Tag Archives: Dark Fantasy

DOGE- Supernatural Division (episode 8)

I’m excited to share the series finale for DOGE- Supernatural Division. Of course, it has to be dragons as the center of attention for this round. This installment is especially fun because it plays on a certain social media app that had a very notable incident recently. It will also tie up the series so you get a bit of closure. Hope you enjoy!

DOGE Supernatural Division (episode 8)

High Wizard Elron tapped his phone app, checking for messages in the DOGE Supernatural Division chat group.  It was an excellent way to quickly disseminate information to all his people, and it was encrypted, so only China and Russia might be able to hack it.  But surely they had better things to do with their time.

Nothing new was on there despite the fact his team should have checked in by now.  They’d had a week to accomplish the task he’d given them while he’d been away on other matters, and yet, they had been silent.

I need a status update on Ft. Knox.

They’re having difficulties getting inside.

Elaborate.

The dragons refuse to let them anywhere near the building.

They won’t negotiate with us, sir.  Max was trying to work with them, but his persistence may have been too much.  They burned him to a crisp after he attempted to put a sleep spell on them.

One of his people had died, and they failed to mention it in the app?  He would have noticed and responded accordingly regardless of which country he’d been located.

Why wasn’t I informed of his death?

We tried and couldn’t reach you.

Oh, right.  He’d been quite busy, but he remembered seeing some missed calls and forgot to return them.  Still, messaging him on the app would have been more expedient.

What else have you tried?

Many things, which resulted in us losing 2 ½ more team members.

What do you mean by 2 ½?

A dragon ate one of our team member’s legs, but we were able to retrieve the victim quickly and get him to the hospital.  He’s still there.

If they’re alive, then there is no half.  And why does it sound like you were on site when this happened, Ruby?

The legs are dead and gone, sir.  Pretty sure the dragon digested them, so we figured that counted as a half.  There was a group vote about it.

I needed to get out of the office for a while to avoid the protestors, and it sounded like the group needed help.  Also, I’ve never seen a dragon up close.  They’re impressive, though quite ferocious.  The way the biggest one ate that man’s legs was most vulgar.  Like they were potato chips.  It was so busy chewing that we were able to run in there and grab the victim, so I suppose that worked out.

The High Wizard pinched the bridge of his nose.  This was what happened when he left the country and didn’t keep close track of his people while gone.  Everything went sideways.

What are you doing now?

We cut off their food supply.

Is it weakening them?

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DOGE- Supernatural Division (episode 5)

Hope everyone’s week has gone well. Sorry this is getting posted a little later in the day than usual, but it’s been a little hectic around here! Just a reminder that while these stories are fantasy in nature, they will allude to current U.S. politics. If you’re not up to date on the latest big news, a few things might go over your head a bit, but you should still enjoy it. This latest episode also has some minor references to past stories, which you can find here.

DOGE Supernatural Division (episode 5)

High Wizard Elron sat at his desk, plotting his next move.  So many possibilities for where the Department of Government Efficiency- Supernatural Division could cut waste and spending.  This was especially true of those regulatory agencies who abused their power by putting too many restrictions on the banking industry.  Ha!  He’d get the last laugh with them very soon.

“Excuse me, High Wizard,” Ruby said, appearing in his office doorway.

The raven-haired secretary was a good-looking woman for being in her thirties and nearly past her prime.  For the life of him, he couldn’t understand why she hadn’t settled down and made a few babies.  Instead, the woman had cats—three of them!  She even had framed pictures of them on her desk like they were her pride and joy children.  He’d surreptitiously removed them two different times, but new ones appeared the next morning.  Each replacement was worse than the last, with the latest photos having her felines wearing Halloween costumes. What kind of madness was that?

He’d fire the woman, but she was loyal and ruthless when it came to running his agency behind the scenes the way he preferred.  No one could do it better, but he wished she had better taste in pets.

He rested his elbows on his desk and leaned forward.  “Yes, Ruby?”

“The D.C. Ghost team has failed to email their five accomplishments for the week,” she said, pursing her lips.  “It’s not all that surprising, considering they haven’t done their jobs very well recently.”

He nodded.  “Hmm, yes.  They’re supposed to be annoying that insufferable Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez woman whenever she’s in town, but the congresswoman just gets more obnoxious every time she speaks on the House Floor.  I’m tired of hearing her complaints about the brilliant budget cuts that will save this country money.  She’d be falling asleep on her feet if the ghosts had done their jobs right, certainly not giving misguided speeches.”

“Should I send one of your minions…I mean, assistants, to speak with the ghosts?” Ruby asked, tilting her head.

His lips twitched at her “stumble” of words since she accidentally used the term quite often, but it didn’t bother him.  In his mind, his people were more like minions, but some would frown at him using such a term publicly.  Trying to be politically correct was so annoying.  Certainly not one of his better abilities.

Elron sighed.  “Sadly, only one of them has developed a sufficient talent for seeing ghosts, and I’ve already got him manipulating a few to spy on the NOAA water elementals in Florida.  I’m certain they’re up to no good after I fired some of them, and they might be planning revenge.”

“Oh.”  She frowned.  “I’d thought someone else would have built an aptitude for ghosts by now.”

“Axe is beginning to see and hear them a little, but he can’t communicate well yet.  Perhaps with a little more practice.”  The High Wizard rose to his feet, mind buzzing with a plan.  “I’ll bring him along to work on it more.”

She nodded.  “Good idea.  I’ll let him know to get ready.”

***

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Galadon- Chapter 1

For those of you who have finished Cast by Flames and you’re ready for Galadon, I’m posting the first chapter for you. The draft for this novel is finished, and I’m working my way through revisions now. I did have beta readers go over this chapter already, so only my editor hasn’t seen it yet. The estimated release date is April 24th. Sometime soon, I’ll post the cover and summary, along with pre-order links. Hope you enjoy this peek at the book!


Chapter 1

Galadon

For the first time in months, my mood wasn’t foul and agitated.  I flew over southwest Oklahoma, enjoying the warm weather and sun on my burnt-orange scales.  The fields below were a vibrant green, and flowers bloomed everywhere.  Most of the winter had been irritatingly harsh and cold.  Dragons such as I spent much of the frigid season nesting within our dens in a haze of grogginess and hunger, only waking when the temperature rose enough for us to hunt and eat.

That didn’t happen for some time once the heavy snow in January began falling upon us.  It blanketed the region and failed to melt for six weeks, only becoming deeper with successive blizzards.  Though I had some control over storms, those had been too strong to mitigate.

I’d heard the land here hadn’t always received so much snow and ice, but many things changed since my kind’s former dimension, Kederrawien, melded with this one.  Weather patterns had altered.  It was only at the start of April, a week ago, that it had warmed enough during the day for me to venture far beyond my small territory in southeast Texas.  I had left home to resume my hunt for stray Kandoran enemies who weren’t vanquished during our big war with them last fall.  Some estimated thousands remained scattered throughout the land west of us.

A rift in the ground appeared ahead—a wide gaping maw that ripped the earth apart for hundreds of miles when the dimensions collided nearly seven years ago. It spanned from the Texas panhandle across southern Oklahoma and partway into Arkansas north of the Red River.  Though state titles meant little anymore after dragons arrived, the humans insisted on continuing to use them, so I’d learned the names to avoid confusion during the rare times I had to endure their company.  The words had been annoyingly challenging to pronounce at first, but I’d always been a quick learner.

The bottom of the chasm was nearly a thousand feet deep in most places, and it was a couple of hundred feet at its narrowest to fly past.  They’d finally built a bridge last year, reconnecting Interstate 35 so that the human populations to the north and south would no longer be cut off from each other.  Dragons had assisted them since that helped facilitate trade and reduced the risk of people plummeting to their deaths during construction, which I supposed was a bad thing.

I continued my flight over rolling green terrain broken occasionally by brush and copses of trees.  After a while, I spotted a gruesome scene of three large green dragon carcasses in the distance, surrounded by scorch marks and disturbed earth in what must have been an intense battle.  I landed and moved to sniff at them, taking in the putrid scent of evil and decay from their unmoving bodies.  A sneeze escaped me as the smell filled my nostrils.  The only time I had ever gotten used to that horrific odor was during the war.

The bodies were dead Kandoran.

Since they hadn’t turned to dust, they must have died within the last day.  Their clean and precise wounds told me they’d been killed by someone in human form who was quite skilled with a blade.  Upon further examination, I decided they must have been slaughtered within the last hour.  The blood-soaked earth was too fresh.

I moved away from them to clear my nose and began searching for the assailant.  After a few minutes of circling the area, I picked up a familiar female’s fresh and alluring scent.  It had been nearly five months since I’d last seen her.  My sensible side urged me to fly away and avoid her at all costs.  The other, controlled by the beast within me, desperately wanted to check on the woman and ensure she hadn’t been injured during the battle.  It was no easy thing taking down three Kandoran dragons at once, and she was known to be quite reckless.  I’d also be lying if I said I hadn’t flown this far north just for a glimpse of her because, deep down, it was true.

A few spots of her blood on the trail made the decision for me.  No matter how much I tried to harden myself against her allure, I couldn’t stand the idea of her being injured.  I followed the path she’d taken for more than a mile, studying her tracks.  Due to recent rain, it wasn’t difficult.  Her steps had been steady, indicating she didn’t have significant injuries, and certainly not on her feet or legs.

Despite that, I couldn’t stop myself from continuing my hunt.

I spotted a strange tower ahead at the top of a hill.  It was constructed of large brownish-red stones with a railed lookout at the top.  A couple of hundred feet away, I spied a small body of water.  I circled it until I came to a low-lying area with a cluster of trees and brush for cover.  While I blended well enough with the reddish-tinted dirt in this area, I doubted the lush green vegetation fully hid my large dragon form from view, but it would have to do.

The sounds of splashing drew my attention.  I crouched low, spotting a nude female figure in the lake.  In that moment, she appeared more like a siren calling to me than a ruthless slayer.  She was entrancing.

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Cast by Flames coming soon

I know the wait was longer than expected, but I wanted to let everyone know Cast by Flames is coming late next month. I’m currently getting final beta reader feedback. The manuscript is due to the editor at the end of this week.

Currently, it stands at nearly 158,000 words. To put it in perspective, the longest novel in this series was the last one, Torn in Flames, at 109,000 words. I hope this helps make up for the long wait.

I had to put a lot of my military knowledge into this one, along with research, to fill in the gaps where I had less experience. Writing was very fun as I wrapped up the story for the main characters. Of course, there is one spin-off with Galadon, so you will get to see several of them in that, but otherwise, this is the end of Aidan and Bailey’s journey.

Those of you who are members of my Facebook fan group have been getting regular updates for some time, but for those who haven’t, I’m going ahead and revealing the book cover below. You’ll also find the summary, which I just finalized, so that’s new.

I plan to get the pre-order up over the weekend, and once it’s live, I’ll post the links (likely early next week). As for the release date, I’ve got that set to December 30th to give time for the editor and my final revisions.

In the coming weeks, I’ll also share excerpts and the first chapter to give you a taste.

Hope everyone’s week is going well!

Malicious forces are coming for Bailey, Aidan, and everyone they know.  The Kandoran are cunning and ruthless when conquering land and all the beings who live in it.  They infect everyone they touch with evil magic, assimilating them for their own dark purposes.

With a massive army coming they cannot hope to match, the best Bailey and Aidan can do is court as many allies as possible to form an unlikely coalition of pure dragons, shifters, sorcerers, slayers, and humans bound together with the single purpose of preserving their way of life.  They will have to form strategies and fight back in both modern and magical ways their adversary could never anticipate.  Even then, the odds are against them, but with everything they love on the line, they’ll do whatever it takes to survive.

Cover reveal for Torn in Flames

I am excited to reveal the cover for the next installment (book 6) in the Dragon’s Breath Series. In 2016, I had the model shots taken for the rest of the series after book two. Thankfully, I had a good idea how each novel’s story would play out so I could have the model pose just right for the images I had in my head. In this one, I always knew there would be a small dragon with her. It was very exciting to finally see my vision come to life.

You’ll find the summary and other book release details below. Hope you all like the cover as much as I do!

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