The fifteen minute novel writing experiment is a attempt to write a complete (and very rough) draft of a novel by writing for fifteen minutes each day. I have taken a timed writing from one of the daily prompts done in 2021, cleaned it up a little and used it as my jumping off point into a story. Each day I will take the last line of the story written the day before and use it as my sentence starter and write for fifteen minutes, growing the story as the year progresses.
Day 102: She was certain that Ferrian’s Gap was the place she was in now, at least it fit with what she had seen of it, even if it was called the House of the Star now.
She was certain that Ferrian’s Gap was the place she was in now, at least it fit with what she had seen of it, even if it was called the House of the Star now. As she read, Anya was reminded of her dreams. They had occurred shortly after her arrival, but tapered off as she settled into the daily rhythm of life here.
The battle for Ferrian’s gap sounded a lot like the battle her dreams showed her. Defenders fighting a losing battle against invaders. The book wasn’t clear on exactly who the invaders were, but labeled them with various unsavory terms. Barbarians, The Unworthy, the ignorant, The unclean. But on who exactly they were and where they came from, there was nothing.
It was clear that they were winning. The unknown hordes had destroyed much of the Ancient Empire that held these lands and those few who remained loyal to the falling Empire were falling with it.
Anya frowned as she read a sentence. She paused and re read it. ‘And in the final days,’ she read. ‘When all knew the enemy’s might would be too might to withstand, those gifted were sent to Ferrian’s gap. Here they made fast their stronghold, securing their knowledge for those who would surely rise later. For those who would know it’s worth and not seem to destroy that which they could never hope to understand. Here they held their heavy tomes fast and secreted away their knowledge to await the time of its reemergence.’
Anya lowered the book and leaned back in her chair. “Secure their knowledge,” she mused. Her eyes drifted towards the hidden panel. Was that why there were so many of them? Each person hid away their only little bits so that even if one, or even many were found and destroyed not all would be lost? It made a bizarre sort of sense. The earlier parts of the book talked about the strategic importance of the gap.
Anya was no master tactician but even she could see that a small city that filled the only gap between two mountain ranges would be important for anyone to take. It would control the flow of people from one side to the other.
‘And if they thought their enemies would take it, they surely thought that they would use the space, so they hid things in walls,” Anya thought about it and of all the little rooms. “It’s more like they walled off large sections of rooms making corridors look like walls.”
Anya shook her head. The entire place seemed like a rabbit warren. There were a few logically arranged spaces close to the opening where they buildings fronted the one main road that ran from one side of the gap to the other, but the mountains themselves seemed to be honeycombed with rooms and twisting, winding corridors.
“I wonder if it is because so many rooms were walled off and hidden or if the place was built to be confusing.”
Ten til Midnight 