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Diabolical - Chapter 4

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Without waiting for his answer, the butler stepped out, walked to the opposite side of the motorcar, and opened Arthur’s door. He reached out a hand and took the boy by the back of his neck.

While this was happening, the youth couldn’t twitch so much as a finger. All of a sudden, Mr. Fetcher was giving off the aura of a terrible predator --- the personable, middle-aged butler had vani...

Diabolical - Chapter 3

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The next day, ‘The Bark of Bullen’ set sail for Liverpool. The storm had worn itself out during the night, and the day’s weather was fair --- the sky remained gray, and a light drizzle persisted, but there was hardly any wind; not more than was usual for the coast.

Arthur didn’t wake until late-morning, when Jane arrived with their breakfast. It was the sound of the door ...

Diabolical - Chapter 2

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The day was overcast and blue-grey clouds drifted across the sky. A chilly wind rustled the trees near the bay; the occasional strong gust was enough to make pedestrians cling tightly to their hats. The odd paper could be seen, bouncing off the cobblestones like an urban tumbleweed. The season was fall and the temperature was dropping. Not a single person braved the outside, not without a coat,...

Diabolical - Chapter 1

-Year 1937, Irish Free State, Province of Leinster, City of Dublin-

In a shabby, soot-stained apartment, there lived a family of three. Their residence was located in the North Strand, a working-class district in the inner city. As was the status-quo for many of that time, the husband and wife struggled woefully to provide for themselves and for their ten-year-old son. Not only was the Irish Free State still feeling the aftereffects of the civil war of 1922-23, but to m...

A Perfect World - Chapter 10

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Spearheads plunged toward Freldt, coming from both right and left - it was a pincer attack. Two fellows, clutching stubby knives, circled around him, positioning to backstab. The new ‘boss’ twirled his club on the outside, ready to assist where needed. Five against one – the odds weren’t in the cook’s favor.

A few yards away, Sixth stared at the cluster of men with concern. He held his own ‘weapon’, the same flint blade...

A Perfect World - Chapter 9

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“…this one. It won’t kill you, but it’ll squeeze every last drop of shit out your gut.”

A man with a head of bushy, graying hair pointed at an innocuous white mushroom.

He was speaking to the boy walking behind him. The kid looked about twelve. He had messy blonde hair and his face was dusted with freckles.

Sixth nodded.

The man continued.

“This is called Burdock. Don’t look like it, but it’s e...

A Perfect World - Chapter 8

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An ethereal breeze stirred the evergreens. Perennials, wearing leafy coats, sprung from the soil. Spring waxed strongly. It was remarkable, how nature isolated.

A feathery touch settled on Sixth’s shoulder.

Comfort.

He looked, but there was nothing.

“Are you there?”

A susurrus sounded at the edge of his hearing. Sixth rubbed his itching eyes. Late nights and early mornings didn’t suit him.

A Perfect World - Chapter 7

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A thin mist hung in the early-morning air.

Dawn hadn’t broken but the camp was filled with movement. Like an upended anthill, figures scurried around, readying for departure.

Winter’s snow had melted and ran down the mountain peaks. Like a heart pumping blood into veins, it filled a nearby stream with rushing water.

A boy made good use of the current.

He’d...

A Perfect World - Chapter 6

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Sixth stared down at the bowl of warm slop in his lap.

Using a piece of wood, he scooped up a portion before letting in drip down. His expression made his opinion of the dish abundantly clear.

‘Is this grain porridge? But what on earth are these… little black bits?’

He was ashamed of his ungratefulness, but that sense of shame wouldn’t make the food taste bett...

A Perfect World - Chapter 5

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Twilight was on its way, and Sixth couldn’t help but think back to when he’d lived with the old man. Those days blurred together in his mind. An endless cycle of waking, hunting, gathering, cooking and then staring into the flames just as he was doing now.

Life was a simple affair, back then.

‘I didn’t hate it, though.’

It was a strange feeling, watching the...

A Perfect World - Chapter 4

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Griffin breathed out slowly, having just told Sixth much of her background and how she’d been in such a dire situation when he’d first found her.

It was… harder than she’d expected. The pain from that time was still fresh in her mind.

He nodded thoughtfully, walking in-step beside her.

“You didn’t tell me why you left the orphanage, though?”

Griffin stopped...

A Perfect World - Chapter 3

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The two of them turned in for the night, wrapped tightly in Sixth’s animal hides. The seasons were changing, but winter’s chill persisted.

That evening, Griffin’s eyelids had fluttered closed tiredly. It hadn’t taken long for sleep to find her.

However, it was the case that she was still ill, and a resurfacing fever disturbed her rest. She awoke groggily in the middle of the...

Templar - Chapter 3

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A young knight dropped to his knees, clutching his fingers and hissing in pain. A training sword, its edge dulled but otherwise no different from a regular weapon, clattered to his side.

His opponent, an old man with a head of iron-grey hair, walked forward and gripped the youth’s wrist, pulling him to his feet. One of the fingers on his hand stood at an awkward angle, clearly injured.<...

Templar - Chapter 2

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“...finish priming the catalyst. I have some small matter to attend to first, but I expect you to have the preparations completed when I arrive.”

A young junior mage, run ragged if his appearance was to be any indication, bowed his head towards the senior mage who’d just spoken to him.

“Of course, Senior Enchanter.”

The senior enchanter, a tallish, intimidating man with a...

Templar - Chapter 1

Year 9:25 Dragon, Kinloch Hold, Ferelden

In the dimly-lit hallways of Circle Tower, the sound of stomping boots could be heard. Not uncommon, as far as things were concerned, were it not for the ungodly hour. The tower had a curfew, and all mages with sense knew to be in their beds by now. A rule they didn’t grumble too much about, honestly - their studies, and the practice of magic itself, strained their constitution heavily.

However, a closer look at ...

A Perfect World - Chapter 2

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Darkness withdrew from their sight to reveal a simple campfire, flickering with a dim red light. A sudden gust of wind caused it to waver, blowing golden sparks into the freezing night air.

A sudden burst of cold caught them in its grip, seizing onto the sweat-soaked state of their body. They reached down to grab at their coverings and, pulling them up to their shoulders, they realized th...

A Perfect World - Chapter 1

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‘Like a rotten log,

Half buried in the ground,

My life which has not flowered

Comes to this sad end.’

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In the dark alleyways of a sprawling city, a young child slipped unnoticed from one shadow to the next. 

A stick was...

Cornerman - Chapter 12

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The two individuals, one boy and one woman, quietly stared at each other. The tension between them was thick enough to cut with a knife. Mineko was the first to break the silence.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, Sasuke-kun. I just wanted to prevent you from doing anything rash.” Her eyes, like two dark pools, looked like they wanted to swallow him whole. “Why don’t you sit down again and we’ll talk things over sensibly?”

Gaston - Chapter 8

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The two individuals, one girl and one boy, stared at each other quietly in the rapidly dimming room.

Gaston was the one to break the silence.

“I don’t think this is the place for such a sensitive discussion.” He made sure to speak quietly enough so no-one outside the room could hear, his face serious.

Anastasia noted that he looked rather ridiculous. He reminded her of some of the shadier...

Cornerman - Chapter 11

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Mineko watched the spectacle with furrowed eyebrows. Things had clearly started getting out of hand.

The disciple turned her little head towards her master, curious about how they would handle the current situation.

Mineko’s eyes remained fixed on the forms of the officer and the young Uchiha from where she sat, hidden from their sight. This development was not unfavorable, all things considered.

Naturally, she was somewhat a...

Gaston - Chapter 7

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From a distance, Villeneuve seemed to be a quaint little village. The people hustled-and-bustled, kicking up clouds of dust that hovered over the loosely cobbled streets. Despite the sordid circumstances of their country, they continued to live their lives, nearly oblivious to the outside world.

On the village’s outskirts, outside a large stone manor, a similar hustle-and-bu...

Cornerman - Chapter 10

The time had come for the school day to end. Students pushed and shoved each other in their hurry to get out of the classroom, eager to get up to whatever it was that children got up to in the afternoon.

Iruka Umino watched on worriedly as his students segregated themselves into two contrasting groups. It was normal for kids to form their own little circles as had been happening ever since he was a student himself. However, right now, the two groups were clearly divided according to sta...

Cornerman - Chapter 9

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“Father…”

Neji Hyuga looked at his father out of the corner of his eye, wanting to say something but unsure of how to continue. The topic was rather sensitive.

Hizashi Hyuga looked at his son. The two of them were currently drinking tea in the courtyard. Despite Neji’s maturity and independence, Hizashi made some time in his busy schedule to spend time with his prodigal s...

Gaston - Chapter 6

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The next morning, the lot of children woke up to three very weary-looking adults.

Maurice and Claude simply looked tired, but Margaret in particular truly looked as if she was a walking corpse. Her eyes were the most noticeable – beyond simply having dark circles underneath, they were opened a little too wide. She attended to her morning duties unblinkingly, disturbing the c...

Cornerman - Chapter 8

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Sakura Haruno was in a state of bliss.

Currently, she, Ino and Naruko were visiting Sasuke at the Uchiha compound. She couldn’t believe that he’d actually invited them to come!

Okay, if she was being honest, Sasuke didn’t so much invite them as, well… not reject them when they took a chance by tagging along with Naruko.

Regardless, it still counted as a vic...

Gaston - Chapter 5

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It had been hours since the sun set. The three individuals sat in comfortable silence, barely speaking amongst themselves. They had resolved themselves to remain awake through the night. The journey to the town of Villeneuve would take little more than half a day. Tomorrow, they’d be able to rest us much as they wanted after they’d arrived.

Margaret in particular had recov...

Gaston - Chapter 4

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Orange sunlight filtered through the leafy canopy that sheltered the little camp of three adults and twelve children. A large pot had been set over the roaring fire and a pleasant meaty smell filled the air. The cook, Margaret, had tossed their hard, dry leftovers into some water along with any wild vegetables and herbs they’d managed to gather during their journey. Fortunately, t...

Gaston - Chapter 3

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Maurice Le Marquand covered his eyes with one hand as he looked up at the sun. They had around four hours until twilight. He looked the rocky landmark ahead of them, sighing as he did so. He didn’t wish to stay another night in the forest, but it didn’t seem like they would have a choice. It would take some time for them to set camp for the night, and to make a fire.

He sh...

Gaston - Chapter 2

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The Kingdom of France: 1371 A.D.

A pair of carriages were travelling down a long and lonesome road, one behind the other. They were dusty and damaged but, underneath all the dirt, beautiful engravings could be seen. An appraiser with a keen eye would be able to tell that these carriages had likely belonged to a noble or very wealthy family.

Their speed was slow, as the r...

Gaston - Chapter 1

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The Kingdom of France: 1364 A.D.

Since 1346 A.D., Europe had been caught in the grip of a terrible plague. Europe’s population was scourged. Many wondered: was this a punishment from God? Indeed, it was as if the grim reaper itself had descended to walk amongst men. Young, old, commoner or noble – all were reaped equally.

That is, until a mys...