《Legend Land: Tale of the Nameless God》Chapter 9.2: Luz Oscura
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"Keep that close," I warn. Ghelly turns to me, tucking the sheathed sword he bought closer to his side. "It's a nice piece. People will, ironically, kill for a great weapon."
"I know," Ghelly retorts. He rubs his thumb over the leather wrapped handle, "I'm not an idiot."
"I never said—it doesn't matter," I shake my head. In one day, the little brat got a weapon that could cleave my cheap ass kusarigama in two. And Khalil showing up? I don't need any bad news.
"Honey, I'm hoooome!" I call out when I enter the Burnt Rice Tavern.
"No!" What did I just say about bad news? I turn to Naiomi. Her glare alternates from me to Ghelly; this kid is holding up under Naiomi's icy stare remarkably well. I knew he was a keeper.
"Naiomi—"
"I said no, Namonai. I'm not taking in strays. You brought me an inventor and a warrior, fine. But," She motions for me to get out of the doorway while a few early patrons trickle in. "I'm not taking in helpless strays who can't contribute." Ghelly bristles beside me, but I put a hand on his shoulder.
"You're right, Naiomi," I say, holding up a hand in placation. Ghelly opens his mouth but I continue before his tongue makes us holier than a priest on Sabbath from Naiomi's arrows. "Sorry." Naiomi nods and turns to her patrons with a customary greeting: stonewalled silence and a tilt of the head toward the bar.
"So, that's it?" Ghelly hisses. "You promised me a bed and a hot meal."
"Don't worry," I whisper. I fight down my irritation; this kid really pushes my buttons. Who does he think he is anyway? No, Namonai, come on. You're turning over a new leaf here. Heroes don't murder children. No matter how annoying they may be. I look Ghelly in the eye. "I've got a plan."
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I step out of the shower, shaking dark hair out of my eyes. The noise of the street filters in from the open window as I turn to the small mirror on the rickety wooden table. Thankfully, it's fogged over, but I don't need it. I know the ritual by memory.
I rub the handcrafted balm over my skin. It took me forever to get this stuff, and let me tell you, manticores do not play fair. Deadened fingertips go over every ridge and imperfection on my skin. I barely feel it, but I know it's cold.
Next comes the paste, carefully mixed to get close to my skin color. I rub it on top of the balm, the two products mixing together on top of the burns and scars. When coupled with clothes, bandages, and a mask, I look downright normal. Well, normal for Malor.
I hold my breath, pausing halfway through putting on my shirt. Someone's here. I whirl quickly, bandages tight on my face, and sling a small razor at the open street window. I rush forward and grab the intruder. They quickly wriggle like an eel and slip out of my grasp. I duck back to avoid a swipe of their claws. Claws?
"Wikolia?" I ask to the darkness.
"Who else?" That little...
"Why in the seven hells are you here?" I question. I pull my shirt on and stumble around her, lighting a lamp by my bedside. She stands close to the doorway, arms stiff by her side. She remains silent and I slip my mask on. "Hoping to catch me in the shower?"
"Please," The Wyvern says, her nostrils flaring slightly.
"Is that you begging?" I say with a grin. She turns, walking towards the window. "Wait!" I hop in her direction with one boot on. "You never answered my question." Wikolia stops halfway through climbing out the small window. How did she even fit through there?
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"Why did you do it?" She asks softly. I sigh, slipping my second boot on.
"Kamapua'a?" I take her silence as confirmation. "It's very difficult to kill Immortals. Even the weakest of them can't properly die. The strong simply heal from the most grievous of wounds. Others, like Kamapua'a, will regenerate their bodies and return, well-rested." Wikolia flicks out her tongue and turns to me, her hands clasped together.
"But why?" She asks taking a step forward. I finish lacing my boots and stand.
"He wanted to die," I reply, shrugging on a brown leather coat, "someone had to do it. Now," I turn to her and cross my arms, "why are you here?" The Wyvern shifts her weight from foot to foot, grasping her hands together tightly.
"I just arrived in the city. I did that job for money," She says quietly. "I didn't have anything to use for food."
"Answer the question, Miss Wyvern," I say. I need to speed this along if I want to keep my promise to Ghelly. She mutters, and I tilt my head in her direction. "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."
"I said that I don't have anywhere else to go." Wikolia seems to shrink in on herself as she speaks. What kind of joke is this? I decide to be nice to one kid, and now everyone needs my help? Just my luck. I shake my head, putting my hands on my hips. Fine. Fine. I'll do it. Don't say I never did anything for anyone.
"Take the bed," I say, pointing to my thin mattress, "I'm going out, so make sure to close the window and lock the door. And for the record," I turn to her, but she's already curled up on my mattress, snoring. She must have been going non-stop since she arrived in Malor. The mattress creaks under my weight when I sit. I take her whips and put them in her arms. She hugs them tight to her body, her tail wrapping around her waist. "For the record, I heard you the first time." I whisper, patting her scaly body. I'm sure this isn't the last time I'll have a woman in my bed who wants to kill me. Then again, maybe, just maybe, the Wyvern doesn't want me dead. That'd be nice.
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My Dear Alice - A Dark Awakening
He’ll cross a lethal land to bring her back home. But is she willing to be found? Appalachian Wasteland, 2072. Jamie Henderson wants to forget all about his ex-girlfriend Alice. Except this nonviolent fixer has been hired to find her after she went missing in the ongoing AI-controlled war. But his quest through the hostile post-apocalyptic terrain turns deadly when a roadside raider attack sees him captured by a terrifying matriarchal clan. Stranded in dangerous territory, Jamie’s jaw drops when he discovers his ex among their numbers. But with her personality split and scattered, his own survival will depend on reaching through her fragmented mind… Can this pacifist hunter make the truth known before he’s sentenced to death? My Dear Alice is a fast-paced companion story that bridges Seasons 1 and 2 of the gripping Cyber Overture dystopian series. If you like complex character studies, gritty worlds, and shocking twists, then you’ll love D. B. Goodin’s outlander opus. Note: This should be read after Sonorous. This story has been published, but I'm adding it here for Royal Road readers to enjoy.
8 149Circumventing Fate
When Lei Xing booked a luxurious cruise as a graduation present to herself, she expected to have plenty of well-deserved rest and relaxation with an ocean view before jumpstarting her career. What she did not expect was to be the unlucky person who would fall overboard to a miserable watery death… or so she thought. To her astonishment, she opened her eyes to find herself in an ancient setting, a different body, and a new life as the eldest daughter of a high court official. {...Okay, at least I'm rich...I can still live happily and freely, it's still a golden opportunity at a second life. I can live it well~...maybe go travelling, start a business, or something…It definitely could be worse...} To Lei Xing’s horror, her new host was scheduled to enter the palace to compete in the concubine selection for the new Emperor. {...What?! I am definitely not interested! Of all places, it’s that viper pit! I’m not built for any Royal BS or harem fights. Please keep your scheming lives to yourselves and leave me the hell out of it, NOT INTERESTED!!!... Can I not go, please? T_T)...No? Nevermind then, failure is always an option... Failure is the only possible outcome. Bring it on! Hahahaha…} While Lei Xing was making plans on how to skip out of town, fate was also very busy working out its own plans for her, mapping out its own course for her life behind the scenes... Poking holes in her plans to her confusion and outrage. "...Little chicken, as long as I'm alive you won't die." "Nonsense, if anyone is going to cause my death, it would be you!!" *** "Do you really feel nothing after all this time?" He asked as he looked at her with searching eyes, trying to see into her soul... "...Who...would..." she mumbled under her breath... *** "That stupid old man, I'm going to end him when I find him...You better hide well!!" |||~~~~~~~~~~~||| Author's Note~~ Thank you for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the read as you go along! Please VOTE and COMMENT as you read along and I will be sure to respond~~ Thank you again and HAPPY READING! ~~And if you have the wonderful urge to ever buy me a coffee. Here are the gateways and some love~ Kofi: https://ko-fi.com/miraisaesang Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/MiraiSaesang
8 156The Experimental Dungeon
Having all your memories erased and be reborn as a baby without any knowledge, or giving the job of managing a Dungeon without being its Core – a very easy decision for everyone, right? Right? Right? “I really should have remembered from all those fanfics and dungeon stories that those ROBs always screw with their mortal playthings” growls Claudia as she checked her Status for the umpteenth time. “How dare that... that...that manipulative thing did this to me… And no matter what extra options he gifts me with, I will NOT use them to create a hentai dungeon or anything like that” This will not be the usual dungeon core-type story found around here, but the main difference will only be explained in chapter 4 by the Dungeon Pixie. Also – despite the warning please don’t expect any explicit scenes in this story. The warnings are there because mature themes will be mentioned (and not only because the Higher Power provided some special options), but the MC is dead set on evading those options as she sees them as traps. So there are no explicit descriptions planned at all. If that changes I will give extra warnings in the chapter title, but I plan on handling things other ways. Later chapters might go a bit farther than the simple mentions in chapter 2, but don’t expect much more. Status Update 04. April 22 Writing Buffer used up, as said before I'm switching to one chapter a week on fridays. The new cover is the second placeholder, but what I really want will have to be commissioned and take a while. At least it is better than the map-part from chapter 4 that was the first placeholder.
8 211Shadow in the Snow
To live in a circus, to run away to one; this is the dream of many. The shining lights and the music and the cheering of the crowds are appealing to some. How little they know! This is the story of two brothers who were raised in a circus. One, a slave to the Master -- his most brilliant performer and a boy of pure white who has never been allowed to see the sun, nor feel the grass beneath his feet, nor the touch of rain upon his skin. The other, a slave to his brother -- a guardsman, trapped there not by chains but by love and loyalty. When fate proves unexpectedly kind to them on an otherwise cruel day, they find themselves free along with the girl they have been raised with and must find their way in a broken world, all the while being hunted without pause and without mercy. The Master has lost his prize. He is determined to reclaim it.
8 213Whims and Rolls of Gods
What happens when one creates a story then leaves everything to chance? Thousands of paths stretch out endlessly that separate into even more, countless paths. And then, all but one is destroyed with a single roll of a twenty-sided die. The die becomes the true author while the writer just provides possibilities then takes a backseat and narrates. This story will be random. To save time, the characters and some of the events will be somewhat generic, but past that all bets are off. It will create tropes and then shatter them. Characters can and will die. Even the writer doesn’t know how this story will play out. The die is the god of this world that rolls and everything it says goes. The writer is the god of this world whose whims become reality after the die rolls. Cover art was done by PrimalAvatar from INKed.
8 186The Sacred Sorceress
When Hyrule Kingdom is thrown into peril by mysterious dark forces, it's up to the top three students at Chalice's Elite Knighthood Academy to find the missing Princess Zelda and restore peace once again. Are they up for the task? AMAZING COVER BY @PikaGirl260 PLEASE FOLLOW HER!! (:
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