Newest Excerpt of the novel. I wrote this several days ago and like the way it turned out, though it is a bit of a spoiler... Okay, it's a big spoiler, actually, but the scene is nice, even if it does need editing.
As always, story and characters belong to me, do not repost this anywhere without permission!
Excerpt: Aftershocks of a Revolution: Book 2 in the Aka Ryuu Series
Deuce tapped a finger against his beak absently as he looked over the building plans laid out on his desk. His other hand held a phone up to his ear, but most of his attention was focused on the blueprints before him. The new apartments set on the site of the old abandoned mall that had once been the only haven for kemono were going to be truly spectacular. All state of the art, spacious, and affordable for families. It filled his heart with pride to know that two years of work were finally coming together for the build.
“Deuce, are you listening to me?”
He pulled his eyes away from the plans as 26’s question finally got through his head. “Oh, sorry. I got lost in thought there for a moment. What were you saying?”
She giggled. “I was asking if you were going to come to the gallery opening next week. Now that this crisis with D is over, I’m hoping to have some time to do a few more pieces before the next crisis hits.”
“Oh! Sure, I’ll come. Let me mark it on my calendar,” he shoved the plans aside and penciled in the gallery opening date on the appropriate square on his desk calendar. “There, all marked down. I’ll be there.”
“Great! Well, I’ll let you get back to work. I need to wait for Andrea and D to get back and all- they’re talking to the Shogun about plans for what needs to be done.”
“Okay, let me know if you need me for anything.”
They both said their good-byes and hung up. Deuce made a few notes in his planner about all the calls he needed to make and a few more things he had to finalize before construction could begin. Outside of the trailer that was his office he could hear the final stages of the clean up from the deconstruction of the falling apart old shopping mall that had once been their home. Sometimes he missed he, but with the changes that had happened and no longer having to hide away from the world, he didn’t miss it that much. It was far better to have the world know about them and be free to move about during the day than have to skulk in the darkness and steal what they needed.
He checked the time and decided that he should go for lunch. He was just about to get up and get ready to go when the door to the trailer opened. He had his back to it currently, so he called hello to whoever had entered while he grabbed his planner. There was no answer, so he turned around, expecting to see one of the many professionals he had worked with the past few months or one of the other kemono that were on the council
He paused and raised a feathered brow, however, when he saw a man standing there he had never seen before. He was rather tall, especially considering the long pointed blue ears on top of his head. His hair was black with a blue splotch in the front of it, and he had darker skin around his eye. Deuce could just make out the wings and tail behind him as well. Other than that he was covered from chin to feet in clothes- including heavy leather gloves that seemed a bit unnecessary in fall weather.
“Hi,” said Deuce, trying to be friendly to the new kemono, “May I help you?”
Malakai grinned. “Why yes, you certainly may.”
Deuce turned around properly and sat back down at his desk, folding his golden fur covered hands in front of him. “Alright, what can I do for you?”
The bat winged kemono stepped forward and put both hands down on Deuce’s desk, bringing his face in closer to the eagle. “I understand that you’re something of a community leader among the kemono, Deuce. I’m here with a proposition for you. See, I need you to help me raise an army.”
He blinked at Malakai, looking a bit perplexed. “I’m sorry, what? I don’t think I heard you correctly.”
“I’ll put it very simply,” Malakai sat down on the edge of the desk, still turned so he was facing Deuce. “We kemono are superior to the humans. It’s time for us to rise up and take our rightful place- as rulers of this country. After all, this government made us in the pursuit of making super soldiers, ones better than regular humans. And they have succeeded- they have given us claws, and teeth, and wings, and now we shall use the weapons they gave us to take our revenge on them.”
Deuce leaned back in the chair, vaguely remembering something 26 had said on the phone. Something about someone starting a kemono revolution? He wished he’d been paying attention. “Sir,” he started, “I don’t know who you think you are, but if you knew anything about me, you’d know that I have spent the past two years working to get the kemono integrated in to society. I have no desire to rule any country- I wish only for the acceptance of our kind in society. And I seriously hope this is your idea of a sick joke. Now, if you don’t leave, I’m going to call the police and have them escort you from the premises.”
He reached for the phone, but as he did Malakai’s hand jerked forward and grabbed the cord. He yanked it, pulling the phone off the desk and flinging it so hard that it smashed against the far wall. Deuce blinked in shock, then glared up at the other man. “What is your problem!?”
Malakai ignored the question. “You can’t mean to tell me that you haven't felt the least bit of anger at the government for what was done to you- for the horrors you’ve seen around you. It’s our time now! We deserve retribution for being turned in to monsters- and your little housing project and a tiny charity is not enough to make it equal! I demand their blood!”
Deuce pressed back in his chair. “Look, buddy... I don’t know what you want from me, but I think you need to see someone-”
“I told you, I want you to raise me an army. The kemono will listen to you- if you tell them that they must take up arms against the humans, then it will be so. You're a ‘well-respected member of the community’, after all. Join forces with me, and it will be worth your while. If we rule, the humans will HAVE to accept us! They’ll have no choice but to bow to us as their masters!”
Deuce shuddered as Malakai’s eyes flashed brilliantly, almost as though they were unable to contain the hatred he felt. The lion-eagle took a few moments and ran Malakai’s words through his head, then he scowled. “You’re insane. Get out of my office, right now!”
Malakai reached down and slowly pulled off one of the heavy leather gloves, sighing as he did so. He flexed his fingers, examining his claws before he looked at Deuce. “See, I’m so disappointed in you right now... That was the wrong answer.”
Deuce’s eyes widened and he tried to let out a scream, but his cry was cut short and drowned out by the sounds of dump trucks outside the trailer. A few minutes later Malakai came outside, pulling his glove on as he did so. He stopped only briefly to lock the trailer door and turn the sign on the outside to “Out to Lunch” before he walked down the ramp, fishing a phone from his pocket as he went. On his way out of the construction area he dialed Este.
“Plan B. Thirty minutes.” He shoved the phone back in his pocket and kept walking, heading boldly down the crowded streets of Shibasaki.
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