“No way!” Vir seethed. “Princess Ira made you go through that awful ritual? When I saw you in the Ink of Clarity—”
“You saw that!?” Maiya shrieked. Her face flushed with embarrassment, and her toes curled as she cringed. “That was the worst! Oh, gods! The whole time, I kept thinking how lucky I was that you hadn’t seen! It was that thought that let me weather the ordeal!”
Maiya held her face in her hands. Vir patted her b...
2023-10-19 17:41:57 +0000 UTC View PostVir stared at the shadow where Ekanai had disappeared, his mind a jumbled tangle of shock and disbelief.
What is happening here? Is this real? Ekanai? He’s alive!?
“Is-Is it really you?” Maiya’s voice came hesitant and confused.
Even so, the very sound of her words blew away the maelstrom that was brewing in Vir’s head, leaving his mind empty.
Vir looked her over, taking in her pitiful state. Her feet were bare, and she wore a faded garm...
2023-10-18 17:37:50 +0000 UTC View PostVir’s eyes struggled to open, as if he was waking from a thousand years of sleep.
Staring up, he found an unfamiliar ceiling. The ash-darkened skies Vir had grown accustomed to were nowhere to be seen, and the same went for the ever-present lightning. They’d been replaced by… Vir couldn’t tell. It looked almost like night, though there were no stars.
Vir brought a hand to his face, expecting it to be blackened by soot, but to his surprise, they were clean.
... 2023-10-17 17:29:11 +0000 UTC View Post- -
“Maiya? What in all the realms…”
“Not now,” Maiya said, cutting Yamal off. “We should leave before people start asking questions.”
“Aren’t you worried they’ll just tell everyone what happened here?” Yamal asked, looking at the pile of groaning bodies on the ground.
While Maiya hadn’t kill...
2023-10-16 17:41:59 +0000 UTC View PostNOTE: I'll be without internet connectivity the next several days, so here are Monday's and Tuesday's chapters. Next chapter will be Wednesday.
Maiya was once again surprised by the vastness of the Childrens’ resources. For an organization that relied primarily on donations from its members to survive, they certainly had deep pockets.
Which just means there are more crazies in this world than people think, Maiya thought with a shudder.
Maiya stood wit...
2023-10-12 16:44:44 +0000 UTC View PostHoliday schedule announcement:
Next Thursday is Thanksgiving in the US, and as such I will be taking Wednesday and Thursday off. So there'll be two chapters next week. Back to usual the week after.
Then, next month, I will be taking the week of Christmas and New Years off - there will be no chapters from December 25th - the 28th and on Jan 1. We'll be back on Jan 2, 2024.
These breaks allow me to restore my buffer and also groom...
2023-10-11 16:58:40 +0000 UTC View PostHours had passed since Vir, Cirayus, and Shan left Saunak’s tower. They’d each found the least uncomfortable positions atop the Automaton’s right shoulder. Cirayus stood, while Shan and Vir sat on its hard Imperium metal armor.
Unfortunately, Saunak hadn’t had time to retrofit the seats and cushions he’d mounted to his older unit, and as Vir soon found out, Imperium Metal did little to dampen vibrations.
Still, the journey was quite pleasant, all things cons...
2023-10-10 16:40:58 +0000 UTC View PostHi everyone, there will not be a chapter on Monday of next week in observance of Indigenous Peoples' Day(formely Columbus Day), a national holiday in the US.
Have a safe, relaxing weekend, and I'll see you on Tuesday.
2023-10-05 15:52:56 +0000 UTC View Post“Don’t think we don’t know what you’re up to,” the man said, his rotten breath nearly making Maiya gag as he leaned in close, his hand on the wall next to her head. “What’s a little dove like you doing here, anyway?”
The man was in his thirties, with an unkempt beard, and looked and smelled like he hadn’t bathed in months. He was also a full head taller than Maiya, and he used his height with the well-practiced motions of someone who’d mastered the art o...
2023-10-05 15:50:51 +0000 UTC View Post“No, no!” Saunak scolded, waving his hands. “That’ll never work!”
The mad thaumaturge wore a helm that truly made him live up to his name. The metal contraption entirely covered his face, bulging like a dome around his head. Tubes and black wires connected the device to a nearby gizmo, which Vir recognized as similar to the ones Ashani used to spend hours in front of—the ones with the floating panels.
The device Saunak used didn’t have floating panels, b...
2023-10-04 14:07:45 +0000 UTC View Post“Steal it,” Cirayus echoed, dumbfounded. He ignored the pursuing spider Automatons and stare Vir in the eyes. Determined, confident black eyes stared back.
“I believe it’s possible. Knowing what I now know about prana, and after watching Saunak manipulate his Automatons on the way here and within the tower… I think I might be able to copy it.”
Were those words uttered by anyone else, or even by young Vir just a few weeks ago, he’d have brushed t...
2023-10-03 14:03:28 +0000 UTC View Post“We don’t need to beat them,” Vir shouted. “We just need to escape!”
The spiders proved challenging opponents, not because of their strength, but due to their sheer numbers. They poured from every hallway, and they even emerged from the very walls themselves, appearing from holes that hadn’t existed just moments prior. They dropped from the ceiling, and they even materialized from the floor.
“Aye, lad! But how?” the giant roared back. “Not exactly an...
2023-10-02 13:24:31 +0000 UTC View Post“Where is he?” Vir roared, but his voice was cut off by the door that materialized between Saunak and Cirayus, who’d been following behind. He was now cut off.
Vir clucked his tongue in irritation.
While the Thaumaturge was trapped with Vir… Vir was also trapped with the five human-sized Automaton guardians that lay in wait.
It’s a trap, Vir thought, but it won’t work. Not against me.
Saunak has miscalculated. All Vir had to d...
2023-09-28 13:54:15 +0000 UTC View PostVir fell silent, a torrent of thoughts running amok within his mind. He’d just managed to push aside Saunak’s revelation when the thaumaturge sprang this dilemma upon him.
He began deliberating the merits and drawbacks of each option, but immediately stopped.
This is wrong. He wants me to think these are my only options! This, too, is a trap.
Vir didn’t know if he could believe Saunak. He didn’t yet trust the thaumaturge, despite his ge...
2023-09-27 14:34:19 +0000 UTC View PostNOTE: Last chapter for the week. See you on Monday!
- -
Instead of diving fully into the shadows, Vir sank only halfway, though he ensured Saunak’s body was fully submerged. This way, he lengthened the amount of time Saunak stayed under. Lengthening the discomfort.
While the thaumaturge had surely seen Iksana Ghaels using the same ability, Vir doubted he’d ever experienced it himself.
It was quite the terrifying sensation, being stripped of one...
2023-09-26 16:00:20 +0000 UTC View PostHe knows! He knows I’m the Akh Nara. Cold chills crept down Vir’s back. His grip on his katar tightened.
Saunak had known all along. And yet, the mad thaumaturge had said nothing. He’d revealed nothing. Was it because he simply didn’t care? Or was there more going on here than met the eye?
Vir turned around slowly, scanning his surroundings. Immediately, several smaller automatons caught his eye.
Were there this many just a few minutes ago?<...
2023-09-25 14:32:36 +0000 UTC View Post
Can't remember if I already shared this, but here are a couple of shots of our buddy Saunak.
2023-09-21 15:22:49 +0000 UTC View PostHoliday schedule announcement:
Next Thursday is Thanksgiving in the US, and as such I will be taking Wednesday and Thursday off. So there'll be two chapters next week. Back to usual the week after.
Then, next month, I will be taking the week of Christmas and New Years off - there will be no chapters from December 25th - the 28th and on Jan 1. We'll be back on Jan 2, 2024.
These breaks allow me to restore my buffer and also groom...
2023-09-21 14:38:59 +0000 UTC View PostImportant edit note!
I've updated the ordering and meaning of some of the later chakras. The summary of the new version is below. I feel this makes the system a bit more cohesive, and also fits better with the plot/story to come. Nothing material has changed thus far, other than the chapter where Cirayus explains the order and purpose of each one to Vir.
The Foundation chakra, when opened, makes you grounded and more stable, allows you to breathe easier, cycle pran...
2023-09-20 13:43:24 +0000 UTC
View Post
Hey all! Wanted to get your opinions on how I ought to spell Vaak. This is the name Vir will take on in the demon realm, so we'll be seeing it a lot.
My intent is to have it sound like 'alk' as in 'stalk'. Listing the options I'm considering, but feel free to add your own suggestions if you'd like. I do want this name to 'look cool', for reasons later on.
2023-09-19 14:46:23 +0000 UTC View PostSaunak’s next words would determine his fate. It’d mean the difference between obtaining his help with the Artifact consensually, or by force. If the thaumaturge knew who he was, he’d no doubt have some plan to exploit it.
But why did he reveal that information now? Vir thought anxiously. Surely, he must know how suspicious it makes him look?
Saunak regarded Vir quizzically. “You have your mother’s face and your father’s unruly hair. I’...
2023-09-19 14:42:23 +0000 UTC View Post
As for why I have so many images of this place? I honestly don't know. I had a lot of fun making them, that's all XD
2023-09-18 15:13:10 +0000 UTC View PostSaunak’s home was nothing as simple as a tent or a hut. Nor even was it a cavern dug into the mountainside.
No, it was the glowing disk. The one that pulled all the lightning from the area. A disk that encircled the top of an Imperium construction spire like a crown, not unlike the ones Vir had seen at Mahādi. Unlike those, the cylindrical black tower almost looked alive, covered with glowing lights of various colors.
“There is but one safe route through...
2023-09-18 15:08:19 +0000 UTC View PostNOTE: Couple of edit notes:
1. I've added a mention in the early chapters of this arc explaining how Vir made it across the Ash as a baby. Cirayus had an artifact with him that protected Vir, as well as some of the retainers who weren't strong enough to brave the deepest parts of the Ash. He sent those Artifacts back to the demon realm with one of the retainers instead of risking it falling into human hands.
2. It was previously mentioned that Vir could start communin...
2023-09-14 14:49:56 +0000 UTC View Post“You mean to say that the gods had no concept of chakra?” Cirayus asked, unconvinced.
“Rather, the Chakras may not even have existed before the fall of the gods. Cirayus, whatever happened to the Imperium changed the world in ways I’m not sure anyone understands. There was a moon! A bright circle in the night sky, many times the size of the stars!”
“Aye, you mentioned that before, lad. Just hard to comprehend, is all. But let’s say you’re righ...
2023-09-13 14:44:37 +0000 UTC View PostVir jumped off the same cliff for the second time that day. This time, he fled in fear. Whatever was pursuing them was lethal; few organisms shone so brightly to Prana Vision. In fact, Vir hadn’t seen such a signature since his time in the Mahādi Realm. Whatever it was, they were no match for it.
“Four centuries,” Cirayus said as they fell. “Four long centuries of living and fighting and I am still nothing against these beasts.”
Vir hit th...
2023-09-12 16:25:30 +0000 UTC View PostBarren plains gave way to ash-filled swamp marshes, then blackened forests that ran for hundreds of miles. From arduous mountain passes to jagged cliffs, the trio made short work of it all, stopping only to rest, eat, and gather food and water.
The skies grew darker, the lightning storms more fierce.
They’d traveled for nearly two weeks when Cirayus’ guidance Artifact finally began to show signs of life. The entire time, Vir consoled himself in the knowledge that ...
2023-09-11 14:13:39 +0000 UTC View PostThis is suicide, Maiya thought, prostrating as giant lizard-like creatures ran past her. She prayed they’d pass the group by paying no one any mind… But these were Ash Beasts. Such hope would undoubtedly be in vain.
She heard the first scream a moment later—the pained scream pierced the air until it was suddenly cut off. Then there was another. And another.
I have to do something.
At this rate, everyone would die. Maiya bore ...
2023-09-07 14:09:54 +0000 UTC View PostMaiya shivered at the chill of dawn in Jatan Forest. While not nearly as ancient as the Godshollow—the trees were shorter and less girthy—it had its own mystique. Moss covered the trunks and ferns decorated the forest floor. The variety of flora surpassed the Godshollow tenfold, and sounds of birds and rodents filled the air as the forest awoke.
Were it not so close to the Ash Boundary, it might’ve become a tourist destination. As it was, however, Jatan Forest went la...
2023-09-06 13:41:30 +0000 UTC View Post“Sarvaak,” Vir said, testing the sound. “It’s… different.”
“The One Who Makes Whole,” Cirayus said, appraising Vir. “So you’ve accept your new name.”
Vir nodded. “I still don’t know what I’ll do when I get to the Demon Realm, but I at least want to see how Gargans live. I want to see what they’re like. Then I’ll make my decision.”
Cirayus clapped his back. “‘Tis all I could ask for. And remember. You are not alone. I’ll be...
2023-09-05 16:02:23 +0000 UTC View Post