Side-note: writing while listening to the "Mirrors Edge" soundtrack is pretty inspiring. I didn't like the game, but the music is amazing! Check it out if you need some background noise.
So you know what I'm gonna do? I'm gonna take a nice super-long lunch break to make an epic lunch and watch some anime! It's gonna be awesome and the best part is that I won't feel guilty at all. It's like a little reward to myself fore being so good. Personal reward systems are important!
Now that I think about it, I haven't played a (console/PC) video game during the whole month of November either! It's like I'm either writing or taking notes on my story like every day! It kinda makes me sound eccentric.
(Personal note: playing matching games on my iPad does not count. Those aren't real games. They are time suckers, procrastination stations, or brain cell jump-starters. And I might have spent an equal time playing them as I did writing. Oops)
Right now I'm sitting exactly on NaNo par with: 38,384 words! There's plenty of time to write more and an even greater temptation to do something other than writing for a change. Like, a hobby! I have hobbies, I swear!
EXCERPT
Now the downside of being so productive and using my expanding bullet-point technique for writing is that my excerpts are getting harder to find. My "good writing" is becoming less with every "the man pointed" phrase I dump into my story. So...please be gentle with this excerpt and the following ones to come. I've already released my fear of editing and now I know it will happen within the next month or so.
=================
The man was shorter than the Amazon
warrior standing next to him. Thin-rimmed
glasses made of bright silver accented the stormy color of his eyes. Perhaps he
was a middle-aged man, but his side-swept hair was still dark brown. He wore a
dull sweater above a white tee shirt and jeans, but the simple fabrics failed
to mask the bulk of his muscles. His frumpy clothing style didn’t match his
appearance of being battle-ready.
“Guys…” Isaac mumbled out the side of his mouth. “We’re surrounded by crazy people…” Shiri shushed and elbowed
him hard in the ribs.
The man walked forward with a
smile and clasped Isaac’s hand first. “Ah it is good to meet you. And erm, who
are they again?” He asked to Sun. She pointed with a smile and said “They are
human. I found them wandering outside the institute just like you said.”
Still partially hidden behind Jason, Shiri peered around his shoulder to
inspect the man. “It’s nice to meet you too.” She pursued her lips.” Are you sure you’re okay?”
The man genuinely looked around and patted his chest. “Ah yes sorry to
frighten you. When I get lost in a good book it really…sparks my imagination!” He threw jazz hands in the air and smiled
wide with the bad punchline. At first no one said anything. Then Jason forced a
chuckle and tried his best to smile. Sun laughed out loud and clapped. “Haha,
that was one of your best fire jokes yet. You should remember that one!” The
man unfroze from his clownllike pose and tipped his head. “Thank you!”
This
conversation was just getting weirder. In an attempt to change the subject,
Isaac stepped forward. “What did you say your name was again?”
“Yes, sorry if I didn’t mention
that before. The Spirit of Truth, at your service. I’m in charge of this
institution.”
“Ah if you work at the institute, you
must be Dr. Harrington, correct?” Jason asked, relieved to make some sense of
the situation.
The man tapped his lip and pondered the question a little too
long. Then looking satisfied with his thoughts, he replied. “Yes you could call me a doctor. Although I
was always better at counseling.” He wiggled his eyebrows for effect. “People
seemed to like me.”
“I don’t think this man is Dr.
Harrington,” Shiri replied slowly. “The records we recovered from the old map
device suggest his research is at least 90 years old. This man doesn’t even
look half that age.”
“Well, I say that you are only as
old as you feel. And I’ve always been young at heart!” the man replied with a
flick of his wrist. It felt like his jovial attitude was either hiding
something or proving him more eccentric. Jason couldn’t decide which.
Isaac approached the man with cross arms and a cross
expression to match. “Honestly I don’t care who you are,” he addressed the man.
“But warrior lady over here mentioned that you knew how to get past that
monster outside. So it’s time to start answering our questions.”
The man almost looked hurt. “Of course I will help you,” he
offered in a sincere gesture. “That’s why you came to me in the first place,
right? To gain knowledge!”
Shiri decided to take the initiative. She cleared her throat
and started to count off on each finger. “Okay, so first of all, it’s obvious
you aren’t who you say you are. Second, it’s pretty clear you won’t give us a
straight answer. The fact remains that you two…” Shiri gestured toward the
warrior and her companion, “…know exactly what is going on around here. Clearly
you’ve had experience with that….’daemon’ thing. What is it exactly is it?”
The man stops to think for a moment and beckons the group to
follow him.”There’s something you must see first. Knowledge can be heard, but
true wisdom must be learnt.” He shuffled around the conference tables and
splashed through the puddles of water left over by his watery transformation.
The group followed him single file, with the woman taking up the rear. Jason
could see the little metal table making circles ahead of them, almost like it
was waiting for them to catch up. It was showing images of two armies running
across a field.
The man clasped his hands behind him and started to speak to
the people like a tour guide. “What you saw outside was a creature we call a
‘daemon.’ It is an eternal being that can only be seen on this side of the
veil. It cannot be killed, but sometimes it can
be destroyed.”
“I
don’t know what you mean. What’s the difference?”Shiri asked.
“When a
daemon is destroyed, it will lose its body and ability to regenerate for a
time. Essentially it will turn to dust,” the older gentlemen explained. “The
dust is its essence. As long as it remains, there is a possibility for the
beast to be reborn.”
=================
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