like what comes through on the Etsy shop, what new projects we’re working on, and some other neat things from the world of Tellest and beyond.  So what are you waiting for?  Subscribe to the Tellest newsletter today!

The post State of Tellest – March 2023 appeared first on Tellest.

Howdy!

I’ve got a the number one trick to write a lot, and I’m going to share it with you now.  All you have to do is (potentially) slip a disc in your back, and then you’ll get steroids that keep you up at night.  No, I don’t recommend it, but it hasn’t come without some ridiculous benefits.

At midnight on Sunday morning, I woke up and knew that it wasn’t going to be a good time to try and head back to sleep.  Once I was sure there was a decent amount of snoring happening around me (I won’t say whether Rhianna or Luna is louder), I decided to retreat to my writing nook and write until I felt tired enough to nod off again.  By the time two o’clock hit, I was already at my word count for the day.  I looked back at my word counts over all the projects that we’ve had over the last year or so, and realized that I could have my best writing day on record if I just did a little over double my word count.  Because hey, if I can write that much in two hours of a midnight session, what’s to stop me over the course of a whole day?  Other than video games, The Witcher, cleaning up the house when I felt like I could stand, and trying to take the dogs on a walk.

Well, the good news is… mission accomplished!

After securing my highest word count of the 2020s thus far (as far as I know), we’re incredibly close to finishing this latest short story.  It’s almost a two-parter in a way: a philosophical, thoughtful opening, and a wacky, unexpected close that I think work well together.  With luck, I’ll be done with this story by the end of the month, if not the end of the week.  Then, I just have to turn my attention to one more Rhys story before I help Rhianna with Shadow Serenade.

While we’re waiting for all that, I figured it would be a good time to return to the first of these Rhys stories.  It’s been four months since I finished the first in the trilogy, Shards of Time, and with this one coming out soon, it’s nice to revisit.  Newsletter subscribers were able to see the story early, so if you were waiting for a reason to subscribe, besides free books, that short story might do the trick for you.

My hope is that by this time next week, I’ll be ready to preview the second story for newsletter subscribers while I’m working on the final Rhys story for Tales Volume 2.  After that, it’s just one more story to go before the second anthology is ready to send out into the world.  Then it’s a quick pivot to Quantum Quest again before resuming Wild Magic.

It’s looking like it’s going to be a busy first half of the year, and we have a few other little projects going on, like a children’s book (which newsletter subscribers saw early as well), and most likely the launch of the Quantum Quest expansion, after so many years of it being ready and just waiting for the right time to debut it (which sadly hasn’t come yet due to COVID).  There’s a chance that’s a back half of the year project, however.

There’s also some other things you might notice changing.

 

Mike Takes Marketing Advice

So, I feel like I’ve got the writing side of storytelling down pat, slow pace notwithstanding.  But one of the things that I’ve always maintained I’ve had a problem with is the marketing.  Well, I’ve recently received some advice on how to tackle that, so you’ll likely see a few things changing in the newsletter and here on the site.  It won’t be so much as to be distracting, but will help to integrate the other things that are going on a little bit.  One of the things that I’m supposed to be doing is clapping myself on the back a little bit whenever good news comes my way from other people, which I have a hard time doing for some reason.  I almost have to hype myself up to be my own hype man, which is strange considering how often I’m promoting the work of others.

So, in an effort to try and change for the better in that regard, I’d like to share two articles related to D’Aprile’s Fools.

The first is an interview that I was lucky enough to have with my good friend, Kev Gallagher.  He and I have been best friends for a while, and he is beginning to promote books and other projects the way I promote fantasy.  I wanted to help him get the word out about his gigs, so it was a little bit of a “you scratch my back, I scratch yours” sort of situation.  The good news is, there’s perhaps no one out there who would be able to conduct this interview that didn’t know as much about the behind-the-scenes as Kev, so it went off without a hitch.

I also submitted my book to Outstanding Creator Awards, and ended up receiving a glowing review for D’Aprile’s Fools.  I cannot get over the kind words, and am going to throw some of that onto the Amazon product page for the book before the end of the week.

One of the other things that my marketing expert recommended was trying to integrate everything a bit better.  That means you’ll see a bit of overlap from the newsletter on the website, because I’m going to start using the newsletter to blog a bit.  You’ll still get all the exclusive bits, but the blog will encourage readers to sign up.

I’m also going to work on integrating some media buttons in the newsletter from here on out.  That’s because Tellest is everywhere, and I don’t show it off in all its forms as much as I should.  Part of that means keeping up with those social media accounts a little better, which may mean looking to collaborate with someone to help me out, but we’ll see where that all ends up.

The good news is that there will be more places to follow me if you prefer to look at art on Instagram, or pin new fantasy items on Pinterest.

And as we move forward with other little bits of marketing improvements, you’ll likely see some other projects begin to pitch ahead.

 

Riddle and Reward!

Did you know that Tellest newsletter subscribers are able to participate in pretty frequent giveaways?  It’s true.  Every week or so, I run a riddle in the newsletter, and subscribers can answer it for an entry into a giveaway for a $5 Amazon gift card, or a 4-pack of Tellest posters.  Just one more reason to consider subscribing if you haven’t already!

We’ve got more than a few things on the way, so keep on your toes for next week.  There’s likely to be a big blog post coming your way!

The post Blog Post – Final Tales of Tellest: Volume 2 Shorts Are Nearing Completion appeared first on Tellest.

Well this is a pleasant surprise.  I learned yesterday that Mageborn, the first book in the Ancestral Magic series, was chosen as the Best Fantasy of September 2021 by Manybooks.net.  It’s a huge honor to me, and I couldn’t be happier to throw that little pink badge on my book cover!  You can click on the image below to head over to the article where Mageborn appeared, or just click here.

Mageborn is the first novel in the Ancestral Magic series by Michael DeAngelo. This fantasy story features a woman named Adelia Kreegan, who is summoned to Forsynthia by the master sage, Gaston Camlann, when she first displays her magical powers. Although Adelia is untrained, the wizard takes an interest in her and helps her hone her gift. However, while she is busy developing her arcane reflexes, Forsynthia falls in the crosshairs of an assassin bent on sowing chaos and unrest. Adelia is not just tasked with rooting out the assassin but also has to deal with a hungry dragon that has ventured too close to the city. 

Mageborn is currently free on Amazon and other ebook retailer sites.

I’ll be looking forward to more of my books showing up on Manybooks.net in the future!

The post Mageborn Chosen as Best Fantasy of September 2021 by Manybooks.net appeared first on Tellest.

Hello there!  Thank you for joining me for another chapter of Tellest’s newest feature, the “interactive” story, The Whispers—a story which you and readers like you are helping me tell.  For ease of navigation, I’m going to have little mini tables of contents on these posts, so feel free to use them to jump around and discover how The Whispers works, how you can help steer the direction of the main character’s choices, and, of course, read the story.  I hope you enjoy taking part in this interesting new Tellest adventure!

 

The Whispers Concept

The Whispers – Chapter Eight

Voting Instructions

 

The Whispers Concept

The Whispers is a story that takes place within the Tellest universe.  It’s a story that is written by Michael DeAngelo, but it’s told with help from the readers.  The Whispers follows Declan, a young man who was recently evicted from the temple where he grew up.  When he was younger, he used to hear voices, and the clergy interpreted those voices in ways that they thought brought them closer to divinity.  But with the whispers growing quiet, Declan was no longer needed at the temple, and he was instead shipped off to a nearby adventurers’ guild.  The voices have recently returned in his time of need, and have offered him advice on what to do in order to survive.

If you haven’t already figured it out, you are one of those potential whispers!  At the end of every chapter, Declan is given a choice.  Every reader has the chance to vote and influence Declan’s decision, as long as you’re a member of the Tellest newsletter.  Every time you vote, your voice holds more sway as well.  Everyone who casts their vote in earlier chapters will now have a stronger voice, and Declan will hear them a little clearer.  So for your voice to be heard best, you should get in on this story early.  There is another way to gain additional voting power, but that will be described in the voting instructions at the end of this post.

First thing is first: you’ve got to read the story (starting with chapter one, if you prefer).  Then if you’re not already a member of the newsletter, go ahead and sign up!  Tellest has awesome freebies that we give out right away at sign-up, and more that come along every few weeks.

Without much further adieu, let’s continue our tale, and find out the most recent choice Declan made with the help of our Council of Whispers…

 

 

Drawing Closer

Declan stared at the sky, fighting back every urge to close his eyes.  Tears welled up in them, blurring his vision, but he focused on the sound of the mule drawing the carriage—the beast of burden carried forth louder than Declan wanted, and yet that sound seemed to be the only thing keeping him rooted in reality.

Every now and again, a faded, whisper drew in, telling him one way or another what to do.

“Sleep.  Sleep now,” one voice would say.

“You can’t,” another would counter.  “You know the way better than anyone, and this road is most dangerous for a lone goblin—especially one carrying unconscious humans.”

Whether it was the noxious fumes that had nearly swept Declan into oblivion, or the whispers seeming to warble back and forth into his ears, a wave of nausea almost bowled the man over.  Declan struggled to sit upright, pulling himself up against the railing of the carriage.

“There,” a whisper said.  “Rise and be at the ready for your ally.”

For once, it seemed that Declan had outpaced the advice of the whispers, though others seemed to commend his actions as well.  Stacked over top of each other, a trio of distant voices all encouraged him to stay awake.

The nausea certainly wasn’t making it easy to contend against their words anyway.  He leaned over the railing and spat over the side of the cart.  He didn’t produce any vomit, and the longer he stayed upright, the steadier he felt.

His quiet expectorations weren’t lost to the goblin in the driver’s seat though.

“How are you feeling?” Gorik asked.

For some time, Declan hugged the railing, stabilizing himself as best he could.  He reflected on Gorik’s words, though, and contemplated all that had happened in the last few hours.  He remembered the terrible feeling of the fumes entering his lungs.  The fright of seeing his friends falling to the ground through the mist was etched into his mind.  And he knew that without a miracle, there was no way he would have survived Jordy and Skanlon’s dire plans.

“Better than I would be if you hadn’t been with us,” Declan said.  His back was against the front railing of the wagon bed, and he stared ahead, away from Gorik, the driver’s seat and the mule.  He saw Ilayeth and Tornig before him, sprawled out on the bed of the cart, looking as though they would forever be caught in their sleep.  Every few moments, though, Declan would see their chests rise as they took in a strained breath.  Though their fates would have been dastardly at the two bandits’ hands, away from them, they seemed at peace.  “You saved us all, Gorik.”

“We seem to be making a habit of saving one another after we’ve been at odds with each other,” the goblin said.

“That we do,” Declan mused.  He looked about a while longer, until his gaze settled on his magic staff.  He leaned forward, inviting another spasm in his belly, but fighting through it, nonetheless.  The staff sat across his lap a few moments later, and he was upright once more, taking a deep breath of crisp air that seemed to settle him.  “I’m trying to stay awake for you here,” Declan said.  “Keep talking before I join the two of them in slumber.”

“Sleep if you must,” Gorik said.  After a pause, he cleared his throat, though.  “Although I must admit, I don’t know the way as well as I’d like to.”

“How long was I laying here in silence?” Declan wondered.  “It could be that we’re drawing closer than we realize.”

He heard a chuckle from the front of the carriage then.

“If you thought you’d slept through most of the journey, you’re sorely mistaken,” Gorik said.  “You’ve been lying there for just a few minutes, and that’s the second time you’ve asked me that question.  But, if it’s any consolation, you’re slurring less than the first time you asked.”

“Oh,” Declan said, a bit more embarrassed than he expected.  “I shouldn’t let you bring us there alone.  You’re as tired as the rest of us, I’m sure.  And you’ve got an injury still.”

“I’ll be fine,” Gorik assured.  “I’ve been spending a little bit of my energy every half hour or so to speed the healing process.”

“You’ve got a rare gift,” Declan said, leaning on his staff as he felt the pull of fatigue once more.  “The clerics as the temple had restorative power as well, but they were far beneath your talents.  They wouldn’t heal battle wounds or injuries earned by some fight with a monster in the wilderness—they’d try, certainly, and sometimes succeed, though the patron would have a scar with them for the rest of their days.  But often, it was things like digestive problems, or small burns or a spring fever.”

Gorik hummed for a moment as he considered Declan’s compliment.  “There seems to be a noticeable difference between your clerics and a war priest.”

“And that’s what you are?” Declan wondered.

A shrug lifted Gorik’s shoulders.  “I don’t know if that was what I intended.  My tribe wasn’t known for it either.  We had no wars to fight, and little faith to speak of.  The gods have been as quiet as your whispers were, until lately.”

“So, what had you turn your back on the way of your tribe?”

Gorik chortled at that.  “Believe it or not, it was just a book.”

“A book?  The one you…?”

“We happened upon a human settlement that was smaller than your guild hall and the stables, I think.  Just a few huts or cottages here and there.  It was abandoned—don’t worry.  But a lot of things were left behind.”

“Then they didn’t leave willingly, I’m sure,” Declan supposed.

“In any case, there was a small shrine in one of the cottages.  A stout dresser served as a pedestal for a statue.  I think it was one of your gods reimagined with wings and a goblet of water.  I didn’t care much for it, but beneath the stand, there were a few other trinkets and baubles, and the book I carry with me now,” Gorik revealed.  “I knew how to speak the common tongue well enough, but it took me a long while to learn how to read as humans do.  My focus on this old tome wasn’t lost to others in my tribe, of course.”

“Did they think you were becoming a sympathizer?”

“Perhaps,” Gorik said.  “I always thought that it was more likely they were at odds with me learning more than the rest of them.  Knowledge was almost worse than faith to them, and I had gone too far to simply let it go.  I could sense that they had grown tired with me.

“The first time I pulled magic from the aether,” he continued, “I had grown tired with the old ways of my people.”  He was silent for a time, remembering what had set him off on his unlikely path, away from his people and down a road that intersected with Declan’s.  “We were scavengers when we had to be, and hunters when we were desperate.  But we weren’t skilled predators—not like some of the beasts of Novistrus—and sometimes made for easier prey.

“I kept my new power secret until I no longer could.  On one of those hunts, we were attacked by a pack of dire wolves.  Those were hungry times, and I’m certain the wolves were struggling for food the same way we were.  We knew they were there.  They knew we were there.  For a while, we kept our distance.  But one of my cousins, Dolog, thought he could take care of two problems at once.  Sneaking through the shadows, he meant to drive his spear into the hindquarters of one of the large beasts.  They sensed him near, though, and three of them fell upon him like he was a ready-cooked meal.  He didn’t scream—just growled like one of them.  And when I reacted with a flash of light, he used what energy he had left, and drove a spear into the belly of the closest wolf.  The sound of its cry drove the others away as well, although that one limped as it went, left behind by its family.

“Dolog’s breathing was already ragged by then.  I could see blood dripping from his lip.  He was so startled by the attack that he’d practically chewed through his tongue, but I didn’t know it at the time.  Still, his injuries were grievous.  There was no way he was walking out of the forest—not without my help.”

Gorik sighed as he recalled those harrowing times.  “I dove into my book, Dolog cursing at me through clenched, bloodstained teeth.  And when I read aloud the passages of some ancient prayers, another light, white and pure, danced on his tattered body.  In time, he grew strong again.  He was stronger than me, I realized, as the magic seemed to pull my soul straight out of me.  And as the vigor returned to him, his protests grew louder and louder.

“Traitor,” he said.  “Blasphemer.  As though he had prayed to goblin gods all his life and knew that I had made a pact with a human one.  When I saw him grab hold of his spear once more, I wondered if he’d make short work of me.  In my weary state, there was no hope to fight back against him.  He just spit a gob of blood on the ground at my side and climbed to his feet.  That was the last time I saw him.  I knew that he would spread word of my magic to the rest of the tribe, and someone among them would be able to do what he could not.”

A pause in the story lingered for too long, and Declan looked over his shoulder.  “I’m sorry, Gorik.  You were only trying to help.”

“Some people are afraid of help,” the goblin said.  “If it’s strange, or different, they’re maddened by the thought of it.  Even if it could mean the difference between life and death.”

Declan nodded, seeing the meaning behind Gorik’s story, and how it connected the two of them.

“You’re not who I expected,” Declan admitted.  “But I’m glad to have been surprised by that.”

“As am I.”

For a short while, the two sat in silence once more.  Declan looked to the sky again, and realized that his vision had settled somewhat, the stars appearing clear and bright upon their velvet canopy.  Somehow, his fatigue seemed such a distant thing.

He realized that it was fleeting for the lot of them.  Tornig and Ilayeth stirred then as well, grumbling and groaning as they adjusted into more comfortable positions.

“Gorik?” Declan asked.  “Why are your friends going to the temple?”

Another pause left Declan wondering just how much he could depend on the goblin.  The hesitation was telling, but perhaps it was just the awkward stretch of time persisting since inhaling Skanlon and Jordy’s noxious fumes.

“I wish I knew, Declan,” Gorik said.  “Ever since Tanissa began bending Jarayas’s ear, it seems like everyone in our group is acting differently.  There are more secrets, for one.  It used to be that we all had a seat at the table.  Jarayas made certain that none of us felt like we were less than another.”

“You sound like you have a lot of respect for him.”

“Well,” Gorik considered, “he was the one who found me after the falling out with my tribe.  When I was feeling empty and lost, and hated myself for my newfound powers, Jarayas made it feel like there was a place for me.”  He shook his head.  “That’s a tale for another time.  I don’t know much.  As I said, there are more secrets these days.  Tanissa convinced Jarayas to place a door in our hideout.  An actual door.  They whisper behind it, away from me, Ignark, Melara and the rest of them.”

Before Declan could think to question his newest companion, Gorik turned about and tapped his knuckles against the back of the seat.  “But you’ve been listening to what I’ve been telling you, I’m sure,” he said.  “One thing I can’t get enough of is answers.  Jarayas may not have come out and told me what he and the witch discussed, but I skulked in the shadows while everyone else slept.  I don’t know much, but I’m sure I heard a name.”

Declan shifted and cast his gaze toward the driver of the stolen carriage.  “They’re looking for someone at the temple?”

“It wouldn’t be unheard of,” Gorik said.  “Tanissa is a human, like you.  Perhaps she knew someone at the temple once upon a time.”

Though his curiosity was drawn in two directions—and he wanted to pull on the thread that led toward Tanissa being a human that conspired with trolls and gnolls and goblins—Declan’s thoughts raced toward his old home.  “Who did she mention?” he asked.  “Whose name did you hear?”

“It’s not a name I’ve heard often, but I suppose it’s more human than goblin,” Gorik supposed.  “Abel?” he said, struggling somewhat with the pronunciation.

“Abel?” Declan repeated.  “Abel?”  He twisted back into position, bowing his head as he recalled his times at Fespar Temple.  Was there ever an Abel he had known there?  It surely wasn’t one of the clerics—perhaps it was a paladin, though even then Declan was sure he would have known them well enough.  “It has to be someone who was there long before I was.  If they’re looking for him, they won’t find him.”

“That could be bad for everyone,” Gorik said.  “Especially if they don’t believe it.”

No one aboard the carriage could argue against that rationale, and it grew silent once more.  While Ilayeth took deep breaths to steady herself, Tornig spent some time digging through the supplies that Jordy and Skanlon had in their cart.

“What are you looking for?” Declan asked before long.

“Just wondering if they had the antidote for that choking smoke of theirs,” the dwarf replied after sorting through things further.

Declan flashed a weak, one-sided grin.  “I don’t think they were planning on dealing with it themselves.  That’s why they had those masks.”

“Here we go!” Tornig exclaimed as he pulled a bottle from the collection of goods.  It wasn’t a cure, but the dwarf was sure it’d work just as well.  He held it aloft, and shook it about, lettings the contents swirl about inside.  “This’ll sure’n wake us up.”

“Keep your ale, Tornig,” Ilayeth said.  “I could just use a few more moments of quiet.”

Far ahead of them along the road, a shrill cry rang out, assuring that Ilayeth would not get her wish.

Declan twisted about and leaned against the driver’s seat as Gorik tugged on the reins, drawing the mule to a stop.  Tornig arrived there a moment later, wiping his lips with his sleeve.

“Was that a woman’s cry?” he asked.

To Tornig’s side, Declan remained quiet, only nodding his confirmation.  He leaned on his staff, and stepped ahead, taking a seat beside Gorik.

“We’re here,” he whispered.

“You’re sure of that?” Ilayeth asked as she too drew toward the front of the wagon.

“I recognize those trees,” Declan said, pointing to several groves on either side of the road.  “The crossroads is right ahead, and the temple will be at its northwest corner.”

“So, what do we do?” Gorik asked.  “What do your whispers tell you?”

Declan closed his eyes, trying to make sense of the still unsteady sounds of the whispers.

“…on ahead,” he struggled to hear.  “There is only…”

He shook his head, but it seemed that other voices had their own advice as well, though they, too, had difficult to understand suggestions.

“Turn aside and… If you head into the…”

Declan let a quiet grumble slip from his lips then.  He turned and snagged the bottle of ale from Tornig’s hand and brought it close.  “Let’s see if your makeshift antidote can help me at all here,” he said.

With a quick swig of the bottle, Declan gulped down a mouthful of the bitter ale, and held it out for the thirsty dwarf.

Whether it was his need for advice, or if the alcohol truly did seem to help, the voices came through a little clearer then.

“Race forth! The temple is already under attack!”

“Now is not the time to be hasty.  Remain in the shadows and find a cautious route to the temple.”

Declan breathed out, steadying himself further.  He knew that before long, another chorus of voices would join with those ones, and one suggestion would drown out the other.

He simply wished that just once, they would agree on some sound advice ahead of time.

 

 

Voting Instructions

Another new month means another new choice to make, which you can influence.  You have until the 30th of this month to safely join the Tellest Newsletter in time to cast your vote.  I’ll be sending out newsletter emails to my readers, and this time around, you’ll be asked to give Declan direction without the choices being laid out for you.  Then, on April 1st, I’ll interpret the votes and see how the whispers influenced Declan.

Remember, there are two ways for you to accumulate voting power in The Whispers:

First, when you vote through the newsletter, you get an extra voting point for every chapter you’ve voted on.  If you voted in each of the previous chapters, your vote this month would be worth a whopping seven points!
Second—and this one is for the Tellest superfans—if you are a Tellest patron on Patreon, you get an additional voting point for every $1 you pledge per month.  And that is in addition to any of the other rewards you would receive at the specified pledge level.  So, if you pledged at the $3 level, you would get 3 votes on Patreon, in addition to your votes on the newsletter responses.  That’s a lot of sway over Declan!  But it’s another way for me to thank you for helping me keep the lights on.

 

That wraps up how to vote for this month.  Remember, sign up for the Tellest newsletter if you’re not a member already, and prepare for the follow-up poll later this month in order to cast your vote.  Then we’ll see next month what Declan does in his current situation!

Hey there!

The last time I spent a few moments to talk about how Tellest was doing, we were deep in the throes of several projects.  Now, just a few months later, several of them are almost ready to be ushered out into the world.

If you’ll allow me a few moments, I’d love to talk about what’s coming soon to Tellest, and how you can get your hands on it!

 

Quantum Quest: Merge Dungeon

 

The first big bit of news is that Tellest’s first spin-off video game, Quantum Quest, has officially been funded on Kickstarter!  Just last week, we wrapped up that campaign, and it looks like we’re going to be launching the game as expected in just a few weeks.

Merge Dungeon has been a very interesting project to work on, and it’s another very cool item that I can tick off my bucket list.  I’ve always wanted to make a video game, so the fact that it’s this close to coming out is almost more than I can bear!  We’ve got a lot planned for it as well—even though it’s a casual game, we aren’t being casual about its development, and we have a pretty extensive road map planned for it over the next year.

Best of all, Quantum Quest: Merge Dungeon is completely free to play.

 

 

If you want to see more about Quantum Quest: Merge Dungeon, definitely feel free to check out the campaign page at the Kickstarter.  The campaign itself isn’t active anymore, but you can watch the video for the game, and play the demo!

 

Quantum Quest: Reinforcements

 

Merge Dungeon isn’t the only Quantum Quest getting some love.  We’ve also got the Reinforcements tabletop expansion coming to your gaming table later this year.  We’ve still got a tiny bit of testing to do, and we’ve got to tell a bit more of a story for a few characters, but the new expansion will be here in time for the holidays.

 

 

And best of all, when the game is gearing up, we’ll be getting new characters from the expansion into Merge Dungeon, adding further connections between the two.

Finally, Quantum Quest is getting some more love with an official novelization.  This companion tale connects Tellest and Quantum Quest in some very interesting ways, and leaves room for the world of Quantum Quest to continue to grow and feed into Tellest.  More on that later, though!

 

The Whispers

 

You’re seeing it left and right, I know!  The Whispers has been a project that I’ve been working on for more than half a year now, and it’s definitely one of the stranger ones that I’ve done.  But with dozens of votes cast, I’m not the only one telling this story!

Remember that when you see an email for The Whispers drop into your inbox, that’s your chance to help Declan save all that he’s ever known.  I anticipate that we’re nearing the halfway point to this story, but that means you still have plenty of power in your vote—join the Council of Whispers, and help them do what’s best for our unlikely hero!

 

Tellest Legends

 

Last but not least, it’s been a long time coming, but we’re still working on the final books in the Tellest Legends set of books.  Part of the delay there is me adding more books to the mix every few months, but I really should have committed to my schedule!

The good news is that among the two books that we have left, The Maelstrom and Tales of Tellest, Volume 2, the latter is nearly complete.  Since the anthology is being cleaned up by our editor currently, I imagine it will only be a few weeks before we start putting some more stories on the Tellest website.  Then, probably by the time we go to Keystone Comic Con later this year, we’ll have the newest set of shorts ready to dive into!

 

I want to thank you for being a part of the world of Tellest.  It’s people like you that keep me inspired and excited to make all these projects, and I feel like we’re exploring new and creative ideas all the time.  Hopefully soon we’ll have a slew of other cool projects to show off to scratch your fantasy itch!

Hello there!  Thank you for joining me for another chapter of Tellest’s newest feature, the “interactive” story, The Whispers—a story which you and readers like you are helping me tell.  For ease of navigation, I’m going to have little mini tables of contents on these posts, so feel free to use them to jump around and discover how The Whispers works, how you can help steer the direction of the main character’s choices, and, of course, read the story.  I hope you enjoy taking part in this interesting new Tellest adventure!

The Whispers Concept

The Whispers – Chapter Seven

Voting Instructions

 

The Whispers Concept

The Whispers is a story that takes place within the Tellest universe.  It’s a story that is written by Michael DeAngelo, but it’s told with help from the readers.  The Whispers follows Declan, a young man who was recently evicted from the temple where he grew up.  When he was younger, he used to hear voices, and the clergy interpreted those voices in ways that they thought brought them closer to divinity.  But with the whispers growing quiet, Declan was no longer needed at the temple, and he was instead shipped off to a nearby adventurers’ guild.  The voices have recently returned in his time of need, and have offered him advice on what to do in order to survive.

If you haven’t already figured it out, you are one of those potential whispers!  At the end of every chapter, Declan is given a choice.  Every reader has the chance to vote and influence Declan’s decision, as long as you’re a member of the Tellest newsletter.  Every time you vote, your voice holds more sway as well.  Everyone who casts their vote in earlier chapters will now have a stronger voice, and Declan will hear them a little clearer.  So for your voice to be heard best, you should get in on this story early.  There is another way to gain additional voting power, but that will be described in the voting instructions at the end of this post.

First thing is first: you’ve got to read the story (starting with chapter one, if you prefer).  Then if you’re not already a member of the newsletter, go ahead and sign up!  Tellest has awesome freebies that we give out right away at sign-up, and more that come along every few weeks.

Without much further adieu, let’s continue our tale, and find out the most recent choice Declan made with the help of our Council of Whispers…

 

 

An Unexpected Path

All at once, it was as though the waves that crashed upon the shores of his mind were silenced.  He closed his eyes, imagining that the tide had drawn away from him, but he knew not whether they pooled together as a tremendous tidal force, or if they were gone for good.  Were the whispers withdrawing from him like they had during his time at the temple?

For a long while it was silent.  Declan looked to his allies, who waited for a sign of what they should do.  But no indication came to him.

“What’re ye waiting for?” Tornig asked.  “Get yer canaries ta sing, eh?”

“They were,” Declan said.  “But now they’ve stopped.  Perhaps the road ahead isn’t clear enough for even them to know the right direction.”

“But you heard them before,” Gorik whispered.  “You said they were saying everything all at once.  Do you remember their suggestions?”

“Perhaps this choice is one we must make on our own,” Ilayeth suggested.

As she spoke, distant voices seemed to carry on the wind, and Declan knew that he hadn’t been abandoned by those he had come to know for so long.  While the number of voices had dwindled, he felt some comfort in having those most familiar to him sharing their wisdom.

“You need the wagon,” one of the whispers called out to him.  “There’s not much time.”

“Doing anything at this hour will be fruitless,” the other disembodied voice reasoned.  “Find a place to camp.  Fresh eyes will see hidden dangers more easily.”

Declan wondered if the other whispers would fall in line between either of those voices, but it seemed they had all been swept away.  Perhaps they knew that those two paths were the steadiest, and the rest of the council of whispers bowed to the wisdom of the two that spoke.

“Without the wagon, you’ll arrive at Fespar Temple too late.”

“With the wagon, you’ll not hold yourself accountable to your fatigue,” the second voice argued, its tone more commanding and certain.  “Arriving safely is paramount to arriving quickly.”

An evening gust of wind blew past the lonely road then, and Declan likened it to the first whisper conceding to the rationale of the other.  Neither voice continued their discourse, and as Declan’s focus faded from those he couldn’t see, his attention shifted again to the trio of companions he traveled with.  He knew that they understood he had heard the whispers once more.

“Well?” Tornig asked.

“I heard them,” Declan confirmed.  “It seems they hadn’t all left me after all.”

Gorik arched an eyebrow then.  “It looked like you were able to concentrate a little better than you normally do—and perhaps for a little longer than you usually do as well.”

“This time it was different,” Declan said.  “All the other voices were quiet, as though they were waiting for the rationale of the wisest ones.  I heard two voices.  Both have become dependable advisors over these troublesome times.”

“Then what good advice did they give?” Ilayeth wondered.

Declan held out his hands, almost as though he were a scale, weighing their words against one another.  “They couldn’t agree.  It was almost as though they quarreled amongst themselves.  But in the end, one of them—the one that seemed most familiar to me—happened to have the strongest voice.

“And?” Tornig grumbled, folding his arms over his chest.

“We should make camp,” Declan said.  “With luck, the bandits are doing the same, and we’ll arrive at Fespar Temple in the morning with enough time to help sure up its defenses.”

“We’ll have to give some bad news to the merchants,” Ilayeth said.  “But at least now we won’t have to explain our peculiar ally,” she considered, tilting her head toward Gorik.  “Let’s go and let them know that they should try and make their way off the road tonight.  Their wagon is going to be a little unsteady for a while longer.”

“Mayhaps they’d want to join us while we camp,” Tornig said.  “Who knows, maybe they even have some good ale they’d be about sharing.”

“Perhaps but be ready for them to not be in such a giving mood once we tell them we won’t be going with them this night.”

“They did seem awful set on getting a move on,” the dwarf agreed.  “Though I wouldn’t want to be stuck in the middle of nowhere with a bum cart either.”

Declan clapped Gorik on the shoulder then.  “Wait here or head off into the grass and help us find someplace safe to start a fire.  Once we’re done with the merchants, we’ll see if we can’t find some way to get some shut eye.”

Gorik clenched his jaw, unsure that standing there while his companions walked off again was a good idea.  Still, if Declan spoke, it was with the whispers as a conduit.  The whispers were responsible for keeping him alive, and he was not about to second guess them.

Spinning about to catch up with his other allies, Declan ran down the gentle sloping path, and Skanlon, the heavier-set fellow, looked eager to have them back.  He walked to the side of the cart, lingering by where the wheel must have fallen off the axle rod.

“There’s been a slight change of plans,” Ilayeth said.  “We can’t be riding with you—not this late at night.”

“What?” Skanlon said.  His tone dripped with a bit more than disappointment, and as he spoke, Declan realized that he didn’t see the other merchant, Jordy, anywhere in sight.  “But you said you’d help us get back on the road in exchange for a ride.  You can’t get a ride without our cart being repaired.”

“You’re welcome to camp with us,” Tornig said.  “But a few of us are flagging already, and we have to be at our best in the morning.”

Skanlon shook his head.  “We can’t be leaving the cart here overnight.  It sticks out like a broken thumb.  It’ll be easy loot for highwaymen, and if we’re anywhere nearby when they show up—”

“If they show up,” Ilayeth corrected.

“—there’s no way we could hold our own,” Skanlon finished.  “Please.  At least help me get the wheel onto the cart once more.  I can’t do it myself.  My back isn’t what it used to be.  If you do this for us, we’ll make camp with you, if it suits you.  In the morning, we’ll get right back to our accord.”

“We have a bargain,” Ilayeth said.  “Let’s get you moving so we can get some rest.”

She and Tornig moved along, heading to the side of the carriage.  Without any light to lead their way, they huddled close against the vehicle.

Declan started to follow them, but the distant sound of whispers kept him rooted there for a moment.  It sounded as though all of them—every single voice he’d ever heard in the back of his mind—scurried around in his skull like a thousand tiny rats, scratching at the bones as though they were trying to break free.  He couldn’t make sense of what they said, but just as quickly as they’d arrived, they’d vanished again.  Declan shook his head and moved on.

“What is this?” Tornig asked.  The question wasn’t posed with curiosity, but with shocked anger.

Declan held up his staff, and, as if it knew he and his friends needed light, the ringed headpiece began to glow.  It did not take long for Declan to realize that it would be difficult to place the wheel back on the cart.

It was already there.

“Something’s wrong,” Ilayeth cautioned.  When she looked up, she knew her warning came too late.

Skanlon, the merchant who seemed more the leader, had his cloak wrapped tightly around his face, covering his nose and his mouth.  It still left his eyes visible, though, and she saw the emotions dancing in them, reflected by the light of Declan’s staff.  She saw fear there, but also eagerness and greed.

A spark danced to life in her palm as she held it up toward him.

The merchant’s ally was quicker than she could have expected.  Jordy rose up from within the bed of the carriage, a glass vial seeming to glow brighter with its violet contents than the flame Ilayeth called upon.

The combination of orange and purple illuminated Jordy’s face.  The would-be do-gooders saw that his face no longer showed, instead covered by a mask with a long proboscis curving out of it.

Tornig only studied the strange mask for a moment before he leaped up and swiped at the man with his axe.  Jordy’s movements were swift and wiry, and as he leaned out of the way, he cast the vial he held down to the ground beside the carriage.

The concoction announced its landing with a cacophonous rupture of glass, but all at once, the substance within erupted into a wide and thick plume of smoke.

“Ye think I won’t be able ta see ye in this fog?” Tornig asked.  He swept one of his legs over the railing, before the expanding gas engulfed him.  The dwarf coughed and waved his hands away to dissipate the purple smoke, but he could not push it away.

Behind him, he heard one of his companions as they sputtered to the ground.  Declan still stood, but Tornig couldn’t see the flame in Ilayeth’s hand—nor the half-elf herself—any longer.

Declan held his breath and lunged forward, swinging out with the magical staff.  Either Skanlon moved deceptively quick despite his portly physique, or the violet mist already took its toll on Declan, it seemed.  The faux merchant dodged the wizard staff with ease, focused more on keeping the cloak tight around his face than meeting the duped guild members in combat.

Out of the corner of his eye, Declan watched as Tornig tumbled from the wagon, disappearing into the cloud of smoke.  Though his own eyes watered, he could see that Skanlon and Jordy didn’t suffer any of the same effects.

Declan gagged as he fought off the volatile effects of the concoction.  He knew that he could never hope to defeat the two in his debilitating state.  While the smoke overwhelmed him, there was no hope to outmaneuver the two conmen.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Declan knew that the whispers would be there, ready to advise him.  As his knees buckled and he stumbled backward, he understood that they could never counsel him quickly enough.

By instinct or reflex, Declan thrust the hilt of his staff to the ground to lean on.  Though he could feel his energy draining from his body, he looked to the circular headpiece, recalling its power.  The light faded from the ring, but it was replaced with a mighty burst of wind that shot forth out of both sides of the ring.

All at once, the smoke swept low and far, and as it spread, it dissipated into the air.  Declan fell to his knees, still clinging onto the staff as though his life depended on it.  Through blurred vision, he saw that Tornig and Ilayeth had already succumbed to the powers of the bandit’s concoction.  He knew that he wouldn’t be far behind.

Skanlon pulled the cloak from his face.  With no further danger imposed by the scattered smoke, he did not need to keep his wicked gaze from those who would have lent an unneeded hand.

The false merchant took several steps forth and planted his boot in the center of Declan’s chest.  The lad fell back, splayed onto the dirty road.

Before the staff could teeter, Skanlon grabbed hold of it.  “This is a fancy little toy.  Perhaps it can be even more than that in the hands of someone who really knew how to use it,” he said.  He gently leaned it against the carriage, knowing that his partner would move it into the bed of the wagon.  “In any case, you’ve shown me that it’s more than just a wizard’s torch, so I’ll have to thank you for that.  And where there’s one bit of treasure, usually there’s more.”

“Skanlon, don’t you think…”

Demonstrating his place among their hierarchy, Skanlon held up his hand to quell any of Jordy’s distracting thoughts, even though his words were already trailing off.  Skanlon tried to kick Tornig over, but the dwarf’s heft made it impossible.  Growling, the bandit bent down and spun him over with his hands.

He tried to stifle a gasp, but in the silence of the night, it seemed to echo on for some time.  “Jordy, look.  They’re Adventurers of Eladia.  We just attacked the best-known guild in the country.”

His cohort didn’t offer much in the way of support—or reproach—and Skanlon growled as he plucked Tornig’s axe off the ground.  After he rose back up, he stood there, looming over the fallen trio.  The crescent head of the axe caught a glimmer of starlight, and he took that as his own message from fate.

“I guess we can’t let them live,” Skanlon said.  “They’ve seen us and our carriage, and they know what we’re about.  Even if we let bygones be bygones, I don’t know that they would.  Get down and help me do what needs to be done.”

Again though, Jordy said nothing, even as his companion grabbed hold of the axe in both hands.

“Well come on!” Skanlon yelled then.  “I’m not going to do this all myself!”  He turned to admonish the weaselly fellow, but he soon learned that Jordy couldn’t have responded if he wanted to.  The man was draped over the back rail of the carriage, his arms dangling limp before him.  “Jordy?” Skanlon asked.

No warning, no whisper, not even a snore escaped from his cohort.  But Skanlon heard more than he needed to know that danger was still present around him.  The quick footsteps made certain of that.

When he turned about and saw the green skin of a goblin in the twilight, a fearful cry ripped from his lips.  Surprised by the unexpected assailant, he didn’t see that Gorik held a length of chain in his hand.

Skanlon held up the axe above his head and hurled it forth.

Gorik dipped out of the way, fierce determination etched on his face.  “Not again,” he insisted as the axe thudded into the ground behind him.

With the distance closing between them, Gorik twisted to his side, and spun about, throwing the chain forth.

Of all the things Skanlon expected to see at the end of the chain, a leather-bound tome was not one of them.  He didn’t have long to consider that before it struck him against the side of the face.

Amongst the darkness, it was like the stars had fallen from the heavens, for light danced about his vision.  Though he was struck hard, he remained standing, determined to shake the sparks from his sight.

Gorik pulled back on his grimoire as he drew near, and as Skanlon planted his feet once more, the goblin wrapped the chain around his knuckles.

Skanlon’s vision returned to him just in time to see his foe’s fist racing toward him.

With a sickening thud, the chain dug into his skull.  Skanlon was unconscious on the ground before he realized he’d been struck.

Just beside where he fell, Declan struggled to keep aware.  He focused as best he could on Gorik, who hurried to the back of the carriage.

The goblin leapt up, grappling at a latch that kept the railing in place.  After a few moments, it relented, and the gate swung down, tossing the other unconscious bandit to the dirt in a heap.

Gorik was back among his strange companions a few moments later, helping them to sit up, or rolling them to their back.

“Declan,” he said.  “Declan, can you stand?”

He found that he barely had the strength to respond to Gorik, let alone to do what he was asked.  Still, he rolled to his side, pushing against the ground with all his might.  After what felt like an hour, he sat upon his knees, straining to take in a deep breath.

Gorik was there in front of him, lifting Ilayeth off the ground.

“I could have really used your help,” the goblin said.  “But that smoke did a number on all three of you.  If you can, get over to the carriage.  After I get them in, I’ll help you up.”

Time seemed to race by Declan, as he watched Gorik bring Ilayeth to the carriage, and gently place her in the wagon bed.  He returned for Tornig then as well, all before Declan could climb to his feet.

“Hurry up,” Gorik said.  “I don’t know how much longer they’ll be oblivious.”

Declan grabbed hold of the wagon with one reaching hand, and his staff, leaning against the carriage with the other.  Despite his protesting muscles, he clambered to an upright position, though the fear of tumbling right back down to the dirt had not left him.

His goblin ally withdrew from the wagon, and came back with Tornig’s axe, placing it beside the weary dwarf.  No longer exercising any patience, he plucked the staff from Declan’s hand, and shifted him over to stand before the opened gate of the wagon.

“Wait, wait,” Declan protested, and even his words felt foreign to him.  “I can’t get up there like this.”

“Just brace yourself,” Gorik said as he slid the staff into place along one of the side rails.  He put a hand beneath Declan’s rump and against his shoulder then, bending at the knees for leverage.  “One, two, three,” he spoke as he pushed Declan up into the carriage.

Slamming into the floorboards, Declan let fly a muffled grunt.  His arms wobbled as he fought to rise again, but all he could muster was a shuffling of his body into a more comfortable position.  He watched as Gorik raced to the front of the carriage and leapt up to the driver’s seat.

Declan heard the reins snap, and he felt the wheels move beneath the cart.  He fought past the urge to vomit as he sensed the momentum and rolled to his back.

Looking at the stars, which seemed to spin in the sky, he knew just how lucky they were.

Not so far away, Gorik whispered something to him, but it was lost in Declan’s fading senses.

Instead, the otherworldly voices that called out to him took up precedence in his mind.

“Don’t fall asleep, Declan,” one voice warned him.  “Gorik will need you.”

“Succumb to your weariness.  You were flagging before.  You’ll be useless at the temple if you cannot find some reprieve.”

Still under the effects of the purple smoke, Declan didn’t know if would have a choice.

 

 

Voting Instructions

This month Declan has a new choice to make, which you can influence.  We’re back to the tried and true “this choice” versus “that choice” style this month, and it’s a very simple choice this time around.

You have until the 28th of this month to safely join the Tellest Newsletter in time to cast your vote.  I’ll be sending out newsletter emails to my readers, and this time around, you’ll be asked to give Declan direction without the choices being laid out for you.  Then, on March 1st, I’ll interpret the votes and see how the whispers influenced Declan.

Remember, there are two ways for you to accumulate voting power in The Whispers:

First, when you vote through the newsletter, you get an extra voting point for every chapter you’ve voted on.  If you voted in each of the previous chapters, your vote this month would be worth a whopping five points!
Second—and this one is for the Tellest superfans—if you are a Tellest patron on Patreon, you get an additional voting point for every $1 you pledge per month.  And that is in addition to any of the other rewards you would receive at the specified pledge level.  So, if you pledged at the $3 level, you would get 3 votes on Patreon, in addition to your votes on the newsletter responses.  That’s a lot of sway over Declan!  But it’s another way for me to thank you for helping me keep the lights on.

 

That wraps up how to vote for this month.  Remember, sign up for the Tellest newsletter if you’re not a member already, and prepare for the follow-up poll later this month in order to cast your vote.  Then we’ll see next month what Declan does in his current situation!