Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹

@samaccardi

30. Writer/Author. Avid reader. Happily married ❤️ Dog parent. Cat collector. Enjoyer of wrestling: AEW / ROH / NJPW / STARDOM MLB: Blue Jays🐦 NPB: Hanshin Tigers🐅 He/Him. Author of the Chronicles of Enayra Series and more!

525 Siguiendo230 Seguidores331 Publicaciones

Bluesky

¿Es tu perfil?Reclámalo y samaccardi.dirty.social es tuyo.Reclamar perfil

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· 23h

Really it’s more of a brown…

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· 8d

Little me and my gramps. Been a year, still miss him. But I try to live my life in a way I make Nonno proud every day.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· 12d

A little look at each of the WIPs I currently have in rotation Next up, SINS, book 3 in the Chronicles of Enayra series. Genre: YA Fantasy Vibe: Eragon x LotR x HTTYD #wip #fantasy #magic #moodboard #dragons

A little look at each of the WIPs I currently have in rotation. If you’re interested in some deeper divers with longer snips, drafts, and entire chapters you can check it out at my Patreon. Link in bio!

Next up SINS, book 3 in the Chronicles of Enayra series.

Genre: YA Fantasy

Vibe: Eragon x LotR x HTTYD

Fresh off the end of
PHANTOMS, Kanaahn and friends find themselves on the run and on the back foot.

With the Darond and their allies reeling from the defeat at Ethon, removing the kingdom of Estion from the war, they must find a way to salvage the war before it’s even begun in earnest.

#wip #fantasy #authorsofig #moodboard #dragons

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· 12d

A little look at each of the WIPs I currently have in rotation. Next up: Yuri Cowgirls from Mars (NOT FINAL TITLE) Genre: Western, Mystery, Light SciFi, Yuri Vibe: Longmire x Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman x The Quick and the Dead but make it gay #western #mystery #yuri #cowgirls #wip

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· 14d

A little look at some of the WIPs I currently have in rotation. If you’re interested in some deeper divers with longer snips, drafts, and entire chapters you can check it out at my Patreon. Link in bio! First up: UNNAMED FANTASY ROMANCE #anglosaxon #fantasy #historicalfantasy #romance #death

UNNAMED FANTASY ROMANCE

Genre: Adult Fantasy, Romance, Historical Fantasy

Vibe: The Witcher x The Last Kingdom x Gladiator

A young prince fell in love with Death, and betrayed to take half her power and her place in the pantheon, plunging the world into chaos in the process.

In order to stop him, Death has chosen to reincarnate in mortal form and defeat him from the one place he’s weakest: the mortal world.

In the guise of Ælfwynn, Death will need to gather a group of devoted friends to stop the Wild Hunt and its dark master.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· 14d

I’ve been trying to get better at this honestly. Do you like Eragon? How to Train Yourd Dragok but you wished Toothless talked? Maybe enjoy complex world building of Tolkien? Give Dragonkin a shot! mybook.to/enayra-drago...

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· 19d

Longtime lurker first time #questpit poster! I present Dragonkin. My first novel and a labour of love for a decade. It’s the first in the Chronicles of Enayra series and recently received a facelift in terms of new and beautiful cover art! ERAGONxLOTRxHTTYD mybook.to/enayra-drago... #P #YA #F

THE CHRONICLES OF ENAYRA
BOOK I
"DRAGONKEN
SAM ACCARDI
YA High Fantasy
Title: Dragonkin
Author: Sam Accardi
Series: The Chronicles of Enayra
Formats: Paperback, eBook 3SBS2:
Paperback: 978-1-739074-68-5
eBook: 978-1739074-69-2
Print Dimensions: 6"× 9"x 0.689"
Page Count: 330 Pages
Price:
Paperback: $19.99 CAD
eBook: $3.99 CAD
For ordering inquiries, contacte samuel.a.accardi@gmail.com
SYROPSIS
Kanaan, Arial, Arkas, Shooter, and Drakhart have been friends for years. In the harsh criminal landscape of the
fast, but they ve
town of Kula, they've had to groer. Yet lately, a rift has pullen brougen Drachare to kan
grown between
and Kanaahn. Drakhart feels
unheard, pushed aside by the group's self appointed leader.
Kanaahn can't understand why Drakhart has been lashing out and withdrawing from their friends.
Then Kanaahn finds five dragon eggs in a cave outside town. In one fateful hatching these young
Lovome the fabled Khaleshir humans bonded to drantes
and entrusted with great magical abilities, guardians of mar and dragon alike. They are also harbouring the most huntec creatures in the entire country of Altimara.
The five friends must travel across a vast desert, train with a hidden dragon council, and delve into ancient magic to learn their destiny and prepare to face the greatest threat to the continent of Enayra in a thousand years: Tenebrae, the
dragon who perfected the
Forbidden Bila Magic Ro one can be trusted geerd
choice they make is a strain on their already endangered friendship. The further they dig, the closer they get to losing each other.
Some relationships you can't put off repairing without paying a steep price.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sam Accardi
I'm a local Author from Hamilton, ON. I publish mainly Young and New Adult fantasy novels in a varicty of settings. I aim to tell stories rooted in the human condition, set in living, complex worlds, inhabited by complicated characters that ring true to life and human nature.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jul 10

#booksky #dragons #fantasy mybook.to/enayra-drago... Five years ago this January I published Dragonkin. The cumulative effort of a decade of writing, rewriting, and rewriting, and editing and so on so forth. It was a story idea and plot I came up with in March 2011 and worked on and off on since.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 24

This is what I wake up to in the morning. He is the Guardian of the House if you ask him (despite the 100lb mastiff not 5 ft away from him). If you ask me even the only thing the cat ever guards is the food bowl.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 16

Today marks TWO WEEKS TO June 30th and the release of WWAD’s FIRST anthology. For today’s reminder post I’m going to be linking as many of my fellow authors who are included as I can find. Because this anthology is as much about community as it is defiance. #writesky #booksky #writingcommunity

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 10

THREE WEEKS until the first anthology by @wwadcreative.bsky.social is out! Cover by @augustsstudio.bsky.social My short story “Resistance Is A Fire” has been chosen for inclusion. Do your part—resist and bite! Out on June 30th! #WritingCommunity #BookSky #NoAI #CoverReveal #WriteSky

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 10

Heyo #WIPSnips! A little bit of Benkei and battles for today! CW: minor blood and a little violence towards some demons. #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

The arrival of Benkei seemed to have galvanized the other warrior monks in the vicinity, and they redoubled their efforts against the yokai.
This time, Benkei came upon a trio of namahage. They were fighting over the corpse of an older monk. Benkei recognized the old man as a priest of a small mountain temple in Ise. He had been a kind and devout man; never hurt so much as a spider. The old monk's end had been unfortunate and grisly.
Benkei twirled his tetsubo. With another flash, it transformed once more, this time into an overly long dachi. The blade cut through the first namahage, clipped the second in the side, and entirely missed the third as the latter two leapt out of the way. The flash of the weapon had alerted them to the danger. No matter, Benkei would change tactics.
In a flash, the odachi became a set of twin blades, a katana and a short sword combo. These would be better suited to fighting in close quarters against such quick opponents. The namahage hopped at him in tandem, hoping to overwhelm Benkei as they had overwhelmed the poor old monk. But Benkei was neither defenceless nor infirm. He caught the namahage on the left on the tip of his blade, impaling the creature. The one on the right was cut open from shoulder to hip. Its blood sprayed Benkei in the face.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 9

Hey #WIPSnips! Sorry this is late. I can say nothing except “I forgor 💀” This one struck a nerve writing for me. In a good way. Enjoy! #WritingCommunity #WriteSky #WritingPrompts

"I know my grandfather was... incredibly flawed. No, that's an understatement. He was a terrible person; completely unstable and sometimes outright cruel. But as he got older, he became increasingly erratic. His infirmity grew, and his mind and body slowly deserted him. It was hard to watch." Takahiko shifted uncomfortably. "You must understand, Yu, as a child, I never saw my grandfather for the man he could be to others, but only for how he treated me. It wasn't until I was older that I came to understand his incredibly complex legacy."
"You don't need to explain, Hiko, I understand. There are things we ignore for family." Takahiko nodded and continued. "It was during that time in my grandfather's infirmity that my father told me something: there comes a time in every parent-child relationship where the roles must necessarily reverse. The parent becomes the child, and the child must become the parent. It's incredibly hard for both parties involved because you must act against the very nature of a relationship that's been a lifetime old. My father later added to that notion, after my grandfather's passing, for just a few brief moments, after a parent dies, the roles reverse again, one last time. From the moment their warmth leaves their body, until the moment their ashes are interred in the burial ground, you become a child again, who wants nothing more than the one thing they can't have: to be comforted one last time by your parent as you were long ago."

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 8

Good morning #WIPSnips! Been slowing down the snips lately as this WIP now has a publish date and I don’t wanna give too much away. Might have to start a new WIP soon. But enjoy this taste for now! #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

Tap, tap, tap.
Tap, tap, tap.
No response. The creature tried once more.
Tap, tap, tap.
Tap, tap, tap.
It could not wait; it had to deliver its message. The bird, made entirely of shadow and smoke, flattened and morphed, turning itself into a ribbon, not unlike a snake, and slipped underneath the sliding door, through the millimetre-thin gap.
Once in the room, it slithered its way, by scent, towards its target. But it did not smell its target so much as it could smell the darkness coming off the mask. The creature was blind otherwise. As it approached its target, the creature reared up. It opened its mouth wide and sank its shadowy fangs into Rin's flesh. Through its fangs, the creature injected itself directly into Rin's veins, and then found its way, crawling through her body, into the mask, and from there, into her skull.
Rin screamed as her brain erupted in searing pain. It was as if her head was literally on fire. She twitched and contorted, and the mask tightened itself on her head. Even Inari cried out in pain.
A voice spoke to her in her head, though there was no one else in the room. She knew this was the message she'd been expecting.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 5

As Rapid As The Wind, Book One of the Kamigoye Out January 30th 2027 Click the link and subscribe for updates, info on preorder bonuses, future cover reveal and more! Asrapidasthewind.com #writesky #booksky #indieauthor

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 5

I said I had big things to share this year. Something is coming. Today at 3pm EST. Are you ready? #WriteSkye #booksky #newbook #reveal

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 4

Good afternoon, #WIPSnips! An excerpt of prose. Some trouble in an already troubled marriage. #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

No doubt, the Second Princess sat there in utter confusion and agony as she watched her husband draw increasingly distant. She must think him such a weak fool...or at least, an unfaithful creature who preferred Oyuki's company to her own.
In truth, Takahiko shirked her company because it reminded him of a past love, a love he had betrayed for fear of the repercussions, for their love had been a secret to all but them. A love he could have saved, if he had been braver.
Instead, his love died thinking he had betrayed her. From that day, Takahiko swore from that day on he would not live his life as a coward but instead be as valiant as his venerable ancestors. He would live by the example of his father, who had threatened to take his own life if the Old Shogun cut short the life of one of the heirs of the Goshike, or that of his uncle, who, as a child, had single-handedly fought several members of the Old Shogun's elite 1 bodyguard
with nothing but a broken sword and a stick.
Yet here he was, cowering and petrified as he was five years prior. Nothing had changed; he'd only pretended he had. He felt shame. Shame and guilt.
What a pitiful Shogun he was...
As they had every day since his death, the words of his father filled Takahiko's head once more. All that is to be in this world is already written, but it does not relieve us of the doing, my son. He would need to heed his father's advice, or risk losing his marriage.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 4

Little late on this one, sorry #WIPSnips! Have some sweets! #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

The doors slid open, and several attendant monks poured in carrying trays of tea, sweets, and other edible goods for the delegations. The Grand Abbot turned back towards a set of cushions that had been laid out for him and his colleagues near the door from where they entered…and for the briefest of moments, Yu was certain he and the Grand Abbot exchanged a glance. And then, for just a moment, the briefest of moments, Yu’s head ached. He felt as if his own skull might split and a creature crawl out. His vision swam; his ears rang with a sharp, metallic sound. He tasted blood and…static? Like a thunderstorm. He couldn’t quite describe it, but if he had to, he tasted… lightning?
The room disappeared, and for a few flutters of his eyelashes, Yu found himself standing on a rock in the middle of a stormy sea. Waves crashed around him, spraying him with cold surf and foam. He could taste the salt as droplets splattered across his face and robes. He felt cold, so ice cold.
Then…a voice echoed across the sea.
You are one of them… The time is close at hand…

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 2

Heyo #WIPSnips! Some prose swordplay and anxiety for today! #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

Yu stood in the centre of the practice yard, took a deep breath, and drew his katana. He started in the ready position, with his blade above his head, at an angle. The angle was meant to get his opponent to misjudge the true length of his blade at the start of a fight. Yu felt the muscle memory take over and began the order of his forms. His blade flowed like a river or the rolling waves against a sandy shore. His technique was strong, well-practiced, and near flawless. Yu demonstrated with ease why his family's sword style was called Nami-ryu.3-2 His sword flowed easily through the air, moving without any hesitation or restriction as Yu threw his heart into his form and technique.
Practice always helped Yu ease his mind; it brought him peace amid a storm of anxieties and fears. Whenever the world seemed to close in on him, Yu would dedicate some time to practicing his forms and perfecting his technique.
Yu's mind narrowed in on his movements. He shut out the outside world and ignored the bird that sang in the nearby orange tree. He, or the clacking of the deer scare not far away. There was no world around him, only the sword and his technique.
Only the sword and his technique.
Only the sword and his technique.
Only the-
Yu turned to find the tip of a blade between his eyes. He froze, and then shame consumed him. Had it not been his father at the other end of that blade, but an attacker, Yu most certainly would have been dead.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 2

Hey everyone! Me and my wife @ladyazzy.bsky.social have been lucky enough to be selected for inclusion in the first We Write At Dawn anthology! Volume 1’s theme is Defiance. Out June 30th!

WE WRITE at DAWN
"We Write at Dawn, or whenever we can, around the lost hours dedicated to day jobs or moonlighting."
- Hawk Stevenson, co-founder of WWAD
wwadcreative.com

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· Jun 1

Good morning #WIPSnips! A snippet from the Prelude/framing narrative today! #WriteSky #WritingPrompts #WritingCommunity

$Kakuichi strummed his biwa a few more times. He played slowly and methodically, building tension and setting the scene for his epic Tale. It was a Tale that many knew by word of mouth, but no one alive now had lived to see it. Though it had not been so long that events had faded into obscurity. "Gather all and listen to my Tale, As it has been handed down to me. I am Kakuichi, student of Shobutsu, From the illustrious line of Yukinaga." His playing picked up a bit. The full tempo was not yet achieved, for he was still in the preamble. The obligatory introduction continued. "This is a Tale of a world torn apart by war. Of a world soaked in blood and fuelled by vengeance. This was once our beautiful, peaceful Yamato. It was once a land divided, broken by greed and fractured by war. A peace shattered by two brothers and courtly intrigue, That poisoned our land for centuries, with no end in sight. This is the Tale of how that age of war was ended. A Tale of good and evil, and everything in between. It is a Tale of heroes and villains, A Tale of kami, and yokai, But most importantly, it is a Tale about people. Much has been gained in pursuit of this age of peace, but even more was lost. Listen well to my Tale and learn."$

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 27

Good morning, #WIPSnips! Just a hint more “brother” in today’s snip. Might have to stop sharing from the WIP soon cuz it’s getting to the point where really it won’t be a WIP anymore. #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

The Second Princess had lost her younger brother in that battle, and she knew that each of the three women before her had also lost a brother. "My twin brother's body was recovered from the battlefield by Imperial forces after it had been sitting in a pile of headless corpses for nearly a month. Father had been forbidden from seeing the body, for it is forbidden for the Emperor or his palace to be defiled by such impurities as death. That prohibition had been placed upon me, but I would not leave my brother to enter the next life without his kin by him. My sweet brother came home with maggots in his flesh, and his head missing. I know thy brother was the same, Lady Shikibu, but he was also missing his hands, wasn't he? And thou, Okura-thy brother was too burned to recognize. Not that thou couldst do that without a head. Were it not for a scar earned in childhood, on his left thigh, he would remain unknown still. And Lady Jibu, I believe all that t'was returned of thy brother was his left femur.
T'was all they could pry from the jaws of the dogs that gnawed upon his corpse—assuming that the femur was indeed your brother to begin with."
The Second Princess struggled to hide her self-satisfied smirk as she watched each of the women steel before her. Their eyes grew cold, and their gaze became sharp. If looks could kill, these three women could fight an army. Clearly, she had convinced them of her dedication.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 26

Good morning #WIPSnips, today’s snip is from a very early flashback scene in my WIP. #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

And yet he stood there that day, not as Tairo, but as the second to a young warrior whose entire life should have been before her.
Kaede entered from the far side of the yard. She bore a sombre look upon her face. She dressed in white funeral robes, with her hair tied up above her head. The young warrior cut a stark figure amidst the black robed spectators.
Yu couldn't meet his sister's eyes, though she tried.
"Don't look away, Tadayuki," his father whispered to him.
Yu wanted to throw up.
Kaede entered the partially screened off area and faced Shogun Mitsutada. She knelt, and bowed low, touching her forehead to the tatami mats. She said nothing, but as she came up from the bow, Kaede and the Shogun locked eyes.
Even Yu could see the cold, indifferent look in the old man's eyes.
He felt a chill pass over the entire compound, as if the dead of winter had just set in. Yu was certain the Old Shogun's stare could wither flowers and form a layer of ice on any garden pond.
Lord Miyamoto and Kaede exchanged a glance.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 25

Good morning, #WIPSnips! For today’s post, “rain”, we have a torrential downpour. #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

ain poured down from the sky in torrents. Rendai and Kakuichi were thoroughly soaked, as if they had been standing beneath a waterfall for ascetic training. It was cold, and the window blew and howled, threatening to blow the two monks off the winding mountain path.
They had been forced to abandon their ponies at the base of the mountain, at a small checkpoint run by the monks of Yokoyama Hongan-ji. Their ponies had been left wat the as small rest station for travellers and pilgrims who came to the temple, with an inn, a post-station, a small tea house, and a stable.
The mountain path that led to the temple complex was winding, narrow, and rocky. There was little grass on the mountainside, and the exposed soil would easily slide and slip when exposed to heavy rain—as it was now.
Kakuichi and his ward had to walk hand in hand, tied together by a single hempen rope around each other’s waist. If one fell, the other would have to brace themselves and prevent their partner from sliding back down the mountain in the landslide. So far, they had been fortunate enough to avoid any incidents during their climb.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 23

Today's #WIPSnips is a bit of lore. The Great Pheasant, or Riding Pheasant! #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

Yu halted his horse not far from the main gate to his family’s estate. His blood ran cold in his veins. In front of the main gate to the compound was a gilded wagon, drawn by a vibrantly beautiful pheasant. This was not like the common mountain pheasants that were hunted for sport. This was a Great Pheasant, like Matsu’s warbird, used by the wealthy to draw their lavish two-wheeled carriages or ride off to war.
These creatures also saw use by the most important of messengers in service to the governments across the land, to get orders and messages across battlefields and entire provinces in the blink of an eye. Typically, such messengers were under the direct employee of a very wealthy, very powerful daimyo or court noble. The Pheasant Corps of the Shogun and the Emperor were famed the land across.
The creature’s entire body was bright emerald, green and gave off a metallic sheen. The tailfeathers were blue like the ocean, banded with white and dotted with lines of black specks along their length. The creature’s wings were bright red, again bespeckled with black spots with a white eye at the centre of each spot, and if they were not bound, would be half the length of its body unfurled, and a bright blue on the underside. The creature’s head was black, it’s face was purple, mottled with black spots beneath its beady eyes.
Unlike a common pheasant, this creature’s beak was sharp, and hooked, black as the night, and could easily cleave through light armour and rend flesh. Its claws were no less formidable. They could defend themselves and their riders in a pinch, and were faster than most horses at a distance, and could even fly and swim for short distances. These rugged, hardy birds had been just as vital to the military history of Yamato as even the most celebrated warriors.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 22

Good afternoon, #WIPSnips, today is a little scene from the framing narrative I use between the main narrative of my WIP. Enjoy! #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

Kakuichi mulled that over for a moment. It made perfect, logical sense, but he’d never really considered that before. The fantastical Tales of the shinobi throughout history seldom made mention of the menial work required to keep a nation of killers, assassins, spies, saboteurs, and thieves running. Doubtless for good reason, for the very thought almost made them seem…human. And humans were not scary as unkillable beings of shadow and malice that could kill you in your sleep and disappear before your blood even began to pool.
“Very well, Rendai. You have satisfied my curiosity, and so I shall satisfy yours.” Kakuichi straightened in the saddle. “I will allow you to read the eighth scroll—but!” There would be a compromise to be made here, and Kakuichi would use this as a learning opportunity. “You must recite it, out loud. You need not sing, not for your first reading, but I wish for you to read the Tale to me.”
“Is that not…irregular?” Rendai asked.
“Very. Normally, I would not have you even read a scroll to yourself before I had recited it aloud. But I am willing to make an exception. You may continue the Tale, but you must recite it aloud. Tales must be recited aloud. They cannot live otherwise, and what is a Tale if not living history?”
“V-very well, Master. I shall do my best.” Rendai sounded unsure of himself.
“I know you shall, Rendai. It is all I’ve ever asked of you.”
“Short of absolute perfection…” Rendai muttered.
But Kakuichi pretended not to hear him. “You may begin, Rendai.”

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 22

Today's #WIPSnips is a fun little father-son scene to write, inspired by a personal memory of mine. But the point is the reflection on a samurai's purpose. What is a warrior without a war to fight? #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

Takahiko topped off their sake dishes once more. “Do you expect this peace to last?” he asked his father.
“I have to hope it does. I don’t think Yamato, her people or the land, can afford any more war like there has been,” Mitsutaka admitted. “We’re bled dry. The Empire too. There would be no winner in a war like that. I believe the Emperor truly wants peace.”
Takahiko picked up on the unsaid words. “It’s not the Emperor you worry about.”
“The only people who want the war to continue are fanatics, and those who seek to gain the most,” Mitsutaka answered. “I don’t know who that is, but I know every government has them. I know who ours are, and who to watch when we get home. It’s why I left your mother and sister behind in the capital, and why I summoned the daimyo and their families to their summer homes in the capital. I expect more than a few are unhappy with the peace treaty.”
Takahiko didn’t have to ask why. He’d put a lot of thought into it himself. They were bushi, samurai; they were warriors. What was a warrior without a war to fight? An enemy to best? With nothing and no one to hone their blades and skills against, what would become of them? A warrior needed battle as the crops needed rain. When the demons stopped coming, the warriors of Yamato turned to fighting each other, and the Empire. There had never been a lack of battle before, but now…how did one change an entire way of life?
Mitsutaka changed the subject. “You plan to drink with your retainers tonight?” It was more of a statement than a question. He knew the answer—he’d help Takahiko procure the food and alcohol from the temple’s monks. He’d even bribed a few of the monks to bring in meat for the festivities.
“I do. I thought it would be good to celebrate; you should understand.” Takahiko gestured to the gourd and unused sake saucers.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 20

Today's #WIPSnips chosen based on vibes because the other one was a little too spoiler-y for my liking. #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

The Grand Master drew something from beneath his cloak, and Rin immediately felt her emotions throw themselves against the walls of the box she had locked them in. For the Grand Master had produced the impossible: her mask and twin wakizashi lay in pristine condition on the tatami floor before the leader of all shinobi.
Rin was speechless.
“You recognize these.” It was not a question. “I would be disappointed if you didn’t.”
“They were taken and…” Rin could not bring herself to finish the sentence.
“A shame, to destroy such a mask and sword. Such sublime craftsmanship. Yes…such a waste. Especially the mask and sword of an Oshi disciple. You were always so skilled…I had always hoped you would be redeemed. But I admit, I knew not how.”
The Grand Master reached into his robes again, and this time produced two carefully folded letters. One on a sumac-dyed paper, while the other was dyed purple and smelled of camelia blossoms.
“Until the other day, that is. When I received these.” He gestured to the two papers that now lay next to the mask and sword. “Do you know what they are?”
“They are requests from clients.” Any shinobi knew what they were, but Rin especially so. She cared for the pigeons and goshawks that carried these missives. She decoded the missives. She transcribed them. Forwarded them. Sent the responses. She had spent every day for the last five years working with these requests, but never once having one assigned to her. Perhaps the ultimate of tortures for a shinobi.

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 19

Today's #WIPSnips? Believe it or not, more brothers lol. #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts

Lord Miyamoto approached the balcony and gasped. “You’ve started without me, brother.”
“I had to,” teased Mitsutaka. “If I didn’t get a head start I’d never get a drink in with you around.”
The two laughed, and Miyamoto took his place beside his brother. “Let me pour you a drink, my lord brother.”
“No, it’s I who should be pouring for you. You’re the elder brother.”
“You’re my Shogun.”
“That doesn’t matter tonight. Tonight, we are not Lord and retainers. We are friends, gathering in celebration of a wedding, of peace, and of a new beginning.” Mitsutaka grabbed his brother’s saucer and poured him some sake before he could complain.
Musashi took the saucer. It would’ve been more begrudgingly had it been empty. He sipped and turned back to his brother. “Wonderful.”
“You say that about everything. I’ve never seen you say less about any sake.”

Sam Accardi (Author) 🇨🇦🇮🇹@samaccardi· May 18

An unfortunate bit of trauma with today's #WIPSnips, as Ichiro/Kukai remembers the events that left him and his brothers orphans. #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts