If you've been reading the newsletter since last year, you know that I love the ornaments that go on my Christmas tree. I'm also not one of those purists who coordinates it all in one color or has some sort of theme. Our family tree is as eclectic as our interests. I've got some old bulbs from my youth hanging up there alongside kindergarten-made snowflakes and Santas doing crazy stuff like playing slot machines (my husband and I lived in Las Vegas for a hot minute).
Actually, maybe we do have a theme. The theme is goofball. That works for me!
There's a great year-round Christmas shop in Lincoln City that we visit whenever we hit that stretch of the Oregon Coast. (I encourage you to visit if you get a chance. The lady who rings us up is always a hoot!) This summer when we dropped in, my eldest daughter wanted a dragon ornament to represent her fantasy passion on the tree, and the Christmas Cottage did not disappoint.
See Gandalf back there too? He's generally facing off against Darth Vader on our tree. Who would win? Email me at [email protected] to respond.
I've got one final announcement for 2021. Howling Storm, the 8th Magic of Nasci book, comes out on January 12, 2022. You can preorder it now for eBook, but it will also be available on that date in paperback and on Kindle Unlimited. Read below for a sneak peek at the opening scene (edited slightly for brevity).
Chapter 1
I HATE IT when urban legends turn out to be true. Especially when I have to take care of it.
Normally, I don’t take house calls. Yet there I was, standing on the back porch of a house built into a hillside. This porch led into a dingy basement, the sliding glass doors the only source of natural light for the whole floor. The top floor above me had a nice wide balcony facing Siltcoos Lake, which would have increased the value of the house if the owner had kept up with routine maintenance. Faded green housepaint, one slightly rotting beam, and the knee-high dandelions in the lawn, though, weighed down its potential max value.
“You sure this is a paying customer?” I asked the pensive plumber next to me. Oscar Soto generally wore a smile with his black-framed glasses, work shirt, and overalls, so the fact he couldn’t be bothered now put another strike against this dubious job. He more resembled his game warden cousin with a frown and furrowed eyebrows under jet black hair.
Oscar nodded. He may have been the trained professional, but we both had something better than being officially licensed and bonded. Oscar and I possessed ken, the ability to recognize the goddess Nasci’s elemental wonders in the world around us. For Oscar, that meant he could “sense” water flowing through pipes, a very handy ability for someone who installed sinks and fixed toilets.
I, however, was a full-blown shepherd of the goddess who lived in the center of our planet, her energy sustaining all life as we know it. Not only could I sense a clogged pipe, I was attuned to earth, air, and fire as well. I could manipulate those elementals by writing sacred sigils and directing Nasci’s will through my own magical pithways. It was my sworn duty to hone that power to battle evil beasts from a parallel universe that constantly threatened to devour the animals of our world.
I stepped toward the house. “What are we working on today?”
“Not we,” Oscar replied, not moving behind me. “You.”
I swung my head to give him my hairy eyeball. “Say what now?”
Oscar folded his arms over his chest. “I ain’t going in until you get rid of the snake first.”
“Oscar, start at the beginning. What do snakes have to do with you calling me in for a plumbing job?”
I pieced it together with a few more prodding questions. As it turned out, Oscar hated snakes. A common enough phobia, but one made especially difficult when you entered a flooded bathroom with a kingsnake swimming around. Oscar had noticed the reptile and noped it right out of there, deciding I could handle it.
Suddenly, Oscar’s all caps text this morning made a lot of sense. “Let’s summarize, shall we? You got called into a job on a derelict house, discovered the bottom floor flooded, and decided you should call a five-foot tall woman in as animal control because you can’t handle a single snake. That sound about right?”
“You make me look bad when you put it that way,” Oscar complained, although he had a twinkle in his eye. “But yes.”
I rubbed a hand across my now throbbing forehead. “What have I done to deserve this?”
“You’re tough,” Oscar said, channeling his inner high school coach. “You can do this.”
I glared at him through my fingers. “I want double my fee.”
“Done,” he replied without hesitation.
Wow. I didn’t actually think that would work. Oscar must have really hated snakes. Maybe I should have asked for more.
“Fair warning, I won’t kill the snake. I’m releasing him back into the wild.”
“Cool. Cool.” He shoved an industrial flashlight into my hand. “Take your time. The bathroom’s the only open doorway to the back. Come get me when you’re done.” Then Oscar made a hasty retreat to his white van parked in the gravel driveway up the hill. Coward.
Well, it was time to put up or shut up. I rolled up my hoodie sleeves and slid open the glass doors.
Last Call for Free Books in 2021
The Rescued Series box set is free for a limited time, no signups required. Erin was raised in the suburbs in a typical nuclear family. She hid the voices in her head because she thought she was crazy. Everything changes when the guy she thought only lived in her subconscious reveals himself as her guardian angel.
Cruel and Unusual Magic is a free story mixing Western magic and the Japanese supernatural world. A Soul Eater, a death spirit, and a vampire get hired by a demon Yakuza. What could go wrong?
The Void is a free action-packed magical adventure. A failed assassination attempt against Sorceress Lianna prompts Archmage Alastor to perform a grievous ritual to tap onto the power of the Void, the dark forces beyond the universe.
Until next time, happy adventuring!
-DM Fike
Stories by DM Fike
Available in Ebook, Paperback, and Kindle Unlimited
Magic of Nasci Nature Wizard series
A secret society of wizards live in our national forests, protecting nature against supernatural threats. Ina may command the four elements at her fingertips, but she can’t stop the savage creature leaving corpses along the Oregon coast. Will summoning forbidden lightning defeat her enemy, or will the storm destroy Ina first?
Book 8 coming January 12, 2022!
Legends of Llenwald Portal Fantasy series
As Avalon gets pulled toward a secret world where others covet her legendary powers, she must decide whom to trust—an amnesiac fairy, a shapeshifting trickster, or even her former doctor—all of whom may only be exploiting her for their own gain.
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