Branwen feels drained apathetic, worn out from tending the farm and caring for her daughter, while her husband sees off cattle raids, a far cry from the wild hopefulness she felt when she eloped with him almost ten years ago. She assumes the dreary round of her life will continue virtually unchanged, until leads her to start to see things afresh.
All That is Gold Writing
Friday, August 21, 2026
Sunday, August 9, 2026
The Whore of Her Babylon--Epilogue
Epilogue--The aftermath of Alice's Sacrifice. Although this one is free because it's short and as a thanks for those who read the whole thing, if you skip ahead to it, know that here be spoilers.
The Whore of Her-Babylon---In the world of the distant future, after clawing itself back from the brink of oblivion due to a now mostly forgotten calamity, humanity has coalesced to live almost entirely within the bounds of a single mega-city. Although technology allows almost unlimited production of food and energy, at least on a basic level, artificial scarcity ensures material possessions remain important status symbols, highlighting the massive gap between the haves and the have nots. There is an extreme nostalgia for the past, an obsession with creating a facsimile of many of the aspects of life from before the collapse but this only enhances the social stratification because of commodities like plants being incredibly rare, affordable by only the most wealthy. Woman all live in and work out of brothels and both they and their male counterparts are expected to make work and productivity their highest goal while emotions are considered dangerously deviant, to be suppressed with powerful pills. In this controlling and cut-throat environment, one woman dares to defy the system.
Monday, July 27, 2026
Hero's Journey 5 The Bride: Coming of the Conqueror and 6 The Return: Bitter is the End
The hero reaps the traditional reward for her successful thesis defense/dragon slaying, then returns home from her journey to wrestle with the implication of her otherworldly experience in her everyday life.
Hero's Journey--In a world without ritual and rites of passage, without heroism, without valor and victory, what remains? By what stars can one steer their soul ship across the whale road of life? How can one be true to one's self, when the self has lost all meaning?
Friday, July 10, 2026
The Whore of Her Babylon--chapter 24
Chapter twenty-four--Everything has come down to this, the day of Alice's Sacrifice. Will Rachel win or lose her bet with Elissa? Will she win or loose her bid to regain Alice's friendship? What other surprises lie in store at this event she has invested so much time and effort in preparing?
The Whore of Her-Babylon---In the world of the distant future, after clawing itself back from the brink of oblivion due to a now mostly forgotten calamity, humanity has coalesced to live almost entirely within the bounds of a single mega-city. Although technology allows almost unlimited production of food and energy, at least on a basic level, artificial scarcity ensures material possessions remain important status symbols, highlighting the massive gap between the haves and the have nots. There is an extreme nostalgia for the past, an obsession with creating a facsimile of many of the aspects of life from before the collapse but this only enhances the social stratification because of commodities like plants being incredibly rare, affordable by only the most wealthy. Woman all live in and work out of brothels and both they and their male counterparts are expected to make work and productivity their highest goal while emotions are considered dangerously deviant, to be suppressed with powerful pills. In this controlling and cut-throat environment, one woman dares to defy the system.
Sunday, June 28, 2026
Hero's Journey 3. Meeting with the Goddess: Teeth of Defiance and 4. Guardian of the Threshold: Forging of Warrior
Hero's Journey--In a world without ritual and rites of passage, without heroism, without valor and victory, what remains? By what stars can one steer their soul ship across the whale road of life? How can one be true to one's self, when the self has lost all meaning?
Friday, June 12, 2026
The Whore of Her Babylon--chapter 23
Chapter twenty-three--Preparations for Alice's Sacrifice continue to go forward as her popularity keeps growing and growing. Everything is going better than Rachel could have possibly imagined, everything that is except her friendship with Alice...and that's not even taking into account Elissa's latest act of malice.
The Whore of Her-Babylon---In the world of the distant future, after clawing itself back from the brink of oblivion due to a now mostly forgotten calamity, humanity has coalesced to live almost entirely within the bounds of a single mega-city. Although technology allows almost unlimited production of food and energy, at least on a basic level, artificial scarcity ensures material possessions remain important status symbols, highlighting the massive gap between the haves and the have nots. There is an extreme nostalgia for the past, an obsession with creating a facsimile of many of the aspects of life from before the collapse but this only enhances the social stratification because of commodities like plants being incredibly rare, affordable by only the most wealthy. Woman all live in and work out of brothels and both they and their male counterparts are expected to make work and productivity their highest goal while emotions are considered dangerously deviant, to be suppressed with powerful pills. In this controlling and cut-throat environment, one woman dares to defy the system.
Saturday, May 30, 2026
Hero's Journey 2. The Belly of the Whale: What Hell may Come