LittleRedWritingHawk's Works
Darkwalker
The city of Londinium is made up of several thousand people scraping out an existence in a man made cavern. With Earth’s surface uninhabitable, the sub-city relies on highly sophisticated life support machinery for their continued existence. Keeping all that machinery in working order is a difficult task, considering it’s been in place for close to a century.
On one hand, Londinium has Tarriq to oversee the upkeep of the systems that make continued life possible. He’s a specialist when it comes to this. On the other hand, Tarriq is an ill-tempered misanthrope. If he could live a hermit’s life with his partner Meshani, he would in a heartbeat. But the sub-city desperately needs his unique skills.
Unfortunately, no matter how hard Tarriq tries, the machinery needs more and more upkeep with each passing year. Multiple unexpected equipment failures have Tarriq running himself ragged. He can keep jury rigging the systems for only so long, as they really need to be replaced, and that job is entirely too big for just one person.
*****
Book 1 of the series "A Song in the Darkness"
Denzai
Book 2 of the series "A Song in the Darkness" - Sequel to "Darkwalker"
*****
Tarriq Zar, grandson of the famous Ranger of Londinium, has some serious responsibilities laid on his shoulders. The notoriously insular Darkwalker has a new apprentice and the beginnings of a plan to get the failing life support systems for the sub-city replaced. Not to mention the revelation of his status to the Denzai, who now are beginning to look up to him as a societal leader as well. And none of his new responsibilities comes with a plan to help him deal with his own wildly unstable emotions.
On the plus side, he has new allies. Fourteen year old Kellen is firmly in Tarriq's corner and shaping up to be a force to be reckoned with. Annika Surazi, the Chairman of the sub-city, is definitely on board. And Larqissa, the grandmother Tarriq thought deceased, is supporting him fully.
The problem is that none of these positives are helping Tarriq find the stability he desperately craves when all of them are trying to pull him in different directions. All of which are also pulling him firmly out of his comfort zone. And he's about to find out just how bad it can get.
Sins of the Father
Book 3 of the series "A Song in the Darkness"
*****
A lot can change in five years. While things have settled down considerably for Darkwalker Tarriq Zar, the same cannot be said for his apprentice Kellen. Now a young man, Kellen Kaar has moved up in the world. This includes his promotion to Lead Technician for all of Internal Order, with only Tarriq as Senior Technician standing higher in the department. A new job title naturally comes with a whole new set of responsibilities and problems. And at 19 years old, he’s both old enough to be legally liable for the difficulties he faces and young enough to still get overwhelmed by his own hot headedness.
But he’s also haunted by the shadow of his own past. His family name is badly tarnished by the traitorous actions of his father, the extent of whose deceit and corruption are still being uncovered. And his own name is bandied about as someone who parties hard and fights even harder. Not to mention the massive responsibility of keeping tabs on his boss’ emotional well being and continuing to be a vital link between humanity and the Denzai. So when trouble takes a personal interest in him, Kellen finds out precisely how much trouble is entirely too much.
Reap What You Sow
Book 4 of the series "A Song in the Darkness"
*****
Kellen Kaar is embarking on a new step in his life: a romantic relationship. Together with his new girlfriend Laurel, he finally has a stable home life as a good starting point to move forward from. He’s physically on the mend from a near fatal beating, but it’s left him with some heavy mental scarring to deal with on top of what he’s already accrued from a less than ideal childhood. And just when it looks like things at work have stabilized, a tragedy throws the whole of Internal Order back into the jaws of chaos.
As if that wasn’t enough, the spectres of Kellen’s past are rising up to haunt him once more. The abusive family he thought he’d left behind tries to stick unwanted fingers into his new happiness even as Laurel’s past seems to be coming back to haunt her as well. His responsibilities keep piling up even as he struggles to resolve problem after problem. Life has a tendency to kick a person when they’re down. And of course, Kellen is finding this out the only way he knows how: the hard way.