For most of us in the northern hemisphere, we’re winding down summer and saying hello to autumn and winter.
Long-time Legionnaires will know that I’ve never been a fan of the colder months beyond the spoils of excessive festive eating. Sure, nobody likes being hot and sticky all year round either, but there’s absolutely no fun in stiff joints and dodging flus like Neo dodges bullets in The Matrix.
It’s one of the big reasons Lady Laura and I are moving to Cyprus next year.
It’s not really even about temperature.
It’s about the clear, blue skies.
They revitalise and inspire me to do more than what I already am, which means two things for you, Legionnaire…
More stories and rambunctious emails.
(I can already see you convulsing with excitement.)
Of course, even my crotchety heart couldn’t live in one season (even pleasant ones) forever as life would soon lose its meaning.
Variety truly is the key to a life well enjoyed, which is one of the great gifts fiction gives us.
It’s also why I gave Elron and Vlencia of The Divided Region very different climates and terrain despite them sharing a natural border. Sure, they share many things, but it’s clear right from the second chapter of Exiled that Elron has a far harder climate.
Winters kill, summers feel like kind springs, and it is infinitely more mountainous than its southern neighbour.
Vlencia, on the other hand, enjoys a temperate climate, and even more importantly…
FERTILE SOIL.
Sounds silly for all of us who only need to pop into the supermarket when we run low on fruit, veg, and grains, but for Elronians (like some parts of our own world), it can lead to all manner of food shortages and, in extreme cases, famine.
Friendlier civilisations would mitigate these shortcomings with strong trade.
That’s not an option for Elron. Not with Vlencia, at least.
Fun fact:
Some 900 years before Exiled, when King Valentius ruled the southern kingdom, as part of the original agreement to ally against Vraqor, Elron demanded trade with Vlencia.
King Valentius agreed.
… Only to break it once they (barely) won the war against the dark lord.
900 years on, and still, there’s no trade between the kingdoms.
Still, they feud.
Now Vraqor rises once more, but it isn’t Elron scrambling for an alliance this time. No, it’s Vlencia’s turn to extend their begging bowl. However, it’s going to take a lot more than the promise of trade to get these two sitting across the table from one another.
Yet, somehow, this must be done.
Not just for their kingdoms’ sake, but for the entire region.
It’s an insurmountable task for any king — not least one that has already inflicted a deep wound on Elron’s monarch — yet, that’s exactly what Darius must do.
Will he succeed?
If so, at what cost?
Or are these past grievances too great to atone for, thus dooming Estos to an age of darkness?
You can find out here:
https://djjwatsonstore.com/products/The-Great-Betrayal
DJJW