The statue mentioned in Vivienne's letter was a towering, nine-foot-tall marble simulacrum of a man dressed in robes, carrying a staff in one hand and a book in the other. A whirlpool covered the lower half of his body, so realistic it seemed to move even though it was made of unmoving white ston...
2024-11-14 13:45:29 +0000 UTC View PostAfter several hours of sleep, I threw myself back into the problem set before me. The cube's magic was opaque, more so than I would prefer, but a half-day worth of poking, prodding, testing, and theorizing gave me a few ideas of how to proceed.
The restorative effect was like a hundr...
2024-11-12 13:58:07 +0000 UTC View PostI reached the meeting place mentioned in the letter within fifteen minutes. It was a wide deck suspended two stories into the air, with a bar on the opposite side of the stairs and a half-dozen servers weaving through the crowd. Vines with glowing flowers of reds and blues crawled up latticeworks...
2024-11-09 14:12:10 +0000 UTC View PostFire blasted across the surface of my shield, up, over, and around it in a blinding crimson river. I could feel its heat even through dual layers of magical protection and sensed the burning, Mist-tier mana carried in each flickering tongue that danced past my face.
I ducked and twis...
2024-11-07 15:32:29 +0000 UTC View PostThe following day, we stood in a small shaded patch of grass, not unlike the one I had found near the inn. This one was a little larger, with a few trees, a nearby bench, and flowers growing underfoot in a dense multi-colored blanket. Petals blew in the air, and the smell was almost unpleasantly ...
2024-11-05 14:14:23 +0000 UTC View PostIt took a month for me to finally track down a place to stay within Colkirk proper. I almost wished I could trust Darius and the rest of his group enough to stay at their camp, but the hard facts were I did not. They seemed nice enough but were strangers and had taken me in a little too quickly f...
2024-11-02 12:41:27 +0000 UTC View PostWe left Aresford behind, heading back towards Colkirk. It felt the best option, at least with my existing wealth and capabilities. I wanted to polish my skills a little more before trying my luck with one of the various masters across the kingdom, and the great city without winter seemed an excel...
2024-10-31 15:01:21 +0000 UTC View PostMy first few days as a Mist felt remarkable. I tested the rest of my spells and found that each had shot forward in potency. Mana Bolt, even hastily cast, drilled a hole through solid stone. I suspected I could kill two, maybe even three, people with a single attack if they stood in front of one ...
2024-10-29 12:01:27 +0000 UTC View PostI was as ready as I would ever be to advance to Mist. My core, half-again as large thanks to my expansion technique, was full of brilliant, humming Aether.
During my past advancement, I had struggled in part due to the instabilities within my core. While I had not waited quite 2024-10-26 11:05:18 +0000 UTC View Post
My core expansion "technique," crude and wasteful though it was, worked better than I could have imagined. Each session was unpleasant and earned only marginal improvements, but the side effects proved far less debilitating than expected.
Though I was first limited to one session a d...
2024-10-24 14:01:58 +0000 UTC View PostWeeks of near-constant failures passed as I tried again and again to work out the trick to my hypothetical technique. I altered my breathing pattern and attempted it near the Aether pool, hoping that higher mana density might change the result, yet success eluded me.
While I fully in...
2024-10-22 13:33:24 +0000 UTC View PostA month passed in the blink of an eye as Cat and I settled into our new home. Rowen had more than delivered, putting me to work as a laborer at the mines. I had thought a year of consistent exercise and training would give me enough strength and endurance to keep up with the other workers.
...
2024-10-19 13:20:00 +0000 UTC View PostIt took us weeks longer to reach our next destination, which gave me ample time to ponder what I learned from the tree. There was something there, a trick that might hold the secrets to improving my magic, but I could not crack it without more information.
Soon, a city ...
2024-10-17 11:41:28 +0000 UTC View PostSetting off alone was at once terrifying and liberating. I had never in my life felt anything comparable.
There was a looming deadline and an unbeatable threat. My friends, home, and life as I knew it lay behind me and the path in front of me was opaque. Yet it felt like I had remove...
2024-10-15 11:54:08 +0000 UTC View PostI did not sleep that night. Instead, I tossed and turned, repeating the conversation with my friends—former friends, most likely, over in my head.
Their responses made sense. Why would they believe such a tall tale? I would not have if I were in their shoes, even if I...
2024-10-12 09:00:51 +0000 UTC View PostI rolled my shoulders, tightening the fittings of my vambrace and checking the runes for any damage. While I had not used it yet, there was a possibility I had made a mistake in the enchanting process that would cause strain.
When I felt content, I nodded to Neil. The g...
2024-10-10 11:36:08 +0000 UTC View PostThe Estton holdings comprised miles of sweeping grasslands and plains. Farms, towns, and villages broke up the near-endless stretch of greens, with a few twisting streams cutting through here and there. Wildlife was common, both magical and mundane, though they tended to be passive and herbivorou...
2024-10-08 12:07:33 +0000 UTC View PostConversation was non-existent across the next few days. No one seemed eager to bring up our failed hunt or the tragedy that had resulted. Instead, we each withdrew inward, staying busy however we could.
Sophia threw herself into training, often pushing her body past the point where i...
2024-10-05 11:57:53 +0000 UTC View PostThe drake spotted me within seconds. Its coal-black eyes fixed on me, and its mouth opened as it let out a low, sibilant hiss. I adjusted my grip on my dagger, wishing I had brought along a spear, even though both would be equally useless against the beast's scales and dense, magically enhanced f...
2024-10-03 11:48:38 +0000 UTC View PostLeon and the hunters had dug their pit trap less than a mile from the drake's location, close enough to catch the scent of fresh blood and meat but far enough that it would take time to reach us. They had dug the rectangular hole ten feet deep and thirty feet long with steep sides reinforced with...
2024-10-01 11:08:08 +0000 UTC View Post"Can I help you?" I asked.
"We need to talk," Leon replied, his voice hard as stone.
I stared for a few seconds, then nodded and stepped to one side, "Yes, I suppose we do."
Leon walked into my room, glancing over at the animal who had taken over my bed befo...
2024-09-28 12:14:06 +0000 UTC View PostLeon's eyebrows shot towards his hairline, and I heard Simon inhale sharply. Amelia leaned forward in her chair, one foot tapping on the floor, and Sophia's eyes focused on the mayor.
I folded my arms across my chest, trying not to let my skepticism show.
Leon regained h...
2024-09-26 12:12:08 +0000 UTC View PostWe were back on the road the following morning, leaving Colkirk behind. If it was my decision, we would have remained in the city for a few more days. Though Elvor was a water mage, I would still prefer to take a closer look at his magic. And even if I did not learn anything, Simon might.
<...
2024-09-24 10:53:02 +0000 UTC View PostI did not stop at our table. Instead, I walked past my friends and made for the exit. A weight settled onto my back as I felt gazes, both familiar and unknown, follow me. I ignored them, along with the murmuring, and stepped outside and onto a busy Colkirk street.
Anger simmered in m...
2024-09-21 11:38:50 +0000 UTC View PostNight had fallen onto the city proper, settling over the streets like a blanket. Despite that, laughter, music, cheering, and the clinking of glasses filled the air, mixing with scents of alcohol, fire, and perfume into a chaotic mess that overwhelmed my senses.
Leon seemed to ignore...
2024-09-19 13:03:57 +0000 UTC View PostColkirk was once a town and not a particularly unique one at that. It was of middling size, built beside a lake, and the villagers there lived and died through fishing. Its sole claim to fame was its lord, the youngest son of a minor noble.
This lord was a pitiful mage, sent to the t...
2024-09-17 10:48:03 +0000 UTC View PostWe stopped just as the sun began to creep toward the horizon. I would have kept going if it was my choice, but that was my impatience and selfishness overruling common sense. My companions and our mounts seemed exhausted and eager to stop for the night.
Leon led us several hundred fe...
2024-09-14 10:49:45 +0000 UTC View PostOur journey started with an argument.
"You have a cat, and you never told me?" Amelia demanded, alternating between trying to approach the feline and glaring at me. She had noticed my new friend the moment I stepped outside the Academy and pounced on us like, well, a cat. 2024-09-12 11:47:11 +0000 UTC View Post
There was no truly impenetrable place. The Wandering Cites possessed defenses robust enough to weather almost anything but would fail given enough time. Elder dragons often built their homes within inhospitable locations, such as active volcanoes or caves deep within the Azure Expanse. Yet a riva...
2024-09-10 10:52:30 +0000 UTC View PostLeon had given us two days to prepare for our journey, giving me ample time for final goodbyes. And a few last-minute magical tasks while I still had access to the Academy.
I could not bring the remaining samples from the Aresford monster with me, so examining them was my top priorit...
2024-09-07 10:37:57 +0000 UTC View Post