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Book 1: Blue Lightning
Our first book, and a massive success. It details an awesome quest taken by Bolt, a ninja penguin, and friends. Here is a teaser. Contact Ben if you wan't to purchase a copy.
Author Credits: Evan Tjeerdema
On the subject of Paola Velasco -- what does she have to do with Blue Lightning?
Paola wasn't really and author in the sense of the word. She did, however, feed Evan with ideas that helped with the formation of the plot. Although she didn't do any writing that made it into the final copy, Evan wanted to acknowledge her help by putting her name on the cover. For whatever reason, it didn't occur to him the include her in the dedication.
Text copyright © 2011 by Evan Tjeerdema & Paola Velasco
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Chapter 1 -- Blizzard!
Bolt awoke from his sleep to the sound of artillery fire.
“Aw, great. Another long night on the battlefield again,” he moaned, sitting upright so he could survey the chaos that was underway outside the tent. A blizzard was obstructing any chance of viewing the assailants, who were some distance away, and allowed only those nearby to be seen. Reluctant to leave the relative warmth of the tent, Bolt got up and walked outside to join the battle. Grabbing a sword and sash from the makeshift armory, he joined his fellow penguins on the battlefield.
Bolt trudged along the ice edge through the building snowdrifts, looking for his Captain. Cap’n Frostbite was usually on the front lines directing troops, and for the penguins, the front lines were usually on the ice edge.
“What took ye so long, Bolt, me laddo?” Cap’n Frostbite surprised Bolt by calling out from his hiding place among the snowdrifts. The Captain was difficult to hear over the fire of artillery, coming from somewhere out beyond the ice in the cold Antarctic seas.
“Well, Cap’n, who are we fighting this time around? It seems we have a new enemy every battle!” Bolt yelled in reply as to be heard over the mounting noise.
“It be the seals now. They are the only ones with access to that kind of firepower!” Cap’n Frostbite was getting tired of yelling over the noise and more anxious to get back to the fighting. Their cover would only last for so long. “Make yerself useful and join the fighting. We be a bit thin up to the north!”
Bolt said his farewell and wandered off vaguely to the north, sliding on his belly in true penguin form as to avoid becoming a target. The snow from the blizzard was falling
faster, heavier, and harder, stinging Bolt’s eyes. To escape the relentless snowfall and artillery fire, he put his sword in its holder on the sash and plunged into the cold Antarctic Ocean.
As compared to the blizzard above, the view from underwater was much clearer with the lack of weather. Silvery fish glittered around far below, and the muffled roar of the wind was constant.
“It’s a wonder the entire army isn’t fighting underwater, what with the lack of weather. We could actually see who we’re fighting,” Bolt pondered as he lazily glided along under the ice. He was almost enjoying himself. After days of fighting, it was good to have a small break, even if it was unauthorized. Bolt entertained himself by swimming slowly on his back blowing bubbles and watching them pool on the ice. He floated along, almost asleep, thinking to himself. Ah, well, isn’t this nice. A little break from the war, a chance to relax and forget about fighting. It seems like everyone is warring these days, and I haven’t lived for all that long. First it was the seals. With their advanced weaponry, they easily waged war on the other communities in the Antarctic, trying to gain hold of the entire continent. We, the penguins, fought back, as did the whales. The generally peaceful whales were enraged at the indignity and in turn waged war on the seals and us, but they haven’t been seen in years, as if they’ve given up on fighting. It is all we can do these days to even resist the crushing fist that is our enemies, our former friends and allies.
Bolt was greatly upset by the Great Antarctic War, as it had begun to be called.
“Huh! It doesn’t make sense to call a war ‘great’. There’s nothing great about war,” he muttered. “I was once a simple penguin living in the icy countryside, even if I am blue. I do stick out a tad as compared to my purple counterparts, although it makes for much more effective counter shading in the water.”
Suddenly the ice above darkened with a large shadow, bringing Bolt back to the real world. There was a loud crack! that echoed throughout the water. Whatever was above Bolt was too heavy for the ice to hold for long. Knowing the danger, he plunged into the depths to avoid being smashed upon by the heavy object above him.
Crack!
Splash!
Too late!
Coupled with the sound of surprised screams, the heavy object and several smaller things crashed down upon Bolt, knocking the air out of him. He was trapped underneath the large catapult, built out of heavy wood, as it began to sink with him along with it. Regaining his wits after the heavy blow, Bolt stood upside down on the bottom of the great war tool and essentially jumped to shoot himself forward as to go faster than it. He then turned to the side to avoid the leviathan on its downward journey. Tearing his gaze from the catapult, Bolt noticed several other penguins in the water around him. Glaring at the shadowy figures as they shot up to the surface and onto the ice, Bolt unsheathed his sword from its sash and swam up after them.
It was an incredible sight.
Bolt shot upwards out of the water with his sword held over his head in a remarkable display, leaping clear over the spectating penguins that cowered in pure fear at the eerie blue glow emanating from the weapon. Bolt smacked down on the ice just beyond the group, slamming the sword down hard, shattering an ice boulder into mere crystals.
When the ice dust had cleared, and the penguins who had observed the spectacle stopped cowering, Bolt realized that his sword had shattered, leaving only the hilt and a short, jagged remnant or the blade. Tossing the broken weapon over the ice, Bolt began questioning his spectators.
“Alright, who's bright idea was it to park a catapult on the ice edge? Come on, speak up!” Bolt questioned angrily. He glared across the group, his gaze resting on each penguin in turn.
“‘Twas me. But all I see in yer little light show is idle threats. Only make accusations if you can back ‘em up. So fight me, I challenge you!” a voice called out from the small crowd.
“Who speaks? Show yerself!” Bolt demanded the challenger. A penguin, no more purple than the rest, stepped forward out of the group. Over his shoulders he had two sashes, completely filled with knives, short sword, and a whole array of bladed weapons. He wielded a dagger and made no attempt hide his anger at Bolt.
“‘Twas me, like I said. It was my idea to push the catapult close to the edge. And I don’t stand to have stupid blue penguins tell me what to do. Now, fight me, or leave this battle field and never come back,” the challenger growled back. Bolt was losing his patience.
“Fine, I’ll fight you. Now, who do I have the honor of defeating at this moment?”
“The name’s Knife, and I’ll be addressed as such.”
Bolt’s challenger leaped into the air, trying to stab down on him with his dagger. Bolt ducked and rolled out of the way, leaving Knife only empty snow to land on. Bolt jumped up ran at Knife, who was trying to remove his dagger from the ice. Seeing that he would be hit if he continued, he abandoned the weapon, drew two throwing knives from his sashes, and hurled them at Bolt. Bolt expertly leaped aside, dodging the weapons whizzing by, and landed at Knife’s dagger in the ice. Using all his strength, he pulled upwards on the trapped weapon.
A bright, electric-blue light began glowing around the dagger’s blade in the ice. Dim at first, but it quickly grew brighter.
Because that is exactly what it was.
Electricity!
Suddenly, the ice around the dagger exploded, freeing the weapon. The explosion was ghostly blue, electric-charged, and full of ice shards. The shock wave blew Knife back, who was in the air, leaping at Bolt with a sword drawn. Bolt brandished the dagger, which was still crackling with electricity and glowing electric blue.
“Nice,” Bolt laughed in astonishment. “Alright, let’s see what this baby can do!”
Bolt pointed the dagger in the direction of Knife. As he gripped tighter, the electricity that danced about the blade grew brighter and noticeably more powerful. Bolt continued to grip tighter on the hilt, so much so that had it been any weaker it would’ve shattered. The electricity began to course up the hilt and onto Bolt’s arms, then the dagger exploded into a stream of lightning, shooting out of the blade and into Knife.
The weapon-loaded penguin screamed in agony as the lightning struck his body and coursed over his skin in small but painful arcs that emitted a bright blue glow. The lightning pulled him upwards to a standing position, where he was lifted up slowly into the sky, as if the tendril of electricity was a massive hand that had grabbed him. Once aloft, Knife was thrown into the water, where the lightning left his body. The electricity, now freed of its burden, shot back into Bolt’s dagger, shattering it. Bolt was thrown back into a snow drift by the force of the impact, where he fell unconscious.
When he came to, Bolt was in a hospital tent surrounded by other penguins.
Knife lay on a stretcher next to him, and had visible burns on his feathers. When he tried to sit up, the paramedic put her hand on his head to sit him down.
Bolt groaned. “Ugh, where am I?”
The paramedic replied softly, “Lay still, Blue One. You are in the medical tent. You have been unconscious for a day now. You have burned the feathers clean off your flippers. We should have you better in a day or two. I am Doctor Von Penguinfixin, but you may call me Dr. Von Doc, or just Doc.”
Bolt groaned again. “Thanks, Doc. Gee, what happened? I can’t remember a thing.”
This time it was Knife who replied, “Bolt ... You have the power of lightning.”
Author Credits: Evan Tjeerdema
On the subject of Paola Velasco -- what does she have to do with Blue Lightning?
Paola wasn't really and author in the sense of the word. She did, however, feed Evan with ideas that helped with the formation of the plot. Although she didn't do any writing that made it into the final copy, Evan wanted to acknowledge her help by putting her name on the cover. For whatever reason, it didn't occur to him the include her in the dedication.
Text copyright © 2011 by Evan Tjeerdema & Paola Velasco
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 1 -- Blizzard!
Bolt awoke from his sleep to the sound of artillery fire.
“Aw, great. Another long night on the battlefield again,” he moaned, sitting upright so he could survey the chaos that was underway outside the tent. A blizzard was obstructing any chance of viewing the assailants, who were some distance away, and allowed only those nearby to be seen. Reluctant to leave the relative warmth of the tent, Bolt got up and walked outside to join the battle. Grabbing a sword and sash from the makeshift armory, he joined his fellow penguins on the battlefield.
Bolt trudged along the ice edge through the building snowdrifts, looking for his Captain. Cap’n Frostbite was usually on the front lines directing troops, and for the penguins, the front lines were usually on the ice edge.
“What took ye so long, Bolt, me laddo?” Cap’n Frostbite surprised Bolt by calling out from his hiding place among the snowdrifts. The Captain was difficult to hear over the fire of artillery, coming from somewhere out beyond the ice in the cold Antarctic seas.
“Well, Cap’n, who are we fighting this time around? It seems we have a new enemy every battle!” Bolt yelled in reply as to be heard over the mounting noise.
“It be the seals now. They are the only ones with access to that kind of firepower!” Cap’n Frostbite was getting tired of yelling over the noise and more anxious to get back to the fighting. Their cover would only last for so long. “Make yerself useful and join the fighting. We be a bit thin up to the north!”
Bolt said his farewell and wandered off vaguely to the north, sliding on his belly in true penguin form as to avoid becoming a target. The snow from the blizzard was falling
faster, heavier, and harder, stinging Bolt’s eyes. To escape the relentless snowfall and artillery fire, he put his sword in its holder on the sash and plunged into the cold Antarctic Ocean.
As compared to the blizzard above, the view from underwater was much clearer with the lack of weather. Silvery fish glittered around far below, and the muffled roar of the wind was constant.
“It’s a wonder the entire army isn’t fighting underwater, what with the lack of weather. We could actually see who we’re fighting,” Bolt pondered as he lazily glided along under the ice. He was almost enjoying himself. After days of fighting, it was good to have a small break, even if it was unauthorized. Bolt entertained himself by swimming slowly on his back blowing bubbles and watching them pool on the ice. He floated along, almost asleep, thinking to himself. Ah, well, isn’t this nice. A little break from the war, a chance to relax and forget about fighting. It seems like everyone is warring these days, and I haven’t lived for all that long. First it was the seals. With their advanced weaponry, they easily waged war on the other communities in the Antarctic, trying to gain hold of the entire continent. We, the penguins, fought back, as did the whales. The generally peaceful whales were enraged at the indignity and in turn waged war on the seals and us, but they haven’t been seen in years, as if they’ve given up on fighting. It is all we can do these days to even resist the crushing fist that is our enemies, our former friends and allies.
Bolt was greatly upset by the Great Antarctic War, as it had begun to be called.
“Huh! It doesn’t make sense to call a war ‘great’. There’s nothing great about war,” he muttered. “I was once a simple penguin living in the icy countryside, even if I am blue. I do stick out a tad as compared to my purple counterparts, although it makes for much more effective counter shading in the water.”
Suddenly the ice above darkened with a large shadow, bringing Bolt back to the real world. There was a loud crack! that echoed throughout the water. Whatever was above Bolt was too heavy for the ice to hold for long. Knowing the danger, he plunged into the depths to avoid being smashed upon by the heavy object above him.
Crack!
Splash!
Too late!
Coupled with the sound of surprised screams, the heavy object and several smaller things crashed down upon Bolt, knocking the air out of him. He was trapped underneath the large catapult, built out of heavy wood, as it began to sink with him along with it. Regaining his wits after the heavy blow, Bolt stood upside down on the bottom of the great war tool and essentially jumped to shoot himself forward as to go faster than it. He then turned to the side to avoid the leviathan on its downward journey. Tearing his gaze from the catapult, Bolt noticed several other penguins in the water around him. Glaring at the shadowy figures as they shot up to the surface and onto the ice, Bolt unsheathed his sword from its sash and swam up after them.
It was an incredible sight.
Bolt shot upwards out of the water with his sword held over his head in a remarkable display, leaping clear over the spectating penguins that cowered in pure fear at the eerie blue glow emanating from the weapon. Bolt smacked down on the ice just beyond the group, slamming the sword down hard, shattering an ice boulder into mere crystals.
When the ice dust had cleared, and the penguins who had observed the spectacle stopped cowering, Bolt realized that his sword had shattered, leaving only the hilt and a short, jagged remnant or the blade. Tossing the broken weapon over the ice, Bolt began questioning his spectators.
“Alright, who's bright idea was it to park a catapult on the ice edge? Come on, speak up!” Bolt questioned angrily. He glared across the group, his gaze resting on each penguin in turn.
“‘Twas me. But all I see in yer little light show is idle threats. Only make accusations if you can back ‘em up. So fight me, I challenge you!” a voice called out from the small crowd.
“Who speaks? Show yerself!” Bolt demanded the challenger. A penguin, no more purple than the rest, stepped forward out of the group. Over his shoulders he had two sashes, completely filled with knives, short sword, and a whole array of bladed weapons. He wielded a dagger and made no attempt hide his anger at Bolt.
“‘Twas me, like I said. It was my idea to push the catapult close to the edge. And I don’t stand to have stupid blue penguins tell me what to do. Now, fight me, or leave this battle field and never come back,” the challenger growled back. Bolt was losing his patience.
“Fine, I’ll fight you. Now, who do I have the honor of defeating at this moment?”
“The name’s Knife, and I’ll be addressed as such.”
Bolt’s challenger leaped into the air, trying to stab down on him with his dagger. Bolt ducked and rolled out of the way, leaving Knife only empty snow to land on. Bolt jumped up ran at Knife, who was trying to remove his dagger from the ice. Seeing that he would be hit if he continued, he abandoned the weapon, drew two throwing knives from his sashes, and hurled them at Bolt. Bolt expertly leaped aside, dodging the weapons whizzing by, and landed at Knife’s dagger in the ice. Using all his strength, he pulled upwards on the trapped weapon.
A bright, electric-blue light began glowing around the dagger’s blade in the ice. Dim at first, but it quickly grew brighter.
Because that is exactly what it was.
Electricity!
Suddenly, the ice around the dagger exploded, freeing the weapon. The explosion was ghostly blue, electric-charged, and full of ice shards. The shock wave blew Knife back, who was in the air, leaping at Bolt with a sword drawn. Bolt brandished the dagger, which was still crackling with electricity and glowing electric blue.
“Nice,” Bolt laughed in astonishment. “Alright, let’s see what this baby can do!”
Bolt pointed the dagger in the direction of Knife. As he gripped tighter, the electricity that danced about the blade grew brighter and noticeably more powerful. Bolt continued to grip tighter on the hilt, so much so that had it been any weaker it would’ve shattered. The electricity began to course up the hilt and onto Bolt’s arms, then the dagger exploded into a stream of lightning, shooting out of the blade and into Knife.
The weapon-loaded penguin screamed in agony as the lightning struck his body and coursed over his skin in small but painful arcs that emitted a bright blue glow. The lightning pulled him upwards to a standing position, where he was lifted up slowly into the sky, as if the tendril of electricity was a massive hand that had grabbed him. Once aloft, Knife was thrown into the water, where the lightning left his body. The electricity, now freed of its burden, shot back into Bolt’s dagger, shattering it. Bolt was thrown back into a snow drift by the force of the impact, where he fell unconscious.
When he came to, Bolt was in a hospital tent surrounded by other penguins.
Knife lay on a stretcher next to him, and had visible burns on his feathers. When he tried to sit up, the paramedic put her hand on his head to sit him down.
Bolt groaned. “Ugh, where am I?”
The paramedic replied softly, “Lay still, Blue One. You are in the medical tent. You have been unconscious for a day now. You have burned the feathers clean off your flippers. We should have you better in a day or two. I am Doctor Von Penguinfixin, but you may call me Dr. Von Doc, or just Doc.”
Bolt groaned again. “Thanks, Doc. Gee, what happened? I can’t remember a thing.”
This time it was Knife who replied, “Bolt ... You have the power of lightning.”
Book 2: Northward Ho!
Ah yes. The long awaited sequel, still in the works. In this volume Bolt and friends continue their adventures, wherever that may lead them. As some new players were introduced at the end of the last book, the story really begins to heat up now. Betrayals, hidden motives, secrets from the past, all leading up to the grand reveal of the great prophecy's meaning in what is sure to be one of the greatest pieces of literature ever! Here is a little preview:
Bolt continues his adventures (and misadventures) in the distant northern lands, and don’t think we've forgotten every body's favorite fiery penguin from hell, Flamer! Except this time, who’s side is he on(hint hint)? And what will become of the ninja penguin colony? What, what, will happen to Bolt, as he is visited by a strange traveler who may have the information that could change the course of life in Antarctica as we(they) know it? WHAT FOR GOD’S SAKE?!?!?! ....Well, I guess you just gotta wait like every other sucker on this godforsaken planet. Deal with it. This will be amazing.
Bolt continues his adventures (and misadventures) in the distant northern lands, and don’t think we've forgotten every body's favorite fiery penguin from hell, Flamer! Except this time, who’s side is he on(hint hint)? And what will become of the ninja penguin colony? What, what, will happen to Bolt, as he is visited by a strange traveler who may have the information that could change the course of life in Antarctica as we(they) know it? WHAT FOR GOD’S SAKE?!?!?! ....Well, I guess you just gotta wait like every other sucker on this godforsaken planet. Deal with it. This will be amazing.