《The Healer From The Fringe》Chapter 65: Speak Softly
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“Two Archons assemble before us. Let’s raise Hell.”
Rasp Swift, , during the Riots of Gold and Glass
“The has declared war, Your Eloquence!” The , only slightly winded after running through the Palace of Paragraphs for several minutes, spoke with the urgency her message required.
“Then Diren’s assembled military and Diplomatic Corps will defend our shores, as is our right.” The , directly below the in hierarchy, spoke concisely and simply, sending orders as he breathed, though not in the way of Esultaran and , but more like a professor diagnosing logical faults.
“You don’t understand, my lord-- they’re declaring war on both Diren and Kandrev, and launching a dual offensive. And Zade the Merciless is heading the legions that are attacking us!”
“Get me and the rest of Command data. Level report, if you please.”
“He’s a level 31 , with twenty years of experience. At 45 years old, he’s the youngest general to achieve such a level on any continent in more than six hundred years. He’s known primarily for his fast, brutal tactics, lack of care for his men, and obsessive, bloodthirsty dedication to victory, even if it overextends his resources. He has pretty obvious buttons to push, if I may be candid. Additionally, his skill at naval warfare is minimal, so catching him before he can land and establish a firm front will likely disrupt his concentration and ability to fully exercise the power of his class.”
“A solid report. Make sure all the necessary individuals have it in triplicate. .” The used his most powerful Talent without blinking, and the felt her heart beat faster, and her mind and body flooded with power. She’d just seen a level 30 Talent, one that would take more than a week to regenerate, used as casually as could be. If anything declared the transition from peacetime to wartime, it was that.
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The commanding man turned to the door not too far away from him as his messengers scattered. Behind it, a very old, contemplative man, the second-highest level living man on Esun (perhaps third if you counted Vainen, but the Speaker didn’t know that) was, as always nowadays, silent. He went forward to knock, hesitated, then did so anyway. Three wraps, proper and sharp, each one.
There was silence, perhaps a quiet shuffling, then the heavy old wooden door, dusty from lack of usage, hinges in need of an oiling, opened. A one hundred and three year old gentleman, clad in the robes of his station, stood there, expectant.
“I-- I just wanted you to know that we’re at war, Your Grace.” The ever-commanding, ever-well spoken sixtyish man spoke as if he was a nervous schoolchild.
“I know, Atradius.” The man spoke softly, familiarly, using the man’s first name, as if a father speaking to a son, or a teacher to a student. Every statement he made had an air of totality to it, as if he needn't say anything more to explain his point.
“I-I just meant, I thought it was about time you give a grand proclamation, o-or some such.” He didn’t know what had gotten into him.
“.” Quaed Aquarius, , was the second currently living person on Esun to have achieved level 40, or “the other one”, as many history books detailing his era would likely think of him. His voice was soft, but carried to all ears who would stop to listen, and many who would not.
“You know, I wished, in my youth, to be a simple , a bleeding heart content to whittle away at meaning in my little corner of this land. But a higher calling was asked of me, and I could in no good conscience refuse it. And here I am, three-quarters of a century later and thirty levels higher, and you ask for a grand speech. My class yearns to give it, but I have no stomach for such hollow theatrics any more. What I will give is life, and power. . Two hundred new soldiers were just created for your grist will, Atradius. Hurrah.” He spoke dryly, almost bitterly. “. That should put a few enemy ships at least on the backfoot, staring at the ceiling in the dead of night, wondering if they’re truly doing the right thing. . Something for the on-the-fence bastards, too.”
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He listed off Talent after Talent, but there was something half-hearted, rote, and weary about the epic power the intellectual centurion was bringing to bear. It was a full three minutes later that he accepted a goblet of water and drank greedily, then said, without much fanfare: “There. I have contributed what five level 30 could to the proceedings, or perhaps ten . A century of life, a century of knowledge, dozens of Talents, all spent in minutes. Is that the grand last stand against the invaders you wanted? Or should I pontificate on the soul of man too while I’m at it?”
“When did you break, Your Grace?” A lowly , from nowhere, asked the question that people thrice his level would never dare to. Atradius turned to berate him, but the Archspeaker raised a pacifying hand and spoke after a moment of tense quiet.
“I broke in the Autumn, some twelve years past. I gazed upon the foulness of those that we worship, and my will broke, young man. I’m done with the theater, the trivialities of power rivaled by a handful, of the puppetry. I’m done with all of it. Oh, and one more thing: . I love that Talent.”
Like a shockwave, his greatest ability traveled across air and over water, igniting the hearts of every Direnian on the continent. And when the Continent of Diplomacy went to war, they did so with hope alight within them and the half-hearted force of one of the greatest leaders in all of history at their back.
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Eden Virus
It spoke to me a light; “My child, are you not tired of this sin filled world?” “Come and embrace me. Accept me.” It called to me; A Paradise. It granted to me; An Eternity. It brought to me; Salvation. No pain. No fear. No evil. No sins. No deaths. For this world is Eden. And it shall burn.
8 88Meaning: The End of the Starless Century
Magic was once a reality of everyday life, shaping the lives of the gifted and ungifted alike since the dawn of humanity. That all changed in the fires of World War I. Seeking to avoid catastrophe, humanity’s leaders enacted the Masquerade Order and segregated the magical community while also forming The Congregation to enforce the separation. As time passed, the awesome power of magic was forgotten by the world outside. This held true for a little over a century, but things begin to change when three individuals intersect in the peaceful town of Ithaca, New York. Noelle Sellers, a newly minted policewoman searching for her place in the world. Levi Wright, a mage living in Ithaca who is far more than he lets on. Lorelei Himmel, a juvenile witch in hiding out of fear of what people would do to her, and what she may do to them. As forces slithering in the darkness emerge from the murky depths of the world, the timeless battle for magic and for the future itself begins once again. Cover by Daisy Drew, @littledaisydrew on Instagram.
8 150Echoes of the Past
Island Legends Book 2Island Legends is an epic fantasy adventure series set in a galaxy reeling from devastating wars, filled with countless alien species, a rich history of powerful magical forces and the interventions of many gods and dangerous spirits and demons constantly at war.Among its many influences are the grand operatic adventures of the Star Wars universe, the ensemble cast of desperate heroes of a Final Fantasy game, and the long and all-important journey of The Lord of the Rings and The Wheel of Time series. It also has influences of a serial television series, where we learn more of the characters as the progressively complex story develops, with new characters being introduced along the way.________________________James Island has begun his journey away from his hometown, accompanied by the bewildering and troubled Evan Goodheart, and his mysterious ex-colleague Sam Hawkings.Their journey takes them farther across Medropon as they search for clues to a hidden army being formed, made up of abducted people from all over the galaxy. Evan Goodheart continues his mission to restore peace to his troubled homeworld. Sam Hawkings is tasked with training James Island to become the soldier he once was, while revealing more to James about his unknown past. James struggles to be the hero everyone expects him to be, while discovering more about himself and deciding what kind of a person he will be, or if he can ever go back to who he was.#3 in Fantasy #2 in Sciencefiction #4 in Scifi#2 in Adventure
8 220Colourland Series 5: Matches
The preliminaries of the tournament continue. Crayon and his friends continue fighting. The link is here: https://inkstone.webnovel.com/novels/chapter/edit/17814187106175405/47819596891211165
8 133Ghoulish insanity (incomplete/finished)
Adventure, Excitement, a jedi craves not these things, but I do!I was captured and kept in a basement by Frank, tortured and partially eaten, yet he somehow managed to keep me alive for a whole month. When he finally decided to off me for fresh meat, instead of dying properly I found myself waking up in the body of a rotting corpse on a battlefield with gamelike elements telling me that I'm an undead ghoul. Oh and there's also the little thing with the gods cursing me as my soul passed from earth to where-ever this place is. But earth gods rock, you know? They blessed me, you know? Uhm... there's the small detail that I crave the flesh of the living. Said flesh is really yummy by the way.... It's not weird to eat corpses when you're a corpse yourself, you know? Don't look at me like that! I'm not crazy, okay? Goddamn it!
8 194Random Wanderer
Be back soon! I need to sort out myself first. Synopsis: About a god and random adventures.
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