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Hugh's Notes & My Notes further down

CHRONICLES series plan 1989

Chronicles plan - 1989 plan for development of CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS

What follows is a plan for the development of the CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS which I developed back in 1989. This was before the writing of volume ten, THE WITCHLORD AND THE WEAPONMASTER. As it happens, volume ten was written according to plan.

Volume nine, which was to have been called THE WEIRD AND THE WARPED, ended up being called THE WORSHIPPERS AND THE WAY, and does, in fact, as published, go some way towards explaining the nature of the Nexus.

It would, in retrospect, have been perfectly feasible to go on and write the rest of the series, except for the fact that the economic underpinnings collapsed: with each new book in the series, sales dropped, to the point where extending the series was not feasible.

Anyway. What follows is the 1989 plan:-

        (1) Abstract

        My intention is to complete volumes 9 and 10 in 1990. Volume 9 will clarify the nature of the Nexus and the local cosmos. Volume 10 will bind together all the characters and locales of the first 9 volumes in a coherent story which stars the weaponmaster Guest Gulkan. Volumes 11 to 20 will be sequels to volumes 1 to 10.

        (2) Timetable for Completion of Chronicles

        Volumes 9 (WEIRD/WARPED) and 10 (WITCHLORD/WEAPONMASTER) to be completed in 1990. Timetable for completion of future volumes will be provided toward the end of 1990.

        (3) Function of Volume 9

        In terms of the development of the Chronicles, the function of volume 9 is to explicate the nature of the Nexus and the nature of the local cosmos; and to introduce the political dynamics of Dalar ken Halvar and Parengarenga.

        (4) Function of Volume 10

        Volume 10 will bind together all the characters and locales of the first 9 volumes in a coherent story based on the activities of the questing hero Guest Gulkan (son of Lord Onosh of Tameran) and his long-suffering tutor, translator and pilot Hostaja Torsen Sken-Pitilkin (renegade wizard of Drum and sometime ruler of the Empire of Wizards).
        My intention has long been to use Guest Gulkan for this purpose. He already features in volumes 2, 4, 6 and 7. Sken- Pitilkin of course is first mentioned on the first page of the first volume.
        Guest Gulkan and Sken-Pitilkin make ideal protagonists for exploring the entire world of the Chronicles because it has already been established that Guest Gulkan is familiar with the use of Doors and that Sken-Pitilkin can fly.

        (5) Overview of Volumes 11 to 20

        Volumes 11 to 20 will be sequels to volumes 1 to 10. The story they tell is of a world being painfully unified through the use of three Circles. The end result is that Hostaja Torsen Sken- Pitilkin establishes not an Empire but an Alliance, unifies the world and throws the Swarms back into the Deep South.

        (12) Strategy for Volumes 11 to 20

        Volumes 11 to 20 will in effect be sequels of volumes 1 to 10. Plans for these volumes are outlined below. In some cases the outline plots have been freshly created to fit my latest plan for the series. Other outlines, however, represent a return to long- cherished ideas, such as that of setting a story in the Stepping Stone Islands with Nuana Nanalako as the protagonist.

        (13) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 11

        Morgan Hearst and Thodric Jarl separately return to the islands of Rovac and there make an alliance. One isolated island is contaminated with creatures of the Swarms. On the island is a Door which Hearst opens with a star-globe he brought from the Lesser Teeth: the Star Globe originally brought to the Lessers by Yen Olass Ampadara. The book then follows the progress of Hearst and Jarl as they seek to integrate themselves into the society of Rovac and to control this Third Circle.

        (14) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 12

        After Togura Poulaan becomes king of Sung, he appoints a young man known as the Wart as guardian of the wreckage of the green bottle which lies near Keep. The book follows the Wart's difficulties as he struggles to protect this wreckage, which is increasingly becoming the focus of questing heroes and other such rabble.

        (15) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 13

        Nuana Nanalako returns to her home in the Stepping Stone Islands only to find that she was officially declared dead years ago. The book follows her difficulties as a living ghost.

        (16) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 14

        Drake Douay and his companions proceed to Tor after the wrecking of the good ship Dragon. The book follows the adventures of Drake and his companions during the years in which Jon Arabin establishes an empire in the Drangsturm Gulf.
        With the help of war machines from Ling, most notably a skavamareen (a PsyOps weapon which flies) Drake and his companions push deep into the Terror-lands of the Deep South, where Drake makes himself lord of the ancient city which houses the tectonic lever.

Daniel,'s Words in Red Here

The Duke of Penvash has conversations with Watashi, and it is agreed that at a future point the Star-globe will be utilized to open the Penvash Circle. The Duke has his concerns that South Argan really should be having more problems, as he wants to become the ruler of Northern Argan and not have to worry about IOWA that much. Hearing knowledge of Drake coming into possession of a Skavamareen, and the tales of his prowess in flying the machine through the skies of the Drangsturm Gulf, even mocking swarm creatures and dropping rocks on them, the Duke of Penvash contacts Jonty Bearhugger of Paron Gash by a Telephone Device he has subscribed to from Lord Dreldragon's fledgling Babel Network. Jonty, who has become Mayor of Paron Gash by this time, running the town as the representative, and who is an adherent of the 666 community, is paid a handsome sum, shipped to him across the Sunlight Sea, to relocate what appears to likewise be a Skavamareen in the depths of the Nexus Facility on the outskirts of Paron Gash. Learning how to fly it there is combat which takes place with Dreldragon's Skavamareen, who is damn sure the Duke's Telphone Subscription will be cancelled. Subsequently the Duke calls off the combat, and the Skavamareen returns to Penvash. Dreldragon has ventured south, and has arguments with his lover about the ethics of being a world dictator. He explains to her that it is a dirty job but someone has to do it, which keeps her at bay for a while, but only temporarily.

Meantimes, Squirrel Dalydius, starting to become quite put off by the growing influence of the 666 community in world affairs, has 'Produced' a supposed ancient prophecy of the Grand Guardian which spoke of a World Dictator who wore the 666 mantle and ruled the city which could only be called 'Babylon the Great'. Babylon was a name Squirrel had unearthed in the ancient documents form the Nexus, which the Nexus had used in founding the religious element in the life of Olo Malan upon its colonisation. Traditionally a sign of woe, later when the Babel Network comes into being it is taught that Lord Dreldragon is the fearsome leader of Babylon, which is obviously connected by 'Babel', who will fight the Grand Avatar at his return, a thing Dreldragon himself, religion being a bane to his life, is not one to object to, fancying the power and authority which comes with such fear.

        (17) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 15

         As Hostaja Torsen Sken-Pitilkin and the wizards of the Confederation tighten their grip on the Circle of the Partnership Banks, it becomes increasingly clear that there is precious little scope for the more ambitious warriors. Accordingly Watashi and others, having come into possession of a star-globe, seek to establish their own empire by opening the Circle accessed through the Old City of Penvash.
        The Penvash Circle runs thus: Old City - Eucalyptus Forest - Ocean Cay - Drangsturm Southside - Mountain Snowland - Plain of Tazala - Jungle Temple - Dalar ken Halvar - Cannibal Beach - and back to the Old City.
        Having opened this Circle, Watashi and his allies must cope with the consequent complications. The Door in the Mountain Snowland is on one side of a high pass. On the other side is one of the Doors of the Third Circle exploited by Morgan Hearst and Thodric Jarl. Near these mountains is the city of the tectonic lever, where Drake Douay resides; and in due course Drake explores to the Door, mounted on his trusty skavamareen.
        The Door on the Cannibal Beach is disconcertingly near Port Domax, the free port where Shabble dwells, and it is not long before Shabble comes bobbing along in company with a considerable retinue to demand access to the Penvash Circle. The Door in the Eucalyptus Forest is in the south of Parengarenga, the continent which is home to the city of Dalar ken Halvar.
        The power-seekers heighten all complications when they attempt to seize the home city of the young Lord Dreldragon, who saves himself by briefly using the tectonic lever. This has has far-flung consequences, including the opening of a sea channel between the Drangsturm Gulf and the Ocean of Cambria.

Things are changing in the world. Dreldragon notices the spiritual climate and the increase in power of the religious. Gouda Muck was a long beset plague of Dreldragon's life and, even now, old cronies still haunt him when they can. He has grown to resent much of religion, but when it becomes apparent that the Watermelon is now claiming he is their number one bad guy it only spurs on the ego of Lord Dreldragon more so to pursue his ambitions in life. Zanya Kliedervaust is his lover and antagonist in many ways. She berates Dreldragon often for his coarse ways and manners but Drake always has the smart word on the situation, and does not relent of his hubristic ways and deeds. Drake has concerns over the world rings in operation, and is thinking hard and fast about how he can gradually gain power in IOWA. The Babel Network again comes into his thinking, and the knowledge he gained from a computing device once suggested there were more of the devices in the city of the tectonic lever. Consulting a semi-functional Dorgi, who's programming has deteriorated over the long years, the dorgi speaks of the cache of telephone devices hidden below in a storage warehouse, and about the power of the tectonic lever, which was to accomplish an old Golden Gulag concern the Dorgi is reluctant to diverge full actual details about. Dreldragon, through his cunning talk, eventually secures the knowledge of how to use the tectonic lever and towards the end of the novel, when the situation looks dire, he decides that the end of the world is a thrill he may as well witness. The lowering of the land between the Drangsturm Gulf and the Ocean of Cambria is truly a sight to behold, and Dreldragon feels alive in ways he never has, again beset with a feeling of raw and unadulterated power, which will propel him later to even greater heights of daring.

(18) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 16

Volume 16 The Waxman and the Warthog

This book deals with events on Untunchilamon after the fall of the Empress Justina. It focuses on the artist Slanic Moldova.
A wazir sent by Aldarch III seeks to exercise his authority over Untunchilamon. An Expeditionary Force from Odrum makes an ill-advised excursion to the island. And Codlugarthia establishes his rule on Untunchilamon.

        (19) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 17

        This book is set in Chi'ash-lan, the ruling city of the Cold West, which is experiencing severe difficulties. The Rovac will no longer fight for Chi'ash-lan, but instead have returned to their home islands to place their swords at the service of the Rovac World Ring, aka the Rovac Ring, the Third Circle of Doors controlled by Morgan Hearst and Thodric Jarl.
        The old enemies are turning on Chi'ash-lan.
        Above all else, those enemies demand the death of Bailiff Vok, Chi'ash-lan's long-time ruler. They are also intensely interested in the x-x-zix, the wishstone of Untunchilamon, which has come into Bailiff Vok's possession. In Bailiff Vok's prisons there is a man who has the ability to command the x-x-zix. If this man is allowed to proceed to the City of Ice with the x-x-zix then he can warm the weather of the Cold West, causing an icemelt which will unlock, amongst other things, the sea route from the Cold West to the Hauma Sea.
        Bailiff Vok refuses to concede either his own life or Chi'ash-lan's supremacy. As Vok fights increasingly desperate and savage battles for control and survival, two men make the decision to dispossess him. These men are Prince Tatsu and the gladiator Bork. The book follows their ultimately successful attempt to win control of Chi'ash-lan and the difficult diplomacy which follows as, by a mixture of bluff, threat and bribe, they endeavour to protect their city from its enemies.

        (20) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 18

        Three Circles are now in operation: that of the Partnership Banks (the Safrak Circle), that controlled from the Old City (the Penvash Circle) and that of the Rovac (the Third Circle, aka the Rovac World Ring, aka the Rovac Ring).
        Unfortunately one of the Doors of the Penvash Circle is underwater, which compromises its effective operation.
        Nevertheless ...
        It functions, after a fashion, pouring a river of salt water into the Mountain Snowlands.
        The one common meeting place of these three Circles is in the city of Dalar ken Halvar.
        The powers of the three Circles fight an increasingly bloody war of spies and assassins for control of the city of Dalar ken Halvar, which some see as meaning the control of the world.
        This book deals with the clash of those spies and assassins, those spies and assassins being themselves caught up in the complexities of an internal power struggle in Dalar ken Halvar itself.

        (21) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 19

        This book is set in Drake Douay's home city, the city of the tectonic lever, where he has generously allowed certain wizards of the Confederation to make their homes.
        Drake Douay is progressively unlocking the secrets of his home city. His latest discovery is a cache of some twenty-seven million telephones which date back to the days of the Nexus. Drake proposes setting up a telephone network to link the entire world.
        The telephones are very enthusiastic about this idea, as they are sick and tired of sitting in the dark with nobody to talk to but each other. Unfortunately, this idea is anathema to the wizards, who are alarmed at the speed of events, and particularly alarmed at the way Drake's new technology outstrips their own powers.
        The wizards accordingly attempt a coup against the young Lord Dreldragon, who must struggle against them as best he can. Fortunately, the telephones are all on Drake's side.
        This book deals with the days of the coup and Drake's efforts to save both himself and his beloved telephones.

        (22) CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS: Volume 20

        In Volume 15, one of the Doors of the Penvash Circle was sunk when Drake Douay briefly used the tectonic lever, with far-flung consequences which include the opening of a deep sea channel between Argan North and Argan South.
        This book opens at Drangsturm, now a deep sea channel between Argan North and Argan South. Sken-Pitilkin is supervising the salvage of a vital Door from the deep water channel. An entirely unrepentent Drake Douay is assisting.
        Drake is now the lord of Babel, the international telephone network. The telephone is the latest (and in many ways the most powerful) of the devices which is rapidly changing the world beyond recognition.
        Another change is that airflight is increasingly commonplace.
        Hostaja Torsen Sken-Pitilkin, the true inventor of effective flight, has taught other wizards of his Order the secret of his stickbirds. A wizard's power is inimical to the natural order of the universe, which seeks to destroy that power. When enchanted objects are not properly shielded, they are usually destroyed in short order, most commonly with devastating effects.
        It is Sken-Pitilkin's genius to have devised a system for partially exposing an enchanted object to destruction, then trapping and using the turbulent forces which result. This is why he can fly his stickbird across entire continents, a feat entirely beyond other wizards of his order until he shows them the way.
        The world is now linked by telephones, by three Circles (the Circle of the Partnership Banks, aka the Safrak Circle; the Circle of the Old City, aka the Penvash Circle; and the Third Circle, aka the Rovac World Ring, aka the Rovac Ring) and by many airpowered wizards.
        The Confederation of Wizards, which has slowly been regrouping, and has now established itself firmly on Ashmolea, intends to bring this new world under its rule, and so summons Sken-Pitilkin and others to a conference at which submission will be demanded. Unfortunately for the Confederation, it has severely underestimated the strength of some of the Powers it has summoned, most notably Codlugarthia and the young Lord Dreldragon.
        The book follows Sken-Pitilkin's ultimately successful efforts to preserve his own life, his political power and the peace of the world at this Conference, which he does in part by postponing all issues which are incapable of easy resolution (such as whether Lord Dreldragon is within his rights when he lays claim to the Stepping Stone Islands), and in part by encouraging the destructive tensions within the Confederation.
        By the time the Conference has been brought to a successful conclusion, the Confederation of Wizards is almost on the point of destroying itself. As the people who have taken part in the Conference disperse, Sken-Pitilkin is detained, and must use all his skill, wit and expertise to bring about the political destruction of the Confederation and remove the threat which it poses to the new order of the world.

        (6) Overview of Volumes 21 to 40

        Volumes 21 to 40 will tell of the struggle between two groups of wizards. The Dissidents value knowledge but the Confederation values power.
        Volumes 21 to 40 will go under the title of CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF WRATH. It will be guided by the same considerable pessimism which underwrites THE WIZARD AND THE WARRIORS, and the story it will tell is as follows:-
        The Dissidents begin the study of the Skull, an intelligent but infinitely alien organism which controlls the bizarre ecology of the southlands. The Confederation seeks to bring the Skull under its control, thus provoking the Long War.
        After the Long War, the Empire of Wizards is followed amidst great optimism. The Dissidents, the greatest minds of the Empire, build many great things for the Empire. The power and success of the Empire fills its rulers with hubristic arrogance, with evil consequences for those who suffer beneath the Empire's rule.
        Arrogance leads to intolerance, and intolerance to a brand of politics which is characterised by savagery. Eventually a group of the most savage and determined coup leaders imaginable overthrow the current rulers of the Empire and install their puppet on the imperial throne - their puppet being the amiable Hostaja Torsen Sken-Pitilkin, now to be known to the world as the Emperor Torsen.
        The Emperor Torsen acts with bloody resolution and butchers the coup leaders, then proceeds to rule the Empire with justice and intelligence. He then strives to repair the rift between the Confederation and the Dissidents - and almost succeeds.
        Unfortunately the Emperor Torsen lacks tact, lacks the ability to delegate, and refuses to countenance piracy in the form of the grotesquely inflated salaries and pensions which his administrators demand. The Emperor Torsen holds that administration should not be the most profitable industry in the Empire, and for this political heresy he is overthrown, the sanguinary Emperor Barglan replacing him.
        Under the rule of Barglan, the Empire collapses in a bloody war which leads the Dissidents to take themselves off to the lands at the southern tip of the continent of Argan, from where they resume their studies of the Skull.
        That hubristic ambition of wizards which led to the Fall of the Empire then leads to further disasters, most notable of which is the Fall of Drangsturm, which sees the Swarms march into the north of Argan and threaten the rest of the world. Fortunately Hostaja Torsen Sken-Pitilkin saves the day by uniting three Circles in an Alliance and throwing the Swarms back into the Deep South.
        Unfortunately Sken-Pitilkin is no better at ruling an Alliance than he is at ruling an Empire. He repeats his very same error by refusing to let his adminstrators loot their people, and again is overthrown.
        The well-salaried and well-pensioned administrators of the Alliance, insulated from the realities of the common people, govern with the same hubristic arrogance which characterised the original Empire of Wizards.
        The underlying political assumption of the Alliance is that it is Good since the Swarms against which it fought were Evil. Since the Alliance is Good, anyone who stands against it is necessarily Evil, particularly the neutral Dissidents in the south of Argan, who are known to have stood by while the Swarms invaded the north.
        What follows is a devastating war in which the two sides tear each other apart in an uncompromising Gotterdammerung, leaving all in ruin, as all was in ruin at the end of "THE WIZARDS AND THE WARRIORS".

        (7) Overview of Volumes 41 to 60.

        Volumes 41 to 60 will go under the title of CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF HEROES and will tell of the Nexus, of conflicts imported from the Nexus into the local cosmos, of the gradual awakening of the Powers of the local cosmos, of the resulting conflicts, and of the resolution of those conflicts.
        Detail is as follows:-
        The Nexus, a transcosmic civilization which specialises in manipulating probability, is colonising a series of increasingly unstable universes.
        The Nexus approves the establishment of a prison complex on the local cosmos, which is unstable in the extreme, and shows ominous signs of having been experimented upon by the hypothetical Experimenters.
        The series follows the lives of Rinprofen Rum, Ivan Pokrov, Anaconda Stogirov and Shabble, plus several of those condemned to suffer in the prison complex.
        Initially the prison complex in the local cosmos is linked with the rest of the Nexus by the Chasm Gates, but Ivan Pokrov severs that link.
        The series then follows the desperate power struggle between the survivors who are trapped in the local cosmos. The final crisis comes in the aftermath of the Gotterdammerung featured in volume 40.
        The final crisis comes with the rise of new Powers, most notably Codlugarthia of Untunchilamon and Lord Dreldragon of Ling.
        The conflicts between Pokrov, Stogirov, Shabble and Rum finally come to a head at a peace conference held on the Lesser Teeth.
        By now Lord Dreldragon is sixty years of age, at the height of his political power, and the ruler of the Empire of the Sealords, which is supported by the mighty war machines of the Technic Renaissance which were long housed at Ling (and were discovered by Lord Dreldragon in Volume 4, THE WALRUS AND THE WARWOLF, though he thought nothing of the discovery at the time).
        The key issue at the Conference is the making of a Peace between Codlugarthia and Lord Dreldragon. Both of these two Powers are exceptionally ignorant of the needs of the many minor nations which will be affected by the terms of their Peace.
        Delegations from those minor nations have come to the Conference to speak for the needs of their own peoples. They include the very young (who are idealistic but over-optimistic and inexperienced), those at the peak of their power (who must attend to the short term if they are to stay in power and so be able to secure the world in the long term - the conflict between the day- do-day exigencies of politics and the long-term needs of nations ever threatening disaster), and the very old (who are wise, or at least think they are, but who have limited power and influence).
        The crisis in the affairs of the survivors from the Nexus sees the Conference disintegrate in a bloody battle which threatens to doom all those involved and once more plunge the wider world into war. The struggle against catastrophe ends with the death of Morgan Hearst, the death of Shabble, the marriage of Ivan Pokrov to the formidable Anaconda Stogirov, and the signing of a Peace.
        Thus bringing this sixty-volume story to an end.

[points 8 through 10 deleted]


        (11) Creative Strategy

        The books yet to come will be a mix of:-
        (a) Extended Histories in the manner of THE WIZARDS AND THE WARRIORS, where events of great import are dealt with at length, where wars are fought, where Great Decisions are taken, and where the fate of nations is decided; and
        (b) Local Histories in the manner of THE WISHSTONE AND THE WONDERWORKERS, where local events are dealt with in stories tightly unified in terms of place, time and action; and
        (c) Picaresque Tales in the manner of THE WORDSMITHS AND THE WARGUILD, THE WALRUS AND THE WARWOLF and THE WITCHLORD AND THE WEAPONMASTER.
        I believe at this stage that I will be able to follow the storyline outlined above fairly closely.


         ends


        # Copyright 1989, 2003 Hugh Cook

Chronicles of an Age of Heroes – Volumes 41 to 60

Volume 41 - The Walchop and the Wasp

ACTS OF HEROES or THE WALCHOP AND THE WASP

This is the plan for a book called ACTS OF HEROES (or, if you like, THE WALCHOP AND THE WASP). It is not clear when this plan was developed, but this book was originally intended to be volume 7 of the CHRONICLES OF AN AGE OF DARKNESS, and had the working title THE WEREWOLF AND THE WORMLORD. That title got hijacked and became an entirely different book. To avoid confusion, I've decided to call this ACTS OF HEROES.

Volume six of the CHRONICLES is called THE WISHSTONE AND THE WONDERWORKERS and is set on the island of Untunchilamon. What actually happened, possibly, is that I sat down to write volume seven with a big, sprawling book in mind, but found that it swiftly evolved into something far more compact, THE WAZIR AND THE WITCH.

When I was a small child - aged five and six, I think - I spent two years on Ocean Island, a dot in the Pacific Ocean near the equator. (Ocean Island is now called Banaba.) The Untunchilamon milieu has very much the flavor of Ocean Island - heat, flying fish, ghost crabs, red ants, scorpions, and the remnants of deceased military civilizations. (Ocean Island was littered with World War Two debris from the Japanese military occupation.)

So, for me, the Untunchilamon environment came alive very easily - previously I had not tapped into those two years of childhood.

Looking at the plot for the book I've renamed ACTS OF HEROES, it looks perfectly writeable, the one problem being that the writing of it would take quite some time.

I think if I was going to write this now then I would begin with a scene in which Untunchilamon is overrun by wasps. Rather large ones. I mean, LARGE ones. That would give some emotional resonance to the plot, which, assuming that "wasp" is substituted for "werewolf," requires a man to imagine himself to be a wasp.

ACTS OF HEROES aka THE WALCHOP AND THE WASP

After Aldarch the Third triumphs in the civil war in Yestron, those who usurped his authority on Untunchilamon are brought back to Yestron for trial. We follow their struggle for survival.

         This book is in three parts.

Part One: Events on Untunchilamon.
Part Two: Events in Yestron.
Part Three: Events after Yestron.

        BACKGROUND: When civil war broke out in Yestron, power in Untunchilamon was usurped by Lonstantine Thrug, a Yudonic Knight from Galsh Ebrek.
        BACKGROUND: Lonstantine Thrug had a cousin by the name of Juliet Idado, who was on Untunchilamon when Thrug seized power. Idaho soon returned to Galsh Ebrek. While civil war raged in Yestron, only a few garbled tenth-hand reports of affairs on Untunchilamon reached Idaho in Galsh Ebrek.
        BACKGROUND: Now the civil war has ended. Aldarch the Third has triumphed, has proclaimed himself Mutilator of Yestron, and has begun a reign of terror.
        BACKGROUND: Idaho realised that the triumphant Aldarch would naturally slay Thrug the Usurper. Therefore Idaho set sail for Untunchilamon, seeking to bring Thrug (and the contents of the treasury of Injiltaprajura) back to Galsh Ebrek.
        BACKGROUND: Unbeknownst to Idaho, Lonstantine Thrug went mad some time ago, and was incarcerated in the lunatic asylum of Injiltaprajura. His daughter Justina rules as empress on Untunchilamon.
        NOTE: because the Yudonic Knights of Galsh Ebrek preserve a degree of independence from the rest of the empire it would be possible for them to shelter Thrug from the wrath of Aldarch III.


         Part One Starts

1. We open on Untunchilamon where the bells are ringing to celebrate the good news. Aldarch the Third is dead. The magnanimous Manthandros Trasilika has triumphed, and is prepared to grant Untunchilamon religious freedom and independence.

2. The bells are heard on the island of Jod, where Chegory Guy and Ivan Pokrov are taking a break from their labours on the immortality machine. They are dining al fresco on some local delicacies and celebrating with a quiet drink or three, because they think the machine is showing glimmerings of life. They are disturbed by the hermit crab, which asks what is going on, and is not impressed.

        Hermit crab asks where Shabble is. Answer: Shabble is away. Hermit crab pretends to be unmoved, but Guy suspects hermit crab has a soft spot for Shabble.

        3. A crisis in the lunatic asylum. The paranoid Erg thinks the bells are the signal for his execution. He takes the vampire woman Petrina as hostage. The good doctor of the asylum, Jon Qasaba, has to sort things out. He is helped by the muscle of the Wolchop, Koi of Quilth.

        4. Night. In the night, the demon-god Torak torments Slanic Moldova. He endures the oppression of stones. Mouths in the shadows talk to him. Loathsome beasts crawl out of cracks in the night. Then daylight comes, and Olivia Qasaba arrives to take him to the palace.

        OLIVIA QASABA. Young woman. Pregnant. Daughter of Jon Qasaba. Works for the Empress Justina. Lives in the palace in quarters she shares with her husband Chegory Guy.
        CHEGORY GUY. Busy at work on the island of Jod (in the harbour of Injiltaprajura). He is working with Ivan Pokrov, one of the Nine Immortals. They are trying to restore an old immortality machine which Pokrov has discovered.

        5. At the palace, Slanic Moldova goes to work on his great masterpiece of a mural. The Empress Justina pauses to observe the work. She chats with Slanic Moldova who begins to paint her hand. Olivia dissuades him from a further artistic assault on the empress, who laughs and goes to her meeting.

        6. The same day. The meeting. The Empress Justina and her aides are negotiating with Cray. They are settling the price which Untunchilamon will pay for religious freedom and independence. Negotiations are proceeding with good humour when word of the arrival of three ships reaches the palace. Cray breaks off negotiations and hurries back to the harbour.

        7. The same day. Shipboard talks between Cray and the fugitive Manthandros Trasilika. Cray advises immediate flight. Manthandros Trasilika refuses to flee empty-handed, and orders Cray to resume negotations. Cray is nearly mad with fear because he knows a fleet commanded by Reshen Vladimirov is in pursuit of them, and will arrive on Untunchilamon within a few days. Cray decides to betray his master to the minions of Aldarch III who have just arrived on the incoming ships.

        8. The same day. The palace. Cray confronts Juliet Idaho in the presence of the Empress Justina. So the new arrivals are not the minions of Aldarch III! They are Yudonic Knights, who would happily kill Cray out of hand, for he belongs to the much-hated Guild of Usurers.

        BACKGROUND. A generation ago the Yudonic Knights borrowed vast sums of money from the Guild of Usurers to finance a war against a certain free city in the northern continent of Tameran.
        BACKGROUND. The Yudonic Knights lost their war. The Guild demanded payment. The Knights had no money. The Knights promptly defaulted on their debt and drove the Guild from Galsh Ebrek.
        BACKGROUND. The Guild then obtained a court order allowing it to enslave all the Yudonic Knights of Galsh Ebrek. In consequence, a sorry fate awaits any Yudonic Knight who falls into the hands of the Guild.
        BACKGROUND. As a member of the Guild of Usurers, Cray is an enemy of the Yudonic Knights, who have sworn to burn alive any Guildsman who falls into their hands.

        9. The Guildsman Cray and the Yudonic Knight Juliet Idaho confront each other in the presence of the Empress Justina. Each argues that the other is a liar and should be put to death.

        10. The Empress Justina tires of argument, puts both Cray and Idaho under open arrest, rules that the men loyal to each must surrender up their arms, then invites both Cray and Idaho to a banquet.

        11. Afternoon of the same day. Conference between Cray and Manthandros Trasilika. Their men have been disarmed. Cray again urges flight, but Trasilika insists on brazening things out. They depart for the banquet with Trasilika disguised as Cray's slave.

        12. Cray and Manthandros Trasilika observe a dockside confrontation. The Yudonic Knights are refusing to be disarmed. They think Idaho has been murdered in the palace. The harbourmaster Uckermark invites some of the Yudonic Knights to come to the palace themselves to see that all is well.

        13. Arrival at palace. Banquet. Manthandros Trasilika poisons Juliet Idaho with zen.

        ZEN. Zen is a dissociative drug used (in small quantities) as an anaesthetic. It is safe, inasmuch as it does not depress respiration. However, it tends to produce unpleasant hallucinations. Massive doses can plunge a person into a world of horror. Such doses can also leave a person prone to flashbacks.

        14. Idaho at banquet with the Empress Justina. She romances him. He is ready to take her on in the interests of diplomacy. In fact, he likes a lusty wench, and is quite looking forward to it. Then the zen takes hold of him and his nightmare starts.

        NOTE: The Yudonic Knights of Galsh Ebrek have a morbid fear of wasps, werewolves and vampires.

        15. Subjective view of Idaho's madness. He thinks he has become a wasp, and acts accordingly.

        16. Objective view of Idaho's madness. Remember some Yudonic Knights were invited to the palace to see for themselves that all was well with him.

        17. Morning. Idaho in the lunatic asylum. His first meeting with Jon Qasaba, the manic-depressive who runs the asylum. Today Qasaba is depressed, though not severely so. Idaho receives some hot coffee and some reassurance, then Qasaba takes a case history and correctly diagnoses poisoning by zen. Prescribes a long hot bath, a massage, a late breakfast then a siesta, and predicts a noon release for Idaho.

        BACKGROUND. Jon Qasaba is a healer who trained on Ashmolea. His discipline has great faith in the curative powers of rest, massage, hot baths, peace and quiet, music, certain colours, meditation (particularly meditation upon clouds in the sky and fish aswim in glass tanks), and the company of living things (particularly trees).

        18. We accompany Qasaba on his rounds, leaving him at the point where he is about to enter the Gibbering Room where the helpless dements are kept.

        19. Same morning. Idaho's troops believe Idaho to have been bewitched by the Empress Justina. They claim she also bewitched her father Lonstantine Thrug. They set off to storm the palace, arming themselves with whatever they can lay their hands on. They do not know Idaho is in the lunatic asylum.

        20. Idaho is in the bath when the vampire woman Petrina comes to him. She names herself as a vampire, and this suffices to trigger a flashback.

        21. Battle for palace is raging when galleys arrive bearing troops of Aldarch the Third under the command of Reshen Vladimirov.

        22. Cray falls weeping at the feet of Manthrandos Trasilika. Who is not ready to die yet. Manthandros Trasilika plans to unite their forces with those of the Yudonic Knights and the Empress Justina, then fight their way out of Injiltaprajura.

        23. Manthrandos Trasilika gathers together his men. He tells them they will attack the lunatic asylum. They will take two hostages: Lonstantine Thrug and Juliet Idaho. Then the Empress Justina will listen to reason, since they will be holding her father hostage. The Yudonic Knights will also listen to reason, since they will be holding Idaho hostage.

        KOI OF QUILTH. This man is the Wolchop. He is a patient at the asylum. He claims to be lord of the deathworms of the uplands of Quilth. While the people of Injiltaprajura think him a lunatic, his claims are in fact entirely true. He is very strong, hotheaded, and a warrior in love with battle.

        24. Manthandros Trasilika and his men attack the asylum, which is ably defended by Koi. The Wolchop is roused to wrath when Trasilika's men manhandle Jon Qasaba.

        25. Juliet Idaho. Recovered from his latest fit of madness. No longer thinks himself a wasp. He is in the asylum, ruled for the moment by the Wolchop.

        26. Eye-of-God view of the chaotic fighting in Injiltaprajura. The palace. The lunatic asylum. The prison. The island of Jod. The invaders from Yestron are triumphant everywhere, and those who oppose them are killed or captured. Except for those who escape underground or into the wastelands of Zazazolzodanzarzakazolabrik.

        27. Chegory Guy. Who has returned to Injiltaprajura from Jod to rescue his true love, his wife Olivia Qasaba. He reaches the palace. Is challenged. Is chased. Escapes underground.

        28. Reshen Vladimirov. In the palace. Before him is the odious Naum Nazm (friend of Aquitaine Varazchavardan), who is making what explanations he thinks appropriate. He believes he can do a deal with the sorcers, who have till now stood aside from the battle.
        If Vladimirov will grant them free pardons, the sorcerers can probably be persuaded to do battle on his side. If not, then Vladimirov may not be able to hold Untunchilamon.

        29. Underground. wasp (Juliet Idaho) in conference with survivors who include Chegory Guy, Cray and Manthandros Trasilika.
        However:-
        Olivia Qasaba is missing.
        Ditto the Empress Justina.
        Ivan Pokrov is still on Jod.
        Conference centres on question of what the sorcerers will do.

        30. Night. The sorcerers of Untunchilamon gather in the presence of Reshen Vladimirov to pledge their loyalty to Aldarch the Third, Mutilator of Yestron and ruler of most of it.

        31. Exercise of magic commences.

        32. Morning. The palace. Confrontation between Reshen Vladimirov and his prisoners. He demands to know where the Empress Justina is. Chegory Guy demands to know where Olivia Qasaba is. Guy offers Vladimirov a great treasure in return for Olivia. Vladimirov says it's a deal if:-
        (i) the treasure proves truly great;
        (ii) Olivia comes into his hands, which he cannot guarantee.

        33. Noon of the same day. Island of Jod. Guy has led soldiers of the immortality machine, which is now being removed from the island. Hermit crab asks what is going on. Guy explains. Sounds of Mills of Jod being smashed by soldiers. Ivan Pokrov nearly demented by grief as his beautiful machine is smashed. Guy feels awkward, embarrassed, wrong.

        LONSTANTINE THRUG. Thrug is dead.

        34. Zazazolzodanzarzakazolabrik. Late afternoon of the same day. Together in the wasteland are:-
        Olivia Qasaba, pregnant wife of Chegory Guy.
        The Empress Justina.
        Erg the paranoid.
        Petrina the vampire woman.
        Koi of Quilth, the Wolchop.
        Erg fears pursuit, capture, torture and death unspeakable. For once, his fears are consonant with his circumstances. Olivia says her husband's father works as a stillmaster for the notorious warlord Jal Japone.
        The Empress Justina says that they will therefore trek to the warlord's stronghold.

        35. Dawn. Chegory Guy helps Reshen Vladimirov's prisoners make out their wills. Then the prisoners are chained to benches on a galley. They will row themselves to Yestron where they will be tried then slaughtered. Guy returns to the palace where he is working with Ivan Pokrov on restoration of the immortality machine.

        36. Reshen Vladimirov. A good soldier. Watches restoration work. Will render the machine up to Aldarch the Third when it is functional. Believes the Mutilator a good thing. For the Mutilator brings rule, order, system.

        37. Naum Nazm boards galley with message for the eyes of Aldarch the Third alone. Message informs the Mutilator that Vladimirov has found an immortality machine and is keeping this a secret from the Mutilator. Labels Vladimirov as a traitor.

        38. Shipboard. Hell is other people. The galley slaves include:-
        Manthandros Trasilika
        Cray
        Jon Qasaba the healer
        Slanic Moldova the artist
        Juliet Idaho the wasp

        39. Dusk. North of Untunchilamon. Slanic Moldova enduring attack of the horrors. Juliet Idaho experiences wasp flashback. Attack on galleys by krakens which Moldova at first rationalises as being but one more aspect of his personal horrors.

        40. Night. Krakens continue to attack galleys. Prisoners led by wasp seize galley. Monstrous night of fear, blood, death. Galley heads for shore.

        41. Dawn. Landing on northern sands of Untunchilamon. The wasp, Juliet Idaho, is exhausted, shattered. The artist Slanic Moldova, on the other hand, is experiencing a phase of free- floating peace and acute insight. Decide to head inland to the stronghold of Jal Japone.



         Part One Ends

         Part Two Starts

        WHAT HAS HAPPENED: Aldarch the Third has received word of the immortality machine. He has sent agents to Untunchilamon to procure it for him, to arrest Reshen Vladimirov, and to bring him the people who destroyed his precious galleys (the ones which were actually destroyed by krakens).

        42. We open in the headquarters of Jal Japone. Jon Qasaba. In the depths of depression. Summoned into the presence of Japone. Finds the other captives there. Including his daughter with her young baby. They are told they are being handed over to the agents of Aldarch the Third.

        43. Overview of their trials and tribulations between departing the headquarters of Jal Japone and arriving in Yestron. Tying up of any loose ends.

        44. Arrival of all captives in Yestron, together with Ivan Pokrov and Chegory Guy (who have been brought to Obooloo to restore the immortality machine).

        45. Ivan Pokrov and Chegory Guy have audience with Aldarch the Third. Pokrov tries to pass as a nobody. But Yan Nard, herself one of the Nine Immortals, identifies him as the evil mastermind who destroyed the Golden Gulag. Aldarch III gives Guy & Pokrov a clear directive: restore the immortality machine to working order or else.

        NOTE: There is an aspect of the odex in the throne room of Aldarch the Third. The odex, like the Doors of the Circles, manifests its various aspects in more than one place. In Obooloo it is worshipped as a god.
        YAN NARD. Yan Nard is a tall woman who wears silks, who has a penchant for diamonds, and who carries herself with all the hauteur of an empress.
        In Volume 20 we will learn how Guest Gulkan of Tameran came to Yestron, how he became an enemy of Yan Nard, and how their feud was eventually brought to a fatal conclusion.

        46. Prisoners are brought in front of Aldarch III. The wasp breaks loose and attacks him, but Yan Nard produces a tiny oddment from about her person and points it at him. And fires. The air sizzles, and Juliet Idaho is knocked unconscious for a day and a night.

        47. Aldarch III brings the session to an end and retires. A glimpse of the private life of Aldarch III.

        Hereafter:-

        (i) trial in the city of Obooloo in Yestron, during which the Yudonic Knights of Galsh Ebrek do their best to rescue the Empress Justina, who is of course the child of a Yudonic Knight. An armed insurrection, assisted by the Yudonic Knights, sees our heroes storm the Bondsman's Guild of Obooloo and go through the Door which is part of the Circle of the Partnership Banks.
        Aquitaine Varazchavardan is in Obooloo for the trial.
        (ii) the heroes dare the Circle to the Bralsh of Dalar ken Halvar, to the Singing Dove Pensions Trust of Tang then to the Taniwha Guarantee Corporation of Quilth.
        (iii) With enemies in hot pursuit, the heroes dare through the jungles of Quilth. They have terrifying encounters with gigantic katipo spiders, taniwhas and other monsters, but reach the highlands of Quilth and find refuge in the kingdom of the Wolchop.


        The Dynamics of the Book

        The action of the book is pure comic strip - swords, monsters, magic and bloodthirsty tyrants, etc. etc.
        But the actual plot will be decided as much by the interior evolution of the characters as by the external action.
        A lot of the tension will be generated by the difficult relationship between the vampire woman Petrina and the Yudonic knight Juliet Idaho.
        Petrina wants Idaho yet is afraid to commit herself because of the appalling damage she has suffered in the past.
        Idaho, who has always struggled to totally dominate and control his environment through force of will and physical strength, suffers one illness after another as the book progresses, and endures a terrible fever in the jungles of Quilth.
        We can say that:-

        Part One, Events on Untunchilamon, introduces the characters and outlines the problems of each.
        Part Two, Events in Yestron, clarifies the internal problems of the characters and multiplies their external problems.
        Part Three, Events after Yestron, sees the characters:-
        (a) resolve their external problems as they fight through to the jungles of Quilth.
        (b) reach the jungles of Quilth with their external problems almost gone (only a few enemies in pursuit, and apart from that only some monsters and such to deal with) but with their internal problems (and the problems of their interrelationships) at their peak.

        This will be a fairly ambitious book. Like Volume One, THE WIZARDS AND THE WARRIORS, it will not have one pivotal character, but instead will give equal time to a group of heroes.

Hugh Cook Fanfiction

Chronicles of an Age of Darkness

Now, the chief idea is that the fanfiction chronicles works as an independent accompaniment to the standard ideas of Hugh Cook for the 60 volumes. The stories will be set 'On the Side' of the core adventures going on in Hugh Cook's storyline. Like an accompaniment. The religious theme is at the heart of the core idea in accompaniment, but the idea is to not push too hard at the main hugh cook storyline and do anything going too near direct contradiction to his vision. So it is ideas and elements which work alongside the primary story, but with characters and adventures which are independent to the main storyline. (NOTE: I have a personal feeling that Hugh Cook will have an eternity of sorts and that his story will be told by himself potentially).

Volumes 11 to 20 – Planned Books by Daniel Thomas Andrew Daly

The Wyvvern and the Warlock – Currently In Progress (Fanfiction by
Daniel Thomas Andrew Daly)
The Watchtower and the Watermelon – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by Daniel
Thomas Andrew Daly)
The Weird and the Warped – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by Daniel Thomas
Andrew Daly)
The Wheelright and the Window-Washer – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by
Daniel Thomas Andrew Daly)
The Woeful and the Wise – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by Daniel Thomas
Andrew Daly)
The Waxman and the Warthog – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by Daniel Thomas
Andrew Daly)
The Whale and the Watermaiden – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by Daniel
Thomas Andrew Daly)
The Warmakers and the Worldring – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by Daniel
Thomas Andrew Daly)
The Wolfking and the Web – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by Daniel Thomas
Andrew Daly)
The Why and the Wherefore – Forthcoming (Fanfiction by Daniel Thomas
Andrew Daly)
The Chronicles of an Age of Darkness broadly tell the story of the
events leading to the end of a dark age.

Volume 11 – The Wyvern and the Warlock. Much is written. Work in Progress.

Volume 12 – The Watchtower and the Watermelon (Forthcoming very soon)

By Daniel Thomas Andrew Daly

SYNOPSIS

Book Twelve of the Chronicles of an Age of Darkness, an epic and lengthy novel drawing on all the major characters of the series in an epic showdown of hilarious contest between the ancient sect of the Watermelon and the challenging truths of the illustrious Watchtower. With the Doomsayers coming to the world to pass judgement upon the main characters of the series for all their various idiosyncracies and character defaults, ‘The Watchtower and the Watermelon’ hilights Phyphor’s struggle with his ‘Watermelon’ heritage and the threat of the Watchtower. ‘Squirrel Dalydius’ is the main new protagonist of this saga, who draws Phyphor into a special destiny to rid the Watermelon sect of their frustrating Watchtower opponents. Squirrel, in assigning a special task for Phyphor, tells him of his responsibilities, according to the judgements of the Doomsayers, to teach and uphold the rule of law in the world and to nurture and mould the young and innocent to take their place as the future rulers of the world, and thus sends him to the newly established ‘Dominion of Sung’ were, according to the Doomsayers, he is to nurture and encourage the mental and spiritual growth of a certain bumbling youth, the ambitious Wart.

Jeklian is of the Watchtower, who the head of the Watermelon sect is attempting to teach and train as a scholar for the Watchtower to ensure the Watchtower does its job properly, though it be an independent sect of the Watermelon. There is the general philandering of Squirrel, as he is often not that fond of the Watchtower, who probably should have settled their devotions and pride in the Watermelon, instead of the secessionary tactics to run in a more solo man style. Nobody can really leave the Watermelon in the end, the cult knows this, no matter how far you might run away to hide. Once in, you never leave. The tendrils have hooked in deep. Religion is being developed in Olo Malan at this time, and while it has a sense of some sort of morality, it mostly what is understood as the way human beings function, in their capacity as the smartest of the animals. Humans need to be wise, it is taught, and shrewd, and clever and smart. They need to study, the Watermelon does teach, and not be outsmarted by their counterparts. Sometimes things of questionable action can perhaps be done, as the ends often justify the means. Scruples are not always required to get by in life. Yes, much of the mindset of Olo Malan derives from the traditional Watermelon way of life, do what it takes, but why do the Watchtower have to be so damn ethical about it all?

After Togura Poulaan becomes king of Sung at the end of Volume 11, he appoints Wart as guardian of the wreckage of the green bottle which lies near Keep. The book follows the Wart's difficulties as he struggles to protect this wreckage, which is increasingly becoming the focus of questing heroes and other such rabble.

When the wise old Phyphor arrives on Sung he befriends the young Wart and carefully begins to teach and mould him in the ways of becoming a man. Wart instantly likes Phyphor and dreams of becoming a wizard, but Phyphor suggests to him that the area of politics will likely end up his strength and, following Squirrel’s directives from the Doomsayers, speaks of a prophecy which emanated from a civilization only known as ‘The Nexus’, coming down into their universe, of a special lad who would one day rise up to glory and join the Nexus as chief representative and King of his own universe. Phyphor tells the young Wart ‘That could well be you, so learn your lessons well young king in waiting.’

Through his tribulations in learning to protect the valuables of the wreckage of the green bottle and learning the ways of responsibility, Wart grows from being a bumbling young Hardluck hero, to something of a man who has won the heart of Sonilia Suet, the youngest daughter of the Suet clan. Some of the main antagonists Wart deals with are the 'Sackmen of Mordred'. Mordred is a prince usurper from a small province in the Cold West. He has heard of the wreckage of the bottle and knows of the bottles in general and the wheel of the world. He seeks to gain the knowledge and artefacts of the green bottle to give him clues and instructions in how to gain power in the age of darkness. The Sackmen are his henchmen, lowly souls of crass demeanour, who insult regularly and snivel around, finding answers to their questions through guile and wit. The Sackmen fight rather poorly. Wart, even though still young at the time, is not much of a champion warrior as of yet, and low level experience cretins like the Sackmen are not too challenging for him to overcome. But when the Sackmen return to Mordred with news of a brave young warrior protecting the wreckage Mordred decides it's up to the Prince himself to come and battle this foe. Mordred comes with his two loyal knights and a dozen Sackmen, and Wart, with the aid of Sonilia Sonnet in fashionable feminine armour, of which she is quite proud, and a bitter uncle Cromarty, is determined to honour his father Togura's wishes and prove his manhood in defending the wreckage of the green bottle against the wrath of Mordred. They fight it out a while, and Wart punches Mordred in the nose, which bleeds terribly, and he cries for his mother yelling 'Let us get the foxes out of here. They can keep their damn glories,' and departs, the knights unable to conquer the cunning Cromarty, and Sonilia too much vixen fight for the snivelling Sackmen. Togura, who has been watching on with his own knights, smiles at his son, ready to have intervened if needs be. One of Mordred's favourite sayings is 'Foxes and Poxes, a curse on you foul fiend.' He regularly insults his Sackmen henchmen with this curse, as they are quite mundane in their abilities and services, but alack, alas, no more can he afford, for his province is an upstart nation of its own pretending, a few acres in a backwards part of the village Tortunga, best known for drunkards and harlots, his Knights his drinking buddies from youth, who have nothing better than the service of Prince Mordred, and his cranky mother Morganna. The other primay adversary for Wart is the fearsome wizard 'Tolkestar' who, quite sure that Olo Malan is one of several worlds able to be visited in his understandings of the Nexus Cosmos, seeks knowledge he is sure is in the green bottles wreckage, in forms of scrolls and papyrus, which can give him the means of travelling between worlds. He bargains with Wart at first, getting him drunk, and providing a maiden for his pleasures. But Wart, while sorely tempted, remains faithful to Sonilia 'Sonnet' Suet, whose singing voice always brings him back to himself, and reminds him that infidelity is the cause of angry father-in-laws, jealous wives, and a whole host of rather unpleasant venereal diseases which the citizenship of Sung is particularly well known for. Tolkestar ultimately resorts to bribery and when that fails, magic spells, but Phyphor, who has been watching carefully, intervenes, and the wizard is vanquished. As the years pass by Wart gradually comes of age, and a wall of sorts is built around the wreckage, and Wart, with Phyphor's assistant, founds a sect of the Wordsmiths to study the wreckage and build a community of scholars for its preservation and appreciation. Wart, in his late 20s, has risen and proven his manhood, and Togura has noticed, intending now a barony for his son.

While all this is happening, Jeklian has been crusading in southern Tameran, determined to respond to the harsher and harsher treatment Squirrel Dalydius is Deeming appropriate to treat the Watchtower with. Squirrel, in meeting his young Watchtower pupil once more, came to the Revelation that the Watchtower was simply going to push and push and push till it gained a stranglehold of power in Olo Malan and, quite frankly, out with the old and in with the new was on the cards, and the traditional Watermelon Sect just couldn't afford those happenstances. Thus the harsher treatment, a gradual campaign of derision, and Watermelon businesses often now sacking what was once prized young Watchtower employees with vision and ambition. Jeklian responds, and pushes hard, then travels to Sung to continue his work there, hoping for a friend in his childhood buddy, ambitious Wart, to ensure the future of the Watchtower is not pushed beyond reason.

Meanwhile, in Stokos, Drake Douay is developing a new technology learned from ancient materials of the days when Nexus was strong. Communication devices from the 'Babel Telephony Network', so the translations go. Stokos has fended off the Swarms, and the island is a frontier against conquered Argan, which ironically still has a degree of life happening within it, as battling Swarms has become a pastime of Wizards and Warriors, a current agenda to push them back to the deep south and reclaim Drangsturm being co-ordinated by the Confederation of Wizards. Warriors, mercenaries, hired weaponmasters, and various skullduggery are paid sums to battle it out with the vile creatures, and the wizards feel, with their knowledge of the skull gradually now built up, it is time to push south and sees what lost legacies lay. Drake is looking to work his way into these happenings, and is thinking that developing and selling the Nexus technology as the 'Prince of Babel' could be the way to go. But he is frustrated when Phyphor shows up, with an old grudge, and tells him in so many words that the Wizards are well aware of his ambitions and he will 'Not corner the market', for theirs is the way of ultimate glory in Olo Malan. Yet Drake signs a contract, and they will forego opposing him for the time being, as long as they benefit from the fruit of his investigations into the technology. Yet when Squirrel Dalydius instructs Phyphor that Babel is something to be feared, after hearing report of Drakedon's activities, the Watermelon and the Watchtower instruct many to beware the 'Prince of Babel' for he is an adversary to the Grand Guardian, and nothing good can come from it. Drakedon is not surprised at such persecutions. Drakedon had salvaged around 3,000 of these devices from his adventures in Argan, but translations indicate that there is a city in the deep south where a cache of around 27 million such telephones could be harbored, which Drake understands as Ling, according to the translations, which he is familiar with, as well as information pertaining to the mysterious 'Tectonic Lever' which apparently can 'Flatten the Mountains' by its power. Fascinating stuff to Drake. The Watchtower and the Watermelon persecute his activities on Stokos, to the point where the fledgling network is abandoned, the telephones returned to sender, but an ambitious Drakedon considering his options, especially in light of Jon Arabin's growing empire in the Drangsturm Gulf.

The book climaxes with Wart being appointed a barony, and Phyphor returning to Squirrel with all the news of his lessons for the young Wart. Thereupon Phyphor is delivered up to the council of the Doomsayers, who sentence him the next task of sorting out the problems between the Watermelon Sect and the Watchtower, one of the recurring themes through volumes 13 to 20.

JUST FOUND OLDER SYNOPSIS – THOUGHT I'D LOST THIS PLOT
Book Twelve of the Chronicles of an Age of Darkness is an epic and lengthy novel drawing on all the major characters of the series in an epic showdown of hilarious contest between the ancient sect of the Watermelon and the challenging truths of the illustrious Watchtower. With the Doomsayers coming to the world to pass judgement upon the main characters of the series for all their various idiosyncrasies and character defaults, 'The Watchtower and the Watermelon' highlights Phyphor's struggle with his 'Watermelon' heritage and the threat of the Watchtower. 'Squirrel Dalydius' is the main new protagonist of this saga, who draws Phyphor into a special destiny to rid the Watermelon sect of their frustrating Watchtower opponents. Squirrel, in assigning a special task for Phyphor, tells him of his responsibilities, according to the judgements of the Doomsayers, to teach and uphold the rule of law in the world and to nurture and mould the young and innocent to take their place as the future rulers of the world, and thus sends him to the newly established 'Dominion of Sung' were, according to the Doomsayers, he is to nurture and encourage the mental and spiritual growth of a certain bumbling youth, the ambitious Wart.
After Togura Poulaan becomes king of Sung at the end of Volume 11, he appoints Wart as guardian of the wreckage of the green bottle which lies near Keep. The book follows the Wart's difficulties as he struggles to protect this wreckage, which is increasingly becoming the focus of questing heroes and other such rabble.
When the wise old Phyphor arrives on Sung he befriends the young Wart and carefully begins to teach and mould him in the ways of becoming a man. Wart instantly likes Phyphor and dreams of becoming a wizard, but Phyphor suggests to him that the area of politics will likely end up his strength and, following Squirrel's directives from the Doomsayers, speaks of a prophecy which emanated from a civilization only known as 'The Nexus', coming down into their universe, of a special lad who would one day rise up to glory and join the Nexus as chief representative and King of his own universe. Phyphor tells the young Wart 'That could well be you, so learn your lessons well young king in waiting.'
Through his tribulations in learning to protect the valuables of the wreckage of the green bottle and learning the ways of responsibility, Wart grows from being a bumbling young Hardluck hero, to something of a man who has won the heart of Sonilia Suet, the youngest daughter of the Suet clan. Along the way, the Watchtower Sect has arrived in Sung with official 'Doorknockers' out on their quest to prepare the world for the coming of the 'Grand Guardian Watermelon.' Togura is approached by representatives of the Watchtower in an attempt to convert the King, and thus the land of Sung, to the way of the Watchtower - ever anxious for the return of their grand guardian. The Watchtower establish their official residence in the township of Keep and an ongoing conversion campaign is started by them to win the residents of the eastern Ravlish lands.
The Watchtower takes a particular interest in young Wart, who they also seem to think is a figure of power prophesied in ancient 'Guardian' teachings from his first advent on Olo Malan. The actual belief in the first advent of the guardian did not originate with the official watermelon sect of the southern area of Ashmolea, specifically, but rather a convert to the movement, who developed the text for his own purposes based on strange material he found while visiting Parengarenga in the city of Dalar Ken Halvar, when researching the ancient Nexus community, for faith concerns, and finding information on one of the early 'Governor's' from the Nexus who overlooked Olo Malan and was known as the 'Grand Guardian' who apparently had a strange obsession for eating watermelons. This information was related by a passive 'Dorgi' who, due to a malfunctioning 'sarcasm component' of his CPU AI system, engaged in conversation with the founder of the Watchtower sect, and related much of his corrupted database history of the early Nexus years time in Olo Malan, his story changing when the strange watermelon sect man had related much of his own life history to the mechanical beast. The Dorgi gave the location for metal plates containing images of various ancient Nexus figures, and one of the golden plates contained an image of the grand guardian, which the watchtower founder took with him upon his return to Ashmolea and utilized as the basis for the foundation of the Watchtower sect within the Watermelon community. And, as it just so happens, the young Wart is the spitting image of the Grand Guardian.
The Watermelon sect is, perhaps in vain, attempting to preserve the life of the young Wart from the threats of the Watchtower. Yet, they seem to have a similar belief in mind about the lad as well, viewing him as an embodiment of the purposes of the Grand Guardian Watermelon to 'Redeem' him from the threat of their cultic opponents, 'The Watchtower' and thus, through young Warts salvation at the hands of Phyphor, Wart can represent the authentic faith of the True Watermelon cult, and renounce forever the heresies of the Watchtower.
In the end, Wart chooses his own destiny.
The book climaxes with Wart being appointed a barony, and Phyphor returning to Squirrel Dalydius in Ashmolea, with all the news of his lessons taught for the young Wart, who has chosen his own fate. Thereupon Phyphor is delivered up to the council of the Doomsayers, who sentence him the next task of sorting out the ongoing problems between the Watermelon Sect and the Watchtower (which becomes one of the recurring themes through volumes 13 to 20), who, in the judgement of the Doomsayers, misrepresent the ultimate purposes of the Nexus, who they acknowledge as rulers over the strands of eternity dealing with their own universal realities, (the Nexus not having been aware of the rest of the Universes and aspects of Existence according to the Knowledge of the Doomsayers), and thus the fate of the Watermelon and Watchtower, in the Judgements of the Doomsayers, is to become more compliant with the ancient Nexus Community, and to prepare them, with their new commission, for the return of the 'Grand Guardian' who will re-connect Olo Malan with the Nexus Community. (The actual return of the 'Grand Guardian', and the re-connection of Olo Malan to the Nexus community, is to be told in the 4th Chronicles of the saga, volume's 61 to 80, titled 'Chronicles of a New Age Dawning').

Volume 13 The Weird and the Warped

Nuana Nanalako returns to her home in the Stepping Stone Islands only to find that she was officially declared dead years ago. The book follows her difficulties as a living ghost.

Nuana is the Weird. Jonty Bearhugger is the Warped. The story follows Nuana returning to the Stepping Stones Islands finding she is officially a non-citizen. The people ignore her for a while and part of her challenge is to find a way to reconnect with people who now officially recognize her as dead. It is believed she is a living ghost, a person who has come back to life and been resurrected, which is clearly against the customs of the Stepping Stones Islands who say 'Dead is Usually Dead. Usually.' Nuana traces old family connections, but they all turn her aside, and she is left to fend for herself on the shores of the Stepping Stone Islands. She is considered 'Weird' by everyone who comes into contact with her. Her heart, though, is for her people, and through singing music of the Stepping Stones Islands with instruments she makes, they gradually come to accept her somewhat. Jonty Bearhugger, meantime, has been working out the 'Adversaries' technological gifts. In Nexus Lore, opposing the Grand Guardian are the Dark Prophets (who dress in black) of the 666 Community. 6 stands for the number of man and it is power and authority which opposes 'Bera Shambala' which is the Hidden Heaven. The 666 community tends to deny the Grand Guardian in many ways and Bera Shambala, instead stating 'All we know is in the hear and in the now. Everything else is fantasy.' Jonty Bearhugger questions the truths of the 666 community and quests to work out the truth of Bera Shambala and what the Watchtower and the Watermelon might hold for him. But his questing leads him down south, first to purchase a disused old Telphone of the now defunct 'IOWA' telephony system, to study out this Nexus technology, and then to the Stepping Stone Islands, which has an old disconnected computer in the Nexus Lair which has further information on Bera Shambala. He encounters Nuana Nanaloko while on his travels with his maiden Gloria, and she brings some old fashioned truths to the life of Jonty Bearhugger.

Events from Era 12 and Era 19

Later on when Dreldragon the Prince of Babel has his Major Telephony Network Established, he finds that with the Master Pendant he is able to instil his will upon all those wearing the 666 Pendants who obey him. He uses them as his lackeys and servants. They tend to chant '666' which is amusing to Dreldragon. The Master Pendant was found when Dreldragon found his original cache of Telephones, but it was covered in mud, and he left it at the bottom of a box with electronic things in it. After a while the dust had fallen off and he was rooting around in his warehouse were he had his store of old telephony devices, after the IOWA Network had gone broke, and heard the 666 sound chanting. He found the Master Pendant and puzzled about what it was. He took it to his palace and stored it in his Master Bedroom safe and sound. Eventually, when later on he finds the large cache of 27 million telphones down south, he drags out the pendant with the old telephones, and one day he absentmindedly puts it on. Suddenly he finds he is connected to a vast linked 'Mind Network' in which he has the 'Controlling Power'. Gathering people from around Olo Malan, he is the sovereign mind able to control them and get them to do his will.

Volume 60 The Navigator and the Nexus

(Includes the Return of the Grand Guardian Avatar)

A Commission from the Hierarchy of the Nexus has sent Navigator Ship XC444 to investigate Olo Malan.

'Our commission is fourfold,' said Captain Curtis. 'Firstly we are to station ourselves in the skies of planetary body Olo Malan, visible to the populace, a foundational Civilization which was planted long ago with standard protocols. They are now ready for Intervention. Secondarily we are sent ahead of schedule for the Intervention, which was not due for 2 more millennia, due to employment procedures contracted by a service robot in the repairs of a Ventigern unit. 3 citizens of a parallel planet, Bera Shambala, had travelled here, and were required by the service robot for repair assistance on the Ventigern. They have legal interactivity rights with the Nexus, and will be contacted so they can spend their finances. Thirdly, we are to re-establish the Chasm Gates which link the Nexus with this unstable world. These are some of the Universes in the Transcosmos which are unstable. Our view is that the Experimenters have been at work in many universes of this frequency in the Transcosmos, and laying down seeds of improbability, which is never a good thing. Only chaos ensues.'

Doctor Sponk spoke up. 'The Experimenters are unproven at this stage. But the likelihood of renegades once associated with the Alpha-Wurm and seeking their own power and authority is highly likely. Everybody wants to rule the world it seems.'

'Indeed,' replied Commander Curtis. 'Finally, the fourth part of the mission is apprehension of those who have severed the chasm gates and to take stock of the global situation in relation to extant Nexus facilities on the planetary body. We will monitor in the skies above the planet for some time before making official contact. Is that all understood.'

'Aye aye, Commander,' replied the crew.

'Fascinating,' said Lieutenant Uhrana.

The crew visit, and the ship stations itself above the Sunlight Sea for a few months, monitoring the planet. Squirrel Dalydius and the excited Cults gather their forces, and when the ship finally descends, and Nexus cronies talk to them, Squirrel asks the leader

'Are you the Grand Avatar'.

The commander, realizing they still believe Protocol 4Z on establishing civilizations, responds, 'Yes. Yes I am.'

A fellow on the command ship says under her breath to the captain, 'You are incorrigible'.

'Run with it, Uhrana,' he replies. 'It's standard Nexus Protocols to establish them on religious thinking.'

'Terrible,' she replies, under her breath.