Malcolm Tent

A Novel Approach chapter 27

Beginning of the heist

Wish upon the Stars chapter 719

“And Shane informed me that he didn’t want to get ‘caught up in the rat race’.” Zeke said with a wide grin. “When I asked him where he heard that term, he said a bunch of the boys on the sixth floor were racing rats and they kept making everyone bet their lunch money.”

The crowd around us burst into gales of laughter, and I sulked a little bit, because I’d been TEN and had no idea that phrase had another meaning.

“You were so CUTE.” Cooed ...

Shout at the Devil chapter 190

The weighing of the wands

Wish upon the Stars chapter 718

Being a D-ranker was…surreal. Literally, reality felt different to me. A qualitative shift in my perception of the world. It was hard to describe, but I finally pinned down the sensation, and once I did it made way too much sense. It was my sense of Impact. It had always been there, useful for keeping track of other Ascendants and detecting threats. I still remembered Abel teaching me to fine tune it beyond just detecting rank.

But not it was so much more. I could do more t...

Shout at the Devil chapter 189

Making peace the morning after

Wish upon the Stars chapter 717

He stopped running about twenty miles from Wintervale. I wasn’t surprised. He was trying to get away from the situation more than me. I suspect he’d partially figured out what I was doing, and had brought me out here to counter it. The little flurries of snow on the tundra would stick to my clones even in stealth. They could hide still, but there would be disturbances.


To my amusement, he looked enraged when I caught up. “Do you know how much effort I had to put in to make th...

A Novel Approach chapter 26

Some new items and plans

Wish upon the Stars chapter 716

It was time. I felt my hands tingle as I clenched and unclenched my fists. A hundred people with me. Callie was gone, taking her fifty along. The angels, Abel, Jessie, Randall, and dozens of others were standing behind me, and all of us were stationed right outside the canon where Wintervale was situated.

“Go.” I said shortly, and we went. The formation training had been useful, helping us maintain a cohesive assault force, but Ascendant tactics were kind of paradoxical i...

Shout at the Devil chapter 188

Nsfw, mind the tags.

Wish upon the Stars chapter 715

“No.” I said bluntly. I stared across the room at Bethy, who had come up with a last minute ‘plan’ to hide our entry into the snowglobe for the attack.

“But it’s FOOLPROOF!” She yelled in frustration. “Look how convincing it is.” She gestured manically to…what could generously be described as a hooded cloak made of Wendigo skil with antlers on top.

It was not convincing. It was way too long, had no limbs, and was weirdly stiff in places. T...

A Novel Approach chapter 25

nsfw, mind the tags

Wish upon the Stars chapter 714

“Well if it isn’t the lovebirds.” Said Benny as we walked into his room with Jessie on our heels. He was leaning back in his chair, and Celine had her feet in his lap, which he was rubbing. Her head was tilted back, and she was snoring lightly, but when he spoke she snapped awake, falling off the couch they were sitting on with a mortified squeak.

Benny laughed, then groaned as she punched him in the leg with a scowl. Scrambling to her feet, she fixed her…I didn’t a...

Shout at the Devil chapter 187

Confrontation with Rita Skeeter

Wish upon the Stars chapter 713

The next month was surprisingly peaceful. I spent it relaxing with Callie, repairing the planet, hanging with Benny and Chelsea, and just generally taking some time to get my head right after the pressure cooker of tension and nightmares that was running an active opposition to a planetary occupation.

Of course, I still did my wishes every day, and I focused most of it on Fantasy again. Sadly, the majority of my point gain was from renown, and most of that probably ended up g...

Shout at the Devil chapter 186

The champions are called.

Wish upon the Stars 712

Rebuilding Velan was my first pick of assignment. Well…assignment was a loaded word. I just kind of said what I wanted and people did it. Word was already spreading as the E-rankers returned to their cities, clearing out stragglers and beginning the rebuilding process. I went back to my city, to fix the damage that had been done.

Pit of Despair was so overpowered in this environment I was able to push it further out than I could have imagined. A mile of building and rubble ...

A Novel Approach chapter 24

The big bad of the first arc is chosen!

Wish upon the Stars chapter 711

Once we finished the setup, it was time for the main event. We all retreated to the edges of the formation, except the people that were actively involved. We left the defensive emplacements up as cover, but our advance team booked it out of the tundra at top speed. When we finally reached the edge, we found Moravian standing near one of the connections that hooked the formation up to the rest of the world.

“Is everything in place?” He asked me solemnly. When I nodded, he ...

Shout at the Devil chapter 185

Beginning of the dance.

Wish upon the Stars 710

“Everyone is in position, right?” I asked my friends carefully as we stood out among the tundra. “Because we need Bethy and Gabe’s formation in place to blunt any attempts to fuck with the formation. I’m talking sight range of Wintervale. Bethy is more than capable of detecting anyone trying to slip by, I’m sure.”

Callie nodded confidently. “On top of that, those portable bulwark things Celine wished for should be enough to slow down any assaults. Benny really...

A Novel Approach chapter 23

First B-class pull! There was a huge vote actually over on QQ, and it tied so I went with the OG option.

Wish upon the Stars 709

“So can you do it?” I asked excitedly as I stared down at the Moravian. The Grandmaster of Formations was sitting cross legged in an empty volcanic chamber, eyes closed as he pondered…something. Might have been the truths of the universe, might have been a recipe for Paiea. Whatever he was doing, he’d made about a dozen minute changes to the cavern and had set up some kind of formation already.

He inhaled deeply, then blew out the breath in a slow cadence before openi...

Shout at the Devil chapter 184

Time to head to the ball

Wish upon the Stars chapter 708

Valen…was in pretty bad shape. Callie had aimed herself at the Unity building, but the lockdown reinforcement had faded, and she’d gone through the building, into the WCP, and hit the underground district hard. The city wasn’t going to COLLAPSE, but it was getting a little creaky.

Luckily, there was a ton of rubble around, and a modified use of Pit of Despair turned it all into Dust that I was able to work into a series of pillars to hold everything up. Song of the Soil...

Shout at the Devil chapter 183

Short bit of nsfw to start mind the tags, then the preface before the Halloween Ball.

Wish upon the Stars chapter 707

“Why aren’t they attacking?” I said casually as we strolled through the halls. “I expected to be ass deep in Wendigo by this point. Although I have to admit, watching Abel twitch every time they move is kind of funny.” I ignored the middle finger my teacher shot me, keeping most of my attention on my Danger Sense.

It was going off like a storm siren, obviously, but I was trying to track the intensity for forewarning of an attack. Nothing was pinging right now, so I ...

A Novel Approach chapter 22

End of the fight, and a big milestone is reached.

Wish upon the Stars chapter 706

“How weird is it being back here?” Asked Benny as he slumped down next to me on the couch. “I still remember us coming here together after you got your powers. It was so huge and imposing, a whole new world. Now it seems almost pathetic compared to some of the places we’ve been.” He put a hand on my shoulder, spiritual calming flooding into me and slowly repairing my soul.

“I feel that.” I chuckled. “They finish searching the area?”

He sighe...

Shout at the Devil chapter 182

nsfw warning mind the tags

Wish upon the Stars chapter 705

We confirmed that the plan would work easily enough. Yes no questions were simpler than digging for specific secrets, and after getting that done, we arranged some transportation formations to Valen to make sure we hit the trap with optimal timing. Callie left to get ready to meet us there, and the rest of our party was on standby just in case a rescue was needed.

With all that done though, it was up to Abel and I to move in and begin our distraction. I triggered Bael, escort...