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About Lands of Jade:
For the first time in eight hundred years, the sun sets on the desert world of Crimson Winter, throwing the planet into unexpected darkness and further chaos. And with the setting of the sun comes the unexpected rise of hordes of undead creatures from the endless Sand Lakes.
...so I can...
Yukari Namikoya, Japanese high school student turned Chosen of Sapphiros, must rise to the occasion and use the powers she has been given to try and protect those she's come to love against overwhelming odds.
...see the light of day again.
But when each night lasts a little longer, Yukari soon realizes that their days might be numbered and a sinister force beyond even the menace of the Vile Emperor might be behind the terrors that are besieging the planet during such a desperate time. The worst part is that Yukari doesn't know if her powers, or even the combined forces of her allies will be enough to protect the Kingdom of Taiyou, let alone the whole world.
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“Prince Narlhep is within the temple,” Rama stated with particular emphasis and I looked past him to the temple doors beyond – they were sealed shut.
“No!” I gasped, noticing Narlhep’s sword lying at Kaji’s side as a sudden realization dawned on me. “He didn’t…”
“I’m afraid so.” Rama grimaced.
“But he knows how to open the doors now, right?” I looked past Rama and Kaji to our prisoner, still tightly held, bound in a rope net and creatively gagged with bandages from the medical supplies. “He made Viron tell him, didn’t he?”
“I don’t think it’s going to work that way,” Kaji informed me. “Narlhep went in there with the intention of facing Jedeite and proving his right to the throne of Taiyou.”
“He did what? But we proved Viron is a traitor. Surely the council wouldn’t require…”
“The council is not the only approval Narlhep believes he needs right now, and I, for one, agree with him,” Rama stated. “The confirmed existence of the gem gods is going to take some getting used to. Most Taiyouns, if they believe in Jedeite at all, believe he abandoned us long ago. Now that the Oujou have been defeated and Jedeite’s power returned to him, Prince Narlhep is likely doing the right thing by solidifying his claim through Jedeite first. It’s the first step to the acceptance that this land is not only ours, but His as well.”
I contemplated the ornate and magically sealed Jade doors, with their Jade pillar statues of the form of the Oujou decorating either side of the entrance. There was no objection I could make to Rama’s arguments as this land was not my own, but I sincerely wanted to protest against the prince having gone in there to face the gem god who was said to represent ‘civilized savagery’.
I was not a religious person, despite being the Chosen of Sapphiros, and until perhaps as late as the other day I would have said I believed as many of the Taiyouns do – that the gem gods were a myth, or were, at the very least, absent from the day to day affairs of this world. Now, I wasn’t so sure. Certainly their power was evident; I was proof of that with my newfound abilities, as was the magic infesting this world. Also, Yue claimed she had spoken with Jedeite himself in her mind, which left me with no choice but to accept my friend’s claims or believe she was losing her hold on sanity.
I had seen any number of things I would have believed impossible before coming here, but I had never heard Sapphiros’ voice or seen the evidence of his presence, other than the power that now coursed through me and my friends, and the blue diamond-shaped marks upon our chests that marked us as his Chosen.
Now Narlhep, someone I had known only a short time, but whom I had come to consider a friend, had willingly sealed himself inside the Jade mountain to face his god. Despite my desire to continue denying the presence and influence of the gem gods, I found myself worrying for his safety, hoping the doors would open any moment now and he would emerge. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem like it was going to be the case.
“How long has he been in there?” I asked.
“He went in at change,” Rama replied and I quirked a brow in confusion.
“He means the bounce,” Kaji clarified. “In Taiyou, that’s when they change shifts – like night and day.”
I looked up to find the sun directly overhead; on this world the sun never set – which took some getting used to – but the endless days were broken up by the moment the sun touched the horizon and started its return journey through the sky. The Roughlanders – who lived out in the harsh deserts of this planet – called it the bounce, but I suppose, like many other things, it was different here in the fertile and protected lands of Taiyou.
I nodded, absorbing this new information. “So we’re stuck here for the time being, then?”
Kaji and Rama nodded. “But that will at least give our reinforcements time to get here,” Rama added. “There’s little use trying to move all of the injured without help.”
I nodded and took the time to carefully compose the message to Lord Rama in my mind, requesting aid in the form of soldiers, supplies, and pallets to carry the more seriously wounded, before forming an arrow made of glowing energy between my hands and letting the message fly.
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Justine Alley Dowsett is the author of ten novels and counting, and one of the founders of Mirror World Publishing. Her books, which she often co-writes with her sister, Murandy Damodred, range from young adult science fiction to dark fantasy/romance. She earned a BA in Drama from the University of Windsor, honed her skills as an entrepreneur by tackling video game production, and now she dedicates her time to writing, publishing, and role-playing with her friends.
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Thank you so much for sharing Lands of Jade!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your new release, Justine! All the best!
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