《Begin the End》10- The Voice That Calls Our End
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Hands trembling, I stepped back. Shovel trained on Avis. The dark of the night made it hard to see. "You don't have to do this. Listen to reason," I called.
She stayed blank faced, fists tight. Quiet as a shadow moved in from behind me.
I turned, swinging the shovel. A shadow jumping back, a scar across his brow. Carrick. He cleared his throat, "A hypocritical request, Alexander, when reason is not your preferred guide."
I didn't need this. I shook the shovel at Avis. "He's lying, it's him. Omen's his fault."
She laughed, "Of course it is. Carrick is not a very convincing liar."
"Gregori believed it," he growled.
Avis raised her chin. "Gregori will believe anything convenient."
"Why then are you here?" I darted my eyes between them.
Red eyes intensified. "I'm not here because of Omen. I'm here because of what you're doing now."
"We both are." Carrick stepped forward.
I shrunk back. I needed to get out of here. "I don't know what you're talking about?"
Avis narrowed her eyes. "Why don't you let Gloria speak? She can tell us."
"I was enjoying listening to you." Gloria's words slipped out, a grin stuck on my face. "Why don't you tell us how this is going to end, prophetess?"
"I thought you were going to ask from now on," I bit back, panic rising in my chest.
Gloria held on. "You should let me handle this," her words stuck in my head.
Avis raised her chin."Not in your favor."
Gloria laughed aloud, "Mhm, and how clear is your foresight in the dark?"
Avis stepped back, eyes wide. "How-"
"I'm sure you have a good idea of what your next steps will be, but determining Alex and Carrick will involve some guessing." Gloria smirked, shifting my feet.
"I'm a good guesser," Avis said, tightening her stance.
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"Yes but what about things you're completely blind to? I am not in the timeline, I am absent from prophecy. Every vision you see is incomplete."
"At the tavern...I didn't see Alex coming because of you." Avis whispered, hands trembling.
Gloria nodded. "It was something I couldn't resist exploiting."
Avis snarled. "This is wicked, evil-"
"Tell that to the mastermind." Gloria pointed at Carrick.
All eyes on him, he raised his hands. "Now listen, do you think I knew what would happen? Foresight's your job, Avis."
I cleared my throat, taking back my mouth. "We don't want any trouble...Gloria and I are trying to fix things."
Avis twisted her face in horror. "Fix things? Is that what you think?"
"Shut up," Gloria's hiss slipped out.
"What is she talking about?" I asked, frozen in place.
"She doesn't understand," her voice rang through my thoughts, shivers running down my arms.
Avis paced, glaring. "Honestly how could you not know? Look what you're doing.That song..." Avis grimaced.
"I don't-" my mind stopped, lyrics dancing through my head. Chaotic, jumbled, filtered through memory. So much about endings. One phrase stuck out, haunting me. Come that day when mortals die. I shook my head. "Gloria, you can't mean to…."
"The world is too far gone for redemption."
"No…" My horror slipped out, stolen but a sudden rush of ice. My voice choked out, I couldn't breathe, limbs seizing, I couldn't move. "Stop, what are you doing!"
"What I must, Alex," her whisper peppered with guilt. "I do truly love you."
"Gloria…" My vision blurred, coming in and out. My focus faded, fighting to stay present. I couldn't let Gloria do this.
Avis drew back. Dagger poised, certainty on her brow. "I'm warning you now, I'm prepared for this fight."
Gloria grinned. "Yes and I'm excited to test out these vocal cords." She turned back. "What do you think, Carrick? You've been pretty quiet. Ever thought much about dying?"
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Carrick pulled out a sword. His posture, shaky, uncertain. "I don't want to hurt you, Gloria," he growled.
"That's not what you should be worrying about." She said, humming a starting note.
"They'll be ready for that," I warned, cutting through the confusion.
Gloria's smile unwavered. "Optimism, Alex."
Avis charged, a swipe of her dagger. Gloria ducked around her strikes, swinging the shovel back. The movement messing with my head, my stomach churned.
Gloria sang, spinning together something of a song. The tune, the same doomsday ballad from earlier. Air growing stiffer, Avis flinched, ducking back.
Carrick slashed after us with his blade. My vision choppy, Carrick's ugly face sneered at me. A desperate strike, his stance weak. Gloria whacked him with the shovel, his body crumpling to the floor. Avis came back with a swift kick, knocking me in the dirt.
Pain ripping through me, Gloria lifted us out of the dirt. Starting her song again, it built up with more power.
My assailants tensed, the song pulling at their will. I could feel the power building, wrapping around into a melody. Each note malleable, ready to bring the world along. Strange to be outside that power.
Carrick shifted, falling in line with the song. His sword sliced after Avis.
"Carrick!" Avis screamed, scattering away. "You're letting her control you!"
My laugh came out so gleeful. Gloria's laugh. My stomach knotted. She raised my arms triumphantly. "This power is incredible! I feel like I could overcome anything, be anything. There's nothing like this."
"It only feels that way," I warned, being shoved back.
Avis was iron, eyebrows locked down. She stood strong against the pull. Dodging Carrick's attacks, she turned back, kicking the sword from his grasp. He lunged, taken down by a jab to his throat.
"You will not win this fight," Avis roared, blade still in hand. She pointed at me."I will kill you."
Gloria smirked, changing the tempo of her song. The rhythm quick, moving up a scale. Notes higher than I thought my voice could go. Avis shut her eyes, arms seizing up. She dropped her dagger.
Her face twisted up in horror, eyes pleading, asking for mercy. She fell to her knees, head hung in defeat. No… My hands wrapped around the shovel, feet walking closer. I couldn't watch this. "Gloria, no!" I shouted, "You can't do this!"
She didn't slow, raising the shovel back. "I have to."
"No you don't." I reached back for control. My soul twisting, fighting against Gloria's. I couldn't fail. My hands shook, movement stalled. Gloria clawed at my consciousness. My hold was steady.
I took her voice.
My lips moved without sound, the power disintegrating. Avis blinked, sweat dripping down her forehead. Silence still in the air Carrick groaned, over rolling in the dirt. I did it, I won, I took back control.
"What do you think you're doing, Alex?" Gloria's voice, calm, quiet. Fear creeped back in, my hold slipping. I couldn't form words, my mind screaming back in confusion. She dug her fingers back in. I didn't want to go back. I couldn't go back.
Avis stood up. I didn't see the blade, a sharp slice in my side. Red stained my shirt, the bloch growing. My fingers grazed the wound, eyes stinging. Why? My vision blurred, spiralling as I fell into the depths of my mind. Lost in the recesses, awareness disappeared. There was no sun, not in the sky and not in my mind. All was dark.
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8 118Reborn as a Legend
Credits to Mary Evans for the Cover! Alfrich Deus was an overworking salaryman who had no purpose in life. The life he had was an empty, pointless cycle of work, sleep and eating. A man who drudged through a dull life, regretting the friends and family he never made. Alfrich's life suddenly ends when he was killed ‘accidentally’ by a clumsy God, who on realising what she had done, felt ‘remorse’ and granted him a second life. Or so he thought. Alfrich didn’t know that he was killed on purpose in desperation, he didn’t know he was forced conscript to fight off the hordes of Nightmares. Reborn into another world, Ezekill sets out into the world to live properly this time. Without knowing his true fate until the truth was shoved on his face. Armed with modern knowledge fighting against all odds the world threw at him. This story takes you on an adventure filled with tales of wonder, including enchanted swords, merciless monsters and hard magic. Updates every 10 days.
8 80Numbers Continually Going Upward
The world has very politely ended in the most webfiction way possible. Everyone is now leveling up in various things. Problems are arising. Some or all of those problems may be based around how to have a community barbeque when the nearest cow has been teleported to a few thousand miles away, along with the nearest supermarket. Join our protagoinst as he attempts to be a cool person, while everything falls apart. _____It turns out that any attempt to write a parody of the litrpg genre through overuse of the concept of leveling up inevitably fails when it turns out that *that is what the genre is based on*. Still, this was a fun little candy project of mine, and I might write more of it.
8 225Ascension [Progressive Fantasy, GameLit Fantasy]
The end of the world was as sudden as it was unexpected. Marcus was one of billions to witness the Integration of Earth into the Endless Realms. In a world where suddenly, any random person can throw around fireballs and pick up boulders one-handedly, Marcus must do all he can to stay alive, and more importantly, thrive. Good thing the end of the world came with a User Interface.
8 284Myth of Madara Uchiha the True Legend : The Greatest Teacher Of All Time
After Madara died , he awoke in another world with powerful body and soul . He is now more powerful than ever , he is more dangerous than ever. In this world where Hidden Masters , Saints , Sages , Ancients , Overlords and Powerful Beings hides , lives and roams , Madara will learn something new . Instead of seeking peace , he will only seek greater power . But sadly , while in his journey in search for greater powers , he met lots of masters whom he became indebted , so now he has task of teaching some few brats !! Disciple 1 " master , teach me swordsmanship. I want to learn sword techniques " Madara " good , good . Do you want to become a Sword Deity ? " Disciple 1 " no master , it's just that yesterday in my neighbourhood , an uncle got beaten by his wife very badly " Madara " what has it got to do with swordsmanship ?" Disciple 1 " his wife was a swordswoman so if I ever married a girl than i need to prepare myself . You know right what i am talking about ?" Madara " .....what if you married an Alchemist in the future ?" Disciple 1 " haha... If I marry an Alchemist than be it , I will just think that I didn't learn swordsmanship but just did some exercise with a madman . Haha..... " Madara "........." Disciple 2 " master please teach me how to fly " Madara " but why ? If you breakthrough in Nascent Spirit Realm , you will naturally achieve ability to fly " Disciple 2 " no master , you don't understand anything. By learning how to fly before achieving Nascent Spirit Realm , I can train myself on how to peek a girls bathing in outdoor " Madara "*...*" *** While standing on a Heavenly Peak , Madara , after so many years latter was questioning life . "One was a mental yet he ascend to be Sword Immortal , one was a pervert yet he ascend to be Aerial Immortal , one was a spoiled princess yet she ascend to be Sun Immortal , one was a gloomy kid yet he ascend to be Dark Immortal " With a deadpan expression , Madara murmured " Sword Immortal , Aerial Immortal , Sun Immortal , Dark Immortal , Immortal Annihilator , Divine Immortal , Immortal Emperor !!" " fuck the six sense and existing logics !!" "Wasn't Immortal Realm suppose to be only legend , a myth !!" "Wasn't this Realm only achievable by Immortal Geniuses , Luck , Fortune and efforts ?" "So why the fuck are all my students a fucking Immortals ?" That day , Madara's belief on legends died. "There is nothing such as legend , only bedtime story with nonsense " Madara , the one who is Legend and known as Legend Creator by everyone in the world. Some calls him Wise Sage , while some calls him Immortal Master. He is the one and only an existence who has trained fucking Immortals. But when someone ask him on how he manage to train not one , not two but lots of Immortals , his answers would always be the same. "First I met him / her , we took a random stroll but somehow were always rewarded with fucking overpower threats that nearly took our lives . But without no reason , my disciples would always ' luckily ' meet ' fateful 'encounter which would ' logically ' soar their Cultivation and just like that " And the reply he would meet every time was also the same. "If you don't want to tell us than say it . What nonsense are you cooking "
8 213Ezrabine/Sabezra vol1
this is a fanfiction short-story and i hope to publish more as the ideas pop into my head
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