You can see the new wallpaper I made (includes art by Luis Royo), and a new cover (thanks Bec) here
http://home.earthlink. net/~detfigwriting/FanFictionDR/
Familiarize yourselves with the Bonds Series here
http://home.earthlink. net/~detfigwriting/FanFiction
I have not heard from Lissa and it's safe to presume she'll not be co-authoring this last "Bonds" book with me. And that's okay; I'm at a point in my life where acceptance comes easy, and I will go on. However, I wouldn't turn away any one wishing to work on this book with me. I still need an editor, and I quite enjoyed having a literary "partner". Lissa (and Jan) will be dearly missed.
This last tale is H U G E, considering how many characters I now have to "create" (5 new as well as the old ones you're familiar with), and I'm grappling with a few things (issues) but I am making progress, and that's better than nothing after my two year hiatus :o)
Excerpt from Dark Raine (5th and Final book of the Bonds Series)...
The tall blonde paced, glancing up now and again at the computer, nervously wringing her hands together, and sometimes reaching up to brush at her tears. Her startling honey-colored eyes were full of the liquid. She didn't know why she cried; it had been a while since that dreadful night, and she had thought the well was long dry.
The images poured, tumbling over one another inside her head. She shut her eyes, but it brought her no relief. It wasn't like the TV module she could easily turn off with a command. Pain clutched at her heart, as if trying to squash the very life from the organ.
She had to do this, she told herself.. She had to recant the events, leave behind some record. It must be done. However, her shortcomings were becoming ever more clear the more time she waited.
She drew on whatever it was in her that gave her the strength of her parents' heritage, and she sat herself down in front of the computer. She blinked back the waterworks, trying to see the dials and keyboards. Finally, she believed, by a sheer miracle alone, she had entered the correct codes and it performed for her, replacing her image from its dark screen with a blue one, the cursor blinking and awaiting her password. She blindly typed, backspaced, retyped the seven-letter code, and knew at this rate, she wouldn't get anything accomplished.
Her voice broke the silence. "Computer, create new voice file, Name: Raine McCormick Journal. 3026. Thursday, twelve fifty one."
Creating new voice file.
Raine McCormick Journal. 3026. Thursday. Twelve fifty one.
New voice file created.
Computer ready.
Taking a deep breath, to steady the waver in her tone, and to - hopefully-- suppress any more tears, the woman began
"There was a time in my life where everything was normal; my opinion was that what I was living was a "typical" existence. Recent events have shown me that my perceptions of "normal" were drastically off. In trying to cope with death, love, loss and reality, I wasn't aware of the spirit-breaking events that would give me the opportunity to examine my own motivations and influences, and all that I would have to endure would, in the end, shatter all of my false beliefs that my life was anything but normal.
"This is more than a tale about bereavement. It is about the celebration of life- the new woman that I have become.
"Today, I see my life through my own eyes, not my parents', not my friend's and certainly not through colored glasses anymore.
"I had a privileged life, I completely accept that now; I had two adoring parents that would do anything for me, and had-" she broke off with a sob, gripping the chair arms tightly.
I can't do this, she told herself.
Yes, you can, her mother Malik's voice came at her, like a ghost from her past, when she was ten, and scared to climb the tallest slide at the park. Raine had been terrified of the ominous looking device, but with her mother's calm encouragement and urging words, she'd done it.
I can do this.
" And who loved me as much, if not more, than they loved one another. Fondly, I recall my earlier childhood and know I had been doted on, treated as their "Special little angel" and given all that life had to offer.
"I love my parents dearly, more now that they are dead." Again, the woman broke off. She covered her mouth with a trembling hand trying to bring up images of her parents when they were healthy and alive. When the sun, and love of life and the love they had for one another, was glinting in their eyes, shining on their faces. After a few deep breaths, she continued.
"One of my mother's was tall, dark, and she was, at one point in her life, a famous singer, and her music still is a hot commodity in some parts of the world. She has been named some times as a pop icon, and she was always fine with that branding.
"My other parent, the one who actually gave me life, was slightly shorter, by nine or so inches, and she was as light as Malik was dark. They complimented one another in many ways. They were "beautiful" women, in every aspect of the word.
"I have Malik's height and build, and Gabrielle's temperament and zest for life, but my incessant drive is that of Malik's. I also have each of their gifts. I can see where a person is hurting, and my mind is daily overflowing with mathematical sequences; my need to "build and create" is strong.
"They planted the seed in me every human being was worthwhile on this planet, no matter if they were a bum in the streets or the richest being in the land, and to this day I hold these values dear.
"I have a gaggle of family members, but none I love more than Raven Mahoney and Phoenix Carlson. Although they aren't flesh and blood relatives, they are karmatic relations to me as told to me on my 21st birthday. That was four years ago.
"Raven and Phoenix were there from the beginning, and I was raised primarily by all four women. Raven desired children with Phoenix, but time passed and they never did have any. I think in some part of their minds they considered me theirs and they were satisfied with that. But maybe they were both too "Butch" and couldn't come to a decision as to who would carry the child.
"So naturally when I learned of my parents' deaths, the first people I sought out were Raven and Phoenix, and this is our tale-"