I thought I would have the next chapter of Dark Redemption finished this evening, and I hope to post it later tonight. But for now, as an appetizer, here is a scene from tonight’s chapter.
Strephon Bellman, a semi-immortal half-fae who is investigating a magical conspiracy in the City of Redemption, is attending a meeting of the City’s Hidden Council, the governing body of the city’s magical community. Here he is having a conversation with a friend of his, a bookseller who calls himself “Timmy” who may or may not be the Egyptian god Thoth, but who is definitely missing a few Major Arcana from his Tarot deck.
* * * * *
“There is something I wished to ask you,” Strephon said.
Thoth cocked his head slightly, causing his pyramid-shaped hat to tilt at a rakish angle. “Yes?”
“Who the devil is J.R.R. Tolkien?”
“You don't know?”
“The name sounds familiar, but I can't place it.”
“He was a professor of philology at Oxford. After your time, I suppose.”
“Oxford, you say?” Strephon frowned. “Didn't he present a paper about fairy-stories at St. Andrews for their Andrew Lang lecture one year?”
“Yes, he did.”
“He wrote a good essay on Beowulf too, as I recall. And a quite decent translation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, if I remember correctly.”
“You do. He also wrote a few fantasy novels that enjoyed a bit of popularity.”
Strephon pondered some more. “I vaguely recall a children's book about a dragon and some dwarves... and there was this little comic fellow who disliked adventures...”
Thoth laughed. “You should come down to my bookshop some time and I'll set you up with a boxed collection. We'll bring you into the Twentieth Century yet, Bellman!”
* * * * *
More to come