I’ve been talking with my students about the B-story and the importance of secondary characters and I realized that I don’t really have any in this swirl of a story here. So, I am ready to start developing those secondary characters and that B-story. This puts me another chapter behind but that’s okay–we will clean things up tomorrow and the next day. For starters I believe the lead has a name now. Folks, meet Ikrivain.
Our protagonist is a dark skinned boy of barely 22 years. He is old by the standards of many in the forces and far too old to be a signifier in the army. I’ve decided to use the roman standard for troop formation. He has held the job only a short time. Until then he was the jobless son of a career soldier. His father kept him safe and at home and, while he trained the boy into manhood, had no aspirations for the boy to fight. His mother decided to send him to war rather than have him be the man of the house. She had someone else picked for the task and with he, the only son, gone. She could join her house with that of another wealthy man in the town and be cared for. His father died on the field of battle. He was the XO to the commander of several units and his son was placed in this unit as a favor to the family. His actions, however, brought disgrace to his commander and that will come back to haunt him later in the story when that commander’s own surviving son, the once XO, Fendrel deicides to count him a traitor and seek revenge.
Three other characters, Marek and the twins Thea and Esme will join him on this journey of his. I will speak of them and the on and off again relationship between Marek and Esme tomorrow. One other character I want to build is Aleida. Ikrivain is going to fall in love with her early in the story and volunteer for this mission as a result of falling in love with her. Though the b-story will see him and Thea begin to grow close and he will have to choose between his service and feelings to Aleida and protecting Thea. Who knows what choice he is going to make.
Finally, the issue of magic is becoming more a beating drum in this story and I believe we will learn that magic is hurting a percentage of the population and driving them into a certain madness. I want to connect magic use with the proliferation of zombies. I am not certain how it will work, but the reveal ought to come near the end and signal another phase of the story…