It takes Emily two more attempts to get to the same point in the battle without any casualties after the boarding ships once again unluckily prove deadly to their inhabitants on the way to the ground.
Emily again manages to ground four of the twenty interceptors before Virgil starts throwing bolts of fire towards her. This time, she dodges the thrown bolts and ignores the spell being prepared on the ground as she lands on the fifth interceptor. She repeats the process of punching a hole...
2025-01-06 18:00:11 +0000 UTC
View Post
Emily once again leaves the engine room and heads to her workshop to prepare her potions and ammunition alone. This time, she pays extra attention to the powder blend filling the hollow shells of her ice bullets.
First, she adds some white iron filings to the bottom of her mixing beaker, before grabbing a handful of five lesser ice crystals and wrapping them in a thin film of mana. She pulverises the crystals within the thin barrier, pouring the powdered crystals into the beaker while s...
2025-01-03 18:00:07 +0000 UTC
View Post
This marks the end of my scheduling spree for now, gonna go write for a bit instead. I will be back tomorrow with some more after editing them a little.
Sorry for the notifs, kinda forgot to turn them off after the first like I was meant to... I'm kinda tired right now.
(Also free cookies to anyone who understands any of the niche references in this epigraph!)
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
{Hi, I’m a shouty rac! I’m here today to show you guys the brand-new White Dream...
2025-01-03 00:22:45 +0000 UTC
View Post
“You can’t give them human thoughts; the poor raccoons will get depression!”
--A raccoon rights activist arguing against genetic modification online.
[“What?”] I ask, tilting my head to the side again.
All of my siblings mimic me, and Gwen pauses for a moment before responding, clearly appreciating their adorableness!
[“You and your raccoons pickpocket people, right?”]
I nod, pulling up a small note in my augs and aski...
2025-01-03 00:18:53 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Trash Bandit’s raccoons? Yeah, of course you can feed them. They love snacks!
Just don’t give them any cotton candy. For some reason, it makes her cry.”
--Newtonian, talking to a civilian after the incursion.
[{Hey, Spot}] I chirp back through our mental connection, knowing how to use it without being told.
He hums happily before looking down, staring off into the distance as Cyon starts talking.
I’m giving h...
2025-01-03 00:15:19 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Eee, eee eeee.”
“E! Ee ee. Eee e.”
--Spot and Stripe, plotting The Great Hotdog Robbery of 2032.
The black ooze hits my chest, spreading out to cover every inch of my body, creeping up over my face. I hold my breath and shut my eyes, but the expected rush of fluid up my nose never comes and, after a few seconds of nothing happening, I open my eyes again.
I see a smooth black silhouette staring back at me in the mirror.
2025-01-03 00:13:24 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Wait-wait-wait. Back off a little. Four hundred?”
“Lowest estimate.”
“You’re saying that there are at least four hundred hives hidden in the sewers of England alone? That’s crazy talk!”
“A conservative guess really. There’s probably one right under Buckingham palace.”
“And how many in the sea?”
“Uncountable…”
“Alright. I quit.”
--First and last meet...
2025-01-03 00:12:10 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Do I trust my AI? Depends on what with.
My life? In a heartbeat.
My body upgrades? Not in a million years.
This fucker in my head has tried to give me animal ears more times than I can count! No, shut up, I won’t hear you out! THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN I’LL ENJOY THEM?!”
--Shadowflame, moments before burning down a tv studio in an argument with their AI, Liandry.
I pop open the box and find two familia...
2025-01-03 00:10:53 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Protector AI have admitted to generating their personalities to fit their chosen Vanguard. Our study of subjects one through five in your information pack, along with the government records of dead Vanguard, have revealed that this leads to a few curious patterns forming.
There are three main relationship types the Protector AI seem to aim for with their chosen personalities. The first, is what we like to call the hand break fit, where the AI acts to curb their usually i...
2025-01-03 00:09:09 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Are war crimes really valid against plants? I mean, come on!
It’s not like they’re people or something.”
--Uncredited. Suspected: Samurai Shoggoth, during the Global Incursion.
The plants near silently turn some of their ranks to face me, and the entire flock of flyers swoop down towards me. I immediately prime the Needler in my hands and toss it out, watching three identical grenades sailing down towards the horde from above,...
2025-01-03 00:07:24 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Most Samurai will die in their first incursion. Can anyone hazard a guess at the most common cause of death? No?
It’s carelessness.
It’s easy to think you’re invincible when you’ve just been thrown crazy alien tech. Unfortunately, the Antithesis never fail to capitalise on a weakness, and most Samurai don’t survive to learn their lesson.
If any of you ever find yourselves cursed with this gift they call uplifting, just remember; co...
2025-01-03 00:06:22 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Remember well. Antithesis are not animals. They’re plants, and they’re not just any plants, they’re weeds. Given a chance, they’ll always grow back. Roughly half of the incursions we deal with are the result of a hive that has grown from a few forgotten corpses somewhere in a hard to access place.
So, unless you have special Samurai-grade Flesh Melters to clean up Antithesis biomass, remember your very best friend: fire. You should always carry with you a set of ...
2025-01-03 00:04:14 +0000 UTC
View Post
“It's not known if Protectors chose Vanguard with certain... inclinations, or if their AIs are actively encouraging them, but there is an active trend for many Samurai to modify their bodies with animal characteristics.
And so, Dear Members of The Board, I present to you the newest addition to our Samurai fashion line that will make us our next billion:
CAT. EARS.”
--Internal presentation by Louis, H&M.
I bel...
2025-01-02 23:59:26 +0000 UTC
View Post
“I have been wondering about this for a while now. A lot of samurai have changed their gender, right?”
“I know you don’t want to go to a gynaecologist, but getting a sex change is not getting you out of it.”
“What? Right, no, not what I meant. I was just wondering if that was one of the deciding factors that makes you a samurai.”
“You know not all samurai change their gender.”
“Ooh, maybe it is because people ...
2025-01-02 23:57:36 +0000 UTC
View Post
Bit of a warning for this one just in case!
Tw:
Deadnaming and dysphoria fun (not so fun).
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
“The advent of samurai-tech has made embracing your gender both easier and harder in many ways.
On one hand, with enough money, there aren't really many limits to customising your body. On the other hand, this has led to lots of confusion.
Are you valid if you seek only conventional hormone replacement therapy and nothing ...
2025-01-02 23:56:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
After half of Oxford was blown up to end an incursion in late 2023, the city underwent a rapid period of growth with the help of several local samurai, who caused the explosion, and massive corporate investment. Several nearby towns were almost completely emptied as their residents moved into the forming megacity, New Oxford.
Unfortunately, this mass migration led to a hive taking root in a nearby town and going unnoticed. It was only discovered after releasing a large wave...
2025-01-02 23:51:42 +0000 UTC
View Post
Heyo, the birb has given permission, so chapters are being dropped here too!
The first five chapters are available on RoyalRoad or ScribbleHub if you're interested and need to catch up!
Also, I'm making no promises on advance chapters always being available for this one, so its available for all tiers for now.
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-=-+-
“Sir, we’ve just been sent a report from the CFO flagging up an issue with our budgeting.”
“What can it poss...
2025-01-02 23:48:47 +0000 UTC
View Post
Not a chapter post, but just letting you guys know I'm releasing a Stray Cat Strut fanfiction on RoyalRoad and Scribble.
I will probably be putting some advanced chapters on here once I have bird's permission, but I make no promises....
Also here's the link for scribble if you want to read it there before it gets approved: https://www.scribblehub.com/series/1369844/raccoons-gar...
2025-01-02 12:44:33 +0000 UTC
View Post
The Clock rewinds and Emily finds herself back aboard Calypso in full control, guiding the ship towards Erenmoor from the engine room. She breaks her meditation, opening her eyes that glint with a cold, calculating light.
There’s no way I can actually block that spell if he aims it at Calypso. Even a glancing blow instantly tore through my boot, so none of my spells will be enough to block it, but I may have a chance to reduce the power.
Emily stands up and starts walki...
2024-12-30 18:00:08 +0000 UTC
View Post
Emily stands up, stretching her arms above as she looks at the army ahead, her eyes scanning their numbers with relative ease despite the low light.
“Hmm,” she mumbles, sending a large stream of machina into Calypso and using Overdrive to speed up their approach. “Doing this at night isn’t a good idea. We’re still an easy target to pick out and it’s just going to make it harder for me to avoid accidentally dropping something on someone.”
Plans start to form in her he...
2024-12-27 18:00:10 +0000 UTC
View Post
Calypso sets down a short distance from Erenmoor once again, and this time Emily doesn’t leave the ship. Instead, she sleeps for six hours, completely resting all of her cores ready for the final break for the border.
After, she wakes up and heads towards the engine room to meditate till lift-off. On her way, she hears faint gunshots from the front of the ship and so makes her way over to check on them. She arrives at the main entrance hatch and finds Angela sitting at the top of the ...
2024-12-23 18:00:11 +0000 UTC
View Post
After dropping from the ship to the sands below, Emily sprints across the desert with crackling charge burning her footprints into the ground beneath her. It takes a short while for the city to enter her sight and, as it does, she can’t help but let out an impressed whistle.
The entire city is wrapped in a gargantuan wall, equalling Chroni’s in size and equipped with many vicious-looking weapons. Spaced at even intervals along the battlements are dozens of bulky cannons, mounted on ...
2024-12-20 18:00:11 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Hey, Emily!” Podrick calls out, knocking his fist against the wall above the crawlspace she’s tucked into to grab her attention. “Ash says they think we’re done and wants you to come check.”
“Okay,” Emily calls back, her steady hand carving a rune into a structural beam of metal without pause. “I’ll be there in a moment.”
I’ve finished forty per cent of the runes needed now. It’s a shame I can’t finish it before we set off, but the modified engine ...
2024-12-16 18:00:11 +0000 UTC
View Post
“Haha,” Podrick’s father laughs heartily. “It’s good to see you, my boy.”
Emily silently watches the reunion from the side, the sight awakening memories of Herber, which she quickly pushes away as the lack of emotional connection unsettles her, a pang of guilt and discomfort resonating in her chest despite her absolute calm.
“What are you doing back so soon? And who’s this lass?” the man asks, pulling away from his son and glancing over at Emily, meeting her cold...
2024-12-13 18:00:17 +0000 UTC
View Post
Emily settles down in her temporary workshop with Podrick for the duration of the storm. She tirelessly works on fabricating armour panels while watching through her spider scout for anything approaching the ship.
A few times, she notices distinct clusters of motion passing them by, but nothing approaches Calypso, so she happily ignores them and keeps working. Mid-afternoon on the second day grounded, however, Emily pauses her hands midway through engraving a rune and looks straight dow...
2024-12-09 18:01:55 +0000 UTC
View Post
The moment Emily’s earth-shattering kick connects, the twisting vortex of wind dominating the space disperses, revealing the elemental within. It appears frozen in its attacking stance, the motion of its upper torso halted, with all of the sand within its body half-cooked into a solid mass that leaves several gaps.
Emily capitalises on the opening she’s created, kicking off the air with her other leg and releasing all of the charge stored in it. She rockets down past the elemental, ...
2024-12-06 18:00:14 +0000 UTC
View Post
“That’s the spirit,” Emily says, offering a shoulder to help Angela keep the weight off her injured leg. “Let’s head to the drone hatch, I want easy access to the outside so I can observe the storm while I work.”
“So that’s how you got out ahead of us,” Anton says in realisation, shaking his head and turning away. “I’ll leave you to help her and go monitor the situation from the bridge. We’ll sound the horn if we see anything out of the ordinary.”
“Good...
2024-12-02 18:00:14 +0000 UTC
View Post
This was meant to post on friday but I messed up while scheduling it... Ah well, enjoy it a few days early.
-+-+-+-+-+-+-
Emily puts all of the plates through a series of tests, checking everything from their resistance to bullets and magic to their density in order to select the perfect choice. She settles on a blend of steel containing a touch of black iron, the best option for balanced strength while using up as little of her magical resources as possible.
After coming to...
2024-11-27 20:14:48 +0000 UTC
View Post
Emily and Podrick return to a warm welcome aboard Calypso. The moment they step through the ship’s main hatch, they’re met with the barrels of several guns. Podrick steps back in surprise, but Emily simply walks forward unconcerned.
“Hey,” she says with a small wave before reaching up to drop her hood and pull the scarf from her face.
The guns lower as Anton, Angela, and Ash let out sighs of relief.
“You should have taken that off before coming in,” Anton grumble...
2024-11-25 18:00:12 +0000 UTC
View Post
Jeremy and Kyle both flinch at the familiarity and scorn in her tone and glance at each other in confusion.
“You know us?” Kyle asks, relaxing slightly and rubbing his neck.
“I know you definitely can’t beat me in a fight. Speaking of, where have your little cronies gone? Did they get taken away when you were declared failures?”
Kyle seems to realise who she is, glancing down at the blades hidden in her sleeve as fear twists his expression. Jeremy on the other hand...
2024-11-22 18:00:08 +0000 UTC
View Post
