There was something oddly disarming about getting drunk with his mother. A dropping of walls, a shedding of the structures they’d built around themselves over the years.
He understood that she wasn’t getting drunk, and Ben had briefly lamented the fact that he also didn’t seem to be forming a buzz. Yet, Tania and Terry’s increasingly silly behavior seemed to bring ou...
2025-01-23 19:47:30 +0000 UTC View Post“So…you left the Metaphysical Singularity in the Underworld?”
From anyone else, it might have sounded like an accusation. But from his mother’s tone, he knew that she understood his reasons. He hoped she would have done the same, but was afraid to ask.
“Yes.” He kept his tone even, holding her gaze. It was a difficult task with the swirling magic that seemed to always be...
2025-01-21 17:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostHis mother was tall—tall enough that they stood eye-to-eye. Yet in her arms, he felt himself melting, returning to a time when he felt small, when he needed to be held and consoled.
Something about the way she quietly shushed him and stroked his hair only made the tears come harder. The weeks of fighting and surviving in the Underworld, the months and years without her as he struggled f...
2025-01-16 18:53:02 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Big news everyone! The Amazon pre-order for Book 1 is live! This is the first major step (I hope) to being allowed to do this fulltime! As my patrons, you already support me so much, but I still wanted to share this with you all out of sheer excitement!
I think the cover came out amazing (after some tweaks) and ...
2025-01-14 17:00:16 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Back on Tuesday! Enjoy!
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The thought of communicating with his mother through Savage made his skin hot. Something about the memory of the furred monster unhinging his jaw to take Crunch’s arm had never left him.
He didn’t think he could use Savage as a liaison.
Turning to Marlon, he injected as much need into his tone as ...
2025-01-09 17:55:48 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Welcome back! You guys ready to kick off Book Three!?
Just an fyi, I altered the names of his new class Skills. Combine Skills is now Skill Synthesis Identification to clarify that it doesn't actually 'combine' the Skills. And Master of Analysis is now Master of Skill Analysis to differentiate from other types of Analysis (which there are many).
Cheers, next chapter on Thursd...
2025-01-07 17:00:09 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: A day late! Christmas sucked more out of me than I expected. But I hope you all enjoy this chapter :D!
I'm going to take the next week off to fine-tune the next couple of chapters and spend time with the family. I will be back on January 7th with more content!
Have a happy new year! 2025 is going to be a great year!
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The Weaver let him sit i...
2024-12-27 19:58:43 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Happy holidays! Next chapter is Thursday, then I'm going to take a week off to focus on the family and get Book Three rolling.
Cheers!
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His consciousness wouldn’t fade. He almost wished it would.
The creature towering over him was a sanguine unlike any he’d ever seen before. It stood tall like the Red Dukes fighting Ben, but lithe where they were all brut...
2024-12-24 17:26:28 +0000 UTC View PostJaid felt the pieces of her visions like a puzzle slotting together. The future was never set in stone—she had learned that the moment her very first vision had failed to materialize. But though it wasn’t set in stone, it could be guided along, put on a path that once committed to, would resist deviation.
That was the marker of a skilled Seer. Not the strength or speed in her arms, li...
2024-12-19 17:35:13 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Thanks for reading :D! Next chapter Thursday.
Cheers!
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Master of Telekinesis gripped him in midair.
The sanguine elite also gripped him, but in a much less pleasant fashion.
Powerful limbs that were on par with his own strength tried to rip into his flesh. Teeth gnashed near his throat. Wings beat frantically, trying to pull him to his de...
2024-12-17 17:00:12 +0000 UTC View PostThe barest pinhole of blue-white light formed in the dark space high above the ground. In the utter black, it was the tiniest break in consistency, so removed from searching eyes or aura senses as to be invisible.
It was only large enough for a single eye to peer through.
Terry surveyed the space below, struggling to penetrate the inky darkness—even with Master of Light.
Ben...
2024-12-12 20:05:05 +0000 UTC View PostAs the final ghoul made it across the yawning chasm of the liminal layer and on to the first stone column, Py and Chippy were just finishing up the sixth bone shield hoverboard.
The procession of ghouls were strung out across half a dozen columns, each hoverboard dedicated to one gap between the columns. Py, Chippy, and Juan were standing on the central column, surrounded by a group of gh...
2024-12-10 19:03:19 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Hope you're enjoying! Slight retcon/addition in Chapter 38: the ghoul clan is called Fleshripper, but I forgot to include that. Small detail but figured I'd update you all so you're not confused when I reference the name in this chapter. Updated Chapter 38 accordingly.
Next chapter Tuesday, enjoy!
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Terry’s world froze, the emotions of the realization that Ben h...
2024-12-05 18:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostIt took an agonizing twenty or so minutes before Terry’s aura recovered enough for him to feel confident in reaching the next layer.
He summoned Al’Ruzan back with a message and began reaching down through space.
Mara-Lin-Jaid’s eyes snapped open and she burst to her feet, distracting him.
<... 2024-12-03 18:11:19 +0000 UTC View Post[Mara-Lin-Jaid]: Hurry, Terry.
[A/N]: Happy Thanksgiving to those that celebrate. See you Tuesday!
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Juan Carlos imagined his abuela’s disapproving glare, the wrinkles contracting on her forehead and around her eyes.
“Juan Carlos! I expressly forbade you from risking your life! If I could, I’d rip that blasphemous magic from your very hands.”
He’d always nodded his head, a respectful ‘Y...
2024-11-28 17:00:08 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Hope you're enjoying! Next chapter will be on Thursday (Thanksgiving in the US), so you'll get a little holiday reading.
See you then!
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Terry placed the bone charm into Crimson Spear’s hand, forcing steel into his eyes as he stared at the ghoul.
“If it looks like all is lost, use it.”
The giant ghoul elder stared down at the charm, his face unrea...
2024-11-26 17:37:44 +0000 UTC View PostSomething about the exposed Singularity had sparked a need deep inside his chest. The memory of that moment back on Earth when he’d first anchored his teleportation Skill into the Singularity itself pulled at the back of his mind.
At the time, he’d felt that the only way he’d accomplished the feat had been with the power of the Singularity guiding his hand. But now, his aura yearned...
2024-11-21 17:43:16 +0000 UTC View Post[Chialpuncritis]: What is it, Terry? What did we create?
Terry didn’t respond immediately, turning his attention to his Affixations. His D-slots were taken up by Master of Light, his portal skill, and Manipulate Roots, so he prepared to drop that in favor of his new Skill.
Chippy squeaked as Terry’s aura began to shift the new D-ran...
2024-11-18 19:14:00 +0000 UTC View PostAs Terry and Juan caught the others up to speed, the Bloodsplatter Clan scurried about to leave their home forever.
Whatever happened next, they would never be able to return to here again.
When the preparations were finished, less than a hundred ghouls and only five liches were arrayed in the center of the large cavern. Exiting from the double doors leading to their Evolution Chamb...
2024-11-05 18:50:37 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Happy Halloween!
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Terry and Ben locked eyes, a tension rising there, neither of them giving an inch to the other.
Behind Terry, Juan suddenly blurted out in surprise. “I’m sorry, what! You can speak English?”
Ben’s eyes flicked over Terry’s shoulder, then back. But the tension drained away with that simple movement and the man sighed.
“Yes,...
2024-10-31 17:08:01 +0000 UTC View PostFlames scorched skin, icicles speared through flesh, and ghoul claws matched against sanguine fangs.
Terry’s aura continued to shift, his skin itching as he waited for Liquefy Metal to become active. He tried opening a portal to intercept a flying sanguine, but his aura bucked, the portal fizzling out as he lost his grip on it.
Note to self, don’t Affix Skills mid-combat…<...
2024-10-28 15:38:33 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Hey all, just wanted to express my gratitude once more for all of you. Being a writer is a weird, emotional trip sometimes and knowing that dozens of you want to read what I write every week can really prime the motor, so thank you :D.
Enjoy!
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Crimson Spear watched their interaction with interest, his aura flicking out, trying to catch the nuance between their Engl...
2024-10-21 18:36:39 +0000 UTC View PostThe man regarded him with a single raised brow. A large animal pelt rest across his shoulders and hooded over his head, the upper jaw of one of the polar bear looking animals across his forehead.
He understood now why they’d all thought the man was a monster. Only Al’Ruzan and Mara-Lin-Jaid had seen him up close and they’d obviously been scared for their life at the time.
With...
2024-10-16 18:56:00 +0000 UTC View PostWith some quick discussion over Team chat, they stored the bear thing’s remains back in Terry’s abandoned cave and portaled Juan there to keep the insects from stealing their food. He kept the portal open between the two caves upon request—Juan didn’t want to be trapped in the insect cave understandably.
Now that the bulk of their meal was stored, Al’Ruzan and Terry began the ar...
2024-10-07 20:20:57 +0000 UTC View PostWhy didn’t I kill you?
The question caught him so off guard, he had to repress a humorous snort.
[Terry]: I won. It was over. What would killing you have accomplished?
Al’Ruzan read the message, and even with his alien features, Terry could see he was displeased. He turned away without another wo...
2024-10-03 19:17:53 +0000 UTC View PostAfter the adrenaline of the fight, the biting cold of the surface, and the sudden exultation of the fire filling his cave, he had to wonder to himself…
What now?
What did the five of them do for months on end, unable to leave their cave, no games or even a shared language between them?
He’d had an idea in his head to make the others wait a week. Let ...
2024-09-27 22:40:53 +0000 UTC View PostDespite the advantage of Terry’s first strike, Al’Ruzan was clearly well trained.
As Terry rained down blows on the blinded giant, Al’Ruzan got his guard up, absorbing the next couple strikes on his forearms. When one of Terry’s punches connected, Al’Ruzan used the timing to slip the next shot, causing him to overextend. Al’Ruzan blindly reached up and snagged his vicious talo...
2024-09-19 16:53:47 +0000 UTC View Post[Terry]: What do you mean, you’re a Fire Elementalist!? Why in the Underworld are we freezing our asses off?
Juan took on an indignant look, clearly prepared to respond with some scathing remark, when Chippy and the four-armed alien—Py Dar, or Py for short—both huffed in annoyance.
They’d been relaying each of their private conv...
2024-09-15 20:37:19 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Hey all, welcome to Part Two of Book Two! I have some really fun things planned, so buckle up! I also wanted to say thank for your patience. I know my posts aren't super consistent, but I'm trying my best to bring you quality chapters where every post is fun and engaging. I hope I'm succeeding.
One of the reasons (read: excuses) for the inconsistency is I've started a new job. I ho...
2024-09-12 20:01:35 +0000 UTC View Post[A/N]: Whoa, just...whoa.
Enjoy...
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What happened next, Terry could only piece together after the fact; the chaos of a battle between a dozen S-rankers and just as many A-rankers was not something a D-ranker could account for blow by blow.
But what he did see made his stomach clench.
A strangled millisecond held everyone in silence…and then ...
2024-09-06 22:44:12 +0000 UTC View Post