{"id":12475,"date":"2019-04-30T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-04-30T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/?p=12475"},"modified":"2019-04-29T09:35:05","modified_gmt":"2019-04-29T15:35:05","slug":"wip-excerpt-edenfall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wip-excerpt-edenfall\/","title":{"rendered":"WIP excerpt: Edenfall"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I’m a little less than halfway done with Edenfall,<\/em> so I figure it would be good to share a couple of excerpts with you. If all goes well, it should be out by September. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a reminder, this is the sequel to my first novel, Genesis Earth,<\/em> so you may see a couple of familiar characters in this excerpt, which is taken from the first chapter. I’ve already got plans for the third book, and will hopefully complete the trilogy by the end of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enjoy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

\nThe boulder felt rough and\nwarm under Estee\u2019s bare feet, the hot air dusty and dry. She\nscrambled up its face, laughing as her little sister struggled to\nkeep up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cSlow down!\u201d Celeste\ncried. She lost her footing and began to slip. \u201cHelp!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nEstee turned around and\ndropped to her stomach. A warm breeze tousled her hair as sweat ran\ndown the side of her face. With the grainy sandstone hot against her\nskin, she caught Celeste and pulled her up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cYou\u2019re okay. Come on!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nCeleste\u2019s face was pale,\nbut she recovered quickly. Together, they stood atop the massive\nboulder, panting to catch their breath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cRace you to the next\none!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nIn an instant, Estee was\noff, laughing at her sister\u2019s cry of dismay. Thankfully, the next\nboulder wasn\u2019t so hard. She panted for breath as she scrambled up\nit with Celeste following closely behind, her terror forgotten as she\nstruggled to keep up. In less than a minute, they had both conquered\nthe rock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nFrom the top, they had a\nmajestic view of the wide, golden-green savannah and the tabletop\nmountains all along the horizon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cIt\u2019s hot,\u201d Celeste\ncomplained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cHere,\u201d said Estee,\nleading her to the northward facing side. \u201cIt\u2019s not so bad over\nhere.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nThey both laid down with\ntheir backs against the slickrock. Estee closed her eyes and breathed\ndeeply, the sun warming her dust-caked skin and drying the beads of\nsweat on her forehead. It was wonderful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cHey, look!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nShe opened her eyes and\nlooked where Celeste was pointing, in the direction of the beanstalk.\nA thin, familiar line rose from the ruins of the ancient ones into\nthe blue sky, disappearing high above the clouds. But the thing that\ncaught Estee\u2019s attention was a point of light, shining like a star\nwhere the beanstalk disappeared from view. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d she\nasked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d said\nCeleste. \u201cLook, it\u2019s moving.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nIndeed it was. A light\nbreeze whistled around the boulders as the star drifted soundlessly\ntoward the south. Estee rose to her feet, shielding her eyes with her\nhand as she traced its curious progress across the sky. Beside her,\nCeleste stood up as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cIs it a falling star?\u201d\nCeleste asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nEstee didn\u2019t think so.\nFalling stars only happened at night, and they usually flickered out\nin the blink of an eye. Mama liked to study them. She always knew\nwhen the best times were to look for them, and sometimes took Estee\nout with her to see. Mama and Papa both knew a lot about stars,\nbecause that was where they\u2019d come from. But Estee had never seen\nanything like this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cIs it?\u201d Celeste\nrepeated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cI told you, I don\u2019t\nknow.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cWhere is going?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nThe star grew brighter as\nit moved closer to the horizon, leaving a bright yellow streak. It\nwas falling to the east, past the village of the little people. Estee\nthought it would pass out of view beyond the tabletop mountains, but\nthen it turned abruptly north. Falling stars never did that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cLook!\u201d said Celeste.\n\u201cIt\u2019s making a cloud!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nSure enough, a thin whispy\ncloud cut a line in the star\u2019s wake. It reminded Estee of the smoke\nfrom a candle. As the star dipped lower, it passed in front of the\ntabletop mountains and alighted in the nearby foothills. A shiver of\nexcitement ran down Estee\u2019s spine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cCome on\u2014let\u2019s go!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cNo,\u201d Celeste\nprotested. \u201cIt\u2019s too far away.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cDon\u2019t you want to find\nit, though?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cThe daylight is fading.\nWe\u2019ll get in trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nEstee groaned, but her\nsister was right. Besides, Mama wanted them back before dark, and the\nsun was already starting to get low.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cRace you home. Last one\nback is a lazy sun-dragon!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cHey!\u201d Celeste cried as\nEstee scampered down the boulder. \u201cWait for me!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

\nThe high grass tickled\nEstee\u2019s legs as she ran across the plains. Fine, red dust caked her\nsweaty skin, but she ran until her lungs burned and her heart\npounded, simply for the joy of it. She startled a swarm of leaping\nlocusts grazing nearby, and shrieked in surprise as they leaped high\nabove her, rattling their wings as they sought somewhere more\npeaceful to graze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cCeleste! Where are you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cBack here!\u201d her sister\ncalled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cWell hurry up!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nBy the time they made it\nback, the beanstalk was already beginning to shimmer in the light of\nthe setting sun. Smoke had started to rise from the adobe oven\u2014that\nmeant Mama was cooking, which meant that they were late.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cOh, dungheaps,\u201d Estee\nswore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nCeleste ran up beside her,\nstill out of breath. \u201cWhat?\u201d she asked\u2014then, noticing the\nsmoke, \u201cOh.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cCome on,\u201d said Estee,\n\u201clet\u2019s go to Papa\u2019s workshop.\u201d If they came in with Papa,\nthen maybe Mama would think they\u2019d been with him the whole time.\nPapa was always late.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nThey snuck as quietly as\nthey could out through the hedgerow gate, making a wide circle until\nthey reached Papa\u2019s workshop about fifty yards away. The thatchwork\npatches in the plasteel dome roof waved in the afternoon breeze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nFive of the little people\nrose to their feet as Estee and Celeste rounded the corner. Two of\nthem rose swiftly to their feet, brandishing spears, but their leader\nscolded them and they stepped aside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d said\nEstee, holding her palms outstretched. \u201cIt\u2019s just us. No need to\nfear.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nThe leader was one of the\nchiefs of the little people, his rich orange mane bearing jewelry\ncarved from bone. Estee squatted so as not to seem taller than him.\nIn just the last year, she\u2019d grown so much that all but the\nstrongest hunters were shorter than her. She still hadn\u2019t gotten\nused to that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nThe chief stepped forward\nand put his hand on Estee\u2019s chest in a gesture of peace. She did\nthe same, leaning forward so that they stood cheek to cheek. His\nfurry skin was hard and tough, his mane so long that it tickled her\narm. They both took a deep breath together, and the scent of sweat\nand musk filled her nostrils. She closed her eyes and let it seep\ninto her, until his heartbeat echoed hers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nOpening her eyes, she\nstepped back to let Celeste greet the chief in like manner while the\nothers stood back. It wasn\u2019t every day that they met the little\npeople like this, but it happened often enough that they both knew\nwhat to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nSatisfied, the little\npeople bowed and let them pass. Estee knocked once, then parted the\nheavy rug door and stepped inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cPapa?\u201d she called. The\nworkshop was brightly lit. Bottles of various chemicals sat on the\ncounter among baskets of dried leaves and flowers. Papa was on the\nfar side of the room, next to the operating table. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cShh,\u201d said Papa,\ngesturing for them to stay quiet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nThe two girls crept forward\nto watch. One of the women of the little people sat on the operating\ntable, trembling with fear. She held an infant child on her chest,\nlimp and unconsious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nPapa rinsed off a bloody\npair of tweezers in the sink, then returned to the mother and child.\n\u201cThere, there,\u201d he whispered. \u201cJust one more\u2014got it!\u201d From\nthe baby\u2019s leg, he pulled out a black sliver as long as Estee\u2019s\npinky finger and dropped it into a nearby bowl. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cGauze,\u201d he ordered\nwithout looking up from his work. Estee rushed to assist him. After\ncarefully cleaning the wound, he applied an herbal dressing before\ntaking the offered gauze and wrapping it around the baby\u2019s leg.\n\u201cThat should help with the infection,\u201d he muttered, then held up\none of the smelling salts to the baby\u2019s nose until it began to\nwhimper and cry. The mother clutched her baby to her chest and jumped\noff the table, rushing out the door to her waiting companions. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cWhat was that?\u201d asked\nCeleste.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cJust a splinter,\u201d said\nPapa. \u201cBut they didn\u2019t come to me until the infection had already\nset in.\u201d He emptied the wash basin and scrubbed his hands with soap\nand pumice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cWhy?\u201d Estee asked. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cBecause they were\nafraid. They see us as gods, you know. Because we came from the sky.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cWe didn\u2019t,\u201d Celeste\nsaid, pointing to Estee and herself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cBut you are our\nchildren,\u201d said Papa. \u201cAnd in their eyes, that makes you gods\nlike us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cBut why does that make\nthem afraid of us?\u201d Estee asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nPapa smiled. \u201cLet\u2019s go\nsee what your mama is cooking, shall we?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cYeah,\u201d said Celeste.\n\u201cLet\u2019s go!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nEstee groaned. She hated it\nwhen he ended their conversations without giving her a clear answer.\nRecently, it seemed he did that more and more often. It was\nespecially bad when she asked if Mama would have another baby. Hermes\nhad already seen his first winter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nThey followed Papa outside,\nsquinting in the evening sun. Mama was waiting for them at the door\nof the hut, arms folded across her chest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cYou were out late,\u201d\nshe said, looking Estee in the eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cNo we weren\u2019t,\u201d\nEstee lied. \u201cWe were with Papa in the workshop.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cWere you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nShe fidgeted under Mama\u2019s\nknowing glare. \u201cNo,\u201d she admitted. \u201cBut we didn\u2019t stay out\nthat long\u2014and we didn\u2019t go far.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cYeah,\u201d said Celeste,\nbacking her up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nPapa gave Mama a kiss.\n\u201cEvening, dear. You look gorgeous.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cAnd you look exhausted,\u201d\nshe answered him back. Still, she smiled and ran her fingers through\nhis hair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nEstee rolled her eyes.\n\u201cCome on! Are we going to eat or what?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\u201cHold on, you ravening\nlocust,\u201d said Mama. \u201cWe\u2019ll eat soon enough.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’m a little less than halfway done with Edenfall, so I figure it would be good to share a couple of excerpts with you. If all goes well, it should be out by September. As a reminder, this is the sequel to my first novel, Genesis Earth, so you may see a couple of familiar… Continue reading WIP excerpt: Edenfall<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[509,32,934],"tags":[474,985],"class_list":["post-12475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-edenfall","category-ge","category-genesis-earth-trilogy","tag-excerpts","tag-wips","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7iXK-3fd","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12475"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12475\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12480,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12475\/revisions\/12480"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}