《For Grass and Glory》Chapter 15
Advertisement
"Thou shall not cheat", it was the starting phrase of a magnificent piece of corporate hide and seek. For the last thirty minutes, I had been struggling with the hardcover book. It sat attached to the fence with a very rusty chain and had appeared after filling out the final form. It was a grant piece of trying to stay blame free as they tinkered with your brain to their heart's content. Not that I cared too much. I would sell my hemorrhoid free butthole to a vindictive feminist with a ridiculously long strap-on, to reunite with the soft cheeks of nature's most wondrous creation.
That nobody bothered reading them anymore didn't help my attention span either. The government had made this beautiful law for terms and conditions free working environments. The only reason I was battling my way through it was that I didn't put too much trust in large bodies of power hungry people. Meaning I didn't want to be in a high stakes power struggle about my freedom to choose what I did sixteen hours a day.
I had the days of corporate enslavement fresh in mind, and it now motivated me to read the boring pages word for word.
The minutes crawled passed and on more than one occasion I could hear Little human ask me if I was all right. About halfway through my torment, a basket had a appeared on the shit gate. The words "Yes I accept" written on it. When I finished and put the book into the basket, the world seemed to halt. A moment seemed to pass before the eyesore faded out of sight and a plain of the most wonderful green remained.
It was gorgeous. Livid green, waving in the cool breeze that blew past me from behind, lifting my coat. The fresh smell of spring rain combined with fresh mowed blades of dew covered grass. It made me hold my breath for a second. I fell to my knees, my hands touching the wet grass with a reverence that could compare to any religion. A small choke grabbed me by the throat as my emotion got the better of me.
Advertisement
I understood. Enlightenment struck me.
Digitization was real. The feeling, the smell, the wetness on my skin, the slight sucking sound of the mud embracing my kneecaps. As if embracing a long-lost lover.
Then,realization came and I sat with my hands in the grass, dumbfounded. I had spent two weeks tormenting myself over the loss of said long-lost lover for nothing.
As I sat there on my hands and knees, controlling my emotions by the barest thread, it turned. It was faint at first, a small patch about ten meters to my left losing some of its luster. A patch right in front of me losing some of its density. Had it not been my sole companion for most of my life I would have missed the signs of decay.
"No..," I whispered as I crawled to a spot that was browning bit by bit. I took two handfuls of its blades into my hands and tried to make it stop. It didn't. The blades turned brown, lacking any sign of its joyous luster it showed but ten seconds ago.
I kept staring not comprehending what was happening. A tear went unnoticed as it made its descent into my bearded cheeks. I tried to find the courage to look around me. I let loose of the blades of grass as they fell from my fingers and into their still attached counterparts. In my desperation, I had torn out so much beauty that my heart ached at my foolishness.
"You old fool..," I whispered as my head lifted in a sluggish motion. Looking around at the brown sea of blades that held so little comparison to the green lavish sea of love I bathed in.
"What monster would do such a thing…" I tried to scream but only a whimper left my choked up throat.
Advertisement
It was at this moment a yellow piece of paper floated into the space between my face and my sickly pale lover. On it were simple words written in black fountain pen, "Through effort, anything can be made whole again, even thyself." I grabbed the piece of paper with my wet and muddied fist, crumbling it into a ball as rage made it passed the sadness threatening to drown me.
"Motherfuckers want to play a game huh? I will wreck your fucking game you useless piece of crap simulator." I stood up and for the first time took in something else then my beloved grass that lay trampled beneath my feet.
The field was a perfect square of about five hundred by five hundred meters. I couldn't be sure but it looked like twenty-five football fields could fit into the square. Which would mean an approximate of around five hundred meters in both directions. I had lived my life on these fields, I was certain I was not far off.
I stood in the middle, three sides of the plain of brown grass were boxed in by a dense pine forest that looked ready for some advanced chopping. A good start for my revenge plot. The cornering river in the south was a nice contrast to the wall of trees even if I had yet to think of a use for the body of water. But I had time. If there was one thing us seniors had, it was time on our hands.
I looked again at my best friend who lay in the mud like it was ready to breathe its last breath. It wasn't real, but that didn't mean anything to me. This was as close to real I would ever come again.
Not even noticing the absence of straining muscles and complaining joints, I went through my knees and took a single blade of grass into my hand. "I will get you back to that beautiful self you once were, I promise." I whispered to it.
And with that, I got up walked towards the only building in the brown sea. A small wooden shed that looked ready to give up on life. It was time to get to work.
Advertisement
- In Serial175 Chapters
Kernstalion
One release per week [Hiatus in November due to NaNoWriMo] [Changed the Summary based on reader feedback. Thanks guys!] When Mitchel gets a birthday gift from his girlfriend Sandra - a pre-order version of the newest VR game, he is thrilled. Real-life graphics, full-body senses, and a mysterious world that nobody knows anything about seem like a great way to escape real-life for a few months or longer. Two days later, his dreams of a pleasant pastime are shattered. After meeting a rude welcome-NPC, getting a weak starting body, and having a near-death experience, he finds himself sleeping on the ground, cold and filthy. Unable to log-out, he now has frightening dreams where the tutorial-AI is walking around in his body plotting Earth's conquest. If that isn't enough, he slowly realizes that the game might not actually be a game but that he could very well be in another world. Can Mitchel find out what is going on and where Sandra is? Can he regain his own body, and would he still want to when all is said and done? [The Story] What this story is: A LitRPG, portal-like, slow-moving story with a protagonist who has to balance crafting and 'magic' to survive. The books have a pre-thought-out plot and finish. Also, the world is harsh, and things don't always go the MC's way. What it is not: A drama, romance, grimdark, although these elements might appear. I've had some feedback that the intro seems to set up a very rough life for the MC. There is a reason for this, and I hope you give it a try beyond the first few chapters. Do note, this is not an unreasonably harsh novel.
8 205 - In Serial18 Chapters
The fire within
When Rey meets Darth Maul in the forest of an unknown planet, she is brave enough to engage with him in a lightsaber fight. However, when he overpowers her, to his surprise, he finds something interesting enough to spare her life. Bringing the unconscious Rey into his ship, he doesn't realize, how much his life will change, as they heading into the unknown future together.
8 192 - In Serial10 Chapters
Searching for Valor Among the Stars
Original and three dimensional characters set in the Starfinder adventure universe embarking on original journeys. Heavliy inspired by the Starfinder roleplaying game, no characters or adventures are taken directly from the series or any copyright owners except for items, some factions, races, classes, and skills. Planned updates roughly every three days. Vahl, a large vesk with unimaginable strength and speed, stuck on a rotten world of crime and pirates. Discovering more about himself and making life long companions and friends to adventure across the stars with, stopping and destroying powerful crime lords and cult leaders they come across while adventuring into ancient alien ruins and discovering ancient civilizations Mysterious cults and powerful crime lords, mystics that tap into unnatural powers and worshipers of black holes who tap into the power of the suns, soldiers in large suits of powered armor, mechanics and technomancers using and controlling technology. The universe is a large place full of powerful people, technnology, and magics for anybody to explore and claim treasures from. A story of self-discovery and companionship, adventure and action, riches and misfortunes. Current cover is an example of a vesk, taken from the Pathfinder Core Rulebook. Drawn cover art for the series would be greatly appreciated.
8 150 - In Serial27 Chapters
Star Wars (Redone) - The Phantom Menace
Obi-Wan Kenobi has just turned 16 years old and this anniversary marks his appointment as a padawan of the highly respected Jedi Order. He is now under the care of Qui-Gon Jinn, a supervisor, who will become his only family for the three years of his field assessment. If the young man is able to demonstrate his worth, he can expect to become a Jedi himself, a mystical knight who uses the divine « Force », the stream of consciousness that connects all life in the universe. Their purpose? To protect peace and justice in the Galactic Republic. However, his first mission will bring him before a situation that no padawan should face: genocide. A complete rewriting of « Star Wars: The Phantom Menace », which keeps the storyline of the original movie while hardening its atmosphere.26/70, NOVEL. HIATUS.
8 189 - In Serial8 Chapters
Melancholy of the 31st Demon King
The Journal of Ignatius, 31st Demon King, uncovered in the ruins of the Kingdom of Damonica. (Mature tag added for violence and violent acts in later sections)
8 66 - In Serial110 Chapters
To The Far Shore
Post apocalyptic Oregon Trail. The apocalypse has come and gone. And come back again, and left again... nobody really knows how often. Nothing lasts forever, but nothing is ever completely gone. Which is a shame for young Mazelton, as his family has been around a terribly long time, and made an astonishing amount of enemies. Millenia's worth. So he has to run- from mobs, cannibals, soldiers, sailors, cholera, cattle, thieving sales-monks, starvation, mechanical horrors, vengeful spirits, negotiating your own marriage, and poison of every sort. Fortunately, his not terribly nice family has trained him well in the arts of core polishing. Or as you and I might know it- turning radioactive pellets into useful tools. And weapons. Updates Monday-Wednesday-Friday. Usual defensive tags applied. The goal isn't exactly family friendly, but you have probably seen worse on network TV. After the watershed. Not full blown HBO, let's say. This is the first novel I am sharing publicly, so feedback is very much appreciated and encouraged. Act 1 of the novel is completed, but do please let me know what works, what doesn't, and what you would like to see more of. Thank you, and Enjoy!
8 260

