Dan stopped and cocked his head, moving close to the wall and listening carefully. He was about to move further through the ruined streets when the scream came again. His heart rate increased, but he saw nothing and hoped it would stay that way.
Two blocks further, he turned around the corner and froze. A group of thugs blocked the road ahead. They hadn't seen him yet, preoccupied as they were with a small group of fearful refugees. The thugs were ransacking through the bags while the g...
2022-09-06 18:01:14 +0000 UTC
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> 1 XP gained
Dan stared at the message, a sigh escaping him as he lowered his hand. So that's how it was gonna be? The reality of his situation hit him like a right hook to his chin. He zoned out as he listened to the shouting of people and the flapping and cracking of sails.
"Honey? Did it work? Please say it worked?" a familiar, warm voice asked, shuddering a bit at the end.
Dan looked at his wife, a short-haired, feisty blond with a perma-tan, and smiled. "We tried, h...
2022-09-06 17:57:59 +0000 UTC
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"I don't bloody care what you think. I am going back to find Jake!"
Standing on a beach of smooth round pebbles and rocks, Mason struggled with the three Kobolds trying to hold him down.
"You can't help him! He is faster than any of us in the water and can breathe it without that plant!" Sandra shouted back, struggling to keep one of his arms pinned down.
Mason roared, his muscles bulging as he resisted the three's attempts to hold him down. All of a sudden, his roaring turn...
2022-09-05 19:08:34 +0000 UTC
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Jake took a deep breath of salty water as he pressed his back against the enormous underwater growth. Absently he realized it looked like a blueish alien coral. With a shiver, he angled forward and took a quick look above. A cluster of small shadows was still circling near the brightly lit surface of the sea, dozens of if not a hundred feet above him.
Dammit... Still forty left. Why don't they go chase a fish or something, he thought quickly, pulling back before they saw him.
2022-09-04 08:38:59 +0000 UTC
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As the last of the sun sank into the ocean, a cool breeze from the sea blew away the day's sweltering heat. A loud, annoyed chatter came from a small group of Kobolds sitting around a campfire at the edge of the jungle.
Bolyr and his two archers were having a rapid-fire argument. As they spoke their native language, even Jake and Emma didn't understand what they were saying, but it had been going on for a while now.
Sandra looked at them from her spot further away from the campfir...
2022-08-31 19:21:47 +0000 UTC
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Jake groaned. A loud screech faded away in the distance, and he clasped his hands over his ears. The sound had caused his headache to thud in sync with his heart, and he felt like he had just run a marathon.
What...? he thought in confusion. The sensation of his bare back had him worried. And why was he hungry after eating the immense snake?
Another high-pitched screech distracted him from his increasing worries, and like water from a broken barrel, the vague memories of ...
2022-08-28 08:22:02 +0000 UTC
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A quiet came across the classroom. The children rustled in their uncomfortable stone benches as a tall, austere woman walked through the eight-foot-high, arched entrance. It was the final lesson of their school week, meaning they had two free days ahead. They really didn't want to be here any longer than they should.
"Children, I hope you have all done your homework as I asked," the woman spoke coolie, as she moved before the class. Behind her stood a tall, extra wide sheet of blue crys...
2022-08-27 08:24:49 +0000 UTC
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A low growl vibrated through the air, startling everyone. Mason's eyes had narrowed to slits, and his hands were clenching the dirt he'd been toying with.
Jake stared at his friend in shock. He knew about Mason's troubles, which was why he had worried about speaking, but this reaction? This was far more volatile than he'd ever witnessed. He shook himself and was about to jump Mason to stop him from doing anything stupid when something moved in his peripheral. Sandra stepped forward, blo...
2022-08-23 18:41:33 +0000 UTC
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Soft shuffling broke the gloomy silence of the jungle, and the occasional startled shout was cut short. A group of ten Kobolds and a tall pale Fiend moved through a wide game trail that led through the jungle. Although wide enough for perhaps three people, they walked single file, staying as far from the thick green walls of leaves as they could.
"Glad they know where we are going because I am completely lost," Mason muttered from behind Jake.
Jake sighed and wished Mason would st...
2022-08-21 20:17:02 +0000 UTC
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Fear made my heart beat way too fast, and I recast Entangle. The plants seemed to resist me, something I'd never sensed before, and I began struggling to get free. My hands plunged through repeatedly, pushing and shoving against the greenery, but I couldn't get any place to lever my strength.
A branch wrapped around me, and another, constricting and squeezing.
Within a second, I was wrapped up like a hog, ready for the slaughter. Thin branches appeared out of the greenery, moving ...
2022-08-21 07:34:47 +0000 UTC
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Jake spun around, noticing Mason step towards him while the soldiers pulled into a formation. All of them were baring their teeth, glaring at the jungle.
Three Kobolds stood just below the treeline, partially covered by the slowly growing shadows cast by the enormous trees. Unlike Jake and the others, they weren't wearing ripped and torn clothing but decked out in leather armor. Two were holding bows almost as tall as they were, a well-filled quiver poking out behind their shoulder.
...
2022-08-18 16:59:03 +0000 UTC
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"Begin," Nimron roared, his eyes glimmering as he glared at me.
Shit, I thought, gritting my teeth. I guess I hadn't hidden my grin as well as I thought.
"And Kelgwain? Don't disappoint me," Nimron snarled with such vehemence that I almost felt sympathy for his Prime. It almost cost me my head.
A soft woosh was all the warning I got before a dagger appeared two hand lengths before my face. My reflexes kicked in, and I whipped my ax up and pulled my head away. With a...
2022-08-14 19:28:47 +0000 UTC
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Jake froze as he stared at the girl, her eyes wide in fear while barring her teeth in a silent, aggressive snarl. The speed of her changing emotions surprised him, and in his mind, he knew her reaction was odd. It wasn't typical for a human girl her age who had gone through all the horrible things Emma had the last two days. His instincts, however, told him she was a fine hatching and would survive to grow strong.
Hatchling? Jake thought, unsure where that word had come from. T...
2022-08-12 07:27:02 +0000 UTC
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I decided to give you guys some information on what I'll be up to the next while, split across the stories I have. This is a long post, so if you aren't interested in some stories I ask you to at a minimum skip to the final section ;)
Nothing but bones
So, NBB3 has been released, and I'm working on undead AI-2, which is a much shorter work. I don't know exactly when it will be finished, though I'm hoping to release it before Christmas. Beyond this, I'm not going to write more Noth...
2022-08-07 08:51:30 +0000 UTC
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As I walked away, I wondered how we were going to block the army from getting in. If I could find seeds, I'd be able to block the wide-open gate with trees.
"Let's go to the gate and see if we can close it," I said. "You wouldn't happen to have any Torpel Tree seeds here? Or any other seeds?"
Jack blinked in surprise, then shrugged. "No, but maybe someone in the city has them. I've heard a few people have been experimenting with the various vegetation here. I'll send someone up to...
2022-08-06 20:45:32 +0000 UTC
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Nothing but bones 3 has been released on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited! If you want to read the edited and polished version of the story, or support me, reading it on Kindle Unlimited would be a great help!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B8G4LMR7
2022-08-03 09:08:56 +0000 UTC
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"Did you hear that Sumil has lowered the prices for specific patterns again?" Gousius, a lean, fiery-red undead, asked.
He didn't wait for an answer but grabbed a chunk of meat and began chewing on it.
"'Course I did! It proves what I said before: she is a much better leader than Drys ever was," a wide-shouldered, heavily muscled undead replied.
Nous, you braindead fool," Gousius whispered. "Do you want to get us into trouble?" He fearfully looked around, but either none of ...
2022-07-31 12:24:09 +0000 UTC
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Mallory backed up, eyes on his enemy. His arms were almost too heavy to wield the dull blade. The four-armed heavy-set soldier croaked twice before he finally stopped moving. The kill had been hard-won but had bought him some time. He looked around, making sure no more soldiers were inbound.
Ahead, bodies covered the ramp leading to the broken open gate below while the four-armed bastards relentlessly pushed through. The clear lines between sides had dissolved into a melee that sprawled...
2022-07-31 12:21:06 +0000 UTC
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Hi all,
I've been very busy lately, which is why there has only been a single release each week for a while. The reason being that Nothing but bones 3 is going to release soon. The cover is done, the editing is done, and all that is left are some final things before it is released on Amazon. One part of the book has yet to be released here, the epilogue. You can expect it later today. With that, all of book three's first draft is on Patreon. A lot did change in the final release, beside...
2022-07-31 07:57:07 +0000 UTC
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I spun around, rushing back to the bottom of the chest cavity. All around, flashes of light slammed into each other, creating dull booms and large underwater surges. Each one that hit me shoved me sideways many feet, and I was glad I didn't get too close. I'd have been crushed if I hadn't been aiming for the opposite side of where they were.
"If you think you can trick me into following you, you are a fool," Ux shouted mockingly.
Yeah, you go and think that, I thought as ...
2022-07-24 20:21:28 +0000 UTC
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"Lark, go and see if you can find Casiron," I shouted.
It was the only thing I could think of that didn't involve trying to discuss with Nimron, which seemed like the stupidest thing to do.
To my surprise, my words quieted Nimron's angry roars, and I could imagine the confusion of the much more powerful beings around me.
"Are you ignoring me, mortal?" Nimron snapped. "Don't think I won't destroy those Earthlings!"
Rathica wants to know what the hell you are doing? ...
2022-07-17 19:48:22 +0000 UTC
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Jake was the first to snap out of his reverie. He spun around and stared at the jungle. Where those nasty things still after them? Seconds ticked by, but nothing moved in the wall of green except for leaves and shadows. Slowly his fear and anxiety faded, and he looked around. Mason stood next to him, eyes narrowed and fixated on the jungle.
"Perhaps they don't like it out in the open?" Jake whispered.
Mason looked up and shrugged. "Perhaps."
Jake backed up a bit, then turned...
2022-07-16 06:45:21 +0000 UTC
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I focused on the final bit of the gesture. The pain was horrible but manageable, and I wondered absently if this meant I'd be able to practice growing my Mindscape a lot more after this was done.
If I survive, I thought, an anxious worry growing.
The mental gesture finished, and it felt like I'd slammed head first into a concrete wall. The world changed from a dull gray to a brighter gleaming one, and I saw tiny bits float around, reflecting the light. Any ease of movemen...
2022-07-10 07:06:41 +0000 UTC
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It took me ten minutes to reach the edge -an almost mist-like disturbance in the water with a shimmering sheet- that separated us from what lay inside.
Libidi had her hands against the barrier, a worried frown on her face. Her mount was a small distance away.
On a hunch, I ordered it towards the barrier. An odd sense of unwillingness came, but it tried. The long, reptilian carving inched closer, then stopped moving. It shuddered like two magnets opposing, then I felt the Vengeful ...
2022-07-02 19:18:32 +0000 UTC
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"So you have no idea if you have a limit on how many you can summon?" Grem asked, incredulous.
We both held on to the spikes from one of Carrion's rough, metallic lookalikes. Libidi was behind us, hanging on to her own, while Casiron was in the lead, Lark close behind. The final one of the three statues I'd been able to make in time was trailing behind us with the order to attack anything that tried to snake up on us.
"No," I said, annoyed with myself for never actually trying. "A...
2022-06-26 19:36:30 +0000 UTC
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"You do realize we probably won't survive this, right?" Grem whispered, swimming beside me.
"Less worrying, more teaching," I snapped, my eyes focused on his fingers, frozen mid gesture.
"It's not going to help. You don't have a high enough learning rate to learn this spell before we get down there," Grem said, the same thing he had said a dozen times.
I knew he was right, but I felt very vulnerable in the water, especially next to him and Libidi. The mere act of pretending ...
2022-06-22 20:04:07 +0000 UTC
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"Wake up, Jake, please, wake up!"
Jake slowly awoke to a soft whisper combined with a loud knocking. He tried to figure out why his sister was waking him up this early on a Saturday but decided to ignore it. He tried to roll on his left but thudded against something.
Now what?
He grunted loudly while his awareness gradually returned, and with it, the memories of the last few days. He lurched up, opening his eyes.
All around him, debris from the hospital walls ...
2022-06-20 19:20:01 +0000 UTC
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I looked at the final lines of text below the wall of messages, having a hard time not being worried.
> Rathica says you need to go down towards the sea bed, below the Spawning Grounds, and be ready for battle.
> That's it…
> Oh, and Brewcanon? Be careful, you oaf! You said you were safe, but this hardly sounds safe!
> You aren't allowed to lie to me, remember?
I sighed and shook my head. Eliandra was going to remember this, that was for sure. After...
2022-06-18 20:04:43 +0000 UTC
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I quickly observed the battle. My Armedsharks were aimlessly fighting with the demons, and I realized how poorly I'd used them. Was this because of where I was or due to Rathica's absence? Or something else? As the only thing that had just changed was Rathica's reappearance, I had to go with that, but this wasn't the time to reason it out.
With a few quick commands, the Armedsharks on the outside pulled back and grouped in pairs. I hesitated for only a moment, then sent out new commands...
2022-06-12 18:22:19 +0000 UTC
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Rathica silently gazed at the broad back of the Stone as he stood before the pattern. He was arranging array after array of gray runes, every single one so complicated it might shatter a mortal's mind.
When he finally stopped, one larger, oddly round cluster sat in the center, with a scaffold around it and three empty spots inside, one below, one to the left, and one to the right. The Stone's symbol sat in the middle of the round cluster.
How can he possibly have this Karma le...
2022-06-05 19:07:40 +0000 UTC
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