《Parental Controls》Chapter 6.2 Nyx
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Reeve stared in thought at her father, who still stood yards away behind the perceived protection of the elm. “We’ve got to figure out a way to move faster,” she said quietly. She looked down at the honey badger, which stood between them, licking the back of one of its paws. “Dad, going to try something. Wait there.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Evie.”
“I know, that’s the problem. We’ve got to cover more ground faster.” She walked slowly but confidently around the honey badger and then followed the path the few yards that led her to her father and his barky shield. She swung her bow off her shoulder, over her head, and gestured to her back. “Hop on again.”
“I’m just so used to it being the other way around, it doesn’t seem right. And I can walk faster, Honey. I’ll keep up.”
“Not if I’m at full pace on the trail and you’re fighting through the underbrush. Just try this, OK?”
She turned her back to her father and dropped to a deep squat.
“One, two, and three,” Walter said.
Reeve felt her father land on her back, his arms wrapping around her neck like a halfling shawl. She stood, his weight barely a hindrance, and looked at the honey badger.
“We good?” She said. “He’s not on your path. I’ll be responsible for him, OK? We need to chase down the kobold and my mom.”
After a few seconds, it turned and began trotting along the path in the direction Reeve’s mother had traveled. Reeve followed, quickening her pace as the honey badger broke into a relaxed trot.
“Good job, Evie,” her father whispered in her ear.
Reeve didn’t respond, her focus on scant signs her mother and the kobold had left, signs which were now intermixed with the honey badger’s paw marks.
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The trail began to rise, but after ten minutes of gentle climb through mature trees, it disappeared onto a long, down-sloping granite face. Rivulets of water sprouted from cracks in the granite and ran down its surface, leaving the ground at the bottom muddy. There, the trail continued between more large, widely spaced trees, and Reeve saw that there were massive, moss-covered boulders dotting the broad ravine into which they’d be descending.
“Hold tight, Dad. This may be slippery in spots.”
Her father squeezed her tighter in his arms, and she tensed her neck muscles to avoid being choked. The honey badger was already halfway down the granite face when Reeve began sidestepping down the steep surface, avoiding the wet patches where she could. She glanced up from her inspection of the surface to see the honey badger reach the trail and turn to watch them.
The hairs along the entire right side of Reeve’s body began to prickle.
“Oh, poo. Dad, listen, don’t be startled—“
“Aaaayyyeeeee!”
Reeve flinched at the shrill halfling squeal Walter emitted directly behind her right ear. She felt his arms suddenly loosen and then one of his hands gripped her still-ringing ear while his other hand was flung around her head, where it found and grasped her nose with a tiny grip of iron.
“Lion! Run!” Walter screamed, his feet scrabbling against her back as he tried to pull himself higher up her.
“Dad! It’s—“
Walter’s feet slipped and his weight wrenched Reeve’s head hard to the left. As she lost her balance, she felt one foot slip on the rock, and then her view was filled with alternating granite, leaves, and, occasionally, her pinwheeling father.
Reeve spread her limbs to stop her roll and, on her back, slid toward the trail, from which the honey badger continued to watch them.
“Don’t run into...“ Reeve shouted toward her father, but her warning faded as his uncontrolled spin accelerated straight into the honey badger, and both tumbled yards down the path, over a small drop, and out of sight.
Almost immediately, an explosive red mist erupted into the air, and a soft chime sounded.
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Wander West, in Shadow
BOOK 1 COMPLETED A young wizard journeys west, through dark forests and dangerous lands, searching for something. Accompanied by a wild witch who has secrets of her own, they come across terrible creatures, hauntings, cursed villages, and memories from their past. Who else will they meet along their journey, and to find what he is looking for, how far will the wizard have to wander west? NOTE: The above synopsis is intentionally written to be as spoiler-free as possible. If you would like a more in-detail synopsis, one that contains minor spoilers, please check out the "Synopsis" chapter at the beginning of this fiction. If you read and enjoy, please leave a rating or review! FORMERLY TITLED: THE GLIMMERLING This story was formerly titled "The Glimmerling", because the first part was a short story of that title; it has since been expanded upon, thus the title change. Chapters 1-8 (30k words) are the first 'arc', if you want to get a feel for the story. To give some context on the setting: Magic is a bit weaker in this story than you might be used to, and we start off following some relatively new magic users. For some perspective, being able to light a campfire with magic is considered relatively advanced for someone who is the age of the main character. Magic can become very powerful - and there are some examples of powerful wizards within this story - but it's not where the main characters are yet. Part of the story is about following them as they learn more about magic. Enemies are also very dangerous, and running, hiding, or trying to talk their way out of a dangerous situation is often a better choice than fighting for the characters. While I have added tags for traumatizing content, sexuality, violence, swearing, etc. I try to avoid super-explicit descriptions of these things. But they are part of the story.
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Having had a tragic childhood, and wanting nothing more than a girlfriend, Belly swears to one day make Cassandra, the girl he loves, proud. However, that path is not going to be an easy one for someone like him. After finally awakening his magic, he manages to enroll himself into a prestigious knight academy, Arpie High. As Belly continues trying his best to make new friends and prove that he isn't worthless, he finds out about the horrible life Cassandra has been going through all alone, and the two eventually start living together. Belly is determined to not only save her, but to also save everyone from her father, The Demon King Allister.
8 130Guidebook | ChickLit & Women's Fiction
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