Rainbow Snippets: The blood of others…

_{^{Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.}}

And the World Crumbled is my current work in progress. It’s a dark fantasy/horror novella set a few days before the end of In Pain and Blood and follows Henrie, an elven spellster, as he tries to escape the events happening around him.

It’s the darkest piece I’ve written to date. Lots of death, blood and general nastiness. If gore and depictions of death/dying bother you, don’t read on.

Continuing on from last week…

He pressed his hands to his face, trying to muffle his breath lest the figure was also elven. Only now did he realise his fingertips were sticky, coated in the blood of others. He fought to keep his breathing steady, but the scent of death coated his nostrils and tightened his throat.

The door swung inwards.

He flattened himself against the wall, praying the door would be enough to hide him. His body trembled uncontrollably, shaking each slow breath.

The flicker of his shield sputtered around him, its purple glow faintly lighting the door’s wood grain. He stared at those whorls and lines, focusing on drawing the shield into himself, relief almost taking his legs when the glow faded. He hadn’t used the technique for years, not since his childhood when he had longed for his transitioning to be over with. With luck, the magic still worked the same, rendering him invisible to everyone.

I’ll see you all with more of And the World Crumbled in the New Year. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.