Valon Greyjoy sat back in his sturdy oak chair, flexing his sore fingers and wincing at the dull ache. His attempt to swim through the glittering mounds of gold coins in his treasury had been, to put it mildly, a misguided endeavor. The smooth metal bits were less forgiving than they appeared in bardic tales. Swimming in gold, as it turned out, was impossible. He chuckled to himself, shaking his head.
“Well,” he muttered, rubbing his palms together, “at least I’ve proven ...
2024-12-20 11:19:23 +0000 UTC
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109 AC
The Doom cut through the waves like a black dagger, its hull gleaming with an eerie, metallic sheen under the moonlight. The ship, once called the Bronze Kraken, bore no trace of its former self. Its prow now jutted forward like the serrated jaw of some monstrous beast, jagged and sharp. The sails were black as night, streaked with emerald runes that seemed to shimmer faintly, even in the dark. Bone-like ribs lined the sides of the vessel, a grim reminder to all who gazed upon it...
2024-12-20 11:14:13 +0000 UTC
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Something about this whole thing did not feel… quite right. It wasn’t the warning itself, nor the emissary’s grim tone. It was deeper, quieter, gnawing at the edges of my awareness like a faint whisper carried on the wind. I couldn’t place it, but the feeling lingered, cold and insistent.
Still, I had little choice. If an army of Greenskins was indeed bearing down on the valley, I couldn’t wait for them to come crashing into the settlement. A few dozen brutes? The hunt...
2024-12-20 11:12:39 +0000 UTC
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“My queen,” Malathax began, his voice trembling as he stepped forward. The court wizard bowed low, his feathered robe swaying about him like a flag caught in a harsh wind. His breaths were shallow, rapid, as though he’d run a great distance. Sweat glistened on his brow, rolling down his pale face in streaks. His hands clutched the staff tightly, his knuckles white. His blue eyes, usually sharp and calculating, were wide, darting between Lysara and the chamber floor.
Lysara...
2024-12-20 11:11:37 +0000 UTC
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So, as many of you might be aware, I'm a law student, and this week is our finals. Try as I might, I cannot physically write anything creative when I have to study Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, and Civil Law - and also studying Statutory Construction. So, I am sorry, but I won't be able to upload anything this week. That said, things will definitely be back to normal next week.
And I'd like to thank you all for your continued support. Because of you guys, I realized that maybe, ...
2024-12-16 01:48:25 +0000 UTC
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The sun dipped low on the horizon, its golden light casting long shadows over the marble expanse of Nikaea’s grand staircase. Magnus the Red descended slowly, his crimson armor catching the waning light and reflecting it in muted glints. His lone eye was sharp, scanning the steps ahead as Ahriman followed closely behind, his hood drawn low. The silence around them felt heavy, a stillness that carried weight.
This might’ve been a beautiful and mysterious world, Magnus mused; its natu...
2024-12-15 13:37:28 +0000 UTC
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What if? #5
Jason’s brow arched as he unrolled the scroll, fingers brushing the rough parchment. Another report from the spectral spy he’d planted in the Red Keep. The faint shimmer of ghostly ink glimmered under the candlelight, a touch colder than he’d expected. Probably more nonsense about Maegor. That madman had declared war on him – on him. The King of the Western Reach. Across the sea. The fool couldn’t even hold his own court together, let alone threaten an empi...
2024-12-15 13:36:23 +0000 UTC
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Argall stood alone on the balcony of his personal quarters, high atop the tallest tower of Hyperborea. The wind swept past him, carrying the faint hum of the sprawling mega-cities below. He rested his hands on the cold railing, his gaze fixed on the expanse before him. Endless spires pierced the sky, their dark forms illuminated by countless lights, a constellation stretched across the surface of the planet. The cities pulsed faintly in the night, alive and breathing, their people sleeping be...
2024-12-15 13:33:35 +0000 UTC
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The streets of Shibuya stretched before Satoru like an intricate tapestry, a perfect blend of old-world charm and the imposing grandeur of the Imperium. Towering spires of stone and plasteel rose above him, their sharp edges softened by the delicate curvature of roofs modeled after traditional Japanese architecture. Every building felt alive, as if whispering secrets of a history stretching millennia, yet fortified with modern precision. Wooden beams, etched with ancient kanji, seamlessly mer...
2024-12-15 13:32:08 +0000 UTC
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I have no idea what’s going on.
The thought passed through Curze’s mind as he leaned back in his throne, hands resting lightly on the cold, intricately carved armrests. His piercing gaze swept the room before settling on the tomes stacked high on the polished stone table before him. Becoming the ruler of this planet had bestowed many privileges, and one among them was access to secrets long buried – the history of a world that had, for reasons still unclear, delibe...
2024-12-15 13:29:52 +0000 UTC
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Part 2 of What if? #2
The court was silent. The weight of fear pressed heavy on the gathered lords and smallfolk alike. Jason Lee sat atop his throne of blackened bone, one hand resting on the armrest, the other idly toying with a pair of dice. Beside him, Ddraig loomed, crimson scales gleaming like molten metal. The dragon’s glowing eyes swept the room, his massive form curled around the makeshift hill, tail flicking lazily.
Otto Hightower shifted on his knees, s...
2024-12-07 09:55:45 +0000 UTC
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Magnus the Red stood at the center of his chamber, his crimson armor gleaming under the light of shimmering psionic constructs floating above. He turned his massive frame toward the approaching figures, his single eye glowing faintly with interest. Ahriman led the way, his expression unreadable as always, but Magnus's focus was on the Astartes behind him. Their armor was dark, unembellished, and yet there was something commanding about the way they moved. Their presence was different – not ...
2024-12-07 09:51:11 +0000 UTC
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Aboard the Red Tear, Sanguinius stood before the flickering holo-display, his wings hanging low, his fingers gripping the edge of the console. His golden eyes, so often a beacon of hope, were sharp and restless. The Conqueror, Angron’s flagship, floated lifeless in the void. Its engines were dead, its lights extinguished, its signal silent. No vox transmissions, no distress calls. Nothing. The massive vessel hung in the void like a tomb.
Sanguinius’s lips pressed into a thin...
2024-12-07 09:47:23 +0000 UTC
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The air aboard the ship was thick with expectation. The kneeling Asuryani remained bowed, their postures rigid, reverent, waiting for Satoru’s response. Lelith Hesperax stood poised like a blade, her crimson hair cascading down her back, her lips curled into a knowing smile. Her Wytches lingered behind her, their silence almost predatory, but even they kept their distance from the figure at the center of the room.
Satoru shifted, sliding his hands into his pockets. His express...
2024-12-07 09:44:26 +0000 UTC
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The sun beat down on the camp as I surveyed the progress we’d made. The shelters stood sturdy, their thick walls casting long shadows over the rocky ground. Clean water flowed from the purification units, filling makeshift cisterns. A steady rhythm of life had started to take root, but I knew it wasn’t enough. Survival wasn’t the end goal. We needed something more – order, discipline, and strength. Without those, this place would crumble the moment I left or fell.
I stoo...
2024-12-07 09:42:15 +0000 UTC
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“I suppose you’ve collected even more data from that little fight?”
[I have. It was interesting. That ability of yours. How does it work?]
“Ah, you’re a super smart super alien; I’m sure you can figure it out on your own. Besides, does it really matter?”
[No. It does not. You upheld your end of the bargain.]
“And now, it’s your turn to honor your end; otherwise, you get to be the first to fin...
2024-11-29 12:30:20 +0000 UTC
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“Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine!” Sukuna’s grin widened, his voice a low growl that rippled across the battlefield. The air around him stilled, as if holding its breath. A faint hum began, low and deep, resonating through the cracked earth and broken sky.
Sukuna stood tall, his four arms spread wide, as crimson and black energy spiraled upward from his feet, twisting and coiling like a living thing. The space around him seemed to frac...
2024-11-29 12:28:32 +0000 UTC
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Rebuilding a castle, or building one from scratch, was the kind of endeavor that normally devoured decades, swallowing whole lifetimes in its construction. It required hundreds, sometimes thousands, of workers, teams of laborers hauling stone and timber, masons carving each block to fit. Mountains of gold vanished into wages, materials, and the endless logistics of feeding and housing everyone involved. Even with careful planning, history was littered with half-finished keeps, abandoned when ...
2024-11-29 12:26:55 +0000 UTC
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Thragg hovered in the void, arms crossed over his chest, the cold silence of space wrapping around him. His cape floated weightlessly behind him, a faint ripple against the nothingness. Stars blinked in the distance, indifferent to the chaos unfolding below. He could hold his breath for nearly a month if he pushed himself, but he still needed to breathe eventually. And for that, he needed a planet.
This one would do.
He tilted his head, brow furrowing as he scanned...
2024-11-29 12:25:19 +0000 UTC
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The Mark of Khaine on Satoru's right hand flared, its brightness swelling with every passing moment. It burned like molten fire, searing ash and embers etched into his skin, though the pain was dull, distant. He stared at it, tilting his head slightly as the glow intensified. There was something in the way it pulsed, rhythmic, insistent, like a second heartbeat. It wasn’t just the light – it was something deeper. A pressure building in his mind, subtle at first, like a whisper he couldn...
2024-11-29 12:24:05 +0000 UTC
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There were close to a hundred mutants in total. It baffled me how they had managed to survive the harsh elements and the predators that roamed the desert sands. Their existence was a precarious one, hidden within the nearby caves. I spent hours observing their way of life before taking action. They scraped by, feeding on sparse moss that clung to the rocks and drinking from small pools of irradiated water that collected in depressions at the tops of their caves. The water shimmered faintl...
2024-11-29 12:22:47 +0000 UTC
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The air around Sukuna shimmered, vibrating as if the fabric of existence itself struggled to remain intact. Idly, Sukuna mused at the fact that... it’d been a very long time since he had to make use of this move. But, in this world, the Simurgh was as good a target as any, which was precisely why he had Queen-Administrator summon it to this city. The ground beneath him splintered, forming jagged cracks that radiated outward like an earthquake. Besides, if the winged one died, there were oth...
2024-11-22 10:32:58 +0000 UTC
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The battlefield cracked beneath them as Sanguinius charged forward, his spear a crimson blur. Sukuna met him head-on, their clash releasing a shockwave that flattened the surrounding terrain. Sukuna’s four arms moved in perfect synchronicity, deflecting the spear’s strikes with his bare palms and redirecting the Angel’s furious blows.
Sanguinius moved faster. His wings beat with the force of a hurricane, propelling him in spiraling arcs. Each swing of his spear lef...
2024-11-22 10:31:58 +0000 UTC
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Halga pressed her palm against the rough bark of the ancient oak, its ridges biting into her skin. She closed her eyes, and the world around her softened, fading into silence. Her breathing slowed, steady and deep, as she focused on the tree's essence, the hum of life running through its ancient veins. It wasn’t like the pulse of a living creature, not quick and rhythmic, but slow, deliberate, like the creak of old wood under pressure.
Her brow furrowed as she delved d...
2024-11-22 10:30:37 +0000 UTC
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Argall stepped onto the bridge of the Conqueror. The air was heavy with the tang of blood and the scent of burning metal. Bodies of World Eaters lay scattered across the deck, the aftermath of his Prometheans’ slaughter. But there, at the center, stood Angron.
The Red Angel loomed, a monstrous figure clad in crimson and brass. His twin chain-axes roared to life, their teeth spinning with a hungry growl. His movements were restless, shifting from one foot to another, mu...
2024-11-22 10:28:58 +0000 UTC
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Satoru glanced down at the battlefield below, hands in his pockets, and tilted his head. Smoke and ash billowed in thick, choking clouds, blotting out the sky. Fires raged across the shattered landscape, consuming what was left of tanks, trenches, and makeshift barricades. In the distance, Cursed Spirits of Tzeentch clawed their way through swarms of Orks and Guardsmen, their warped forms writhing like maggots in an open wound. A massive green-skinned brute swung a rusted axe into the chest o...
2024-11-22 10:27:38 +0000 UTC
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After several hours of contemplation, I came to a simple conclusion: my [Fabrication] ability could not possibly be Tech Heresy. The logic was clear. All the designs, all the wondrous technological marvels stored within my STC, were already sanctioned. An STC was the source of all approved technology for the Imperium. Nothing I created with it could ever be considered heretical because it did not innovate or deviate from the sacred patterns of the Machine God.
I exhaled ...
2024-11-22 10:26:23 +0000 UTC
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What if? #4, As Requested by the Commissioner
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Baelor I Targaryen, the Blessed, paced the length of his chamber, his bare feet whispering across the cold stone floor. His brow furrowed so deeply that it seemed his face might never return to serenity. The Seven's light felt distant, like a flickering candle in a tempest, as his thoughts stormed around him. His hands, still bloodied from striking his personal table, trembled – an act he’d never done before as his wrath had ...
2024-11-17 03:59:55 +0000 UTC
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The PRT officer stood amid the growing tide of bodies surging toward the evacuation zones. The air was thick with panic, a cacophony of shouts and sirens as the city fell apart. He could barely hear himself think as civilians shoved past, desperate to escape Brockton Bay before the Simurgh arrived. Mothers clutched their children to their chests, faces streaked with tears, fathers shouted for family members lost in the sea of people.
Overhead, the wail of the Endbringer sirens b...
2024-11-17 03:56:17 +0000 UTC
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Sukuna raised a brow as Sanguinius descended from above, wings softly beating as he touched down beside him and the Khan. Their spar had just ended. Neither of them had won, but neither had sought victory in the first place. For Sukuna, it had been an introduction, a silent exchange that only warriors understood – a mutual understanding gleaned through the rhythm of strikes and counters, breaths matched in intensity. It reminded Sukuna of the rituals of his Heian Era, where powerful sorcere...
2024-11-17 03:51:19 +0000 UTC
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