As I mentioned in my newsletter (subscribe below) I was once a part of an excellent exercise put together by P. June Diehl in which we were to build a world completely from scratch. This is my portion of the exercise, written years and years ago. I'm planning on using this as a spring board for the YA series I'm developing.
(The name Harmony, was not intended to be a play on the name Hermione, made famous by J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, but instead, a 'heroes journey' stylized name based on her role in the story.)
Your World:
This is an alternative earth in the past
Physical Features:
Very earth like in that it contains a mulititude of corresponding places, ie: Paris is actually Partis and although they don't speak French, they do speak differently then those in Chiton, Illambra (Chicago, Illinois). The major difference is that this world has had an upheaval along the fault lines. The earthquakes damaged and changed the geography and created huge canyons and cliffs, separating societies until most recently when they developed the ability to create permanent bridges.
Magic:
This does exist in a more real way, but is still an oddity. When the earthquakes occurred (two centuries earlier) hundreds of thousands of people died. Their unnatural death left a scar on the passage between the living and the dead. The 'spirits' of these people invested their living offspring (not many) with certain abilities usually inherent to the personality of the person who died, i.e. an angry spirit might have endowed their bloodline with powers of destruction, a peaceful spirit might have endowed their bloodline with healing powers.
This 'force' is divided in two categories, the first is considered 'bad bloodline' and called The Curseed, the second is considered the 'good bloodline' and called The Blesseed. Although this hints at a clear dilineation between the two, it's not actually the case. For instance, those who've been gifted with the power of Telekinesis could use that gift for good or bad.
Customs:
As with most societies faced with 'devient genetics' those in posession of said powers are either tolerated because their power comes in handy, or ostracized because they are of the "Weirding" which is the general term for all untested persons of magic.
This developed a societal snobbery among those without said powers, but in possession of great wealth or political power. All racial difference pale in comparison.
Education:
With the advent of the earthquakes and the break up of structure, the world spun backward from familiar earth and education, or 'paper learnin' became a pursuit of the lazy. The loss of so many lives put great emphasis on the need for strong backs and many hands. Now, it is not the most educated man that counts, it's the strongest and among those the most politically intelligent. The masses are fairly uneducated and have reverted to superstitions and "hand me down tales" (their equivelant of old wives tales) to fathom that which they do not understand.
The Story:
Harmony trudged through the last of the forest. The clearing ahead unsettled her. For two turns of the moon she=d wandered through the Ample Chain Mountains, but now she was about to step foot in the Louis and Anna Territories. Rumors of the people that populated the greater farming community made her tremble. Word had spread through the good people that they were in control of a Master Curseed, one who was obliterating all others born of the Weirding.
She hitched her deerskin bag higher on her shoulder and stared at bright light shimmering through the last canopy of leaves. If there's chimney smoke, she thought, I'll follow the tree line north until I get to the Great Mishappiness River. It would mean a good season lost on her journey, but as she was already a spring and a summer late, she didn=t think a fall would matter. Not at least, if she could make it to the Good Mother before the time of her initiation began.
No smoke darkened the blue sky or tinged the sweet air. She breathed relief and stepped into the tall grass. Head low, shoulders hunched, she continued to search the perimeter of the clearing for movement. Had she been possessed of the mind-hearing ability of her brother Josh, she might not have feared so much, but her puny power, not yet at it's full forceBand wouldn=t be until she finished her time of pubertyBwould be little help against a Master Curseed.
Frowning, she snapped her head right. A distant jingle, like that of a fully outfitted rider, sounded again, though she couldn't see an indication of another. Summer heat made her sweat as she quickened her pace. Ahead was a copse of weeping trees and if she hurried, she might be able to hide among the low hanging branches.
"Halt!"
The man's voice, very close, elicited a squeal of surprise from her. She spun, her braid slapping her pack with an odd thwap that punctuated her alarm. A rider sat astride a large nut gelding. His head and body covered in black armor and fine velvet. He'd appeared out of nowhere and she searched, as Josh had taught her, for the remnants of spellkind at work. A shimmer behind the rider, a heat wave of sunlight so slight that those not trained to find it, would never have been able to see.
But Harmony did see and she pressed a hand to her throat and bowed low in respect. Lord, she hoped, don't let him be the Master Curseed. "I cry your pardon, sir."
"What business have you in the Master=s meadow?"
He wasn't the master, she thought with relief. "I'm to see my father's family in Our Kansas."
"Stand," he commanded and she abruptly straightened, both hands clutching the strap of her bag. "What is your family name?"
The familiar tremble of fear at uttering her surname burned her gullet and she had to consciously fill her lungs with air before she could speak. "I am Harmony Bastillon from Shire, capitol of Newland NewHaven, daughter of Erick Bastillon and Regina Dixon of Midland, Oklahoma."
The rider stilled, the world stilled. The birds had stopped their singing and the river quieted. Harmony held her head high, as her father had commanded when giving her name, and prayed she'd not lose her head to the massive steel hung from the rider's waist.
The man pulled his helmet off and revealed a face as fair as any she'd ever seen. His black curls, damp from the oven of his armor, clung to his forehead, but it was the only wilted part of him.
He dismounted and knelt at her feet. "I cry your pardon, milady. A thousand apologies for my obscene audacity."
She tapped him quickly on the shoulder, loathe to have such a noble warrior crouched before the likes of her. "Rise and let us begin anew. I do not wish to hold you in subservience."
He stood, but refused to look her in the eye. "As you say, milady, but I would be pleased to do your bidding."
"My bidding is that you treat me as you would your own sister, for I am but a wandering traveler passing through your land." Harmony marveled at how easy courtly speech fell from her lips. One would think two seasons among the mountain people would have erased it from memory. "I would know your name."
He did look at her then. A gaze of rain grey filled with wonderment. "I am Derrick Cress of the Louis and Anna Territories. Milady?"
Made wary by his intense stare and the almost familiar ring of his name, Harmony nodded slowly and granted him permission to question her.
"Have you come to rescue our people from the Master Curseed?"
Email me and let me know what you think. Would you like to see more?
© Jennifer Turner, 2005
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