Readers Roost: The Quest for Freedom Guest Post #SilverDaggerTours

One man against the world

The Quest for Freedom

The Conquest Trilogy Book 1

by Matthew Devitt

Genre: Dark Epic Fantasy, Action, Adventure

Affer was once a peaceful planet, until a war broke out between its six inhabiting species. The humans, who were once the mightiest force on Affer, were massacred in droves, and the ones who survived the onslaught were reduced to mere slaves. The five other species divided the humans amongst themselves and returned to their respective kingdoms.
The years passed, turning into decades and centuries, without any change. Eventually, the humans had accepted their fate as slaves. All except one. Four hundred and seventy-three years later, Fletcher Rush starts his journey to free his kind...and conquer the planet.

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"Death is a part of freedom. Blood will be spilled whether we fight this war or stand down and stay as slaves. I'm trying to put humans back at the top where we belong. It's all I've ever thought about…freedom and victory. My only purpose in life is to rectify the disposition of this damn world, and I'll do whatever it takes to do that." - Fletcher Rush

“They should be here any minute,” Fletcher muttered.

They’d managed to take care of all the preparations Fletcher had planned, and now he was standing on the city wall by the main gate along with Ji.

“I’m surprised we finished everything,” Ji said, glancing across the field in front of them.

“Me too,” Fletcher admitted. “I think we have a good chance to win this fight.”

“We either win or we die,” Ji said, shuddering after he said it out loud.

“Or they capture us and enslave or torture us.”

“Not helping.”

“Just fight like your life depends on it, because it kind of does,” Fletcher said, casting his gaze out to the path.

“What if they don’t come?” Ji asked.

“Trust me, they’ll come. I might not have confirmation, but based off what that elf said, and Light’s temper, I would bet my life on them attacking.”

The two didn't say anything after that; instead, they just kept watch. The light breeze swayed the leaves and small branches of the many trees that dotted their vision. It had grown quite dark and was hard to see, but Fletcher and Ji still saw the dirt kicking up from the large convoy of vehicles headed toward them.

“Looks like that’s the elves,” Ji said, pulling out an arrow and notching it in his crossbow.

“This should be fun,” Fletcher said, taking the remote control from his pocket and getting ready to use it.

The vehicles got closer and the two saw truck after truck approach, stretching out as far as they could see, each of them packed with bloodthirsty elves.

“Hey, Ji, no matter the outcome of the battle, I just want to say thanks. I wouldn’t be here today without your help,” Fletcher said, turning to his friend.

“Don’t be getting sappy on me now, man,” Ji said, giving Fletcher a light shove. “But seriously, I feel the same… Thanks, Fletcher.”

The car in the lead started closing in and the two of them saw it had a large metal ram built on the front of it.

"Fuck, I think they're going to ram into the gate," Fletcher said, turning to the inside of the city where two dozen soldiers were waiting. "GET READY FOR THE FIRST TRUCK, AND DON'T LIGHT THE OIL UNTIL I GIVE THE ORDER!"

Fletcher turned back to look at the approaching army just before the truck slammed into the main gate. The gate exploded, sending splinters of wood flying in every direction and shaking the strong stone walls.

“Damn—” Fletcher said, getting thrown to the ground by the impact. He got up and looked at the inside of the city. Elves were already rushing out of the vehicle, drawing their weapons before advancing forward.

"I'LL HEAD DOWN!" Ji shouted, shooting off an arrow before he dropped the crossbow and ran down the stairs.

Fletcher turned his attention back toward the convoy that was approaching very fast.

“Wait…” Fletcher softly muttered to himself, his finger resting on the trigger to the makeshift bombs.

The sound of the engines grew louder as the cars neared the city, none of them slowing down in the slightest.

Just a bit more…

“SEE YOU, MOTHERFUCKERS!” Fletcher shouted as he pressed the button, causing the bombs to go off.

The ground ripped apart as the explosions detonated, making contact with the trucks milliseconds later and blowing them to hell.

A fire quickly took over the front lawn of the city as the explosions mixed with the gasoline in the vehicles’ fuel tanks. Over two dozen trucks were obliterated, another five had caught on fire, and the pathway had been completely destroyed. The cars that weren't affected by the blast stopped in their tracks, and the one in the front got rear-ended after stopping so fast, making Fletcher smile.

What are your top 5 favorite books/series?

LOTR is an easy first. It's a timeless classic, and it shaped fantasy into what it is today. Next is The Inheritance Cycle. The first time I read it, I wanted to keep reading and would spend hours doing so. Harry Potter is in third place. I'm not as big of a fan of magic, but Harry Potter does it better than anyone else, and the fact that the series is seven books long but doesn't ever become boring or stale is incredible. Coming in fourth is Macbeth. It's not a normal book (I know technically it's a play), but the way Shakespeare is able to tell a fully fleshed-out story in 17,000 words is insane. Lastly, is Percy Jackson. It's a completely different take on fantasy and was one of the first books I read in the genre.

How long have you been writing?

About three years.

Do the characters all come to you at the same time or do some of them come to you as you write?

Most come to me as I write. In fact, most of my writing style consists of creating as I write. I have a baseline and an ending in mind (normally), but the bulk of my story comes to me as I write.

Do you prefer to write in silence or with noise? Why?

It depends. Sometimes I can concentrate better in the quiet, but putting on some music to write (especially if it's an epic scene) can definitely help create the picture I'm trying to portray.

If you could have been the author of any book ever written, which book would you choose?

My books. I'm proud of what I have written and created.

Pen or type writer or computer?

Pen for info about the world and story, computer for the actual book.

Advice you would give new authors?

This isn't just advice for new authors, it's advice for life. Set a goal for yourself and work towards it. You'll trip and fall many times, but as long as you get back up, you'll never lose. Your dreams might seem impossible now, but if you never try to reach them, you'll never know what you're capable of and the life you can be living.

Writing is the same as everything else. At first, you won't be good at it. But if you enjoy it and keep doing it over and over, you'll become better.

The only thing that separates a loser from a winner, is that a winner stands back up when he gets knocked down.

Describe your writing style.

I try to make my writing style as realistic and entertaining as possible. I don't sugarcoat anything and try to show the real consequences of actions. For Conquest, the main focus is freedom. Many times the cost of freedom is overlooked, but not in Conquest. Battle is around every corner, and each one, regardless of whether humans come out victorious, has a price that is paid.

As for the entertainment part, I try to keep you on your toes the whole time. Of course, every part can't be action-packed, but I try to make every part exciting and worth reading.

What makes a good story?

This will vary from person to person. For me, I love detail and a story that feels alive. I want to be immersed in the world and feel what the characters experience. I don't like when pucnhs are pulled and everything is all happy-go-lucky. Life is a blessing, but it's also filled with pain and sacrifice; a story should reflect that. However, that's just me. If you enjoy something more relaxed most of this won't apply to you. But for me, it's that raw grit that makes a story great.

What are common traps for aspiring writers?

Following rules. Find your writing style and stick to it. Too many books sound the same. Stand out, be different, be you.

Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?

I try to create something others enjoy, but I also make sure to stay true to myself.

If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

Nothing, he’ll figure it out.

I've always had a love for fantasy, and to this day LOTR and The Inheritance Cycle remain some of my favorite books. There are limitless possibilities when you're writing, but with fantasy, it's different. You don't have to adhere to rules or logic; you can create whatever type of world you want. Characters can live in a dystopian society, a grand futuristic city, a picture-perfect world, or a medieval wasteland. Time, technology, and magic are all there for the taking, and as a writer, you get to choose what defines your story.

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