Silver Falcon

@zadafalcon

Space fantasy 🐉 author (dragons & animal pilots), avid reader, scientist, nerd, gamer. Newsletter signup with free dragon stories at my website: www.christamandler.com

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Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· 26d

What stage of writing am I in? Working on Book 2! Progress is slow but steady. Just working on it a little at a time. It still doesn't have a working title... Someday it'll tell me what it wants to be called! #FantasyIndiesJuly

Fantasy Indies July 17: What stage of writing are you in?

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· 26d

Renard is a runt, meaning he was the smallest and weakest of his litter. Normally, he wouldn't have been able to survive, but he did! A large part of his arc is him grappling with that. Also he used to be my childhood imaginary friend. I've known him for a very long time. #SummerofStories

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· 27d

Okay animal companions! Um, my book is all animal characters, so it's nothing but "animal companions." If you ever read a book with an amazing animal companion and wished they had their own book, you are my kind of people! Examples: Renard and Jenette #FantasyIndiesJuly

Jenette: a vixen with golden brown eyes.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· 29d

I am so excited to share some commissioned art of my characters! Behold: the man, the myth, the legend, THE RENARD and Jenette - hunter, pilot, all around badass - shown here in both four-legged and two-legged/pilot form Art by @stellahehe.bsky.social a joy to work with! #characterart #artreveal

Ref sheet for Renard, a red fox with blue eyes, wearing a bandana

Ref sheet for Jenette, a vixen with golden brown eyes, shown in four-legged and two-legged/pilot mode.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 13

"Almost." Jeri the botanist is confronted with direct evidence of magic. She is decidedly not having a good day! #WIPSnips

Jeri was stunned. Flabbergasted. She opened and closed her mouth several times, trying to find words. She raised her hands to her face to cover her eyes. No, it's not possible. That can't be possible! And yet- She remembered the conversation from yesterday. Oryn had said non-myths were non-magical creatures. Which implied the existence of magical ones. Creatures like dragons.
Jeri groaned. Her head started pounding. She felt dizzy. She knew deep in her bones it wasn't possible, magic was not real.
But up until a week ago I thought dragons weren't real! I knew that for certain as well. And if dragons were real... Well, fairy tales always said dragons were magical!
Jeri peeked through her fingers. No one had moved. No one spoke. Fine. Jeri thought. Fine, fine, FINE. She lowered her hands. Brandishing her notebook like a shield, she marched toward Crystal. "Okay, so you can do magic? I have questions."
Crystal nodded slightly. "Of course. I am a mage. In fact, I am Head Mage of the Community."
"Head Mage, like Martha is Head Healer, okay." Jeri entered that into her notebook. Then she pointed. "That—with the conch shell. Did you do that?"
The dragon raised an eyebrow. "Depends on what you mean by 'that.' If you mean making it appear and disappear, I did not do that. That conch is part of a network meant to communicate with the sea dragons. There are many of these cairns scattered up and down the coasts, and on some smaller islands as well. You can summon them from any of the stations."
"So like magical phone booths?"
"A bit like that, I suppose. Now, when the conch levitated from my claws and went back to the cairn? Yes, I did that. It's called telekinesis."
Jeri briefly pinched the bridge of her nose. "Fine. Okay, telekinesis. Is that all you can do?"
Crystal snorted. She reached out with one hand, towards the water. As the next wave crashed, a small band of water separated itself and floated over to Crystal. The band wrapped itself around the dragon's wrist. Then t…

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 12

In year FIVE on this farm, I FINALLY won the egg hunt! EAT MY SHIT ABIGAIL! #StardewValley

Victory over Abigail in the Stardew Valley egg hunt.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 6

I don't have fluffy friends. I have fish! This is my goldfish, Dream. He is almost 9 years old. I got him as a 8-cent feeder comet from the pet store. He is now bigger than my hand. His name used to be Orange Dream because he used to be orange. Then he decided he'd rather be white. He loves food.

A picture of a large white goldfish in a tank.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 5

I don't have bench in my WIP, so once again I will turn to my short story collection from my newsletter. This snip is from "Turncoat," the cave dragon short story. If you read this and think "This is Ace Attorney with Dragons" I have done my job right! Newsletter signup is on my website! #WIPSnips

Rockayus banged his gavel on the podium. “Court is now in session for the trial of Apprentice Mage Crystal. Is the prosecution ready?”
From the other side of the well, the prosecuting dragon nodded. “The prosecution is ready, High Dragon.”
Before I could contemplate my opposition, the High Dragon continued. “Is the defense ready?”
“The defense is ready, Your Honor, I mean High Dragon.” I felt my face flush as I cursed myself for my blunder.
Rockayus peered down at me. “Defense, approach the bench, if you would.”
Wincing, I bent down to whisper to my client. “Don’t worry, I’ll be right back,” and did as I was bid. I stood in front of the High Dragon, trying not to betray how badly I was shaking. Be strong for your client. Never let them see your fear, I repeated my lessons to myself.
“Alistair, is it?”
“Yes, High Dragon.”
“Hmm…” Rockayus rumbled. “This is your first trial, is it not?”
I winced. “Yes, High Dragon. I have only recently finished my apprenticeship. This is my first case.”
“An odd choice for a first case.”
I could feel myself blushing again. I knew I shouldn’t say anything, but I couldn’t resist. “With due respect, High Dragon, no one was exactly clamoring to take this case. Someone has to defend. I felt duty-bound to take it on.”
I heard restless mumbling in the gallery behind me. My jab had not fallen on deaf ears. I straightened my spine. I wouldn’t take back my words. Let the cowards stew. I had defending to do!
“Very well, you may return to your client.”
I stepped back and stood next to Crystal once more. I felt her tug at my elbow. I bent down so she could whisper to me. “Excuse me. This is your first case?!”

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 4

I don't talk about him much, but I'd pick my Gallimimus character, Speedy. He doesn't do a whole lot in the story. He's just quietly there, trying his best. He's anxious and nervous a lot of the time - he was bullied a lot. His solution trouble is to run away! But he'll always cheer you on!

Speedy, the Gallimimus who tries his best.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 4

For this Saturday Snippet, this is from my latest progress on my WIP! Jeri is learning about the different dragon species on Zada. Yes, of course there's more than one. Why have just one species of dragon? #FantasyIndiesJuly

As the sea dragon turned to dive back down to the waves, Jeri turned around and called to her. "Wait! I have a question."
The sea dragon paused and tilted her head to one side.
"You refer to yourself as 'we.' Why is that?"
Next to her, Crystal snorted as she tried not to laugh. Jeri ignored her.
The sea dragon's expression turned thoughtful. "Because... that is what we are. We think and act as one."
"So you're colonial? Eusocial? Like bees or ants?"
The sea dragon narrowed her eyes. "You should not compare dragons to insects. Good day." With that, the dragon turned and dove back beneath the waves.
Jeri turned to Crystal, who burst out laughing. "That... was hilarious," she wheezed. "Perfection. Oh my stars..."
"Okay, okay. So, sea dragons. We trust them to get the word out about the meeting?"
Crystal wiped her eyes. "There is not as much animosity between the marine dragons and the non-myths."
"Including the polar dragons, whatever those are?" Jeri clarified, opening her notebook again.
"Yes. They're both on better terms with their non-magical neighbors. Now, please don't make any unflattering comparisons to the polar dragons. They are not as forgiving as the sea dragons are."
"It was a valid comparison," Jeri grumbled.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 4

I'm still early in my WIP, but I think this scene fits the bill! Jeri is a botanist visiting Zada, an Earth-like planet inhabited by Earth animals who fled there aeons ago. Including dragons. #SummerOfStories #WritingCommunity #WriteSky #WritingPrompt

A yellowish green dragon stood in front of her, wings partly unfurled. Smoke leaked from his nostrils. His claws gouged at the rock floor as he spoke. Jeri didn't know much about dragon body language, but it didn't take an expert to tell that this dragon was clearly upset.
"Morten, I'm trying my best, and the Council agreed-"
Crystal's voice trailed off as Morten's nostrils flared. Suddenly his head whipped toward Jeri. "So it's true!" he roared. Before Crystal could stop him, Morten snaked his head past her, as close as he could get to Jeri without knocking Crystal aside, and glared at her. "YOU." The yellow-green dragon snarled. "How could you show your face here? We flee across the galaxy and it still isn't far enough to get away from you! What more can you take away from us?!"
Jeri stepped back, alarmed. "I haven't taken anything-"
"You might not have, but your ancestors sure did! You hunted us down, drove us from our homes! Worse, you forgot us! To your mind, we're nothing but myths, aren't we? The stuff of fairy tales? That's not just extinction: that's ERASURE. And now you've come to do it to us again! Well, I won't stand for it! I will not be erased!"
Jeri was sure she was crazy for doing so, but she steeled herself and walked forward.
"Jeri, be careful," Renard whispered.
Jeri didn't take her eyes off of Morten. When she was close enough to touch his snout, she stopped. She could feel the heat of his breath as he exhaled. His pupils were dilated with panic. Jeri stood up straight and met the dragon's eyes. "You're right. We did that to you. We destroyed you, and so many other species. And what we did was wrong. We let our greed get the better of us, and it cost us. It cost us our home too. And now we're trying to make it right. I promise, we're trying. We're trying to bring the people of the galaxy together, to cooperate instead of fighting. I'm not saying we're perfect, but we're trying and we need help. We need your help. We need you in the Alliance."

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 3

Nice! So far I am at 9 kittens!

Written? Kitten! One kitten for every 100 words. Current word count: 925.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 3

I may have posted this snip before... Well here it is again, if so! Jeri has no idea what she's getting into with this planet! #WIPSnips

Renard let out a breath. "Right. Let's start at the beginning. First of all: you're right. We came from Earth. Everything you see, every animal, every plant. Our ancestors are from Earth."
"How?" Jeri demanded, bewildered.
Renard opened and closed his mouth several times before answering. "We don't know. I know that's an unsatisfying answer, but it's the truth. We don't know how we got here. There are no records that survived from that time. We know about Earth, but not exactly how we got here."
Jeri knotted her fists into her hair. She could feel a splitting headache coming on. The implications of this were staggering. "Rosie said that this planet looked like Earth's identical twin, but this is ridiculous!" She looked up at Renard. "So this is basically Earth? Same ecology and everything?"
"I guess so," the fox said, shrugging. "I've never seen Earth myself."
"Neither have I." Jeri cracked a sardonic smile. "I've never been there."
"Really? Where were you born?"
"A colony on Titan. But no one goes to Earth anymore, no reason to."
Renard cocked his head to the side. "Why not?"
"Well, it's... it's dead. Nothing can live there anymore. Has been for... gosh... at least a century, maybe more?" She wished she'd paid more attention in history class.
Now it was Renard's turn to look shocked. "Dead? You mean it’s uninhabitable? To everything, or just humans?"
"I don't know. When we finally abandoned it, things were pretty dire. Mass extinctions. I've never seen a fox before, not outside of storybooks."
"Oh. Well, that explains a lot. I wondered why you were so startled when you saw me. They picked me to meet you because I'm cute and fluffy." He turned around, gesturing to his thick orange fur. "Non-threatening, yeah? But if I'm basically a mythical creature to you..."
Jeri huffed a laugh. "Yeah. A fox is as much of a fairy-tale creature to me as... as a dragon or something!"
"Hah, dragons... right." Renard's eyes darted to the side for a moment.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 2

We are vibing hard with this one! On the Intrepid, one does not knock to seek entry to a room. There's electronics for that! #WIPSnips

Jeri couldn't stop shaking. Why in the world would the captain summon her to his office? She had never said a word to the captain. She barely even saw him! The captain did not concern himself with the rank and file crew. Why would he? Being called to the captain's office out of the blue... It couldn't be good news.
All too quickly, she stood in front of the office doors. Hand shaking, she pressed the call button.
"Enter," the captain's voice boomed.
Jeri felt like she might faint. Steeling herself, she stepped into the room. Captain Green was behind his desk. Up close, he didn't look as imposing as she'd imagined. A middle-aged Black man with short cropped black hair. "You wanted to see me, sir?" Jeri squeaked.
Then he looked up at her. She fought the urge to run. His brown eyes seemed to bore right into her. Imposing. Yes. Definitely imposing.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jul 1

I did it! All medals earned. Now I get to do it again in Expert Mode! #StarFox

Corneria, Meteo, Fichina, Macbeth, Bolse, Venom 1

Map of Lylat system showing all routes unlocked and all normal medals earned

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 30

I had fun participating. Thank you to everyone who read and interacted with my posts! If you want to learn more about what I'm cooking, see my profile for my website link. Info and purchase links are there. I also have a newsletter with free short stories! See you in July! #FantasyIndiesJune

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 29

Oh I love it! That's such a lovely design. I put mine in a little free library at the local historic ferry landing earlier. Had to take a picture.

The "Ferry Tales" LFL at this historic Rocky Hill-Gastonbury ferry landing.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 29

I had many instances of "water." I picked one. Jeri and Renard visit a water hole. #WIPSnips

There was a water hole. A proper savanna water hole. And gathered around it— She rubbed her eyes. First, a mixed herd of zebras and wildebeests, some hippos lounging in the shallows, even a lioness cautiously creeping to the water's edge for a drink. And towering above them all... a herd of sauropods. They dwarfed even the elephants. Here and there, she spotted more dinosaurs. There was a Triceratops and her calf cautiously moving past the hippos. Farther out, a group of Stegosaurus were heading towards the water hole. As Jeri continued to scan the landscape below them, she could spot a variety of smaller creatures. Some small mammals and birds, and some dinosaurs.
Jeri sat down, still staring transfixed at the scene below her. Renard sat next to her. The two of them sat for awhile in silence.
"Pretty amazing, isn't it?" Renard asked, after some time had passed. "I couldn't get over it, the first time I came here."

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 27

Don't worry, it's made entirely of secondhand carbon fiber! #StarFox

I've been developing a prototype submarine. It's exactly what we need for this sort of mission.

Falco's got a point, Fox. Slippy's submersible is entirely untested.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 26

Easy one for me! I have foxes. Boy howdy do I ever have them! Here's Renard and Jeri's first meeting. #WIPSnips

A face appeared in her field of view, above her. "I am so sorry! I didn't mean to scare you like that!" Jeri didn't respond. The face withdrew. She felt gentle hands lift up under her shoulders. "Here, up you get!" With the stranger's help, she leveraged herself into a sitting position. Jeri shook her head, trying to clear the stars in front of her vision. The speaker stood in front of her. As her brain struggled to process what she was looking at, he peered closely at her. "Follow my finger for a second." Jeri did so, following the stranger's finger with her eyes. "Okay. I don't think you have a concussion, thank goodness."
Jeri's brain reconnected with a snap, startling her. The creature that stood before her was small, a bit bigger than a house cat, covered with orange fur. It had an elongated snout and pointed, triangular ears. Something pinged in Jeri's brain, some memory from her youth. She was still trying to process it when the strange creature spoke again.
"Okay. Let's try that again." He sat back on his haunches and very visibly cleared his throat, a curiously human gesture. "Hi, welcome to Zada! I'm Renard."
Jeri didn't answer right away. She stared at Renard as the impossibility of what she was looking at finally dawned on her. "You're a fox," she stated flatly.
"Yup." Renard stood up and turned around, wagging his white-tipped tail. "And you're a human."

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 26

Had a bit of a rough start, but I hit my stride! It's like riding a bike! #StarFox

Starfox campaign complete. Corneria Meteo Fichina Solar Macbeth Area 6 Venom 2

Invoice to General Pepper. 72,512 Space Bux

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 26

Two medals already on my first run! I've still got it, baby! #StarFox

A screenshot of Star Fox. Medal on Fichina

A screenshot of Star Fox. Medal on Solar

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 25

My current WIP does not have pyramid, but my short story collection does, so I guess I'll post from that! This is from one of the dragon-centric mythology inspired stories that go out with my newsletter. Check my profile for deets! #WIPSnips

Clara set out again early the next morning. The jungle dragons had insisted she stay for the wedding, since she had helped prepare the dessert. Her hosts were still sleeping off the aftereffects of their revelry when took to the skies once again, waterskins filled and directions fresh in her head.
Like the jungle dragons, the cloud dragons lived in tropical forests. The cloud dragons preferred low-lying forests, tucked among mountains and constantly shrouded in fog. On her own, she would have had even more trouble finding the cloud dragons, but the jungle dragons had told her what to look for.
The griffin flew low over the treetops, looking for a characteristic bulge in the foliage that would indicate the presence of a cloud dragon step-pyramid. There! She spotted what she was looking for. Squinting through the ever-present fog, her keen eyes could just barely make out the stone of a step-pyramid, overgrown with vines. She folded her wings and ducked through the encroaching branches to alight on top of the pyramid.
Clara settled her feathers, shaking out the dampness of the air. She peered through the mist, looking for the entrance to the step-pyramid. Suddenly, a tiny reptilian head poked out from a crack in the pyramid. Clara sidestepped awkwardly to avoid stepping on it. With a squeak, the tiny creature dove back inside.
Clara didn’t have long to wonder what to do next when she heard the characteristic scrape of scale on stone. A massive reptilian head snaked out of the top of the pyramid and swiveled around to face her. “What have we here?” it hissed. “Sstranger?” He spoke with a bit of a lisp.
The griffin stood up straight. “Hello, I’m Clara, Griffin Chronicler. I’m looking for the cloud dragons.”
“I ssee. Well, you found them! What do you want of uss?”
She held up her trusty notebook. “I’m collecting stories. Can you tell me one? Any story would do.”

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 23

Subbing "punishment" and doing something a bit different today. This is from my short story collection, the one that goes out with my newsletter. A younger Crystal is on trial for murder. It's a courtroom full of dragons. Very much Ace Attorney with Dragons. #WIPSnips

The Head Mage didn’t answer right away. Honedscale looked at him sharply. I also looked more closely at him. Was it just me, or did he suddenly look very uneasy?
“Sir Head Mage? There was enough death energy at the scene to account for the death of a dragon? Even a young one would give off a great deal of energy upon death. Far more than a handful of non-myths.”
Now I was sure the Head Mage looked uneasy. He was practically squirming! “Well…” Marlon hedged. “I can’t be sure. An awful lot of death had happened at that spot. Not just that night. The scene was muddled.”
Honedscale’s head went up like a bloodhound on the scent. “Sir Head Mage, are you telling me that you don’t know for sure that a dragon died at the scene of the crime?”
“Well…”
Honedscale banged her fist on the bench. “Your report said you were sure! The guard’s report said you were sure! This is a serious accusation we’ve made! One punishable by death! Do you mean to tell me you’re not sure?” With a snarl, she turned to the defense bench. I winced, but her wrath wasn’t directed at me. She pointed at Crystal, who shrank as low as she could go beneath the bench. “You. Take the stand. Now. We’ll get the story straight from the source.”
Crystal gasped. “No!”
Hurriedly, I shushed her. “High Dragon, I object! You can’t force my client to testify against herself.”
“I can and I am!” Honedscale snapped.
“I won’t!” Crystal cried.
Behind us, the gallery was in an uproar. I heard phrases like “The mages weren’t sure?” and “There’s a dark mage on the loose?!”

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 22

Jeri greets her first sunrise on an alien planet and is inspired to draw it! Of course she brought her sketchbok with her. What kind of botanist do you take her for? #WIPSnips

It looked like dawn was fast approaching. Jeri looked around for somewhere with a good view. There was a good sized boulder in the middle of the hillside. That would do nicely. Jeri dropped her pack at the base of the boulder and clambered on top. She faced east, to greet the rising sun. Her first sunrise on an alien planet!
As she watched, the sun topped the horizon, bathing the surrounding hills in golden light. Suddenly, the world came alive with color: the blue of the sky, the green of the trees, the rich brown of the soil. She breathed in sharply. It was beautiful! In fact... She leaned over and started digging through her pack for her sketchbook. She had to draw this!
Jeri bent over her sketchbook. She wanted to get all the details exactly right, really cement this moment in her memory. She wasn't paying any attention to her surroundings.
Suddenly, someone spoke, right by her elbow. "Oh, that looks very nice!"
Adrenalin instantly flooded her. She jumped up from where she was standing, her sketchbook flying out of her hand. Her limbs flailed, but her arm encountered nothing but air. Before she knew it, she was on the ground next to the boulder, looking up at the morning sky. Dizzy, disoriented, all she could do was let out a confused groan.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 21

Family is a major theme in Book 1. Renard's main goal is he wants to have a family (and thinks he never will). Well in Book 2 (WIP), he's a dad! He has four little utter terrors of children, nicknamed the helions. His squad helps take care of them, including Yoshi. #FantasyIndiesJune

Fantasy Indies June 21: Father Figures or family in WIP

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 20

Penny, you act like I didn't already marry my Blue Chicken Disaster Husband and have two kids already. What do you think?! #StardewValley

Dialog from Penny's heart event in Stardew Valley that reads very weird if you already have children.

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 20

Lounge? Here's the intro to Jeri's posse while they get ready to play tabletop! #WIPSnips

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 19

Group! Jeri is in a group chat with her D&D friends. They are very excited about their ship coming into contact with an alien planet. #WIPSnips

The group chat was going crazy. Ping after ping. Jeri's eyes flew open. Bleerily, she reached for her comm device, flicking open the holographic display.

Rosa: Guys! Seriously, guys, wake up, you want to see this!
Rudra: ugh this better be good i was ASLEEP

Jeri flicked open the holo keyboard. "What's going on?"

Rosa: Crystal contacted us! The Captain is talking to her RIGHT NOW!
Rudra: wait whos crystal?
Rosa: RU, do you pay attention to ANYTHING?
Amul: I'm awake what did I miss?
Jeri typed, "Ru, Crystal is our main contact on the planet."
Rudra: Oh right yeah. i remember now. you woke us up to tell us that? i'm going back to bed.

Rudra muted the chat

Rosa: RUDE
Amul: seriously what'd i miss?

Silver Falcon@zadafalcon· Jun 19

Oh, this is cute! Here's mine! (link to play along kojira.github.io/bluesky-lice...)