The creature, and I wasn't sure what else to call it, rushed at Devon. Its form nearly blurred, its slick brown fur and greying leathery skin matching the forest floor. It leaped, launching itself like a bullet at the stoic hunter.
Except, Devon moved just as fast, if not faster.
His arm shot out and grabbed the thing by its throat before slamming it into the ground, where he put his boot squarely on its neck. The creature struggled, hissing like a feral beast. Devon pres...
2023-10-16 06:43:24 +0000 UTC
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I rolled and pushed myself up. The wolf let out a growl that rumbled in my ears, followed by whimpering as it yelped.
My eyes snapped to the slowly retreating wolf. Its coat stood up with its teeth bared. Across its snout, large red lines stained its fur.
Fat red droplets splashed against the forest floor.
My shadow wolf circled the bigger beast, its fur a near imitation, with its hackles raised.
"Grrrrrgh…"
Devon watched passively as the two wolve...
2023-10-16 04:57:05 +0000 UTC
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The corpse could hardly be called a man. I don't know the guy's standards for a cadaver, but it wasn't what we saw. The torso had dime-sized holes of missing flesh while a large and very black hoof mark as large as my hand painted the skin on his upper ribs. The hand, lacking fingers, had its meat entirely stripped away, but whatever did it, did so in a messy manner. Strands of grey flesh poked out from beneath the greying skin. Marble lines of black veins crisscrossed throughout his body, pr...
2023-10-16 03:21:47 +0000 UTC
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We introduced ourselves and then followed the man and his escort outside. From there, we slowly walked towards the center of town, passing through the dimly lit streets to enter the heart of the village. It didn't surprise me when the houses near the center were of a higher quality than the rest of the village. Every city had its place where the richer folk lived; a small village wasn't that different.
The guard's head swiveled from left to right, acting like someone would jump out at a...
2023-10-16 02:44:45 +0000 UTC
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Getting over my initial shock, I held out my hand and slapped the wall, except my hand went through it. A moment later, I was through the wall and met with Devon smirking as he leaned on a table. The place we were in had torches with red flames lighting the way. Something about the tunnel felt ominous, but I wasn't entirely sure what.
"One of the perks of the emblem is access to the Whisper Tunnels. Keep close. We don't want to be separated, or I'll have to waste time to find you," he s...
2023-10-16 02:35:00 +0000 UTC
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Am I expected not to injure myself? Who gives sharp weaponry to someone who admitted to only using wooden sticks?
I picked up the spear. The thing weighed lighter than I expected, but the wood felt too thick in my hands. My fingers rested uncomfortably around the leather wrapping while I held up the solid polearm.
I don't know why I expected it to have a hollow core. This whole thing just feels unwieldy.
I walked over to the small space with a stra...
2023-10-15 22:14:32 +0000 UTC
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Devon entered the room, looking more refreshed than he had a few hours ago. He had brushed his hair, and his eyes had lost their previous lifelessness. When he stood, his movements flowed smoothly, a contrast to his stiff gait when he brought me to Astra.
He stopped and sniffed the air before staring at my bandaged hand and raising an eyebrow. "What happened?"
Astra answered before I could reply. "He has a gift for fire incantations. You should have seen it; should have smelled it...
2023-10-15 22:10:56 +0000 UTC
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"Thank you!" Astra shouted.
I stopped clapping and looked at the chains adorning her dress in a new light.
That's beautiful and terrifying all in one. I wish I could control chains like that.
"How long did it take you to learn that? Your control is amazing," I gushed.
"Something as intricate as the dance? A few months. I used my skill a lot, so I experimented often. When I first acquired it, my control was way worse." She clapped her hands together and smiled....
2023-10-15 20:20:31 +0000 UTC
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"So, I have more questions now."
"Mmm… ask away."
"The numbers next to my stats no longer have a plus sign, but I have a plus sign next to my name. Does that mean anything?"
She blinked. "Well, that's surprising, but I suppose not entirely, considering what happened. Let's see, let me demonstrate."
She reached over and picked up the third chair. I didn't think the chair was heavy, but she lifted the metal furniture like it weighed the same as a paperweight. Her arms ...
2023-10-15 19:08:25 +0000 UTC
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After my burst of excitement, I calmed down enough to think things through. Going from one end of the spectrum of emotions to the other felt wrong, but whatever.
"I received some skills during the initialization; something about summoning a wolf? And another listed under passive. Is that not magic?" I asked.
"Not exactly the same thing, but sure. You should have access to mana now that you've been inducted into the system. If you think about it, the knowledge of how your skills wo...
2023-10-15 18:50:10 +0000 UTC
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Run with the pack; must keep up. Can't fall behind. Must keep up.
Battle erupts, chaos ensues. Brother runs the opposite direction. No choice; must follow my path.
Day and night in a relentless cycle, chasing the sun, the moon, the guiding stars.
Howl, scratch, bite, claw, pounce on the prey. Rip its throat, drink the blood, grow stronger.
When I run alone, I set the pace. Always behind, yet never truly ahead. This is the hunt I ...
2023-10-15 18:46:38 +0000 UTC
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I don't know how long I rested, but it didn't feel enough. Devon made it clear that I couldn't avoid things.
My brain may have been fuzzy, but I felt my cloak offer me comfort, and I rubbed at its end.
What are you? Are you alive? Can you speak?
It didn't answer back, and I didn't expect it to. To be honest, the idea of a sentient cloak would be off-putting, to say the least.
As I got up, I glanced over to Adeline, who had calmed down. She kept her face neutra...
2023-10-15 18:44:18 +0000 UTC
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By the end of the story, Adeline cried. Her tears dripped down her face, but she didn't acknowledge it, and neither did I.
From what I've learned about that man in the very short snippets Adeline added as commentary, he had been well-loved. The kind of guy everyone got along with and looked to as friend, leader, and brother.
Each new comment was a twist of the knife. They may have brought her some joy to cope with her grief that built as the story continued, but it murdered me ins...
2023-10-15 18:41:14 +0000 UTC
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We didn't walk for long, maybe a dozen seconds, till we met the others. No sign of the little girl remained; a strange pile of black sludge took the place of her corpse.
If I looked close enough, I could see drag marks, but they quickly disappeared only a few feet away.
There were ten people in total, all of them wearing matching red cloaks. Amongst their flock, I saw iron on every hip or strapped to their backs. Blood marred their clothes, staining the black with bright red. Not ...
2023-10-15 18:38:25 +0000 UTC
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I screamed until my throat turned raw, and I could no longer make a sound. Copper coated my tongue, and I barely registered my skull hitting the dirt.
My insides were magma, and my world was a living hell.
I tried to whimper, but nothing came out. When I tried to breathe, fire met my lungs. The feeling was so intense I couldn't close my eyes, yet I only saw black.
An eternity later, something shifted, turning the lava into ice. Cold agony replaced the previous pain, hurting ...
2023-10-15 18:36:33 +0000 UTC
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Before I made it more than a dozen feet, a voice cut through the eerie silence, followed by another.
"Oh, naughty wolf! You killed my pet." The annoyed voice of a little girl bounced between the trees. "Granny Maybel, we need to punish him."
"We will, dearie. And when we're done, you can have the mortal running away. What do you say, a nice little pet as an apology?"
"Oooh, yes, Granny! Maybe he'll make a better pet than the stupid doggy."
My heart pounded in my ears, ...
2023-10-15 18:34:34 +0000 UTC
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Sounds of screaming and fighting filled the air as the hunter led us deeper into the woods. I ran, scared out of my mind, and might have looked back and tried to watch the horror show like a fool. Thankfully, the man made me run at a dead sprint, so I didn't even have the option if I wanted.
"Please! Stop! Don't leave me behind! Get me outta here!" came a cry from our left.
Against my better judgment, I turned my head just enough to watch as a twisted Granny ripped the roof off th...
2023-10-15 18:31:44 +0000 UTC
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My brain pounded in my skull, each pulse wreaking havoc on my mind. Some idiot sang in the background, sounding like a dying cat clawing at a chalkboard.
"Make it stop…please,” I muttered.
My breath hitched as something on the right side of my chest stung. Sliding my hand forward, I winced as my fingers grazed a sore spot.
With a gentler touch, I tried to feel where the pain was and brushed against an extended cut.
What the hell?
I cracked open my ey...
2023-10-15 18:27:41 +0000 UTC
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I wasn't unconscious for long. My body hit the ground, and a rock impacted the small of my back. Groaning, I rolled over and let the grass take me.
There was the sound of a low hiss, but I snorted and ignored it to continue lying on the ground.
An awkward cough followed, and I sighed internally before pushing my arms up and moving to a sitting position with my legs crossed underneath.
In front of me was Elder Aimon, with Zillassa leaning his head low. My mask put on a tired ...
2023-10-13 18:19:01 +0000 UTC
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I sighed and exited my soulspace. The familiar ambient sound of a raging storm greeted my ears, and I stretched till a few bones popped.
After plopping back onto the beanbag, I raised my eyes to the sky, where lightning occasionally flared. A week of nonstop meditation was fantastic for progress. The sheer amount of rift energy provided superseded the previous rift by a mile.
If only I had all of my skills. I could have been tier one already. That'd have been a fun surprise fo...
2023-10-09 17:19:01 +0000 UTC
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(WARNING NOTE: PATREON has made changes, bad changes for writers. Italics and a lot of other things no longer show up on the web version of Patreon. They do show up in the app version. I use italics like most authors. If you want to enjoy the chapters, you'll have to make the switch if you're not already there-- for the time being. We don't know how long it'll take till Patreon fixes this.
When my consciousness stopped moving between planes, I found myself in a weirdly ...
2023-10-06 18:19:01 +0000 UTC
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"That's impossible. I'll disappear once I resume the rift," Ysanna argued.
Cal shook his head. "Normally true, but you're awakened. There are ways to prevent your reset."
I frowned. Arz'odral could only exit the rift by sacrificing countless riftborns and doing some complicated ritual to possess Melena.
I didn't think Cal would so easily suggest sacrificing the rest of the souls in the rift, not to a goddess who cared so much about her people that she created it to honour th...
2023-10-02 17:19:00 +0000 UTC
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A surge of cold water splashed my face, and I bolted to my feet, coughing up the cups worth that had gotten into my mouth.
I heard some laughter from a few feet away, followed by something large moving behind it. I coughed up some more water and got the last of it before I banged my fist on the floor.
The laughter had stopped, and all I could hear was running water. Slowly, I panned my head up and found myself standing in the middle of the sea. Water as far as I could see from one...
2023-09-29 18:19:01 +0000 UTC
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The spatial mana around the monster was strong enough to prick at my skin. Mana-sense wise, it was as if someone had stuffed something right up my nose, leaving little room for other scents to filter through.
"Everyone retreat!" Ventus yelled.
He sent six twister orbs into the monster's legs, but several tentacles lashed out and blocked the attacks. Three orbs managed to drill through, but the damage was minimal when it encountered the legs. When they exploded, the cuts on the mon...
2023-09-25 17:19:01 +0000 UTC
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Ventus activated his movement skill and rocketed forward, outrunning a particularly nasty-looking tentacle spike.
As he flew forward, he aimed his trident backwards and used another skill, this one in the form of three balls of grey wind that cut into the monster chasing him. They rotated at speeds fast enough to tear into the pale meat and send black ichor flying.
He landed beside the tank and steadied himself as the rest of the squad got to work slowing down the horde. Each acti...
2023-09-22 18:19:01 +0000 UTC
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A crack in space was met by Callen opening his mouth and firing off a large beam of water into the sky. Like everything involving dimensional spaces, the beam twisted, curved, and turned before reaching a stop in the distance that caused the air to vibrate. More cracks sounded out, and the world went deaf as a wave of tentacles threw themselves at the beam. The water cannon shredded and teared, the chunks of flesh erased by the sheer pressure.
Callen shut his jaw and swerved his head ou...
2023-09-18 17:19:00 +0000 UTC
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I scrambled to my feet and summoned Zharia, Áine, and Magnus. They appeared at once, and I stepped closer to Sereza. Together, we watched as the ceiling above began to twist and turn, the reality distortion growing with every passing second.
The pressure from the ether crystal began to lighten, and the glow from the crystal itself started to dim. Giyanni removed her barrier, and we all stood, ready for anything to happen.
Then we heard it, and forced us to snap our heads in the d...
2023-09-15 18:19:01 +0000 UTC
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Presko, as it turned out, was an earth skill user, specifically on stone. Sereza joined us while the others stayed. Exiting the barrier from Giyanni was tough on everyone else, but thankfully, Presko quickly tore open a circular hole into the building's wall.
We exited into a clear area not blocked by the mob of statues. The others happily welcomed the change in environment. Their faces lightened, and their eyes showed noticeable relief.
I turned to Sereza and stuck out my tongue....
2023-09-11 17:19:01 +0000 UTC
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He stared at me in the same way Ventus had, and if Ventus wasn't currently struggling to raise his head, I was sure he'd do the same.
I raised my head again, this time noticing how I was struggling less than Sereza despite her being a whole tier above me. "Fine, as long as it doesn't cost me my life. What do you need me to do?"
His serious expression morphed into the brightest smile, rivaling even Teddy in pure, fulgent smiles. "Good man, felkin. I can delay the monster from breac...
2023-09-08 18:04:53 +0000 UTC
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I thought Ventus would want to make a detour and try to unfreeze one of his mates, but he said no, and we continued onward towards the Grand Hall.
"Are you sure?" I asked as we jogged through the city.
"I am. We have little time to waste, and saving our strength for what we may find inside the hall would be best," Ventus replied, his voice utterly unaffected by the long jog.
With no more questions to be asked, we spent the next ten minutes trekking through the city. It turne...
2023-09-04 17:19:01 +0000 UTC
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