Woe Is Me - Book 1.5 [The Birth Of Woe Is Me]

[OUT OF DATE. MULTIPLE FIXES]

Back To The Wall

Avery looked around in a daze. She was sitting on the ground, had her back to the wall, and she could taste blood in her mouth. Her ribs, head, jaw, and pretty much everything hurt. She reached up to her head, then realised that something was seriously wrong.

Where’s Talon? Where’s my hat?

She looked around, and picked up one of Talon’s feathers. Talon dropped down to land on her shoulder, but her wing was obviously damaged.

Avery sobbed. “Talon! Fly back to The Torch Flower before the ship’s too far away!”

Talon shook her head.

Avery snarled and pushed her away. “Go Talon! Now! You’re injured.”

Talon hovered there for a second. “Man The Rigging! Climb The Sails!”

Avery shouted. “Please Talon? I just need to be alone!”

Talon grudgingly accepted this, and Avery was furious as she saw how Talon struggled to fly. The parrot had been injured defending her, due to her own stupidity! Why did she always do everything wrong?

Avery immediately regretted sending Talon away! She regretted everything. She looked around in panic.

They took my hat! Where's my hat?

The five gang members who had attacker her were sprawled on the cobblestones around her, and there seemed to be quite a lot of blood. Avery checked herself over. Although she was bruised, had several cuts, and her mouth was bleeding, she wasn't seriously hurt?

It’s not my blood? It's their blood? What happened? Oh no! Please no! What did I do?

One of the boys was groaning, and his arm was at a strange angle, another had cuts on his ear, obviously from Talon’s claws. Three of the gang members didn’t seem to be in any hurry to regain consciousness. The final boy was the one who’d stolen her hat. He was sitting with his back against the opposite wall, and as their eyes met, he looked at Avery in terror. She suspected most of the blood was his, given it was streaming from his nose. Otherwise he seemed uninjured, a fact that he proved as he rushed to his feet to run away.

Avery winced in pain as she got back to her feet, realising just how badly she’d been beaten. She panicked again and checked her axe. With relief she noted it was still attached to her thigh and it hadn't been used, because that would have been really bad! She looked around the other boys, and confirmed they were all still breathing.

I didn’t kill anyone! Just calm down! They didn't steal my shards or my axe! I didn't kill them! It's fine! Just stay calm! Where’s my hat?

─── ‡ ✦ ‡ ───

After escaping from her father to join the crew of the Torch Flower, Avery had one of her ‘episodes’ as her father used to call them. He wasn’t her father! Avery hated him! She’d escaped! But she’d still had an episode all the same. Avery had hidden in the crow’s nest for two full days, refusing to speak to anyone. She screamed at anyone who tried to climb the rigging, until they left her alone.

After Avery finally came back down, Bear had given her a massive hug and she’d cried into his shoulder. Bear understood. Avery had been badly sunburned in those two days, so Captain had given Avery a hat to protect her from the sun. It wasn’t a new hat at the time, and was now more sun-bleached than before.

It was no more than a simple, faded, brown, wide-brimmed hat. Avery nearly always wore her hat.

Avery’s hat was her most important possession!

That was because Avery’s hat did more than just protect her from the sun. Avery’s hat protected her from people! Avery could tip her hat down in order to avoid peoples eyes. Everyone looked at Avery like she was crazy, because Avery was crazy. Avery was broken! Avery was wrong! Avery had a condition! Avery’s hat let her avoid everyone’s gazes as they looked at her like a freak! Avery’s hat shielded her! Avery’s hat made her feel safe!

Avery sobbed. “The crew never called me crazy! They never called me broken! They never called it a condition! They never called it an episode! But I’m having an episode right now all the same! But it’s fine! Where’s my hat? They stole my hat! Calm down! Everything’s fine! I just need my hat! Where’s my hat?”

─── ‡ ✦ ‡ ───

Avery managed to retain a semblance of calm, right up until she spotted her hat on the cobblestones. It was ripped, covered in mud, and quite a lot of blood. Her hat was wrong! Her hat couldn’t be fixed, just like Avery couldn’t be fixed! Her hat was broken, just like Avery was broken! Another sob escaped her as she fell to her knees in misery.

No! Please no! Not my hat!

She recognised the voice of the gang member that had stolen her hat “That's her! She’s crazy! She broke Mauler's arm, and I think she killed Milko!”

Avery looked around to see that he’d brought another six gang members, who were looking at her and the four boys lying on the ground in amazement. One of the girls said fiercely. “You're going to learn not to mess with the Dock Side gangs girl.”

Avery glared at the gang. “You got blood on my hat!”

The girl replied. “Look at her! She's cracked! And look at that pouch of shards! We'll definitely be taking that! Take her apart.”

Avery got back to her feet. “Yes, I’m cracked! Like an egg! You’re going to take me apart? Oh really? Oh woe is me!”

Upon seeing the look on Avery's face as she stepped forward to meet them, the gang members fled in terror…

TDIACLS Book 1.5 - Woe Is Me

The Legend Of Woe Is Me

Draft. First Third Only. Rest Is Spoilers

Legend has it that a demon wreathed in soul fire was first seen gliding over the ocean one afternoon. As this demon flew towards Port Amarite, she transformed into the figure of an innocent young girl and dropped into the waves. She was then spotted swimming into port, so weak she could barely climb the ladder onto the pier.

Despite the fact that the young girl had obviously swum to the docks, so wasn’t due any tithe, she was apprehended by the corrupt Port Authorities. The Port Authorities tried to charge her to enter the city. She refused to pay, and as they tried to oppose her, she walked straight through them. She threw them aside like skittles. Whistles were blown, and the Militia came to assist, and as twenty of them descended on her, she knocked them aside with a sweep of her hand.

The Port Authorities converged on her position, but they couldn’t locate her. She had simply disappeared.

Later that evening, a girl fitting the same description was spotted walking lost through the docks, carrying a large bag of shards. She already had a price on her head, and was carrying a magical axe. So the gangs lured her into the warehouse district where they lay in ambush for her. The West Side Dockers’ fifty best warriors descended on her with crossbows, spears and swords. They attacked her as one to steal her enchanted axe, her shards, but most importantly, the source of her magical power. Her hat!

The battle was furious, but in the end there were only two still standing. The demon girl didn’t kill them, instead putting all but one of them in the infirmary. She only let the final gang member escape so that he could spread word of her coming.

Looked down in horror, the demon realised that in the fight she'd managed to get blood on her hat (none of it hers of course) and she was furious.

The final gang member spread word of her coming, so the East and North Dockers rose to the challenge. They surrounded the demon girl until there were now 60 of them.

The bravest of the gang members looked at the injured lying on the ground in shock, then queried. "Who are you? We’re going to take you apart!"

The demon then uttered the legendary words. “Woe Is Me!”

As Woe Is Me looked at the 60 gang members surrounding her, her eyes flared like hot coals. She whispered to them. “You got blood on my hat!”

Taking one look at her glowing red eyes, every single one of them did the sensible thing. They ran for their lives...

This is an image of Avery generated using AI prompts.

It is a scene from "Within That Dark A Single Flame"

It won't be used in the final book.

Work In Progress - Thorn / Reva vs Woe