Nothing too exciting to report today. I finished my second day of writing of my 30 (now 25). I've topped 2,000 words today, but will definitely have some work to do this weekend to catch up to where I should be (7,000 words by Sunday). A little preview of what I've got done so far. Feel free to give me feedback. Full disclosure, I've told my students that they have to turn off their editor this month to allow the freedom of writing. Editing will happen in December. I'm trying to live into that too (sooooooooo hard to do)! Here is chapter 1 of the 3 I've got written thus far: Orion on his 16th birthday getting ready to face his rite of passage. I hope you like it!
Chapter 1: Gift from the gods
"Orion, it's time to go!" Euryale called up the stairs. "Don't forget your pack and bow, sweetheart."
The Queen of the Amazons paced nervously as she waited for her son to come down. It was his 16th birthday, and the day he would have to prove himself a man. She couldn’t be prouder of her sweet boy. She’d taught him everything she knew to help him make his way into the world: hunting, riding, sword fighting, even metalsmithing. Orion had a hundred skills at his fingertips to help him make his way in the world.
A tear formed in the tough warrior’s eye. When her baby returned from his hunt, that’s exactly what he would have to do—make his way in the world because the minute he returned from his trials a man, he would begin his last few hours in the Amazon’s camp, his place no longer with the elite, warrior women.
Oh Poseidon, Euryale thought. Have I done enough for our boy? Is he ready? Am I?
Orion suddenly appeared at the foot of the stairs, his stealthy approach surprised his mother’s keen senses as no sound alerted her to his presence. Once again, Euryale was stunned at the beauty of her only son. While she loved the daughters she birthed to carry on her legacy as an Amazon Queen, she treasured the gift of her boy above all others. Orion had already sprouted to 6 and a half feet at the young age of 16. His curly brown hair had been tied back with a leather band in preparation for the hunt. His father’s keen sea-green eyes glinted at her with joy for the upcoming adventure. His muscular body had recently chiseled into the lines of manhood that Orion would carry into the world. With a dimple in his right cheek and a ready smile, her handsome boy would win over the ladies quickly. Euryale had watched that change in Orion’s relationship with her warrioresses over the last couple of months. Fathers would be shaking in their boots when Orion strode into town.
The warrior in Euryale beamed with pride as her thoughts turned to Orion’s hunting prowess. She knew her son would quickly conquer his hunting task. Already he out-shown all of her warriors during his training hunts. The son of Poseidon had an unusual affinity for the forest, a gift from his mother’s Amazon heritage. She wondered what gift Poseidon would bestow upon his youngest son once his rite of passage was complete. Orion already had so much, what would Poseidon’s gift bring to her boy?
“Mother, I’m ready,” Orion’s deep voice answered softly. “My gear is all here…. I’m ready.”
Euryale heard the slight tremble at the end of Orion’s words. Her heart felt an answering pain. She wasn’t ready to let him go, but the time had come.
“I have a gift for you my son,” Euryale led Orion to her weapon’s store, and opened a chest Orion hadn’t seen before at the back of the large room. “I’ve been saving this for you-- for your trial. It was a gift from your father on the day you were born. A fitting gift for a great hunter.”
Orion watched closely as his mother lifted out a long, package wrapped in layers of linen. She held out the object to him.
“Thank you mother,” Orion said as he received his present. “And thank you father,” he added as he turned his head towards the window that overlooked the Aegean Sea.
Orion reverently unwrapped the soft linen, revealing a heavy bronze club. The handle fit perfectly in his hand, the grip molded for him alone. As he slowly spun the club in his hands, he saw images of his father Poseidon creating a massive tidal wave to crush his enemies on shore etched into the club on one side. On the other, someone had etched a vision of his mother leading her Amazon’s into battle. The gift left him speechless with its beauty.
“Your father had this made for you, son,” Euryale whispered softly. “It was forged by Hephaestus for you to carry into battle and hunt. A fitting gift for a son of Poseidon and the Amazons.”
Orion’s breath caught as he realized the full impact of the gift his father had made him. The club was forged by the gods themselves- indestructible, crafted for him alone. Orion felt a small surge of pride that his father loved him enough to leave him such a weapon. With this last weapon, Orion knew he was ready to begin.
