TCM (General Flavour, Background, and Plots)

TCM originally stood for 'The Chessboard Metaphor' because of the deep roots in chess, however Games of Al'terra is the more modern name. The name was a joke with Justin because it sounded overly pretentious.

TCM general titles: Pawns Captured, Pieces Promoted, Checkmate, Absolute Pin

Alternatively:

**TCM1 – Bind (written May/June of 2009, possibly as early as 2008) -**Backstory to TCM1 is that there is an imbalance to the Gifted/Learned magic, which is what sets all of the events of the story in motion. In the Pride, they are developing and using the Learning magic for stronger, and darker purposes. This has caused an influx in Gifted. The original intent of all magic - but specifically the Learning - is to better society, help people and so on. The Pride has done that in the past time, but is now bending the fabric of reality and altering the rules: necromancy, finding other worlds, mind control, curses, God-like control etc. The Nine are quite displeased with this and have already done this once before in a war that was Gift vs Learning which is where all this begins. With things going wrong, the Nine (or whomever) is flooding Al'terra with visions - especially the Pride, the templefolk, and children. Mostly this is getting recorded as just prophecies - a great era for prophecies - and not the warnings and guidance that it actually is. It's freaking out the Pride but most are brushing it off as nightmares. They decide with all these Gifts running around, they're going to schedule a Purge if this isn't controlled by the factories. As the story goes on, they decide purging the factories first is best bang for buck. The Nine are all (!!!) and send even more visions. Neither K/T experience these, but Rob does, Olivia does, and many people in TCM2 where they set about to find each other and Gifted adults that survived. The foolowing fight also contains miracles - help but no garuntees - even to the point where Damien finds Austin, Jared is still fighting people to keep them away as Rob and Tim are holding him down. Damien tells him to beg for mercy - the mercy he never gave to Nicki. Rob, who saw visions of this, says that he only sees one figure descending the hill before the sun rises, but admits visions don't make sense because they're words and colours and smells, not solid things in front of him.

**TCM2 – Break**

**TCM3 - Brilliancy -** (why do the Pride climb the mountain for the last battle? Surely they'd want pomp and circumstance?) As TCM3 continues, the extreme continue - miracles and signs are occuring not just for the friends, but for others. These omens are typically poorly interpreted and the Pride forbids their speculation? Even as they go to cross the mountain, the miracles and visions are falling fast. How they even get all the supervisors out of the factories is like magic beyond them - there are signs and spirits helping them somehow. When they get there, Jared and Nicki the most religious, set upshines and some of the children who are also quite religious react strongly.

KT can't have kids ebcause of the halves rule - this is spoken about behind their back

When they fight the Pride on the ridge, they slash their palms - this is where magic comes from?

**TCM The Letters**

**TCMa -** Due to all the prophecies, wanrings, magic etc, the resurrection of Kite really should be a lot harder. But it just is that easy

**TCMb -**It is the combo work of resurrected Kite and called back Timethy and the rest of the team that quickly comes up with the solution to marry up the magic and use it for good.Kite even says 'Look, I'm nothing special, but the NIne are so enraged but what you're doing, it was literally nothing to just resurrect me from a battle field to come back and tell you that you are doing this all wrong. The next step it the volcano I was birthed out of' She chooses a prophecy to fulfill, about the phoenix and the volcano it was the fire of. She doesn't care, but this gives her more credibility in the temples. 'It's not rocket science. Just stop killing kids - maybe, just myabe, you'll get it' She warns them that taking it to the deathly extreme will command a sacred resurgence not seen since the last volcanoes. She warns them about where there power comes from, surely they're intelligent to see that dancers of both Fvi and Gift would be so strong

**TCM** **The Best of Us -**This is the very very bare bones. Possibly called 'The Gambits' as to skip the letters E and F to leave room for stories in the in-between line

Inspiration for TCM:: Laura and chess, Dark Angel, Golden Compass (what if we used a chessboard instead of an animal to represent soul?), CT, ToT, Star Wars (a young Obi-Wan inspires Timethy, and the relationship between Obi and Qui-Gonn Jinn inspired both the Jin-Ti and Antuni), Prison Break (specifically Michael and Sarah), Highschool friends (the original escapees), Matrix 2 Reloaded (for Dance specifically), The Land Without Unicorns (the Dragga), the Echorium Sequence (huge influence on Nolvac, and singing culture)

Cover Art: Significance given to chase or cat illusion. Spines of the books line up to make a chess piece?

Is a pen name needed? Joel Bryant

CT Names: Cassidy (now Kite), Timothy (now Timethy), Sam (now Laura), Devin (now Damien), Rob (now Robert), Jake (now Jared), Patricia (now Nicki), Elle (now Olivia)

## Music (OST?)

Damien - Hurricane by 30 Seconds to Mars

TCM3 - This is War by 30 Seconds to Mars, Game On by Disciple, Frontline by Pillar, Falling Inside the Black by Skillet, Revolution by Starfield, Salmarnir by Underoath

TCM2 - Believe by Grits

TCM1 - Wish You Well by TFK, Everything Burns by Anastacia, Awakening by Switchfoot, Long Way to Happy by Pink, Had Enough by Breaking Benjamin, Tomorrow Still Comes by Will Dailey

Olivia - Someone like you by Adele

Rob - White Black Pages by Mumford and Sons, How you Remind my by Nickelback, Things Left Unsaid (Acoustic) by Disciple, Your Ghost by Greg Laswell

Cyrus - Everything by Alanis Moriesette

Sam - No, I don't Remember by Anna Ternheim

Laura - Prelude 12/21 by AFI, Black Orchid by Blue October

Nicki: I Will Be Your Friend by Amy Grant

Timethy - After the World by Disciple

Game On by Disciple (song of the last fight, boys only)

Frontline by Pillar (last fight song, also song of the
revolution)

The Last Night by Skillet (song between Tim and Kite
during the last parts of TCM)

Falling Inside the Black by Skillet (Tim’s demon
possession)

Revolution by Starfield (last song of the book, also song
of the revolution)

After the World by Disciple (after Kite dies)

Things Left Unsaid by Discple (Laura’s death)

Wish You Well by Thousand Foot Krutch (Jared’s goodbye
speech to the others when separating)

Those Nights by Skillet (Tim and Damien staying up after
Austin’s betrayal)

Goodbye by Jars of Clay (very end of the first part of
TCM)

Arrival to Earth by Steve Jablonsky (ascending the
mountain the first time, approaching it in the third part)

Everything Burns by Ben Moody (Anastacia) (the mine)

Awakening by Switchfoot (beginning of the revolution)

Salmanir by Underoath (speech of the revolution)

Long Way to Happy by Pink (Olivia song?)

Loaded and Alone by Nickelback (Austin song?)

Let me be myself by Theory of a Deadman (Rob song?)

Europa by Globus (pre-fight song)

Open Wounds by Skillet (Rob and Jared’s relationship)

Evelyn by Hurts (something from tCMb)

Adiemus by Karl Jenkins (inspiration for the Vey)

Rafiki Mourns from Lion King Broadway (also Vey music)

Hand of Sorrow by Within Temptation (inspiration for the 'Body' and Austin being the Hand)