Midnight Rising chapter 16 draft complete · 10:43pm Feb 25th, 2023
It’s with prereaders now, weighing in at 14k words. Unfortunately, it turned out I couldn’t put in everything I wanted to without the chapter length approaching around 25k words, which is way too much for a clopfic IMO. But I found a convenient breakpoint (which, me being me, means another cliffhanger!) So there will be one more chapter to close out the griffie goodness of the story and complete the setup for the climax of Nightmare Night.
Though it won’t be the focus of the chapter, I advise readers to pay attention to some of Middie’s observations and what she says if you’d like an inkling of what’s going to happen over in Nightmare Night. As for what is the focus of the chapter, that will be a macro theme as adult dragons—and in particular, a dragon lord—enter the scene.
But you’ll also get some interesting tidbits on the other characters and learn a little about the shared history of the griffons and dragons, including an alliance they struck to fight a common enemy a dozen years after the Great Pony/Griffon War. Yep, I’m using my arguably craziest clopfic to build more backstory of the griffies and dragons, and you will see that reflected later in Feathered Hearts. But before anyone asks, no, these stories are not in the same verse, but they do share the same basic history.
No teaser possible, sorry, as it’s almost entirely wall-to-wall clop and I’d have to remove too much to make it worth it. The chapter will post once prereads are finished, and I’ve given the chapter at least one more major editing pass. Best guess is it’ll post on Monday or Tuesday night. After that, I’m working on a new chapter of Feathered Hearts - Eros for bit, though I may mix in some Continuation and Chronicles for variety.
Then again, the next chapter of that is going to be heavy clop, too, with major scenes bookended around a very serious central section. And for anyone who worries that I’m going to have Gilda be with someone unexpected again, don’t. The first scene will be her much-needed reunion with Marco, followed by a second scene at chapter’s end which she witnesses but doesn’t participate in. More on that later as I get into it, and in the meantime, hope you folks like the new chapter of Midnight Rising!
