#crater city wip

[gummybugg]

Oh I gave a great idea! *breaks character's psyche into a million unsalvageable pieces with a baseball bat*

#blair blair blair #what are we gonna do with you #writeblr #writing #crater city wip #oc tingz #i kinda feel bad but also it just has to happen #say good bye to all that you ever hoped for and loved blair #bye bye

[ceph-the-ghost-writer]

The temple entrance had been carved out under a set of splayed finger bones. Or Celina took the twisted spires jutting from the crater wall to be fingers anyway. She counted seven aside from a thumb. All of them tipped with scythe-shaped talons that could have cut open a train boxcar like a tin can. She caught herself reaching out as she and Vess passed under. Whatever smoky black mineral had fossilized the creature entombed within the stone left the bones with a curiously organic texture. Something along the lines of fingernails or chitin. They produced a very unrock-like thump when tapped. Up close, she could see they were translucent.

“What is this stuff?” she asked, not really expecting an answer.

Yet Vess paused, looking back over its shoulder. It shrugged. “What are gods made of?”

Celina pulled her hand away and frowned down at her palm. She didn’t catch anything glittering or glowing on her skin. No tingles or echoes of magic rippled up her arm. “Nothing that special, I guess.”

#mind worms built their city in a giant crater #where some eldritch being fell and died as it turns out #the enormous skeleton was incorporated into their design #the spine is a main thoroughfare #and has all the touristy spots #beyond & between #wip: fair trade

[coffeeandcalligraphy]

WIP Intro - Hallowed Bodies

Genre: Adult literary fiction, novella (a Moth Work novella that bridges BODY BACK & Feeding Habits)

Status: Currently drafting / ~10k words

Synopsis: Alone for a week in Las Vegas, Lonan feels trapped in bland domesticity until a strange encounter propels him to search for his missing younger sister.

Setting: Las Vegas, NV

Vibe: Empty churches, candles burning, dangling rosaries, worn hymnbooks, musty libraries, reflections dulled by blue hour, still bodies of water, staring at a stranger in the dark, expired film, family photo albums, wispy sunlight, crisp eucharist, a fluttering city, an untouched bowl of cherries, dazed walks at golden hour, lonely men

Characters:

Lonan (narrator - 21) | internal, illogical, romantic, anxious, lonely

The man (26) | forward, decisive, charming, desperate

Excerpt:

Lonan doesn’t pray anymore. At least not the way he used to. As a child, he and his father prayed everywhere: begging for forgiveness at Crater Lake, repenting in line for an oil change, supplicating in a windstorm. On Sundays, they’d wake before dawn and nestle in front of the bathroom mirror, recite the first chapter of Genesis, Paul’s letters to Timothy, Psalm 22. Lonan preferred the Apostle’s Creed. He’d watch his young mouth repeat I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, and he did believe. After hours of this, sunlight misting the open window, mass a half hour away, their lips would be so numb they’d have to pinch them until they were bloody mouthed and ready, at last, for God.

#writeblr #wip intro #writerblr #wip introduction #amwriting #writing #fostered #mothwork #hallowed bodies #IT'S HEREEEE #this is really just for organizational purposes at this point lol but I'm almost done this book! #and am going to post one mega update since it's pretty short #so here's this as context!!!!! #yes “the man” no longer has a name for narrative reasons #BUT THE TUMBLR BESTIES get to know his name is dallas #and it's that way because he looks like matt dillon in the outsiders yes that was my final reasoning #ANYWAY HALLOWED BODIES FUN FUN FUN #<<< me droning on that this is the most boring project on earth

[roxannarambles]

Title: Wings of a Butterfly, Eye of the Tiger (Part 2)

Ship: Nemona x Juliana (Julinemo/Terajules)

Summary: Nemona and Juliana just can’t resist returning to Area Zero once more. They find new places to explore, new pokemon to discover, and a new things to learn … about pokemon battling, but also about each other.

Notes: Happy Pokemon Day, folks. I don't normally post WIPs, but I already posted the first chapter so. I guess I post WIPs now, lol. Usual disclaimers that I've been slow lately with writing for health reasons, so don't expect fast updates.

Part 1 is here!

When you and Nemona glided down into Area Zero on Koraidon the next morning, it looked exactly the same as you’d last seen it: bright, glittering, with breathtaking vistas and a thriving population of powerful pokemon. You still marveled at the strange, almost eerie feeling of the place, very much like stepping into a portal that brought you into a pocket universe of its very own. It was so incredibly quiet here, all the usual background noises of human civilization like the hum of cities and cars and planes entirely absent; what’s more, the sunlight that streamed into the crater through the haze of clouds seemed to be magnified so that it was incredibly bright down here, almost supernaturally so. You figured it probably had to do with the way the air itself shimmered. Perhaps the tera crystal energy was drifting in the very air around you. Hopefully it wasn’t bad to breathe it in– your previous trips here and the healthy pokemon certainly suggested it wasn’t. If anything, it filled you with a buzzy energy, tingling at your senses and your fingertips.

Nemona was as charged as ever, probably feeling the effects of that buzzy energy too. After landing, you both walked to a wide, open space covered in grass.

“This place look good?”

“Seems good to me.”

“Ok, great! Let’s do this!!”

“Hold on. Scarlet, get ready.”

You nodded to your pokemon, and the giant red lizard stood on his hind legs, unfurling the feathered crests on his head and tail. 

“Aw, Jules, they aren’t even healed up from the last battle! I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“Just making sure.”

Nemona smiled, amused at how wary you were, then took the pokeball from her belt. 

“Hellcat, go!”

She tossed the ball, a large, quadrupedal tiger materializing before the both of you. It was green and covered in jagged purple stripes, its limbs stocky and sinewy like twisted vines, and it had a pointed, leafy mask covering its face. A pair of wickedly sharp fangs jutted from its mouth, which looked like giant purple thorns. 

When the tiger appeared, it seemed confused for a few moments, its pupils narrowing in the bright sunlight as it looked around. 

Its gaze settled on you. It curled its lips back in a snarl, the sound a bloodchilling reminder of the last time this pokemon stood before you. 

Then it sprang, purple claws reaching for you in a flash, no hesitation. You hardly had a chance to even register what was happening before Scarlet jumped in front of you, crashing into the tiger. They tussled for a bit, the tiger giving angry shrieks while Scarlet roared, you and Nemona watching with wide eyes. You grew worried when the tiger sunk its toxic fangs into Koraidon’s leg, but Scarlet quickly thwacked it away with his heavy tail and then blasted the tiger with his fiery breath. 

This seemed enough to finally subdue the pokemon, Hellcat staggering to a stop with an exhausted growl. It panted, looking weak but eyes still burning with a feral rage. 

You looked to Nemona. She had a hand held to her mouth in surprise.

“Holy moly. I guess you were right! They had way more fight left in them than I thought.”

Hands on hips, you nodded.

“Somehow I’m not surprised. I think we’re gonna have our work cut out for us, taming this tiger.”

Nemona turned to dig through her bag.

“Well hopefully they’ll be purring like a big ‘ol pussycat before long. Food usually wins over even the crankiest of pokemon.”

She pulled out some berries, but you frowned at the selection she had.

“Maybe, um, we should start with Oran berries instead of Sitrus?”

She looked at you a moment and glanced to Hellcat. 

“Mmm . . . yeah, okay.”

She grabbed one of the little blue berries and took a few steps towards the tiger.

“Okay Hellcat, you’re probably pretty hungry by now. You want a berry?”

You didn’t like Nemona getting closer to this tiger, but Koraidon was watching very carefully, and you knew you guys had to start somewhere. Nemona took a few more cautious steps, holding the berry out.

“That’s a good kitty. Do you like Oran berries?”

Hellcat snarled at her, its pink eyes glaring daggers. Koraidon flicked his tail and seemed about to intervene, but you held up a hand to indicate for him to stay put. 

Nemona cooed to the tiger,

“Aw, don’t be like that. I just want to help you. You’ll feel a lot better after you eat!”

She tried to step closer again, but the tiger’s angry snarl made her stop. She spoke soothingly,

“C’mon, Hellcat, it’s just a tasty berry, I promise. I’m not gonna hurt you.”

“Nemona, I don’t think this is working . . .”

She sighed and agreed,

“Yeah. Any ideas on what to do?”

You considered it for a moment.

“Maybe . . . maybe we need to be a bit tougher, you know? If you’re too sweet and nice, they might just see it as a sign of weakness or something.”

She looked at you.

“You want me to be mean to them?”

“Not mean! Just . . . firm. Assertive!”

Nemona frowned.

“I guess I could try.”

She cleared her throat, then took a step forward.

“E-eat the berry, Hellcat!”

She tossed the berry. It rolled along the ground until it came to a stop in front of the tiger. Hellcat sniffed at the berry before flicking a tongue out and swallowing it. Nemona took another Oran berry and stepped closer. The tiger growled.

“C’mon Hellcat, if you want the next berry you gotta not growl at me.”

She tried again, but Hellcat still was incredibly agitated and wasn’t cooperating. 

“You gotta be firmer than that, Nemona.”

“I’m being as firm as I can be! I’m no good at being mean, you know that, Juliana.”

“Ok, let me try.”

Nemona stepped back and let you take some berries and approach the tiger, holding one out. The pokemon crouched down, ears flattened as it hissed.

 In your best bossy tone, you said,

“No hissing. Sit down, Hellcat, and I’ll give you a berry.”

The tiger didn’t sit and simply remained crouched, as if ready to spring. It was incredibly unnerving, but you knew you had to show the pokemon who was boss. You inched closer and repeated,

“Sit, Hellcat! If you want food, you gotta sit.”

Scarlet made an unhappy whine. Nervously, Nemona warned,

“Jules . . .”

You tried again, demanding,

“Sit, Hellcat!”

The tiger bared its fangs, the muscles in its limbs taut with tension.

“Sit–”

Hellcat jerked just slightly, as if it was thinking of lunging at you, and Nemona’s voice suddenly rang out so loud and vicious it made your heart leap in your chest:

“SIT DOWN!”

The tiger froze immediately, its pink gaze on Nemona. You glanced to see Nemona was staring the tiger down with pure fire in her eyes. You’d never seen her look so intimidating before. 

Then, miraculously, Hellcat backed off and sat down, its tail drooped and its head lowered. You stared in awe, completely dumbfounded.

“Y-you . . . you did it!”

After a few moments you remembered to give Hellcat the berry and then backed off a few paces to give it some space. You turned to your friend.

“That was incredible, Nemona!”

She seemed just as shocked as you were.

“They really listened to me, didn’t they?”

You nodded and teased,

“And you said you weren’t any good at being mean.”

She crossed her arms and huffed,

“Well I wasn’t gonna let them eat you! I don’t think you realize how close you came to being catfood just now.”

You wanted to tell her Scarlet would have stopped Hellcat before that happened, but in actuality, you’d been so close to the tiger you weren’t actually certain, in retrospect. 

“Erm, well . . . maybe it wasn’t the best approach. But I think we made some actual progress! Try giving them another berry.”

Nemona reluctantly went to try it out.

“Sit, Hellcat!”

The tiger growled at her quietly.

“No, Nemona, you gotta sound like before, when you were all scary and stuff.”

“I’m trying. Sit, Hellcat!”

“That’s not even close.”

Nemona turned and complained,

“Well you’re not about to die, Jules!”

You blinked.

“Yeah?”

“So I’m not gonna sound like I was before!”

“. . . oh.”

You considered the problem for a moment, then asked,

“Mmm, well, can you try to imagine, then?”

Nemona didn’t seem a fan of the idea.

“You mean imagine you’re about to die?”

“Y-yeah, I guess?”

She hesitated before saying,

“I dunno, Jules . . . that feels weird, you know?”

You chuckled. You placed a hand on her arm and acknowledged,

“That’s fair. But look, you obviously can be very commanding when you want to be, you just gotta tap into that! It could be a pretty valuable skill. I mean, if you can tame Hellcat, you can tame any pokemon.”

Her expression scrunched up as she thought about it, and then she sighed.

“All right, all right . . . I’ll give it a shot.”

She approached the tiger again. Hellcat turned to her and the fur on its back ruffled, hot-pink eyes glaring. Nemona didn’t say anything at first, apparently concentrating. 

Then she gestured at the pokemon, ordering without hesitation,

“SIT DOWN!”

Hellcat’s ears lowered and it sat down. Nemona smiled.

“Good kitty!”

She gave it an oran berry. 

“Okay, what next . . . oh, I know.”

She backed up a bit.

“Ok, Hellcat, come. Oh, right.” She cleared her throat.

“Hellcat, come here!”

You watched as the tiger obediently stood up and approached her. 

“Good job!”

She fed it again, the tiger eagerly chomping the berry down. 

“Ok Hellcat, sit!”

You smiled as Hellcat sat once more, waiting expectantly for the berry. Nemona tossed it and Hellcat caught it out of the air. Nemona turned and grinned at you,

“We’re doing it, Jules, did you see that??”

“I did. I knew you could, Nemona. You’re pretty amazing.”

She gave a laugh, then gestured at you.

“C’mon, come give it a try!”

You joined Nemona, helping her put Hellcat through the very basics of pokemon training. That included things like sit, stay, come, lay down, and so forth. Most pokemon picked these up very rapidly, and Hellcat did too now that it was feeling a little more cooperative. The pokemon obeyed you too once you’d managed to be sufficiently commanding (by imitating Nemona), but you could tell that Nemona still had an easier time getting Hellcat to cooperate than you did. Part of you suspected it was because the pokemon remembered when Nemona went up against it with nothing but a rock. You certainly felt impressed whenever you thought about it, and it wouldn’t surprise you if it left a strong impression on the pokemon, too. Quite frankly, you didn’t mind in the least that Hellcat was bonding so well with Nemona. It just made you smile to watch. 

The two of you spent the morning in intensive training with Hellcat. The commands Hellcat enjoyed the least were things requiring restraint, such as ‘wait’ or ‘drop it,’ while learning battle commands were clearly its favorites. Hellcat had a very wild, aggressive disposition and a strong will, but channeling that energy into battling seemed to bring it a lot of joy. It positively wrecked the pokemon it went up against– it seemed to have a phenomenal attack stat, and its moves were pretty potent. You found out that it knew Play Rough, Dire Claw, Swords Dance and a powerful grass move neither of you had ever seen before. The two of you decided to name the move ‘Thorn Fang’ since it was a biting move.

After a busy morning, you both stopped for lunch. It was a leisurely picnic, watching the majestic waterfalls and chatting with Nemona about pokemon battling, while Hellcat and Scarlet lounged in the grass nearby. When you’d finished eating you both just lazed there for a while, breathing the sweet, clean air under the shade of the trees. 

For a while, Nemona let her head slump down and come rest on your shoulder, her eyes closed and her body perfectly relaxed. You felt your heart thumping in your chest and stayed very still, not wanting to disturb her. She drowsed for a bit until eventually waking and apologizing. You missed the feeling of warmth when she moved.

Fortunately, your time in Area Zero was far from over. You had come fully prepared to make it a full-day event. You both packed up from the picnic, revitalized, refreshed and ready for more adventure. You hiked to the bottom of Area Zero, where the earth opened up into a spacious, sparkling cave. The plan was to search for Roaring Moon. The primeval version of Salamence was the only Paradox Pokemon that had eluded you on your previous trip. Nemona was very eager to find one, her eyes aglow with excitement whenever you spoke of how terrifying it had been to face in battle. You hadn’t spent much time in the caves during your previous trip, so you hoped this trip would turn up the dragon type. It was also possible you’d discover even more Paradox Pokemon species, like you had last time when discovering Hellcat. That would certainly be a welcome bonus, although it was perhaps unlikely. In either case, you both felt the caves were your best bet for finding something cool.

If the surface of Area Zero was beautiful, then the caves were downright breathtaking. Your first exposure to them had been under rather stressful circumstances, so it was nice to have the time to truly appreciate them now. The tera crystals down here grew to gargantuan proportions, massive columns of shimmering rainbow that lit the caverns with their glow. Waterfalls fed down into the caves from above, and the pathways through the earth snaked along narrow channels, marked loosely with ropes driven into the ground with stakes by the previous research expedition. In many spots, there were stomach-turning sheer drops, and you made sure to keep away from the edges of the narrow pathways. Nemona had gone up to the edge one time, excited over a pokemon she’d spotted, and you grabbed her hand and pulled her closer. You didn’t care if she had a Rotom Phone with safety measures for falls, the thought of it still twisted your stomach. After that, she kept further away from the edges so you wouldn’t worry. 

She also continued to hold your hand. You told yourself it was also so you wouldn’t worry. You knew you shouldn’t read into it any more than that. 

Eventually, the two of you reached the deepest part of the cave. It had taken quite a while, but that was because you’d taken your time, enjoying the sights and searching for pokemon. Now that you stood here at the bottom, you could see the tall prefabricated buildings made of steel, looking a lot like industrial warehouses. The sight was a bit jarring in such a beautiful, secretive place. The central building was the largest and was encased entirely in tera crystal, the only part still exposed being the hexagonal airlock door that served as an entrance. This was the Zero Lab, of course, Professor Sada’s most secret facility. Out of sheer curiosity, you both couldn’t resist approaching it to poke around her lab again; however, the doors would no longer open, refusing to respond no matter which buttons you pressed on the control panel. It seemed they had powered down in your absence. 

“Hmmph. That’s kind of a bummer. I wanted to look around some more,” Nemona said, poking the unresponsive buttons on the control panel. 

“Yeah. Probably for the best though, to be honest. If we accidentally tripped another wacky defense protocol, that would suck.”

Nemona hummed,

“True. Oh well. We’re not here for this anyway. We’re hunting for Roaring Moon!”

She turned, eagerly returning to the search. You rushed to catch up to her, splashing through the shallow water that covered the floor of the cave bottom.

“I wanted to ask, if we don’t find Roaring Moon–”

“We’ll find them!!”

“Yeah, but IF, I mean, IF we don’t for some weird reason, um . . . I hope you won’t be too disappointed? I don’t want you to feel like this whole trip was for nothing . . .”

Nemona laughed. She turned to you, putting a hand on your shoulder and squeezing.

“Of course I won’t think that! This trip has been super fun, no matter what we find or don’t find. Anytime I get to spend with you is always amazing. Especially in an awesome place like this!”

You smiled shyly.

“Okay, I’m glad. I think so too.”

Nemona grinned.

“Good. If we don’t find anything we can still have a battle down here with all our Paradox Pokemon, I bet they’ll love that. But first let’s scour every inch of this place!”

You nodded.

“Okay. Let’s try that path over there that sneaks through the crystals, maybe?”

“Yeah, okay! C’mon Hellcat– hey, where’d they go?”

She turned, spotting the bright green and purple tiger some paces back. It was sniffing at the floor with a disgruntled expression. Nemona called,

“All right, Hellcat! Let’s go!”

The tiger took a few steps and then shook its paws, one at a time, trying to get the water off them and looking disgusted. Nemona giggled.

“Wait, really? Our big scary tiger’s afraid of a little puddle of water? You’re grass type, Hellcat, water’s good for you, silly.”

The tiger waded forward a few more steps, making a sound not too far off from a sad meow. You gestured at the big lizard beside you.

“Look, Scarlet likes the water! It won’t hurt you.”

Koraidon gave a little trill, swishing his tail in the water. Hellcat didn’t seem impressed by this. 

“Well, I guess they could just return to their ball,” you said to Nemona.

“Yeah, I guess. I was trying to spend as much time with them as we can, though . . .”

You both watched as Koraidon romped playfully over to the feline, crying out to it. The tiger growled, taking a swipe at him.

“Um, Scarlet, I don’t think they like that–” you said, but Nemona interrupted.

“--hold on, let’s see.”

“But Hellcat looks angry.”

“Yeah, but they kinda always look angry. Maybe they can become friends.”

You frowned, feeling a bit uncertain.

“I guess.”

Scarlet did some happy little hops, splashing in the water a little. Hellcat hissed, backing away. You warned,

“Careful, Scarlet. Play nice.”

The lizard lowered his head, trilling in a more placating way, swishing his tail; Hellcat still looked tense but allowed Koraidon to draw a bit closer. 

“It kinda reminds me of when Arven’s Mabosstiff tried making friends with Penny’s Sylveon,” Nemona chuckled. Hellcat hissed again, but a lot less fiercely that time, as if it was just a mild warning. Koraidon suddenly rolled on his back, wriggling on the ground and swishing his tail. You watched in wonder as Hellcat batted at him, in a way you wouldn’t exactly call ‘gentle’ but was definitely not at full strength. Scarlet nipped in return. Hellcat bopped him on the nose, firmly but not viciously. You marveled,  

“Wow. I think they might actually be getting along.”

Nemona grinned.

“Told ya! Pokemon do love to play fight, after all. That’s why we have pokemon battles in the first place.”

“Heh, that’s true.”

The two pokemon wrestled for a bit, until eventually they were chasing each other around the cave. There were moments when Hellcat had too much and snarled, warning Scarlet to back off, but overall they seemed to be getting along pretty well. It was very heartening to see. Not to mention impressive how much Hellcat had come along in so short a time. 

“I’m so happy they’re friends!” Nemona beamed, hands clasped together.

“Looks like Hellcat’s forgot all about the water bothering them, too,” you said. 

“Right! It just goes to show pokemon battles solve everything.”

You looked at her, concern in your eye. She giggled,

“I’m just kidding, Jules! Heheheh, you really thought I meant that?”

“I dunno, maybe??”

She grabbed your hand with a smile, tugging you along.

“C’mon, we gotta get back to finding that dragon!”

You gladly surrendered to her pull, returning to the search. 

The bottom of Area Zero’s cave was very spacious, so you had a fair bit of ground to cover. There were no maps of these caves, of course– well, Professor Sada probably had mapped them out, but you hadn’t bothered to search her messy labs for such things. Still, finding your way around wasn’t too bad. The Zero Lab was at the center and served as a good landmark, and you could more or less just follow the paths between the smaller buildings. It wasn’t even all that dark down here: sunlight filtered down from the top of the cave, reflecting brightly in all the tera crystals scattered about. You both searched the area in a clockwise fashion, investigating every nook and cranny and every pokemon you came across along the way. The place was crawling with Paradox Pokemon as well as Glimmora, but nothing you hadn’t seen before. You made sure to keep looking up, since there was a good chance you’d find Roaring Moon flying overhead, but you never spotted its crescent silhouette. 

After you both made a full pass of the cave, you went back over it again, trying to see if there were any places you’d missed checking, but you still weren’t having any luck.

“I dunno, maybe we should be looking above ground instead?” you asked, starting to doubt you would find Roaring Moon at all.

“But we checked all over there too, when we were training Hellcat.”

“Yeah . . . true.”

“Plus dragons love caves, right?”

“Normally, yeah, they do.”

“It’s probably just super rare!”

“Yeah . . .”

Nemona noticed your skeptical expression.

“What is it?”

You looked to her and answered reluctantly,

“It’s nothing, I just, um . . . I’m wondering if maybe Sada just didn’t bring any here other than the one she had. Or, um, the one her AI had, that is.”

Nemona frowned.

“You mean like with Koraidon?”

You nodded.

“I guess that’s possible . . .” Nemona admitted. She looked so sad, and you kicked yourself for even bringing it up.

“B-but hey, it’s probably just super rare like you said. Those can take a real long time to find, maybe we just haven’t run into it yet,” you added.

“Yeah,” Nemona agreed, although it lacked some of her usual zeal. You racked your brains and then suggested,

“Let’s check those passageways before the Zero Lab again, maybe there were some spots we missed up there.”

Nemona nodded. You were about to speak again, but Koraidon’s happy little trill noises echoed in the cave, sounding more excited than usual, and you were distracted trying to find out where he’d wandered off to.

“Scarlet?”

Nemona pointed.

“He’s over there. Hey, did he find something?”

You both followed after the large dragon. It seemed he’d found a gap in one of the far cave walls. He quickly vanished into it. Her voice full of excitement again, Nemona asked,

“Oh my gosh, how’d we miss this before??”

As you approached the secluded corner, you commented,

“Hm, not sure. I think the way those crystals were reflecting the light, it does make it kinda hard to see over here . . .”

“Well let’s check it out!!”

You both stepped through the gap, finding a small chamber within. It was dominated by a large crystal in the center of the area, but didn’t have much else inside. Scarlet was in one corner, gnawing on something.

“Hey, Scarlet. Bring it here.”

The dragon bounded up to you and dropped a slobbery item into your hand. It was a beat-up TM case. You studied the faded label.

“TM 171. Isn’t that Tera Blast?”

“Yep! Looks like Professor Sada lost some of her stuff here, huh?”

“Seems so. I doubt anyone else would be down here dropping TMs.”

Nemona was wandering the inside of the small room, searching for anything else of note. Hellcat crawled inside after you, sniffing around. 

“There’s gotta be something else here,” Nemona said. You were about to tell her ‘Not really, it could just be more cave,’ but stopped just short of saying it, not wanting to dash her hopes again. Instead you joined her in the search. 

“I’m gonna get a better view,” Nemona eventually said, grabbing onto the big tera crystal and trying to clamber up it. It was really slippery though, so you went to help her.

“Wait, Nemona, your shoes aren’t sticky like Scarlet’s feet are!”

“Oof, I wish they were. Okay, help me up– yeah, like that!”

She was able to hoist herself up there with your help, then stood to gaze down on everything from above.

“Do you see anything?” you asked.

“. . . not really.”

Hellcat was sniffing at a large tera crystal embedded into one of the cave walls. In fact, the tiger had been at that spot for a while now, it seemed. You went over.

“Whatcha smelling, Hellcat?”

The tiger growled softly, its eyes fixated intensely on the crystal. At first you thought maybe the silly tiger was angry at its own reflection, which looked goofy and distorted in the crystal. But then you noticed you could actually look through the crystal, and there were lumpy shapes moving behind it. You couldn’t tell what they were, because it was far too distorted, but it did seem to be something.

“Hey, Nemona. Lookit this.”

She hopped down from the crystal and came up to you.

“What is it?”

“Look really close.”

She squinted, leaning close.

“I just see my face.”

“Yeah, it’s really pretty, right?”

“Jules!” She gave you a playful little shove and you giggled.

“Okay but seriously, look past the reflection, I think you can see through the crystal.”

She stared a bit and reported,

“Oh yeah, I think you’re right! What is that?”

“I dunno. Hellcat doesn’t like it though.”

You both stared intently until Nemona yelped,

“Wait, did you hear that??”

“Hear what?”

“Shh, listen!”

You fell quiet and held your breath, doing your best to listen. A few seconds later, you heard a soft pokemon cry, very faint but distinct. Hellcat growled, bristling.

“Oh yeah, Hellcat heard it too!”

Nemona exclaimed,

“It was a pokemon, there must be more cave back there!”

“Yeah, seems so. I wonder how we could get back there?”

Nemona frowned, crossing her arms.

“Well there’s no pathways from down here. We checked this place really well!”

“Yeah . . . weird. There has to be a way in though, right? Unless they’re living in a sealed-in part of the cave.”

“Mmm, yeah . . .”

Nemona looked thoughtful for a few moments. Then, raising a fist, she suddenly said,

“I know! Let’s bust it open!!”

You blinked at her.

“Uh. Is that . . . is that really a good idea?”

She pointed at Koraidon.

“Scarlet knows Rock Smash, right? I saw ‘em bust some rocks in that cave right by my house, remember? Back when we first met him!”

You hesitated.

“Yeah, that’s true, but . . . should we really be busting holes in here? What if we cause a cave-in?”

“No way, Rock Smash is supposed to be used in caves! The technique is designed to be as focused as possible, so it doesn’t cause any shockwaves or damage anywhere else. We should be fine!”

You considered it a moment. On occasion, Nemona could be a tad . . . over-eager to do something and rush into danger, but you trusted Nemona’s knowledge of pokemon moves wholeheartedly. 

“Okay. It’s worth a try.”

“All right! Scarlet, could you come over here a minute?”

After calling Koraidon over, you all gave him enough space and instructed him to use Rock Smash directly on the large tera crystal embedded in the wall. The dragon stood on his hind legs and backed up a little bit. Then he leapt forward and with a backwards twist, smacked the crystal with a powerful strike from his tail. 

The crystal exploded, shattered fragments flying all over. You reflexively shielded your face, but fortunately the pieces didn’t hit anyone. 

“Good job, Scarlet! Man, that was loud.”

“Look, it worked!!” 

Nemona stooped and eagerly stepped through the hole that had been created, pushing past shards of rainbow crystal. You followed after her, saying,

“Careful, Nemona, don’t get cut or anything!”

You emerged into a portion of cave that had a much lower ceiling than the rest of the Area Zero caves; it seemed about eight or nine feet high, similar to a room in a house. It was also darker here, lacking any natural sunlight at all, but there were still plenty of tera crystals embedded in the walls and growing around you, and they glowed with their own source of light. You blinked, glancing around as your eyes adjusted to the space.

“Whoa. So there really is a whole cave hidden back here. You were right, Nemona.”

Nemona turned to you, eyes sparking with excitement.

“This is so cool! What if we’re the first ones back here? Oh man, I bet we find at least a Roaring Moon for sure!”

“Well we know there’s something back here, at least, we heard it earlier.”

“That’s right! Let’s find out what it was. Hellcat, let’s go!”

The tiger pushed its way through the opening and into the new portion of cave, but when you called for Scarlet, you found he was a little too bulky to fit through the gap. You recalled him into his pokeball, deciding Hellcat was probably enough protection for the moment anyway. You reported,

“All set.”

Nemona nodded and turned, gesturing to her pokemon.

“Okay, Hellcat, take point! Let’s see where this goes.”

#pokemon #pokemon s/v #julinemo #terajules #juliana 2nd person POV #julinemo fanfic #pokemon scarlet/violet #area zero #pokemon fanfic #nemona #juliana #juliana x nemona #nemona x juliana

[anulithots]

Anuli's story collection.

Anuli looooveess stories. It's a bit of a... problem? But fae will obsess over them. And collect them... yea it's going to be a thing. If you have a story but don' t have the excuse to infodump, Anuli is waiting is the ask box. Infodump. Tell faer all about it. (non threatening... sort of)

Here's faer favorites thus far:

Artopia by @osbob-the-existent

Remarkable Retirement (still have to read but seems really interesting) by @elizmanderson

The 'superpower story' by @inkskinned

Tales of Aontas by @full-on-sam

'The Weaver's Apprentice' and 'The Fey Courts' by @natyune-writes and @briarborealisocs

A Dreamer's Nightmare by @awleeofficial

The Changeling story by @paintingpuff

To Kill a God by @wingedcatastrophe 

The Deamon king goes to a wedding by @inkskinned

Vanna and Vine by @batzyx

Granola bites by @forthesanityofstorytellers

The top secret WIP that you definitely didn't see but absolutely should go read by @holdmyteaplease

TWUECUD by @sm-writes-chaos

Defenders by @the-stray-storyteller

In the Meanwhile by @mylee-sketches

Sea of Stars and GE by @dancinginsepia

Crater City by @gummybugg

The Day my Dream Died by @distortedsense

Archmage ascending by @magicmooshka

The pumpkin by @necroticintellect

Made of Our Own Storms by @imslowlydisintegrating

The Dragon's Daughter by @tc-doherty

Where I can't follow by @fenatics

You are now Entering Suddence by @em-dashes

City of Blank by @66sharkteeth

Marble Sky by @somerandomdudelmao

The missing king by @clownpalette

#anuli's favorite stories #anuli the dryad #writeblr #writers on tumblr #read read read #book reccs #recommended #reading list

[skyderman]

WIP Intro

When Lilya Lamaya, a clever Bright Magic student, teams up with a trespassing Witch apprentice named Felix, they uncover the greatest secret of the floating city of Valerius, and must rescue Lilya's sister Carmen from Valerius’ clutches without bringing the city to the ground.

Genre: Middle grade fantasy

Tropes: witches, enchanted forest, floating island, hard magic system, magical girl (sorta), queer characters

Setting: SoM takes place in a region known as Pelroa, a few centuries after a war between magical factions destroyed most of the world, which has since been largely reclaimed by nature and transformed by residual magic. The City of Valerius was one of the few bastions of society to survive, and its people (Bright Mages) have been isolated on a floating island since that world-shattering event. A lake has formed in the crater Valerius left behind when it rose, and a couple of other surviving groups have made their homes among the enchanted forest there: a coven of Witches and a Shadow Mage city called Camaerahh.

Click the readmore for themes, writing stage, story tags/cw, characters, an excerpt, and tag list!

Themes

Children deserve respect and to have their voices heard as much as any adult does. Adults can fail their children in many ways, and it is the duty of those adults to make reparations and elevate children's voices.

One should not make assumptions about a group of people based on their appearances, first impressions, or one's own preconceptions about those people.

It is imperative to question authority, even and especially authority figures you trust or love. No authority should go unquestioned.

Knowledge is a right that everyone, including children, should have access to. The desire to learn is something that should be preserved, fostered, and encouraged, and doesn’t disappear with age.

In order to truly progress, society must let go of the past and leave behind attitudes adopted during times of war.

In order to truly progress, society must coexist with the natural world and with other societies.

...and so on

Current stage: First draft

tags: #Story of Magus, #som CW: child grooming (ideologically), absent parents, loss of autonomy, drowning, nationalism, magical/fantasy violence

Characters

Lilya Lamaya

POV character. 12, a smart girl: self-righteous, nosy, constantly challenging her teachers. She is a student at the Academy, and is dissatisfied with what the Archmages allow them to learn. She wears her heart on her sleeve, and for that reason is a somewhat controversial personality among her fellow students. She tends to boss people around that let her and butt heads with people that disagree with her.

Felix

11, a firebrand: curious, attention-seeking, fiercely loyal. Felix chases fun and excitement, and has little regard for customs and rules. When she respects someone, she shows it deeply, but when she doesn’t, she will defy them relentlessly. She is quite lonely, with only her familiar (a ginger cat named Matilda) as a companion, who acts more like her guardian than her friend. (also a trans girl!)

Carmen Lamaya

14, a prodigy: responsible, compassionate, fawning. Carmen is Lilya's older sister. She is an incredibly skilled Bright Mage, even outside of her age bracket, and as such is poised to adopt the role of konyenon, which plays an important part in keeping Valerius safe. She works hard, and loves deeply; magic, her sister, and her city all share her heart.

[more to come]

Excerpt

Lilya and Felix crept down the passage after Carmen and the Archmages. Lilya tried to keep close to the cold stone wall to stay hidden, but the passage was so narrow that it hardly mattered. The group ahead turned the corner, from which an eerie green light sprang, and engulfed in it they looked like ghosts.  “Do your Archmages usually slink around creepy hallways?” Felix whispered. “Of course not,” said Lilya. “At least, they’re not supposed to. Something isn’t right. Carmen is supposed to be in the tower so she can help the city float. I don’t know what good she’d be down here.” “I bet they do this all the time. If I were slinking around I certainly wouldn’t go telling everyone about it.” Lilya threw a smile over her shoulder. “Then let’s do just that and keep quiet.” Felix smiled back and winked.

~~~ tag list: @hd-literature, and maybe you! :) (if you'd like to be added or removed, just ask!)

#writblr #wip intro #fantasy books #witches #writer community #story of magus #som #skyewriting #also #story of magus is a working title #i will be changing it once it's finished #or at the earliest once i finish the first draft

[sunwarmed-ash]

🔥Sinful Sunday🔥

Deja Vu: Chapter 3

Fandom: All Spiderverses

Ships: Parksborn(Webb), Peter 2/Peter 3,

Rating/Word Count/Status: Explicit, WIP

Tags: Angst fic, fill-in scenes for Andrew!Peter post TASM2 and during NWH, backstory chapters, hurt comfort, Sick!Harry, Goblin!Harry

TW: Mentions of suicide attempt, hospital scenes, needle mention,

Summary:

The quantum pull has Parker flying backward, up, left, and then down at speeds faster than the interstate average. The force pulling in the center of his gut like an umbilical cord is worse than it was the first time he Quantem Lept, and when he reaches up to touch his ears, he notices one of them is bleeding. Parker screams the entire way down. He knows he does because his throat aches and his lungs beg for oxygen, even if he can’t hear a sound. 

He’s lucky that of all the things to fall on in New York City he falls on grass, but still, thanks to the intense speed and force of gravity, it fucking hurts when he lands. He startles a flock of pigeons when he craters the earth, but thankfully, because of the location, there aren’t many human patrons to notice his explosion. Something cracks like its broken, but the adrenaline currently coursing through his veins has him standing without thinking twice. Another thing he notices, when he can keep his vision from spinning, is that Pete is nowhere to be seen. The suffocating, haunting knowledge that he was alone, trapped in his own pathetic universe again soaked through his skin like a chill in his bones, threatening to freeze them. Panic builds in the hollow of his throat.

The only other person who happens to be within eyeshot stares at him carefully, and Parker's sense starts to tingle once more. Potential Threat?

Parker takes a step forward anyway.  

“Hey uh, excuse me, what day is it?”

Now the ruddy-complected man’s glare is angry, defensive.

“Can't you just check your phone?” He growls. 

His attitude pisses Parker off, but he dug into his pocket either way, frowning before showing the asshole the shattered front of his dead cell phone.

“Can't you check yours?” 

The heated man scoffed, turning and flipping him the bird before shouting,

“December 4th, 2017 dickhead!” over his shoulder.

December 4th. Of 2017.

2017.  

Three years. 

Three. Fucking. Years. 

He had spent a grand total of 4 days in Peter 1’s universe, maybe a week, tops, but somehow, here, now, it’s 3 years later. Which meant Parker hasn't been in his Queens, for three years. He hasn't gone to work, paid his rent, checked on May, or seen Harry.

His gut tightened and all other thoughts halted in place at the memory of Harry. 

Harry, who he had already abandoned once to the horrible place just 200 feet to his right. 

And now, even after Parker swore he wouldn't, he did again. It didn't matter that this time it wasn't his fault. Because Harry would never give him the chance to explain that now. 

If he was even still alive… 

#sinful sunday #deja vu #parksborn #into the multiverse #tasm 2 #andrew!peter angst #andrew!peter parker #tobey!peter parker #peter 2/peter 3 #the amazing spiderman 2 #petercest #find me on ao3 #kofi support keeps me out of capitalisms clutches #links in bio #reblogs are free ways to support me! #i post new stuff every sunday

[klcthebookworm]

WIP Wednesday

And Vash gets to visit Chicago!

The medcenter vanished and Vash found himself kneeling on a street paved with a hard black substance. He had never seen that before, not even in December City. He looked up as he stood. The buildings stretched higher than the tallest building he had ever seen, reaching for one sun in the blue sky. So Earth, as remembered by Chuck, probably. He closed his eyes and listened. The song Hannah had on repeated place drifted faintly through the entire scene, but sounds of fighting were louder. Vash opened his eyes and headed toward the fight.

The roads and buildings were laid out in a grid and there was no other vehicles or pedestrians impeding Vash’s progress. The taller buildings did have crumbling battle damage and there were craters in some of the side streets Vash passed. It didn’t take long before Vash saw a tan building bout three-stories tall with two massive doors that were rolled down to the pavement. Gray the Ninelives aimed his hands at the tall sign perched on top of the roof that named the place the Last Chance Garage. Bullets from his fingers shattered the sign that was mostly wood and canvas. then he closed up his fingers again and ripped a sign from the wall above the doors. It clattered on the black pavement in front of a broad male in a purple suit.

“Oh well done. Please destroy this proletariat repair pit, you engine of extermination. Last chance for the Last Chance.” He had a rolling laugh, but nothing humorous in it.

Vash looked down at the sign. It had a motorcycle in profile between two wings. Hannah and Chuck had said they lived in a garage.

The man in the purple suit noticed Vash. “What are you doing here?” he demanded and the worst body odor Vash had ever scented wafted from him.

“Public street,” Vash answered.

“You are well armed for a public street. Perhaps you’re looking for an opportunity to wreck havoc. I can make that happen for you. Lawrence Lactavius Limburger.”

“Oh.” Vash blinked. “Oh, I’ve heard of you. Vash the Stampede.”

Limburger’s face didn’t move quite right, but whatever material the swarthy skin was created from did shift close enough to show confusion. “You are a panicked rush of cattle?”

“No, but humans sure turn into a panicked rush around me.”

“Ah, yes. Humans are easy to fool and easy to control with panic.” Limburger looked back at the garage building with loathing tugging thick lips into a frown. “Well, most of them.”

“Not finding taking over the world as easy as you thought it would be, huh? Can’t wish you luck at it; I really don’t think you should do it.”

“Then why are you here in Chicago?”

“I’m looking for my bro.”

“Bro? Bro?” Limburger snarled. “You’re not one of those vile vermin from Mars and you certainly don’t dress like a biker!”

That was some impressive spittle coming out of Limburger. Vash shook his head. “No, I’m not from Mars. And neither is my fuzzy little bro. But I heard about how he gut checked you!”

“Ninelives!” Limburger shouted. The robot Gung-Ho Gun swiveled at his waist further than organics could to look at Limburger and Vash. “Squash him! This Vash the Stampede!”

#trigun 98 #my fic #three of a kind #wip #wip wednesday #biker mice from mars

[astralscrivener]

for the wip game: shadow, crack, tear

thank u hayden!!

shadow

unbelievably, even tho darkness and shadows and shadow magic are some of my favorite motifs ever, i searched thru like 10 different wips and could not find one mention of shadows. so i did the next best thing.

from chapter 23 of stealing our own place in the sun:

The city he awoke in wasn’t the same city he left behind. Head aching—entire body aching, for that matter—Shiro sat up and drank in the juxtaposition of warped and splintered metal jutting out in the middle of what was otherwise a sprawling forest, trees with humongous trunks soaring into a thick canopy that blotted out most of the sun.

crack

well it was either this or another chapter 23 excerpt where i continue to make shiro's life miserable, so !

from an as yet untitled oneshot where i continue my "i hate the blades of marmora" campaign (light content warning for emeto-related stuff):

Keith used to hate the food goo. Still does, as far as enjoyment goes. But he’s come to appreciate it, now. Whatever it’s made of—as far as Keith knows, Hunk still hasn’t cracked the code on that one—it gives the Paladins plenty of sustenance without being hard on any of their stomachs. Excellent food before possible combat, and Keith usually doesn’t have to worry about it coming up along with the flashbacks.

tear

had a few options, went with my best friend past tense

from [REDACTED] chapter 1:

Lotor supposed he mostly had himself to thank for that. He grunted as he pulled himself out of the crater where the ruins of his shuttle sat. Most of the metal had melted and warped, both wings had torn clean off, and both of his cannons had exploded, but the cockpit had held. Call the prototype a success, then.

fanfic wip guessing game! send me a word, if it’s in my wip document I’ll answer your ask with the sentence paragraph that it appears in!

#thank u again hayden these were fun !!!! #ask meme #my writing #vld #eileen answers #fic: soopits #fic: ds (es)

[leavingautumn13]

"send me a word or words and i'll post the paragraph they appear in in one of my wips"

wonderful, vertibird, travel

[send me a word or words and i'll post the paragraph of my wip they appear in]

Wonderful (fic: unnamed oneshot)

The roof of the Pokémon Center—at least most of the others she’d been to—was usually as busy as its interior, with trainers relaxing, sparring, or simply taking in the sights, but this early, she was the only one out here, and May was grateful as always for the solitude. She had to admit, the East Lakeside Pokémon Center had a wonderful view. She could see all the way across the lake from here, to the local gym and to the Center on the opposite shore. The sky was rapidly lightening, but the city, in the depths of its crater, was still awash with darkness. Pinpricks of lights—streetlamps and windows and trolleys—stood out on the far side of the crater.

Vertibird (Apparently I have done exactly zero writing with vertibirds except for one very spoiler-heavy note for the last quarter of What Becomes of the Brokenhearted... so I've got nothing for this one, unfortunately. We'll get to the vertibirds eventually!)

Travel (fic: What Becomes of the Brokenhearted)

But it was aggravating, especially since Back Bay was usually more low-key than Beacon Hill. Of course, you could argue now anyplace within a certain radius of the airport was more dangerous than ever—especially if you’re a synth, or traveling with one. Their whole walk from the church up until now had been uneventful, save dodging a single Brotherhood patrol. Nora was mostly certain they’d leave her alone, especially if she threw her acquaintance with Danse around, but wasn’t willing to put Nick in the path of any potential bigotry. Or lasers.

#thank you so much for the ask! #autumn.fic #fic: until dawn #<- still not changing wbotb's old tag #maybe i'll try the mass post editor one of these days #delayed posting to come up with a title for that oneshot but fuck it #i'll do that later #thanks again for the ask friend! <3

[gummybugg]

Mhm wrote 400+ words today, what a way to jump start my writing again🪲‼️

#posting this to manifest more writing times #writing #crater city wip #yippee #creative writing #it aint much but its honest work

[heliopauseentertainments]

A late WIP Wednesday with a piece from Solar Flare chapter 13.

I actually had to reorganize my chapters, so now chapters 14-16 are done and 13 is about half done. All in need of beta reading because the order got screwed up.

This is probably a sign to to take requests for a bit, honestly.

ANYWAY, have a snippet of Zeta plotting.

A week after returning from Rodimus’s union ceremony to his own comfortable temple in Iacon with Orion, Zeta stood in his study, looking once more at his holographic map. Rather than focusing on Kaon’s ruined crater, the map remained securely focused on Nyon.

A wide holoscreen on the wall to his right played the news both for background noise and the one news report he had been expecting all week. There was hardly ever anything worth reporting, but any time now they would be playing the report of Megatron’s inevitable death.

Earlier in the week, he had had a false alarm, but the report had only been a joint public statement from Vector Prime and Alpha Trion from their shared temple in Crystal City.

They had wished Rodimus a happy marriage, a regret that they were unable to attend, and their presents to him are in the mail. He could call them at any time, they insisted.

The whole announcement could have been a private letter, rather than a press conference, but no one was going to rebuke the last living original Primes. They could hardly remember their own names most days, particularly Vector Prime.

Regardless, other than the fact that the venerable Primes had a soft spot for Rodimus, nothing in the report had mattered to Zeta. He needed only to hear of Megatron's death; he cared for nothing else the mouthpieces of the state could say.

The Decepticon infiltration of the city’s religious infrastructure had been quick and apparently thorough, but it wouldn’t last. It couldn’t last, not if past patterns held true. It was a gamble, of course, to not intervene sooner, but Zeta believed that the most likely outcome wouldn’t require him to so much as lift a finger.

About now would be when Megatron’s sanity would finally snap, his little merry band of thugs dissolving the wake of his demise. Without strong, charismatic leadership to hold them together, the vermin would simply scatter. Any day there would be the news of yet another unfortunate death, another “holy union” so tragically destroyed by awful luck.

Zeta still couldn’t eliminate the possibility that Rodimus was secretly some sort of sparkeater, devouring his lovers either intentionally or at the behest of some defect in his code. They never did show photographs of the bodies, allegedly out of respect for the deceased and their loved ones. It was unlikely, but an amusing thought nonetheless. An almost ironic curse, if he really were the current incarnation of Solus Prime.

#admin post #wip wednesday #fic #fic solar flare

[gamerkitten]

WIP Wednesday

A little snippet of progress from my Cyberpunk 2077 prologue fic.

"Why d'you think he gave it up?"

"Hm? Who gave what up?" Jeanè pulled herself out of a state of comfortable self-consciousness to look over at Jackie.

"Yorinobu Arasaka," Jackie explained, "I don't get it; you have money, education, a father who could turn a city into a crater with a snap of his fingers, and you just give it up to play gang leader?"

She sighed,pushing herself up into a seated position, "I wouldn't read too much into it, children of powerful parents have a tendency to act out. Some just make a bigger fuss than others."

"Is that what working for Arssaka was for you?"

"No,that was survival," she replied, then with a grin,"Though I can't say it didn't feel good to put a nice big blot in my father's good name."

#Cyberpunk 2077 #my writing #fanfic

[curiosity-killed]

Hey, you know how Xie Lian is super self-sacrificial and Hua Cheng hates it? Wouldn't it be messed up if there was a situation where Xie Lian sacrificed himself for (Hong'er/Wu Ming/whatever iteration of Hua Cheng) as an individual and he couldn't do anything to stop it? I just think that would be painful.

hey anon how did you get into my wip folder???

nah but fr can you imagine if Xie Lian had wrested the sword away from Wuming in Yong'an? Here's his god, bloodied and battered from the sword he drove through his own chest, rain-drenched and bruised from clambering out of a crater where all this city left him for three days—and Wuming left him, too, because Dianxia might have ordered him away, but he still abandoned him, left him to the cutting apathy of the common people, all looking down and refusing to give even water to someone who's always given and given and given and even now was giving them another chance

and now there's a spark back in his eyes because he's still so fucking good, after everything, that all it took was one crass stranger to renew his hope in humanity. Wuming has never wanted Dianxia to be anything other than what he was—in his endless generosity, in his bottomless hate, he's still the only divinity Wuming will ever believe in—but there's a part of him that grins, savage in satisfaction, to see his god returned, to see him more alive than he's been ever since the temple. It's petty and Wuming knows he has no right to credit or pride, but he can't help the smugness he feels at Dianxia besting the White-Clothed Calamity.

And of course there's still the sword, and of course there's still the storm above them. All those restless spirits howling, screaming, revenge whistle-shrieking through their gaping mouths. And of course, Wuming knows how to die for his god. Isn't this the one good thing he's ever done? Isn't it easier this time, knowing that his destruction will serve some worthy cause?

Wuming's strong, stronger than such a young ghost has any right to be. There's no point pondering if he can survive the curse, but he knows with an unspeakable certainty that he can take it. He can accept those hundred wounds in place of Dianxia. 

Dianxia's yelling at him to stop, to put down the sword. Wuming hates to disappoint his god, but he can't find regret for this disobedience.

Only—

It's not that he forgot how strong Dianxia is. How could he? All that he is is built upon the bedrock of his devotion.

If pressed, later, he'll admit to himself alone that the reason was simpler: he just didn't think his death would matter to Dianxia.

So there's a hand on his hand, the point of the sword dragged from his own chest. Wuming is strong; more than that, he’s tenacious. He survived as long as he did not because he was the strongest or fastest or luckiest—as if. He survived because he refused to die. 

And he’s seen Dianxia’s strength. Seen him fight against hundreds, seen him hold up a golden pavilion all alone. His first taste of desire was whet on the impossible strength honed within that compact body.

He’s never had that strength levelled against him.

Wuming is strong. Xie Lian is stronger. It’s not, in the end, a very long struggle.

The fight is already over once the sword is in Dianxia’s hand, but still, Wuming lunges to try to grab it back. He’s pushed to the ground in a move so graceful, so elegant, it hardly belongs in this rainswept street, this screaming wind. It’s the gesture of a prince, even here. Even still. 

“You’re free,” Dianxia says. “You don’t have to follow me anymore. Go, find your beloved and be at peace.”

The ghosts have gotten so loud, so close, that the last has to be shouted to be heard. He glances over his shoulder once, and then the sword is flipped, black-jade edge greeting the soft meat of his belly. Wuming scrambles to hands and knees, not trying to stand, not really—just trying to get closer, to be within reach, to not be separated from his god.

The spirits have already reoriented, twisting toward Dianxia as quickly as the blade was flipped. Their howls and giddy shrieks rattle Wuming’s teeth, shake through him until he can’t even hear his own ragged breaths. Still—

“I pray to never rest in peace!”

The sword bites, sinks, blooms—spider lilies spreading scarlet petals across the rice paper of his drenched white robes. Xie Lian’s eyes open wide, pale lips parting. Surprise or pain or ecstasy, an ascension to a plane Wuming cannot reach. 

The ghosts descend. Hawk-plummet, resentment their talons tearing into his translucent robes, his blood-leached skin. Wuming is swept back, mask knocked from his face to crack against the cobbles. Dianxia’s eyes catch on his, his lips parting in a silent gasp. The spirits swarm past Wuming, surround Dianxia. Swallow him whole. A single voice rises above their screeching, more familiar to Wuming than his own heartbeat, his own breath.

And of course he screams. Of course.

#ty anon this was a very nice concept while i was cooking dinner ^_^ #<3 #asked & answered #anonymice #my writing #tgcf #tgcf spoilers #wuming

[awritingcaitlin]

🎶Find the Word Game🎶

Tagged by @legiomiam again! Thank you!!!!

My words are unkempt, dirt, rain, sky, and word

THOUGH I DON'T HAVE UNKEMPT IN ANY OF MY WIPS SOMEHOW?!?!?!?

Tagging: @legiomiam, @juls-writes, @tananaphone, @mjjune, @baroquesse

Your words: step, look, broken, warm, song

Snippets are from: Relic of the Gods aka ViolinHeist

🧱DIRT (DIRTY)🧱

Lelia stepped out into the rest of South Town Berthingtonn.

South Town looked a lot more run-down than the Inner City, generally because wood didn’t last as long as stone and steel. Sure, the buildings may have been built more recently – as in, they were built in the wake of the war between Berthingtonn and Eswaisil sixty years ago – but because they were mostly wood, they fell into disrepair much faster than the stone and steel buildings of the Inner City.

Technically, South Town had a lot of brick too, and some buildings had stone and concrete. Honestly, South Town had a wonderful charm that Lelia had come to love. It was dirty and smelled like fish all the time, but the markets were crowded with genuine people and there was always something lively to do. People seemed to breathe here in a way that wasn’t possible in the constant bustle of Inner Berthingtonn life.

In the past month, Lelia had drifted from bar to meetinghouse to outdoor courtyard finding places to perform. There were taverns run by Seamus Finn and Adelus, and bars belonging to neither of the two. The Goddess Fraiye had a meeting house with open performance times, plus there were plenty of places along the road that she could stop and play at.

This all of course, contributed to Lelia’s thoughts that perhaps she was dedicating herself to the wrong god now that she had switched jobs.

.

🌧RAIN🌧

The ice broken, the two of them were able to make idle chitchat as they walked. They discussed the lack of rain recently, which Lelia commented how she recognized they needed the rain but wasn’t missing the increased humidity either.

“Also have you noticed there’s less bread served with things lately?”

Em snorted. “It’s because we’re getting close to the quarterly grain shipment from Thadenopolis, and South Town is legitimately running out of bread.”

Lelia blinked a few times before going, “Oh.”

“It happens every few months like clockwork. Honestly, you just get used to it and don’t really notice it.”

.

☀SKY☀

It was warm.

As a mage, Lelia could see the shimmery opalescent shield that protected Berthingtonn from every threat on the planet but was still capable of letting rain and sunshine through. She could only see the shield if she really tried to look, the rest of the time it just blended in with the sky. But when she wanted to see it, she could.

The difference between Inner Berthingtonn and South Town was that part of the shield was anchored to the Wall around Inner Town, sitting atop it like a giant dome. Outside the Wall, there was a mushroom cap that extended to the Outer Towns of Berthingtonn, South Town, North Town, Outer East Docs, and technically some far-reaching docks and piers to the West.

Though, the West was also a weird case because the Wall did not extend all the way into the Crater Sea, so the shield was the wall in a way, at least through there. Lelia remembered looking at it once and wondering what kind of magical engineering had to go into that to make it work. Neither of her parents could provide an answer.

Until a month ago, Lelia hadn’t left the Wall at all.

.

🎶WORD🎶

Requests started pouring in for some duet-type songs. Some of which Lelia already recognized, some of which she hadn’t heard of, but she was starting to figure a lot of them out. Loony Benny  looked at her, waiting for her to make a move or pick a song.

Lelia started the opening bars of ‘Wings Over the Sea’, which was a shanty that had almost the same tune as a skipping-rope song she’d learned as a kid on the playground. Sometimes the key was a little different, but on a violin, key changes didn’t matter much if they were in fifths. The words were definitely different, but she didn’t need to know the words so long as she played the notes. That’s what the audience was for.

Loony Benny’s grin only widened as he joined in with the counterpart. The crowd eagerly began singing.

Lelia drunk up every second of it. Her fingers flew across the fingerboard, hitting even the highest notes with ease. She let the music move her whole body. Loony Benny stomped a booted foot on the ground, keeping the beat.

One song led to the next and Lelia found herself working through shanties, traveling songs, mining songs – many with such raunchy lyrics that would make her family back home cringe. But they weren’t here now, and Lelia wouldn’t care if they were. This was the life she’d chosen.

#tag game #find the word #my writing #relic of the gods #lelia #em

[skyderman]

Skye I return and I come bearing questions for Story of Magus!

What exactly is a "firebrand" are they kinda like a fire bender (fire witch?) or is it something completely different?

What does Archmages allow the students to learn and not learn?

How does the role of konyenon keep the city safe?

I see in the warning "drowning" so tell me (if you're willing) what's in the lake beneath the city or better yet what do the city goers believe to be below the surface of that water?

-HD

ahh these are all fantastic questions! welcome back!

“firebrand” is just a nice word that i thought described felix’s personality. although, maybe i can work with that…

i’m still working through the details of what students at the academy are taught. i’m mulling over the idea that the academy itself is basically just a front to allow Valerius to screen kids with strong magical ability without actually teaching them anything substantial. but for a more concrete answer, i know for a fact that they’re taught mostly harmless Bright magic, like Light spells, simple Holding spells, basic Bright magic theory, and lots of severely skewed history lol. they would withhold anything that might make the students a threat or a liability like Fly spells or any sort of offensive magic. when i know more about exactly what Bright magic can do, i’ll have a better answer hehe

the konyenon is Valerius’ most important figure (on the surface anyway). they are supposed to be a very powerful Bright mage whose job is to keep Valerius afloat (the public isn’t informed of the details). over time the Archmages have conflated that role with a sort of psuedo-religious savior figure, which is very useful for manipulating their citizens. there’s a lot of talk of sacrifice and angelic imagery. but what the konyenon actually does is one of Valerius’ greatest secrets >:) i’m not gonna reveal it just yet! still trying to decide how open i want to be about the plot of my WIPs lol

ah yes the lake. (as an aside, i love your questions because they reveal just how much worldbuilding i still have to do haha)

i will admit, i am entertaining the idea of there being some kind of monster in the lake. but i think it would be more thematically appropriate to include something benevolent, or at least harmless. as for Valerius, i’m not sure if they would know it even exists. there is a tall wall around the edge of the island, which actually does prevent people from falling off the damn thing (and shields them from stray enchantments floating through the air) (AND protects against creatures lol) but it also means that citizens of Valerius don’t really have a view of the surface. they have to rely on what the Archmages tell them about it.

but i do like the idea of the Shadow Mages of Camaerahh having a relationship with the lake. i haven’t talked much about them because i’ve focused a lot on Valerius, but the Shadow Mages see the lake as a bastion of life. it’s a great source of food and the land surrounding it is healthy. it was formed in the crater of Valerius, and so in some ways it’s free of the magical fallout that covers the rest of the world, being newer than all of it.

thank you again for the great questions!!

#answered #hyper-discourse #story of magus #🖤🖤