A/N: While S&S may seem very dark in the beginning, especially since we know from the prologue that things have yet to hit rock bottom for the pair, I do want to mention that the story itself will not be darker than SoW in an overall sense. That said, this chapter's not so dark at all, so enjoy!
Two Months & Three Weeks Ago, Hssyri River
The city of Ess’Sylantziis, capital of the Em...
2023-02-27 01:59:19 +0000 UTC View PostI grumbled as we walked away from the latest person who’d closed the door in our face. Around us the roughly cobbled street was half-full of passersby, and the buildings around here sagged with age, many showing signs of repair on their old stone walls.
We’d been at it all day, plying markets and taverns on the hunt for information about the murders. In our desperation, we’d even tried going door to door the last hour or so. While we weren’t met with any outright hostility, ever...
2023-02-25 03:10:03 +0000 UTC View PostThe well-dressed woman and I stared at each other for an uncomfortably long moment. She had lightish-brown hair that stuck out from under a woolen cap, and gray-blue eyes flanked by crow’s feet that bored into my own.
Neither of us dared reach for the bundle of dropped flowers. She didn’t want to risk looking away, and I wasn’t about to close the four or so meters of space between us. I also wasn’t about to let this turn into another awkward situation with a lot of yelling and m...
2023-02-22 02:21:59 +0000 UTC View PostContent Warning: Transmisia
Three months ago, Hssyri River
I cradled my injured jaw and braced myself against the wall as the ship rocked. The faint sound of rain drummed against the deck above me, and the whole aazh’kaa rocked and creaked with the wind. The merchant ship was heading up the Hssyri all the way to Ess’Sylantziis, and Kyrae had gotten us passage using the last of our money.
She was somewhere else in the da...
2023-02-20 00:52:02 +0000 UTC View PostI closed the door to our inn room softly behind me, making sure to lock it. Sleep wasn’t going to take me, so I padded down the hall and out into the crisp night air. My mind whirled. Just a few days ago, everything had still been so simple: get to the next place and keep going.
But now, my feet tread on Edathan soil. Home, while still far away in a technical sense, was a relative stone’s throw. And with that knowledge came memories. Clarity helped me sleep most nights these days, a...
2023-02-18 03:52:03 +0000 UTC View Post“I can’t say I’m disappointed that I sold half my stock of nightsbane after that whole mess,” Myrna said dryly as we pulled slowly into Gedon.
The city sat in a rather square-bottomed valley on the banks of the Linthel river only a few kilometers upstream from its terminus into the River Gelles. The border city, Myrna had told us, saw a lot of fighting in the civil war but was bouncing back quickly.
Quickly didn’t extend to the thoroughly destroyed road entering it from ...
2023-02-15 03:02:02 +0000 UTC View PostFour months ago, Ess’Siijiil
“But Nyss, I—”
“Quiet,” Nyss hissed. “You do want money, right? To get a better place to live? I have several good places I can set you up with, but I need to know I can trust you.” He slithered around me, the old lania’el wearing a fanged smile under black eyes. In the flickering light, the scar that ran along his chin seemed almost white.
“You can already trust me!” I half-shoute...
2023-02-13 00:50:03 +0000 UTC View PostIf anyone could shrug off being stabbed in the back, it would be me. As such, I was the first person to exit the mine, and therefore the first person to see High Priest Yevon Styon leaning against the cart and staring up at the moon.
Next to the cart, the bodies of Hector and the others from his group had been dug out of the snow and laid in repose. Blue with chill and rimed in frost, they nevertheless looked like bodies prepared for burial.
“What are you doing here?” I blurte...
2023-02-11 03:29:16 +0000 UTC View Post“This’ll last for about an hour, less if you stab something.” Seyari returned the last knife to its sheathe and handed it to Nelys. As the blade slid into place, the holy glow she’d placed on it died down. “I’m no enchanter, but if there’s a demon up ahead—”
“We’ll have a fightin’ chance.” Taava finished for her, a wide smile on her face, despite the pitch blackness of the passageway.
“Thanks.” Nelys nodded. “What’s the plan again, Zarenna?”
... 2023-02-08 03:47:18 +0000 UTC View PostContent warning: A bit of manipulation from Issa. Born of ignorance and naivety, it’s still potentially triggering or tough to read.
Five months ago, Ess’Siijiil
The dreams weren’t so bad. After we’d nearly gotten caught at the warehouse, and Kyrae had sold off what we’d managed to take, we laid low.
The money was enough to get us a place—a room under some shady business where we had to slither down under the pi...
2023-02-06 02:51:10 +0000 UTC View PostSeyari shut the two demonically-enchanted items back into the sturdy box. They were a small knife and a small cup, and both, even without aura sight, had an odd air about them.
“Do they have to do with cutting yourself and putting the blood in the cup?” Nelys asked.
I nodded. Nelys and I had made a bet with Taava, who’d called the idea “way too obvious, even for whatever idiots we’re chasin’.”
Seyari shook her head, and the smug kazzel immediately sidled up to ...
2023-02-04 02:56:07 +0000 UTC View PostAfter that incident the first night, nothing drastic happened in town over next day or night. I was studiously avoided, and the few people from the church in town—a small, quaint building—took one look at me and decided I was not something they could deal with.
I’d much rather they decided I wasn’t someone they should deal with, but I wasn’t in a position to choose.
Yevon hadn’t shown up either, and on the morning of the second day the only thing we still need...
2023-02-01 02:38:26 +0000 UTC View PostSix months ago, Ess’Siijiil
“Are you sure about this, Issa?” Kyrae hissed at me.
I looked down at my sister. The young elf’s shaggy, dirty black hair fell just across her eyes. She was lanky—the kind of lanky you get when you’re growing, but not quite all at once—and wiry, dirt blending into her skin that was a shade darker than my own. Her hands shook like they always did when she got nervous. I needed to be confident for her!
“Sure...
2023-01-30 01:39:42 +0000 UTC View PostThe snow didn’t relent. Heavy clouds hung low above the eerily still landscape I trudged through. By morning the snow was up to my knees on the road, and every step caused a cold dampness to crawl up my leg. I almost wished for boots, but I didn’t dare give up any grip on the treacherous, winding road. The others had taken to riding on top of the wagon as I carried it. In brighter circumstances, I would have loved to laugh at how comical we looked.
In reality, I wanted nothing more ...
2023-01-28 03:18:40 +0000 UTC View PostI didn’t rush up the hillside. The snow was getting even worse, and I wanted every chance to see the road. I heard the others before I found them.
“…She’ll be fine. You heard her,” Seyari said angrily. “You and Phol can leave if you want to, but I’m staying around here until she gets back.”
“I don’t care what we do, but can it involve gettin’ warm?” Taava practically shouted.
“Me too!” Nelys shouted as well. “It’s so cold I can’t think!” 2023-01-25 03:04:51 +0000 UTC View Post
Despite the scene earlier in the morning, the rest of our day was actually quite pleasant. Nelys, Seyari, and I played games at a table while Taava performed, having somehow convinced the inn owner to let her play for tips. Predictably, Seyari and Nelys won most games; I just wasn’t good enough at cheating yet, anyway. And is it really cheating when everyone does the same cheats? At that point, to me, it just becomes part of the game. A part of the game that I could be bet...
2023-01-21 03:02:06 +0000 UTC View PostMy ears picked up shouting before we’d entered the now-crowded tavern below the inn. I felt the image of a big warm breakfast slipping away.
Please don’t involve us…
“Ya wanna try that again!?” I heard Taava shout from outside.
Dammit.
Seyari and I picked up the pace, jogging inside and pushing through the forming crowd. Taava, with a feral smile and wide eyes held a knife against one man’s throat, while her tail waved another blade around...
2023-01-18 04:12:01 +0000 UTC View PostI went to sleep in Seyari’s arms when we traded Nelys and Taava for watch, but I woke up as the big spoon. I shivered a little and turned up the heat. Seyari mumbled and snuggled against me. The air was cold and crisp, and my breath came out as a hot, dense mist.
When we managed to untangle, dress, and heat up again, the reason for the chill became obvious. A thin layer of white blanketed everything; the first snow of the season. In the lowlands this far north it wasn’t much, but mo...
2023-01-14 03:46:22 +0000 UTC View PostA/N: Wow. Chapter 100. When I started writing, I hadn't really thought what it would be like to get here, but here we are. I want to thank all you folks, again, for supporting me. I dare to wonder now if, maybe, I could write for a living in the next year or so if I keep at it. Anyway, I won't get too sappy, so here's the chapter.
The last few days had been a whirlwind of changes. Nearby the company, people were mostly used to seeing a demon walking around (...
2023-01-11 02:54:22 +0000 UTC View PostMy thoughts stopped. In that instant, I recognized the Sovereign of Lust’s face. Shift the skin tone to pink, add some horns and a tail, and you’d get Lillith, the Sovereign of Lust, in all her demonic glory. What the heck is she doing here!?
“It’s awfully cold out here, Zarenna.” She smiled with faux-innocence. “Could I come inside, please? I brought your favorite tea cakes!” She gestured to a small basket she carried.
I hesitated for a moment, then pulled ...
2023-01-07 04:52:01 +0000 UTC View PostOur first party guest arrived and knocked with the knocker while I was still setting out snacks. On top of that, I had to finish preparing two of the upstairs rooms, just in case anyone wanted to stay the night, and while the garden was mostly done, one corner was a mess, and—
“Zarenna!” Seyari shouted, jogging past me to the door. “Stop worrying—it’s fine. If anyone needs to use the upstairs rooms, we can get them ready then.
“How did you know what I was worrying ab...
2023-01-04 04:00:34 +0000 UTC View PostClick. Clickclick. Squeeeeak. Click.
I looked up from the newspaper I was reading to glare at my office’s old ceiling fan. The whole thing wobbled as it spun, enough for the pull cord to sway like a pendulum.
Click. Clickclickclick.
I folded the paper and stood up. Reaching the cord wasn’t difficult with my height, and, mindful of my claws, I turned it off with a sharp tug.
Or I should have. Instead, the old frayed cord snapped in my hand.
Click.
As luck would have it, Seyari and I bumped into Salvador and Taava at the company while they were taking a late lunch. Both of them seemed pensive.
“Hiya Renna! Looks like your magic put ya together again right quick!”
Pensive in a relative sense, that is. Taava’s low-lying ears betrayed what her voice didn’t. I waved and Seyari nodded. The line moved fast, and I got my usual double portion.
“It did, yeah.” I plopped down next to Salvador, who managed to fight ou...
2022-12-31 03:32:00 +0000 UTC View PostIt was raining today. Not a hard torrent, but a gentle, damp drizzle from a pale gray sky. Light rain wasn’t the most thematic weather for a victory of sorts, but somewhat fitting for all those who lost someone dear today.
In a way, I’d set a claw on my most pressing goal: become accepted in society without having to hide what I am. I sure didn’t feel better for it. If anything, I felt worse. My mind replayed the last week over and over again. I couldn’t fault us for staying put...
2022-12-28 02:35:21 +0000 UTC View PostAdditional Content Warning: Themes of Identity Death
Like macabre shooting stars, memories and fragments of identity swirled in a maelstrom. The coalescence hardly formed before it was pulled from the space between spaces. A single fragmented mind within the maelstrom rose to the fore, fugue-like and confused as the forming body descended into a barren world whose crimson air pulsed with a bitter semblance of life.
The prone figure pushed uprig...
2022-12-24 05:52:53 +0000 UTC View PostSonia Rozaro dashed through the empty church hall, soft shoes making muffled taps on the clean, polished stone. One hand held her robe-like vestments off the floor while the other clenched and unclenched in empty air. Jewelry attached to her horns jangled frantically, the echoing sound following the demon-blooded priestess to her destination.
Priestess. Dad will be so proud when he gets back. She’d heard a rumor she’d been selected, but she wouldn’t find out unti...
2022-12-24 05:51:27 +0000 UTC View PostContent Warning: moderate transphobia, deadnaming
“Describe for us what happened last night,” the church leader opened, “from the beginning.” He was man of average breadth that spoke of good diet and self-care. Slightly receded dark brown hair gave his severe widow’s peak an exaggerated intensity, and his bushy eyebrows contrasted sharply with his well-trimmed mustache and beard. Dark, intense eyes studied me. His red and whi...
2022-12-21 04:03:01 +0000 UTC View PostOfficer Lorton glanced at the pile of paperwork and heaved a rattling sigh. His breath hitched and the sigh turned into chuckles, and then chuckles into a full-blown belly laugh. Too much. It was all just too much. Collapsing back into his chair, he thought back to last night. Well, this currentnight if the barest hints of morning red outside were any indication. He was still in his dirt-covered clothes and sweat pulled them tight around him in the morning chill.
Tonight had be...
2022-12-17 04:04:53 +0000 UTC View PostI took a knee, panting. How the hell isn’t this thing dead? I’m the Sovereign of Wrath! Shouldn’t I be stronger? The kaleidoscopic aura of the demon in front of me was a shuddering, warping mess and its body was ravaged to the point where one could be forgiven for thinking its appearance had once been humanoid.
Flames licked around me, protecting my modesty and my body both. Try as I might to shout, roar or otherwise scare them off, foolhardy spectators had lined the edge...
2022-12-14 04:06:36 +0000 UTC View PostHiya everyone!
New chapter up soon, but here's the monthly side story poll for now.
2022-12-14 03:27:19 +0000 UTC View Post