By the time that I reached the host-hive, my Coreless had already turned it into a mangled mess that looked closer to a slurry of meat and fluid than an actual living creature. Despite that, it still lived. For all that it was a helpless, disgusting creature without the flying bad-things inside it to provide it shape enough to move properly, it was resilient. That, I had to admit.
I bit down into its flesh, trying my best to ignore the way that it squelched and swirled around...
2021-07-23 04:36:17 +0000 UTC
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Clouds of ash sprang from the ground, kicked up into a chaotic flurry as feet stamped and slid. I watched, transfixed, as my Coreless worked together to bring down another of Tiamat’s creations. They were wonderful; relentless and far more intelligent than the bad-things, and more than willing to bring the force that supplied them to bear.
Needle-fangs found homes in twisted flesh at just the right moments, causing the enemies to flinch back in moments of danger. Dangerous ...
2021-07-22 00:26:32 +0000 UTC
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Needle gasped in [relief] as [Life - Invigorating Bite] worked to mend her flesh. She shook, as if the clash between the warmth of life essence and the cold of blood loss were a bitter war within the depths of her body. And still, more golden liquid spilled from my fangs; I held on tightly, wrapping my tail around her leg and gripping tightly with [Clinging Grasp].
Even so, my fangs were nearly ripped from her flesh ...
2021-07-21 02:59:33 +0000 UTC
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Blue flames coated the entrance to the alcove, sputtering and spreading in turn. It seemed as if every time a tendril of flame died out as it turned gossamer wings into ash, another tendril reached out and set a new bad-thing alight. Lines of blue traced paths across the gray of the stone, forming ephemeral patterns that shifted from one moment to the next. Every so often, a stray spark began the blaze anew, finding its way to another clump of flammable-winged bad-things.
All...
2021-07-20 00:32:52 +0000 UTC
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2nd chapter today, don't skip ch 110
As funny as it had been, pretending to not understand what the-female-who-was-not-Needle wanted from me, it might have been even more entertaining to witness what happened once I actually did what she wanted.
A stream of [Mana Fire] burst from my jaws, setting the pile alight, and I suddenly found myself whirling through the air as the female Coreless burst into a series of jumps and overenthusiastic l...
2021-07-19 03:59:04 +0000 UTC
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First chapter of the day, will start working on the second once I get back from the gym.
I reared back, jaws open wide. I struck; my fangs buried themselves into flesh and liquid gold dripped from their channels. A few seconds later, I pulled back. The tiny holes that my fangs had left behind knit themselves closed.
“Fuck, that really woke me up,” a voice cried out, the noises jumbling together rapidly. In a habitual sweep of the nearby Totems, something...
2021-07-18 18:39:40 +0000 UTC
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Super tired and this took me forever for some reason, so it's just gonna be one chapter tonight. Hopefully things go faster tomorrow and I can get two done.
The chatter of the many-nest’s Coreless seemed louder than ever, as if an invisible pall had been lifted. Wherever we walked, I could see bared teeth and hear raised voices - and, unlike what might have once been - I could taste the [contentment] that was paired with each.
Now, it s...
2021-07-18 03:38:12 +0000 UTC
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Second Chapter today, don't skip chapter 107.
I curled upon myself, the Great Core’s light splayed across my scale-flesh. The warm glow bounced from the surface of my coils, filling the air around me with its brilliance.
I hissed, relaxed and at ease. Safe.
There was a knocking on the walls that kept the outside away, something that wanted in. Its hunger only grew with each forceful strike, a hunger that I could hear in the roars that...
2021-07-17 04:04:26 +0000 UTC
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Had some stuff come up, sorry for the delay. First chapter of the day, there'll be a second sometime later (and maybe a third if I can manage it, we'll see). Expect some doubles over the next couple of days to make up for lost time.
Valera twisted, ducking underneath the swing and pivoting on one foot. Air rushed overhead, a whistling sound as sharp as it was deadly. Another arm - just as dangerous as the one before - pierced downwards from above, aiming to run Valera t...
2021-07-16 20:19:55 +0000 UTC
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Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Valera’s heartbeat pounded in her ears, a thunderous drumming that overshadowed her thudding footfalls. Despite that, her breath came out even, composed. As worried as she might have been, she was well aware of how important breath control was while running, particularly if she wanted to hold a dead sprint for any notable length of time.
And besides, Valera told herself, she could very well be panicking for n...
2021-07-11 04:06:04 +0000 UTC
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2nd chapter today, don't skip 104
It was beautiful - no, more than beautiful. It was awe-inspiring.
I let out an involuntary hiss of adoration, unable to stop myself. The sign of my victory - of the Coreless’ newfound faith in the Great Core - rested in front of me in all of its glory.
And it was glorious.
There, in the middle of this section of the Coreless’ many-nest, was a giant snake - me. Like many of the other snakes that I ...
2021-07-09 04:43:57 +0000 UTC
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Working on a second chapter, hoping to get it done and posted before I go to bed tonight.
Valera covered her ears as something nearby exploded.
Again.
Over the last few days, it had become a sort of tradition; about twice a day, once in the morning and again at night, the little snake made an attempt to shove a huge amount of mana into a carving or sculpture with fairly explosive results. Each time, he would twist and writhe afterwards in agitation before cr...
2021-07-09 00:46:03 +0000 UTC
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From the moment that the thought-light flickered, giving me a glimpse of what had changed, I wanted nothing more than to act on it - to create a [Little Guardian’s Focus]. I could feel the new ability, feel the potential that lay in the back of my mind. Like [Little Guardian’s Totem], it was a complex pattern of mana, a weaving of brilliant blue threads that went far beyond what I was capable of doing myself. It was beautiful.
2021-07-07 05:30:26 +0000 UTC
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2nd chapter today, don't skip ch 101
The scent-taste of a great many Coreless pressed down on my tongue as the-female-who-was-not-Needle carried me closer to the center of the many-nest. A nearly-equally great number of [Little Guardian’s Totem]s pressed against my senses, a sign of just how far I had come in converting the Coreless of the many-nest.
For a moment, I scraped my fangs across the great mass of connections, catching flashes...
2021-07-06 05:19:56 +0000 UTC
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1/2, still working on second chapter
Two drops fell, each a golden bead of something more than liquid, shining with an inner light. The drops shattered against skin, not-liquid splattering against solid flesh - only to be absorbed in the moment that followed.
A Coreless gasped somewhere above me as flesh - slowly, still so slowly - began to knit back together. Skin grew in a sluggish, ever-expanding wave, desperately moving to bridge the edges of gaping f...
2021-07-06 01:58:04 +0000 UTC
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We’ll be doing a double post tomorrow to make up for it, see you then.
2021-07-05 00:12:08 +0000 UTC
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2nd chapter today, don't skip chapter 99
The return to my usual nest was a sluggish process, without not-Needle to carry me; my scale-flesh felt heavy, weighed down by my thoughts. I slithered by the Coreless of the many-nest in a listless daze, hardly paying any attention to my surroundings. The shouts and cries of the Coreless’ day-to-day activities flowed past my ears, unnoticed.
Eventually, I heard a familiar voice.
“Little Guardian! Little Guardian,...
2021-07-04 04:57:44 +0000 UTC
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Sorry for the delay. I wrote a chapter yesterday and realized I absolutely hated it when I was about to post. So I deleted it. Here's what should have been yesterday's chapter if I had done it correctly the first time. Now that it's done, I'll be trying to get out a second chapter later tonight so that I'm all caught up.
I broke the surface of my thoughts, pulling free from the comforting embrace of my mind-nest, as we approached the Coreless’ many-nest again. Fluids ...
2021-07-03 21:58:10 +0000 UTC
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CHANGED THE ENDING OF CHAPTER 97 BASED ON SOME FEEDBACK, YOU'LL WANT TO LOOK OVER WHAT CHANGED. NO FOCI YET, THAT'LL HAVE TO BE UNLOCKED A DIFFERENT WAY. ALSO, REALIZED WE HAVEN'T SEEN STAT SHEET IN A WHILE, SO THERE'S ONE IN THIS CHAPTER.
Reward Chosen: Life.
[Mana-Life Conversion] Acquired.
Gained the Lesser Core Skill: [Life Essence Manipulation I].
2021-07-02 04:27:33 +0000 UTC
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New version based on some comments that were made, only the very end has been changed.
[FEAR/DESPERATION]
One of the Totem links flared in my senses, bringing itself to the forefront of my mind; I focused on it, sinking my fangs deeply into the connection. The emotions heightened again as I sunk further, and a blur of murky images flashed through my mind.
I hissed, interrupting the babbling of one of my tiny Coreless and turning tow...
2021-07-01 01:59:27 +0000 UTC
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I swallowed, basking in the wonderful sensation as a bad-thing’s corpse shifted into warm mana, absorbed and repurposed by the Great Core. The flickering of the thought-light, expected as it was, hardly even drew my attention.
Level 13 Stoneskin Leech Consumed.
Transferred to Core.
Blooded Trait Acquisition Progress: 4/5.
The voices beside me, however, were a little more interest...
2021-06-29 02:05:07 +0000 UTC
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Just the one today :(
The female-who-was-not-Needle had always been fast; it was one of the first things that I had noted about her, when it came to combat. While Coreless like Will tried to hold the line against bad-things with solid defenses, the-female-who-was-not-Needle simply flowed around them.
It was a sinuous grace. It was a deadly one.
I had managed to hold back the bad-things, giving time for my trapped Coreless to be freed. My efforts had even end...
2021-06-27 05:08:20 +0000 UTC
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Per request, chapters 1-67 pdf and epubs. Includes in-line table of contents.
2021-06-26 05:36:48 +0000 UTC
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Second chapter of the day, don't skip chapter 93.
The bubbling feeling of joy in Valera’s stomach wouldn’t go away, doing its best to force her mouth into a wide-set grin. She knew that it wasn’t the time for it; even now, a Guardsman was pinned underneath rubble, waiting to be rescued. Depending on how well his leg healed, he might be facing an early retirement.
Still, it wasn’t her job to free him. Valera’s fingers had already taken a beating, the fles...
2021-06-26 04:32:20 +0000 UTC
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Slipping back out of the wall-crack gifted me with a wonderful sight; one of the bad-things, upon regaining its sense of balance, had been attracted to the sounds of shouting. Ignoring the flames that blocked its path, the stupid thing had tried to smash its head against the wall. Again.
Except, this time, it hadn’t gone so well. In their distraction, the slow-spot of [Chrono Fire] had more than enough time to grow in power - leaving the bad-thing ...
2021-06-26 00:19:11 +0000 UTC
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Oof, slow writing day. Going to start working on a second chapter in a sec.
My head peeked through the wall-crack, color-shifted to match with the stone around me. In the darkness, it wasn’t a staggering change; I only had to shift the hues of my scale-flesh a little, push it closer to a dark and mottled gray rather than its glossy black.
Either way, I needed an outlet for the light that I was absorbing. While the skin of ore-flesh that the-female-who-was-not-Ne...
2021-06-25 02:04:37 +0000 UTC
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2nd chapter of the day, don't skip chapter 90.
The-female-who-was-not-Needle turned and made noises at the Staring One; he was doing what he did best: staring. Hopefully listening, too. We were running out of time.
“This isn’t a vision of the future, sir. It’s something that is happening right now. One of the Guards must have taken a Totem with them; it wouldn’t be the first time that the Little Guardian was attracted to a Totem-bearer in need. Though I ha...
2021-06-24 05:12:14 +0000 UTC
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This chapter is a couple pages longer than the norm, but I'm still hoping to do another chapter later tonight (need a break first though, lmao).
The rocks shifted as, somewhere outside their prison of stone, one of the remaining Flat-Horned Chargers crashed against them. Again.
Beside Triss, Yerin let out another groan of pain; his right leg resembled little more than a pulped mess, and was only becoming worse with every movement of the stones that pinned it. His ...
2021-06-23 22:26:52 +0000 UTC
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Urgh, slow going today. Hoping to still manage a second one at some point tonight, but we'll have to see.
I hissed lightly, wishing that I was anywhere else. The less-important Coreless of this nest just kept jabbering on and on; even worse, my own Coreless were letting them. I had better things to do with my time. Even now, I could sense a group of my tiny Coreless running through the paths of the many-nest. I toyed with the idea of going out to meet them. It ...
2021-06-23 01:32:04 +0000 UTC
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