Month: February 2016

Author Update (Feb 16)

Posted on by arappleby

WELL, as per tradition its the last Sunday of the month. Albeit a new tradition. And on the last Sunday of the month comes an author update. It occurred to me I should probably put the month in the title so I knew what it was… OOPS!

Anyway! This month, well its been its own different kind of special. Very roller coaster. Emotionally its been an up and down month. Of course a few may be aware that this month last year I was in the process of a rather brutal break up that pretty much broke my heart. So of course this year I have been quite reflective. Though it seems the heartbreak was worth it. It changed me for the better a  lot. I feel evermore determined and less willing to settle.

Of course I will probably expand more on the past year on my birthday as an as a whole another year older what has made me wiser kind of thing. But I will probably just be very happy for the day off of work.

I’ve been reading still this month of course! I’m still muddling through the GOT series. It’s pretty good… she says trying not to sound impressed. The techniques are quite interesting.

Oh and this month I decided to add a new thing to my ridiculously over crowded schedule… I am attempting to learn guitar. Though my fingers are still baby soft. I wonder if I will miss that when I learn it enough to be able to play? Probably. I need to practice more than the once or twice a week chance  I have done the last 3/4 weeks. I want to try to do something on learning maybe once a day even if its theory?

This month my assessor on my apprenticeship changed so will see how this goes. Not long left.

This week Someone asked how arappleby.com is doing readership wise, I did shrug I honestly don’t really look much at my stats. I probably should keep an eye on it. But I did have a quick look at my stats today and notifications on here. But I did see that I have a few new followers I would love to say a very big hello and thank you! And a big thank you to all those who read the site. I do appreciate you taking the time to have a look.

Other weird stuff this month?

Well I did have some social time this month. I went out for an evening with my bro Harry. We went to a local songwriters corner event at the local pub at the weekend… It was bloody interesting. It was more a social event for me so I played cards with Harry while we listened. There was a lot of learning going on for me as I watched from the corner of my eye. So I guess I didn’t really have the time “off” of working. It seems to be that I am constantly doing something. So anyway, I learned a lot about perception. How important it is to utilize the talent at your disposal and how important loving whatever you are doing has to be. I noticed that a few of the artists, there was little differentiation between songs, something I wasn’t the only one to notice. I learned a lot and I do appreciate it and the evening. I loved hanging out with Harry again for a while. It was a great catch up.

More weird stuff?

I feel even more proactive even though I often feel like I am being lazy or slacking off. Whether its that I am watching tv or reading; I seem to forget or neglect that I am still working because I am analyzing the presentation of the storylines and the tactics being used as well as just enjoying the stretching of the imagination. Now as I listen to music I seem to do once for enjoyment, again for lyrics, again for melody, again for song build up and structure. It’s all strange like I am playing with building blocks with my imagination trying to understand things. I think that learning bug is taking over.

I am so excited and its not for something specific. I just seem to be especially excited like I can feel something coming. It’s all good whatever it is. I am just very ready and excited… Just want to know what the feeling is for… Not that I don’t appreciate it.

 

May luck and adventure be on your side!

 

ARA xxx

Counting Corvids Chapter Five

Posted on by arappleby

Chapter Five “Pack Animal”

 

“Willow and I are just going for a walk be back soon honey.”

“O.k. sweetie take a jacket” Willow closed the door behind them. “Willow, you shimmered, its serious I had hoped that you wouldn’t have been able to, but it looks like I have no choice but to tell you.” Her father’s face darkened, “Willow, my father, your grandfather was a Fury.” Willow stared blankly. “A Fury, is a type of demon, he tricked my mother and well, I came about. When I met your mother I was so ashamed to be part fury I told her I was just a flame Elemental, and I hoped that the fury would make no impact when you were born. You were so tiny, but you were born able to use magic, something pure Elementals can’t do. I hoped it was because you had purely elemental, my flame and your mothers mist and earth, but when you shimmered today, I knew it was my fault.”

“So I’m part demon, great anything else you want to add?”

“You’re the chosen one, but you already knew that”
“Will your demon, will my demon side affect the alliance?”
“Possibly, it could swing either way”
“How do you hide your fury side then? Wouldn’t others be able to tell?”
“They would, but I wear a talisman”

“That hideous pendant?”

“That’s the one, they are only made by fury demons, and they are used to conceal your demonic heritage from others that must not know. Fury’s are one of the highest upper level demons, and with the help of these talismans notoriously hard to find and vanquish.”
“What’s that? What’s it doing?”

“My God, it’s a Gourlay, I haven’t seen one of those in ages you might want to vanquish it, it’s on the hunt”

“What?”

“Just, give me a hand will you, they tend to hunt in packs but this one must be the loose cannon.” Minutes later the demon burst into toxic green smoke.

Eric, Willows father lead them swiftly back to the house.

“Madi, J.B what are you doing, I thought we were meeting later?”
“We were but we thought, hey why not go out to lunch, I hope you don’t mind?” Madi smiled encouragingly at Willow trying to get Willow to agree to J.B’s suggestion. “Sure, why not, we have just vanquished a Gourlay, why not?”

Madi’s face changed to concern “was it with a pack? Where were the others?”

“I don’t know it was on its own”

“It must have been separated we need to find the rest of them, and fast, they normally hunt in packs of, well, three.”

Madi pulled Willow and J.B out the house and down the street in search of the missing Gourlay demons. A couple of roads away they heard a scream, the three burst into a run towards the scream. Coming level with the scream they saw two revolting creatures with vicious lime green eyes feasting on a body, aging it until it became withered and old before turning into a pile of ash. The Gourlays turned to face the three stood in horror. Their voice rasping as they spoke “Dude, more for the collective”
“Dude, shall we?” They chorused as they said “Dude” a final time before they edged to trap their prey.  Willow spoke out at last grimacing at the sight before them, “you take the left, you the right.”

“Ha, dude, the girl thinks they can win”

“Dude.” They cackled without hesitation Willow reduced the one on the right to a puff of vile green smoke blowing it to smithereens. Turning to the one on the left, she caught or created, she wasn’t quite sure, a gust of wind took the flames she had shot at the Gourlay and fanned them as they danced in circles around the Gourlay before pelting her with the balls of fire as she transformed into a puff of the dense green smoke.
Madi’s Jaw dropped stared at Willow. “Well that’s vanquishing in style” Willow laughed with Madi, while J.B chuckled a hollow laugh.