I typed my sections directly in so I am going to have to copy and paste from other posts to make my list. Once I have done I will print it out and then go over it with a pen. Then go back to the document to type in all my changes so I at least have a clean copy to start building my chapters. I have no illusions about it staying clean, no outline I have ever created goes exactly according to plan, but it is nice to start out with something that looks organized and more importantly for something that goes as quick as nano, has all of my character and place names included on the page so I don’t have to stop and dig through notes to see how I spelled some mystical creature.
But here are the details and the break out of my three act structure a it stands now.
Idea: Archaeologists go to investigate an ancient town/city site that has been newly revealed due to flooding and rockslides. In addition to the site they find mentions of creatures only whispered about in myth speaking about a mythical creature/god-like being who can drain the vitality from followers and return blessings for the sacrifice via a mystical symbol placed on the adherent. They also uncover a hidden chamber and release one of these creatures into the world.
The world: The plant is named Scovan. It was once a part of a vast Galactic Empire, The Cragorian Empire. They arrived and killed/enslaved large swaths of the population before building their colony there. The colony was used for both mining and farming. By the time Earth based humans arrived the Cragorian Empire was fading out. The settlers ( a mix of empire colonists and surviving native peoples) had more or less been abandoned. When Earthers arrived a deal was struck for a settlement that was more in Earth’s networks of planets. Over time they merged into one Scovan society (but not always harmoniously). It has been several hundred years since their arrival at the time of our story (Since we deal with archaeology, I need some history of the planet).
There is no distinctly separate living Native Population (no reservations or enclaves) with marriages intermingling bloodlines. Those who do have native links often tell the old pre-Cragorian Empire myths as stories to entertain their children but nothing more, at least in the cities. In the regions closer to where the myths originated there are still some places people don’t go or if they do, they don;t linger.
Since the story features an archeological did I am going to bookmark several sites. I want the ancient city to be a temple site where these creatures were worshiped as gods and people living there sacrificed to get better weather, crops or general good fortune so I am looking at the Egyptian Amarna site as inspiration for the set up of the town and smaller shrines. The small shrines to these creatures kind of like the personal shrines to ancient Egyptian gods.
It is not a desert environment though so I may also look at some of the Mesoamerican archaeological town sites for reference as well.
Task #169 (Nano #3): Our Main Character
Amerite Stosa (Ames to his friends) is a professor of Archaeology focusing on the early cultures of Scovan (Pre-empire) He teaches at Thestan University, the premier university in the city of Broga located in the Thestan Provence of Hearca-Act.
Hearca-Act is the Original Settlement name meaning Broken Lands in the original population’s language (Act is added to a settlement name much in the Tel might be added to a city/settlement name) Broken refers to the fact that this settlement broke with the old gods, refusing to sacrifice to them. Most believe that it was some sort of ancient religious divide but the myths tell that once they sacrificed people to the Couran who were worshiped as gods and that they decided not to worship them any more, stopped the sacrifices and killed any of the Couran they found and instantly killed anyone with the Couran’s mark so they couldn’t feed. The myths tell that the Couran retreated when they learned that only death awaited them there.
Ames is descended from mostly earthers but he had one grandmother who was tied to the original inhabitants. She used to tell him stories as a child. The stories both terrified and fascinated him. He studied them hoping to control the fear (Like learning that silver bullet’s kill werewolves and garlic and holy water protect against the vampires). His grandmother gave him a protective charm to keep him safe and help calm he fears.
As an adult he knows these are just myths and stories but it was what got him excited about archaeology. And he still wears the charm even though he tells himself it is for sentimental reasons. He never takes it off.
Despite having only a small section of his blood come from the original inhabitants, he inherited the high cheekbones, bright, pale blue eyes and blue/black hair from them which physically marks him as a descendant.
The basic Three Act Outline
Act 1
Status Quo
Ames moves from his small apartment cluttered with papers and little bits of things he picks up. Occasionally there are small bits of actual relics like pottery sherds but there are also replicas and items he picked up in small towns where he stayed during digs. There are posters from symposiums, stacks of research materials but no sign of family or friends. He has friends that he goes out with but he lives for his work. He has no significant other for any real length of time as he is too focused to pay attention to another person. He has a long dead plant in the corner that one of his ex-s left him with. At this point it is more the mummified remains of a plant than an actual plant.
His office is the same book and paper crowded space as his apartment, but with the furniture replaced by a desk and a couple of half buried visitor’s chairs that have become their own archaeological digs. He has some replica native items that he uses for illustrative purposes in class and he is a relatively well liked professor.
One of the other professors, Devan Batcol, despises him. Devan is a racist and doesn’t like the non-earther features of Ames. In addition he doesn’t like that Ames is the chair of the department (he was named after a harsh competition where Devan lost) and Devan dislikes the fact that Ames is popular. Devan’s expertise focuses on Early Empire studies and thinks that nothing pre-empire is worth bothering with. The two tend to snipe at each other whenever hey see each other, each trying for witty burns that seem like clever banter to outsiders but hide a deep hatred.
The Inciting Incident
Heavy rains flood the Pascar Mountain Ranges to the north. There is flooding and large amounts of earth are washed out. Enough earth is moved that while there are rockslides in places, what appears to be an ancient town site, one much more elaborate than anyone has seen prior, has been revealed. The Thestan Land Co needs to get someone to investigate the newly revealed site. There are rules and regulations regarding archaeological sites that the Land Management Company needs to follow. They are a government agency (similar to the BLM)
Plot Point 1
Ames fights his rival for charge of the dig site and is chosen to lead the dig. There is a timing issue as they have to excavate before the next rainy season as there is the possibility more flooding will destroy it and the area is prone to rockslides anyway. He argues that it is more Pre-empire than early empire and Devan is very angry that he loses out. Ames prepares his team.
Act 2
Rising Action
The city/village site is larger and more complex than they expected. Their small team is going to have to work in a quicker and more organized way, while they will still study the finds, at the moment they are packing them up as they occur and while they log and record the details all cleaning and study has to wait. This is both practical and a torture as they make some really good finds that they all want to stop and study.
The rains are coming, rockslides too
They realize the entire site was deliberately buried with all of the items contained within in tact. They take every conceivable measurement, picture and x-ray as possible a they are worried the site might not survive the next season without damage.
They realize they won’t be able to get through the entire site before the end of the season so they concentrate on the areas that have the highest possibility of destruction.
Locals don’t like the area because of the stories and many of them report instances on their own that they are convinced are real but he thinks are psychological. Getting any of the locals to help out is hard. They will carry things back to the transport vehicles but they will not stay in the area and they are gone before dark. It affects the time tables.
They locate several underground chambers which complicate things.
They find heaps of stuff all relating to the Couran, thinks it is because this was the area the myths originated. Will study writings later.
The Midpoint
There are strange things in the site that remind him of the stories. Personal shrines to a pantheon no one knows, artwork, inscriptions. He tries to tell himself that it is the stories and that there is so much because this is the epicenter of the myth, the place the Couran go to when they need to retreat from the world and are protected by their cult. There are delays because of the complexity of the site and the fact that anyone local is getting more and more spooked. He spots one of the markings he recalls from one of his grandmother’s stories. It is on one of the students and he tries to tell himself it is a tattoo. He limits the dig site, sending as much back ahead of the end as possible instead of pressing for more, and when no one is looking he starts to carve protective wards on the trees around the campsite.
I think I also might have him discover one of his rival Devan’s spies among his team and decide to use the man.
Plot Point 2
During one of the rock slides a cave entrance is revealed. The entrance is small but it is clearly a room with a round stone bath and frescos painted on the walls. His chance to wrap up early and get out quick is limited. He goes to the cave entrance and peers in. He gets a strange feeling being there that he tries to chalk up to superstition floating through the air.
He sees a corridor leading into the interior of the mountain and feels as though something is watching him from the darkness. His charm becomes warm. He hides his discomfort and tells the others that they will be hard pressed to get the last of the site finished, but luckily this is above the flood level so they are to take pictures of just this front room and then block it up to keep it preserved for the next season when they will be able to explore more. They just can’t spent the time needed for it now. He leaves them to work. The frescos remind him of the stories and he realizes they have opened one of the hidden lairs. Even with the rocks resealing it, he suspects that if there are any creatures inside, they have been released.
I think he is going to see the spy for his rival Devan looking towards the mountain and he will send him up to help with the photographing. He will warn him not to go too deeply into the caves because they don’t want it disturbed. he doesn’t have official plans to get rid of the spy but it is more of a spur of the moment thing he will use later.
Act 3
Climax
They finish up at the dig and begin to send the long train of items back towards the waiting vehicles to sort and clean elsewhere. Ames feels like he is being watched and he sees several people looking exhausted. He tries to tell himself that it is because they have all worked so hard. He notices those who photographed the cave seem to be the worse, including Devan’s spy. On one of them he sees a symbol. He tries to tell himself it is just a tattoo to show their love of ancient culture but he can’t quite convince himself. He decides it is best if they just get away soon.
Ames makes it home with his wagon train of goods just as the first rains of the season begin to fall. He stores the items and begins the sorting and cleaning prior to analysis set up. As he is working late in his office he has a visitor. Not there one minute and there the next. He is there to thank Ames for releasing him. The area was a temple of sort. After the others started hunting his kind the faithful worshipers retreated to the temple outside the sacred mountain. The c were their gods. They offered themselves as sacrifice and the Couran helped them out. Then the temple was attacked but the early empire. The Couran slaughtered the regiment but still feared the hinters and so dug deep into their caves to wait them out. He was the sentinel and could still draw energy from those passing by which is why there were still stories. He learned a lot from his release and as a warning he tells Ames that as the others had no nourishment during their sleep they might not wake as gently as he did. Ames is protected but others won’t be. Ames asks if he is going back to prepare them and he says no. They will be violent and perhaps cause the hunt to start again. He let them know to be ready for the following season, but then stepped away so he wouldn’t be taken down if they drew the hunters. The C then disappears as silently as he entered. Ames isn’t certain what to do. People may die but if he runs around spouting off that the myths are real then he will lose all academic credibility. He also thinks no one would listen and they would excavate anyway.
The Denouement
Devan gets pictures of the room from his spy and declares it to be early empire and therefore his wheelhouse. He has petitioned to have himself put in charge of the following year’s dig. Ames decides he will put up a token fight so that no one will suspect he doesn’t want to go back. This will save his reputation and because they brought back so much with them, he can claim that he has enough pre-empire artifacts to study for the moment and cedes the dig for the Early Empire studies to Devan. He thinks that in addition to saving face he can look like a team player with the board. He lets Devan feel like he has won a victory. Ames is no longer ashamed of the stories and things he believed even if he keeps them to himself. He also realizes that he has no problem letting Devan face the Couran without warning. He tells himself that Devan wouldn’t believe him, but he realizes that he is more than happy to let him go and is more curious as to what will happen than worried for other’s safety. Ames wonders if Devan will survive what it in the mountain.
