Name: Indigo Milan
Age: 21
Please tell us a little about yourself. I was born to a noble family, but my social status was put in jeopardy when my father was put to death for treason and my mother killed herself. I was taken in by my uncle after that. I have strong ascard power that I partially hide because my government fears it. What I don’t hide, I use in training as a healer. I love people and long to find a place in life where I can be who I am without hiding anything and without fearing persecution.
Do you have a moral code? If so what is it? I believe in protecting those who cannot protect themselves and helping those in need. I would never want to hurt anyone, but I will if I have to for the protection of those I care about.
Would you die for those you love? Yes, though I’d much prefer not to. I would risk my life for them, therefore, I must be ready to die for them.
What would you say are your strengths and weaknesses? I think my desire to protect those I care about and my intense love of learning are two of my greatest strengths. I do fear the persecution of my government and my god enough that I let it trap me in a bad situation. I think that fear is my greatest weakness and one I cannot wait to overcome.
Do you have any relationships you prize above others? Why My relationship with Yiloch is very special to me because of the passion and the courage I found within when I dared to help him fight his war and fall in love with him. Though he can be insufferable at times, often because of his privileged upbringing and his position of authority, he is a good man who only wants what is best for his country.
Do you like animals? Do you have any pets/animal companions? I like most living things, but I’ve never had any pets. I have ridden a few horses I grew very fond of, but none that were my own.
Tell Us About Your World
Does your world have religion or other spiritual beliefs? If so do you follow one of them? Please describe (briefly) how this affects your behaviour. My culture in particular believes in one god known as The Divine who watches over us. My upbringing was light on religion, but childhood stories of The Sinner’s Hereafter where those who misbehaved were doomed to go did leave me terrified. Even as an adult, I shudder at the thought of that dark place even though I am not actively practicing the religion. Perhaps somewhat because I am not.
Do you travel in the course of your adventures? If so where? I do get to travel in my adventures. I get to go across the Gilded Strait to Lyra to help fight in their internal war, then home to Caithin and back again more than once. I even get to travel down into the harsh desert of Kudan at some point where I have some amazing and disturbing experiences.
Does your world have magic? If so how is it viewed in your world? Our world has a type of power called ascard. It is an energy that exists in everything and your ability to control it is determined by the strength of your connection to the ascard within your called your inner aspect. My country fears it while Lyra, the country across the Gilded Strait, uses it for all kinds of things from fighting wars to completing daily tasks. Their closest neighbours, The Kudaness, believe it is the power of the gods and that it is blasphemous for humankind to use it.
What form of politics is dominant in your world? (Democracy, Theocracy, Meritocracy, Monarchy, Kakistocracy etc.) Monarchy is the most common form of government in my world. My country, Caithin, is ruled by a king who has a council of advisors who meet regularly to discuss affairs. The council can weigh in on subjects, but the king always gets the final say.
Does your world have different races of people? If so, do they get on with one another? The primary races are my people, the Caithin, the pale-skinned Lyrans, and the dark-skinned Kudaness. My people do have a tendency to be prejudiced against the Lyrans, who some keep as slaves, and the Kudaness. The Kudaness view as all as heathens for using ascard in any way. Despite these things, we usually have relative peace between the countries, except for when we don’t.
Titles: Dissident – Exile – Apostate
Synopsis
BOOK 1: DISSIDENT
Ascard power can strengthen, heal and create. It also has great potential to destroy, enough to topple entire governments. Indigo’s country places strict limitations on the use of ascard so she must channel her talents into the healing arts or risk severe punishment. An orphan from a disgraced family, trapped by her father’s treason, Indigo struggles to reclaim her place in a society that has driven her into an abusive engagement.
BOOK 2: EXILE
Yiloch, the newly crowned Emperor of Lyra, stands accused of arranging the assassination of the Caithin royal family. Torn between love for Yiloch and her close ties with the royal family, Indigo wants nothing more than to prove the accusation false, but the evidence puts the blood of the family on his hands.
Trying to protect the Lyran prince from the swift descent of Caithin justice, Indigo exposes the workings of an enemy who is willing to kill to protect his secrets. In desperation, she unleashes magic that sends Yiloch deep into the desert of Kudan before fleeing for her life. She must find him again to save his life as well as her own.
Betrayed by ally and by love, stranded by uncontrollable magic, Yiloch struggles to make his way back to the Lyran capital before Caithin can declare war, but standing between him and his empire is a lethal new enemy, wielding magic unlike anything his people have faced before.
BOOK 3: APOSTATE
Being rejected by the man she loves hasn’t stopped Indigo from trying to save his country. Since her own country now sees her as a traitor, she must look elsewhere for help. While Yiloch rushes back to the capital to prepare his empire for battle against an enemy that appears untouchable, Indigo turns to the least likely place to build an army of her own.
The Kudaness, split apart by intertribal rivalries, are bound together in several things, not the least of which are their hatred of her people and their belief that using ascard is an affront to their gods. If she can convince them to excuse her those sins, she still faces the challenge of persuading them to go to war on behalf of their Lyran neighbors. Even if she succeeds, they must defeat a powerful army and then she will have to find a way to clear Yiloch’s name and prove to her country that she is no traitor.
And somewhere out there, Myac is still hunting them both.
Nikki started writing her first novel at the age of 12 (which is still tucked away in a briefcase in her office). Despite a successful short story publication with Cricket Magazine in 2007, she treated her writing addiction as a hobby until a drop in the economy left her with an abundance of free time to focus on making it her career.
Nikki lives in the magnificent Pacific Northwest tending to her awesome horse, manipulative cats, and a crazy dog. She’s a wine and tea fanatic who loves sitting on the ocean in her kayak surrounded by open water or hanging from a rope in a cave, embraced by darkness and the sound of dripping water. She also enjoys horseback riding, archery, PC gaming, dancing, good anime, etc. She studies Japanese and practices Iaido because she believes we should never stop learning.
Library of Erana 
Thank you for hosting a stop on the tour!
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