Reading this part of my prep will get into a ton of spoilers for the story. If you want to wait and read the story with a fresh perspective then you shouldn't read anything past this point. I am posting this for those that would like to take this creative journey with me. If you'd like, you can see the process of writing this novel as it unfolds. From the sketches, ideas, thoughts and scraps to the (hopefully) final novel at the end of Novemeber.
Jacob’s life had always been simple, living under the care of his mother, Heather, in a small village near Listama. But when his magic unexpectedly awakens, everything changes. His connection to the hidden, mystical forces that bind the world together bursts forth, drawing the attention of an old friend of the family: Dipak, a gentle yet powerful being. Dipak comes to retrieve Jacob, sensing that the boy’s awakening is part of a larger and more dangerous unfolding of events. But tragedy strikes when a Techie, a soldier from a faction bent on controlling magic through technology, mistakes Dipak for the newly awakened mage and shoots him.
Heather, knowing Dipak's importance to Jacob and their cause, rushes to his aid. With all the knowledge of healing she possesses, she attempts to save Dipak by removing the poisoned bullet. However, in the process, Heather herself is poisoned. The venom, laced within the technology of the bullet, is too strong for either of them to withstand. Both Heather and Dipak die, their lives lost to the Techie’s cruelty. Jacob, devastated and orphaned, is taken to the hidden realm of Enaid.
Yet this is not the end for Dipak. As his mortal body falls, his essence is reborn in the shadowy form of the Aspect of Wrath, a manifestation of darkness and vengeance. Now a female embodiment of the anger and destruction that dwells within all things, Dipak returns to Jacob, no longer the gentle protector, but a force of unrelenting fury. She teaches Jacob to control his magic, preparing him for the inevitable call to summon the Verdant, an ancient force tied to the Life Tree itself—a force that is their only hope for planting the next Life Tree.
Elsewhere, in the tech-dominated kingdom of Listama, Xania Verenth, a young woman of mythic origins, faces a perilous fate. During an assassination attempt on Enero, the son of the Techie king, she steps in to save his life. But in the process, she is mortally wounded. This near-death experience awakens the Life Drive inside her, activating the immense power of the Life Seed that had been fused with her body since birth. The Life Drive heals her wounds, restoring her to life and unleashing the dormant magic within her.
With this awakening, Xania becomes a mage of great power, and according to the edicts of the king, she is now meant to be handed over to Enero’s father, Carner, the King of the Techies. Carner seeks to use Xania’s newfound powers as a weapon for the kingdom’s war against the mages, Fey and Lodi. But Enero, knowing the pain and suffering this would cause Xania, decides to betray his father’s wishes. He helps her escape the city, connecting her with Derrex, a Lodi agent.
Xania, now free from her life under the Techies' control, is taken under Derrex’s wing. He teaches her how to control her magic, how to harness the Life Seed’s power without losing herself to its overwhelming force. Yet, Xania’s journey is far from over. As Jacob’s call to the Verdant grows stronger, she begins to uncover the truth of her own identity—that she is a clone, a fusion of human DNA, complex artificial intelligence, and the Life Seed. This knowledge propels her on a path away from Listama and toward Enaid, where her destiny is bound with Jacob's.
Jacob, his power now fully awakened and trained under Dipak's dark tutelage, summons the Verdant. This act sends shockwaves through the magical world, calling all those tied to the Life Tree, including Xania, toward Enaid. As she journeys, Xania encounters other Life Drives. She absorbs their powers, growing ever stronger as she heads toward her ultimate purpose. Her journey takes her to the Drake kingdom, where she becomes bound to the Dragon of the Void, a dark and ancient creature. With this bond, she calls the Drakes to join the war, raising an army that will be essential in the coming battle. It is during this time that Xania discovers she is pregnant, a revelation that will alter her course.
Meanwhile, in Enaid, the land is dying. One of the Lesser Trees, vital to the balance of life, has been killed. Enaid’s life force weakens, and the Life Tree itself is in jeopardy. Dipak, now fully transformed into the Aspect of Wrath, steps in to bind the dying soul of Enaid to the remaining trees and to the Life Tree, preventing its death. However, this action renders Enaid non-sentient, trapped in a state of suffering, tethered to the very force that keeps her alive.
The Techies launch their assault, seeking to destroy the Life Tree and claim ultimate control over magic. The battle begins, a brutal conflict to protect the grove and the dying land.
Xania arrives with the Drake armies, joining the battle against the Techies. Yet, the situation becomes more complicated when the mages, another faction, enter the fray. In the heat of battle, Xania faces Enero once again. The two, once close, are now enemies. With cold precision, Xania kills him, ending the threat he poses to her. But this victory comes at a terrible cost—Gytha, the ever-loyal protector of Dipak, is killed in the same battle.
This loss shatters Dipak. Her tenuous hold on her humanity slips away, and the Aspect of Wrath ascends fully, unleashing unimaginable fury onto the world. Destruction rains down as Dipak loses herself to the primal force within her. In a desperate bid to save the world from this cataclysm, Xania kills Dipak, ending the Aspect of Wrath’s reign before it can summon Erebos, the darkness that would consume all of Aer. This, however, presents a grave risk, for Dipak was meant to be the final safeguard, the one to bring the Cloak of Erebos should the Life Tree perish. Without the Aspect of Wrath, the world will die if the Life Tree falls. Yet, Xania's decision buys them time—time to plant the Life Seed.
Dipak is reborn in the Life Well, Rachna, but he no longer carries the Aspect of Wrath. Instead, he returns as the Aspect of Wisdom, an embodiment of deep knowledge and quiet strength. Dipak mourns the loss of Gytha and the destruction of the Aspect of Wrath, knowing that the world’s balance is forever altered. He is further devastated when Jacob, unsettled by the Verdant’s form as a pregnant woman, decides to take the Life Seed from her. In a shocking turn, Jacob plants the Seed himself, becoming the new Life Tree.
This act severs the bond between Jacob and Dipak, breaking the cycle of their souls being bound together across lives. For Dipak, this is an unbearable loss. He is no longer guaranteed to find Jacob in his future lives, no longer certain of their reunion. This realization fills him with sorrow, and he begins to doubt his role as the Life Spark, feeling that the task is now impossible without Jacob by his side. Time Sickness consumes him.
Jacob removes the Life Spark from Dipak, stripping him of his immortality and binding his soul to the Life Stream. Dipak is now mortal, destined to be reincarnated like any other being, without the memories of his past lives. He is no longer burdened with the responsibility of protecting the Life Tree, a task that now falls to someone else. Being mortal, he is incapable of holding all the memories of his lives and he succumbs to the Time Sickness, dying and joining the Life Stream.
The Life Spark passes to Xania, who is bound to the Life Tree through the intricate fusion of magic and technology that created her. Like Dipak, Xania chooses not to merge with the Life Tree, opting instead to live her life as an immortal among mortals. She knows this decision may lead to the same Time Sickness that afflicted Dipak, but she makes it willingly. Xania is determined to give birth to her child and remain with Derrex, embracing her future even as she carries the weight of the Life Spark.
