The kingdom Dulcia has fallen. Dark creatures have invaded the palace, inslaving all those who work there. The royal family--the only ones able to stop the creatures--have vanished into oblivion. No one has seen or heard from them since the fall. There are rumors. Rumors that they escaped the castle, rumors that they are assembling an army to fight the creatures known as Muraes. Only one thing is for certain. No one knows where they went, nor do they know if they will come back. ________________________________________ Every year, Clair's family goes to the king of Arium's palace for of the most lavish Christmas party imaginable. They meet family, old friends, new acquaininces--anyone they possibly can. Clair never enjoys the huge parties. She prefers to be by herself, drawing or dancing. Until, one year, everything changes. Presented with the most beautiful gift she could possibly imagine, Clair is filled with joy. She clings to her wooden doll with her life, never letting go. When she wakes up one night and it is gone, she panics, searching for it. Only to find a hideous creature. When she is rescued by the same doll she loved, Clair is suddenly swept up into a world of magic, lost kingdoms, and lost royalty. But she is also in the world ruled by darkness. ________________________________________ "When snow falls, the kingdom dies. Light will leave, Dark will rise. It can only be stopped by treasure as pure as gold, as light as air, but strong and bold. Only then will the leader rise, out from ashes and hidden from prying eyes." ***** 2018 Wattys Shortlist 2018 Wattys Longlist Featured story Awesome cover by @elphadora ***** Loosely based on The Nutcracker (both book and ballet)

Having enhanced senses cannot help one earn a living. A useless special ability--or at least, that's what Shia Sheridan believes. But when she is caught for a crime she did not commit, this useless ability saves her, leading her to enroll in Titan Academy, the very place she hates with a passion. *** Titan Academy is an esteemed school where students train to improve their special abilities. However, for seventeen-year-old village girl Shia Sheridan, it's nothing more than a despicable place where wealth speaks the loudest. Fate plays a joke on her when her best friend, Lucas, becomes part of a crime committed within the academy, and owning that crime in his stead leads Shia to the headmaster and principal, who then offers her a proposal she dare not refuse--in exchange for her freedom, she must become one of the special group of students joining the annual survival game called Linus Cup. Now, not only is she fighting for a spot she did not want in the very academy she hated, but also for her dear life as well. Can Shia survive till the end? STATUS: Published under Summit Media - Cloak Pop Fiction DISCLAIMER: This story is written in Taglish COVER DESIGN BY: Rayne Mariano