So, if you’re a writer, you will know there are going to be things that were changed or didn’t make it into the final draft.
I’m not gonna say all these cuts are better than the final product, some of them I prefer but had to change for specific reasons, some just could have been better so I made them better. Either way, I think it would be fun to share the cut scenes before we get into the next book.
Y’all didn’t think this story was ending THERE, did you? 😉
This first cut is at the veeeery beginning. You know how we open with Rowan in his village in the final book? Originally, we didn’t start there. Originally, we had a lot more of Rowan’s signature rambling inside his head.
I silently walk between the two guards, wrists chained together. I would be fighting them if I hadn’t already and failed. No, attacking and escaping is out of the question. I realized I’d have to wait to find a chance to escape some time ago.
So I distract myself from the knowledge of where I’m being taken with the last happy memory of my little sister. Preferably not the one when I was being taken away. Sophie and I had been playing in front of the small house. Sophie’s big, bronze-colored eyes sparkled as she ran around me with her doll, constantly jumping out of reach when I tried to catch her.
I smile, a bit wistfully, at the memory. I am going to see her again, and my parents too; I promised. All I have to do is find a way to escape. Then everything can go back to normal.
As for why things weren’t normal in the first place…well, I had never been able to stand injustice and may or may not have defended a couple children from one of the samurai warriors. And rebellion of any sort, no matter how tiny or for what reasons, is apparently not to be tolerated. Ever.
Bitterness rises in my stomach. Biting back some grumbling words, I just grimace. I do not want to get beaten on top of everything else. That would only make things worse. I shake my head and try to remind myself to keep alert instead of falling into a daze. Otherwise I’ll never get away. Escape is much preferred when it happens before reaching Contra. Contra is where all rebels are taken. It is the largest fortress around, and is much more like a palace. It’s supposed to be beautiful architecturally, with sloping, pointed roofs, multiple levels, gorgeous carvings from stone and wood alike, sturdy but impressive gateways, and the like, but no rebel that has ever gone in, came back out. It’s rumored that each one was forced to fight in an arena against a great warrior. I haven’t gone outside my little village all that often in recent years, so the most I know is the warrior goes by the name of some ferocious wildcat. The rumors abound in my village, some more outrageous than others.
I hadn’t paid them much mind before now aside from sympathy for the people forced to fight. Regretting that now. All I know is that I am not prepared to fight a skilled warrior. (In hindsight, maybe I should’ve considered that before squaring up with a samurai…)
Well, that, and that Saber Demien has a horrible idea of entertainment. And a horrible idea of a well-run country. And honestly that he is probably the most bloodthirsty and greedy man that I can think of. So yeah, my situation is not ideal.
Our small band consisting of prisoner and soldiers crests the hill we’d been climbing. Immediately my heart sinks. Below us, in the shallow valley, lies the unmistakable shape of Contra. I had thought for sure we had longer to go. You have to give the samurai credit for being fast, I guess…I restrain myself from sighing as we start down the hill. Contra’s tile-roofed structure actually really does look kind of pretty with the sunset, I can see why it’s described the way it is, but as it grows darker and we near it, it seems less like a beautiful palace and more like a foreboding fortress, the last rays of the sinking sun turning its walls and roofs blood red, the long shadows not exactly aiding my nerves.
…That could actually all just be the nerves talking, I’m probably too biased at the current moment to enjoy the sight.
We approach the gate, and the lead samurai steps forward and calls out something. A sort of password in another language, I suppose, since I don’t recognize the word he used. The heavy wood gates open slowly, grinding against the stone floor. One of the samurai shoves me toward the entrance. Unnecessarily, in my opinion, not that anyone asked for it.Samurai seem to be everywhere, their distinct red and black armor milling in every corner and doorway. I try not to shrink back. I am more than willing to take on a small number of the warriors if it is for a good cause (even if I’d lose anyway), but so many in one place is, quite frankly, a disturbing sight.
The scene continues with him entering the dungeon, as we know, but this was originally supposed to be the first introduction to Rowan. (You can also see this in the first chapter of Tigress I posted here some time back.)
This one may not come as much of a surprise for those of you who’ve been here for a while, but the next few cut scenes I assure you will be someth
Abigail Fredrickson 
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