Earning More Camp Badges

So in my last post I told you about my planned adventure into Camp NaNoWriMo.  We're coming up on the halfway point soon, so I thought I'd drop in to tell you how I've been doing in camp, and post an excerpt from my novel here for your reading enjoyment.



I've earned some new merit badges in that last couple weeks.  Here they are:


Swimming Lessons - Write 10k over the course of 1 Camp
Half Gewonnen - Write 25k over the course of 1 Camp
Blue Arrow - Write 40k over the course of 1 Camp
Late at Night - Write last thing before going to bed
Break Time - Write during breaks from work/chores/homework or between classes, requires you get back to what you are supposed to be doing

I'm proud of my progress so far.

In celebration of that progress, here is a little glimpse into the novel I'm working on.

This is an early chapter in the books, which is book two in a series.  I hope you enjoy!



As soon as the klêsês dropped, confirming Drew’s victory, Tyler ran from the edge of the Topoischús to where Steven and Michael stood with Drew.  He could smell the blood from his place a safe distance away, but hadn’t realized how hurt Drew really was.  One arm hung limp by his side and he’d dropped to his knees, blood flowing from wounds on his chest and back.

Tyler dropped to his own knees and quickly popped the buttons on Drew’s shirt to get it out of the way.  Without the blood soaked shirt, the wounds didn’t look nearly as bad on his chest, stomach, and back, just scratches really.  They’d be healed by morning if Drew shifted that night.  The arm had Tyler far more concerned.  It looked like Rick managed to damage some of the ligaments in Drew’s shoulder.

Drew was still watching his recently defeated opponent and appeared to pay Tyler no mind, but Tyler knew he was just putting on a show for the locals and the fallen candidate.

“Are you so fragile, Andrew Farkas?” someone asked from behind Tyler.

A quick glance over his shoulder, showed Tyler one of Rick’s guards.  The other two were helping their fallen candidate limp away.  Ignoring the man, Tyler went back to examining the wound, checking to make sure they didn’t need the pack’s doctor before they left.

“I look forward to hearing how quickly you die next week,” the guard said, still behind him.

Tyler growled, annoyed that the man hadn’t left yet.  His Oplarchêgós candidate just lost to Drew, and the idiotic man thought it was a good idea to taunt them.

“Do not come any closer,” Steven warned.

“It’s not as bad as it looks,” Drew murmured, looking directly at Tyler for the first time.

Tyler nodded.  They were still pretending that he was Drew’s wild cub, so he never spoke in front of wolves they weren’t certain they could trust.

“Or you’ll do what?” the man asked, laughing.  “He’s no use to you as a bloody mess, and I doubt you two and the whelp are enough to take me.”

Tyler turned, growling again.  He was sick and tired of hearing people say things like that.  Just because he was young didn’t make him helpless, and Drew was more use to them bloody, injured, and unable to use one arm than this brute would ever be.

“He’s not worth your anger, Tyler,” Drew said, his uninjured hand resting along the younger man’s back.  “Don’t waste your time with him.”

The burly guard laughed, stepping closer and invading Steven’s personal space in a serious way.

“You’ve already underestimated me tonight,” Drew said in a low voice as Steven and the man faced off.  “Don’t make the mistake of underestimating my people as well.”

Tyler narrowed his eyes at the man as he leaned in, towering over the shorter Stephen.  With the Megálê Dikê eight days away, Tyler decided it might be time to put a little fear in Drew’s opponent.  He focused all his attention on the big guard as he cleared his mind of all other thoughts and emotions.

“Tesih gais,” Tyler whispered.  Know fear.  Anwen Yates taught him enough Suhknahut to make a few simple uses of his natural abilities, and this particular use always made quite the impression.

The guard’s eyes grew wide, the whites clearly visible around brown irises.

Steven stepped to the side and the man made no move to follow.

Tyler knew exactly how paralyzing fear could be, and that knowledge allowed him to keep the obnoxious guard frozen in place by terror as he stalked on all fours toward the man.  All it took was a low growl and a hand brushing against the man’s leg to send him tearing across the Topoischús toward his fellows.  As soon as he’d caught up with them, Tyler released the man, sighing softly.

Crawling back to the others, Tyler positioned himself next to Drew’s good arm and helped him stand.

“You put on a good show,” Drew said as they made their way back toward the car.  “I think you’re getting better at that, too.”

“It was nice of you to save me the trouble of kicking his ass,” Steven added, opening the back door for Tyler and Drew.

Tyler managed to smother his laugh until the door closed behind them.

“I wasn’t joking,” Steven pointed out as he slid into the passenger seat.

“I know,” Tyler answered, grinning.  “That doesn’t make it any less funny.”

“We’re good to head out?” Michael confirmed as he started the sedan.

“We’re good,” Drew answered.  “I’ll shift when we get back, and we can move on in the morning.”

“They haven’t told us where the Megálê Dikê is being held yet,” Steven reminded Drew.

“That’s because they haven’t finalized the details yet,” Drew answered.  “The Timên Phrourôn are nervous after all the interference we’ve been getting.  They may keep the location a secret until the last minute because of it, even from us.  If they haven’t told us by morning, we’ll go home for a few days.”

“There’s been talk of hiring a witch or some other type of practitioner to protect the sanctity of the Megálê Dikê,” Michael said.  “It’s still a rumor, but I’ve been hearing it more and more the past week.”

“We’ll know soon enough,” Drew answered.  “Tonight, I’m just glad my injuries are relatively minor.  Tomorrow will take care of itself.”

Tyler stayed close to Drew on the ride back, not bothering to put his clothes on.  The fewer barriers between him and Drew, the more help he’d be to Drew’s healing process.