Chapter Excerpt

Today's blog will be the first few pages of my manuscript. They say you have to hook the reader in the 1st 5 pages. Well lets have a stab at it. Here's the opening chapter of QuestSeekers


Chapter 1
Quest Seekers
The country of Ishmar was home to four kingdoms. Lindor in the east. Salnon in the north. Taneer in the south and the heavily taxed kingdom of Dilroc in the west. People fell into one of two categories: the crumbs or the upper crusts. The crumbs were the working class folks such as blacksmiths, seamstresses, shoemakers, woodcutters, etc. People who had just enough for a hot meal and a roof over their heads. The upper crusts were mostly those born into nobility such as kings and queens, also aristocrats, dignitaries or anyone lucky enough to work within the royal courts. In the country of Ishmar the relationship between the crumbs and the upper crusts were quite strained, except in the kingdom of Lindor, where the two just kept their distance.
The Lindor kingdom was populated with several villages scattered throughout the land. One of those villages was called Pleasant Hills. In that village, a farm girl rationed out chicken feed to several hens. “Don’t be greedy,” she scolded a plump brown and white hen. She sat on the rickety fence and wiped her brow with a dusty hand. She watched the hens peck away at the ground. The farm girl was named Xanith Tinsdale. She lived with her adoptive parents, Alma and Winston; they found her abandoned in the woods seventeen summers ago. A merry whistle diverted her attention from the hens. Coming down the dirt pathway was Chartreuse, Xanith”s best friend since the time they learned how to talk.
Chartreuse was as different from Xanith as the sea was from the sky. She was the daughter of a whitesmith (her father was the only one who polished metal weapons in all the villagers in the east). This paid handsomely so Chartreuse often wore clothes that made her appear to be a member of the middle crust (a disappearing class). Today was no exception as she floated down the pathway in a pea green ankle length brocaded dress, complete with a cinched waistline. Loose raven curls framed her ebony cheeks and fell around her shoulders. She was no doubt one of the most resplendent maidens in the village. Xanith on the flip side was mostly plain. Often her butterscotch face was powdered with dirt, her hair often plaited and pinned into a bun. She was dressed in an oversized brown tunic, cowhide belt and tan leggings.
“Xan, they found another one.” Chartreuse thrust the Eastern Gazette at Xanith’s chest.
Xanith read the bold face headline: servant girl found outside the palace grounds.
“She was nothing but skin and bones and aged like a hundred times over.” Chartreuse’s eyes were wide as any sea.
Xanith shuddered. “That’s terrible. That’s like the tenth one or so,” she said dusting off her leggings. “They need to catch that mad man.”
“I’m terribly frightened.” Chartreuse ran her fingers through her hair.
“Have no fear, Wilhelm the brave is here.”
The girls spun around to see their friend, Wilhelm, the baker’s son bounding toward them. He was easy to spot in a crowd with sun bright skin and a tuft of sandy brown hair. A lopsided grin decorated his face. “I know what we’re going to do today,” he said merrily.
Xanith traded sidelong glances with Chartreuse. “What do you have in mind?” they asked in unison.
“Going on a quest,” he said, his grin growing wider.
Chartreuse groaned.
“We have mini-quest all over this village.” Xanith made a sweeping motion with her hand toward the expanse of the farm. “There’s nothing interesting around Pleasant Hills.”
“That’s because we need to go on a maxi-quest. Somewhere beyond this village, he said.
“Maxi-quest. Is that even a real phrase.” Chartreuse pondered aloud.
“Where?” Xanith tapped her fingers against her hips.
“To find the onyx sword.”
Xanith traded glances with Chartreuse again. “Never heard of it.”
“Rumor has it that nobody has ever been able to hold onto it.” he said his voice layered in a whisper.
“Why?” Chartreuse inquired.
“I don‘t know.” Wilhelm shrugged his shoulders. “Perhaps the right person hasn’t claimed it, like me.
“You can buy a sword,” Xanith said.
Wilhelm scoffed. “I’m so broke I can’t even pay attention.”
“Did you know they found another girl, aged and dead,” Chartreuse said in a quiet voice.
“So, that’s an upper crust problem,” Wilhelm said.
“The victims are usually servant girls,” Chartreuse retorted.
Wilhelm soften a bit. “Well when I get my sword I’ll slay the killer,” he said feigning a sword fight.
Xanith shook her head. “Just yesterday you wanted to get a glimpse of the mysterious porcelain skinned woman.”
“I still do. We have to travel through the Hillshire forest on our way to finding the sword. We can hit two birds with one stone.”
“I hear she shuns the sun,” Chartreuse added. “And she’s misanthropic too.”
Wilhelm scrunched up his face.
“She hates people,” Xanith explained.
“We should head to the town square and try to win some funds for our quest,” he said.
The girls rolled their eyes.
The town square was located in the center of Pleasant Hills. All forms of commerce and entertainment happened in the square. Everywhere someone was selling something. “Get your alligator on a stick. Taste like chicken,” a robust man yelled through the throng of people.
“Funny, how everything tastes like chicken,” Xanith said as she made her way pass the alligator seller.
“Would you like a satin shawl?” a hump back woman asked the girls.
“They are very pretty.” Chartreuse reached out a hand to touch the fabric.
“No, thanks,’ Xanith said.
“These shawls come from India,” she said, holding them toward their faces.
“Sorry honey, we’re here to make some money not spend it,” Wilhelm said to the woman.