rktho
Troubadour
So since the first draft of my book, there was a prophecy that the villain, who is the emperor, would die by one who shares his mark. The mark in question is a symbol on the back of his right hand shaped like a sword (which is why my novel is called Swordfist.) The mark is the insignia of an order of dark wizards he is part of, and therefore he can be the only living one, lest the prophecy come true.
Now, because of this prophecy, he created a life crystal, which is a crystal made from a material called enzarite, that the maker ties to his life force. If it is destroyed, he dies. As long as it is intact, however, he remains the same age as when he made it. Because of this, my antagonist is old, but has a young body. The crystal is semi-sentient and has certain defense mechanisms to prevent theft and destruction.
In my book, a dragon (all my characters are dragons) sells the antagonist a sword, which as a member of the dark wizard order, he wants. But then he steals the crystal from him and loses it. By the time the antagonist has apprehended him, the thief believes it was destroyed by accident when he dropped it in the river while flying. But if that were true the antagonist would be dead already, so he puts out a reward for it. And that's where my protagonist comes in.
He and his friends find the crystal and decide to return it for the reward money. The antagonist discovers the crystal's location when the protagonist touches it and sees a vision of him. The protagonist resembles a good wizard he killed, and the antagonist becomes paranoid that he will seek revenge now that he has the crystal. The protagonist, however, believes his father died in a blacksmithing accident rather than at the hands of a dark wizard. He has no idea magic even exists.
So here's my dilemma: in my drafts, the protagonist was supposed to acquire this mark somehow without knowing its significance, especially in regards to the prophecy. It would seem as though he will be the one to kill the antagonist, but in the end, the antagonist has taken steps to make sure he is the only one who has it (using a charm to wipe it from their skin when they enter his palace. He has it magically and permanently branded into his skin by dark magic, so the charm doesn't affect him.) The protagonist tricks the antagonist into destroying the crystal himself, fulfilling the prophecy.
Well, in all my drafts I've never been quite satisfied with how the character acquires the mark. I don't like the idea of it being a birthmark. Having it come to him in a dream is fine, but why would he copy it onto his hand? I don't know what to do. But it has to be there to fuel the villain's paranoia and provide the means for the protagonist to defeat him. And, also, because of the title.
Now, because of this prophecy, he created a life crystal, which is a crystal made from a material called enzarite, that the maker ties to his life force. If it is destroyed, he dies. As long as it is intact, however, he remains the same age as when he made it. Because of this, my antagonist is old, but has a young body. The crystal is semi-sentient and has certain defense mechanisms to prevent theft and destruction.
In my book, a dragon (all my characters are dragons) sells the antagonist a sword, which as a member of the dark wizard order, he wants. But then he steals the crystal from him and loses it. By the time the antagonist has apprehended him, the thief believes it was destroyed by accident when he dropped it in the river while flying. But if that were true the antagonist would be dead already, so he puts out a reward for it. And that's where my protagonist comes in.
He and his friends find the crystal and decide to return it for the reward money. The antagonist discovers the crystal's location when the protagonist touches it and sees a vision of him. The protagonist resembles a good wizard he killed, and the antagonist becomes paranoid that he will seek revenge now that he has the crystal. The protagonist, however, believes his father died in a blacksmithing accident rather than at the hands of a dark wizard. He has no idea magic even exists.
So here's my dilemma: in my drafts, the protagonist was supposed to acquire this mark somehow without knowing its significance, especially in regards to the prophecy. It would seem as though he will be the one to kill the antagonist, but in the end, the antagonist has taken steps to make sure he is the only one who has it (using a charm to wipe it from their skin when they enter his palace. He has it magically and permanently branded into his skin by dark magic, so the charm doesn't affect him.) The protagonist tricks the antagonist into destroying the crystal himself, fulfilling the prophecy.
Well, in all my drafts I've never been quite satisfied with how the character acquires the mark. I don't like the idea of it being a birthmark. Having it come to him in a dream is fine, but why would he copy it onto his hand? I don't know what to do. But it has to be there to fuel the villain's paranoia and provide the means for the protagonist to defeat him. And, also, because of the title.