《New Legends: A New Chapter in an Old Book》Chapter 17: Burdens [The Blood]
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Kain had returned to bed and was laying with his face sunk deep into a pillow. His conversation with Maleek, while quite informational, brought progressly worse news. First came confirmation that he had actually been unconscious for a week. He had originally thought he was only knocked out for a day, losing consciousness in the middle of the night and waking up the following evening. That fact that his powers left him incapacitated for so long made him quite a bit more than worried. Fortunately, Maleek’s offer to train him softened that blow. While Kaige, the name they settled on for the voice in his head, supposedly knew how to use sahir already, all he could do in regards to Kain was expel and absorb sahir. He couldn’t make Kain make use of it in any way. The fact that absorbing sahir into the body was possible peeked Kain’s interest, as far as the world knew no flesh organism absorbed sahir. He couldn’t delve deeper into the topic though, he had more pressing concerns.
While he had been unconscious for a week, a cult dedicated to him had popped up. Maleek thought the word ‘cult’ was a bit of an exaggeration, but to Kain it was a very fitting description. A group of people who mindlessly revered a person to the point that they harassed others in hopes of merely meeting him was nothing short of a cult. Kain was not religious by any sense and even deeper than that he didn’t believe in idolizing, be it a person, thing, or concept. He was instead a devout believer in taking things into your own hands, not hoping that someone or something else would handle it for you. To him reverence was, in whatever form, both unpracticed and unwanted. Alas, the world didn’t think like him and he had neither the means. the desire, nor the time to change that. The only reason he couldn't simply shrug off the ‘cult’s’ existence was the fact that, based on his appearance, they had some grounds.
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His pupils were missing. At least they appeared to be, replaced by a faint red glow seemingly coming from behind his eyeball. The glow outlined his completely white eyes, with red. It was an unsettling sight, even more so when you considered what was on Kain’s head. He had been somewhat bemused when Maleek questioned whether his eyes had always been ‘that’ way, but he was truly lost when Maleek started describing what he meant. Practically running to the mirror, he was stunned by what he saw. White hair and white eyes, it was a combination that didn’t exist. Either of the two were anomalies in their own right, having both almost assuredly proved what the ‘cult’ believed about him to be true. He definitely couldn’t be a regular person. Even someone deemed as ‘special’ would be hard pressed to have anything as remotely unique about them. That was not even taking into account the other abnormalities that Kain kept extremely well hidden.
I was content you know...life wasn’t great, but it was good. I had a warm home, a bright future...
Mmhm.
...I’d have been a fensir any week now. Mom could stop working, maybe find a new husband…
True.
...We could’ve moved to a better house, maybe even start a proper business of our own. It was good. Everything was good. But no, god must have thought I was having it too good and this is his way of fucking with me…
Yeah.
...There’s no way I can live a normal life after this. I can use Sahirlah for fuck’s sake. No one can do that…
Mmhm.
...Hell. Even if I could successfully hide that, white hair and white eyes? How the fuck am I supposed to hide those? The hair sure, but unless I go blind there’s no way I can hide the fact I have no pupils.
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True.
Kain lifted himself off the pillow and turned around. Staring at the ceiling, he sighed.
I should have known. It was obvious…
Yeah.
...I’ve never been normal. Ever since I—.
A knock came at the door. It was probably Glacia coming to tell him the bathroom was ready. Kain and Maleek’s conversation had only recently ended. After Kain saw himself in the mirror, he was at a loss for words. Maleek correctly surmised that his eyes looking the way they did was a recent development. Seeing that Kain appeared more shocked than he was, he proposed Kain take a bath to freshen up and clear his mind. They could brainstorm causes and solutions after.
Kain easily agreed. Imurian baths were more or less hot tubs, it was the perfect place to relax. Unfortunately, to enjoy that experience the tub had to be filled with water then heated. The few minutes it took to do that gave Kain thinking time. He spent it well.
“Come in.”
The door opened, but to Kain’s surprise the woman that entered was not Glacia. The armor she wore was the same style as Glacia’s, but her’s was darker. There were also two medals on her chest.
The woman bowed, “Good evening Mr. Basileus. My name is Christel Livius, an arberdir serving under Sir and Madam Fortem. I was sent to inform you that the bath has been prepared. I ask that you make haste, Madam Fortem would like to speak with you after you have refreshed yourself.”
If it weren’t for the armor, Kain would have thought the woman was a pure maid. Kain had assumed the arberdirs in the Fortem household were more bodyguards than they were housemaids, but apparently Glacia was the exception and not the rule.
Or not. This woman could be—wait. Madam?
Kain sat up, “Excuse me, did you say madam?”
The woman nodded, “Yes.”
Why do I have a bad feeling about that.
Because you always have a bad feeling.
Ouh. More than one syllable?
First of all, ‘Mmhm’ is two syllables. Second, did you actually expect me to listen to you complain about being special?
It's not about being special, it’s...You know what? Forget it.
Realizing he had left the arberdir hanging, he quickly voiced his thanks and affirmed he’d head to the bathroom immediately. The woman bowed again and left, closing the door behind her. Kain slowly slid off of the bed and into his slippers, he was growing fond of the smooth silky feel inside of them. He head for the door. A change of clothes had already been brought over. They hung on a short, metal bar drilled into the wall by the door. Kain picked them up and stretched his free hand to twist the doorknob. Opening the door, he paused. Glacia was standing guard outside. While the fact she was doing so wasn’t particularly strange, it was her job after all, it made him think. She had no doubt been standing there well before he opened the door, yet he never knew. Something wasn’t adding up and it had the cogs in his brain turning.
Kaige. How did you know she was coming to the room before?
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Messummer (Capstone Writing Assignment)
|3X Wattpad FEATURED| Messummer's life changes when a futuristic boy stumbles into her ancient world. She must now help him front to his own time before his love for dinosaurs traps him forever. *** Ever since her father's death, Messummer has wanted nothing more than to prove she can survive in her fragile world. She decides to enter her valley's Great Flying Race as a rite of passage. It's a race only the bravest flyers attend. While Messummer is preparing for it one day, she meets a creature she has never seen before. His name is Daniel Matton. He stumbles into her world after a malfunction with something called a "time machine". Fascinated by this new species, Messummer kidnaps him (not that Dan has much of a choice) and takes him on a journey like none other. Of course, that's only after Dan concludes she's not going to eat him. Just when it seems like the two friends' connection is growing, disaster strikes. What starts off as a bonding experience is now a fight for survival. Will Messummer and Dan escape the horrendous Tyrannosaurus Rex, or will the 11.0-magnitude earthquake swallow them before he can even try to kill them? Will Messummer find the courage to tell Dan who she truly is? Will Dan ever return front to his own time? Above all, is their friendship going to survive the calamity? *** *Cover by @AnecdoteofAstrina on Wattpad!* Word Count: 7,000 🥉 3rd place in the April Awards' Short Story Category.⭐ Featured on @Speculative Fiction || Breaking the Space-Time Continuum Reading List.⭐ Added to @Speculative Fiction || Featured Speculative Fiction Stories Reading List.⭐ Featured by @Ooorah in their Tevun-Krus #100 || Dino Punk section.
8 162Devouring - Progenitor of Evolution
// NOT ON HIATUS, just no time right now to write more... Sadly... //His mother killed in prostitution and by drugs, his father stabbed to death in a robbery by ordinary street thugs, he himself lived on the streets at the age of 18, surviving instead of living.A heroic drive, however, snatched him out of this miserable life, and he thought it was finally over, until he learned from an odd character that this was not his first "unlucky" life in succession, and that he would be eligible for a special program for his reincarnation.Without much to lose, and not much that could go worse in the next life, he landed in a new world... As a mole. His oh so great ability, which he had been promised?Absorption of biological and magical properties of EVERYTHING he devoured! And so began his journey as a mole! Emotions? Missing brain strands to feel anything of that nature. Joy? All the more! Finally eating, no matter what... Starving is no more! The progenitor of devouring was let loose on the world, and who knows where his journey will lead him... This story will appear irregularly, and first of all on Patreon. I'm mainly writing the story "Healing Dungeon" myself, and every now and then another chapter of Devouring to clear my head ;)
8 122Ninth World: Prima Natus Vampire
What happens when you are the first of your species? What happens when said species is the product of the love birthed from a demon and a human? Two species that have been at each other's throats for millennia. Lilith Cunningham is the first of her kind, a cheerful girl with loving parents. However, because of her roots life has been harsh on her family, and it will only get harsher. What will the future bring her way? The art belongs to Marco Silvart here is their page https://www.artstation.com/marcosilvartI did a slight edit to the eye colour.
8 94Focus
Life can't get much worse for Michael. His bully Tucker is as relentless as ever, Papaw's behind on rent, and he's likely going to fail Sophomore year for the second time. Once the fleeting suicidal thoughts start building into plans, it'll take more than Meemaw to talk him down. --- Constructive criticism is encouraged and appreciated.
8 110Children of the Singularity (S4)
Even the end of the world had its beginnings. Most reminisce over comforts that seemed so common yesterday even though yesterday was so far away. A select few reminisced over the original pocket that now enveloped the world. It began with the Chernobyl disaster releasing an otherworldly being preying on humanity's very soul. It grew stronger with every scream, it’s corruption instilling absolute bedlam and madness. With the required elements all being present in that fateful year of 2012 the predator found it’s escape in those who became known as the Children of the Singularity. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Artwork by AlexAlexandrov (deviantart)Metro 2033. (2011). [image] Online at: https://alexalexandrov.deviantart.com/art/Metro-2033-264522763 [Accessed 2 Jan. 2018].
8 190The Tragedy of the Hanged King
Ameni is the child of a wealthy merchant, with a bright future ahead of him, however when an eldritch monstrosity named 'The Hanged King', which claims to be the 'God of Misfortune and Madness' forces itself into him, he is banished from his family, is exiled from the city-state that he called home, is deported to a work colony in a far-off land. Having lost both his future and his family, he is on the precipice of suicide, however realizes that doing so would only validate those who have wronged him, he decides that he is going to build the best life possible in this strange new world, even if it is only out of spite. This is my first work of fiction, so expect things like grammar errors and inconsistent chapter lengths Set in a 1700s version of a 'Fallen London'-esque America with magic, expect steampunk, and wild west elements with a focus on world building and dark ambiance
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