The Other Side of Life (Book #1, Cyberpunk Elven Trilogy)
Page 22
Nin held her hands in his. Tears started to well up in Anya’s eyes.
“Why’d you do it?” Anya implored, unable to hold it in any longer. “Why didn’t you…just let me die instead…let me take the arrowhead? Why’d you have to give your life away?”
“I’m not dead…just living in a different realm…one I have to wander alone,” Nin began. “And I’d still have protected you, even if I knew it would have killed me. I didn’t do it for anyone—I did it for you.”
“What’s the point if you’re not here?” Anya let her emotions go.
Nin was silent for a moment. He felt Anya’s distress as much as she did. “It’s strange…” he uttered, gently wiping away one of her tears. He didn’t mean to make her feel worse.
“What is?” Anya whispered back, wondering what could possibly be any stranger.
“You would have done the same,” Nin said, “if you’d been in my place. You don’t think of it that way when death is staring at…someone you care about. You’d have done the same. Even a psychopath like Julius found it in himself to die for someone he cared about.”
Anya knew that was true. How did he know? She wanted to say so much, without knowing where to begin.
“I watched you go,” Anya said quietly, wishing with all her being that they could trade places. It felt more just to her, that way.
Nin gave her a hug, giving her a kiss on the side of her neck. “I tasted the lips of an angel, in my final moments,” Nin whispered back. “Yours, I believe?” He echoed the first words he ever said to Anya, when they had first met.
“Why,” Anya wanted to ask one more time, but let the silence and Nin’s company soothe her instead.
Anya lost herself in his violet eyes for a moment, grateful he had come to see her, and was looking over her, in a way, just as he said he would. Nin seemed to want to say something, before he reached for the cord—his pendant—around Anya’s neck.
“Did you ever think you’d…” Reach Na’urtha? Anya didn’t finish.
She wondered about Na’urtha—what it looked like, who was there, if there was any chance…
“No,” Nin replied simply. “It’s a privilege to be among the chosen few.”
They spoke to each other like they’d known each other forever. Anya could count the number of hours that had passed, since the first time she had seen Nin. It could have something to do, with what he said about the Elven sense of time, being a little bit different from that of humans.
“Can I ever join you,” Anya asked tentatively, “on…the other side?” It felt a little bit blasphemous, to even consider the possibility. But she had to ask. “Will I ever be worthy enough?”
Nin looked away for a moment, averting her pleading gaze. “You’ve got to be an elf first…”
She was weighed down by the predicament she found herself in. The realization of him being in another place continued to rain down on her heart and soul.
Anya had barely heard his answer. Maybe she didn’t want to. For now, she remained comforted by his presence.
Nin slid a hand around her waist, and pulled her in close.
“I’d say you’re the best thief I’ve ever known…” he said, with a smoldering intensity.
“How so?” Anya whispered, enjoying the familiar comfort and feel of his body.
“Because you…stole something no one ever could…my heart,” Nin replied with a kiss, under the moonlight.
They held each other, close, each yearning for the other. Their hearts had met at one moment—at the same point, and the same instance—somewhere along the way, in the short time they had spent together.
“But remember…” Anya said slowly, once what Nin said had sunk in. “I return what isn’t mine…”
There has to be a way, to get you back, Anya’s heart called out to Nin.
There just has to be.
~~~~~
Author Q&A
The following interview was originally published in late 2010 @ The Internet Crashed..
1. Share your vital data with us: Who are you? What have you done? Why should we adore you?
Jess: I’m an author/artist/non-conformist (and English/Business senior at Adams State College). I’ve been tweaking The Other Side of Life, the first book in an urban fantasy/cyberpunk series for some time, because I wanted the concept of “cyberpunk elves” to be more than a marketing label. My debut book was a blog/IM novel; my second book was a multiple-genre-crossing erotic short story collection. My resistance to crass commercialism (at the expense of authenticity and originality) is probably due to the fact that I’m an uber ambitious INFJ (with a “vision” and “purpose”)!
2. What got you into cyberpunk?
Bladerunner concept art! I first had the idea for “cyberpunk elves” in late 2008. Some meanderings eventually led me to understand the soul/attitude of cyberpunk (kinda roundabout; just the way I do things / I like chaotic order).
3. What element of cyberpunk really appeals to you now?
a) The negative impact of technology on humanity
b) The rigidly divided social order + corporate control
c) The blurred divisions between man and machine
These are relevant in the present day, and are the cyberpunk concepts which have guided me throughout the evolution of the book’s plot.
4. What is your favorite cyberpunk work (other than your own)? How has this work influenced you?
William Gibson’s Neuromancer, George Orwell’s 1984 (the novel kind of is the genesis of cyberpunk literature), and the works of Alvin Toffler.
I liked the first for its visual power and imagery, and setting the tone for the genre. I found the second very stylish also–I love George Orwell’s keen intelligence, wit, profound awareness of social injustice, intensity, and passion for clarity in language. The third, well, he’s a brilliant genius (along with his wife, Heidi Toffler).
5. What are your biggest influences besides cyberpunk or urban fantasy works?
Anything/everything by Edgar Allan Poe, Oscar Wilde, John Ruskin, Vladimir Nabokov, Roald Dahl, D. H. Lawrence, and many other “old school classics.”
6. What elements of urban fantasy resonate with cyberpunk?
Relevance (urban fantasy is set in contemporary times; cyberpunk is the near-future), and style.
Ethereal fantasy elements + Rebelliousness of cyberpunk = Edgy Chic (if I had to use a fashion term…).
7. How are your magical elves “cyberpunk”?
They’re counterculture hackers, and are self-identified outcasts within the Elven establishment. I have a bit of a parallel universe going on in the first book (as a subplot), and some bionic elements. They’re underground (metaphorically, and literally). I’ll have some “variant hominid species” concept going on in the second book. I let the details evolve along the way, for the characters to capture the soul of cyberpunk.
P.S. They’re Tolkienesque elves, in terms of stature (not the Santa type elves, which I personally prefer to call gnomes or pixies). Not all of them have long hair.
8. What do you think is the most important issue facing the today that was predicted by cyberpunk?
There are so many. If I had to settle on one, I think it’d be the impact of technology on the human race, partly because of its pervasiveness and speed of advancement. The impact on us–physiologically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually–is significant, yet easy to ignore/dismiss, due to the convenience and relative “harmlessness” of electronic communications.
Futuristically-speaking, this inspired a speculative short story I wrote called Evolution (published by Xenith @ http://www.xenith.net/xenithmag/jess-c-scott-evolution/).
9. What do you think is the future of cyberpunk?
It won’t be a genre–it’ll be the way of life.
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About the author:
Jess writes edgy/contemporary fiction, and is an English/Business senior at Adams State College.
Jess’s literary work has appe
ared in a diverse range of publications, such as Word Riot, ITCH Magazine, and The Battered Suitcase. She is currently working on the second book (gluttony) in the Sins07 “seven deadly sins” series, and The Darker Side of Life (Book #2 in the Cyberpunk Elven Trilogy).
She enjoys the speed and efficiency of indie publishing, and thanks you for your support of indie authors.
Other Books by Jess C Scott
EyeLeash: A Blog Novel (teenage memoir / sexting)
Porcelain (portfolio of written + illustrative work)
Business Plan (building brand identity)
Business Plan (on positive thinking)
1: The Intern (Book01 [Lust] in the Sins07 series)
Take-Out (interracial)
Sven (upcoming incubus-themed anthology)
Connect with Jess Online:
Facebook: http://facebook.com/jesscscott
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jesscscott
Website: http://www.jesscscott.com
E-mail: missfey@gmail.com
If you enjoyed TOSoL (Book #1)…
Please tell two friends who you think might enjoy it too :)
Thanks!
And feel free to let me see your thoughts/comments/suggestions via a review, or by email.
missfey@gmail.com
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