(This chapter has a scene which I've been thinking about for years. I hope you guys enjoy it.)
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Vincent was in agony. The bruises and rashes on his chest protested against Glimmer's grip. But the Shaydos were no longer fleeing from an object of pure terror and so, their flight was gentler, it was more graceful. He was sailing above the world and riding the air with them. He had spent the last few days wondering if he was going to die…or worse. He never realized how incredible...
2024-11-16 19:46:52 +0000 UTC
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(I just felt like releasing this. Just put on some finishing touches.)
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“You were quite ill when you arrived last night,” Thal’rin said.
“I’m feeling better," Vincent said, "thanks for letting me sleep in your carriage. You didn't have to do that."
"It was clear I was not going to use it last night, so you are welcome."
Vincent felt conspicuous following the High Channeler to the edge of the caravan. Thal’rin wanted some place quiet where they c...
2024-11-10 20:14:02 +0000 UTC
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So I've been posting book 2 chapters when I feel like they are "good enough". It's still a WIP, but I figured it'd be fun. But I'm not sure what to do about the tier descriptions since I'm not posting to Royal Road for a while. I'm still newish to the whole Patreon shtick.
2024-11-08 23:33:40 +0000 UTC
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Thal’rin, Vincent thought. He was The La’ark’s brother. The revelation barely registered with him, and he was too far gone to show surprise. Everything played before his eyes as if he were an observer watching a movie. Even the aches in his body felt like somebody else’s. He was Vincent Cordell, watching himself, living vicariously through his own eyes. That's how far gone he was.
He felt himself crying. Crying? Why? He forgot. His brain was dying. At least, that...
2024-11-08 23:19:09 +0000 UTC
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Sorry for the onslaught of notifications. But I have now posted 8 chapters of A Chronicle of Lies book 2. (Only the Shandan tier has access to all 8.) I figured this would be a good stopping point. They are a bit rough, but I'll be interested in hearing what you guys think!
2024-11-02 14:00:59 +0000 UTC
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The river turned to vapor as a maw filled with fire and magma crashed into its surface. A wall of steam slapped the zerok, almost knocking them both out of the air. The brutal turbulence shook Vincent, filling his eyes with stars. He felt something pop in one of his joints. Rock exploded from thermal shock, liacyte shattered. Shards from the explosions stung his legs. Dust and ash, funneled by the pass, chased after the zerok until it enveloped them. Grit flew into Vincent’s eyes and coated...
2024-11-02 13:58:26 +0000 UTC
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Vincent had no time to think. One moment he was staring at an inferno that materialized straight out of the air. But then Madeen snatched him from the landrider’s back and took flight. She clutched him in her talons, holding him close as she climbed. He was jostled and battered with each flap of the wings. His shouts disappeared into the howling wind. Stars danced in his eyes. He could see Menik and the others scattering, fleeing before that monstrosity could reach them.
Its maw, a ci...
2024-11-02 13:55:46 +0000 UTC
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The Shaydos were not far from The La’ark’s expedition. At their speed, they would reach the encampment in a day. However, something else was heading toward the expedition from the opposite direction. It was slowing down, yet it was approaching nonetheless.
The entity still remained hidden, traveling inexorably toward its target. It was getting close now, close enough that it was time for emergence. Like a whale swimming up to the surface to breath air, the entity began ...
2024-11-02 13:52:42 +0000 UTC
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The entity passed through another city. Nobody knew of its passing. They only knew of the landriders who suddenly went berserk and rampaged in its market, demolishing stalls and wrecking booths. The entity's blindness vanished. It could now could see its prey, it could track it. The target had moved and so the entity turned to give chase. This sight stayed with it for a brief moment, but then it returned to darkness. However, it was getting closer. Soon, it will be time to emerge. But not...
2024-11-02 13:45:10 +0000 UTC
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(So in this chapter is a bit rough and clunky in terms of the prose. I'm sure there's plenty of typos as well. . I do plan to go over it and smooth things out, but I'll be interested in hearing what you guys think.)
The entity that cruised across Admoran was newly born. It was only a few days old and it knew only one thing: hunger. It was starving. Not because it needed sustenance. No, it was not that kind of hunger. The starvation it experienced was due to dictation, not due...
2024-11-02 13:42:32 +0000 UTC
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(Another chapter from book 2.)
Something terrible was speeding across Admoran. It was a subtle, insubstantial thing despite its size and speed. It passed through fields, ducked through valleys and sailed across lakes, all without leaving a trace. It even coursed through villages and houses. But it was not a danger to anybody, not yet. Nobody even knew it was there.
Only the beasts of the land seemed to sense its passing. Birds took flight from the treetops. Field gr...
2024-11-01 22:37:39 +0000 UTC
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(I bet you guys didn't expect this, did you? Well, I just wanted to show the progress I've made. There are still some rough edges and I'll probably continue to tweak things, but it's far more polished than chapter 1. )
Vincent was home again, back on Earth. But the hallways of his house were bigger than they should have been, and the doors were askew. Objects were placed in strange locations: a television in the ceiling, a toilet in the kitchen, and there was an elevator in the laundr...
2024-10-27 19:30:31 +0000 UTC
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(So here's a little teaser for book 2. This chapter is a little rough and I may expand it, but I figured it's good enough for sharing. It's similar to The Dark Sculptor's first chapter in that the events playing out in it won't come into play until further into the story.
I have 9 chapters written and a 10th chapter partially written, but I don't plan on sharing any more at the moment until they get some more polish. There's some good parts, there's some rough parts. But I figured it'...
2024-10-20 02:31:06 +0000 UTC
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When the shandan reached the climax, I unlocked the last three chapters for them since it'd have the most impact to read them all at once. So I'm doing the same for the Masters tier. I'll be curious to hear your thoughts!
2024-10-12 13:50:19 +0000 UTC
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POSSIBLE SPOILERS FOR BOOK 1 AHEAD! If you haven't caught up, catch up first and then read this. I will leave this post accessible to all Patreon tiers since it's easier for me.
We've reached the end of book 1 and I'm sure some of you have questions. When is book 2 coming out? What can we expect? What's it about?
I'll be honest upfront. I don't have an ETA. I care about this world a lot and I am working on it, but writing isn't my day job. I wish it was, but sadly...
2024-10-06 18:44:38 +0000 UTC
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A hunter chased his hound, Ryul, through the woods, a crossbow bouncing on his back, following the sound of the creature's excited warbling. He saw glimpses of it bounding between the trees, stopping every so often to sniff the air with its trio of nostrils. With a round head surrounded in fuzz and large amber eyes, the snelp looked almost comical. Only the semblance of a snout managed to poke through from its mop of fur. Yet its ability to track a scent was unrivaled. By now, t...
2024-09-30 00:19:56 +0000 UTC
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Vincent reeled where he stood, an invisible phantom standing in the middle of the plaza. He was too shocked to contemplate what he had just done when another spasm seized him, sending him thrashing to the ground. He felt the cold stone and heard Menik's voice. After a few seconds of hell, the wave of agony disappeared, and dread filled his chest.
“You will be hard to kill. Your form will always try to repair itself, even beyond mortal injury...”
He raced toward the ho...
2024-09-30 00:18:56 +0000 UTC
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The shandan tier has reached the climax of A Chronicle of Lies. And since I didn't write this as a serial, I feel like the climax and the final chapters are best experienced in one go. And so, I made the decision to post the rest of the book. This puts the shandan tier 8 chapters ahead of Royal Road. I'll be posting them shortly. It was a wild ride and I really thank you guys for your support!
I'm going to keep donations on so that others have a chance to catch up, but if you decide ...
2024-09-30 00:17:20 +0000 UTC
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SPOILERS AHEAD!
If you haven't read these chapters yet, (tuhli, Masters,) then please skip this post. (It's easier for me to leave this accessible to all tiers than to edit it later.)
Now then, Vincent finally came face to face with the villain. I've been building up to it throughout the whole book.
But I'm not quite pleased with how it turned out. I don't know if it's the initial dialogue Vincent has with it or whether the en...
2024-09-29 17:42:33 +0000 UTC
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(Author's note: This is probably the only chapter where I will insert a content warning. This chapter contains one of the most unsettling scenes in the entire novel.)
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Vincent smelled smoke and opened his eyes. A sun-bleached poster hung in tatters from the brick-and-mortar building in front of him. Whatever it used to advertise was now obscured in graffiti. Gang signs and street art decorated the entire wall. But the poster had hints of a magician with a top hat, his a...
2024-09-28 16:32:47 +0000 UTC
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“Now we can talk...” a voice spoke. It was indistinct, ageless, and genderless. And though it was soft, it seemed to resonate from all directions. “I…have been waiting to meet you.”
Vincent looked around for the owner. He was alone. But then he noticed the freaks that broke his neck. Their flaccid forms, now enshrouded with a black mist, appeared to be looking at him.
"Jesus!" He stumbled away from them. They did not give chase.
They continued to ...
2024-09-27 22:37:08 +0000 UTC
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Vincent watched as the twins ignited for a second time. But the creature ignored them and turned back to look at him. The feral expression perpetually frozen on its face was something ferocious. With its snout scrunched in a snarl, ears bent backward, with dilated orbs for eyes whose sockets were like fangs, it resembled a hairless, rabid coyote. As he met its dark eyes, he knew it was the entity behind the storms, the thing he had spoken to during the last flashback. He recalled the twitchin...
2024-09-21 17:45:52 +0000 UTC
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I am here.
Vincent stood at the entrance to one of the homes the soldiers had cleared out. He gazed at the round structure in the middle of the plaza. Its walls were built with curved brick and mortar. It was by far the largest building in the village. He estimated it must have been at least two-hundred or more feet in diameter.
“I am here,” he mouthed, “and I want answers. You bowed to me on the thread. You spoke to me in my mother's voice. Then y...
2024-09-20 21:29:51 +0000 UTC
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Hey Shandan folks, Just seeing if I could get a vibe check regarding the quality of the most recent chapters. The further toward the end of the book I get, the less edited it will be. So I'm sure there are some rough sections, but I'm kind of blind to them.
Anything stick out? Or do you just have any general thoughts you'd like to share? If not, no worries!
2024-09-16 01:13:25 +0000 UTC
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Tuls couldn’t sleep without the aid of resin. Normally he detested the use of sedatives, but he had no choice. The pain, which came in waves, tormented him until he found himself tossing and turning in a fruitless effort to escape the burning. So, he smeared some lyanth resin across his nostrils and felt the world list beneath him, welcoming him into its embrace. Even then, he awoke several times in a dazed stupor, the pain and the salve causing him to skirt the edge of delirium. During one...
2024-09-13 18:12:54 +0000 UTC
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Slade felt her heart pounding against her chest. The silence was a familiar old friend. She had been lured to this place like many others, dwelt on the outskirts of its muteness, became familiar with the way it seemed to inherit a quiet sentience. She felt it watching her, testing her. It listened. Or perhaps this personification was the effect of the muted air that lingered above the marsh. In the absence of sound, many were quick to assign sentience where there was none. No, her intuition t...
2024-09-06 21:25:55 +0000 UTC
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Before the sun rose, Slade awoke and began her morning patrol. After the chaos that had erupted during the night, she was tired. Though her mind was sharp, her body needed to awaken. So she grabbed Holan, summoned a spark and galloped around the circumference of The Gash, making sure to stay a good distance away from it. Nobody knew what caused echoes, nor did she think there was any tremendous danger in them. But her instincts told her to stay clear, especially after last night's events.
...
2024-08-30 21:39:01 +0000 UTC
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Sometime during the night, a strange noise arose in the darkness. It was the sound of distant chains dragging over stone. Vincent stirred in his sleep and turned onto his side. The clangor grew quieter, allowing him to sink back into slumber. The night was silent again, with only the whispers of the insects. Then somebody began to converse in the distance. He couldn’t hear their words, but their voices dragged him out of his dreams. Groaning, he turned onto his other side and plugged his ea...
2024-08-28 20:37:17 +0000 UTC
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In thanks for all of your support, I've added a chapter to each tier.
So now Tuhli tiers get 3 chapters ahead of Royal Road/AO3.
Masters get 4.
Shandan get 6!
I'll go ahead and post a new chapter (and update previous chapters) after this post!
2024-08-28 20:34:15 +0000 UTC
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Slade watched as shadows, chased by the sun, slowly stretched forth from the Clash-Mounts. They crept over fields of shattered stone that laid between Heldair and the mountains. A warm wind washed over the expansive moraine, tickling the webbing of her wings. The sensation sent a soft shudder down her back. Her legs dangled over a drop that would kill anybody who didn’t know how to glide. While the cleft-strider was still being loaded, she climbed the beast and now sat on the edge of the cr...
2024-08-23 20:32:29 +0000 UTC
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