My
Favorite Character in the Grand Master’s Trilogy
I am fickle. My favorite
character is likely to be the male lead in my current story/series.
Since I am finishing the third book in my Grand Master’s Trilogy, I
offer the Grand Master, Athanor Griffin, as my favored character. He
is a complex character who changes over the course of the trilogy,
partly due to the influence of the female lead, Violet. I had fun
inventing the weird adventures and conversations of the main
characters. At first, Athanor appears only as the gruff voice from
the griffin statue. His personality and background are exposed
gradually during the story.
His native talents are
telekinesis and teleportation. These psychic powers were amplified
when he survived the ritual to become a Grand Master. In addition, he
has a handy device to enable him to teleport between planets. I’d
love to have that ability. His immense powers are counterbalanced by
crippling limitations. Exposure to his raw power is lethal to normal
people. He must shield his powers, which expends energy and is
uncomfortable. He is lonely. A short fling with one of the human
female Grand Masters ended badly.
Physically, Athanor is tall
with long black hair, a cruel hook of a nose and glowing blue eyes.
He exudes menace, even when he wants to be friendly. As a Grand
Master, he expects obedience from his pawns and everyone below his
rank. You may feel the sting of his psychic power if you don’t obey
quickly.
His childhood was miserable.
No one wanted the kid with the weird talents. He loved pranks as a
child and still takes risks. Mother Tingu, who teaches many psychics,
considers him a troublesome brat. He would teleport away whenever she
discovered his pranks, like transporting spiders into her bed.
Teleporting out of trouble is still his favorite trick. Unfortunately
for him, I find ways to undercut his powers.
The Griffin is the most junior
of the twelve Grand Masters. He is not in favor because he has
questioned their policies. He took a risk in selecting Violet as his
pawn, or perhaps he wanted to shock the other Grand Masters. What
other Grand Master would choose the daughter of the man who
prophesied their doom? After choosing Violet, he is annoyed by her
questions and her disobedience. Even when she defies his orders, she
succeeds in the missions. To learn why she is successful, he must
accept her challenge to meet in person rather than speaking through
the griffin statue. When they meet, he is disguised and shielded,
since he believes his raw power would kill her. Luckily, she has her
own powers and she is undaunted by him.
Violet, and subsequent events,
kick him into action. He joins Violet’s quest to uncover the
malevolent Grand Masters who are destroying the interplanetary
portals. In Book 2, Athanor plans the next moves to defeat their
enemies. In Book 3, he will experience despair and gain new
responsibilities. Read the books to learn more about my favorite
character.
Blurb:
One young woman challenges the
super psychics ruling the galaxy, and finds an impossible love.
Science fiction adventure melded with fantasy and romance.
Young empath, Violet Hunter,
travels through the galaxy on missions for her mysterious Grand
Master. Life-threatening cracks appear in the vast web of portals and
Violet agrees to investigate the disruptions. When she discovers the
perpetrator comes from within the ranks of the Twelve Grand Masters,
she must penetrate their curtain of secrecy to fulfill her task. Her
challenges escalate when she meets the enigmatic man behind the
griffin avatar. Armed with only her erratic powers and a mishmash of
allies, she must challenge the most powerful beings in the galaxy.
Do you have fond memories of
Alice Through the Looking Glass? Enjoy exciting adventures with
aliens on exotic planets? Discover the fantastic universe of the
Grand Masters in Book 1 of the Trilogy
Excerpt:
The room was so dark that at
first Violet could see nothing. Suddenly, two blue beams emerged from
the round eyes of a stone gargoyle and cast a weird light over the
walls of the small room. Very faintly, she sensed a distant masculine
presence. Violet blinked, and the gargoyle resolved into a winged
griffin with round eyes and a cruel beak of a mouth. She guessed the
griffin was an avatar for her Grand Master, since she perceived no
powerful entity inside the room. She felt a thrill of anticipation as
the eyes flared to bright blue.
A deep, resonant voice spoke,
“I am the Grand Master and you will serve as my pawn.”
“Yes, Grand Master,”
Violet said, refusing to show fear at the eerie, disembodied voice.
“What may I call you?”
“You will call me Grand
Master,” the haughty voice held an unpleasant edge.
Violet resolved to assert her
independence instead of retreating into her usual passive acceptance.
She asked indignantly, “Grand Master, do your pawns have individual
names?”
The room vibrated and psychic
pressure built up against her. “You are insolent, Violet Hunter!”
the Grand Master growled.
Shivering at the menace in his
words, she stepped back against the wall, and instinctively shielded
her mind. His psychic power was impressive since he was not
physically in the room. Unexpectedly, Violet sensed a faint drift of
amusement, the mental equivalent of a smile. She was unsure if it was
her empathic talent or a glimpse he had permitted her. Did a sense of
humor suggest he was human?
“Hunter is a good name for
your vocation,” he remarked in a milder tone.
Violet stiffened; he must
never learn the truth. She hunted him.
Bio:
Aurora Springer is a scientist
morphing into a novelist. She has a PhD in molecular biophysics and
discovers science facts in her day job. She has invented adventures
in weird worlds for as long as she can remember. In 2014, Aurora
achieved her life-long ambition to publish her stories. Her works are
character-driven romances set in weird worlds described with a
sprinkle of humor. Some of the stories were composed thirty years
ago. She was born in the UK and lives in Atlanta with her husband, a
dog and two cats to sit on the keyboard. Her hobbies, besides reading
and writing, include outdoor activities like gardening, watching
wildlife, hiking and canoeing.
Media
links:
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Aurora-Springer/e/B00K2C4NL8
Twitter:
http://twitter.com/AuroraSpringer
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Greta, Thanks for posting about my Grand Master!
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