Chapter 18
Ruwen remained invisible as he peered into the clearing that surrounded the base of the large hill. His Prospecting skill combined with Survey, Stone Echo, and Sixth Sense to bring the entire area into sharp focus.
The mine lay half a mile ahead, a gaping wound in the hillside where men carved out granite and mica. Ruwen strode forward, his movements fluid and silent. He could have yelled and not drawn attention between the cicadas buzzin...
2025-03-29 06:30:23 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 17
Ruwen strolled through the avocado trees and considered the differences between what Pen had written in his journals and how those details had survived thousands of years. Pen hadn’t referenced the notes that supposedly resonated with the chakras or the use of crystals. Ruwen had confirmed with Harmonic Sight that Pine’s Root chakra had responded to his hummed middle ‘C.’
The hand gestures had survived as had the basic theme of each chakra. Pine’...
2025-03-29 06:29:15 +0000 UTC
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Hi!
This week’s chapters involve chakra training. It’s a little unfortunate that all these chapters landed on the same release week. I guess we’ll see if I made them interesting enough to stand on their own. Like previous weeks, these are raw. I’ve not even reread them, so there are probably more mistakes than normal.
Writing is still going well although I didn’t get as much written as I did last week. Still, I’m completely back in the zone which is great.
I talk...
2025-03-22 07:35:02 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 16
“Almost done,” Pine said, ending the uncomfortable silence. He interlocked all his fingers except the pinkies, which pointed upward. He rested his hands on the top of his head and hummed a high, airy "B," for a few seconds before focusing back on Ruwen. “Let the vibration ripple through your skull. Violet light illuminates the chakra, not to provide enlightenment but to sharpen the mind like a blade honed for thought. The Crown is linked to the brain’s vast web of ide...
2025-03-22 07:33:59 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 15
“The Heart chakra is the pivot between the lower and upper energies,” Pine said. “It’s the bridge between the physical and the spiritual. It has a green color and will resonate with the note ‘F.’” Pine crossed his thumbs over his touching index and middle fingers, hands at chest level. “This helps to open the heart and awaken love.”
Ruwen copied the hand gesture.
“Your Heart chakra is the seat of love, compassion, and empathy—for others, but ...
2025-03-22 07:32:43 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 14
“Thank you,” Ruwen told Pine.
“The Sacral chakra sits below your navel,” Pine said touching his lower abdomen. “It deals with pleasure, creativity, and emotions. Visualizing an orange glow might help or humming a “D” note. Place your fingers like this to open your Sacral channels.”
Pine touched his thumbs to his ring fingers, palms up on his thighs, and Ruwen did the same.
“For Activation consider your passions—both positive and negative....
2025-03-22 07:31:40 +0000 UTC
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[Author’s Note – Once again I am posting chapters without rereading them. So there are likely mistakes.]
Chapter 13
Ruwen imagined a red light at the base of his spine. Harmony already provided a connection to the ground below him, but no matter what he tried he couldn’t get the red light to become part of that connection.
After ten minutes, Ruwen realized he was an idiot. Why did he need to use a red light to imagine where his Root chakra was located. He knew a place ...
2025-03-22 07:30:25 +0000 UTC
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Hi!
I really appreciate all the comments and opinions on the update from last week. It helped me a lot. I had a good week writing and even managed to produce a couple of Divine Awakening chapters. Hopefully that is something I can continue.
I opened chapters 4, 5, and 6 for Root.
I opened chapters 7, 8, and 9 for Harvester.
I added chapters 10, 11, and 12 for Step Master, Blapy’s Favorite, Divine, and Axiom.
Enjoy!
Thank you for supporting these stories.<...
2025-03-15 06:22:00 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 12
“We should start with the why,” Pine said. “For many years you will focus on chakras and later your aura, but it’s critical to remember that these are only signposts to your true destination. It is easy to become so caught up in the practice that one loses sight of the goal.”
Pine paused but Ruwen remained silent. The old man was the expert and he knew the best way to impart his knowledge. Acting as the student, Ruwen would only ask questions if prompted or at...
2025-03-15 06:20:44 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 11
The statement surprised Ruwen but he clamped down on his curiosity. It would be better if Pine spoke at his own pace. Ruwen continually interrupting Pine’s train of thought wouldn’t help either of them.
“He showed up here. A gringo from the United States. He had nothing, arriving here in a t-shirt, jeans, and sandals. We knew he was crazy when he asked us to kill him. The majority of the local drug trade is with America so we assumed he was a drug addict who’d l...
2025-03-15 06:19:27 +0000 UTC
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[Author’s Note – Once again I am posting chapters without rereading them. So there are likely mistakes.]
Chapter 10
Normally Ruwen would find something to work on, but the reunion with his parents had provided a brief respite from the exhausting grind his life had become, and instead he purposefully did nothing.
Ruwen’s parents had left at some point, probably to guard Pine and the farm. They hadn’t returned yet when he left. He felt refreshed and took his time walki...
2025-03-15 06:18:17 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 58
It really bothered Ash that this choice was almost grey. This unique Class had the most potential, but the System had judged him as a bad fit for it. This Class, his heritage and legacy, had not even been recommended.
Not offered because Ash had spent most of his life in denial. He’d only half applied himself to the skills and knowledge his grandpa had tried so hard to get Ash to care about. The truth, as painful as it was to face, stared at him now.
Ash opened ...
2025-03-14 06:31:42 +0000 UTC
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[Author's Note: This chapter and the next are rough drafts. I haven't even reread them. I made good progress on Divine Apostasy chapters and I'm long long overdue on writing some Ash content. I'm sorry about that. I can't promise anything, but I'll try and get more written in the near future. Enjoy!]
Chapter 57
Ash stood atop the ziggurat, the late afternoon sun casting long shadows across the ancient city of Uruk. Dust hung in the air and the lingering scent of the Hippodiles' bl...
2025-03-14 06:29:28 +0000 UTC
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Hi!
I don’t have too much to report. It was another good week of writing, which I’m thankful for.
I spent some time thinking about the lengths of series. Can a series get too long and people stop reading or won’t start it? I feel like there is this constant war between spending time with certain aspects like crafting or city building or leveling and a series going on for too long.
Please let me know your thoughts in the comments. Some authors have finished multiple ser...
2025-03-08 07:24:33 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 9
“It’s good to see you smile,” Clarysa said.
“You carry a heavy burden for someone so young,” Colyn added.
Ruwen nodded, staring at the table. “Sometimes it feels like too much. My friends—being here with you—it makes things easier. Honestly things are usually so crazy I’m only worried about the present.”
Clarysa fetched a jug and three cups from her dimensional bag. She poured water into them and handed one to Ruwen. “You look like you...
2025-03-08 07:23:29 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 8
Ruwen studied the small stone that nestled in the roots of the avocado tree that loomed above him. He cycled between normal vision, Harmonic Sight, and Harmonic Knowledge. Using the insights Xavier had provided, Ruwen worked out the calculations that made this dense dimensional warping possible. He didn’t know the construction process for this pocket world, but he understood the math and how it structurally held together. Xavier probably deserved a thank you when Ruwen retur...
2025-03-08 07:22:12 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 7
[Author’s Note – the following three chapters are first draft. I haven’t even reread them. So if there are more mistakes than normal that is why. Thanks!]
Ruwen sat at a table covered in food. Pine had burst into activity and explained what had occurred since Echo had last been here while cooking. The food was all new and strange and studying the old man’s recipes and cooking style raised Ruwen’s cooking skill.
Shing!
You have advanced ...
2025-03-08 07:21:08 +0000 UTC
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Hi!
I had a great week of writing and the last of the burnout is gone. The paperbacks arrived and I’ll work on personalizing them this weekend.
I’m an introvert at heart, which likely surprises no one. I can act like an extrovert, but it takes a lot of energy. I’ve been writing as A. F. Kay since 2019 and I’ve never attended a conference during that time. I know that once I’m at one I would enjoy it and meet great people, etc. but overcoming the resistance to attending c...
2025-03-01 07:03:52 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 6
Ruwen appeared next to Echo, and she jumped in surprise.
“Stop appearing like—”
Ruwen interrupted Echo. “Need to go!”
Ruwen used Soul power to etch a temporary doorway and five gate runes in the air. A high-pitched scream, like the air was being ripped apart came from behind them, and Echo turned to see what caused the awful sound. He already knew.
Wrapping Echo in a blanket of Harmony Ruwen pulled her along as he jumped through the gate rune ...
2025-03-01 07:01:26 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 5
Ruwen materialized to find Xavier looming over him. Twelve balls of plasma spun around the Celestial moving so fast it looked like a halo. Xavier’s seven-foot cylindrical form had a purple-blue color that hurt the eyes to view.
“Chicken!” Ruwen yelled.
For a moment Ruwen thought Xavier might attack him despite the Celestial obviously recognizing him. The halo effect disappeared as the plasma balls slowed, slowly rotating downward and disappearing inside Xavie...
2025-03-01 07:00:00 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 4
Echo glared at Ruwen. “This isn’t some kind of excuse to babysit me, is it?”
“Not at all. I really do want to talk to Pine and Ash.”
This didn’t seem to convince Echo. “I’m fine you know. I don’t need you.”
“Seriously, this has nothing to do with you.”
Ruwen did his best to make that sound like the truth. He didn’t plan on following Echo around, but he also wanted to be nearby just in case.
Echo didn’t look like she bel...
2025-03-01 06:57:39 +0000 UTC
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Hi!
I made much better progress this week and feel mostly normal now. My day job is still sucking the creativity out of me, but hopefully that slows down soon.
I ordered the book 11 paperbacks and should get them this week. I’ll personalize them and mail them out as soon as I can.
The chapters this week are raw as I haven’t had a chance to reread them. I guessed you’d rather have three rough chapters than two edited chapters.
I added chapter 1 for Root.
I a...
2025-02-22 07:59:53 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 3
Less than an hour passed when Echo began to stir. Ruwen opened his eyes and tried to carefully remove his arm, which still circled her shoulders.
Ruwen had barely moved when Echo opened her eyes. She blinked in confusion for a few seconds and then tilted her head up and met his gaze.
Echo’s hand rested on Ruwen’s bare chest and she pushed herself away from him.
“What the actual hell, Starfield,” Echo said.
Ruwen stopped the rush of blood to his ...
2025-02-22 07:58:22 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 2
“You survived the Zealot,” Death stated.
Ruwen tilted his head toward Echo and responded in a whisper. “Her dad gave us an opportunity to escape.”
“I saw.”
“Through Echo?” Ruwen asked.
Death nodded. “I’m surprised you managed to escape the cathedral.”
“I created a hole in the Zealot’s defenses with Harmony.” Ruwen tilted his head toward Echo. “Is she going to be okay?”
“The most dangerous time is past. Thank...
2025-02-22 07:56:53 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 1
In a cavern at the bottom of the Death Tower, Ruwen sat silently across from Echo. His three friends remained safely submerged in their Fortification Cocoons, and he stopped himself from glancing over at them. Instead, he stared intently at the ground halfway between himself and Echo. He couldn’t remember a time he felt so useless, uncomfortable, and necessary.
Ruwen’s blood and Echo’s tears, both now dry, stained his shirt. It hung in strips, mostly shredded by Ec...
2025-02-22 07:55:03 +0000 UTC
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Hi!
The big news this week is that the audiobook for book 11 is now available. Yay! I also talked with Travis and learned my next narrator deadline is mid-July.
I got crushed by real life this week. Work has sucked a lot of my energy away, and its tax season so I’m trying to juggle everything related to that. All that to say I barely managed to get the Prologue finished.
I don’t know yet if this will be the final prologue, but it does contain information I want to get ou...
2025-02-15 08:50:29 +0000 UTC
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Prologue
In the depths of the Destruction Realm, the Death Tower spread its awareness and verified the friends of Ruin Val’dor remained safe. Fortification cocoons surrounded them, and the Dimensional warping that turned ten days into one hundred years created waves across Death’s normally serene existence.
For the first time in eons, indecision gnawed at Death’s thoughts. The current environment for Ruin’s friends was suboptimal for all of them. Two, along with the Elder ...
2025-02-15 08:49:18 +0000 UTC
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Hi!
I've realized one of the reasons I'm moving so slowly is that I need to make a decision immediately in book 12 about its direction. This, combined with the desire to wrap this arc up in a couple of books, has shown the need for a comprehensive list of promises you believe I've made to you throughout this series.
So, specifically, I'd like you to either Direct Message me or comment below on what you think I still need to address before I finish this arc. Just so you know, I con...
2025-02-12 21:01:37 +0000 UTC
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Hi!
The good news is I've started writing book 12. The bad news is I'm still going a little slow. That push to get book 11 done really hit me harder than I thought. It's mostly behind me now and everyone is talking to me again (wow that really makes me sound crazy).
In preparation for book 12 it would benefit everyone to have read Cevin's Sword. This is a middle-grade book with a younger protagonist. It's a book from long ago and you can see some of the themes I love have always e...
2025-02-11 23:29:09 +0000 UTC
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I had another tough week and don't have any chapters to post. The good news is I'm over the hump and should have chapters next week (maybe even before Friday).
I did spend time thinking about the prologue for book 12. Sometimes I know for sure what the prologue should be and sometimes it changes. If you've been with me for a while you'll remember book 11's prologue was originally from Zylkin's view.
Since I don't have chapters, I'll tell you a bit about my plans for the prologue r...
2025-02-08 08:31:53 +0000 UTC
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