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    Immortal Remains
    Immortal Remains
    Immortal Remains
    Ebook32 pages30 minutes

    Immortal Remains

    By R. J. Davnall

    ()

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    About this ebook

    'Heaven fallen, Heaven spent,
    Who's to say where the Old Gods went?'

    Barrin doesn't know what a God is, or Heaven. All he knows is the game the village children play to the timeless nursery rhyme. When the game chases him out into the dangerous wilderness beyond the gresha-fence, he disturbs an ancient cairn. Within, he finds a strange, glittering stone that awakens all kinds of ancient memories.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherR. J. Davnall
    Release dateDec 1, 2012
    ISBN9781301087631
    Immortal Remains
    Author

    R. J. Davnall

    R. J. Davnall is a brightly-plumed, semi-nocturnal cryptid native to northwestern England. She has been making up stories, including her own, all her life, and thus probably shouldn't be trusted to write her own bio. When disguised as a human, she is a Lecturer in Philosophy and Game Design Studies, and a member of the Olaf Stapledon Centre for Speculative Futures, at the University of Liverpool

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      Book preview

      Immortal Remains - R. J. Davnall

      Immortal Remains

      Prelude to The 99 Gods

      By R.J. Davnall

      Published by R. J. Davnall at Smashwords

      Copyright 2012 R. J. Davnall

      Smashwords Edition License Notes:

      This free ebook may be copied, distributed, reposted, reprinted and shared, provided it appears in its entirety without alteration, and the reader is not charged to access it.

      Also by R.J. Davnall:

      The Second Realm

      http://itsthefuturestupid.blogspot.com/

      Contents

      Immortal Remains

      About the Author

      For Abzi, since technically I still owe you a story. Only about seven months late!

      Immortal Remains

      Heaven fallen, heaven spent,

      Who’s to say where the old gods went?

      Heaven’s time, heaven fell,

      You can only choose earth or hell.

      The other children chanted the rhyme at Barrin, circling him. He cringed back from the grin on Tepper's face. Already taller than Barrin, Tepper seemed to swell further with the fading evening light. The circle tightened and stopped moving. Tepper and Cony turned to face each other, kneeling and joining hands. Cony was still tall enough to look Barrin almost in the eye.

      Earth or hell, Barrin? Tepper's teeth caught the light as he smiled. The other children took up his words as a chant. Someone leaned close and shouted them in his ear, making him jump. The wind was rising across the pasture as night fell, and they'd have to go inside soon. He'd almost got through the evening without any grief from Tepper. It couldn't last.

      If he chose 'earth', he'd have to jump over Tepper's and Cony's arms. 'Hell', and he'd have to go under, without putting his hands on the ground where the Old Grey One could catch him and drag him into the Pit. But because it was Barrin, if he chose earth, Tepper would lift his arms too high to jump. Cony, squinting like his father's nasty old tomcat, would go along with it. If Barrin chose hell, they'd just knock him down and jump on him.

      Earth. At least that way he might have a chance to run for the village. The Old Grey One couldn't get you as long as you could hold onto the world. If Barrin could find a pebble, he'd be safe. Of course, Tepper would play the Old Grey One and might hit him anyway, but at least Mother would be nearby.

      Tepper laughed, lifting his and Cony's hands as high as Barrin's chest. Sure you don't want to change your mind?

      Barrin

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