《Solitude's Requiem》Strength of mutation
Advertisement
My eyes widen, looking at the dead man living once more. They can't stay wide for long, however, as flesh-eating insects start ripping into my exposed skin.
'How? Why isn't he dead yet?'
Looking at the situation, I decide to make a radical decision. I cannot allow these insects to make their way past the muscle tissue, and thus I engulf myself in dark magic, commanding it to devour all the insects on my body. Parts of my skin get ripped off in the process, however, it does seem that I've managed to shake off the nasty intruders.
More immediately try to attack, but I manage to fly up without any of them digging in. This is the largest swarm yet, they occupy the entire arena. The sound of their buzzing overwhelms the noise the crowd makes. I spew fire in response, trying to dwindle their numbers, the volume of the dying insects only being challenged by the sound of the remaining living. Out of my flames, 5 insects fly towards me, they look weak and on the verge of death as their bodies are ignited by my fire. They sluggishly fly closer to me, which makes it rather easy for me to dodge.
They stop in my proximity as all 5 insects screech as if they are sheep getting slaughtered.
*BOOM*
The 5 insects explode, creating a storm of fire. I barely manage to stay in the air, having been grievously wounded by this surprise attack.
'What was that? Did they absorb my fire and use it to explode?' I think, still slightly shaken by my opponent's revival and the seemingly endless tricks he has.
The swarm underneath me is still alive and well as they fly towards me. Giving me no chance to recover from the explosions.
Advertisement
'I can't use normal fire, I don't know if there are any more of those insects mixed in. However, I doubt that any of those pesky insects are resistant to blood-related magic. It has always been considered one of the more niche types of magic, making me doubt that any mutations would give them resistance.'
Having made my decision rather quickly, I could feel a metallic taste in my throat as I spew dark red fire toward the swarm. The entire arena bathes in an ocean of this beautiful fire. The sound of buzzing quickly gets replaced by the sound of burning flame scraping on an unnatural surface.
The fire dims at my command, giving me the possibility to look down at the old man. The old man still seems severely wounded from my original attack, but the smile on his face gives me a different story.
“You don't look too good, old man.” I call out towards him whilst slowly regenerating.
“Well, would you look at that… I knew… I KNEW… I knew… I KNEW!” The old man starts yelling again. Seemingly throwing some type of fit or something else that a sane person probably wouldn't understand.
'I guess I should have expected such a reaction from a clear madman.' Cursing myself mentally for not being able to think of any other way to distract him.
“They never listened, but I knew… I…. I knew.” He continues his rambling, having been subdued to a more gentle tone.
“What did you know?” I ask, still trying to waste some time so that my wounds are properly regenerated.
“They abandoned me… Cursed me… But I knew… YES, I KNEW WHAT I WAS!!!” The old man starts yelling again, seemingly having reclaimed some lost vigor he had.
Advertisement
More and more insects appear in and outside this walking dying corpse. The crawling of the parasite on his skin was no longer subtle as millions of vermin must be inhabiting him. I feel disgusted simply looking at him.
'I don't even want to imagine how that feels like.' I think whilst having to stop myself from visibly gagging.
Tiny white worms, the fleshy-looking larvae are just a few of the many the naked eye can see.
“I knew… I knew…” He suddenly regains some clarity in his voice as he looks up I am assuming trying to make eye contact which is rather difficult considering the lack of eyeballs.
“I knew that I would be the one to kill them.” He says, making all the insects on his body go into some sort of frenzy.
The white worms start going to the exposed bones, seemingly digging in the bone just to come out. My eyes widen at the sight as I realize what's going on. The worms continue their duty as they start making a bridge of bodies between the bones and thus connect the 2 disconnected pieces of bone. Then by some miracle or curse, they harden having successfully replaced the bone itself.
The fleshy larva does something similar as they start to reproduce at a bizarre pace. Crawling over my opponent's skin until they come to a place where muscle tissues seem to be missing. They start to eat parts of his skin before barfing some type of loose flesh out that serves as a substitute for the muscle tissue. They die after “an exhalation” of this fleshy sensation as their bodies deform and create the surrounding skin.
“Tell me… Tell me… Does this look like a failure to you? NO, THEY DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT TO CALL THIS A FAILURE!” The old man yells, his madness worsening by the second.
“Well, they couldn't call it a failure at the end, couldn't they? It's hard to call SOMETHING A FAILURE WHEN YOU'RE GETTING DEVOURED, AFTER ALL!” The old man goes down on his knees as he starts to hit the stone underground of the arena. Shattering his wrist with every hit as fleshy larva and white worms get flung off trying to heal their master.
Watching this mental patient having a mental breakdown in front of me, only 2 emotions come to mind: disgust and pity. I don't attack, however, fearing the possibility that his madness could be the source of his power.
“Those eyes… Those damn eyes… I'll rip them out of your skull. Just like they did with me.” The old man says in an unexpectedly low and stable tone.
Advertisement
Dual Cultivation
Su Yang is a powerful Dual Cultivator who was imprisoned after he offended the Heavenly Emperor.
8 201Survival Mage
When ken was a young boy, he became insatiably fascinated by the arcane. The unknown to be more precise, and he loved anything mythical. Like any young boy, he was fascinated by the legends of dragons and gods. But where others were content with the bedtime stories, he was not. When Ken accidentally unlocks his innate talents one day, he starts regretting his curiosity. While a whole new world of magic opens its doors to him, he realizes being a mage isn't all its cracked up to be. In order for new mages to control their newfound powers, they are forced into an academy to learn control and to provide better growth for their ability. Alas, there is an entry exam one must pass. But not all who enter will leave. Depending on overall score during the exam, your allotted a certain amount of resources at the academy. How do you gain more points? By killing your peers, or providing enough entertainment. Author Note: Unsure where this is going yet, just having fun writing. PS, The cover is from Google. I don't know whos it is, but it looks awesome and fits the theme. If anyone does know, or it is yours, please don't sue me. On the other hand, if anyone sends me a fanart version, that'd be cool too.
8 183Exiled Nomads of the Galaxy
Follow the story of David Navi and his companions as they try to survive away from the Home systems; fleeing a predatory Alien race, Slavers, Pirates and other unscrupulous characters who would take advantage of their precarious situation. With potential enemies everywhere their only hope for survival is to reach the Human Colonies that have gained the protection of friendly aliens.But until they reach the safety of human allied territories they must stay hidden and rely on solitude for protection. If they are discovered by hostile alien forces they will surely be destroyed.This is a Sci-Fi Space Opera meant to slot in between my other writings Crystal Guardian and Realm Eternal (Main) as such the Updates will invariably be erratic an inconsistent.?Written in South African English which means closer to the British Standard?Warning: Mature Content ?Violence, Language and Adult Themes ? List of My Novels:?Realm Eternal??Crystal Guardian ??Exiled Nomads of the Galaxy??Soul Vessel Psyche?
8 246Black Boar Band
Devin Tenfingers just wanted to make enough money to live comfortably. That isn't so much to ask, is it? In a new land, across the sea from the Old World, the town of Mossglenn Depot is the only civilization in an untamed wilderness. Funded by private enterprise, Guilds and Contracts are the way of law. Devin created the Black Boar Band, his very own guild, to get moderately rich and make enough of a name for himself that people might pause on the streets when they see him. Unfortunately, many others had the exact same idea. During a disastrous Contract, Devin and his ragtag band of people find themselves embroiled in a conspiracy involving his hated rival, Bronn of Bronn's Buyable Blades. As they dig deeper into this conspiracy, they soon discover there is more to this land than anyone previously thought, or imagined. And perhaps they are not the first to inhabit it. [participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge]
8 103Fateless: The Silver Lining
It has been ten years of peace for the Union since the end of the great war with the eastern barbarian tribes, yet in the cold north of the Union's land, a new threat is looming. This time, an ambitious Lord is seeking to restore the yore pride of his kin, forcing the weakened Union into yet another unwanted war, as he ramps up the ranks of his army with thieves, murderers and mercenaries.* * *The temperature inside the forge was nearly twice as high as the one outside. A black-haired girl hammered a steel ingot into the shape of a blade. The heat of the steam was draining her stamina away, but her focus remained sharp as her sweat streamed down her face. Hit after hit, for hours, the sound of the hammering steel followed the rhythm of her breathing. Exhausted, she placed the blade into the water and wiped the sweat off her face using a drenched rag. Why are they screaming? Vatra dipped the rag back in the water, twisted it, and approached the window. Her mouth opened as her world shattered again into the living nightmare she had wilfully tried to forget. She bit her lips; it wasn’t a dream. The pulse of her heart rose. A cold sweat prickled her back. A mother was running, and a child was screaming. A torrent of smoke was emerging from the roof of her neighbour. Vatra’s eyes blinked. The mother lay on the ground, a spear through her back. A torch circled in the air and landed on the roof of her workshop. In the distance, a man wearing a banner well known to the world… Fateless is a philosophical medieval dark low fantasy centered on war, militaristic campaigns and geopolitical conflicts between multiple empires. This story follows the fate of Vatra, a former slave from the eastern Nar Empire who was raised in a culture far away from her own, forced into warfare against her will, and the fate of Lanaya, an ambitious half-angel exiled from her home whose existence is seen as heresy. As they wished for peace, both chose a path opposed to one another until their fate crossed. In this story where war dictates the law, love strikes them as a poisoned balm to which they grasp for with all their might, as it is in the darkest of times that the smallest flames may burn the brightest. * * * Tome 1 already completed and available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.ca/Fateless-Silver-Hugo-Emmanuel-Simard-Wallot/dp/B09LGSH1KK Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Hugo-Emmanuel-Simard-Wallot-100547579135891/ I will publish 1 chapter per week (sometimes 2 if the chapters are too short for my liking).
8 482The Flash and co. x Metta!Child!Reader
AGH THE PICTURE OF BARRY IS SO CUUUUUTE~!!!! sorry im a big fan of the show, aaand to show it heres a story of you x Barry/The Flash~! (there wont be a frequent schedule sorry ;3; also there will be large time skips, sorry again!!!! QwQ)
8 174