《Shard》08 - An Innovator's Scheming
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Captain Gerald Mansa sat in the captain’s chair, something that admittedly brought him a lot more joy than he let on; however, today that familiar joy was nothing but a distant memory. The demon he had recently ‘questioned’ had revealed a veritable bombshell of information, and as his crew worked on verifying it, it seemed more and more likely the demon was telling the truth. This was undoubtedly good for the C.S.S, nevertheless it was horrible for his cortisol levels.
Either way, it didn’t matter. He was the captain of the Sultan, the first of the newly minted Templar class, and he always carried out his duty.
He approached his navigator, Second Officer Bollumo. She was a Yethrib, a once elusive member of the C.S.S; yet in recent years, they were becoming more prominent. Humans often compared them to ‘rabbit people’, and while it seemed to be endearing, it often left the average Yethrib stumped.
Nonetheless, their uniquely analytical mind, combined with their pattern recognition and relatively strange way of thinking, made them suitable for jobs that others would tend to struggle with. In Bollumo’s case, it made her an expert astral navigator, and the Captain only expected excellency from his crew. Even so, he found the expected formality stifling, so he made sure to put a moratorium on that. Why be formal with someone who’s going to be stuck with you for months at a time, when you could get to know them?
He approached her station, which she seemingly noticed even with her head turned. She turned towards him and grinned, which the Captain took to as good news. “Do you have a viable path to the specified coordinates?”
“Yes, I do, Captain. But…”
“But what”?
“It won’t be an easy path. There’s a Smaller Demonic Fleet stationed near the coordinates, along with a Supernatural Coalition Fleet. I am aware that this ship should theoretically be able to handle them, but it’s projected that sixty percent of the hull will be damaged; furthermore, there will be severe damage to the engines. What do you propose we do, captain”?
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The Captain stood there for a moment, pondering what course of action he should take. Part of him thought that he should order an immediate attack, because what’s one ship compared to slaughtering multiple Higher Demons? Thankfully, this part of him was overshadowed by his rational part, and a clear course of action was formulated. He turned towards Gattika, his chief combat engineer, and proceeded to give out orders.
“Send multiple cloaked probes towards the anomaly, so that I have a constant feed of information. I want to know if one of them even farts, you understand”?
“I’m on it”, replied Gattika, instantly turning towards his control panel and getting to work. The captain then turned towards Syr, his chief communications officer.
“Syr, I need to know how far away the Praetor and Nelson are. Along with that, let me know how many Scipio class ships are within a day’s travel of our current location. In the meanwhile, order our fabricator teams to spin them up to full power and production. We have a day to prepare, so we’re gonna use it.”
“There are ten Scipio class ships within a day’s travel, including the Zulu and Poseidon, Sir.”
“That’s good news. Very good news, in fact. Undergo the necessary preparations, and activate combat mode. We don’t want anything to go wrong.”
“I’m on it.”
The Captain took this as an opportunity to update HQ, since there was a major undertaking ahead, and he needed their opinions and advice. Either way, he had a day to prepare, and he would use it well.
Zigzigon was, until recently, a minor demon. A demon not even worth looking at twice; however, due to an astronomical stroke of luck, he had become Beelzebub’s personal aid. This was an opportunity that many, including himself, would doubtlessly murder for. In fact, it was a major shock to the demon community. Why would Beelzebub choose a nobody like him? Zigzigon suspected that it was precisely because he was a nobody, he got the position.
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After all, a weak demon couldn’t even dream of harming Beelzebub, plus due to recent events he needed a personal aid he could trust. Or at the very least, keep in check. That was of no consequence to Zigzigon however, as he had his own plan. It would take a while, but it was a plan.
His thought process shifted to his brother, Beelzebub’s former aide, who had recently gone to mortal space but failed to return. Although he was slightly worried, he quickly dismissed his concerns. It wasn’t like mortals could do anything to his brother. His mind returned to his current duties, which was serving drinks to Beelzebub and his cohorts. These drinks were quality soul wine, aged for a hundred years in a soul vault. he would have loved to steal a sip, yet he knew that if he dared to, he would suffer a gruesome death.
It was the first time he was attending such a meeting, even as an aide, so he consequently got to hear some juicy morsels of information. It turned out that some higher demons were worried about the mortals advances against the angels, but most weren’t concerned. Angels weren’t as strong as demons, which was something every demon supposedly ‘knew’. Before he came here, he wasn’t even aware of such a location. This meeting was being held in a plane between the mortal and demon realms, a consequence of that being that only demons who were invited could even perceive it. He smiled to himself, proud of his moving up the ladder.
He was content with continuing with his duties, until he started to feel the ground rumbling beneath him.
That was when the crimson sky itself was rent asunder, revealing the black, star studded sky of the mortal realm. That wasn’t the worst thing currently happening, though.
The worst thing was thirteen mortal ships entering the breach, each one of them brimming with energy.
Three of them projected some sort of light, which seemed to stabilise the realm. Unfortunately, some demons also found that it prevented them from leaving. At that moment, a booming voice erupted from the ship at the head of the formation.
“Attention, demonic scum. My name is Captain Gerald Mansa, captain of the Sultan. We are aware that there are many higher demons here, including Beelzebub himself.”
Many demons proceeded to attack the ships, yet they were repelled by some sort of energy field. Most opted to stay put and hear what the mortals had to say, which they would come to regret very soon.
“You creatures are responsible for consuming the souls of billions of mortals. For your crimes, we have one request, and one request only.”
“Surrender and die”.
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On the Road to Elspar (Book 1)
The year is 1329. The Huntress' War has entered its tenth year, inflaming competing nationalisms and pitting the Confederacy of Caldrein against one of the continent's superpowers, the Tenereian Union. Desperately outnumbered, the Confederacy has relied on the prowess of its famed Caldran mercenaries, with highly-trained and experienced warbands returning from foreign conflicts to the defense of their homeland, and it is on their backs that Caldrein has successfully mounted a valiant defense for a decade. But they are losing, and day by day, with all the grace of a sledgehammer, the vast Tenereian armies take one more bit of Caldran territory, one footstep at a time. Sixteen-year-old Neianne from the village of Caelon has submitted herself to Faulkren Academy, one of the centuries-old institutions established to train the next generation of Caldrein's elite soldiers of fortune, to learn the ways of wars for three years before embarking upon the defense of her country. Her dryad family once hailed from reclusive woodland communes isolated from Caldrein's complicated mainstream society, and her upbringing leaves the shy village girl unprepared to suddenly train alongside other apprentices from backgrounds as low as the dirty slums of Caldrein's cities and as high as the halls of aristocratic power. Yet the war is eroding the norms and traditions that the Caldran people have long considered part of their national mythos, and the tensions within the confederacy that have long simmered under the surface - race, class, community, identity - are slowly but surely dividing its people, and Neianne must grow and discover who she really is, even as the war that she is steadfastly training for comes to its inexorable end... On the Road to Elspar is a fantasy quest - a work of interactive fiction wherein readers get to vote on what happens next at critical junctures - that is the first entry in a story that follows Neianne of Caelon, which first began on July 20, 2016. Originally a three-part in medias res prologue to a larger story titled On the Elsparian Road, it was eventually decided that this section - which covers Neianne's three years at Faulkren Academy - become its own independent story due to length, structural, and accessibility reasons. Despite this being a reader interactive work of fiction, due to logistical and verification concerns, voting will only be counted on its thread on the forum Sufficient Velocity, where this story originally began. As such, the content here on Royal Road serves as a story-only archive. You are, of course, entirely welcome to enjoy On the Road to Elspar as a conventional work of fiction, just as you are welcome to comment, discuss, and provide critique. But if you would like to participate in the voting, then I would be honored to welcome you on Sufficient Velocity. To facilitate accessibility and to ensure the best reading experience, this story-only version of On the Road to Elspar will be updated at a periodic pace, even though further content exists, so as to not overwhelm new readers on Royal Road. If you enjoy this story, wish to binge it, and/or want to participate in voting immediately, you may of course read all additional content via the link provided above. This paragraph will be removed once the content on Royal Road catches up with what has already been posted in its original thread. Cover artwork by DreamSyndd.
8 334Diasori Dynasty: The World's Last Heroes
In the world of fantasy, children are born with the ability to become a warrior, mage, and thief. When you become three you have to take a test to see what class you are and then you start training in that class. Chen Diasori, a man who has been reincarnated to this strange world accidentally merged his body with two other people who had the ability to become a warrior and thief while he already had the ability to become a mage. So when the world was introduced to a child not with two but all three classes, all of the seventeen kingdoms starts fighting for him. Chen however doesn't have any plan of helping any one of them since considering the way he died was by betrayal. What will happen to Chen in the future, read more to join his adventure and story.
8 155I Was Sent to Another World to Protect an Unfriendly Princess
I was always held back, despite how talented I was, no one ever recognised me. On my way home, a tragic accident occurred. After, I was reincarnated in another world, except the goddess was beyond useless.This was my second chance. I was brought to the other world to protect Lucia, a mean, sharp-tongued princess, who was meant to be the next ruler of the land. She didn't accept anyone else, why did she accept me? Why is it that I have forgotten all about my past? Have I lost something truly important to me?
8 491Chroniken des Triumphirats Band 1 (Kartoffelherz und Suppenlicht) [Deutsch]
Die junge Kara will sich als Agentin des Triumphirates beweisen. Dafür muss sie sich in einer Welt voller unterschiedlicher Magie Arten und mit verschiedenen Kulturen zurecht finden. Auf ihrem Weg muss Sie: Menschen, Zwerge, Elfen, Drachen, Tieflinge, Götter, Nebel, Suppe sowie Kartoffeln und sich selbst überwinden.
8 145Zjjan Master
Teaser: I've retired for my freedom and to find peace. I was born a knight with no inheritance. What could they expect from me? —Jaino. I've tried to purge the catalyst. Is my strength not enough? —Jesifer. Blurb: Including his guild master, many lives had lost to end a calamity. Jaino feels guilty. Still, the first prince of Jelfyr assigned him as a higher official. This has made him hiding to avoid conflicts. Wanting to find peace, he accidentally meets Criselia, forcing him to accept an agreement. Consuming many lives, her demonstration has left him no choice. Meanwhile, Jesifer, the queen of Jelfyr, she receives an urgent report from the JSA. Attempting to end the battle in the wide plain while avoiding casualty, she instead meets Dandia’s ruler, seeking for the strongest. The outside world now slowly unfolds. ------------------------------------------------- BTW, since the review title wasn't edited. I have to say, my work is not a poem compilation. I'm writing fiction. But I'm not a writer, I'm just a reader. :) P.s ------------------------------------------------- Story Progress: 1. Blurb is fulfilled on Chapter Three and Chapter Four 2. Story Arc One, The Savior is fulfilled on Story Arc Five 3. Yes, there is fighting scenes. Three Calamities have been Eliminated in Dandia -- The wide island. 4. The prologue is nearing to begin. 5. Too many conflicts. ------------------------------------------------- Past tense - When I just narrate a past without much actual actions. I mean like a news, or just telling or reporting the past. Present tense - Current event. And flashback with actions. I love flash fiction so world building is not on this story, like narrating a room, narrating a character's traits, etc. As possible, I want them to think, have their decision, etc. etc. etc. etc. Hallo guys, Help me locate my typos on Story Arc 5. I still don't want to edit Story Arc 1-4. I can't wait to reach story arc Chapter Six(I won't spoil). My outlines and very huge flowcharts are waiting. Sorry, about that, I can understand English without format so, each time I'm looking for typos I was hooked in my story and I didn't realize I forgot about them.
8 136Life is Feudal
No OP stuff, status bars, levels or skills. This story is in favour of more realistic setting in a world of humans and various monsters. "Behind the mask of the assertive, resolute facade that employs ruthless routes at any given moment, lies the frail, anxious heart that were once but a puny human. Reviled and revered by many, none would ever know my true allegiance lies within myself, merely trying to survive this mess." Just the life of a grumpy man child living in a terrible piece of shit or a desolate state in which I call an alternate historical take on medieval Europe. Living as a peasant who is forced to take up arms to defend his own kin. This story grants an insightful take on the life of people living under constant danger, from vying nobles who commit atrocities in the name of justice, eager nations and barbarians aiming to take a piece of the bountiful land and mythical divine monsters who resembles a walking catastrophe in any possible way. [If you're easily offended by alternate-history religion and cultural practices, then you shouldn't read this.]
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