Fallen Empires Archives - Page 12 of 22

Prevail over the breath of your enemies #PietasFans #SciFi #MFRWhooks

Kayelle Allen 10/21/2020 Character Insights 11 Comments

During the first few months of exile, every day, Pietas worked on his compulsion ability. He had no one to target but Six, a human.

Prior to imprisonment, for practice, Pietas would ask for some item he needed, such as a stylus. He wouldn't say which one or what type, but instead, as whoever was near reached for one, Pietas extended a wave of compulsion to choose the desired item. It never failed. Each person always picked the one he wanted. People who entered his presence would turn around and leave without Pietas saying a word. Practicing with small things made the big things second nature.

He had once turned a whole division and made them attack their comrades. But coerce Six? Might as well ask the sun for ice. Was it because he was reanimiated? A ghost? Or was it inherent in his nature?

Pietas sent Six a strong wave of compulsion to come to him, but the ghost continued filleting a fish without the least pause.

Casting himself back onto the grass in a fit of pique, Pietas stared up at the sky. He'd had more control as a child! Would he have to start over and relearn everything? Was the gift lost? He'd honed it for centuries. Surely, it was not lost. Please, let it not be lost...

No matter how hard or how long it took, he would reclaim every power, every gift, and every ability. He would own everything he'd lost. No one robbed Pietas ap Lorectic, First Conqueror, War Leader of the Ultras and got away with it. Humanity had tried to rob him of his birthright, but they would not prevail.

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Video: Enlist in the Ghost Corps #SciFi #SpaceOpera #PietasFans

Kayelle Allen 09/25/2020 Fallen Empires

Join the Ghost Corps, they said.

You'll live forever, they said.

You'll save mankind, they said.

They didn't say that to do it, first he had to die.

Ghost Corps

When Tornahdo signs on the dotted line, he puts his life into the steady hands of the mighty Ghost Corps. Three grisly deaths and three agonizing resurrections later, he's assigned duty on the space station Enderium Six.

He's facing his most dangerous mission yet, the very reason the corps exists.

Do they expect him to win? Fat chance. Tornahdo and his team are already dead and this mission is codenamed "Lights Out." No, there's more to this than he can see.

To discover the truth, he must face an unbeatable, unkillable enemy, and this time--somehow--find a way to keep himself alive...

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Bringing Pietas to Life #Voiceover @voicesbyzack #Cosplayer @nitsvetov #PietasFans #SciFi #MFRWhooks #MFRWorg

Kayelle Allen 09/09/2020 Character Insights 6 Comments

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Ready: Fight! Choreographing a fight scene #SciFi #MFRWhooks #PietasFans

Kayelle Allen 08/26/2020 Character Insights 6 Comments

What did I do to ensure I got all the hits and bumps right? You can read about it in this post. In Lights Out, Tornahdo (as Six was known then) was one of eight special ops soldiers. They had all been in fights with immortals before this, but none of them had faced Pietas, the immortal king. Here's the scene from Lights Out, Tornahdo's POV.

Tornahdo has entered a closed section of a space station. It's been several minutes since all the air has been removed. Pietas is on the ground, but he's where cameras can't get a good look at him. While Tornahdo and the soldiers can hold their breaths a long time, no one is sure just how long the king can accomplish this feat. Immortals can manipulate human emotions, so to protect the ghosts, they've been fitted with a chip to suppress emotion.

Inside, as instructed, Tornahdo stayed near the back. Two of the eight ghosts closed in on the pod.

Pietas lay on the floor behind it. His body showed, not his face.

Tornahdo tingled with a fighter's high. The mix of anxiety and excitement kept his instincts on maximum alert.

Beside Pietas, a ghost stooped. The change in lighting angle showed the Ultra, limp on the floor. When turned, the body flopped. The ghost pressed two fingers against the throat.

With a jerk, Pietas yanked the man down while thrusting a hand up.

A pierce of mindless fear stabbed Tornahdo. He'd faced that snap of terror before. It meant two things. First, the Ultra was controlling their emotions. Second, the chip was worthless.

Pietas tripped the next ghost, jabbed an elbow into his neck.

Another spurt of fear and confusion.

All that training. Days of suffering, learning control. For nothing.

Pietas flashed into speed mode.

Tornahdo's world moved in slow motion.

A blur showed where the Ultra had been. Pietas halted, braced both hands on a pod and kicked a pair of ghosts behind him.

They flew backward. Slow.

Momentum carried the Ultra straight toward Tornahdo.

Stumbling out of the way, Tornahdo went down in a tumble, taking out the ghost beside him, who knocked down the last two.

From Origin of Pietas: Bringer of Chaos

Pietas's point of view, same scene. No air means no sound.

Crowded as the space was between his life-pod and the wall, two ghosts crept into it. Six spots of light showed on the other side. Eight ghosts then. That would be a much better fight. One nudged him with a foot.

Suppressing a smile, Pietas continued to play dead.

Ghost One bent down, turned him onto his back.

Pietas let his body flop.

The guy came in closer, checked for a pulse.

Pietas opened his eyes.

The ghost's alarm fed Pietas energy.

He yanked him down, hard, while jamming the heel of his hand up. The ghost's head snapped back, and Pietas felt his bones crack. He shoved him aside and went after Ghost Two.

Pietas gripped his leg and tripped him. He jammed an elbow down onto the man's neck. Bones broke. The ghost's stab of dying fear spiked the energy from the first, and Pietas mixed it with his gift of chaos. He flung the vortex of emotions outward, broadcasting confusion and terror.

He activated his ability called zip. The pseudo speed meant he could move at a regular pace, but humans perceived him as a blur. They could not focus on him long enough to get close. To him, everyone moved in slow motion.

He flipped onto his feet, braced both hands on his pod, and kicked Three and Four square in the chest.

He pushed off the pod, and the momentum carried him straight into the arms of Five and Six. They stumbled backward, tumbling Seven and Eight onto the floor.

Writing different points of view

As you can see, the two viewpoints tell the same story, but the emotions reveal levels of attachment that are quite different.

Tornahdo knows he's had.

Pietas has hope he can escape.

Each is facing a person who refuses to quit, no matter how hard the going gets. Which will prevail?

Read the full story in Lights Out: Bringer of Chaos, and follow through with Origin of Pietas and its sequel, Forged in Fire.

If you like Pietas, you're in luck. He's in most of the Antonello Brothers series set in the far future from the Bringer of Chaos series. When you're immortal, you come back over and over and over. But does that mean he wins the fight in this scene? What's the word for damned if you do and damned if you don't? Hmm, how about screwed...

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Normal? Maybe 50 cats ago #PietasFans #SciFi #MFRWhooks

Kayelle Allen 08/05/2020 Character Insights 8 Comments

As a reminder, Pietas has a spirit-bond with a panther named Tiklaus.

Pietas: I think I'm pretty normal, all things considered.

Luc: All things? What are all things?

Pietas: You know. Things. I'm twelve thousand years old. I've done a lot of things.

Luc: None of them normal.

Pietas: That's a generalization. You can't say all the things I've--

Luc (interrupting): Fine. It's you who's not normal.

Pietas: Yes, I am. I'm normal.

Luc: You? Maybe fifty cats ago.

Pietas: I don't have fifty cats.

Luc: You've rescued that many.

Pietas: More than that. Far more than that.

(pause)

Pietas: Wait. Who wouldn't rescue cats? You even adopted a cat as a son.

Luc: Senthys is a Kin. A feline humanoid. And only half Kin. Not a cat.

Pietas: But you rescued him. You're a cat rescuer. Like I am. Hah!

(pause)

Luc: You're still not normal.

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He has 2 problems: his ex, and everything else in his life #SciFi #MM #MFRWhooks

Kayelle Allen 07/29/2020 Character Insights 3 Comments

Invading Pietas's space, Luc took a step closer.

The king drew a breath and held it, back ramrod straight. "Cyken? Talk to me."

Luc took in Pietas's dimpled chin and strong mouth, straight nose and bright turquoise eyes. His dark lashes and brows stood in sharp contrast to his white hair. Inhumanly perfect. No man should be this beautiful.

Their people called Pietas the Bringer of Chaos because his strongest Sempervian gift was Chaos, the ability to create chaotic feelings with no outside source. In battle, it mind-dazed an enemy. But with a lover, his gift rendered a partner helpless, inundating them with overwhelming pleasure.

Only Luc ever dared call him by that title--to his face.

"The thing is, Bringer, I will never be over you." Luc drew back one silky lock of the man's shining platinum hair. "I think of you every single day. And every single night. And every time I wear your scent, I long for you." Curling a hand behind Pietas's head, Luc stretched upward and pressed his mouth against his king's.

For one breathless moment, Pietas remained detached, but then he yielded into the kiss, slipping his arms around Luc, pulling him close, close, kissing him back. Not a ravaging kiss. Not all-encompassing desire. Tender, sweet with longing.

The kind of kiss Luc remembered when he was alone at night. Hungry for touch. The kiss--not of a conqueror--but a lover. Instead of shouting, "Mine!" this kiss whispered, "Yours..."

Pietas broke away, bracing his hands on Luc's shoulders. "No." He wiped his mouth with the back of a hand and turned aside. "This isn't what you need."

"Wrong." The heat behind his eyes had nothing to do with his inner beast. "You're exactly what I need."

"No." Pietas stepped further back. "You're lonely. You think you need to be with another person and lose yourself with sex."

Luc smiled. "Two points for you. That is what I want." He reached for Pietas.

"No." The man stepped out of reach. "It isn't."

Must Pietas fight with him over everything? "Bringer--"

"No." Pietas held out both hands in front of him. "You're vulnerable. You're in pain and you think being with me will take it away."

"I know it will." Pain was what he needed. Chaos. Who better to give it to him than the bringer of it?

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Bellicose: (adj) Ready to fight. Said of Pietas #AmWriting #PietasFans #MFRWhooks

Kayelle Allen 02/26/2020 Character Insights 13 Comments

The best way to describe Pietas as a fighter is to let you "see" him in action. Bellicose also means assertive, aggressive, pugnacious, militant, scrappy and in-your-face. The scene below from The Origin of Pietas: Bringer of Chaos, shows him at his fighting best. Come to think of it, bellicose could use a picture of Pietas next to it in the dictionary.

The scene below begins with him trapped in a room with multiple cryogenic pods (life pods) and no air whatsoever. He can hold his breath ten times longer than a human, and they have sent in unarmed fighters because the humans know he will commandeer their weapons in a heartbeat. Pietas is on his side at the back of the room. The "ghosts" are members of Ghost Corps, special ops soldiers who have been resurrected using the blood of Pietas's people.

Listen while you read

On YouTube, the music video Queen's Breach by Critical Mass is listed as "epic action aggressive driving rock powerful". One listen and you'll agree. If that song isn't the bellicose Pietas in action as a fighter, I don't know what is. Read the excerpt below while you listen, and you'll see him in action. I listened to it repeatedly while I choreographed and wrote the fight of his immortal life.

Queen's Breach - The Critical Mass

Song: Queen's Breach
Artist: The Critical Mass
Album: Out of the Ashes: The Critical Mass Collection
Copyright: 2014 Josh Mobley

Bellicose

Remaining on his side, Pietas let them get all the way inside the room.

Crowded as the space was between his pod and the wall, two ghosts crept into it. Six spots of light showed on the other side. Eight ghosts then. That would be a much better fight. One nudged him with a foot.

Suppressing a smile, he continued to play dead.

Ghost One bent down, turned him onto his back.

Pietas let his body flop.

The guy came in closer, checked for a pulse.

He opened his eyes.

The ghost's alarm fed Pietas energy.

He yanked him down, hard, while jamming the heel of his hand up. The ghost's head snapped back, and Pietas felt his bones crack. He shoved him aside and went after Ghost Two.

Pietas gripped his leg and tripped him. He jammed an elbow down onto the man's neck. Bones broke. The ghost's stab of dying fear spiked the energy from the first, and Pietas mixed it with his gift of chaos. He flung the vortex of emotions outward, broadcasting confusion and terror.

He activated his ability called zip. The pseudo speed meant he could move at a regular pace, but humans perceived him as a blur. They could not focus on him long enough to get close. To him, everyone moved in slow motion.

He flipped onto his feet, braced both hands on his pod, and kicked Three and Four square in the chest.

He pushed off the pod, and the momentum carried him straight into the arms of Five and Six. They stumbled backward, tumbling Seven and Eight onto the floor.

Pietas rolled, grabbing Seven. One quick twist of the neck, and another down. Five to go.

Six and Eight flipped themselves to their feet. Three and Four struggled to rise.

Pietas took a running leap and crushed Three's neck. Four raised his hands to shield his face. A swift kick to the head--gone.

Pietas dropped, rolled, came up behind Eight. Broke his neck.

The burning need for air hurt, but there were two to go.

He turned, and a fist caught him in the mouth. Thrown off balance, he danced sideways. Pietas touched his lip, and frowned at the spot of blood. He met the gaze of Ghost Six, who'd punched him.

No human had ever hit him before. Pietas gave a nod.

Five and Six rushed him.

Turning into Five's momentum, Pietas hurled him into the wall, jamming the ghost's head down onto his spine.

He whirled back to find Six standing beside the pod holding Pietas's mother, working the code on a control panel. The ghost held up a warning hand, and poised his other over a bar with flashing red letters: Immolate.

He could kill the ghost without killing his mother. Pietas darted toward him.

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Condescending? But of course. Writing a patronizing character. Pietas Insults #AmWriting #PietasFans #MFRWhooks

Kayelle Allen 02/04/2020 Fallen Empires 12 Comments

How do you know when to dial back a haughty character's arrogance?

Patronizing

A patronizing attitude reveals a character flaw, but it can be entertaining as well. How do you keep from going overboard? Here are 3 ways I found to temper my temperamental immortal king.

1 Do not use a patronizing attitude for no reason. Nothing alienates a reader faster than a character who is nasty to others just for the sake of being nasty. Make insults in the scene spring from an obvious need or cause. In the opening of Origin of Pietas: Bringer of Chaos, Pietas offers a direct insult to his father, but it's in response to his father's callous treatment.

2 Do not substitute a patronizing attitude when a scene calls for action. An action scene such as a fight or physical action can do much to advance the story. If you have your character just be snarky instead of dealing with danger, it comes off as negativity, or worse, as cowardice. Nothing says that you can't have your character mouth off during a fight. The fact that they can deal with physical action and still be able to think of something snarky to say says a lot about a person.

3 Do not allow the character to be verbally vicious unless the scene demands it. There is a big difference between disdain and cruelty. If your character insults someone viciously, ask yourself how that will move the story forward. Will it fuel the plot? Or do you intend the scene to show a major character flaw? If so, show the consequences as early as possible. Your character gets fired, or loses a friend, or someone takes it out on a person they love.

10 patronizing quips by Pietas

Oh, how exciting. (delivered deadpan) One can scarcely articulate the excitement.
I trust people, except for two types: those I know, and those I don't.
You don't wrestle your demons, do you? You cuddle them.
My father does indeed have a heart. It's shaped like a fist.
Am I going to be arrogant my entire life? I think we both know the answer to that question.
I see you're spoiling for a fight. Don't let me stop you. I'm ready to defeat you anytime.
He states the obvious with such an astonishing sense of discovery.
It's not that she's insane. It's that she's a high-functioning basket case.
I won't be there. I don't attend irredeemably boring events.
His life is a pedestrian and lamentable melodrama.

Just as in real life, actions and words have consequences. It's great to show the flaw, but remember to show the result as well.

Pietas inhabits many books in my story universe, including the Bringer of Chaos series, the Antonello Brothers, and Tales of the Chosen. Download a printable PDF list of my books: Booklist

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10 Snarky Ways to Say No: Pietas #SpaceOpera #PietasFans #MFRWhooks

Kayelle Allen 01/22/2020 Fallen Empires 14 Comments

When I started writing about Pietas, he'd been a villain in other books, or at least a bad guy with serious issues. But after writing a couple of stories where he's the actual hero, I know him so much better. One thing I was surprised by is how snarky he is. I thought the immortal king would be much more dignified, but it turns out that around those he trusts, he can more than snarky.

Snarky is as Snarky Does

In fact, I started writing the Bringer of Chaos series so I could understand him. I was working on a book in the Antonello Brothers series and could not get Pietas to do what I wanted him to do. He wouldn't be the villain, no matter how much I tried to write him that way.

In exasperation, I told a friend about my problem and she suggested interviewing him. She'd call me on Skype and I would answer as Pietas. I would role play the character and free associate his answers. It opened my eyes to an entirely new aspect of my immortal king.

The Bringer of Chaos series was born from that interview.

An anti-hero is a protagonist but one who doesn't have the usual characteristics that would make them heroes (or heroines). Batman is a perfect example. He's a vigilante. He works outside the law. But we all root for him.

Here's what I've learned about writing anti-heroes in a nutshell. They have:

Character flaws
Complex motives
Internal conflicts
Issues with intimacy
Generally a realist

Character Flaws

With Pietas, I started listing his flaws and decided which two or three would be the ones I'd focus on. What are they? His are many, but I'll start with one that I showed on the first page of Origin of Pietas: Bringer of Chaos.

Perfectionism

He hates it when people mispronounce his name. I could have written "He hated it when people mispronounced his name." But where's the fun in that? It tells. I prefer to show. So I wrote a scene where he sees a video in which the media accuses him of a misdeed. I wrote:

At her mispronunciation of his name, he gritted his teeth. "My name is pronounced Pee-ah-toss, thank you. Not Pie-ah-toss. Pee-ah-toss. It's six letters. How hard is that to get right?" He stormed away from the podium.

By having him react strongly to the error, it reveals one of his flaws and a bit of his character.

Snarky

Pietas often chooses insults over tact. One way that shows best is when he's asked to do something he'd rather not do. Here are ten snarky ways Pietas might tell someone "no."

No, but do you know who would love doing that? Someone with less intelligence.
Try asking someone else. I'm too smart.
I would love to, but I'm planning a much more interesting nap.
Has the netherworld frozen solid? If so, then by all means, yes.
That sounds like a job for someone incapable of thinking past point A.
I'm sure there are worse ways to do that, but I can't think of any.
I was going to suggest you stop acting stupid, but I realized you weren't acting.
My original misconceptions of your idea have proven true.
If you don't want a sarcastic answer, then don't ask a stupid question.
Would you like me to spell the word NO for you?

Lovable

Pietas is lovable despite his mistakes, and he forgives mistakes in others. Here's a quick excerpt from Forged in Fire: Bringer of Chaos for example. In this scene, Joss, one of the warriors with whom Pietas has had a long relationship, keeps taking them in circles on the way back to camp. His usual snarky attitude gives way to tenderness.

"Joss, you've been saying 'not far' for hours. Did I not teach you to mark trails?"

"I'm sorry, Pietas. It won't happen again."

Oh, but it would. She wouldn't mean for it to happen, but it would. He'd tried for centuries to teach her how to find her way, to no avail. He kissed her cheek and drew her into his arms, savoring her warmth.

"Joss." He placed his mouth near her ear. "You couldn't find your way out of a round room with one door."

She jerked up her head and looked at him, eyes wide.

"And I adore you for it."

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What the Corps provides, the Corps can take away #SpaceOpera #MFRWhooks #MFRWorg

Kayelle Allen 01/08/2020 Fallen Empires 8 Comments

The Corps issues a stern reminder

"Master Sergeant, you made us all proud by your service. You volunteered for the corps and your commanding officer recommended you at the perfect time. Three Ultras were captured during the Raid on San Xavier. Ultras you helped take out of the war. Your death at the retaliatory Siege of San Xavier meant you had a chance to fulfill your promise to serve."

"Thank you...?" Why was she telling him what he already knew? "Ma'am."

"The corps will not forget your service, or the promise made to support your family." Coming to a stop before him, she bared her teeth in a deceptive, political smile. "Counting you as missing in action means long-term benefits for your loved ones. Wouldn't it be a shame if your body was found and that ended?"

The usual heat of Ultra blood beneath his skin plummeted. Tornahdo remained aloof and calm, as if he faced a firing squad. A good soldier never forgot a threat.

"The corps spent far too much to toss you out and start over. But be aware, that indulgence extends only so far." The general stuck her face in his. "Are we clear?"

Clear as brittle ice on a bottomless lake in the deep of winter. Menacing. Jagged. Cracking underfoot.

He unclenched his jaw. "Yes, ma'am."

"In the regular army, you shield each other. This is Ghost Corps. Humans are expendable."

He'd spent twenty years fighting an enemy that believed the same thing. So the corps was better--how?

"You are not a human shield, Master Sergeant. You have a single duty. Which is?"

"Ma'am, kill Ultras."

"That's right. This is your second rebirth. We don't know how many more you can experience without harm."

The word none came to mind but Tornahdo kept his trap shut.

"Your enhanced blood gives you enough stamina to kill the enemy. Do your duty. Nothing else. Tell me." The general folded her arms. "Will you draw enemy fire again?"

Yes. Always. That's what set humans apart from Ultras. Humans protected each another. Although for her, he'd make an exception. "Ma'am, Ghost Corps regulations require that I do not."

Lights Out by Kayelle Allen

He can save mankind. After he does one important thing. Die.
Join the Ghost Corps, they said. You'll live forever, they said. You'll save mankind, they said. They didn't say that to do it, first he had to die.
When Tornahdo signs on the dotted line, he puts his life into the steady hands of the mighty Ghost Corps. Three grisly deaths and three agonizing resurrections later, he's assigned duty on the space station Enderium Six.
He's facing his most dangerous mission yet, the very reason the corps exists.
Do they expect him to win? Fat chance. Tornahdo and his team are already dead and this mission is codenamed "Lights Out." No, there's more to this than he can see.
To discover the truth, he must face an unbeatable, unkillable enemy, and this time--somehow--find a way to keep himself alive...

Read more →

Prevail (definition):...

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out

Ghost Corps

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out

Bringing Pietas to Life

What's your experience?

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out

Ready: Fight!

From Origin of Pietas: Bringer of Chaos

Writing different points of view

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out

50 Cats Ago

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out

His ex is his biggest problem...

Bellicose

Bellicose...

Listen while you read

Queen's Breach - The Critical Mass

Bellicose

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out

Patronizing

10 patronizing quips by Pietas

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out

Snarky is as Snarky Does

Character Flaws

Perfectionism

Snarky

Lovable

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out

What the Corps Provides

The Corps issues a stern reminder

Lights Out by Kayelle Allen

Origin of Pietas

Forged in Fire

Lights Out