Merge branch 'main' of ssh://git@lufta/ebooks/spellblade

characters/alicia.md

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+# Alicia
+
+Protagonist, Student, Snep, Anxious, Spellblade
+
+## Description
+
+Female anthro snow leopard (snep), about 6'1", chocolate brown hair down to
+their shoulders
+
+**Personality**
+
+Awkward, anxious, acts before thinking, conflicted
+
+After realizing their power as a spellblade:
+
+Confident, determined, resolute
+
+**Pronouns**
+
+She/her
+
+After realizing their power as a spellblade:
+
+They/them
+
+**Background**
+
+From the mountains of Nord Sewlet. Has been a bit of a social pariah, early
+talent for magic. Wrestled with the boys in the mud at times.
+
+**Inner Conflicts**
+
+Fear of missing out. Anxiety around "negative" social situations.
+Simultaneously very highly ranked in their class and constantly getting in
+trouble. Stress from getting inconsistent grades in the bladecraft school.
+
+**External Conflicts**
+
+Spellcraft and bladecraft
+
+## Notes
+
+- Grows to make peace with their anxiety

characters/tistus.md

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+# Tistus
+
+Friend of Alicia, Athletic, Twinky, Dependable, Bladecrafter
+
+## Description
+
+Male anthro snow leopard (snep), about 5'8", light brown buzz cut
+
+**Personality**
+
+Cocky, bisexual, a bit of a disaster around Alicia, caring
+
+**Pronouns**
+
+He/him
+
+**Background**
+
+From the mountains of Nord Sewlet. Alicia's best friend from childhood. Has some
+idea of Alicia's power but doesn't really care. 
+
+**Inner Conflicts**
+
+Is very much in love with Alicia but very unsure of the right way to express it.
+
+**External Conflicts**
+
+Relationship with Alicia, trying to best Zekas
+
+## Notes
+
+- Actually builds up the balls to express his love for Alicia
+  - Is accepted by Alicia

characters/zekas.md

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+# Zekas
+
+Frenemy of Alicia, Blue Team leader, Fighter, Hunk, Morally Questionable, Chad
+
+## Description
+
+Male anthro tiger shark, about 6'4", no hair, blue and gray with black stripes
+
+**Personality**
+
+
+
+**Pronouns**
+
+He/him
+
+**Background**
+
+
+
+**Inner Conflicts**
+
+
+
+**External Conflicts**
+
+
+
+## Notes
+
+- Antagonist that tries to get Alicia expelled so he can take her place for
+  getting honors in the class
+- 

plans.md

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+# Spellblade Plot
+
+https://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/articles/snowflake-method/
+
+## One Sentence
+
+A woman realizes the gap between two opposites and their place in the middle.
+
+## Kick in the Pants
+
+> something I feel is missing from this set-up is, what is Alicia's overarching
+> motive? What is she doing this for? Why the army recruiting process, and how
+> would an underground school help her further her goals
+>
+> what is it that _moves her_?
+
+> This whole thing is meant to be an allegory for coming out as nonbinary. Her
+> goal is to not be so afraid of herself.
+
+## Cover Idea
+
+Use the palette of the nonbinary pride flag, yellow sky, white clouds, Alicia
+in purple holding her locus to the sky, black ground w/ yellow highlights. 
+
+## One Paragraph
+
+Alicia is a student at the Zhalram School of Bladecraft, one of two schools
+owned by a shadowy organization that oversees the Zhalrami army recruiting
+process. Alicia is troubled in her schooling and attempts (and fails) to hide
+her natural talent for magic; she tries to use her magic skills to assist her
+team in the battle drills but gets caught. Alicia gets monitored more closely
+and comes out to Tistus about her magical powers, Tistus is concerned for Alicia
+but accepts her and they work together to make the suspicion go away.
+
+- Cover the setting
+  - Introduce the bladecraft school
+  - Introduce spellcraft and frame it as an "other"
+  - Introduce Alicia undergoing a magical awakening
+  - Get caught by Tistus
+  - Accidentally uses powers on the field
+  - Gets caught
+- Teachers deliberate and propose a magical vivisection, something that would
+  purge someone of their magical powers
+  - Alicia argues she didn't ask for this, this just happened to her one day and
+    she would be okay to be rid of it
+  - One teacher proposes Alicia be evaluated for a magical vivisection, 
+  - Flashbacks to her father noticing signs of this happening and teaching her
+    how to suppress her gift
+    - The magical side would effectively kidnap her from a young age and her
+      father wanted to be with Alicia as a kid, the Zhalrami army desperately
+      needs spellcrafters for battle with Usill
+    - Father died in the aftermath of an avalanche
+    - Alicia enrolled in the bladecraft school to get away from home because it
+      reminded her of her dad
+- 
+
+Alicia gets expelled and then roams
+around the marketplace she talks with a spiritualist named Kala and ends up
+getting roped into their underground school of mixed arts. 
+
+## Slightly Longer
+
+Alicia is a student at the Zhalram school of Bladecraft, she is on the Red Team
+and works with her teammates to get through various battle drills. Unbeknownst
+to most people, Alicia has a talent for spellcraft as well (a large taboo for
+someone in the school of bladecraft) and is desperately trying to hide it from
+others, but slips up and is discovered. The school elders have discussions about
+this and then decide to put Alicia under academic probation. Alicia roams around
+the merchant district of Zhalram and happens across a spiritualist that offers
+Alicia a magical locus that is shaped like a sword and hints at the bladecraft
+and spellcraft schools being operated by the same person. Alicia experiments
+with it and then hides it in her room. 
+
+## Old Chapter Checklist
+
+- [ ] Introduction to the school of bladecraft. Alicia is shown to suppress
+      her magic and tensions between spellcraft and bladecraft are hinted at.
+      Zekas starts to get suspicious of Alicia.
+- [ ] Alicia has a chance encounter with a spiritualist that points out Alicia's
+      twin aura and pulls her into an alley to talk about magic. Alicia refuses
+      an offer of a spellblade locus for her magical talent. Another battle,
+      another narrow victory, another scolding. Zekas talks with a teacher about
+      Alicia.
+- [ ] Alicia meets with the spiritualist again and accepts the locus, getting
+      shown how to wear it as a bit of jewelery. Alicia wears it into her next
+      battle and her team wins, but Alicia is called out for cheating with
+      magic.
+- [ ] Interrogation by the school's headmaster, threats of expulsion for daring
+      to mix bladecraft and spellcraft. Alicia attempts to come out as a
+      spellblade to the headmaster and is laughed back to her barracks. Various
+      drama ensues. Tistus offers support to Alicia and they cuddle to sleep.
+- [ ] Another battle day, Alicia uses her locus to empower herself and takes
+      point to defend the flag point.

samples/scene-1.md

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+# Chapter 1
+
+Alicia scanned across the clearing. The battlefield was a wide open grassy field
+without any good spots to take cover. Her team was losing. Badly. Her team's
+flag was solidly in the hands of the enemy and every attempt to wrestle it free
+had failed. She saw the possibility of an opening among the chaos and gestured
+her squadmates to follow her lead.
+
+They sprinted down the battlefield, the noise of their approach alerted her
+teammates of the plan and they joined in, creating a phalanx with their wooden
+shields. The other team realized what was going on and attempted to block it.
+It almost worked, if only the force of Alicia's impact didn't knock two of the
+blue guards on their backs. Alicia ground to a catlike halt and raised her
+wooden sword to the flagbearer. The poor person looked terrified but raised his
+sword back to fight. Alicia struck the flagbearer in the leg to make him lose
+his balance, and Tistus came in from the side to claim the prize, snatching it
+and holding on for dear life with his claws.
+
+In the confusion, the blue team turned towards Alicia, thinking some of the
+blood she had spilled from an earlier fall was the flag on their hip. This gave
+Tistus room to escape with the real flag in his paws. Alicia grit her teeth
+and braced for impact as the blue team's swords were raised all around her like
+a pack of hungry wolves. Zekas, the blue team leader, reared back to hit
+Alicia's weak side.
+
+The horn sound resonated throughout the area. Tistus had made it to the base and
+the exercise was over.
+
+Red team had won.
+
+Zekas growled at Alicia, "No fair you get to have the best sprinters and all we
+have are these burly hunks that can't run to save their lives."
+
+Alicia smiled back and looked down to her side, there was a red streak down
+their left leg that wasn't there earlier. "Some burliness would have helped
+here. Can you pass me a bit of cloth? I need to get this leg to an apothecary."
+
+Zekas begrudgingly gave Alicia a bit of cloth as she bandaged herself. As Alicia
+dressed her wound she felt a surge of power to her right hand.
+
+_Nononononono, not around others._ 
+
+She focused her mind and let the surge subside. Alicia balanced herself with her
+tail and looked up at Zekas.
+
+"Thanks, let's go see what our teacher thinks we messed up, eh?"
+
+Zekas laughed, "At least you didn't let that witch beat you." and he lead the
+way towards the teacher's garrison.
+
+Alicia nervously laughed back and followed suit.

src/chapter-1/plans.md

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+# Plans
+
+Introduction to the school of bladecraft. Alicia is shown to suppress their
+magic and tensions between spellcraft and bladecraft are hinted at.
+
+- [x] The first battle between team red and team blue, team red barely wins,
+      Alicia has to hide their magic from Zekas
+- [ ] A dressing-down from the instructors, Alicia starts to feel fiery rage and
+      has to suppress their magic again lest they fireball the instructors
+- [ ] Dinner with rumors spreading about an affair between Alicia and Zekas,
+      Alicia feels embarassed and has to stop themselves from turning invisible.
+      Tistus attempts to defend Alicia but has difficulty putting things to
+      words
+- [ ] Alicia lays on her cot and remembers their dad telling them why they
+      needed to hide their magical talent. 
+  - [ ] Full on flashback scene
+  - [ ] Alicia falls asleep
+- [ ] Zekas complaining about Alicia in his team's bunk, one of his teammates
+      comments on Alicia's hand glowing during that last stand.