Found some time to write tonight: I think I’ve got Chapter I of Between the Lion and the Wolf in the can! Or whatever the appropriate writing metaphor might be.

Kalas and his crew have had to make some tough choices after everything they’ve been through in Beneath the Vault of Stars. As they come to understand the consequences of those choices, they find themselves in—well, here: see for yourself!

Rül placed a callused hand on Pava’s immobile shoulder, let it rest there for a while as she waited for Dese’s words to make sense.

Shock, thought Kalas.

“Deridzhas,” said Zhalera, interrupting the uncomfortable moment. “They’ll take them to Deridzhas.”

“Deridzhas?” said one of the other ilmukritme.

“That town to the north, into the Wastes,” she nodded. “They keep…uh…”

“We’ve searched for our missing people—for your parents, Pava!—every day,” Dese insisted, his voice weak. “But that far north? That’s…Pava! The eaters!”

Their cave-dweller friend allowed a solitary shudder to traverse the length of her body before she spoke. When she did, there was jagged metal in her words.

“You coward,” she smoldered. More in observation than in judgment. Turning toward Rül and the others, she said, “I have no right to ask you this, but—”

I’m looking forward to seeing what happens in Chapter II! Sure, sure, I have some broad story elements in mind, but sometimes it’s the subtle things that help bring a narrative to life—and sometimes, those bits of texture surprise even me!