Database of Death - Chapter 1

Here's the continuation of the synopsis and prologue of my novel Database of Death; which follows James Turner as the one who notices unearthly modification of history. I hope you enjoy it!

James woke up, only to find himself in a hospital ward, with a unknown face staring at him. The unearthly room had a spotless, white ceiling which seemed to shine in the bright light. He had to squint to see anything, but everything was blurry, and it felt as if he bore the world on his shoulders. This, in more than one sense, was true. He was scared. Was this really a hospital? Had he been kidnapped? Slowly, his eyes began to focus, and soon he could see again. He tried to sit up, and noticed that all of the broken bones and splinters he had been left with when the library caved in on him had disappeared. Now, his injuries consisted of nothing but a few minor scratches on his leg.
   "James? James?" The nurse talked with a soothing voice, and he looked down at him curiously.
   "Where am I? What happened?" James croaked. He had not yet regained full strength, and was unable to move properly. He looked around, but his whole body ached. His head hurt, and his legs still felt numb.
   "Don't strain yourself," said the nurse. He had dark brown hair and observant green eyes. He headed towards the door and said, "Don't worry, your parents are outside. I'll tell them to come in."

James was still bewildered. It must have been a coincidence. He must have been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Maybe he had lost his memory. No, he remembered it so clearly; being in the library, the ceiling caving in on him, the film he was going to watch with Alex... It was in the back of his mind, but it was still there. His mother came into the room. She was a tall, strict-looking woman, but she was very kind. She had always loved him very dearly, read him bed-time stories and helped him with his homework... it was terrible to think that he was so close from losing his life. But according to the evidence, he wasn't so close from losing his life. His mum rushed over to embrace him.
   "James! We were so worried! It was horrifying to think that such a terrible thing happened to you!" The tears streamed down her face.
   "Don't pressurise him. He's still very weak. It seems as though he tripped over, perhaps on some ice, outside that shopping centre on George Street. We think that he suffered a concussion. But he'll be OK soon." The nurse's attempt to comfort James's mum was not very successful.
   By then James's dad had entered the room too. He was rather short, and wore a striped purple t-shirt. He had also been very worried.
   James interrupted. "No, that didn't happen! I was in the central library! I think the whole library collapsed. You know, the library on George Street!" His parents both looked at him, puzzled.
   "James, there is no library on George Street," his dad said discreetly.
   "But I was in there, borrowing some books! I'll show you my bag!"James exclamed. He pulled his bag towards him, and opened it. It was empty. "What's going on?"
   "I'm sorry, Mr and Mrs Turner. Short-term memory loss is one of the side effects of concussions. His mind is playing tricks on him." The nurse's voice had a queer robotic concernedness to it.
   James was perplexed. Suddenly he wasn't sure of anything; he was dazed. Something mysterious was going on.

At that moment, a few hundred miles away, Shakti Jones grinned. Her little experiment had worked. Now, there was no stopping her - she had discovered the world's best kept secret - a secret involving paranormal energy. She had gained access to the Database of Death.

I hope you like the story so far! Come back soon for Chapter 2. Please leave comments and suggestions!

Merlin

For the last few weeks I've been following a 2008 BBC TV series; that the Swedish TV company SVT bought recently. It's called Merlin, and it's a fascinatingly magical series, based on the character of Merlin featured in the ancient Arthurian legend. So far I've watched three episodes, and they have all been very good. I suppose at times the graphics can be a bit Powerpoint Bollywood, but with such great storylines, this is no problem at all.

The first episode introduces the mythical wizard Merlin, and his arrival in Camelot. He is a remarkably talented sorcerer who keeps his magic secret after learning the laws of magic in Camelot. Magic was banned in the kingdom by Uther, the king, twenty years ago, due to its harmful effects. He meets the intelligent physician Gaius, who helps him sort out his 'new life' in Camelot. At the beginning of the episode, a man is killed as part of a death sentence for using magic in Camelot. His mother intends to take revenge, by morphing into a performer who was meant to sing in the big 20-year celebration feast. At the last moment, she tries to kill Arthur using magic, but Merlin prevents her by pushing Arthur out of the way. As his 'reward', he gets to become Arthur's servant. He finds out from the last dragon in the kingdom that his destiny is to protect Arthur. He becomes Arthur's friend from this point on.


The second episode is about a sword-fighting tournament, in which one of the knights, Knight Valiant has a magic serpent-shield to kill his opponents. As Valiant is about to kill Arthur (who is considered the best in the kingdom), Merlin cautiously manages to reveal the serpents, and Arthur claims victory.

In the latest (third) episode, Merlin and Gaius defeat an afanc, a clay monster imposed by the evil witch Nimueh, who infests Camelot's water system. Those who drink the water die. Gwen, someone who he supposedly fancies, plays a big role in this episode and Morgana gains knowledge of his secret.

Over all, I think this TV series is very exciting and it's definitely something to watch - the BBC has really succeeded with making a magical series, based on an collection of old, fictional tales. I intend to watch every single 45-minute episode in this 13-episode series. Due to its popularity, the BBC has decided to make a second series to be shown this year! That I am really looking forward to, and I would recommend this series to anyone!

Database of Death - Synopsis and Prologue - 1

I thought I'd start writing a story, and an idea sprung into my head, about someone who gets access to a database which contains all past, present and future history. Here's a synopsis:

Imagine that you had the power to change history. To change what's happened, what's happening now, and what's going to happen. The greatest power mankind has experienced. Shakti Jones, a run-of-the-mill schoolchild suddenly finds herself with access to the database. She starts modifying history, convinced that her actions are benifiting the world. James Turner is the only one who notices. He must take action before the world's fate ends up in the wrong hands, and time runs out. He must destroy the Database of Death. Wikipedia. Gone bad.

The Wikipedia-gone-bad concept is quite terrifying. I haven't planned the story much yet, but I've got the basic outline above. But things are bound to change, and Database of Death is a working title. I've got the first draft of the prologue below. I probably won't update it often, maybe every once in a while. Enjoy, and please leave comments and suggestions!

James thanked the librarian and left the room. He placed the three 400-page science-fiction books in his bag, and headed to the staircase. He received a text from Alex, his best friend, asking him where he was. James replied; saying he would be down as quick as possible. He had promised Alex that they'd watch a film, and it was starting in fifteen minutes. He hastily began to descend from the third floor. But suddenly, before anyone could notice, the ceiling came hurtling down at an unimaginable pace. James gasped for breath. He had become immobilised, and an unbearable sensation of numbness and pain snaked from his heart outward, through every vain, to each and every millimetre of his body, like a terminal virus. The sound of the crash was deafening, and it felt as if his mind had been blindfolded. Not soon later, as he lost consciousness, the whole world darkened and eventually vanished. The following series of mysterious events would leave him as the only one who knew the secret. From this moment on, James's life had changed forever.

Welcome back and Happy New Year!

Hi! I'd like to welcome you back to my revamped blog. I hope you had a great new year! I thought that the previous logo was becoming old and monotonous, so I decided to liven it up with some more colour and a much nicer font! I've also put up lanterns for the Lunar New Year!

First of all, I was playing with a few new Blogger templates; Notepad Chaos among others, but after weeks of playing with them, deciding, checking things like flexibility, structure and design, I decided to stay with my current design - which I think looks great. But I didn't want to have the same old logo.

So, after browsing on Dafont.com, I chose this new 'mean handwriting' font. I also found some Lunar New Year decorations on HongKiat. Now it's all done, and I'm looking forward to a great year of fun blogging! So don't forget to come here often and maybe even add me to your RSS reader (for new readers, I'd just like to say that the title is completely random!).

Over my wonderful Wallace and Gromity, Eastendersy and Doctor Who-ey Christmas and New Year, I have got many books and watched lots of TV programmes and films, and have travelled quite a bit, so expect some reviews soon (Doctor Who, A Wrinkle in Time, Day of the Triffids and Necropolis among others)!

Oh, and I shan't forget the Lunar New Year! I'd like to wish all of you who celebrate the festival a wonderful new year of the ox! Have fun! On the subject of the Lunar New Year, remember, if you prefer to read in Chinese/中文 (simplified/简体 and traditional/繁體), Korean/한국어 or Vietnamese/Tiếng Việt, this blog is available in (hopefully not too dodgy) translations! One more thing - this is the start of my series of posts on Chinese culture. They will continue throughout the Spring. Enjoy my blog, please leave comments, and come back soon!

Oslo! The capital of Norway!

So, here I am, writing in a hotel in Oslo, the capital of Norway, one of the only non-EU european countries. I came on a 6 hour train journey yesterday, which was rather tiring to say the least. But it's great so far! We visited a much-reknowned place yesterday: Aker Brygge, which is like a harbourside-cum-shopping centre-cum-very expensive restaurant centre-cum-Christmas market. The Christmas market was lovely; drowned in beautiful lights, and selling lovely things. I will post some photos later. It was a pity that everything was so overpriced, I mean, is 50 Norwegian Kroner (£5/$10/€7.50) the right price to pay for a 400 g stollen cake? I doubt it. But it was fun to visit. We also took a tram ride up to Grünerløkka, the Greenwich/Camden-y area, and the tram since it was late (OK, 8pm isn't that late, but it gets pitch black at about 4pm in Oslo), it was nice, because we saw lots of Christmas lights on the way. Now I'm about to eat breakfast, and I'll update this very post later. Come back soon!

The Christmas Series - Part 3 - Christmas Media in the UK

What would Christmas be without the media? TV, radio, the internet, magazines, books, shops, online stores, newspapers, theatres, cinemas... the list is endless. Every year the UK media blows up with Christmas cheer... and this year is no different! So I thought I'd give a little preview of what we can expect to see this Christmas.


This year, UK TV viewers can expect to watch a whole array of Christmas specials. Starting with 'The Snowman' and 'A Christmas Carol'; Christmas Eve classics, we can also expect to see Jacqueline Wilson's 'Dustbin Baby' bought to life and a special Eastenders in which Dot's son Nick returns to (wreck?) Christmas. The Doctor Who Christmas special 'The Next Doctor' is something not to be missed. A dramatised version of the spooky 'Crooked House' will air, as well as another episode of the ever-loved programme Wallace and Gromit; A Matter of Loaf and Death. Michael Palin retraces his steps to Mumbai and Dubai, which he last visited twenty years ago, as well as the Keeping up Appearances and the Blackadder Christmas specials airing! Top of the Pops returns too, along with the final of Strictly Come Dancing and a whole list of films and repeats!

Bookstores and clothes stores go mad at Christmas, with all the shops trying to lure their customers with pre-Christmas 'sales', which are likely to be slashed in half on Boxing Day. Online stores are also extremely popular this Christmas; sales of up to one thousand per minute were recorded on Play.com!

Theatre productions such as the Dickensian 'A Christmas Carol' and pantomimes return, and hundreds of streets will be lit up, as well as loads of markets being set up. London is probably one of the best places to be around Christmas - so much festive spirit!!

I'll return with another Christmassy post soon! I hope you enjoyed reading; please leave comments!

The Christmas Series - Part 2 - A little pre-Christmas poem

You may have noticed that I've gone absolutely overboard with the decorations on the blog - and that's because I love Christmas! Everything about it! Dressing the tree, opening the presents, walking down lit up streets - everything! I'm mad about Christmas! I hope you like the blog decorations - please leave comments! And, since there's only three weeks left until Christmas day, I thought I'd kick off with a little pre-Christmas poem! Enjoy!

The stockings are up,
We've dressed the tree,
In three weeks exactly
It's Christmas to be.

We've baked the mince pies,
The pudding's in the pot,
Now I come to mention it -
I see, we've made a lot!

The fireplace mantle is
Covered with cards,
And outside the window
It's snowing quite hard!

We've done lots of shopping,
We've seen all the sales,
Our house is so packed,
So much to unveil!

Now we're getting ready,
Watching TV and more,
Singing all the carols,
Like no Christmas before!

Now I'm in Hyde Park,
In the Winter Wonderland,
The lovely Christmas market,
It's going just as planned.

We've been to the theatre,
The pantomimes we've seen!
A Christmas Carol - charming!
What a great time it's been!

But now we will all wait here,
Till the joyful Christmas morn',
To open all our presents,
We're waiting for the dawn...