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quilloftheclouds · 5 years

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WIP Questions Tag Game

Because I have to start this blog off somehow! Say hello to some random facts about One Siren’s Soul.

... what, what do you mean I could post some actual writing? Pfft, no.

I actually got this game from @thelysstener‘s blog and thought it was pretty cool! I wasn’t tagged or anything but I really like doing tag games. Hope you don’t mind!

1: Describe the plot in one sentence

Magical things get stolen from magical people, forcing a siren, a sea witch, a pirate, and a legend of the Royal Navy to begrudgingly work together to get them back. (Aka: A study in how Quill doesn’t know how to write story pitches yet) 2: Pick one sight, smell, sound, feel, and taste to describe the aesthetic for your WIP. (I definitely did not follow the “one” thing but too bad)

Sight: The soft, welcome blues of the sky peeking through clouds of a dispersing storm, the ocean below calm despite its froth of foam drifting across rippled dark water.

Smell: Salt and drying seaweed and rotting fish. And then a permeating, engulfing scent from the ocean that you can’t place or describe, like the very depths of its soul. Magic.

Sound: The howl of wind through a cave opening, a background of distant waves crashing amidst sea bird’s cries.

Feel: The crackling of static electricity through your fingertips as you smooth down the folds of your clothing on a stormy day.

Taste: The slight tang of something metallic. Is that blood, or sweat, or metal? Or all three? (Or the tears of my future readers?)

3: Which 3+ songs would make a playlist for your novel?

I’m normally better at making playlists for things but in this case I was really picky, so...

Your Bones by Of Monsters And Men (Probably one of the biggest inspirations for the overall aesthetic and just... feeling of my wip.)

Sirens by Fleurie (The name and lyrics of this song fit in both definitions of the word.)

Coastline by Hollow Coves (There’s... a happy song on this list? What?)

4: What’s the time period and location in which your novel takes place?

Early 18th century on an alternate Earth in the North Atlantic.

5: Are there any former titles you’ve considered but discarded?

So uh. Funny story about that. One Siren’s Soul was originally going to start with ‘A’ instead of ‘One’. I realized pretty quickly why that wasn’t such a good idea, and also I just like how it sounds more, now? 6: What’s the first line of your novel?

Mmmmm this is a first draft, mate, I don’t wanna touch that just yet. 7: What’s a line of dialogue you’re particularly proud of?

Oh, jeez. All of the ones I really like are heavily context dependent or ridden with spoilers. In lieu of those, have a somewhat-kinda-funny one:

“Colin! Nice to see yer up. Or, well. Down.” - George, right after Colin falls flat on his face in front of him.

8: Which line from the novel most represents it as a whole?

~Spoilers are fuunnnn~ 9: Who are your character(s) face claims?

I’m definitely not the most set on these (especially for Io and Dione), but:

Celestine - Amandla Stenberg

Colin - Booboo Stewart

Phoenix - Enam Heikeens Honya

Dione - Maggie Duran

George - Johnny Harrington

Isabel - Camila Cabello

Io - Kirby Griffin

Rose - Nivetha Pethuraj

I have no idea for Io or Sheila or Alixandre yet, oops.

10: Sort your characters into Hogwarts houses.

For some reason these sorts of things are always tough for me? I myself don’t fit in only one so I think that’s worn off on my characters. Here’s some approximates, though:

Gryffindor: Phoenix, Isabel, Colin

Ravenclaw: Dione, Alixandre

Hufflepuff: George, Sheila

Slytherin: Rose

I can’t decide whether Celestine is in Ravenclaw or Slytherin, and Io’s stuck somewhere between Gryffindor and Slytherin.

11: Which character’s name do you like the most?

Chichima is probably my favourite. Who’s that, you ask? Nyehehee.

Including full names it’d probably be Phoenix Solarin because if that isn’t the most over the top thing to name a pyro I don’t know what is.

12: Describe each character’s daily outfit:

I’m just... gonna do my PoV characters, since I have too many characters in general, and fashion (especially historical) is not my strong suit.

Celestine: Maroon, long-sleeved dress; long, cream woolen scarf; and a pair of dark brown, lace up leather boots.

Colin: Simple white tunic; red and multi-coloured knit sash around his waist; brown trousers; and black cavalier boots (but to be honest he goes barefoot way too often).

Phoenix: Simple white blouse; bright red sash around her waist and as a headband; dark trousers; and buckled black leather boots. She gets a scarlet frock coat with gold trim later on.

Dione: Honestly, I have no idea how to describe Dio’s clothes. Other than black felt boots and a light green dress-like thing, I know she has a billion hidden pockets and a giant, hooded, fur and wool cloak that covers over all of the rest of her clothes so you can’t even see them. I dunno.

13: Do any characters have any distinctive birthmarks/scars?

Phoenix has a tattoo of crossed cannons somewhere (and also her, you know, vitiligo), George probably has a couple sailor’s tattoos as well, Isabel only has one arm, Celestine is missing her whole left eye, and Io has very distinctive scarring that she hides and is totally not going to become plot important at all.

14: Which character most fits a character trope?

Maybe Sheila? She’s the sweet and kind old lady shopkeeper who has all the best juicy gossip for our main cast to conveniently learn of.

15: Which character is the best writer? Worst?

Dione. Just. No competition. She writes poetry in her free time. She keeps a diar—I-I mean journal. Also she has actual training in writing but you’re not supposed to know that so shhh. Worst is probably Colin. He can barely read due to his dyslexia and as a regular deckhand he never really had the need to learn anyways.

16: Which character is the best liar? Worst?

You’d think it’d be actual thief and criminal Celestine but no, it’s Phoenix. Also another character I can’t mention because spoilers. Worst would be Colin. That comes up a lot. Sorry, Colin.

17: Which character swears the most? Least?

Rose. Swears. A LOT. Celestine does in Spanish. Least would probably be Alixandre because he’s just... too sweet. Too innocent of a boi.

18: Which character has the best writing? Worst?

Dione also has the best handwriting, since spoiler reasons but also she’s just like that. Colin’s handwriting isn’t the best, but it’s actually Io’s absolute chicken scratch that takes the cake for the worst. You wonder how people can even read her ship logs.

19: Which character is the most like you? Least like you?

Fun fact: Colin was originally based on another character of mine that was originally based on a sona form of me. So. His clumsiness is a new development, I don’t have that, and I’m apparently really good at lying, so there’re some differences. (Also I’m a writer and he can barely read. Oops.) But that obliviousness? That absolute clueless, distractibility? That inability to sit still? Those terrible puns and attempts at being socially adept? That’s me.

20: Which character would you most like to be?

I think Phoenix? You’ll find out why that is in the book, ‘cause her true personality isn’t quite the one people think of her as having, but... yeah. Phoenix is fun.

I’m gonna ignore the rules like a rebel and not tag anyone, so I’ll just tag everyone who wants to do this, instead!

Want to learn more about One Siren’s Soul? You can find the page here. I’m going to be starting a taglist soon, too, so let me know if you’d like to be added!

#oss #one siren's soul #wip #wip tag game #tag game #wip intro #wip introduction #writing #writeblr #writeblr community #ocs #my ocs #i enjoy doing tag games way too much #please tag me if you ever do them #plz

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mars-the-fighter · 6 years

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Paradox Gaia (Chapter 1)

Decided to post this one directly on tumblr for the sake of my own sanity. I’ll most likely post the others in sta.sh and link them here, but for now, this is all I have.

Chapter 1 – Unlucky Start

Just like the first time, the tingling feeling lasted for only a few seconds.

It felt like being submerged in water, blackened, silent water. She felt her fur cold, as if wet from a rainstorm. The tingling spread quickly, making her shiver slightly. It always felt weird to her.

With a crash, she fell.

Thankfully, the fall was a short one, but she still hit the ground with a low yelp. She forced herself on her knees, rubbing the back of her head with her left hand. She checked her palm to see if she had hurt herself, but there was no blood on her hand, and she felt lucky for that.

With the quick check up done, she looked around at her surroundings, and what she saw left her breathless.

A massive city built on top of a plate, and beneath the plate, a smaller town. She wasn't too far from the settlement, but not close enough to be seen by citizens either, which made her feel safer considering her current form. She could smell salt and smog in the air, and as she turned her head she saw the sea, stretching all the way to the horizon, reflecting the moon's gentle glow.

In that moment, she finally realized two things; it was night time, and it was raining heavily.

Something dark stretched from the city's upper plate towards the sky, horizontally, the moonlight shining and reflecting on its surface. She couldn't make out what she was, so she gave up trying to recognize the shape.

She had no idea where she was, and she was alone.

She felt a rush of anxiety at the realization. The first time she jumped, she had fallen on top of someone who would become her companion during her journey. She didn't have to search out for someone as the situation allowed her to just latch onto their presence and tag along, go on with her life as she followed them.

This time, she wasn't granted that luxury.

With no one to guide her or give her directions, she decided the smartest thing to do would be to enter town and look for a place to stay, but then she considered that she didn't have any money to sleep at an inn or something. Well, that sucked, she thought. With the town being crossed from her thoughts, at least for the time being, her best bet would be to find somewhere hidden and safe to spend the night; she wasn't afraid of the wilderness, and she knew she could take care of herself. What worried her the most was the temperature, a bit chilly for her taste.

She lifted herself from the ground, groaning at the dirt on her fur. She'd have had to clean that later. Her eyes being a bit stronger than a human's, she started wandering towards a rocky formation not too far from the lower town's entrance, hoping to find a cave, and to her own delight she quickly enough found one. The entrance was rather small, but the inside was large and comfortable enough for her to stand, stretch, and even lay down completely. She rushed inside, sighing in relief the moment she stopped feeling the storm's wrath on her fur. Much like a dog, she shook herself to dry her fur as much as possible, but she had to give up quite soon, her body way too drenched to be fully dried in a matter of seconds.

She tried casting a small fire spell, to dry herself a little better and to get some warmth inside, but to her own disappointment not a single flame formed in her palms. She scoffed, frustrated. Magic in this world must have worked differently, she guessed.

Shrugging to herself, she allowed herself to slip down on the ground, sitting as comfortably as she could and lying against the wall behind her back and tugged her knees as close as possible, her tail rolled up to cover her feet and chest. She sighed, trying to relax and stop her slight shivering.

Feeling alone was a new sensation for her, or better, it was an old one that she hoped she'd never feel again. She remembered the years she spent on that island, alone and away from everyone. She had really hoped she'd never find herself alone and forgotten by the world again, but there she was again. She had left her friends, seconding her stupid sensation and jumping into the unknown. Why did she even do that? She hadn't felt that tug at her heart for years, for all she knew she might have been wrong. Her 'instinct' might have been wrong.

Then again, the last time she followed her heart, her presence had been a great help to those she had met.

She always seemed to stumble on those who needed her help anyway.

Maybe that was all she needed to know.

She was too tired for this.

If she could fall asleep, she could have thought about her problems tomorrow.

A gentle sunlight welcomed her into the world, waking her from her light but much needed sleep. She rubbed the sleep away from her eyes and stretched, yawning loudly and widely, giving herself a small scratch under the chin to quiet an itch. She was glad to feel her fur had dried during the night, but she was sure she had caught a flu or something, as she sniffled a few times.

“Great. Just great.” she voiced, annoyed and with voice still raspy from sleep. “Ah well. Should have seen this one coming.”

She walked out of the cave to properly stretch her legs, which she did with a little bit of effort – sleeping with her knees like that really put a strain on her legs, muscles being a little bit cramped from the awkward position. Still, stretching did wonders to both her body and mood, and she soon felt a small smile form on her face. She was ready to tackle the day with newfound energy, and she knew already where to start.

For that, however, she needed a quick change of looks.

Fur disappeared, leaving only bare skin in its place. Her tail also disappeared, skin and bone retracting back into her body as if they were never there in the first place. Bones moved and joints shifted, giving her more human legs and smaller hands. She grew quite a bit as well.

She brushed a hand in her hair, trying to feel its shape. Shorter on the side, longer on top and with a small fringe. She ripped out a few hair to test its colour, and when she saw it was a nice hay-like hue, she was finally satisfied with her change.

It was the same human form she occasionally wore in the other world. If it was convincing back then, it would have been convincing now as well, she figured.

She was almost sure her pupils were half slit, but if she didn't get too close to people, her weirdness would have gone unnoticed.

Probably.

She sighed at her clothes, however. A bit small for her own taste, especially the pants. The sudden growth spurt really did a number on her, and what she felt most irritating was the lack of shoes. She would have had to walk in town barefoot.

Sighing at the situation but nonetheless willing to get a hold of her surroundings, her eyes moved to the town, now much easier to see thanks to the sunlight. The horizontal shape she had seen the night before seemed to be a weapon of sorts, a cannon most likely – the sight of it made her shiver slightly. Was that weapon the sign of a military settlement, or just a statement of power? She decided to shrug it off, no use worrying over it when she had nowhere else to go.

She made her way into town. The first thing that hit her was the smell, the saltiness of the sea giving way to the foul exhalations of smog and dirt. The town itself was small, with a handful of houses gathered around the main street and a smaller side one reaching out towards the rocky, dirty beach. An extremely polluted town that once had been a fishing spot, maybe? There were a few boats resting close to town, but they were in ruin and abandoned, forgotten. If the sea was as polluted as the air, and she could bet on it, it was no wonder that fishing was also abandoned, not a single fish could have survived in such environment.

She shrugged herself out of her thoughts, focusing on her objective. She approached an elder man sitting on a porch, he gave her a curious but suspicious look. He eyed at her, his stare lingering on her bare feet for a moment before it focused on her face.

“Excuse me for the intrusion,” she said, bashful. “but I have no idea where I am, or who I was. Could I ask you the name of this town?”

The elder fixed a pitiful look on her, and she faced elsewhere, embarrassed. She hoped he wouldn't see past her lie. “Sorry about your memory, lass. This here's lower Junon! Once a fisherman's paradise, now a junkyard. We don't have much, but it's home.”

She nodded, clearly feeling the sadness in the man's voice. She could feel sorry for the town too, outsider or not. “Thank you. Is there a place where I could get money? I've got nothing on me.”

“Memory-less and money-less?” he chuckled, waving his laugh away. “Sorry, sorry, that was rude of me. Here, this will at least fix you a meal.”

He handed her a few coins, which she accepted reluctantly. “50 gil should be enough to get you breakfast and lunch at the inn. Ask the innkeeper, she's been looking for help in the kitchen, maybe she'll give you the job.”

Mars nodded, thankful. She gave him a warm smile. “Thank you so much!”

“Take care now, will you? I hope your memory comes back.” he waved her goodbye as she moved away from his place. “And get yourself some shoes!”

Mars looked at the coins, so small yet so shiny in her hands. The money was called guil? Jil? Definitely different from the munny she was used to, but money was still money. She could get used to this different name.

Of course she had no intentions of settling in one place, if her instincts were correct there was a storm brewing on the horizon, and so far her instincts had never been wrong. She knew she'd have to find why her sensation brought her to this world. Maybe gathering intel would be a good start while also stalling for time, surviving day by day.

She could settle for a few days or weeks in Junon, she considered. It wasn't so bad.

Uncaring of where she was walking, she bumped into someone else, scrambling away from her stream of thought and apologizing to the person she had unwillingly touched. The man, she assumed, was taller than her and wearing a blue uniform, and he was carrying what seemed to be a rifle. The helmet sported three red lights on the visor; it looked goofy, but it was most likely efficient despite the looks.

She moved away from him, but another guard walked beside the first one and stopped her. She started feeling uneasiness creeping up on her.

“Miss, we would like you to come with us.” the first guard stated, in a tone of voice that didn't allow any contradictory reply.

“Why is that?” Mars asked, curiosity in her voice.

“Someone among the townsfolk noticed something... off.” the second guard answered, adjusting the rifle on his shoulder. “Mentions of someone's body shifting from a beast to a human. The description they gave fits your appearance.”

She swallowed hard.

“They must be mistaken then.” she chuckled, trying to trick the two by feigning confidence. She hoped shapeshifting wasn't a thing in this dimension. “Who ever heard of monsters changing into people? I sure as hell can't, I can't even remember who I am.”

“We insist.” the first guard pressed on, shutting her off. “You must come with us.”

Her anxiety was rising at an alarming rate. She could feel her breaths drawing in with more difficulty.

The second guard drew closer, staring at her hard before she faced another direction.

“She has the eyes. Take her.”

In the blink of an eye, the guards were on the ground, knocked down by a swift, round movement of her right leg. She went on her knees, recovering for a moment as she tried to steady her breath. She knew how to fight, she had had good teachers if not the best. She just had to clear her mind of worries and doubts, and let her fists do the rest.

She could do this.

The two guards struggled to get back on their feet, one of them reaching out for his rifle. She swiftly kicked it away before grabbing the other rifle and submerging it in dark filaments, breaking it in half. She tossed the pieces on the soldier, who scrambled away from her. The other, adamant about taking her down, charged at her but she side stepped and kicked him on his back, making him lose balance and fall again.

Two more guards arrived, guns ready, aiming at her. She couldn't dodge bullets, but she could shield herself from them.

A black mass formed in front of her as she rushed towards them, effectively blocking the bullets by engulfing and disintegrating them. Both guards were shocked and surprised, which allowed her to get a good hit on them and knock them out quickly.

She could do this.

A warm sensation on the back of her head, spreading quickly and dully, leaving her mind with nothing but noise.

She heard someone mutter “Why must I do all the work all the time?” before her hearing also went out.

Darkness swallowed her, warm, welcoming.

#munwrites #paradox-gaia

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