TheThursday Excerpt - Amanda Hanson

Deviant Art boasts many talented writers. Known as Stammo on DA, Amanda has been working on her novel, The Chronicles of Rhodinia, for several years, and it is quite an epic tale. She is also an artist, and has many character drawings on her site as well.

Please welcome my friend and fellow Deviant, Amanda!

Excerpt from The Chronicles of Rhodinia

“Come on man. Wake up!” a voice called to Diego. He groaned as he shuddered, his body in protest of the pain he was in.

“He’s coming to, Jack!” the youth exclaimed. He could no longer keep his eyes shut and he opened them. Light immediately sprinted to his eyes and slammed against his pupils and he groaned once more, his hands massaging his eye lids that pulsed with dull pain. He then shook his head and slowly opened his eyes once more. The light was waiting for him, yet he expected it and he let his eyes adjust slowly, shielding them from the sporadic rays cast by the fire that was reviving feeling to his body where the cold had numbed it. He looked at his rescuers. One sat near him, leaning over him, actually, and holding him still. This one was young- older than Atalus’s eight years, but younger than his own seventeen. A vicious scar traced itself down the youth’s left cheek. His brown eyes held nothing- no resolve, no sign of even life. They just looked on ahead, hollow and blank.

“Theolonious!” an older man whispered urgently. The vile smell was pulled from his nose and the older man gestured to him as he lay there. Theolonious looked down at him, his short brown hair falling into his eyes. He then released him.

“What is your name?” the older asked him. He thought as quick as he could. The truth could kill him.

“Iftiqad,” he fumbled, his dry throat made it hard and painful to speak. The elder shrank back, as though struck, while Theolonious looked at him, surprised as Jack stepped closer to him.

“’Forgotten’?” he asked him in a low whisper seeming a little worried by the revelation.

“What is it, Jack?” Theolonious asked him. Jack turned and looked at his companion warily.

“He said ‘Iftiqad’.”

“A Teratian name?”

“Not so much a name as it is a verb. Iftiqad translates to forgotten in the Teratian language,” Jack replied, stepping away from him, and more into the firelight as he held his chin, smoothing his thumb over the course stubble as he thought.

“He obviously understands you. Ask him another question.”

“Very well.” Jack took another step and knelt in front of him. “Listen, Iftiqad, or whatever your name is. It would be best for you answer me honestly. I will not interrogate you, but my master and most of his other soldiers and slaves would not hesitate to. As long as you answer me truthfully, no harm will come to you. Understand?” Jack asked him. He nodded. “Excellent. Let’s begin again. What is your real name?”

“Diego,” he finally replied in a very stifled manner, hesitant even. Jack nodded with understanding.

“I can understand why you lied to me, Diego. I know who you are and what you are, but Theolonious and I shall do our best to protect you. Just trust us.”

“But you are my enemies. Your standard- red and black- you are trying to conquer Emporia!” Diego protested.

“Against our will, yes,” Theolonious replied darkly.

“Why don’t you fight it, then?” Diego asked agitated.

“And be murdered for insubordination?” Jack replied tersely. “Our lives are terrible, yes, but not worth dying for. We still want to live, even if it means that we are enslaved for the rest of our lives,” Jack replied. “There is always hope of freedom.” Diego nodded in understanding. Slavery was illegal in Emporia- claiming one man’s life as yours was no different than taking it in cold blood. It was a crime that merited death.

“Why and even how would you help me?” he asked them.

“We have a brown mustang in our possession, if that means anything to you. Answer our questions truthfully and we’ll let you go, lying about the severity of your condition as well as your identification and any other questions that our master will have about you,” Theolonious replied.

“Lie to us, and we will turn you over to Ira and to our master. You will either be murdered, or worse- become his slave,” Jack finished getting up and putting the vial away.

“As for the why… defying our master makes every risk worth it. You are more valuable to him alive and in his custody than on the run. Where as you are better to us on the run,” Theolonious explained.

“You are going to get yourselves killed!” Diego whispered in utmost horror.

“What does it matter to you what we do with our own lives? You want to escape Emporia, we are providing the means,” Jack stated as he took his place besides Diego again.

“Just play along with us in our little game,” Theolonious cajoled him. “Be honest, but to a point. You leave here, warm once more, perhaps with a little food in your gut and with your horse. We go on our own merry little way, alive, and perhaps even better off. We help each other and every wins in the end,” he shrugged.

“What have you got left to lose but your freedom or your life, and of that, what remains of either?” Jack added with a hint that he knew of Diego’s actions to flee Emporia. Diego felt a blush crawling up the back of his neck at the mention of his flight from Tadington- his abandoning of his position and post.

“What would you have me do?” he sighed in defeat. Theolonious and Jack looked at each other and smiled deviously.

Biography-

Musician, writer, artist, dreamer. Those are the four words that would best describe Amanda Hanson. Currently enrolled as music performance major and a creative writing at MSU- Billings in Montana, Amanda is working her way to accomplishing her dreams- to become a professional oboist and a published writer. She enjoys dabbling in the genre of fantasy and experimenting with poetry. Her greatest influences in writing are J.K. Rowling, Alexandre Dumas, Anya Senton, Barbara Kyle, C.S. Lewis, Hans Anderson, and the Grimm Brothers.

Ever since she was little, Amanda has been telling stories and creating new worlds, be it from imaginary worlds created when playing with Lego’s, or entering her own mind- a realm of fantasy of renaissance proportions. Her creative side though would not have not flourished and blossomed if it had not been through the help of her friends. At the age of 11, Amanda began writing her first stories on paper, and through the encouragement of friends, she has continued to write, and in 2009, she completed her first story. Though more work needs to be done to improve on the story, it was a giant milestone for her.

Now at 21, with a new school semester upon her, Amanda is looking forward to another semester of learning and growth in her musical and writing talents.

Please visit Amanda's Deviant Art site - Stammo