From the top of the cliff, Elijah studied the encampment across the strait separating his island from what he expected was the mainland, and what he found was inexplicably infuriating. With Eyes of the Eagle, he could clearly see the beginnings of a primitive town nestled at the foot of a mountai...
2023-11-13 04:20:01 +0000 UTC View PostElijah crouched at the tree line, watching the crabs scuttle across the rocky shore. Then, he tossed a bit of fish entrails only a few feet away from the most isolated crustacean. It took the creature a moment to notice it, but when it did, it wasted no time before skittering across the rocks and...
2023-11-13 04:19:00 +0000 UTC View PostElijah felt Strength flow through him as he felt the effects of One With Nature take hold. More, for the first time, the spell came with understanding. It felt as if he’d suddenly remembered a long-lost memory, and the result was that he knew how the new spell worked. And he was impressed.
<... 2023-11-13 04:18:00 +0000 UTC View PostBefore Elijah dropped into unconsciousness, he saw a familiar notification that jarred him back to awareness.
Congratulations! You have reached level three, earning two free attribute points. Would you like to allocate free attribute points?
It was followe...
2023-11-13 04:17:01 +0000 UTC View PostElijah had managed to close the wound on his back, but with the viridian monster slowly closing on him, he had other things on his mind. His core was empty, and it would take at least an hour before it recovered to full capacity. And even if he survived that long, he had no way of defeating the c...
2023-11-13 04:16:01 +0000 UTC View PostElijah sat on the boulder, the trout forgotten as he looked at the notification that had come with the jolt of power to which he’d been subjected after reaching the second level. It said:
Congratulations! You have reached level two, earning two free attribute points. W...
2023-11-13 04:15:01 +0000 UTC View PostElijah hacked at the block of wood, careful to hit it just right. Over the last couple of months, he’d had plenty of practice, but even so, losing concentration would be disastrous for the results. He spared a glance for the pile of firewood propped against one corner of his shelter and reconsi...
2023-11-13 04:14:00 +0000 UTC View PostAlyssa stood on the roof of the police station and gazed out across the parking lot. There, she saw a haggard group of people waiting in front of the crude brick wall Carmen had built. It was rough, but at almost six feet high and half as thick, it had proven to be very effective in the weeks sin...
2023-11-13 04:13:01 +0000 UTC View PostElijah studied the results of his efforts, which had been arranged into separate piles according to their intended purpose. The first was simple enough; it was comprised of a couple of crab claws, each the size of a small animal. Beneath that chitinous exterior was at least a few pounds of white ...
2023-11-13 04:12:01 +0000 UTC View PostThroughout the night, Elijah kept adding fuel to the fire, so by the time morning came, he was still tired, and his meager store of firewood had been vastly depleted. But he’d managed to keep it going, so there was a chance that he wouldn’t have to go through the grueling process of creating ...
2023-11-13 04:11:01 +0000 UTC View PostElijah ran his hand over his head, feeling a light stubble that should not have been there. After all, hair just wasn’t supposed to grow that fast, was it? When the plane had crashed and the System had descended upon Earth, he had been completely bald, his hair having been sacrificed at the alt...
2023-11-13 04:09:01 +0000 UTC View Post“What do I call you?” asked Elijah, still looking up at the tree creature.
“I have no name, for I am only a sapling,” it said. “Regardless, this is the last time we will speak for some time. I am nearly at the end of my available energy.”
“Oh.”
Elijah had no idea...
2023-11-13 04:08:01 +0000 UTC View PostAlyssa knelt in the park across the street from the police station. Next to her was Roman, with the other three a few feet behind. She asked, “What do you think?”
“It’s not good,” he said, clutching his bow. Alyssa noticed that his knuckles were white, and if she was honest, she d...
2023-11-13 04:07:01 +0000 UTC View PostAfter a night filled with fitful sleep, Elijah woke to a world of pain twisting through his stomach. He clutched at his midsection and, as cramps assailed him, heaved the meager contents of his stomach onto the ground beside him. There was precious little there – mostly liquid, in fact, which g...
2023-11-13 04:06:00 +0000 UTC View PostElijah looked down at his ruined legs. The crabs had really done a number on them, and unless he figured out how to use his new spell, he’d be in real trouble. Even if he’d managed to overcome his cancer – which was still unsure – he still had to concern himself with immediate survival. 2023-11-13 04:05:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Alyssa kept her hand on her pistol as she walked down the center of the street. Behind her followed Carmen, their son Miguel, and Trish. Bringing up the rear was Roman, who was holding his bow.
With her shotgun in hand, Trish complained, “Is all this really necessary?”
“Maybe. M...
2023-11-13 04:04:01 +0000 UTC View PostElijah dreamed of his puppy, Fremont, nipping at his legs as he read a book. The dog was a rambunctious thing, still untrained, and full of energy and cuddly love. Slowly, his rational mind intruded on the pleasant dream, telling him that his dog hadn’t been a puppy for years, that he’d been ...
2023-11-13 04:02:01 +0000 UTC View Post“I think we have enough for a couple of weeks, so long as we ration,” said Alyssa, looking over the stacks of canned food on the table. There were other dry goods as well, but not nearly as many as she’d hoped. “Makes me wish I’d made a Costco run before, you know, the end of the world....
2023-11-13 04:02:01 +0000 UTC View Post“What the hell is going on?” gasped Alyssa, staring at the disembodied blocks of text. It was too dark to see, but, after that brief period of nothingness, she could feel Carmen’s comfortable presence next to her in bed. “You saw it too, didn’t you?”
“I…I did,” Carmen answ...
2023-11-13 04:01:00 +0000 UTC View PostElijah Hart ran a hand over his hairless head as he tried to ignore the curious or disgusted glances originating with the plane’s other passengers. His lack of hair wasn’t really the issue – not by itself, at least. Instead, the real problem was the lack of eyebrows; he’d never really con...
2023-11-13 04:00:03 +0000 UTC View PostIt can’t be overstated how jarring it is to wake up missing a bunch of parts. Even as I took shelter in the mech suit, I knew I was never going to be the same. However, the extent of the damage to my body far exceeded anything I could’ve ever anticipated. Now, I vacillate... 2023-11-12 14:00:06 +0000 UTC View Post
When I first met Mirabelle Braddock, I knew she would be trouble. I should have killed her, there and then, but I was too selfish to see what she might become. I was too interested in winning our war.
Alistaris Kargat
I hudd...
2023-11-11 14:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostThe moment he’d chosen to climb the cyclops and kill the creature he should not have been able to kill, Zeke knew he was deviating from the dungeon’s intended script. Since the very beginning, every single obstacle had featured a clear goal and a straightforward way to progress. The same was ...
2023-11-10 14:00:04 +0000 UTC View PostZeke dug through flesh for what felt like miles until, at last, he reached a solid wall of bone. At first, he was unsure of what had stopped his progress – especially with everything coated in blood and gore – but it only took a few moments longer for him to realize that he’d reached the cy...
2023-11-09 14:00:03 +0000 UTC View PostWorld Killer. That is the title she would eventually earn. And seeing that first mass execution…what she did to the Pacificians opened a lot of eyes and got a lot of attention. It’s terrifying, what she can do, and the fact that we’re on the same side doesn’t do much ... 2023-11-08 14:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Zeke seethed, but he managed to keep his emotions under control as he climbed the giant cyclops’ neck. It swatted at him, its hand hitting with world-ending force. His body cracked under the impact, sending a cascade of rock, metal, and crystal tumbling down, and yet, Zeke persisted, relying on...
2023-11-07 14:00:05 +0000 UTC View PostFor the first time in a long time, Zeke felt a spike of terror in his mind. It didn’t last long before he smothered it beneath a mountain of life-or-death experiences, but it didn’t really go away. It never did. Fear was just a part of life. Another obstacle to be overcome. And Zeke refused t...
2023-11-06 14:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostAlright, so I got some huge news this week, and I'm super excited about it. So, I'll buck the normal formatting trend and jump straight to Path of Dragons news. First, the big announcement: I just signed a six book deal with Podium to publish the series and produce it for audiobooks. ...
2023-11-05 21:29:47 +0000 UTC View PostI sometimes wonder how I can be with someone who can do the things Mira has done. Aside from the morality of killing literal millions of people, I often look at her and see someone that’s so far above me – at least in terms of power – that we’re barely even the same s... 2023-11-05 14:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
I don’t want to spend the rest of my life fighting a war. I know the cause is just. I get that. But why does it have to be us? Why can’t we just leave and let someone else shoulder the weight of resistance?
Patrick Ward
...
2023-11-04 13:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post