The Mythos of Aria

This is the record of The Mythos of Aria, a novel by Zachary Coak, tracked beginning May 8, 2026. Every working note, every saved version, every reference and source is preserved here in the order it happened.

Working notes recorded by Zachary Coak during the making of The Mythos of Aria. 2 entries between May 8, 2026 and May 14, 2026. These are the author's own words: status reports, breakthroughs, moments of being stuck, decisions made along the way.

Every saved version of this project. 23 snapshots in all, from the most recent back to the first time it was connected. Each row records what changed and when.

The work itself. The manuscript files as they exist today, with word counts reflecting the most recent save.

The visual and audio ingredients of the work: sketches, scans, voice memos, reference imagery, retired drafts. The things Zachary Coak looked at and drew from.

📄 2019_TheGastlyGauntlet.docx

Old Draft May 9, 2026

2019_TheGastlyGauntlet

This is an unfinished side story that takes place in the floating islands of Bryna. This location is where Alex is transported to in the non-canonical Duality of the Sword story. This story may be developed further one day.

📄 2016_DualityOfTheSword.docx

Old Draft May 9, 2026

2016_DualityOfTheSword

Duality of the Sword was created sometime after the original Mythos of Aria started, but it's not clear exactly when. The prologue is a scene where a younger Alex sees the blood night elietes parading the dragon Xiuhcoatl's remains through their village. This event is mentioned in chapter 1 of The Mythos of Aria, but here it is given a full scene. Chapter 1 here depicts Alex waking up in the floating islands of Bryna. This place exists within the same fairy realm as the Mythos of Aria, where Alex is also transported, but we don't get to see the start of his journey up to this point. I think I wanted to redo the original story, but have it take place more inside the fairy realm.

📄 2015_WillOfTheNecromancerBackstory.docx

Old Draft May 9, 2026

2015_WillOfTheNecromancerBackstory

This document proceeds the original Mythos of Aria story, and serves as a transition from the 'Dark Orb' era ideas that the Mythos of Aria is based on. This story details Cole Ashheart trying to steal the divine (Libratum) orb which protects the kingdom. This orb served as the counterpart to the Dark Orb, which Cole Ashheart would go on to posses, and can be seen in some of the mini comic panels. However, no written media ever mentions the dark orb.

📄 2015_WillOfTheNecromancer.docx

Old Draft May 9, 2026

2015_WillOfTheNecromancer

This document precedes the original Mythos of Aria story. The prologue details a shadowy figure venturing into a cathedral and unleashing the spirit of the dead necromancer that laid dormant there. After this prologue, are chapters 1-3 that reflect the same beats as the first three chapters of the Mythos of Aria document, with Alex wanting to become a knight and preparing for his journey, but the later doc contains more worldbuilding. This doc also makes the random emphasis on the dark part of the Kinesgrove forest make more sense, because that's presumably where the necromancer cathedral is located.

📄 2015_RandomStoryIntro.docx

Old Draft May 9, 2026

2015_RandomStoryIntro

This narrative snippit is from the perspective of the regime 2 commander. It is a short internal dialogue before the battle of snow shore, which is a battle briefly mentioned in Crimson Red Steal. This is an unfinished work.

Scanned Note May 9, 2026

MiniComic_DarkOrb_Invasion

I made this comic while in middle school. It shows Cole Asheart invading the kingdom (with a measely two monsters lol), and the hero standing in his way. I don't remember the hero's name.

Scanned Note May 9, 2026

MiniComic_DarkOrb_ColeIntro

This comic was also made while I was in middle school. It shows the hero of the Dark Orb series confronting the big bad villian, Cole Asheart.

Scanned Note May 9, 2026

MiniComic_DarkOrb_Escape

I made this comic in middle school. It shows Cole Asheart breaking out of a temple-like prison. This was back when the series was called Dark Orb.

Scanned Note May 9, 2026

MiniComic_DarkOrb_Imprisonment

I made this comic in middle school. It shows Cole Asheart imprissoned and tells a bit of his backstory back when the series was called: Dark Orb

📄 Crimson Red Steel.docx

Old Draft May 9, 2026

Crimson Red Steel

This is a short story that takes place during the events of the Mythos of Aria. It details the kingdom's corrpution from within and mentions the disapperance of the division 5a knights. It also contains the characters, Princess/Queen Caitlyn, Beroldus, and a shadowy figure near the Princess/Queen that's hinted to be the archmage Cole Asheart.

Scanned Note May 9, 2026

BrynaBlade_Sketch

Original sketch of the Bryna blade. This is what would become Alex's weapon, and is a leftover idea from a series idea I worked on in middle school called 'Dark Orb.' It then became the subject of a partial Mythos of Aria rewrite, 'Duality of the Sword.'

Image May 9, 2026

AntiFairyWeapons_Sketch

Original sketch of Elizabeth's weapon, the Ante Ayeyo. Also the hilt of Alex's Malachite longsword.

📄 Act II The Mythos of Aria.docx

Old Draft May 9, 2026

Act II The Mythos of Aria

This is the original draft for Act 2. It's incomplete, and roughly only one chapter worth of content.

📄 Act I _The Mythos of Aria_.docx

Old Draft May 8, 2026

Act I _The Mythos of Aria_

This is the original google docs export of the first eleven chapters

A chronological record of everything that happened in this project: file edits, check-ins, sources added, integrity events. The story arrives in the order it was lived.

• JUN 2, 2026
• 17:48 chain Project connected — "The Mythos of Aria" — 20 files found
• 17:47 system Project disconnected
• MAY 27, 2026
• 20:19 chain Project connected — "The Mythos of Aria" — 20 files found
• 20:07 system Project disconnected
• 20:01 chain Project connected — "The Mythos of Aria" — 20 files found
• 20:00 system Project disconnected
• 19:12 chain Project connected — "The Mythos of Aria" — 20 files found
• 19:12 system Project disconnected
• 16:46 chain Project connected — "The Mythos of Aria" — 20 files found
• 16:25 system Project disconnected
• 14:23 chain Project connected — "2016_TheMythosOfAria" — 20 files found
• MAY 26, 2026
• 15:18 system Project disconnected
• MAY 21, 2026
• 15:27 save 2016_TheMythosOfAria
• MAY 20, 2026
• 19:13 chain Project connected — "2016_TheMythosOfAria" — 20 files found
• 19:01 system Project disconnected
• 19:00 chain Project connected — "2016_TheMythosOfAria" — 20 files found
• 18:47 system Project disconnected
• 8:59 save .ledger
• MAY 16, 2026
• 9:08 save 2016_TheMythosOfAria
• 9:08 note TheMythosOfAria.bench: Card moved: "Soldiers, tunnel fight, sword glows — chapter ends" ? → Act 2 — Staging
• 9:08 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-vto74V
• 9:08 note TheMythosOfAria.bench: Card moved: "Soldiers, tunnel fight, sword glows — chapter ends" Act 2 — Staging → ?
• 8:58 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-VQNzB5
• 8:58 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-oNDxye
• MAY 14, 2026
• 17:54 save TheMythosOfAria.bench
• 17:54 save TheMythosOfAria.bench
• 17:52 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-DNyuqT
• 17:52 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-DNyuqT
• 17:52 save .ledger
• 17:52 save .ledger
• 17:52 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-RUdZHM
• 17:52 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-RUdZHM
• 17:52 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-YyMKij
• 17:52 save TheMythosOfAria.bench.sb-d7df89f9-YyMKij
• 17:50 save TheMythosOfAria.bench
• 17:50 save TheMythosOfAria.bench
• 17:50 note TheMythosOfAria.bench: Card removed: "Navigating the tunnels — waterfall cavern — Sarah gone" from Act 2 — Staging
• 17:50 note TheMythosOfAria.bench: Card removed: "Navigating the tunnels — waterfall cavern — Sarah gone" from Act 2 — Staging
• 17:50 note TheMythosOfAria.bench: Card added: "Navigating the tunnels — waterfall cavern — Sarah gone" → Act 2 — Staging
• 17:50 note TheMythosOfAria.bench: Card added: "Navigating the tunnels — waterfall cavern — Sarah gone" → Act 2 — Staging
• 15:21 save .provenance.bundle
• 14:22 note I need to come up with ideas for act 2 and 3. I started this
• 8:41 system Assigned projectId.
• MAY 11, 2026
• 10:25 save TheMythosOfAria.bench
• MAY 9, 2026
• 13:16 source Added Old Draft: 2019_TheGastlyGauntlet
• 13:13 source Added Old Draft: 2016_DualityOfTheSword
• 12:59 source Added Old Draft: 2015_WillOfTheNecromancerBackstory
• 12:51 source Added Old Draft: 2015_WillOfTheNecromancer
• 12:35 source Added Old Draft: 2015_RandomStoryIntro
• 11:06 source Added Scanned Note: MiniComic_DarkOrb_Invasion
• 11:05 source Added Scanned Note: MiniComic_DarkOrb_ColeIntro
• 11:03 source Added Scanned Note: MiniComic_DarkOrb_Escape
• 11:02 source Added Scanned Note: MiniComic_DarkOrb_Imprisonment
• 11:00 source Added Old Draft: Crimson Red Steel
• 10:49 source Added Scanned Note: BrynaBlade_Sketch
• 10:41 source Added Image: AntiFairyWeapons_Sketch
• 10:34 source Added Old Draft: Act II The Mythos of Aria
• MAY 8, 2026
• 21:34 source Added Old Draft: Act I _The Mythos of Aria_
• 21:27 note The Mythos of Aria is a project I started in 2015, and I hav
• 21:10 chain Project connected — "2016_TheMythosOfAria" — 40 files found