“Why are you still following me? I’m not going to run away.”
“We’re not following you,” Saraca replied. “We just happen to be going the same way.”
Most felid Beastmen were naturally skittish, and it appeared that Ocelo were no exception. Being stalked, startled, stared at or stopped unexpectedly naturally led to dramatic or at least wary reactions. As a contestant in...
2022-11-15 10:09:00 +0000 UTC View Post“I don’t see what’s wrong with going to the fighting pits,” Saraca said. “We’d have gotten around to it eventually anyway. Plus, you like fighting, don’t you?”
Even when Mitra was angry, she was beautiful. Probably more so.
“You idiot warmonger,” the Chaaran replied. “We’re in a city. Cities have other things. Fine dining. Cultural pursuits. Shopping! Who com...
2022-11-13 12:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post
18th Day, Middle Water Month, 0CE
Saraca wasn’t sure if he would meet Rana Saj again, but they had a lot of Rol’en’gorek to cover. Beyond its western border was the Draconic Kingdom, which he was also keenly interested in paying a visit to.
Including the stops that they made at the sett...
2022-11-11 14:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post26th Day, Upper Water Month, 0 CE
Dozens of warbands trickled in over the next day, gratefully taking shelter within the embankments and dry shelters raised by Karuvaki and the other casters in Saraca’s entourage. Despite making their way through kilometres of waterlogged jungle and forest, they appeared wet and miserable coming in, but otherwise in good c...
2022-11-09 16:08:00 +0000 UTC View Post21st Day, Upper Water Month, 0 CE
“Get out of here?” Rana Saj’s incredulous voice filled the silence following Mitra’s statement, “But we just got here. After a resounding victory, no less. We should be pressing our advantage and answering their brazen assault in kind.”
“That’s what they want us to do,” Mitra replied.
“How do ...
2022-11-07 18:09:00 +0000 UTC View Post17th Day, Upper Water Month, 0 CE
“Not fair.”
“Complain to your wife.”
“Kasturi will just laugh in my face,” Girika grumbled. “Our Gladestalkers are wiping out everything.”
Over the next two days, they purposely kept pace with Clan Ki’ra’s advance, never straying more than three kilometres ahead of the other war...
2022-11-05 19:08:59 +0000 UTC View Post
As always, a higher-resolution map can be opened in a new window/tab.
14th Day, Upper Water Month, 0 CE
There was still no sign of Rana Pwilere by the time Clan Ki’ra’s forces were ready to depart.
It was difficult to tell with primitive tribes, but Saraca thought he could already s...
2022-11-03 21:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post“So,” Saraca asked, “what did you find out?”
Rana Saj and Rana Pwilere looked from Saraca to Mitra with confused expressions.
“Thirty thousand Yeti tribespeople,” Mitra rubbed at one of her bloodied claws. “A new boss moved in from somewhere deeper in the Worldspine. Now, they’re depopulating the conquered territories to make them more manageable.”
“…they...
2022-11-01 22:32:48 +0000 UTC View Post7th Day, Upper Water Month, 0 CE
“So, how do we split things up?”
“I’m staying behind the lines,” Devi said. “You won’t catch me romping around a battlefield.”
The Merchant had, in fact, ‘romped around a battlefield’ before. She didn’t fight personally, instead focusing on somehow making a profit. Even so, Saraca supposed th...
2022-10-31 01:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post
6th Day, Upper Water Month, 0 CE
It took a week of paddling up the Rol’en’gorek to reach the Clanhold of T’ak. Rana Saj stopped for a day each at Ulixit and Korrogh – the two cities along the river to their destination – to check for new developments with the local Lords. Aside from that,...
2022-10-29 03:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post
28th Day, Lower Earth Month, 0 CE
Following Devi’s discovery, Saraca shifted the focus of their analysis of Rol’en’gorek. As their findings continued to support the notion that the ‘curse of wealth’ gripped the primitive tribal confederation, a sense of anger started to simmer ...
2022-10-27 04:37:18 +0000 UTC View Post
26th Day, Lower Earth Month, 0 CE
“Go west, young hunter, go west!”
The ardent voice of a crier greeted Saraca as he stepped onto the wharf of Kanyo, the first city on their journey through Rol’en’gorek. A crowd of Singh gathered around the crier as he continued his spiel.<...
2022-10-25 07:09:00 +0000 UTC View Post14th Day, Lower Earth Month, 0 CE
“I’m beginning to wonder if all of the west is just a giant desert. No, I’m past wondering – it is just a giant desert!”
A pair of Gigant Meroles kicked up sand far ahead of the sledge as the caravan of long sledges conveyed its passengers through the shimmering heat of the Great Lut. The source of t...
2022-10-23 09:08:01 +0000 UTC View PostIlyshn’ish continued following Nemel around on her tour of Warden’s Vale and its nearby villages. As evening fell, they returned to the minion base and Nemel went out to subjugate three more Goblin tribes. This was achieved through means suitably arrogant for a minion leader: flying high overhead while nullifying their pitiful projectiles with a casual wave of her hand. She then rendered th...
2022-10-21 11:08:59 +0000 UTC View PostIlyshn’ish crawled on her hands and knees, upside down on the ceiling of her lair. She fished out a platinum coin and fixed it to the ice. It was the five hundredth coin attached to the ceiling, so she decided that it was an excellent time to take a break.
She silently dropped down to the floor. Her hand went into one of her Infinite Haversacks, producing a magical light. A smi...
2022-10-19 13:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post27th Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE
Another misty morning came and Nemel set off to conduct a more thorough investigation of Warden’s Vale. Fendros, Elise and Ida came with her, as did four woodcutters and three Goblins. The three Goblins had ‘failed’ the basic Ranger assessment and were assigned as general labourers in the camp. They loaded their vessel with goods ...
2022-10-17 15:09:00 +0000 UTC View Post“We’re back…”
Nemel shuffled back into her base camp. Its occupants looked up from their work. Fendros, Elise and Ida rose from their seats at the campfire.
“Are you alright?” Fendros’ head went from side to side as she checked over Nemel, “How did it go?”
“She won.”
Dame Verilyn appeared, sitting atop the tree trunks lying in the camp’s new yard....
2022-10-15 17:08:59 +0000 UTC View Post26th Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE
The following morning, Nemel left her tent – fully dressed this time – stretching away the night’s laziness while she examined the dimly-lit surroundings. As with the previous morning, the men at the fire turned to greet her.
“Mornin’ Mistress Nemel.”
“Good Morning,” she smiled. “How were things overnight?...
2022-10-13 19:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post
We're getting close, so here's a map preview for the second part of The Tiger and the Dragon.
I'm not sure if the image will work properly since it's so huge, so it may take a few tries...
2022-10-12 22:44:44 +0000 UTC View Post25th Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE
In the darkness of the night, Nemel lay alone, staring at the ceiling of her manor. It was a small manor – a tent, really – and the ceiling was made of sturdy canvas. Her face was frozen and she didn’t want to leave her bedroll. Not only was it terribly cold, but worries plagued her restless rest.
Many of those worries she w...
2022-10-11 21:09:00 +0000 UTC View Post23rd Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE
Rivulets of frigid water ran down the scales of Ilyshn’ish’s neck as her head surfaced from the waters of her lair. A low growl filled her throat as the scent of an intruder filled her nostrils. She silently glided through the water, sensitive to any sign of movement in her surroundings.
Ilyshn’ish came ashore and slipped in...
2022-10-09 23:08:04 +0000 UTC View Post24th Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE
Studying was hard when one was cold, wet, and miserable. Additionally, it was not so much studying as it was trying to figure out what Fendros, Elise and Ida’s capabilities were. Nemel hadn’t really thought about that while she discussed her plans for Dame Verliyn’s demesne – she had simply assumed that, since they were all Nobl...
2022-10-08 01:11:24 +0000 UTC View Post23rd Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE
Their ship came out of a narrow canyon with towering walls and intermittent falls into a long highland vale. Though they weren’t as tall as the Azerlisia Mountains, the peaks nearby were still high enough to be laced with snow well into spring. In the distance, a massif crowned in ice dominated the landscape. Nemel gaped at the majest...
2022-10-06 03:08:01 +0000 UTC View PostArwintar had monumental architecture aplenty, but there weren’t ten-metre-tall statues of any Emperors in the city. E-Rantel had two statues of its reigning sovereign standing on either side of its southern gate. Nemel wasn’t sure what to think of them. Fendros, Elise and Ida silently stared up from the nearby wagon lot, as if harbouring the same sentiment.
“Is…is that th...
2022-10-04 05:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post22nd Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE
“So, let me get this straight,” Ida said. “We were teleported here from the opposite side of the Empire, then we were teleported back to the opposite side of the Empire just so we could walk back here.”
“That’s right,” Dame Verilyn nodded.
“But…but…”
“It was very convenient for Zu Chi...
2022-10-02 07:05:45 +0000 UTC View PostA hulking form filled the alley, its fur matted by the cold drops pattering off of the walls and slick clay. Liam crouched on a windowsill above, dagger clutched in his right hand.
He held his breath. The striped form passed below, footpads squelching over the mud. A click came with its next step.
The Beastman stopped. A heartbeat later, it fell forward and lay still.
19th Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE, 0300 Hours
In the stillness of the night, a thick mist crept over the shore and spilt over the piers of Helama. From the bow of Ruin’s Wake, Liam watched as the wharf was engulfed in a shroud of grey.
“This is way too convenient,” Tira remarked from nearby. “Teams two and three: take point.”
Two ...
2022-09-30 09:09:00 +0000 UTC View Post18th Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE, 2000 Hours
“Yeah! Shake it, boss!”
Tira danced on the main deck of Ruin’s Wake. The grandmaster of Ijaniya was adorned in garb from the Draconic Kingdom, which consisted of baggy pants, a low-cut blouse that exposed her shoulders, and a crimson sash that snugly embraced about her waist. A scarf of opaque purple sil...
2022-09-28 11:08:00 +0000 UTC View Post18th Day, Upper Wind Month, 1 CE, 1300 Hours
“Hmm, what can I say…”
A wisp of frigid air raised the hairs on Liam’s arms. The source of that frigid air – a maw lined with teeth as long as and probably sharper than knives – hovered less than a metre in front of his face.
“This is the third retake in two weeks, but you’ve still only managed to...
2022-09-27 01:09:00 +0000 UTC View Post“You should start a romance subplot between Julian and Ludwig.”
Florine nearly tripped over her own feet.
“Julian…and Ludwig?”
“Yeah.”
“But you’re Julian, and Ludwig is…”
Liane’s mouth worked like a fish for several seconds before closing again. Her fingers drummed against her thigh.
“Th-that’s not what I was suggesting. R...
2022-09-24 15:08:01 +0000 UTC View Post