Vitaly S Alexius

Where the Predators Prowl [Ch 49, 50]

49: Proposition

The purring vibrated through my legs, a deep, contented, unexpectedly relaxing rumble.

Adelle's head was a warm, heavy weight in my lap, her orange-red hair soft against my hand as I continued to stroke it absently. The tense, coiled, spiky ‘I will murder you’ energy she ordinarily carried had completely dissipated, replaced by feline nuzzling that was more disarming than any of her biker-gang boss bravado.

For the first time since arriving in Ferguso...

Where the Predators Prowl [47, 48]

47: Post-delving fun

Adelle was kissing me with such wild enthusiasm that I started to get genuinely concerned she might actually eat my entire face.

"Mmph!" I protested as her rough tongue scraped against mine, sharp canines biting my lips and cheek.

Candace seemed to notice my discomfort and pulled the cheetah towards herself. "Oi, stop nomming him, you greedy cat!"

“Wurhh?” Adelle’s upside down face turned to the fox. “I’ll nom whomever I wanna. Hrm�...

HD art from Bloom!

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1W5tyQvIolKQIBbamg6HtMIdGby9qdMYM?usp=sharing

Where the Predators Prowl [Ch 44-46]

44: Treasure

There were far too many enemies for us to face on the field, but then again I did ask Ignis to train us well, so perhaps making us go up against impossible odds was her way of doing it.

As I attempted to think of how to potentially break up the massive student and Elemental congregation, Nessy tilted her head, her nostrils flaring as she took in several deep breaths. 

Her eyes narrowed in concentration. "Something's not right," she whispered.

"What ...

Where the Predators Prowl [Ch 39-43]

39: The Real Mission

“My pack won’t fal

Where the Predators Prowl [Ch 36-38]

36: Roughhousing

I couldn’t help but laugh as Candace and Adelle rolled across the floor, a tangle of silver and orange fur, fake cries, and playful snarls filling the room. Candace made no effort to cover herself, her fluffy tail swishing provocatively as she squirmed in Adelle’s grip, who's robe was coming off too during their play-fight. 

“Halp!” Candace gasped dramatically, her gray eyes sparkling with mischief as she shot me a sultry glance. “This beast is ra...

Where the Predators Prowl: [Ch 29-35]

29: Not Ready

I watched with growing am

Bloom 2, Where the Predators Prowl: [Ch 20-28]

20: Advanced Dungeoneering

I spotted Kr

Bloom 2, Where the Predators Prowl: [Ch 11-19]

11: The Well of Severance

For a moment,

Bloom 2, Where the Predators Prowl: [Ch 2-10]

2: Beware of Dungeon

I pulled onto the

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Where the Predators Prowl [Bloom Book 2] - Chapter 1: Claimed

I pulled into the run-down gas station just as the first hint of dawn cracked the horizon. The fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, casting an unflattering glow across the weathered concrete. My ancient Pontiac Tempest coughed dramatically as I killed the engine, as if offended I'd interrupted its journey.

"Just a little further, we’re almost there," I muttered, patting the dashboard affectionately. "Then you can rest."

The car had been my pride and joy, purchased from Old Man Je...

Where the Dead Things Bloom: [56, 57, 58, 59]

56: The Inescapable Debt

"RUN!" Nessy's

Beware of Kittens: Day 9.4: The Shawl of Life

Vesna’s golden eyes gleamed beneath the fabric shawl with a pleading look.

"Right. What exactly do you see there?" I asked, gesturing at the crystalline filaments spreading across the corpses.

"Lines of power converging from dead bodies into… a new, growing, blooming seed," she breathed. "A new Mother-tree in its earliest stage! A new Sirin domain!”

I frowned.

“...

Beware of Kittens [9.1, 9.2, 9.3]

Day 9.1: Witchy Cultivation

I didn't trust Vesna enough to let her roam freely during the night. Despite the magic pact I observed and Minnow's assurances, caution seemed the wiser course when dealing with a centuries-old predator.

"You'll sleep in here," I told her, leading her to a small storeroom at the back of the pub. It had likely once held grain on shelves and barrels of mead, with sturdy walls and a heavy door that could be barred from the outside.

Vesna's golden e...

Where the Dead Things Bloom [55: Keep Moving]

Nessy's eyes fluttered open, immediately squinting against the light filtering through the quilted walls of Jim's spare bedroom. She groaned, rolling onto her side and pressing her paws against her temples.

"Urgh... my head feels like it's being used as a drum kit for a death metal band," she whined, slowly pushing herself upright. Taking in the unfamiliar surroundings, she blinked in confusion. "Where the heck are we? Bed, Bath, Infinity and Beyond?"

Krysanthea, who had been sitt...

Where the Dead Things Bloom. [Ch 53, 54]

53: Town Of Bedshire

Nessy snored softly, a fluffy black and white bundle in Krysanthea’s arms, her fluffy chest rising and falling with the relaxed rhythm of sleep. The Strand sisters stood in a loose defensive semicircle, their expressions ranging from cheerful, to relieved, to wary acceptance of the new pecking order I’d just established and enforced.

I glanced at Krysanthea. Her usually composed, serious, bossy demeanor looked like it was fraying at the edges, her claws ...

Bloom: Manager Nessy Song! [Ch 50 bonus]

https://vitalysalexius.bandcamp.com/track/manager-pawsome

Where the Dead Things Bloom [Ch 48, 49, 50, 51, 52]

Chapter 48: Unstoppable Dog

“Ah, excell

Where the Dead Things Bloom [46, 47]

Chapter 46: Retail Therapy

"Wait, are you saying Systemfall is millions of years old?" Kristi asked with a very concerned expression.

Nessy tilted her head, considering the question as she snagged up and chewed another crystal fruit. "Maybe? I can't tell for sure. The general feels of wat I'm picking up is that this place isn't just a regular store that got affected by Systemfall a few weeks ago."

"That's ridiculous," Katerina scoffed. "It's just a Superstore that got warp...

Beware of Kittens! [Day 8.3, 8.4]

Day 8.3: The Nature of Magic

I watched as Vesna set to work on the elk carcass. Talons extended, she made clean, almost surgical incisions along natural separation points in the animal's anatomy, dividing meat from sinew with a skill that spoke of centuries of practice.

"You're quite good at this," I observed.

"One learns to be efficient after three hundred years of hunting," she replied. "Waste nothing, use everything—that's the way of survival in the North."

I no...

Beware of Kittens. [Day 8.1, 8.2]

Day 8.1: The Elk Hunt

I woke while it was still dark, the pub's interior illuminated only by the dying embers of last night's fire. The air was frigid—my breath formed clouds with each exhale. I'd left a window cracked open for Minnow as promised, and a small draft whistled through the gap, carrying a few snowflakes that danced in the dim light.

Stormy was curled into a tight ball on my domain-soil pile, her black fur barely visible in the pre-dawn darkness. As I stirred, she ...

Where the Dead Things Bloom [43-45]

43 Superstore Assault

The dream came in fragments—flashes of light splitting the darkness, the scream of twisting metal, tens of glowing red and white eyes burning through a landscape of twisted wreckage. Something massive pursued me through an endless junkyard, magnetic pulses rearranging the landscape before I could locate an exit. Each time I thought I'd found safety, the labyrint...

Where the Dead Things Bloom [41, 42]

41 Pack Warmth

Having been brushed and serenaded, Krysanthea looked more serene than I'd ever seen her.

“So did you like the brushery?” Nessy inquired, batting her eyes at Kristi.

"I... suppose that was… nice," Krysanthea admitted grudgingly, as her hand rose to touch her groomed feathers with something like appreciation. 

“Yay,” Nessy clapped. “Kristikins approval gained!”

“And you’ve just lost it with that comment,” Kristi smiled.

Where the Dead Things Bloom [Ch 39, 40]

39 Chillaxery

"We're going to the Superstore tomorrow," Krysanthea declared, her decision clearly final. "All of us—our pack and yours. We'll find these soul fragments and break the connection."

"And father?" Kirra asked quietly. "What do we tell him?"

"Nothing," Krysanthea replied firmly. "Not until we've resolved this. If he learns about your... condition... before we've fixed it, the consequences could be severe."

The other sisters nodded.

"We leave at daw...

Somebody Stop Us. Chapter 15

The nine-tailed Kitsune stared at me, her silver-blue eyes flashing with something between amusement and disdain. The electrofractal halo of sparks dancing between her tails intensified, casting eerie shadows across the temple hall.

"Your soul?" She laughed, a sound like wind chimes in a thunderstorm. "And what makes you think I want such a thing, mortal? Especially one so..." her gaze swept over my deteriorating form, "...impermanent."

I remained in my bow, but raised my eyes to ...

Where the Dead Things Bloom. [ch 37, 38]

37 Family Meeting

The two raptors continued their heated whisper-hissing match while the rest of the rangers tended to the wounded. I stood awkwardly in my makeshift coverings as several rangers cast curious glances my way. Nessy remained close, her wet fur pressed against me, one arm protectively wrapped around me.

"Alec needs proper clothes," she announced to no one in particular, loud enough for Krysanthea to hear.

Kristi broke away from her sister, looking momentarily ...

Beware of Kittens [Day 6, 7]

Day 6: Catacombs

I woke before dawn. The day was much colder than yesterday as winter loomed closer, frost beginning to cover the stained glass windows of the pub.

Since the Sirin was dealt with, I decided to explore my warlock fortress a bit more. By peering into a deep crack in the wall likely caused by the dragon stomping around the village, I noted that the pub was built exceptionally well to contain heat. The old building’s structure consisted of three layers of well-set ...

Beware of Kittens! [Day 5]

Day 5.1: Threshold

I woke with a start, Stormy kneading my chest with sharp little claws. Pale morning light filtered through the shutters, casting long shadows across the pub's interior. The previous night's events came rushing back—the Sirin called Vesna now trapped in the cold well beneath a chest of my domain soil.

I stretched, feeling surprisingly well-rested. "Good morning to you too," I told Stormy, gently removing her paws from my ribs. "Easy on the acupuncture, please...

Where the Dead Things Bloom. [35, 36]

35 Eyes of Glass

“Kale!” Krysanthea's feathers flared, the iridescent patterns along her mane shifting with agitation. "We're in the middle of a slime crisis and you're focusing on this?"

"Answer the question, sis," Kaledoniya pressed on. "What's going on with you three? You've been acting real sus since you returned. Bringing Alec to the family dinner, not telling us where he's been, now risking your life on the word of this... this dog? I’m not going anywhere until you e...