Writing

About my book:
I’m writing a novel! I’m hoping I’ll get it published one day.

Synopsis:

When Koa is picked up from the streets by the hero Lily, he isn’t sure what’s going to happen next. As he’s forced to apply as a hero by a mysterious force that wills him to accept, he’s thrown into a world of heroic deeds that’s obviously not a place for him. As Koa dives deeper into the world of heroes and investigates the mysterious Hero’s Association, he discovers it’s not all that it seems. Something sinister lies in this picture-perfect world, and it’s not just Nyx, Lily’s villainous rival. Something is off about everything, and Lily seems to be the center of it all.

Read the draft on Wattpad. Updates on Saturdays 12 AM PST. I try to be consistent, but so far it’s… not.

Here’s the prologue and Chapter 1 to pique your interest:

Prologue

The laboratory was quiet.

The only sound was the soft hum emanating from the large, tube-like container in the center of the lab. A soft blue light pulsed from the liquid as it softly bubbled.

Inside the tube slept a child– roughly 6 years old— hugging its legs tightly. It breathed softly through the mask on its face, its eyes closed. Floating in the liquid, tubes and wires supporting its body, keeping it alive.

A woman stepped up to the tube, looking up at the child in awe. “Experiment A-117. Successful,” she breathed. “It’s beautiful.”

Someone followed her, stopping beside her and gazing up at the creation. “Indeed. Your Sight was crucial in this experiment. Well done, Serpent.”

“Always a pleasure to work with you, Martyr.” She glanced at the person beside her. “Are you sure about this whole… setup?”

“It’s my code name, isn’t it? Don’t worry, Serpent. This is all part of the plan.” Martyr smiled grimly. “This role was given to me on purpose. The only thing I can do is play my part.”

Serpent stifled a sigh and looked up to the experiment. Its eyes twitched but it did not wake.

“I’m rather concerned about this experiment,” Martyr’s head tilted slightly. “It has been having… dreams of late.”

“Dreams…?” Serpent turned her head towards Martyr. “Of what?”

“Death,” Martyr’s eyes didn’t leave the child. “Carnage. Massacre. At least, that’s what the brain waves have been translated to. They start off normal and then ultimately result in utter destruction and massacre.”

“Impossible. We’ve only ever been broadcasting positive images,” Serpent looked at Martyr, aghast. “How could this possibly have happened?”

“Free will is often a curse.”

“You mean… A117…”

Martyr nodded solemnly. “Yes. If this continues, A117 will be the biggest threat to humanity. If these violent thoughts continue, we might have to terminate–”

“No,” Serpent clenched her fists. “If we terminate now, we might never see an experiment as successful as this.”

“Serpent,” Martyr’s eyes slid over to her. “This… thing has the power to destroy the world. The universe. It’s dangerous and volatile, especially if we can’t get it to be subordinate.”

“No,” she said firmly. “I’ll find a way to fix it. We have to continue. For the world. For peace. For the perfect hero.”

20 years later…

Chapter 1

Concrete was not on Koa’s list of things he wanted to eat, but here he was, his mouth planted on the hard, gravelly asphalt.

Laughter sounded from above as a hand slammed his face back into the ground when he tried to get back up. “Hey, c’mon! You’re a Sight user! Can’t you just mushroom-cloud us right now? Or are you too scared?” A glob of spit landed dangerously close to Koa’s face and he gritted his teeth, straining his arms to try and get up.

A foot planted on his head and pressed down, grinding his forehead against the ground. “Sight-user my ass. Where’s your crazy strength? Your laser eyes? Your frost breath? Huh? Huh?” Laughter sounded from above, mocking and cruel. “You’re lucky I’m not using my own Sight. I could make ya wish ya were dead. Yer no better than a fogger.” Damn, hard ‘r’?

Pain ricocheted across his body as a foot kicked him in the side. He grunted and rolled over, facing the sky. An ugly face marked by scars loomed over him, a yellow mouth with a serious underbite leering at him.

He averted his gaze and looked out into the sky.

In the distance, he could see the top of the tallest tower in the city shining in the sunlight- The Hero’s Headquarters. It sounded lame and plain, but no one dared to laugh at it.

Heroes.

People who can use Sight for good, to stop villains plaguing the world.

No one really knows how Sights were discovered, or why they appeared, but the moment the first Sight user was born about two centuries ago, the world plunged into chaos until the first hero appeared. After decades of the world almost collapsing on itself, heroes managed to save it. From there, heroes and the country Solaris rose to power.

Well, technically, it was the United States before, but no one calls Solaris that anymore.

And the Hero’s Headquarters were located at the heart and capital of Solaris– Lucen. Previously Washington D.C., but no one cares about that useless information.

The past is the past.

Anyways.

Annual Sight tests were held there, and if a person tested positive, they got the choice of either becoming a Hero or getting a Sight cuff slapped onto their wrist.

Unless, of course, you discovered that you have Sight some other way…

A foot kicked him again and Koa grunted in pain, trying to roll away.

Some Sight user he was! Not even able to activate his Sight, even at the age of 18. Most could use it at 6.

What good was it, anyway?

He didn’t even know what it was. The only time it came in handy was when it healed his wounds quickly.

Koa sighed and lay there on the ground and looked up at the sky.

There wasn’t much he could do about the pain he was going through.

“Hey, don’t tell me he’s dead!” A hand grabbed the front of his shirt and roughly pulled him up. The man sneered when he saw Koa coughing for breath. “Nah, he’s good.”

Koa was tossed to the ground, his head colliding painfully with a nearby dumpster. The ugly man and his goons laughed and walked away, probably feeling proud of themselves for beating up a useless Sight user for fun.

Koa lay there for a bit, dazed. He struggled to get up and when he did, almost collapsed again.

He hissed softly as he leaned against the dumpster, a hand on his side as the side of his chest throbbed with fiery pain.

It felt like a fractured rib– and he also probably hit his head a bit too hard on that dumpster.

“Fucking hell…” he mumbled before limping out of the alley. Bright sunlight greeted him and he squinted against the harsh daylight. The sun reflected off of the Hero’s Headquarters, nearly blinding him. For the past 5 years, he’d been suffering in the streets while heroes lived comfortably, saved comfortably, thought comfortably.

People looked at Koa and avoided eye contact with him, shuffling away and muttering to themselves.

Of course.

A homeless guy– who was also beaten up– was obviously not worth looking at.

Or maybe people thought that if they ignored him they wouldn’t have to help them.

Koa barked out a laugh and leaned against a building wall, catching his breath.

Stupid heroes, he thought bitterly. Am I not worth saving? Is it because I’m only homeless? Not suffering enough to be saved?

He sat down, leaning his head forward. The tangy, savory smell of grilled sausages wafted over from a nearby hotdog cart, his stomach roaring in response to the enticing scent.

His eyes closed and he fell asleep there, too tired and exhausted to do anything else.

Days of going to sleep hungry.

Days of wandering around and stealing food from restaurants and food delivery drones.

Days of avoiding homeless gangs.

I wish it would all end… one way or another…

He nodded asleep, not realizing that today would be the last day of his suffering.

And then the world exploded into flames.