Happy Blog Day Everyone!
It's a chapter week, which means that, yes, Chapter 7 of Avalon Tales is here! The plot moves forward a lot here so if you want to catch up on Isabelle and her adventures, scroll down to get reading!
Writing hasn't gone so well, aside from completing the new Brennan and Riz short (yes, it's finished!) As that project has taken it out of me, so I haven't written anything else. The Brennan and Riz short story though...Yeah that was a fun time.
Here's what happened, I'd spent the last two weeks trying to get the manuscript finished, which in predictable fashion meant several rewrites and characters purged. So far, a normal experience for me. Everything was done (or so I thought, more on this in a moment) by 11:40 p.m. on Friday 29th of May. The deadline was just twenty minutes away. What should have been a simple matter of attaching the document to an email and sending it, was anything but. When the first notification came through that the email failed to send, my eyebrow raised. I tried again. That one failed. With time now getting too close for comfort, I kept trying but to no avail. I had one hope left and I fired off a different email. That one was answered the next morning and, after some more fiddling, I was able to get the submission to send. Phew!
However, it was only a little while later when going over things in my head did I realise something. In the story I'd created a plot thread that ran through it, putting a lot of emphasis into it...Then I completely forgot about it during the story's resolution! I think this came about as I had initially dropped the point before adding it again later...after the ending had been done. Suffice to say if the story doesn't get picked up, I'll know why. Of course it's no one's fault but my own. Lessons learned eh?
Speaking of Brennan and Riz though...
The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz
Everything seems a good idea at the time. Do think Riz should have perhaps tried a bit harder. This three part story has truly stretched itself out. Hoping to have it wrapped up in another three strips, making it the second longest storyline. Let's just see what happens when they confront the A.I next week!
Short Diversions: Avalon Tales Chapter 7
Last time, Isabelle and her team were ambushed by demons she had no intel on, and which were equipped for a fight! Now that her father has appeared to save her, will she get any answers, or is what he has to say worse...Let's find out.
A note, still no new artwork. I apologise again but it is what it is. I'm stuck in a rut and I'm having trouble getting out of it.
Anyways, on with the chapter.
Avalon Tales Chapter Index
Chapter 7
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Chapter 7: Blood Brothers
When Isabelle woke up, a medic was tending to her on site. She recognised his face, being one of her dad’s retinue, someone her dad trusted to tell him things straight. In that moment of half consciousness , she’d forgotten his name, but there were more important matters at hand.
“No! Squires Kenner and Dodgson! Get to them first!” she shouted, trying to raise herself up, but the person trying to treat her simply pushed her down again.
“They are fine, well, no they’re not, but they are both alive and stable. Now, please let me continue to sort you out,” the medic replied nonchalantly, brushing her concern off.
“Alive and stable?” Isabelle asked.
“They were practically ground zero to an explosion, this isn’t Hollywood, no one gets to walk away from that, well, no one human anyway. There is nothing you can do for them now, we’re waiting to get them to a medical facility, so if you want to do something that is actually helpful right this second, then you can tell me where you are hurting,” the medic stated, shining a light in Isabelle’s eyes. She remembered his name at this point, Dr. Klyne, or Jason to those who got past his prickly exterior. It had been him who looked at Isabelle over fourteen years ago, making him one of the few who knew about her scar.
“I’m…okay,” she lied. Her body was hurting all over, and her aforementioned scar wasn’t letting up either. She knew Jason didn’t have anything in his bag for that.
“Huh, really? So you get hurled into a wall, and you’re completely okay? Well, that’s got to be a first,” Jason replied sardonically, he looked her straight in the eyes. “I know your dad is just standing over there, but cut the heroic bullshit. My job is to make sure you’re okay, and I can’t do that if you’re lying to me. We all feel pain, and if you’re suffering then I need to do what I can to make it better. Do you understand?”
Isabelle exhaled, Jason was just as stubborn as everyone else her father surrounded himself with..
“You said it yourself, I was thrown into a wall…My body is still ringing from that, and…” She moved her hand to the shoulder where the scar was, hoping Jason would understand that instead of having to say it out loud.
“Oh, well, I can give you something for the normal pain…” He paused, seemingly wondering how to word the next part. “...The other thing though, thats-”
“That’s a different matter, I know,” Isabelle finished the sentence for him. “Just sort the rest of the pain out, I can live with the other thing, and don’t-”
“Tell you father? I’m a medical professional and bound by patient confidentiality. Though he’ll figure it out himself…Speaking of which, he’s coming over now. I’d better sort that pain medication out for you. Be prepared for his assessment to be brief,” Jason said as he turned to his bag. From over his shoulder, Isabelle did indeed see her father striding towards her, a grim expression written on his face.
“Isabelle…” Leo said firmly, making it sound that whatever followed was not going to be good news. “Your mission is over.”
“My mission? No, this area is still infested with demons. Dad…” Isabelle said angrily. “I mean, Lord Commander, sir. Our mission is to purge the demons where we find them.” She knew that this wasn’t going to hold water, she couldn’t leave the battlefield now.
“The North East Branch has been hit hard tonight, with several dead. It is now best to leave this to my team. This conflict is under control.”
“We have different definitions of under control,” Jason remarked, with his back to Leo still. “For what it’s worth, I can sign her fit for active duty once I’ve given her the right medication.”
“That won’t be necessary, she is going to return to the North East Branch and await debriefing. Away from this,” Leo made his intentions clear. The stance he was in allowed Isabelle a good look at the state of his armour. It should have been the strongest that Avalon could have offered, yet it was broken in several places, bloody bandages visible underneath.
“Return? I can’t return now! Where is Ramona? Where is Rainer? Isn’t it unorthodox to send individual soldiers home when the current situation calls for more boots on the ground. Most of all though, where is Robyn? You can’t expect me to leave with no information about where any of my colleagues are.”
“I can expect you to leave because that is what I’m ordering you to do..” Leo took a quick breath, putting his right hand over one of the holes in his armour. “Knight Captain Robyn Gouzen is fine.” That was his attempt at a fig leaf.
“Then please let me speak with her to confirm my situation.”
“I can’t allow that right now. Knight Captain Gouzen and her team are among the surviving forces from the North East Branch that have been ordered to move into the town in case the demons attempt to strike there.”
“That is a stupid decision and you know it, sir.”
A new voice interrupted their conversation. Isabelle knew it was Ramona without having to look and confirm it. While she often knew how to carry herself in important times, she also had a habit of refusing to play nice when there was something idiotic going on.
“Knight Master Brunor, you have your orders don’t you? Why aren’t you carrying them out?”
“Last time I checked, it was that bozo over there who was in charge of this operation, not you,” Ramona gestured as Rainer stepped forward. Isabelle noted that he was also looking worse for wear in some areas, his armour showing signs of battle. His second in command had followed him in, though she didn’t seem happy about it, her expression turned into an oddly satisfied smirk when she saw Isabeblle laid up.
“Rainer, I-” Leo started to speak, but an irate Rainer cut him off fast.
“Leo, you have some explaining to do, I had this mission planned down to a tee, yet not only did the operation get upturned by these new demons, but you also appear to take the glory. I know you have a habit of taking over operations when you damn well please, but I think we’re all owed an explanation now, as I don’t believe for a moment that your arrival and these demons are unconnected.”
Isabelle had heard plenty of stories about Rainer, Ramona had shared more than a few of them herself. Yet seeing this temper in person added an extra edge to what she’d been told. It looked like Rainer was about to burst a blood vessel with how annoyed he seemed.
Leo looked towards Jason, who in turn shrugged his shoulders.
“I’m a healer, not a problem solver,” he stated plainly. “But, if I was in your position, I’d proscribe some honesty with what’s going on, get everyone on the same page as it were, but that’s just me.”
“Thank you…” Leo said earnestly, as if he was thinking about what was just said.
“Well?” Rainer pushed.
“This is a first,” Ramona sniggered. “Never thought I’d see eye to eye with Rainer. I agree with what he said. Furthermore, it was also my people who got hit by what happened. I’ve lost good men and women today, sir,” Ramona really stretched the sir part, as if she was making her annoyance even more plain to see.
Leo took one look at Isabelle, who chose to listen to everything first before making a judgment. She knew herself that something was amiss tonight, and that was with her own intuition, adding what the throbbing of her scar meant as well made it all the more clear.
“The demons that attacked are of a new breed we’ve catalogued recently. Until now, they were classified with the highest levels of secrecy while we conducted research on them. We’ve assigned them the code name of Crimson Knights owing to their predominant colour and their armour. They are a step up from the demons Avalon normally faces on a day to day basis.”
“As Master of Arms, I would like to know why I wasn’t altered about their existence!” Rainer scoffed. Leo shot him an odd look, one that was also shared by Jason. Isabelle caught it, but knew now wasn’t the time to push it.
“It was a need to know basis, and till now, you didn’t need to know. That goes doubly for you, Knight Master,” Leo pointed out.
“Well, I already guessed that!” Ramona replied. “That doesn’t tell us why tonight happened though. Where did these Crimson Knights come from? How intelligent are they?”
“They are in thrall to a pair of extraordinarily strong demons that call themselves, ‘Blood Brothers’. These two you have heard of, Rainer,” Leo explained, turning to the Master of Arms directly, who seemed to sneer in return.
“Yes, I know of them,” he admitted.
“Blood Brothers?” Isabelle repealed the name, mainly to see if it shook any memories loose from within her mind.
“I’m glad you two know who these things are, but do you mind explaining it to us who don’t have as high security clearances as we thought?” Ramona asked, sticking up her hand.
“The ‘Blood Brothers’ have been a thorn in our side since we first encountered them approximately twenty years ago, though then their scope was much smaller in scale.” Leo explained. “They have a habit of going silent for years on end before resuming their activities.”
“Twenty years ago? Did they have-” Isabelle went to ask an obvious question, but was shot down fast.
“No, they had nothing to do with the incident…” Leo opened his mouth to say more, but stopped himself. “While we assumed that the ‘Blood Brothers’ ultimate goal was the same as that of other demonic groups, but, their recent activities have made us rethink that approach. Speaking of which, that is our primary objective tonight. With planning that caught us off guard, they performed a heist on one of our transports. They stole something highly important to the future of Avalon, and it is paramount that we retrieve it. The secondary objective is to put an end to the ‘Blood Brothers’ and all demons in their command.”
“What is the object? You want us to retrieve something that we don’t even know what it looks like?” Ramona questioned.
“It was the Holy Grail wasn’t it?” Rainer said, his tone serious. “I’d heard it was being moved.”
“The Holy what? Don’t you think this is something that should be shared with Knight Masters?” Ramona crossed her arms and scowled. “Let me guess, it’s grail shaped. We’re looking for a cup aren’t we? See Izzy? This is what I have to deal with everytime I head to Headquarters? Their heads are too far up their arses to think about what we have to do on the ground.”
“Knight Master Brunor, now is not the time for this!” Leo roared.
“Oh, you’re right, what was I thinking? What was I thinking! Except, I was thinking why you were sending the best soldier I have back home!” Ramona pointed at Isabelle, making it clear who she was talking about. “I’m more than happy to do my duty, but I need soldiers like Isabelle to do it!”
“You’re overstepping your authority, Brunor. I have made my decision regarding the Knight Major. It is not something for you to question,” Leo stood firm.
“Don’t I get a say?” Isabelle said, but her voice wasn’t heard over the warring words between Ramona and her father.
“I don’t think you do, sadly,” Jason remarked as he handed her some medicine.
“Brunor, I understand your concern,” Rainer interrupted. “However, we still have more capable soldiers at our disposal, Lucy!”
“Yes, sir!” Lucy Fallon stepped forward, still wearing the same smirk, saluting as she did. Isabelle’s scar oddly reacted to her, a fact she put down to the green necklace that hung around her neck. The source of the wind demon magic she wielded. Lucy even seemed to have what looked like a paper windmill in her blonde hair, right next to the bobble keeping her hair up. Even as Isabelle was looking at it, it moved on its own despite the fact there was no breeze to do so, at least anything that Isabelle could feel.
“Are you and the other Kindred ready to mobilise against the new threat?” Rainer asked. Lucy saluted as if to answer, “The Kindred forces I brought with me can handle things, so we have no need for soldiers who have already done their duty.”
“I’M FINE!” Isabelle shouted as she stood up, fighting through the pain as she did. “I can still fight! Do not write me off father!” All eyes were finally on her again, but Leo was unmoved.
“No, you may hide what you can behind pills, but you have done enough tonight, so this is a direct order, Knight Major Isabelle Blake, you are hereby ordered to return to base post haste. A military transport will pick you up shortly from a place outside of the mission zone.”
“Please don’t do this…” Isabelle pleaded.
“This matter is none of your concern now, go. Dr Klyne. We’re moving to the next point,” Leo turned away, making it perfectly clear what his stance was “Rainer, please have one of your soldiers escort her to this transport point please.” Leo handed over a small note, which Rainer took with a sigh, giving Isabelle a fleeting glance.
“At once, sir. Lucy, please assist the good Knight Major here. Rejoin us as soon as she’s at the designated point.” He passed the note along to Lucy, who opened it disinterestedly.
“I am sorry…Isabelle.” Leo said. “You’ll hopefully understand once it’s over. Go and rest, and I’ll call soon. Good bye.” He walked off, leaving Isabelle to seethe as Lucy led her away…
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Next Chapter (not live yet!)
Well, that's it for now! The enemy gains a name (taken not from the famous stage play, but rather a song from Papa Roach's Infest album from back in the early 00s!). This duo will be fleshed out more when they actually appear in person but it seems like Isabelle has other issues right now.
As a sneaky preview of the next chapter, I can say a character gets to make his cameo appearance (technically two characters do). So that's something to look forward to.
Till next time,
keep on writing!
Peter James Martin
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