I awoke slowly.
My gaze was cloudy, and everything was hazy. Blinking rapidly, I waited until my eyes cleared before studying my surroundings.
Murky water, rotting wood, and the dank overpowering smell of decay filled my senses. I’m in the saltmarsh, I realized. More precis...
2023-01-06 05:38:06 +0000 UTC View PostThe day was still young—barely noon—when Anriq and I exited the saltmarsh district.
It was also the busiest time of day in the plague quarter, and more than a few people were about. Still, I didn’t think that would be a problem.
Anriq and I were just two more players walking the...
2023-01-05 12:52:59 +0000 UTC View PostThe casual invite to Anriq had been a test, of course.
I couldn’t deceive him with lies nor bind him by magic, which left only one option: winning his trust with the truth. Determining how far I could trust him had been the true purpose of my act of disinterest. So far, ...
2023-01-03 08:52:26 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi all,
I hope everyone has enjoyed their year end break. This year promises to be a full year for the Grand Game, with lots for you all to read!
Today, too, is the release of my first foreign translation: a German version of the Grand Game, Book 1. If you're curious, you can find it ...
2023-01-02 03:21:06 +0000 UTC View Post“You can’t be one of Dathe’s!”
I nodded. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.”
Spinning on his heel, Anriq paced across the grove, the waist-deep water barely checking his stride at all. I watched him, slightly envious. Having all that Strength must be nice, ...
2022-12-31 09:16:50 +0000 UTC View PostLike the tree itself, the prisoner was riddled with seaworms—thousands of them. But thankfully, they were all dormant, which likely explained why the wolf was only awakening now.
How is he still alive? I wondered. The hags had not mentioned how long they’d been holding...
2022-12-29 11:03:32 +0000 UTC View Post“Stop!”
The command rang across the grove, harsh and demanding, and in response, the hag I was charging lowered her hands.
For a split second, I contemplated following through with my attack anyway. But then curiosity and common sense caught up. Pulling back my swords, I altered m...
2022-12-22 10:47:38 +0000 UTC View PostI didn’t stay under long. When I judged myself a safe distance from the coral hag, I resurfaced.
“There he is!”
Three sea witches were directly ahead of me, only one of whom was protected by an ice shield. Not troubling to analyze my targets, I let fly with my astral daggers. 2022-12-20 10:50:10 +0000 UTC View Post
In the wake of the near miss, my heart pounded furiously, and my adrenaline surged. That was too close, I thought. Staying under, I waited for my pulse to slow and reflexively cloaked myself.
You are hidden.
The shadows wrapped comfortingly around me like a w...
2022-12-15 09:32:33 +0000 UTC View PostIt took me two hours to reach the forest grove.
Although the swamp teemed with life—mostly insects and creatures too small to pose a threat—there were a few larger occupants, but with mindsight to guide me, I was able to detour around them without trouble.
Still, the trip...
2022-12-13 08:52:06 +0000 UTC View PostWood creaked and broke, causing my foot to plunge through the stairs more than once. I didn’t let it slow me down. Each time, I caught myself before I could stumble and raced onwards.
I reached the third floor still encased in blood flies.
Your health has decreased to 91%! 2022-12-05 08:59:00 +0000 UTC View Post
I stopped when the street I was following south through the plague quarter came to an abrupt end. I’d reached the saltmarsh district.
Before me was the marsh itself, it stretched out as far as the eye could see, miles of brackish water filled to the bursting with bullrushes and other vege...
2022-12-02 06:23:01 +0000 UTC View PostI awoke early the next morning and, without delay, exited the room. I had an entire ‘free’ day before I left for the valley, and I intended to put the time to good use. Making my way through the hotel, I deliberated on what to do today.
Unfortunately, my goals had multiplied rapidly. 2022-11-29 10:02:37 +0000 UTC View Post
Level: 131. Rank: 13. Current Health: 100%.
Stamina: 100%. Mana: 100%. Psi: 100%.
Species: Human. Lives Remaining: 2.
True Marks (hidden): Pack-alpha.
False Marks (fabricated): Lesser Shadow, Lesser Light, Lesser Dark.
Active Buffs 2022-11-27 23:00:59 +0000 UTC View Post
You have acquired 5 x rank 4 disease protection crystals.
You have lost 100 gold.
After I’d rattled off my list, Kesh laid the protection crystals I requested on the table—but nothing else.
I looked at her questioningly.
The old mercha...
2022-11-27 07:50:39 +0000 UTC View PostKesh set down a familiar-looking thin film of metal on the desk. It was the same emporium catalog I’d used before. Scanning the sheet, I saw it contained a list of skills.
Picking up the catalog, I read avidly.
The Emporium’s List of Void Skillbooks
...
2022-11-23 11:58:14 +0000 UTC View PostI exited the hotel with my thoughts in turmoil.
My conversations with Loken never seemed to turn out the way I envisioned. Once again, the Shadow Power had me questioning what I knew. Was there a kernel of truth behind his words?
Had the ancients been monsters?
I wasn’t sure, ...
2022-11-21 07:16:59 +0000 UTC View PostAuthor's note: Hi all, the next chapter is finally ready. This one took me a few days to write. For many reasons, it was a difficult chapter to finish, and I rewrote it more than once. Hopefully, it all makes sense the way it is!
________________________________________________...
2022-11-13 12:28:18 +0000 UTC View Post“We heard everything,” Tartar confirmed. His gold-flecked eyes brimming with fury, the minotaur kept his gaze pinned on Loken. “Your intrigues know no end, jester.”
The stick-thin figure standing in the minotaur’s shadow waved his neon-green appendages in the air, signifying agree...
2022-11-09 12:49:17 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi all,
The audiobook of World Nexus is finally out! You can find it here: https://www.audible.com/pd/B0BLT5P848
2022-11-09 05:35:48 +0000 UTC View PostLess than an hour later, Shael came running back with a response. It read simply, ‘I will be there.’ There was no signature, but I knew who it had to be from—Loken.
I smiled in relief. I’d been sure Loken was in the city and paying close attention to events. The mantises’...
2022-11-08 12:08:22 +0000 UTC View PostThe legion commander was a tall man with graying hair and a stern demeanor. He took one look at the token before bowing respectfully and motioning me to follow him into the palace.
The commander refused to answer any of my questions, though, and after leading me into an empty anteroom, he s...
2022-11-04 06:25:27 +0000 UTC View Post
Book 3 of the Grand Game is finally out on amazon! With its release, I've put book 1 and 2 on Kindle Unlimited too.
Happy reading,
...
2022-11-01 18:02:57 +0000 UTC View PostSurprisingly, the suspicion that Loken knew the truth of my heritage did not dishearten me. On the contrary, my first reaction was one of relief.
Ever since meeting the trickster, I’d felt as if he toyed with me. I’d never been quite able to trust him nor take his actions at face value....
2022-11-01 16:54:43 +0000 UTC View PostI awoke with a gasp, my eyes wide and unseeing, and my breath coming in uncontrolled bursts. I was alive. No. I was dead. I’d died. Brutally staked through the heart.
No.
I had died, yes—but by my own hand. Or at the hand of my minion rather. Death had been preferable. No...
2022-10-31 05:57:05 +0000 UTC View PostThe room exited into a lightless corridor.
There were a pair of doors on the right and another two on the left. Hurrying forward, I tried the first.
Unfortunately, it was locked.
Damn, I thought and checked my mindsight. As far as I could tell, none of the rooms beyond ...
2022-10-28 08:01:24 +0000 UTC View PostYou have entered sector 1 of the Forever Kingdom.
I re-entered Nexus to find the city bathed in light. Behind me, the portal’s glow faded—indication enough that the way back to the fifth level was sealed. Squinting in the harsh glare of the noonday sun, I studied the sq...
2022-10-27 12:09:53 +0000 UTC View PostUnsurprisingly, finding out how the Houses had fallen sent Kolath into a spiral of rage.
For all that the guardian claimed to be a construct, he was unlike any other construct I’d encountered. Granted, those didn’t number very many, but I’d assumed they were all lifeless, mechanical b...
2022-10-20 05:59:17 +0000 UTC View PostI stared at the Game message, aghast. Awakening—?
It was not the sort of response I’d been expecting. Not at all. My head jerked left and right, searching the walled compound for any sign of change. The long grass remained still, t...
2022-10-19 05:33:55 +0000 UTC View Post