The Strange Tales of Peter James Martin

Wednesday, 21 January 2026

#159 A Little Bit of Snow

Happy Blog Day Everyone

I'm not quite sure where this month is going to be honest, I'm sure it was only a few days into January last I looked!

A quiet post today as I finish up Phantom Dawns Epilogue and, hopefully, work on a little surprise to cap things off with. Do not expect anythng fancy.

lately I've been looking through the old blog posts. At first it was to find a reference I needed, but even after I got what I wanted, I kept on going. Re-reading my tribulations with Nanowrimo 2023 was a trip and a half, especially since there's been a lot I haven't thought about in a while (not doing it last year was a breath of fresh air). It has made me want to peek at Avalon Tales again, to see what kind of mess I left it in, and to work out where I keep going wrong in my approaches to it yet was able to get something resembling a draft complete in the very first place before I started tossing bits of it out.

Does that mean I'll get anything done? I'm not going to go that far considering my track record with things like this. My current priorities are to get Daemon Soul: Avalon complete to an acceptable standard, to complete the Daemon Soul: Winter's Tale novella and to get books relisted. The order I achieve it isn't important, of course. The biggest challenge of these is the Daemon Soul: Avalon draft, as there's a lot that needs doing with it. In contrast, I'm hoping A Winter's Tale goes a lot smoother...Famous last words!

Anyhow, is it getting chilly in here? Better see what Brennan and Riz are doing...oh.

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

That's...certainly a picture of Riz in the first panel. Not really sure what I was doing there. The second panel however, is classic Riz.

The comic itself is a reference to this one from two years ago, just a different weather condition! Odd Panel 1 Riz aside, I think it came together quite well.

That's all for this week,

Join me next time for Phantom Dawn's epilogue, the story's true end.

Till then...

Keep on writing!

Peter James Martin

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Wednesday, 14 January 2026

#158 Question Time Brennan + Short Diversions: Phantom Dawn Chapter 22

Happy Blog Day Everyone

Big day today, not only do we have the final full Chapter of Phantom Dawn (well, depending on how long the epilogue is of course!), but I also want to talk about the last 3 years of the Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz (yes, it has been that long already, pretty sure I'll blink again and by standing at their 5 year anniversary).

With that said, I guess we'd better start quickly!

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

Let's get the obvious out of the way. No, your eyes are not deceiving you, there is nothing wrong with whatever device you're looking at this on. I screwed up the picture on this one quite badly (a scanner, my kingdom for a scanner!)

That aside though..

3 years eh? Crazy how time flies. Only felt like yesterday that I was sat there wondering how to drum up interest in Brennan and Riz. Don't think it worked in that regard somewhat. However, for a project that I thought would have ended at the end of the first year, let alone survive 3, it's been a ride.

This is evident in how long it takes me to think about new story ideas (usually the day before I need to draw it!). Some days the whole thing will magically appear in my head, others, the final panel will be the only one that appears. Then there's the days where no ideas form, leaving me a bit stranded. Though, on talking about that, there is still a computer file that I was intending on using to keep track of what I've done and used to store ideas. I believe there was a few that haven't been adapted yet.

Also fun looking back at the frequency of characters as while Brennan and Riz are more or less mainstay, with even Brennan taking the occasional week off, there's still people who don't crop up as much as they should. This list includes the likes of Valarie who is still the third most featured character (at least I think it is, haven't actually compared her screen time with Gallows who featured heavily in the multipart epic from the strips very first year) and Luna who has sadly been very underused, appearing in a grand total of 2 strips...both Valentines ones at that!

I think that my goal for this year, will be to try to get more appearances in for these characters (aside from Alice, she's far better being a character left in the shadows). Things have progressed well from the first year, but there's still more to do.

Here's to year 4.

Short Diversions: Phantom Dawn Chapter 22

Well, here is, the penultimate installment of Phantom Dawn, almost to the week when the series started last year. The schedule has had its ups and downs but we've made it here all the same. As stated above, there's still the epilogue to come, and then a post-mortem about the series, which I'm not going to lie, is going to be extremely brutal.

In terms of where we are story wise, well, the fighting has ended, and our heroes have prevailed but what lies in the aftermath? And what will Rose’s path forward be?

Read on to find out!

Phantom Dawn Chapter Index

Chapter 22

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Chapter 22: Aftermath

Everything was white, and the voice plaguing Rose was nowhere to be found at all. Instead, she found herself looking at two figures hidden in silhouette. They stood side by side in a loving manner, and though she couldn't see their faces, she knew that they were looking at her with that same love.

“You're already making a difference…” One of the figures said, evidently a man. “...We've got nothing to worry about it seems!” He was jovial in nature, but there had been a gap in what he was saying, as if part of the audio was missing.

“Remember…We'll always be here for you, no matter what you do or where you go…We both love you. Now go…don't look back. We'll be waiting…” As before, there were gaps in what she said.

Something had changed in Rose though, as this time, as the figures faded from view, she called out after them.

“Mum! Dad!” She reached out before they were fully gone, her fingers unable to catch them, instead though, they fell on something else. The same sword she'd seen in her previous dream.

It was at this point that Rose woke up, and found herself in a bed. It was light outside but the sky was as gloomy as ever. Tried as she might, she couldn't remember a thing about how she got to the bed or anything about how the fight ended. She had been patched up by hands unseen.

“Finally awake, longest I think I’ve seen you rest in the past few days,” Kurz stood in the door way, wearing similar bandages to herself.

“Kurz! How long have I been out for?” she enquired.

“A good day and a half? Might have been longer as me and Mason weren’t exactly up and moving about instantly.”

“Mason? Where is he now?”

“Closer than you’d probably think?” Kurz said, trying to appear cryptically.

“I don’t understand?”

“He’s sleeping on the floor next to your bed. We’ve been taking turns keeping a watch over you, and as you can see, he couldn’t even do that. WAKE UP YOU LAZY OAF!” Kurz shouted suddenly, taking a step nearer to where Mason had evidently passed out.

“What! I’m awake! I’m awake!” Mason jolted up right, his wounds bandaged as well. After the shock had worn off, Mason noticed that Rose was awake. “Mi’lady! How sweet does a angel sleep?”

“Mason, we talked about this, the poetry is creepy and not how people generally wanted to be greeted in the morning,” Kurz said with some snark.

“Sorry, I couldn’t help myself, I was just glad that she’s fine, you know?”

“Well, let’s give her some space now that’s she’s awake so she can get herself sorted. Some of the woman in town donated some more clothes to you since you’ll probably want to get changed. Some have also said they can fix what you’re wearing if you’d like, as a way of thanks,” Kurz stated.

“Thanks? But why?” Rose asked.

“Because you saved the town, well, you and those two other monsters that ended up working together,” Mason added.

The mention of those two monsters did set off a memory, one of surprise seeing two creatures that had previously been trying to eat her, suddenly uniting and working alongside each other to protect her.

“What happened to them?” She asked in a worried tone.

Kurz and Mason exchanged a look at each other.

“Get yourself sorted, and we’ll show you,” Mason explained.

Mason and Kurz had left her alone while she got ready, exchanging the clothes she had been wearing for new ones, though their condition varied greatly. As she was getting dressed again, she caught sight of her own wrists, and another memory fragment of the night before burned its way into her mind. This one however, wasn’t as pleasant as the previous one, it was of the energy chains that had formed around her wrists. It ignited a burning pain that wrapped itself in a coil. She had wanted to ask about how they all survived that encounter, she could recall the faint image of herself defeated, her strength failing her. Yet waking up in a town that had clearly not been destroyed, gave her the impression that things had taken a different turn, but there was an asterix on that, one that gave her pause. The pain she was feeling in her wrists seemed connected to another feeling in her head, this one being a dull ache that lingered in the recesses of her mind. Had she done something to seal their victory? If that was the case, then why hadn’t they said anything about it? Why hadn’t they been boasting about the incredible feats she’d undertaken to allow them to continue living. Was she grateful she was alive? Of course, but she also had no control over what happened. A power like that was not reliable. Thinking about it more, she wondered if there was a link between it and that voice she heard in her head. No sooner had she thought that, there was a distant laughter echoing around, causing her to shudder.

She looked into the mirror and saw a faint image of a mask over her face, but it disappeared when she blinked. She grabbed the sides of it and held it tight, wanting to see if any answers were forthcoming from it. All she saw now was her own frantic face. She turned away, and headed to the window. It looked like Kurz and Mason had brought her back to the same building as before, overlooking the town. She doubted that any of the answers she sought were anywhere here.

A knock at the door postponed anything else.

“Yes?” Rose asked.

“It’s just me,” Neal said, poking his head round the door. “Kurz mentioned that you were awake.” The old man looked relieved.

“Yeah…” Rose replied, her voice trailing off. “Was there…Was there something you wanted?”

“All I wanted was to make sure you were okay. It's been a wild few days hasn't it. To think that so much could happen in such a short amount of time. We all owe you our thanks.” Neal was still standing by the door, not wanting to intrude on Rose's personal space. “It looks like our meeting was fated,” he added somberly.

Rose took in all that he had said but didn't know how she was supposed to reply. Even the simple question of if she was okay had become complicated. Physically, aside from a few bumps and scraps, she was fine. She was well enough to move around without any noticeable impairments. Mentally speaking however, she was more of a mess. The precious few memories she had recovered were balanced on the ones that had gone missing from the night before. Then there was the sword, she'd seen enough glimpses of it in her head to know it was important. It'd been grabbing the sword that Mason had given her that caused a stir in the first place, so if she was to find this other weapon, one that she felt was hers, it might unlock more memories. However, she knew that she wouldn’t find the sword here, not in this town. She didn’t know how to tell Neal that though. Their lives had been thrown together, almost literally, and he had taken her in, and sheltered her. She couldn’t ask him to do anything else, he’d done enough.

Neal saw the look on her face, as though she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.

“It’s okay, you can take your time. Knowing you’re okay is good enough for me. You’ve done tremendous good here and there’s something important you should see, though I guess Kurz and Mason want to show that…I was surprised!” Neal laughed.

“You were surprised? What is it that they want to show me?” Rose asked.

“It’ll be best if you saw it for yourself. I’ll be downstairs with them when you’re ready.” With that, Neal left.

Alone again, Rose was bewildered about what the surprise could be, offering a momentarily uplift to her mood, before she realised that she’d have to tell the others about her decision, unknowing what they’d say about it. By all accounts, they didn’t have the rights to interfere with her choice, especially since they had only known each other for a couple of days at best, but in that time though, a lot had happened, and a lot of bonds had been forged under that pressure. She may not have had to say anything, but she figured it was best. She went to the window again and gazed out, wondering if the chaotic sky was a mirror for herself right now, and if the other her, the person she used to be, would have done anything differently. Of course, she was never going to get an answer to that. With nothing else that needed doing, she took a last glance around the room, picked up the jacket she had chosen from the clothes offered by Kurz, and then left the room.

Downstairs, Rose found Neal, Kurz and Mason waiting. She was amused that each one was in a pose that she thought fitted their personalities quite well. Neal sat waiting patiently, his hands resting on a walking stick, his eyes closed in quiet concentration. Kurz stood leaning against a wall, his arms folded, though she did see a flutter of movement from his eyes as she was coming down the stairs, her arrival not going unnoticed. Mason was pacing, his mouth going like he was reciting something silently.

“I’m ready,” she announced, causing everyone to turn to her. “What is this thing you wanted to show me?”

“Mi’lady, my sweet angel, to see you moving again is one of life’s pleasures,” Mason said softly.

“Yes, Rose, he has been rehearsing that since the end of the ordeal,” Kurz interrupted at the end.

“Well, at least I’m trying to be cultured!”

“That’s not how I’d describe your poetry attempts. I’d say it’s more akin to torture. Besides, I don’t think that’s really the first thing she needs once she’s woken up, you know?” Kurz pushed himself off the wall, and patted Mason on the back. “Besides, I think she needs to see them now, not after more attempts at bad poetry from you.”

“I thought it was quite nice actually,” Rose said, giving a little smile, one that immediately melted Mason’s heart.

“T-Thank you! All the best words I can think of pale next to you!”

“You do realise she’s just being nice, don’t you? I don’t think it’s even possible for her to say anything bad,” Kurz commented.

“It means she knows how to handle people better than either of you,” Neal laughed, catching the ire of both Kurz and Mason.

“I know how to handle people just fine, thanks!” Kurz snapped back.

“Well, actually I can’t say anything about that…” Mason mumbled, looking ashamed for a moment.

“Oh, you’re all here now?” Si said as he poked his head through the door. “Do you know how long I’ve been waiting? I’m a busy person now! My time is valuable.” He stuck out his chest, with a cheesy smile plastered on his face.

“Need I remind you that you’re riding on what we did?” Kurz pointed out. “So, unless you want us to tell everyone exactly what your role in the events really was, I’d suggest you pipe down.”

“Don’t do that! Look, all I did was said that I was really good friends with everyone that saved the town, and that I may, MAY, have orchestrated the events that led to victory. Everything else that’s happened is on the other people,” Si tried to defend himself, but all aside from Rose, were unmoved by what he was saying.

“Okay…Can we just get going and then I can get out of your hair, you can get out of mine?” Si bargained.

“We were going to do that anyway?” Kurz told him, in no uncertain terms.

“Good…then. Follow me, we’ve set them up with some food that isn’t people and it seems to be working, I mean, no one is dead yet,” Si gestured for everyone to follow him and they did.

The walk was brisk, and Rose noted that the atmosphere around the town had changed, there was a lot of tension when the Heaven’s Rod failed, and it didn’t dissipate at all during any of the attacks that followed. Now, the burden had lifted, and despite the sky still looking oppressive, that mood was nowhere to be found. Feeling more at ease, her smile came naturally. While some people were out, and greeting the group with cheers, it seemed that the majority of them were up ahead.

“You’re going to love this, Rose,” Kurz told her, and despite his normally stoic nature, he too was smiling.

Rose quickly discovered what he meant, as she saw three similar sights. There were the two monsters that had come to her aid, the T-rex-like beast and the one that resembled a giant spider, and hugging each of them in turn, was the little girl, Cecily. She had gathered up some of her friends and had shown them that despite appearances, the creatures now seemed docile.

The crowd parted as Rose and her group became noticed, allowing her to get right up close with her monstrous allies. The monsters looked at her, and the spider-like one seemed to bow down to her, while the T-rex one stepped forward to nuzzle her head. It was clear that they were in deference to her. In a manner known to no one, not even herself, Rose had tamed these creatures, even limiting the effect the Phantom Dawn had on them, even with as the baleful light glared down on them.

“We thought they’d run off, after that last fight. But they didn’t, in fact, we didn’t even think they were going to let us carry you off at first,” Mason explained.

“They’ve also protected the town again while you were unconscious, as some thankfully smaller creatures tried to attack, but these two fended them off easily. Seems like you’ve given the town two extra protectors till they’ve got all the Heaven’s Rod back in order,” Kurz took his turn in detailing the situation, much to Rose’s surprise.

Reaching out to stroke the T-Rex creature, she felt that this added more weight to her decision to leave, she wasn’t leaving the town defenceless, no, she’d given them a unique gift, just as they, in turn, had given her one.

“Rose? Are…Are you crying?” Neal asked softly, stepping up next to her, though trying not to get too close to the monster, despite how friendly it was looking.

“Am I?” Rose put her hand to her face, and wiped away a few tears that were glistening. Upon seeing that she really was crying, she stopped to figure out why. “I don’t feel upset,” she reasoned.

“Then they’re tears of happiness, and it is a sight to see,” Neal said, as he felt tears starting to form at the corners of his own eyes.

Not knowing what to do next, Rose did what she felt the urge to do, and she hugged Neal, putting him in a state of shock.

“Thank you,” she whispered to him. “Thank you for finding me.”

“It’s okay, my child. It’s okay. Perhaps, it was you who found me, and them,” Neal gestured to Kurz and Mason, who was only slightly jealous that the old man got a hug before he did.

“Can’t argue that,” Mason agreed, shoving his jealousy aside. “If you hadn’t shown up, I would still be under Finch’s thumb, always one step away from choosing a better path.”

“Hey, I was the one who beat you up, remember!” Kurz interjected.

“Yeah, but she did it first! That aside, don’t you have something to say to her?”

“I…” Kurz turned to face Rose, and all his conflicted feelings came forward. “I suppose if you hadn’t come here, life would have been normal but unchanging. In a matter of days, you upended everything pretty much.”

“Is that a compliment?” Rose asked, a sly smile starting to show.

“I’ve spent too long around him these past few days,” Mason interrupted. “That is the best you’re going to get!”

“I’m not very good with my words, okay? I’m glad you’re here, okay? Is it better to put it that way?” Kurz snapped back.

“Thank you all,” Rose said, trying to keep the peace. “I may not know who I am still, but this moment, this is one I’ll remember.”

She knew she would have to tell them her choice, but for now, she let them all bask in their hard fought victory, and let the townspeople enjoy their peace…

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Epilogue

Now all that's left is the epilogue! I hope you join me for that...

Till next time,

Keep on writing

Peter James Martin

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Wednesday, 7 January 2026

#157 Question Time Riz

Happy Blog Day Everyone

Still sorting out the aftermath of the Christmas holiday season, but I can confirm that Phantom Dawn Chapter 22 will drop next week per the new schedule. Hoping to get a new writing routine going when I've returned to some sort of normality (or whatever passes for normal in our increasingly messed up world).

Beyond Phantom Dawn, my mind has been drifting back to my other works in progress I'm off to a great start with A Winter's Tale but it does expose several issues I'm struggling with in the wider Daemon Soul story namely some decisions I made in the first story that I clearly didn't think through properly. That's to do with the main characters powers and the Daemon Souls themselves. In a nutshell, its a case of, if they have this power readily available, why don't they also use it?

One fix could havd been that the power was toned down so it was always there but it required some creative use in order to win more difficult fights. Obviously this one is largely a no go now, not without completely rewriting the first book. Not that I can't salvage some of it though. The other fix, the one I'm thinking about more, is to establish a hidden cost, one that isn't known to the characters at first. Of course, I'm also going to reinforce the idea that using your hidden skill willy nilly isn't a fantastic idea because of how exhausted you are after. Sure, you killed all those demons, but what you going to do when the others turn up? At least I think that was my original thinking all those years ago. I swear, if I could go back to then, I'd slap myself for the problems I have now (amongst other things I'd do with a time machine of course!)

Right, I've waffled on enough there, I do believe it's a certain strips anniversary on the 10th...

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

So Question Time Brennan next week? I'm sure there will be no problems with that!

I split this years anniversary because of timing. The first blog post that featured the strip dropped on the 10th January 2023, which doesn't quite align with the blog schedules this time around, instead falling between two posts. Figured this would be the best approach.

As for the strip itself, I wish I had thought ahead of time to ask for genuine questions to put here, but maybe next time. Plus no doubt one of the questions would have been about what Riz’s deal is anyway (or more bluntly, why rat?)

Anyway, I'll continue my thoughts about the strip with the second part of the anniversary collection. With that, and Phantom Dawn Chapter 22, next weeks blog post is being to look quite stuffed already!

Till next time...

Keep on writing

Peter James Martin

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Wednesday, 31 December 2025

#156 New Year New Ambitions

Happy Blog Day Everyone

So, to start off, apologies for not including Phantom Dawn Chapter 22 here, the final one I might add, but with it being the holidays...I never got the time to finish it. So in order to keep the schedule going that I've got myself in, Chapter 22 will drop the January 14th, with the epilogue coming the 28th. This will then lead into a nice autopsy of the whole story the following week in February.

Holidays be crazy.

Not all bad news though, as there's still a brand new Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz right here, right now!

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

In hindsight, I should have maybe shrank the first panel to make it clearer that Brennan is wearing a party hat, looks a bit odd otherwise! Other than that, I think I nailed Brennan’s expression in the last panel.

Think that's another 52 issues there...which means you know what’s coming next week!

With that said, I'm going to let this blog be a short and sweet piece. Hopefully you've all had a good holiday season with more ups than downs. Can't guarantee a good year but I will wish the best for everyone out there.

See you all in 2026

Peter James Martin

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Wednesday, 24 December 2025

#155 Riz-mas Gifts + Daemon Soul A Winters Tale

Happy Blog Day Everyone

This week should have been a short week...but it isn't! In honour of the holiday season, I thought I'd share the beginning of my newest Daemon Soul novella, A Winter's Tale. It's only really the prologue and bit of chapter 1, but it's still something. The Novella is set between the first story (awakening) and the still being worked on, Avalon. To that end there may be some spoilers but I've tried to make it as newcomer friendly as possible.

Before all that though, let’s check in on Brennan and Riz...oh dear...

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

It's a Riz-mas miracle...or not. It could be argued the ending is not...the best, but then again, par for the course with some of the things Riz has pulled before! Plus, they'll be back next week for some New Year's Eve shenanigans, I'm sure things will work out...

Daemon Soul: A Winter's Tale

So, this is the Novella I've mentioned briefly in the past couple of weeks (and possibly even before!). The concept had been kicking around since about 2008 when my desire to write a seasonal tale collided with hearing the David Essex song of the same name. The plot took shape fairly quickly back then, but it nevef progressed far. It was left forgotten after the 2008 holiday season, till this year of course. I revised the original plot and made a clearer distinction between my timeline jumps (for example, the following prologue and chapter 1 are separated by centuries in time but are both relevant to each other), and to simplify a few things.

It is my hope that I can get it all sorted for release next holiday season, to tide thjngs over till a hopeful 2027 release of Avalon, provided certain dominoes fall into place. I'll also note that chapter 1 here isn’t complete, as I was worried about length.

With all that said, I hope you all enjoy this seasonal write for what it is, and you'll have to let me know if you want more!

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Prologue: As The Snow Falls

Somewhere in 17th Century England

No one should have been out that night, not in the fierce blizzard that raged. Even the animals had taken shelter in their nests and burrows. There was movement though, in the darkness. A man trudged through the thick snow, all alone. He spared no thought about his own safety, afterall, he had only come out to wallow in memories.

“Even this night wouldn’t have dampened your spirits, your love for the snow. No, I’ll push on for you,” the man spoke to no one. He had taken to talking to himself, lest the voices in his head convince him of his madness. “After all, I have nothing else to lose, now all my days are grey and cold.” He wore a heavy coat but showed no signs of discomfort from the extreme cold he was experiencing. “Perhaps it would be easier if I were just to fall here…” He paused in his steps, looking up at the endless sky, looking for where the moon should have been. “The moonlit nights amongst the pure snow…Those were your favourites. I can’t give up till we can see them again…No, there’s still so much to do.” He started moving again, brushing the snow from his shoulders.

It was then he heard the singing, a soft melodic voice that was being carried by the wind that howled. This is what brought a smile to the man’s face. He hummed along to each note as he went on his way. He risked a glance behind him, seeing a hazy shape obscured by the blizzard.

“Always following, always helping. Together we can see it through. You want to see her as much as I do, don’t you?” the man asked.

The person behind him just kept on singing. As the man resumed his steps, the figure following him came into view. A woman, clad in a beautiful blue ballgown, wearing a dark veil. Her light blonde hair largely stayed in place, despite the gale force winds. She was dancing as she moved, experiencing no trouble in moving through the snow. There were dark spots on her dress where blood had been splattered over her and frozen, causing it to almost appear as glitter.

Both of them continued their walk through the blizzard.

Chapter 1: Approaching Frost

Somewhere in England 2006

Cypher couldn’t remember what city he and Serena had found themselves in this time, he’d been in so many recently that they had all blended into one, it could have been London, Bristol or Manchester as far as he was concerned. Each of them had been fully kitted out for the Christmas season, coloured lights hanging from building to building, with Christmas Trees dominating every main square. None of this mattered to the demons that Cypher and Serena were hunting of course. Those monsters didn’t care for the pretty lights but only their hunger and lusts. As the Daemon Souls, Cypher and Serena had to kill them all, wherever they found them. Serena, being the more experienced of the hunters, often took the lead, while Cypher listened and tried to learn the best he could.

His thoughts distracted him though. It had almost been one year since he had left Highdale and his old life behind. He had taken his new name then as well. He’d abandoned everything, severed every tie he’d ever made to that point. Yet, thoughts about them lingered in his mind like a light that refused to switch off.

“Are you okay?” Serena asked, noticing that his gaze was captured by every passing Christmas decoration.

“What? Oh! Never better!” Cypher quickly replied, trying to cover for his lack of attention. Serena, however, since the pair had declared their true feelings for each other a year prior, had gotten very good at seeing past his bad attempts at deflections. She knew when something was bothering him, and usually, with enough cues, she could pin-point the issue like a laser beam.

“It is okay to still think about those you’ve left behind. I’d just advise against it where possible as you’ll only hurt yourself,” she explained. She knew herself that it wasn’t an easy thing to put into practice, as memories of her own homeland were never too far away, but she’d had two hundred years of practice at keeping control.

“My mum loved Christmas…To think it’d been a year since, well, everything,” Cypher tried to explain himself the best he could, but his words still fell short of what he meant.

Serena saw his distress, and paused to think about what the best response would be, she’d read an awful lot, but when it became time to put things into practice, she could never think on what the most appropriate cause of action was. A second later, and in one spontaneous motion, she embraced Cypher in a dramatic, and over the top looking, hug.

“Serena? He stuttered in response.

“When your partner is in distress, you deploy a hug to defuse their inner turmoil and make it it clear that you are ready to support them,” Serena’s explanation sounded scientific, and Cypher was afraid to ask where she’d heard that, but at the end of the day, a hug was a hug. He allowed himself to sink into it.

“Is it working?” Serena asked.

“Yeah, it’s working,” Cypher replied.

“Then, we can get back to the task at hand. The demons are proving to be quite restless at the moment, we have to be vigilant,” Serena broke the hug and resumed walking, once again focusing on their mission.

Cypher nodded in agreement, then gave a little sigh and a slight smile.

“...And this is why I love you,” he said softly.

“And I love you too,” Serena responded, showing that even though she was ahead, she was still listening in to what he was saying.

It was in his rush to catch up to her that he felt a chill erupt through his body, a sensation that he hadn’t felt since he became a Daemon Soul. Serena had explained to him then that their bodies were hardier, meaning that cold weather had little effect on them any more. This made the chill even more surprising.

“Hey, Serena? Did you feel that?” he asked.

Serena had stopped, standing silently just ahead, she was looking around, mild concern on her face.

“Something isn’t right,” She was rubbing her arm, the same kind of gesture that someone would do to warm themselves up.

Clouds had gathered above, hiding what had been a clear night sky, little bits of snow started to fall down silently.

“Snow eh? That’s kind of neat. I did always love snow,” Cypher said, wanting to fill the silence that had fallen on them with something.

Serena looked puzzled by it, and the pair of them then shuddered in unison.

“This isn’t right…” Serena uttered, and then their demonic senses went off, alerting them to the presence of demons nearby, but even this felt oddly cold compared to normal.

“Ah, great, more to do,” Cypher said with a little sigh, pushing the strangeness of what was going on to the side for the moment.

“We need to figure out where they are, and if they have anything to do with this weather.” Serena looked around, searching for any sign of their target. The feeling both Daemon Souls had felt was close, so they should have been in visible range.

Cypher started to look around as well, but something different caught his eye. It was on the big tree in the centre, a group of decorations clearly made by children from one of the local schools. Leaving Serena momentarily, he wandered over closer to it while his partner was checking the area near a side street. The ornaments had nudged a memory into his head, of the winter after his father had left him and his mother, what had already been a bad year was looking to end even worse as it felt that there was little hope for either of them. His mother had taken a part time job to try and make ends meet, while he could never shake the thoughts that others in school were looking at him differently.

Despite all that, he’d made a small ornament for the tree, of two people hugging. That was the intent anyway, they certainly didn’t look like two people, but his mother loved it all the same. There on the tree, was the same idea, done with the same amount of skill, though perhaps better proportioned. Cypher reached out to touch it, all those old feelings rushing back to him, when his demonic senses roared loud, he was in danger.

A clawed hand burst from the tree, and if he hadn’t moved, it might have been the end for him, but as it was, he dodged out of the way, falling to his back. He immediately reached for his sword that was holstered around his waist, attached to a device that Serena had recovered from the lost Saviour City for their use. He pulled it free and held the blade against the demon’s claws. The creature looked humanoid for the most part, but extremely scrawny with their ribs showing. Each hand ended with claws instead of fingers and horns protruded on the head. Their eyes, however, gave him pause, as instead of the deep red colour that demons normally had, they were glazed over and the colour of ice.

He pushed hard against the demon, knocking it back, and went straight on the offensive, and cut into its right arm. The sword cut deep, and Cypher had been expecting to sever the arm completely. Instead, he’d found a resistance there, and when he looked at the wound, there was no black blood pouring out, there was just his sword stuck fast. He put his foot against the demon and pushed as hard as he could, freeing his weapon, but falling backwards in the process.

It was at this point that Serena came running over, sword at the ready, there was no hesitation as she swung away, taking the demon’s head clean off. The demon’s now headless body swayed slightly, before taking a step towards the Daemon Souls, its unhurt arm raised. The wound on its neck exposed veins of frozen black blood, parts of it falling apart like crystals

“This demon is already dead,” Serena murmured as she went to strike again, this time cutting it in half, causing it to topple over, the impact with the ground shattering its upper torso.

“Well, that’s one demon down…” Cypher said, standing up. “What was up with it?”

“No idea, but we’re not done yet…” Serena replied, turning around as more demons gathered, all looking like the first one, all with the same vacant gaze.

“Never easy is it…”

“Of course, but we do our task regardless.” Serena stood back to back with Cypher, as the pair got ready to attack.

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Now that's out of the way, I have something else to say.

If you celebrate, I hope you have a Merry Christmas. If you can, find enjoyment with what should be a peaceful time of year. At the very least, find rest where you can. I think we all deserve that much.

Till next time...

Keep on writing

Peter James Martin

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Wednesday, 17 December 2025

#154 Riz-mas Guide + Short Diversions: Phantom Dawn Chapter 21

Happy Blog Day Everyone

Got a new chapter of Phantom Dawn for all your reading pleasures, and it'll all be over soon, though I have slightly missed the time it was supposed to end in. If I recall, my original plan called for it to have either ended now, or before the end of December. Might have been earlier come to think of it. It'll definitely have ended before the end of January...Maybe, never say never and all that!

In other news, work continues apace on my new Daemon Soul novella, hoping to have something to show you all soon regarding it. Ideally, I'd have thought this up sooner but that's the writers luck I guess.

Let's see what mischief Riz is up too this Riz-mas season...

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

Seems Riz has issued a guide for those still unsure of how to usher in a good Riz-mas. I fear though that his holiday isn't going to get much traction. Can't blame a rat for trying!

Short Diversions: Phantom Dawn Chapter 21

With two surprising new allies on her side, Rose enters the fray again, but is it enough to ensure victory? Or is she going to have to dig deeper than she even thought possible? Read on to find out!

Phantom Dawn Chapter Index

Chapter 21

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Chapter 21: Berserker

Rose stood in the middle of the T-Rex and spider-like creatures, while their enemy, the humanoid shaped one, didn’t seem phased by the numbers against it. It started advancing towards this strange team, its pace quickening till it was flat out running, and with its speed, it was in their midst before they knew it. The T-rex creature charged in, using its head to charge the opposing monster, but the humanoid creature stood its ground, and lifted its opponent off the ground, throwing it to the side, just as the spider creature attacked, its large legs falling hard on the humanoid creature's shoulders. The attack landed but it was nowhere near enough to stop it. Instead, the humanoid creature lifted the spider’s arms out of its way, before attacking it with its tail that had quickly changed shape, resembling more of an axe head than before. The area became filled with the sound of the monsters crying out in pain as each one scored a hit on the other.

Unable to do anything, Rose kept calling out to the monsters on her side, telling them where there were openings in their enemies' defence. To her surprise, they actually listened to her, moving as instructed. Still, for every attack they landed, more was inflicted in return. This kind of fighting wasn’t sustainable, and Rose could see that. Sooner, rather than later, her allies would slow, and then, they would fall. It was only the fact that it was currently two versus one that they were doing the damage. Feeling her own self-worth lessen, she gripped the handle of her sword tightly. For the first time, she felt the damage that her fighting had caused the sword, as the handle was scratched where once it was smooth, the blade itself was now chipped in a couple of places, showing how hard the enemy’s defences were. If she were to swing again, there was no telling how long it’d last before the blade snapped. The T-rex creature cried out in pain as the tail from the humanoid one struck near its neck, drawing blood.

Gritting her teeth, Rose charged in, wanting to take her chances rather than standing there. The Spider creature blocked her path, stopping her from joining the fray as it grabbed the tail that was hurting its comrade and ripped it off, allowing the T-rex to stagger to the side, blood oozing out from the wound. It was able to stand again, baring its teeth at the humanoid creature, yet the threat was no longer there.

The three creatures clashed again in combat, leaving Rose watching, her confidence plummeting. She slid to her knees, tears in her eyes. She didn’t understand what had happened to her strength, to what happened to all those incredible feats she had been able to pull off before.

“Do you really want to be able to fight like that again? Is your helplessness causing you that much pain and suffering? Isn’t this delightful!” the other voice in her head laughed.

“Shut up!” Rose screamed, she pushed herself up again as the humanoid creature knocked the two others aside, slick blood forming an arc in the air as it slashed both of them.

The humanoid creature seemed to ponder which target it was going to go for, to deliver the killing blow. It settled on the already weakened T-rex beast. Despite having no mouth or any other facial features other than an eye, its demeanour gave the impression that it was certainly relishing the carnage it was causing. The Spider creature tried to stand up, but found it hadn’t the strength.

Rose couldn’t look at the scene in front of her. The two monsters didn’t have to fight for her, and they didn’t have to die for her either. To that end, she started running at the humanoid creature, this time the other creatures couldn’t get in the way, but she was determined to get in the way of them. She struck out with the sword, but the humanoid creature was ready, and choosing its moment wisely, it knocked the sword out of Rose’s hand with a swipe of its tail before it punched Rose into the ground, making a crater that only got bigger as it kept punching her down. It then loomed over her, its tail poised to strike into her, ending the fight once and for all.

“I guess, I’ll have to step in after all, aren’t you incredibly lucky that I need you alive?” The voice in her head stated, allowing itself a sly chuckle at the end. Rose blacked out at this point, those words being the last thing she heard.

Kurz and Mason watched what happened next in complete shock and horror. They too had thought it was all over as Rose fell to the ground, but what they weren’t expecting was her hand to shoot up at the last second, grabbing the head of the tail before it could do anything. She held it in place as the humanoid creature struggled to get free. Still holding on, Rose stood up. It was now that they could see her face, or the lack of it as it were. They didn’t know where the mask had come from, but there was a plain white one that completely covered her face without any visible slits for eyes or mouth. Her movements looked awkward, her head tilting erratically. Bands of crimson coloured energy started gathering at her wrists, spinning around them till they resembled barb wire at first, till threads shot out, becoming more chain-like. The ends of each chain culminated in jagged hooks and other cruel implements. Rose finally let go of the tail, and the humanoid creature hopped back a fair ways, wanting to put some space between them. It was at this point a red x formed across the mask, some of the colour dripping down like blood. With parts of her long hair sticking up in a jagged style, Rose started to move, dragging the energy chains with her. The movements of her body were unnerving to look at, as she jerked at random intervals.

The humanoid creature didn’t want to let her get too close to him, not with the weapons she’d crafted for herself. Its body shifted slightly, as though it was trying to gain an advantage over Rose, and it attacked with its tail again, this time having been lengthened so it didn’t have to go near her. She did nothing to try and evade the attack, instead, she wrapped it up with the set of chains from around her left arm, and then dragged the creature forward, straight into her own attack with the chains from around her other arm, the hooks tearing large chunks of rock away from the creature exposing more of its skin which started causing it to panic. The humanoid creature even sacrificed its tail to get away from the direct confrontation, once again escaping to where it thought Rose wouldn’t be able to attack it. This proved a fatal error as, tossing the tail aside, Rose whipped both sets of chains around with no care as to what was in their radius, and then sent them out after the humanoid creature, the chains magically growing longer when they needed to. They descended on the creature like a rain of blades, gouging and slashing with every flick of Rose’s wrist. The creature tried to escape but the hooks dug too deep within its rock-like skin and it was dragged towards Rose with barely any defence left. With the tables turned against it so decidedly, the creature tried one last defiant act, it took the last of the rock-like skin, and turned it into a spear, one that it launched at Rose point blank. A normal person would have been skewered, but not Rose, instead she caught it an inch from her face with her bare hand, it’s sharp edges cutting her hand open but she didn’t flinch from it, instead she commanded every hook to impale itself into the creature's body, each one sticking in deep. Once that was done, she cocked her head as the creature stared at her, now terrified about what was going to happen. Rose clicked her fingers and every chain was pulled away, ripping the creature into shreds. Underneath the almost magma like surface, the creature bled profusely as it lay there dying, whatever power had animated, had straight up deserted it now. Rose wasn’t finished yet though, she identified the biggest part of it, and then started attacking over and over again. There was no mercy to be had here.

Watching this horrifying scene, Kurz and Mason sat in complete silence, both turning pale at the carnage they were seeing. They watched as the humanoid creature gave its last breath as it crumbled into dust, and Rose started to head towards them, spinning both sets of chains around.

“Wait! Rose! It’s us!” Kurz shouted. “You’ve done it! You’ve won!”

“I don’t think she can hear us!” Mason said. He’d recovered enough to move slightly but, neither of them were going very far.

“ROSE! WAKE UP!” Kurz shouted once more, putting everything he had into it. Still, Rose sped up, her orderly pace breaking down into a spring, the chains bouncing along behind her.

Seeing as there was no other option, Mason joined with Kurz in shouting Rose’s name, hoping to break through whatever madness she was currently in.

“ROSE! DON’T LET YOUR ANGELIC GRACE BE CORRUPTED LIKE THIS!”

If Mason had uttered that at any other point, Kurz would have said something to him, but with their lives on the line, he merely made a note of it, a fun piece of trivia he could use against him if they were to walk away from here alive.

“ROSE! PLEASE, WE’RE YOUR FRIENDS! YOU HAVE TO WAKE UP!” Kurz pleaded, as she came frightfully close to them, to the point where they could see droplets of blood falling from the mask like tears.

It was at the last possible second that the mask started to crack, and swiftly, broke apart, the fragments dissolving before they could even hit the ground. The chains similarly dissipated and Rose collapsed to the ground, her face frozen in shock, as if she herself could scarcely believe what happened.

Everything became still again, as it sunk in to Kurz and Mason that they had survived, yet that’s all they felt had happened. Kurz looked over to where their enemy had been mere minutes ago, and there was nothing. It had died swiftly and quietly in retrospect, it’s death overshadowed by the transformation that Rose underwent.

If anything, the battle had only given them more questions, but at they very least, they had another day to wake up to in order to seek answers.

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Next Chapter

That's all for this week, by all rights next weeks should be fairly brief, but I've got a feeling there may be something to look at...hopefully!

Till then...

Keep on writing.

Peter James Martin

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