Tuesday, April 1, 2014

A To Z Challenge. CHAPTER ONE -- NÁNDOR

     The Aerie hid in the craggy mountain range, which bordered the outer rim of the land.  Dense forests cloaked the peaks in dark needles and darker shadows.  Strange creatures haunted the wildwood, humanoids that waited in the gloom to take the unwary traveler. 

The Aerie was not meant to be found by the faint of heart.  No, this place only helped those who faced their fears and trekked through the dangers of both man and beast. 

Many travelers came to find afflatus for their leaders.  Their monarchs wanted hints of the future, of knowledge to come.  They desired to know if their harvests would be plentiful and their kingdoms peaceful.  Their representatives sometimes waited weeks for aestival time to arrive to receive their audience.

Nándor wiped the sweat from his brow as he rested.  Even as high up into the range as he was, humid heat bore down on him.  This was the last leg of his journey.  The Aerie was close, but that also meant the forest's perils loomed closer.

His day had started well before dawn.  He rose as grey broke the darkness, breaking camp with efficient movements.  His horse had plodded along the overgrown path for the last two hours without complaint.  Now, the hearty stallion drank from the stream in the adumbrated clearing.

Filling up his waterskin, he stood and patted the horse’s glossy neck.  The horse snuffled his hair and blew out a large breath before mouthing his ear.  Nándor laughed, but it came out tired.  He pushed the horse away with a gentle hand then scratched the horse’s muzzle.  “I bet you’ll be glad to get there, won’t you?  So will I, Tesni.”

He stepped away and mounted the horse.  “Another hour and we’ll be there.”  He turned his gaze toward the mountain peak.  Squinting, he found the faint outline of his destination and frowned.

With a gentle tug of the reins, he turned his horse toward the mountain fortress.  He just hoped it was worth it.  Would the arcane augury help guide him against Ahriman?

Nándor did not know, but all was lost without a clue to the rogue’s whereabouts along with the sacred object he stole.  Ahriman absconded in the night and no trace could be found. 

His name was now an anathema among the people.  A once great man now nothing but a villain. 

Nándor’s face turned stony at the very thought of the man.  He would find the treacherous coward.

©djinnia 2014

30 comments:

  1. What an interesting start of a story. I love your use of many wondrous A-words. And I like that you linked it to a dictionary, a feature I definitely used for some of them. :) Great start to the challenge, djinnia. I look forward to reading more. :)

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    1. thank you so much. i was using a second online dictionary for their use it in a sentence! I just love that there are fifty cent words for something as simple as cloud over.

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  2. Intriguing introduction. And what a mixture of words. :)

    Good start to the A to Z.
    Sophie
    Sophie's Thoughts & Fumbles - A to Z Ghosts
    Fantasy Boys XXX - A to Z Drabblerotic

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    1. I know crazy right. dictionary.com comes up with some pretty obscure words. I'm just geeky enough to love it. =D

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  3. Oh, this is going to be fun! A story and new words. I'll be back tomorrow.
    https://twitter.com/MarleneMoss1/status/451030466380853248

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    1. i'm glad you enjoyed it. hope you enjoy tomorrow's as much!

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  4. I love when people use A to Z to write a story. Can't wait to see where it goes.

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    1. Me too. I'm sorta just going with the words.

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  5. Good luck with the challenge and building up of your stories. Thanks for the visit to Play off the Page!

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    1. Thanks! I'm going to need it. I still have a few letters to go before I'm finished!

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  6. Visiting on the 1st day of the #Challenge. Admire your creativity here…it is a lot work work and energy to write post each day. Last year I learned so much and it improved my writing life. Have fun. If you have time and it is of any interest….gardening inspired by my pinterest boards, come and vidi.

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    1. I love gardening but I kill plants. Sigh. Thanks for stopping by.

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  7. Love your story! I like the way all the As are highlighted. Do you plan to blog 26 stories or 26 segments of the same story? Is this what you usually do on your blog? Best of luck with the challenge.

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    1. It'll be the same story. Hopefully I'll finish it with z. No, this was just experimental. I usually blog about random stuff. Thanks for noticing the highlights. They are for both me and my readers. I needed a way to find them and show them when I posted.

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  8. Ooo, on the vengeance against the treacherous coward. More please! Thanks for visiting Untethered Realms. Untethered Realms

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  9. A fellow lover of arresting, adventurous adjectives! Yay! Great theme, and ambitious of you to write what I assume will be a novelette for the challenge. :-)

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    1. yes, it is a novella. i find it easier to do that than think of a whole bunch of different stuff. =D

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  10. Excellent start and usage of the letter A. Well done.

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    1. thank you. i can't wait for your next post.

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  11. Ooh, intriguing. I look forward to reading more. I also love your links to some very interesting words, some of which I had to click on to understand.
    Tasha
    Tasha's Thinkings

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    1. i know. i have a printed list of words with definitions, and i sometimes have to look up how to use it in a sentence!

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  12. As I read through your piece I also wondered if this story will be continuing throughout the challenge. I hope so, your words are...to quot Li April...arresting, adventurous and ambitious. I hope you enjoy the challenge.

    CarolynBrown-Books

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    1. yep, it will. and i am enjoying the challenge.

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  13. Oh look, a hero with a Hungarian name! :D Cheers!

    @TarkabarkaHolgy from
    http://multicoloreddiary.blogspot.com - Tales of colors
    http://hungarykum.blogspot.com - The crazy thing about Hungarians...

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    1. Thanks! I wanted a specific meaning for his name and that one was the coolest looking. I just wish the site had had a pronunciation for it. Sigh.

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  14. Dang, girl! This was Awesome! I'm impressed with the "a" words you incorporated throughout. Learned some new ones, too:)
    WriterlySam
    A to Z #TeamDamyanti

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  15. Great start to the story. I love the A words scattered out, they were woven in well.

    ~Patricia Lynne~
    Story Dam
    Patricia Lynne, YA Author

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