Chapter 5 - Fence Patrolled By Killer Drones, Check"Remember, we need to be ready for anything," I whispered as we crouched down. It was several days later, and Asha and I were staking out Zahi's compound.
Zahi Renat's compound stuck out like a sore thumb in The Sanctuary. While all the other rich people lived comfortably in massive mansions, Zahi was a paranoid whackjob. There was a massive metal fence surrounding his compound, at least twenty feet high. Small orb-shaped drones circled the compound, scanning the area for any sign of life. As soon as they locked on to movement, an array of massive weapons were exposed and fired a barrage of projectiles, guaranteeing instant death. "Well, first we have to get past the killer drones." Asha hissed right next to me. "What's your plan Mr. 'I'm extremely good at breaking into places'." "Pretty simple, avoid the killer drones, scale the fence, and continue from there," I said confidently. "And what if the drones spot us? What then?" Asha asked pointedly. "Then we run faster than we've ever run before," I said. "Good enough for you?" "You're the so-called expert." Asha relented. "But I better not be killed." "I promise you, sweetheart, you won't be killed," I said. "Maybe a little maimed, a tiny bit scarred, but not killed." "I really don't like the sound of that," Asha said. "Relax, I'm joking," I said. "Chances are we'll just get out with a few scrapes and bruises. Now follow me, its time we do this thing." "Don't we need to plan more?" Asha called after me as I started to move closer to the fence. "Unless you have any idea of what's beyond that fence, there's no point in preparing any further. I've got all we should need right here," I said patting my bag. "Now are you coming or not?" "Fine. Wait up." Asha said following after me. "How the heck are we going to get over the fence?" "Don't you worry about that," I said pulling my grappling hook out of my bag. "Simple enough. All we need to do is wait until there's a gap in the drone patrol and scale the fence." "I hope this works," Asha said. "It will," I said. "I've used this baby plenty of times. Never failed me yet." We stopped a few feet from the fence, just outside of the drone's scanners. After a few minutes of waiting, there was a routine gap between the drones. I waved her along as we bolted toward the wall. Firing the grappling hook, I heard the satisfying clink of metal on metal twenty feet up, confirming the hook was in place. I tugged tightly to confirm it was locked in and held out my arm to Asha. "Do you expect me to come up in your arms?" Ahsa asked critically. "It's either that or being stuck outside the compound," I said. "Now come on, before the next drone comes around." "Fine." Asha relented, stepping closer to me. Holding on to the grappling hook with one hand and holding Asha with the other, I pulled the trigger. The handle started pulling us up toward the top of the fence. My muscles burned as I tried to hold both my weight and Asha's. Only two feet from the top, we heard the sound of a drone coming near to us. "Crap," I muttered. "Go faster you gosh darned machine." "Uh, Samael," Asha said. "I can hear it," I growled. "I hope you're ready to destroy a drone." "How the heck am I supposed to do that?" Asha asked, getting a little panicked. "Where's that lovely little gun of yours?" I asked. "Right here," Asha said, pulling it out of her belt. "When the drone comes around, shoot it in the camera, then the weapons," I said. "I don't have a very good aim," Asha said. "Now you tell me? Just fire at it!" I said as the drone came into view. As soon as the drone saw us, it immediately started firing at us. I tried swinging us on the last two feet of cord, dodging the barrage of bullets. Asha fired wildly at the drone, hitting a few of the weapons. Finally, she got lucky and hit the drone right in the camera, causing it to fly wildly. The drone dropped to the ground, lights going out. "That was way too close," I said. "Let's get over this darned fence." "Agreed," Asha said. We climbed over the last few feet of the fence, balancing precariously on the edge. "And how are we supposed to get down?" Asha asked. "That's the easy part," I said, pulling out my phase board. "Come on." We hopped onto the phase board and floated down on the other side of the fence. As we landed, I surveyed the area. It looked all clear all the way to the main building of Zahi's compound. And then I heard the click.
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Creative Writing ExercisesRecently I picked up a book called The Creative Writers Notebook, which has a bunch of fantastic writing exercises and profiles on famous writers. And it got me thinking, I haven't really given a ton of applicable exercises to practice your writing. So, here I am, sharing one of the writing exercises with you. What is Point of ViewYou'd think the answer to this question is the simplest in the world, and it kinda is. Point of View his the perspective from which a story is told. Various Points of View include first person, third person omnipotent, and the list goes on. Something that can be infinitely valuable it practicing telling a story from various points of view. So that's what this Writing Exercise is for today. Point Of View Practice Exercise: To End OffNot too hard, right? Just practice this with different prompts, which are readily available on the internet, and you will be creating amazing writing in no time! I hope you found this useful, and I plan on putting out more writing exercises in the future.
And now for my obligatory self promotion. If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please check out my debut novel, The Castaway Hero, out now on Amazon HERE and Barnes and Noble HERE. If you want to read stories written by me FOR FREE, go to my short fiction page HERE. Until next time, keep on writing! Chapter 4 - The Fascinating Miss FarvaldThe hairs on the back of my neck shot straight up. "Farvald," I said cautiously. "Like Otto Farvald? The trillionaire."
"Yes," Asha said. "He's my grandpa. Or rather, he was." "What do you mean?" I asked, trying to appear genuine. "What happened to him?" Nevermind that I already knew the answer. Asha breathed in deeply. Not the best move considering the air toxicity. "A few days ago we heard a gunshot from his room and found him dead. Someone broke into his room and shot him through the skull." I barely managed to cover the smile that crept across my face. It was confirmed, I'd killed him. There was no coming back for the son of a gun. "Oh, I'm so sorry. That must be so hard for you." "It's fine," Asha said. "He and I were never terribly close. Nevermind that he and his companies were to blame for this nastiness." Asha gestured to the thick brown smog surrounding us. "Well, maybe it was a good thing he was killed," I said. "How could you say that?" Asha asked, taken a step away from me. "Even if he was to blame for the death of the planet, he was still my family." "You're right. I'm sorry, that was insensitive." I said, backpedaling. I needed to keep good terms with her. With any luck, she could be my key to The Sanctuary. Then, I could wreak absolute havoc on those dirty rich people. "Apology accepted," Asha said. "So, whats a Rich like you doing out of The Sanctuary then?" I asked. "I already told you, research," Asha explained. "Research for what?" I pressed. "The future," Asha said, her eyes lighting up. "Let me explain. My whole life I've watched from The Sanctuary, seeing the world grow worse and worse. I wanted so badly to help, to save the planet, to be able to run in a field of green." "HA!" I scoffed. "Fat chance of that!" "Except I think it may be possible," Asha said, ignoring my scoffing. "I've devoted my life to studying everything and anything I could get my hands on, especially on the environment before this disaster. I learned as much as possible, and I think I have a solution. I think I can save the planet." "Oh really?" I said, rolling my eyes. "And how would you do that?" "Bacteria," Asha said. "Bacteria?" I asked skeptically. "You mean those tiny little things that cause sickness?" "Not that kind of bacteria. The good kind." Asha said. "In my studies, I came across some kinds of bacteria that consume pollution. Some even cleaned up oil spills in the past." "Then how come these 'miriacle' bacteria haven't already fixed the planet?" I asked. "Because they don't live everywhere," Asha said. "But I've constructed a machine that could distribute these bacteria all across the planet, along with seeds for every plant we have in the seed banks." "So what, you expect me to believe you have a magical machine that could distribute miracle bacteria and seeds all across the planet?" I asked sarcastically. "I ain't buying it, sweetheart." "Believe it or not, its the best shot by far to fix the Earth," Asha said. "I already built the machine. The whole reason I was out here in the first place was to get some more data to put the final touches on what types of bacteria I need." "And how exactly would your machine work?" I inquired. "It would make it rain, all across the world," Asha said. "Well, not exactly rain. More like it would spread droplets of water containing the bacteria over the planet. Then it would rain seeds." "Yeah, whatever you say girlie," I said. "And when do you expect to launch your 'miracle machine'?" "Just as soon as I can find a suitable power source," Asha said. "Where do you expect to find such a thing?" I asked. "That's the problem," Asha said. "The only power source I'm aware of is a quantum crystal owned by Zahi Renat." "The reclusive scientist..." I said thoughtfully. "Yeah," Asha said. "I've heard he designs his own security system. Almost impossible to penetrate." "Ah, you see, almost is the keyword there darling," I said with a grin. "Tell you what, I'll help you break into Zahi's compound to steal this quantum crystal thingie." "First of all, don't call me darling," Asha said. "And second of all, why would you do that?" "Let's just say, I'm extremely good at breaking into places," I said slyly. "And what do you want in return?" Asha asked suspiciously. "Nothing," I said. "If this miracle machine really works, fixing the world is payment enough. Don't you think?" "Alright," Asha said. "It's a deal. You help me retrieve the quantum crystal, and we can save the Earth." "Sounds like a plan," I said as we shook on it. "Now let's get cracking, eh?" Why Have World History In The First Place?History has defined our modern existence. It is what has led up to this point, this world, here and now. And since history is so important to our world, why wouldn't it be when creating a fantasy world? Time shapes and molds any world, and this is true of fantasy worlds as well. So lets learn about how to create general history of a world. RelevanceObviously, you don't want to devise an entire history that has absolutely no relationship to the story you are telling. While it can be beneficial to have a general idea of history, you aren't going to want specifics for every little event in history. You wouldn't ever get to actually writing! I would recommend you have a general idea of major wars, uprising, political shifts, etc... but not a ton of detail. The history you should focus on is what is pertinent to your plot. For example, if you have an ancient evil re-emerging, you should have a very good idea of the history surrounding said evil. You should know how they rose to power, what horrible things they did, how come they haven't re-emerged until now, etc... And you should know what ripple effects they've had. Was a new country created by them that's still in existence? Did the class system get completely upset and put a different species in charge? Consider all angles of events relevant to your story. Keep A Timeline!For any history or story, it would be wise to keep a timeline. You should really know what happened first, how far apart events were, and so on, or else your story will seem messy and not thought through. Timelines don't have to be fancy graphics, they can simply be a list with the dates and events in order. In fact, please do keep it simple. I spent far too much time trying to find a good, free, online timeline graphic maker before I realized all you need is a list you can view. But How Do I Reveal My History?This is a tricky thing. There are a few paths you can take, and I'll recommend which I prefer. One way you can reveal history is by something like a prologue, giving the history that is relevant to your story. I would not recommend this way for the most part, because I feel it's too much exposition. I made this mistake with The Castaway Hero, and I am still kicking myself over it. The second way you could reveal history this through bits and pieces of dialogue. Have a character refer to "the battle of troll hill," or "the great treaty," in passing. This makes it easy to hint at a larger history, without going into info dumps of history. The third way I know is having a character monologue it. This is my kind of middle ground, and I use it a fair amount, especially in the upcoming sequels to The Castaway Hero. I personally prefer to have an ancient character give these, and only when it's important. For example, The Giant in The Castaway Hero delivers some info about how The Peacekeeper Stones wound up in special temples and sanctuaries, and how this ties in with how he knew of the hero's before their arrival. To End.I hope this has been helpful to at least get you started on the history of your world. This is not meant to be an in depth guide, but in the near future I plan on going a bit more in depth about how to really flesh out history and events, and implementing history into your world. And now for the shameless plug.
If you found this helpful and want to support me, please consider purchasing my debut novel, Stones of The Middle Lands: The Castaway Hero, available on Amazon HERE and Barnes and Noble HERE. If you have already read The Castaway Hero, please leave a review on all three platforms. It really helps us authors to know what you liked, what you didn't, and it makes us actually feel appreciated. Also be sure to check out my ever growing collection of short stories HERE. I hope you enjoyed, and until next time, keep on writing! Chapter 3 - The Woman On The RooftopSeveral days later, I walked the empty, wasted streets of the old city, barely able to breathe through my filter mask. I'd heard rumors of someone coming out of The Sanctuary, so I was scoping out the situation.
A flicker of movement caught my eye. Something or someone was moving across the rooftops. I instinctively reached for my pistol, which hung at my side, trusty as ever. I followed the movement closely, staying in the shadows. After following the movement for several minutes, it finally came to a stop. Spotting an old fire escape nearby, I climbed up, braced for whatever I might discover. I grasped the rungs, hauling myself up one rung at a time until I reached the roof. In the center of the roof was an array of scientific instruments, buzzing, whirring, and clicking as they measured the environment. Examining the screen was a familiar person. I accidentally hit a rock, which clinked, alerting the person to my presence. The young woman whipped around to face me, confirming my suspicions. The woman's light brown hair was pulled back into a large braid, and her shimmering green eyes were enchanting. She had a narrow face, and her lips were thin. The woman stood barely shorter than I was, and had decently toned muscles. Her eyes went wide as she saw me, and she pulled out a gun I hadn't ever seen before. Pointing the weapon at me, her eyes narrowed at me. By instinct, I pulled my own weapon out and aimed it at her. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" She asked, circling me. "I could ask you the same question," I said calmly. "What's a lovely young woman like you doing all alone out in this toxic air?" "Research." She said, still glaring at me. "What about you." "Well, when I hear a rumor about someone leaving The Sanctuary, I can't help but be curious," I said, smiling confidently. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?" The woman hesitated as if contemplating how much to tell me. "I might know something. What does it matter to you?" "I'm just wondering what someone from The Sanctuary would ever want with the outside world," I said. "After all, they live all safe and comfortable in their little heaven while the rest of the world chokes. Nothing of worth to them out here." "I wouldn't say that's true." The woman said. "Maybe some of them still care about the world. Maybe some want to know the world as it was." "Well that's too bad, isn't it? After all, the world is long past dead." I said grimly. "Now, who will put their weapon away first? You, or me?" "You first." The woman demanded, her hand shaking as she kept her gun trained on me. "I promise I won't shoot." "You promise?" I said. "A fat lot of good that is. Nobody keeps their promises. Ever." "People could surprise you." The woman said. "Now, put the gun away." "Fine," I growled. "You put yours down while I put mine down." "Deal." She said, mimicking me as I slowly placed my pistol back in its holster. "Now, that wasn't so hard, was it?" I said grinning. "My name is Samael Saller. And you are?" "Asha. Asha Farvald." Chapter 2 - Sweet Sweet RevengeThe vile, decrepit old man is finally in my grasp. I can taste the sweet flavor of revenge on my lips. The Earth, my parents, and countless others will finally be avenged. The man who is responsible for it all, just on the other side of the glass.
I slide my fingers into the seam of the window, pulling it up. The window slides silently up, masking my presence. I creep into the room, my feet hardly making a sound as I move toward Otto. He looked almost peaceful like he was able to sleep perfectly fine knowing he was responsible for the death of the world. Drawing my pistol from my side, I crept upon Otto, like a tiger stalking its prey. I primed the pistol, sticking it directly against Otto's forehead. The old villain opened his eyes. His eyes widened as he realized what was happening. Otto tried to holler for help, but I covered his mouth. "Silence old man," I growled. "You may as well give in because there is no getting out of this." I took my hand off his mouth. "What do you want?" Otto spat. His voice was old and tired. "Please, I'll give you anything you want. Money, power, anything you want, it's yours!" "All I want is you dead." I hissed. "What did I ever do to you?" Otto asked, bile in his voice. "You took away my family, my world." I roared. "And how would I have done that?" Otto spat. "You didn't care about the world. You kept producing, polluting the world until it was uninhabitable, just to satisfy your greed." I said. "My parents died of lung cancer from the junk you put in the air. The world died and you just sat back, comfortable in your sanctuary. Happy to see it all burn. Billions of people, dead. All thanks to you." "So you must kill me then?" Otto said resignedly. "One life for the entire world. Sounds like a fair price, don't you think?" I said. "I hope you enjoyed your life, Otto, because its time for it to end." "So just do it then boy," Otto said. "I would welcome death. I am old and miserable. It would be a release for me." "Tell the devil I say hi," I said, pulling the trigger. The round echoed through the room. Otto's body crumpled, all tension leaving it. A red mark sat right in the center of his head. Finally, the man responsible for the end of the world is dead. I had succeeded, and it felt so right, yet so wrong. It didn't take long before I could hear footsteps running toward the room. I ran over to the window, hopping out and onto the rooftop. Unslinging the phase board, I drop it in front of me and hop on. The floating board of see-through blue shot off with me on board it. I looked back in through the window as I sped away. A pretty young woman was the first in the room. She had light brown hair and beautiful green eyes. She ran over to where Otto now laid dead, shocked. I almost felt bad for her, although I pitied her more for caring about the worst man to ever live than for anything else. I shot off the roof on my phase board, flying through the air and landing gently on the ground. I went straight for the glass dome. I pointed my gun at the panel right in front of me, firing several rounds into the glass, shattering it. I flew out of The Sanctuary into the smoggy brown open air. I accomplished my mission, sweet sweet revenge. The Future Is HERE!Welcome to the future ladies and gents! A few months ago, I came across this amazing video all about GauGAN, an artificial intelligence or AI, that could turn rough sketches into full blown photo realistic scenery. Sadly at the time it was not open to the public. Until a few weeks ago I thought this was still the case. And then I saw a video of a common person using it, and I was ECSTATIC! Finally my dream was being realized, I could make any scenery I wanted, easily! So, that's what I'm talking about today, the amazing software known as GauGAN. GauGAN: The AI PhotoshopSo how the heck does GauGAN work? The AI software has scanned millions of images, learning what bushes, mountains, oceans, dirt, clouds, and a ton of other materials look and interact with each other. Incredible, right? So in order to create a stunning image, the AI had to see more pictures than you will probably ever see. All just to serve our whims. When you create an image in GauGAN, all you have to do is select what material you are painting with, whether that be clouds, mountains, or water, and start drawing. You can see in the picture up above how really simple my image on the left is. It took me all of about 2 minutes. After that, all you have to do is select that you agree to their terms, and press the arrow. It takes a few seconds, and you have a brilliant image, completely generated by a computer. Now there are several other options that I won't go into here, but I will talk about a really cool one. You may have noticed on the picture above that there are several other smaller pictures. You can select any of them to have the AI modify your image to fit with the color scheme of any of those pictures, or even your own if you upload an image. Now we can go from THIS: To THIS: In just a few seconds. Amazing! So what are the implications? What Does This Have To Do With Writing?So this technology has a lot of implications all over the map. But for me what is so exciting is the application it has to writers. While we writers are not the most artsy of folks when it comes to images, we do have images in our heads. This technology of GauGAN allows us to easily visualize places right in front of us. In fact, I have already created a mock up of a new place in my second book, The Pretzle Mountains. And it was so amazing to see it, without even hiring out an artist. So make sure you check out GauGAN, it is incredible. Just press the button below. Until next time, keep on writing!
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Welcome to The Writers Block!AuthorKen Mears is a new 17 year old author, here to share his wisdom, advice, and experiences with you, the reader! Archives
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