Malcolm Tent

Call of the Void chapter 25

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1064

I didn’t know Sister Bernadette that well. She’d always struck me as a ditzy good natured devotee of the goddess, with a strong sense of responsibility I’d only recently started to see, and a good sense of humor. More recently added to my list of Bernadette’s traits? An explosive temper.

“RAT BASTARD!” she roared, hurling a full sized metal dumpster across the alley with a snarl of rage. The receptacle smashed into the brick of the building wall, shaking free a could of dust...

Secret Ending chapter 157

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1063

“So, who are we supposed to talk to now?” I asked Bernadette as she, Dayna, and I sipped hot chocolate in the priory library. “You mentioned a contact who could help, right? Who might that be?” I didn’t understand much about the arrangement of the Lady’s forces, even at this point. I knew Bernadette was a nun and in the Order of Mercy, but I didn’t know if she was part of a subfaction, or if the whole order was a religious organization.

Given the actual goddess involved, t...

Secret Ending chapter 156

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1062

I hadn’t really spoken to my Cooking demon much, since Gehenna was founded. I’d spent quite a bit of time in combat or running from one mess to the next, and even when I HAD cooked, it hadn’t really been at the forefront of my mind. Now though, I was looking forward to seeing what my demon was capable of. It was simplicity itself to reach into Gehenna and tap Cooking for incarnation, allowing him to dwell within my body.

With most of my demons, incarnation gave me access to unique...

Call of the Void chapter 24

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1061

Knocking on the door, I waited carefully, looking around for any sign of being followed or watched. I was ALMOST certain Murmur had kept us safe on the way. But almost wasn’t completely, and the last thing I wanted to do was put Bernadette in danger just because she wanted to help me. The nun was certifiably insane, but she was also a genuinely kind person, for certain values of kindness (she HAD poisoned me the first time we met, but she meant well).

After a brief pause, the door ope...

Secret Ending chapter 155

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1060

The heavens were broken. I’d forgotten about that. The crimson expanse had been shattered, a colossal web of cracks across the vault of the sky. If I looked closely, ignoring the consuming darkness peeking through the cracks, I could vaguely make out the shape of a titanic palm pressing down on this world.

I wondered if that was what had killed the Lady, all those years ago. Was that palm the last thing she’d seen before she’d been shattered by whoever had ended her life, relegate...

Call of the Void chapter 23

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1059

We entered the cave without much fanfare, and despite the expected backlash or protections, I didn’t face any real resistance. Still, we weren’t there yet, and once we’d walked further into the cave, Dayna reached into a pocket and pulled out a small note. “Mama said not to open this outside,” she explained. “Apparently whatever connection point this passage is built on isn’t as closely surveilled. The handover between the Void and the divine domain is a blank spot where we’re...

Secret Ending chapter 154

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1058

The killing glade looked somewhat similar to the knockoff version we’d seen in the shallowing, but also nothing like it at all. If I had to compare the sensation, if would be something like looking at a projection of a place through a scan box. It was sort of…condensed into an approximation, but it was also qualitatively different in some indescribable ways.

“Welcome, kids,” Marius said grandly. “To the killing glade.”

Dayna sighed. “I’ve been here before. I’m FR...

Secret Ending chapter 153

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1057

“I really appreciate everything you’ve done for us, Mama,” I said sheepishly. “But you really don’t need to pack us lunch. You should keep it for the kids, they definitely need it more than we do. We HAVE food.” I was trying to refuse the large container of gravy soaked beef that she wanted to foist off on us, but the orphanage matron was having none of it.

“You think I can’t feed my kids?” she asked archly. “That I’m so foolish I’d give away food my babies need ...

Call of the Void chapter 22

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1056

After hearing the whole story, Mama Bel looked wary. “Baby girl, you went and got yourself mixed up in some complicated things,” she said worriedly. “The affairs of gods aren’t something to play with. They have a way of sweeping you up into their wake without even meaning to. Divine proximity comes with a sort of momentum. The closer to them you are the more turbulent the waters.”

That…explained a LOT about my life, actually. Ever since I had become and Ascendant, things ten...

Secret Ending chapter 152

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1055

The inside of the Lodge was surprisingly warm. Not stifling or anything, but just…toasty. Like there was a roaring fire going just around the corner. And the whole place smelled of pine and woodsmoke. It was oddly homey.

Dayna, to my immense shock, was almost SMILING. She took a long, deep breath. “I’d almost forgotten the smell.”

“It is nice,” I said enthusiastically. “You grew up here?”

She nodded. “In the west wing. Most of the orphanages are there. It w...

Call of the Void chapter 21

Canon: mugs Kai in a dark alley to get him on team seven
Kai: cracks neck "Alright, my turn."

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1054

“Ow!” I snarled as I tried not to stiffed too much. “Get this OUT of me!” The arrow in my shoulder was STUCK, and I couldn’t use any forms or anything to get it out because the arrow itself was B-rank. It hadn’t been too solid of a hit, and I was sturdy, but it was in now, and I couldn’t get it out without doing way more damage because of the barbs.

Dayna looked shockingly unsettled by the injury, her eyes darting around looking for any solution. Finally she stopped, took ...

Secret Ending chapter 151

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1053

I emerged from my mental conference with my wife refreshed and ready to take on the world. Which might have been a poor choice of words, because as I opened my eyes and looked at the surrounding wasteland, I noticed a distinctive uptick in the number of figures. As in thousands of them.

Turning to Dayna, I raised an eyebrow. “Ok…what the hell happened?”

She growled in irritation. “What HAPPENED is your damn bird spotted a small lizard and decided it needed a snack!”

Secret Ending chapter 150

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1052

Emerging from the door back onto the Void Road, I felt a weight slough off my shoulders. I released Dayna to help with directions, and Archie to scout, but left the demons inside. To make sure we weren’t spotted though, I incarnated Murmur, allowing my stealth demon to dwell within my body and infuse me with his skill and technique in hiding.

Once I had the others hidden, I stepped out of Astaroth, letting a parallel deal with Murmur’s presence in my head and just enjoyed the walk. ...

Call of the Void chapter 20

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1051

The Voidwalker’s Guild was surprisingly jovial for a building tucked into a back alley corner of a city steeped in murder victim blood. As soon as we stepped inside, a few people took a look around, spotted Dayna, and cheered a greeting. The taciturn elf smiled slightly, nodding to them as we entered, and headed for the back of the hall where a big bearded man stood in front of a counter that seemed to double as a reception desk and bar.

He noticed her coming and shot her a grin, his ...

Secret Ending chapter 149

Wish upon the Stars chapter 1050

The trek to the nearest Hanging Land was just as quick as expected, or even quicker, because we were definitely moving with purpose. Brad had managed something unctionally impossible by making a pit in the Void Road (which was durable enough that most S-rankers couldn’t do much to them), but it was at its core, just a hole in a road. Clarent was gone, but definitely not dead.

“So how does this work?” I asked Dayne as we headed for the location of the entrance. “He fell into the ...