The Star-Crossed Saga, #3
by Braxton A. Cosby
Date of Publication: November
25th 2016
Publisher: Cosby
Media Productions
Cover Artist: CMP
Genre: YA Sci-Fi,
Romance
What
You Believe, Can Destroy You!
BLURB
William and Sydney have sacrificed everything
to fortify their love, so much so that William dares to brave the depths of
space to find a cure for their deadly Supernova bond, leaving both her and
Earth vulnerable to Torrian Alliance attack.
But with a full scale rebellion in play on
Fabricius, the reality of Sydney’s execution from Torrian hands is diminished,
only eclipsed by the certainty of a more threats – The Third Faction and The
Dagmas Clan – lead by Dominic and his insurgent recruits. With overwhelming
odds mounting against them, William makes a desperate attempt to find the last
of the endangered Star-children only to be captured by a new menace, where he
is forced to compete in the dreaded Gauntlet of sport. Allies surge to free
Fabricius, seeking alliances across the galaxy while Sydney tries to keep her
identity hidden and trains to master the third phase of her Star-child
evolution: Solstice.
With Sarah’s mysterious return home with
clues to unlock the future, Noella’s training and Bill’s symbiotic development
hope is restored, but will it be enough to unite the galaxy and destroy evil
for once and for all?
Buy Link: Amazon
Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/NHUT02Fqk5w
CHAPTER THREE
Sydney
and Noella walked hand in hand along the small winding path leading to the top
the Mount Dothan. The dusking sky painted a sheet of orange and red light
across the woodsy terrain around them, giving the impression of wading through
a sea of fire. Amid the grim moment of the day and the burning sensation rising
in Sydney’s throat, the tone seemed fitting. Silence accompanied them, and it
wasn’t until the pair hit the peak that Sydney finally broke the ice. “So what
do your people call this ceremony?” she asked.
“The
time of the harvest. It’s the moment when a fallen soldier is said to join the
being of the sky. I think humans refer to it as God,” Noella said, her tone as
flat as the expression on her face.
“Sounds
cool,” she replied as she surveyed the surroundings; a patch of flatland that
housed a family of hawks who watched cautiously from above in a lone cedar
tree. From here, every inch of Madisonburg could be observed without the need
of telescope or binoculars. A bed of dandelions and weeping willows greeted
them in the center of the field.
“This
way. I’ll show you where I buried his body,” Noella said.
She
could see that Noella was visibly shaken, slowly unravelling before her eyes.
Her hands trembled as her eyes began to redden. She wondered how long it’d
take, amazed at how Noella had not said a word since Arrion’s death a few weeks
ago, only morning him in silence, which she explained was customary on
Fabricius. She had done the deed all by herself, refusing to allow Sydney to
assist in his burial. From scouting the plot of land to digging the hole,
Noella insisted that it was protocol on her planet for a lone fellow soldier to
be assigned the arduous task of preparation. Seeing as though William had
departed soon after, there was no better candidate left for the job.
She
took Noella by the hand and drew her close, giving her the most delicate and
firm hug she could muster. Noella stood motionless, sinking into her friend’s
embrace. After a few seconds, she released her, unable to make eye contact.
“I’m here for you,” she murmured.
“Thanks,
Syd,” Noella replied, her voice ragged.
She
finally looked up at her and gave a nod, following Noella’s lead over to the
place where Arrion’s body lay. Surprisingly, the disturbed clay seemed more
settled than she expected, dried from the sun and already showing signs of life
as Bermuda grass had slowly began to encroach along the edges. A makeshift
tombstone had been erected, fashioned from metallic fuselage scraps of the
Daedallus, with only Arrrion’s name and handle tatted along the surface, minus
dates to hide his identity to hikers in hopes that most consider it a memorial
to a lost pet if they stumbled upon it.
Noella
knelt next to the grave, slid her backpack from her shoulders and began to open
it. Searching her bag, she retrieved a small oval-shaped disk and a satchel
filled with purple powder. “These are crushed lilacs pedals. We must first
prepare the path for Arrion’s ascension by sending tribute to the sky.” She
stood and sprinkled a few handfuls over the grave until a thin layer had
materialized before them. “On our planet we usually use the oil of a Tonosia
Tree, which is a lot thicker substance and is used for sterilization. Sarah
thought it’d be a good idea to use lilacs as a substitute because it was a
similar color.”
“It’s
beautiful,” she replied.
“I
will now begin the ceremony.” Noella placed the disc in the center of the
burial site, depressed a red button on the top and came to her side. The two
joined hands as the disc began to spin and dig into the hardened clay. Noella
pointed a hydrogen phaser at the site and fired a stream of fire upon it that
scorched the sheet of crushed pedals. The disc disappeared beneath the flames
and Noella broke out into song, in an alien dialect that Sydney could not
understand. It was less about the words and more the moment that choked at her,
forcing the tears to flow freely down her face. She squeezed Noella’s hand as
she crooned on. By the time Noella had finished, a small fissure had opened in
the place where the disc had entered and a cloud of embers swirled into the
air; a mix of red, orange and yellow. It lifted high into the sky and faded
into the clouds.
Noella
dropped to her knees in a whimper. “It is finished.”
Sydney
came beside her and held her close. “It was… beautiful.”
The
two sat in silence with only sobs to drown out the sounds of the forest.
Buy Link: Amazon
MY INTERVIEW WITH BRAXTON A.
COSBY
How would you describe you style of writing to
someone that has never read your work?
I woud describe my style of
writing as very vivd. I am a pure visual learner so a lot of what I try to
impress on to other readers is what I visualize in my head. I love movies;
especially the cinematic, over the top style movies. So a lot of my stories have
beautiful landscapes, set pieces and action sequences. I picture these images
in my head and then do my best to convey them in my writing so that the
audience shares what I see.
What mindset or routine do you feel the need to
set when preparing to write (in general whether you are working on a project or
just free writing)?
I love to have a quiet
atmoshpere, but I also write to the sound of audiobooks in the background.
Listening to other tales from great writers - especially some of my favorite YA
writers such as Suzanne Collins or Marie Lui - really gets my creative juices
flowing, even if I'm not truly honed in on what is being said. Occasionally I
hear a few things that jumpstarts my brain.
Do you take your character prep to heart? Do you
nurture the growth of each character all the way through to the page? Do you
people watch to help with development? Or do you build upon your character
during story creation?
I do, because my books are
very story and character driven. I love to create strong characters that drive
the story forward. That's why a lot of my books cross genres. You might have a
YA book, with a romance background, in a science fiction world, because the
character's personalities encompass multiple tiers of storytelling. I love to
establish my character's personalities first, accross 3-4 traits and then as
the story progresses, more layers evolve and they become more and more
complicated. They end up telling me things about themselves that I really never
thought of. For exampe: In Solstice, William really revealed a lot of things
about his Father King Gregorio that I never even began to think about when I
first wrote Protostar. It was very satisfying.
Have you found yourself bonding with any
particular character? If so which one(s)?
Like I said, William had the
greatest evolution across The Star-Crossed Saga. He went from the villian, to
the wayward hero, and then the badass champion. But all the while he struggled
with internal concepts of his own existence due to his upbringing and the new
experiences he has with Sydney. The main theme of love really shook the fabric
of his identity as a Torrian.
Do you have a character that you have been
working on that you can't wait to put to paper?
Yes. I have a true dystopian
series that I want to start later this year. It will be a female protagonist
and it is a truly original end times story and she is going grab the attnetion
of readers right from the jump. She's smart, sassy and scrappy.
Have you ever felt that there was something inside
of you that you couldn't control? If so what? If no what spurs you to reach for
the unexperienced?
I cannot contain my
laughter. There are certain moments (normally when I' sleep deprived and
delirious) that I get on a laughing spree can can't contain myself. It's
hilarious to see and everything aroud me is knee-slapping funny.
Author Info
Braxton A. Cosby is the award-winning author
of YA fiction.
He endeavors to paint vivid pictures of his
characters and worlds in the minds of readers, so that they too can share in
his complex visions of the past, present and future.
Braxton lives in Atlanta, GA with his amazing
wife and four children.
Author Links:
Hosted by
Presented by
No comments:
Post a Comment