Coop’s predawn routine began as usual. Jett seemed to be finding more creative ways to sleep, this time she had all four of her legs up in the air, occasionally kicking one or the other in response to her dreams. Coop left her to wash his face and do his morning warm up at the top of the fort.<...
2023-01-20 16:11:01 +0000 UTC View PostWhen the sun came up, Charlie and Camila ended their slumber party. They used the elevation of the office building to view the coast and chart a course through the rest of the city. From their vantage point, they could see that the waterfront condominiums looked to be in pretty good shape. The po...
2023-01-18 16:11:00 +0000 UTC View PostCharlie and Camila spent the night in Charlie’s childhood bedroom, sharing a bed and sleeping for the first time in 10 days with a pile of stuffed animals keeping watch. When they woke, Charlie’s father had prepared them a simple breakfast. Despite the modest offerings, it was one of the best...
2023-01-16 16:12:00 +0000 UTC View PostCharlie was gathered with her assigned party. They were preparing to return to their true bodies on Earth after receiving 10 days of training. She had become a ‘Chosen’ for a faction called the Endless Empire. One minute she was walking to her apartment with groceries, and the next she was be...
2023-01-13 16:11:01 +0000 UTC View PostThe Tavern they just built had taken a lot of real estate, so Coop was surprised when it was also three stories tall. It was a solid wood and stone structure with thick glass windows on the second and third floor. The wooden sign that hung on a pair of chains above the heavy wooden door had the i...
2023-01-11 16:11:00 +0000 UTC View PostCoop had been mesmerized by the Coral Forest. He hopped from ledge to ledge, just taking it all in.
It was beautiful and surreal, unlike anything he had ever seen but also sometimes familiar. He spotted a purple brain coral the size of a house and blue-green sea fans swaying in the open air...
2023-01-09 16:12:00 +0000 UTC View PostCoop woke up before dawn with Jett nestled under one arm. He was grateful she let him keep the pillow this time. Coop gently scooted her over before he jumped out of bed. He was filled with motivation this morning. There was only one more day before the leaderboards appeared and he had discovered...
2023-01-06 16:11:01 +0000 UTC View PostCoop left the fort motivated to expand his horizons. He had decided to check the next island in the Ghost Reef chain. While he hadn’t explored the mangrove forest at all yet, he was a bit scared of heading in there. The thick muck combined with the tangled mangrove roots would make any movement...
2023-01-04 16:11:00 +0000 UTC View PostOnce again, Coop woke up before dawn. Jett had taken over his pillow at some point in the night, leaving him flat on the mattress. She had her two front paws pressed against his face while she slept, a smoking gun for how she claimed the pillow. He tried to hang onto his previous night’s motiva...
2023-01-02 16:11:00 +0000 UTC View PostBalor Rockshaper was bored. He had retired 500 years ago and found it didn’t live up to the hype. It wasn’t building the grand monuments that he missed, it was the simple projects that required back breaking work day after day that he longed for.
He looked at his stone hands and admired...
2023-01-01 17:04:40 +0000 UTC View PostSunset was rapidly approaching when Coop left the safety of the fort, crossing the wooden bridge and following the sandy trail where they had claimed the civilization shard. Instead of looking like a zombie apocalypse survivor with his machete and duct tape armor, he thought he looked a lot more ...
2023-01-01 17:04:14 +0000 UTC View PostCoop had two new titles that came out of nowhere. He had missed one notification for the Haunted title, as he got it when he unlocked his affinity, and he had received the Ethereal title after choosing his skills. He didn’t expect titles to be given out so freely by the system. When he first sa...
2023-01-01 17:03:45 +0000 UTC View PostCoop checked his class options with renewed purpose.
[Phantom Blade]
[Edgerunner]
[Revenant]
[Harbinger]
[Ritemaster]
He tried not to jump to any conclusions as he took in his choices. Of course, he would scrutinize each option, starting from the top of the lis...
2023-01-01 17:03:16 +0000 UTC View PostOnce again, Coop woke up with Jett on his chest, purring. She was a good kitty and he told her so. He had the feeling she already knew it and that she thought he might be a little dim for repeating it. He didn’t mind reminding her anyway.
Today, he and Jones were continuing the hunt for A...
2023-01-01 17:02:38 +0000 UTC View PostThe next day Coop and Jones returned to the lighthouse trail. They were on a mission to defeat more Ancient Defenders, and since the only one they had ever seen was near the trail, that was where they began their search.
They cautiously walked along the path while carefully scanning the dun...
2023-01-01 17:02:02 +0000 UTC View PostCoop sat underneath the most normal sized palm tree in the vicinity while his leg throbbed with pain. He decided this palm tree was his new favorite. He felt some kinship with the tree that hadn’t grown with mana, like they both weren’t Chosen and were stuck being normal. Leveling up had prov...
2023-01-01 17:01:27 +0000 UTC View PostJones and Coop resumed their conversation in the mess hall while Jett held court on the table. Jett waited patiently as if she would be participating in the discussion herself. She was an old cat, apparently in her 20s in human years, which Coop hadn’t even known was possible. She calmly listen...
2023-01-01 17:00:44 +0000 UTC View PostWhen Coop’s consciousness returned, the first thing he noticed was the gentle rumbling still in his chest. It was pleasant now. Comforting, even. When Coop opened his eyes he was greeted by the night. He was also greeted by Jett.
Jett was the black cat who lived in the lighthouse. She
Coop loved his job.
It wasn’t his dream job or anything, but it still felt like a dream morphing into a nightmare when the sky was blotted out and the ground began shaking violently.
Starting a career had snuck up on him in an uncomfortable way. He had just finished school and...
2023-01-01 16:37:29 +0000 UTC View Post