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The Imperial Saga

Home of the Empire of the Seven Continents

  • Overview
  • Main Series
    • Rise of the Phoenix
    • Knight of the Dragon
    • Heart of the Guardian
  • Mythology
    • The Myth of the Scorpion Queen
    • The Myth of The Wolves
  • Character Profiles
  • Continent Info
    • Estova
    • Izuria
    • Krendia
    • Shem
    • Kaehlar
  • Other Info
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YouTube Channel Launched!

Posted on 2 July, 20242 July, 2024 By Anne Winchell No Comments on YouTube Channel Launched!
News, Other

The Imperial Saga YouTube channel has now launched! Find your favorite videos from the Imperial Saga here, including songs about the continents, readings, and other behind-the-scenes information.

Right now, I have music videos from Kaehlar, Krendia, and Shem available on the channel. Over the next few days, additional music videos from Shem will be added so that there are at least three songs per continents. 

In the future, I’ll also record readings of the books, and I hope to create videos of my writing process and share insights on my books as I continue working on the fourth book, which will be published this year (and hopefully sooner rather than later).

Anne Winchell, Author of Speculative Fiction

Anne Winchell, Author of Speculative Fiction
We’re not on the map. Not because we’re hiding. Because your map was never ours.

⸻

They say their evidence is foolproof. He laughs. Judge for yourself: https://tcp.annewinchell.com/people/kenny-2.

Find out more about Galio, the newest member of the Rioran Empire, and The Conquered Princes, a dark sci-fi novel with intense personal stakes and galactic ramifications, at https://tcp.annewinchell.com. 

⸻

Full lyrics:

(Verse 1)

They drew lines across our city
Gave the streets new names to learn
Built their towers, raised their banners
Thought the whole world had been earned

They can number every building
Count the lights in every square
But there’s places made of memory
You won’t find them anywhere

Grandma’s basement
Old train tunnels
Bricked-up doors beneath the rain
Every shortcut passed in whispers
Every shelter without a name

(Pre-Chorus)

They keep searching where they built us
We keep living where we were

(Chorus)

We’re not on the map
Never have been
Never where the Watchers look

Every alley tells a story
That they never thought to read

Safehouse windows
Hidden doorways
Hands that always leave a light

There’s a whole world underneath them
Keeping people safe tonight

You can’t conquer what you never learned

We’re not on the map

(Verse 2)

There’s a river under pavement
Older than their Empire’s laws
Sewers twisting through the darkness
Holding all our secret roads

Children know which tunnels flood first
Workers know what pipes still run
Every district keeps its own language
Passed from parent down to son

Need a doctor?
Need a blanket?
Need a family for a week?

Someone always knows somebody
Before you even have to speak

(Pre-Chorus)

They’ve got satellites above us
We’ve got neighbors down the hall

(Chorus)

We’re not on the map
Never have been
Never where the scanners land

They can scan a thousand rooftops
Miss the hand inside your hand

Safehouse kitchens
Borrowed bedrooms
Every lock a promise kept

Whole generations disappeared
Into places they forget

You can’t occupy
What you don’t understand

(Bridge)

They argue over districts

Yorlan…

Elzarb…

Maybe Norzhi…

They build another task force
Write another report
Circle another neighborhood

They still don’t know.

Headquarters sits beneath their footsteps
Hidden by the simplest thing—

They never asked
Who actually lives here.

(Instrumental Break)

(Final Chorus)

We’re not on the map
Not because we’re hiding

Because your map was never ours

Every rescue
Every message
Every child who makes it through

Every rebel still standing
Is another place you never knew

The city keeps our secrets
The people keep them too

You brought an Empire.

We brought home.

And home…
Was never on your map.

(Outro)

You can own the streets above us.

We’ll take the city underneath.

#aimusic #synthpop #rebellion  #cinematicrock  #scifimusic #worldbuilding #TheConqueredPrinces #Kenny
⸻

World, concepts, and characters by Anne Winchell
Lyrics and art by ChatGPT
Music and video by Suno
Arranged by Anne Winchell

The image was created using the lyrics as input and may contain inaccuracies. It is meant to represent the overall feel for the character and world but is not considered canon. 

This includes generative AI, including Suno and ChatGPT. I am not affiliated with either, and all AI-generated content is clearly labeled above. You can read more about my policies on AI use at https://annewinchell.com/ai-policy/ 

All specific characters, worlds, events, people, cultures, and other identifying features are copyright © 2026 Anne Winchell. However, if you'd like to create art, music, or stories inspired by any of this, please don't hesitate to contact me (https://tcp.annewinchell.com/contact-anne/). I'm (almost always) happy to give permission!
Not on the Map [ ♪ The Conquered Princes Original Music ♪ ]
We’re not on the map.
Never have been.
Never where the Watchers look.

You can’t conquer what you can't find.

Full song Friday @ 3pm CT

The Conquered Princes → https://tcp.annewinchell.com/

#shorts #aimusic #synthpop #rebellion  #cinematicrock  #scifimusic #worldbuilding #TheConqueredPrinces #Kenny
Not on the Map [ ♪ TCP Original Music ♪ ]
Green skin. Green eyes. Green blood. Green name. Aaron has all the shades of green that give him a life of privilege in stratified Rioran society. Garrett only has envy.

 ⸻

They claim he's not a slave. That he wants this life. Judge for yourself: https://tcp.annewinchell.com/garrett.

Find out more about The Conquered Princes, a dark sci-fi novel with intense personal stakes and galactic ramifications, at https://tcp.annewinchell.com.

⸻

Full lyrics:

(Verse 1)

You don't have to hide your face
Don't have to pull your hood down low
Nobody sees your skin and wonders
If you're somewhere you shouldn't go

Pure Rioran, pure green
Nothing dangerous in the sight
They look at me and see a problem
They look at you and see a right

They stop me just to ask me questions
They stop you just to let you through
Funny how the same damn city
Changes color around you

(Chorus)

Green
Your skin says you belong here
Green
Before you say a word
Green
They've already decided
You deserve to be heard

And I'm green
But not the kind that opens doors
Not the kind they bow before
Not the kind that sets me free

I'm only green
When I'm looking at you
Looking at me

(Verse 2)

You take the subway to the palace
I can't take the subway anywhere
You flash your identification
Like you have every right to be there

Someone thinks you don't belong
Until you lift your eyes
One glance—
And suddenly she knows
Suddenly she recognizes

Green eyes
That's all it takes
No explanation, no delay
The crowd remembers what you are
And everybody moves away

I know those eyes
I've watched them soften
I've watched them frightened
I've watched them bleed

But strangers don't know any of that
They only know what green eyes mean

(Chorus)

Green
Your eyes say don't detain him
Green
Your blood says let him pass
Green
The Watchers know their station
And the citizens know their class

And I'm green
But mine won't clear a checkpoint
Won't put my name beyond their reach
Won't make a Watcher call me "sir"
Or make the city practice what they preach

I'm only green
When I'm watching you
Walk through

(Verse 3)

They don't even know your name
That's the part that makes me laugh
Eight years standing at my shoulder
And you're still a photograph
Without a label
Without a story
Without a crowd outside your door

They know my face from every angle
They always want a little more

My record
My scars
My fights
My weight
What I eat
Who I touch
Where I go
How long I stay

They call it love when they follow me
Call themselves mine when they get too close
Take my picture from across the street
And trade the pieces they want most

You stand beside me every seven days
And somehow no one knows it's you

God, Aaron,
What would I give
To be somebody
No one knew?

(Break)

Green skin.
Safe enough.

Green eyes.
High enough.

Green blood.
Pure enough.

Green name.
Guarded enough.

Green me—

Never enough.

(Bridge)

I know.

I know what green can cost you.

The wrong street knows exactly
What an elite is worth
And you can't hide those eyes forever
Can't scrape Rior from your birth

Disloyalists don't need your name
To know what side you're on
And if they ever learn you're mine—
My handler—
Your protection's gone

So maybe green's a target too
Maybe privilege has a price

But I'd like to choose my danger
Just once
Just once
Just once in my life

(Final Chorus)

Give me green
The kind that parts the crowd
Give me green
The kind that's allowed
Give me green
That turns a checkpoint
Into somewhere I can simply walk through

Give me green
That makes them look away
Give me green
That buys an ordinary day
Where nobody screams my name
Nobody follows
Nobody asks me to perform

No hood
No mask
No hiding
No hands reaching for my arm

But I'm green
And it's useless
It's bitter
It's mean

You've got every shade that matters

I've only got envy

Green

Green

Green

(Outro)

You glance at them
They let you through

I pull my hood lower
And follow you

#darkpop #glitchpop #scifimusic #cinematicmusic #worldbuilding #aimusic #originalsong #TheConqueredPrinces #Garrett
⸻

World, concepts, and characters by Anne Winchell
Lyrics and art by ChatGPT
Music and video by Suno
Arranged by Anne Winchell

The image was created using the lyrics as input and may contain inaccuracies. It is meant to represent the overall feel for the character and world but is not considered canon. 

This includes generative AI, including Suno and ChatGPT. I am not affiliated with either, and all AI-generated content is clearly labeled above. You can read more about my policies on AI use at https://annewinchell.com/ai-policy/ 

All specific characters, worlds, events, people, cultures, and other identifying features are copyright © 2026 Anne Winchell. However, if you'd like to create art, music, or stories inspired by any of this, please don't hesitate to contact me (https://tcp.annewinchell.com/aew/). I'm (almost always) happy to give permission!
Green [ ♪ The Conquered Princes Original Music ♪ ]
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Book Cover: Heart of the Guardian
Heart of the Guardian
Book Cover: Knight of the Dragon
Knight of the Dragon
The cover of Rise of the Phoenix, with a dark maroon background, a golden, flaming phoenix in the center with a fiery orange-red skyscrapers in a golden portal, and the words Rise of the Phoenix in fancy golden letters
Rise of the Phoenix
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Dystopian Galaxies: Visions of the Future
Book Cover: The Last War
The Last War
Book Cover: The Creatives
The Creatives
Book Cover: The Moon of Lycca
The Moon of Lycca

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