Dolores Esteban
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Winter Solstice had come and with it the longest night of the year. The people in the north of Aglanthol celebrated that night. Winter Solstice was the birthday of the sun and of the year. Within the time of greatest darkness, the light of the world was reborn. The hours of daylight would begin to grow and the hours of darkness would lessen. The holiday went back to ancient times. It was a time of rejoicing and thanksgiving and a time of hope. The beauty and the truth of the light was remembered
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Gwyn stood outside and looked up at the sky. Heavy gray clouds covered it and an icy wind was blowing. Gwyn wrapped her wooden cloak tighter around her shoulders. Yet her cloak, her cap and her thick scarf barely warmed her. The old woman looked down the street. It was covered with snow that had fallen the previous night. Her neighbours had come out and had started to clear the places in front of their houses of the snow. Gwyn felt helpless. She was too old and too weak to clear the place. Gwy
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Qildor had spent three days and two nights in a stifling and dark room. They had brought him food and water, but nobody had spoken to him. Qildor had felt like an idiot, apparently unworthy to unveil the secret. He had grumbled over it for some time. Then he had studied Gwyn’s map again in order to distract himself. The last day, however, he had spent lying on his bed, feeling totally bored. Qildor almost jumped from the bed when the door opened and Leandor asked him to follow him. They all met
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Neldor studied Norlorn’s text again the following morning. He made some exercises and he memorized everything. At noon he felt ready to complete his mission. Leandor brought a meal. Neldor ate and drank, but he pushed a bowl of hot soup aside. "We will see if things work out," Neldor said, gazing at the bowl. And then Neldor straightened in his chair. He visualized Norlorn, the great magician, and bowed to him. "Norlorn, master of all wizards, you called me in time and I feel prepared to com
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Leandor led Neldor down a corridor. He stopped in front of a wooden door and nodded at Neldor. Neldor took the key out of a pocket of his cloak. He made a step forward and pushed the key in the lock. The door opened instantly. Neldor stepped into the secret chamber. The air in the room was stifling. Neldor coughed and tears shot into his eyes. He made a step back and coughed once more. The air in the hallway was dry also, but it was almost refreshing compared to the air in the chamber. Neldor w
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Weekly Update The Week In Review...
Dolores Esteban commented on Lugh's blog entry in Gay Authors News
Thanks for the great blog entries. -
They left the following morning and rode on silently. They were lingering on their thoughts. There was not much left to say anyway. They reached the edge of the Western Mountains ten days later. They moved slowly and rode one after the other. They followed a narrow path that led up the mountains. Luckily, the ground was hard and dry as it had not rained for a couple of days. The days were warm, but the nights were cold. They spent the night in a cave they had found on the way. They wrapped them
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Neldor winced. He was about to turn around and run. However, he remained where he was and let out another sigh. "Qildor, royal soldier. What have I done to deserve this?" he said in a low voice. The man walked in his direction. Neldor waited resignedly. Qildor stopped in front of him. "It has been a while," Qildor said in a measured voice and gave Neldor a bow. Neldor shot him a frown. He made an angry gesture with his hand. "We’re not at court and we don’t sit at dinner with the king. We’r
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Aglanthol 1 – Part II – Neldor’s Quest Some months later. Neldor tried to remember who had given him the key. He scratched his head as he turned it in his hands. Sixty years had passed since he had been given the key. The wizard Neldor looked at it and he pondered for a while. Finally, he placed the key on the map that was spread on the wooden table in front of him. Neldor gazed at the key and the map. The parchment was old. One side of the map was covered with mysterious symbo
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Qildor and Magath were sitting at the table in Magath’s house. "Did all this really happen?" Magath asked in a dismal voice. "I am not sure. Perhaps this is all just a dream. At least it is the stuff that dreams are made of," Qildor replied. "Or myths and legends," Magath said drily. "Folk tales. Nothing but lore." "And yet it was all true," Qildor said seriously. They looked at each other. Magath nodded. A shiver ran down his spine. It was over, wasn’t it? Or was he mistaken? ~~**~~ Dran
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Neldor looked up and their eyes met. The wizard straightened in his chair. "I studied the ancient history records right after you had left," Neldor started. "Nothing indicated that the thousands years were over next year in spring. I had guessed that from a date that I had read in a report on Vlamin’s coronation. Vlamin was the first crowned leader of the Aglanthol. He was made king in spring. I had guessed his coronation had taken place right after the Aglanthol had defeated the Bre. The Bre w
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The wizard Neldor entered the place. He stood upright with a determined look on his face. Neldor was dressed in a black cloak with a hood. He held out a long sword. Qildor could not say where the wizard had suddenly come from. Neldor looked frightening and Qildor was uncertain if the wizard had come to help or rather wreak havoc himself. Neldor made an imperious gesture with his hand. "You two go and take care of the sender of the energy ball. He must not tumble to the ground," Neldor command
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They took a close look at the traces. Someone had come from the west. Gwyn had either met the stranger and they moved on together, or the stranger was following Gwyn. Qildor examined the traces. "If they had met here, then they would have halted and probably would have talked to each other. The snow would be trampled down," Qildor said. "But both of them moved on at a steady pace." Qildor pointed at a trace. "Look at the size of this foot print. I’m certain a man is following Gwyn," he sai
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The weather had cleared up the following day. The sun was shining, but it was bitter cold. Qildor’s sleep had been restless. Dreadful dreams had woken him several times. Magath, however, had slept well. Qildor wondered if Magath had fully realized the predicament they were in. Qildor was sitting at the wooden table. He watched Magath making tea. "Gwyn is right," Qildor said when Magath had joined him at the table. "I made up a conspiracy plot that doesn’t really make sense." He wiped his eyes
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Aglanthol 2 - Side Stories (The Legend of Murdock etc.) 01 The Legend of the Ancient Town 02 The Legend of Murdock 03 Gwyn's Silver Casket Enjoy!
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Gwyn's Silver Casket
Dolores Esteban posted new chapter in Aglanthol 2 - Side Stories (The Legend of Murdock etc.)
Gwyn’s Silver Casket The silver casket was passed on from generation to generation, from mother to daughter. It was passed on as a dowry since the day Kelim had given it to his bride as a wedding gift. The silver casket was a precious gift. Silver was a material that was as rare as gold in Aglanthol. The women hid the casket from their husbands. It was their insurance in case anything happened and the women were forced to live on their own: the early death of the husband perhaps, or his runn -
The Legend of Murdock
Dolores Esteban posted new chapter in Aglanthol 2 - Side Stories (The Legend of Murdock etc.)
The Legend of Murdock The legend says that foreigners came to the land long before the kingdom of Aglanthol was founded. The strangers had crossed the ocean. Their ships had landed in the north of the land. The foreigners had built a town, a seaport, because more immigrants were supposed to come to the country. This, however, never did happen. The first settlers were killed by the plague soon after their arrival and no more foreigners came to the continent. No one knew why they stopped th -
Aglanthol 2 - Side Stories 01 The Legend of the Ancient Town 02 The Legend of Murdock 03 Gwyn's Silver Casket
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The Legend of the Ancient Town The legend says that foreigners came to the land many centuries before the kingdom of Aglanthol was founded. They came to the land by ship and they came from a far away land. The foreigners built a town far on the northern coast. They built a seaport because more ships were supposed to sail to the newly discovered continent. The first immigrants, however, were killed by the plague shortly after their arrival. And, strangely, no more foreigners came to the la
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Qildor and Magath exchanged a worried look. "What is it, Mistress Gwyn?" Magath asked in a soft voice. Gwyn placed her cup on the table and rose to her feet. "You must help me, Magath. Take the poker from the fireplace, please," she said. Qildor and Magath exchanged another look. But then Magath rose to his feet and went to the fireplace. Gwyn had meanwhile crossed the room. She stood in the corner of the room and examined the stone wall. "Here," she said in a fragile voice. "Here. A storm
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Thank you for your encouraging feedback. I'm happy you like the story. I'll post the next chapter soon, together with Aglanthol 2 (Side Stories: The Legend of Murdock etc.)
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Thank you for reading my story and leaving a comment. I'm happy you like the story so far. I'll post the next installment soon, together with Aglanthol 2 (Side Stories: The Legend of Murdock etc.)
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Magath's time will come. If not in Aglanthol 1, then probably later. I know, but I won't tell you.
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That's okay. I love to hear your thoughts. Wait and see who will be the 'hero' in the end. Thanks for reading and commenting.
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Thank you, Andy. Yes, I jumped right in and I wrote 4 parts of 'Aglanthol'. Two of them are still in the editing process, though.
