Terrible Lizard
I wind my way slowly along the woodland paths, giving myself time to adjust to the feeling of the forest in my soul. After a while the sensation recedes. I grow comfortable with the idea of bedrock, of loam, of the strange duality of having ferns and bushes as well as hair. No longer do I look at my dig...
2022-03-26 13:11:13 +0000 UTC View Post
Candle is not abandoned, merely recovering emotionally in a cave for the meantime, I promise.
The artist is Jeremy Adams.
https://www.artstation.com/jeremy_adams
2022-03-24 17:15:26 +0000 UTC View PostNight Flowering Jasmine
There are two things I have to do before I can reclaim Fairhaven and wipe the floor with Javier’s icy nether regions. Two important tasks.
Firstly, and most importantly, I need to transfer my soul to a secure location. Secondly I need to discover and destroy Janvier’s ow...
2022-03-24 17:07:34 +0000 UTC View PostSorry for the late release! I wrote two chapters, 76 and 77 and I was not happy with them. My plan was to write the liching of Jenkins next but I realised this is an important event that might need a couple of chapters and cannot be rushed. They are fine but I think they need to be later in the arc. I don't want the plot to turn into spagetti.
Hugest apologies, I have backtracked and rewr...
2022-03-24 17:05:38 +0000 UTC View PostThe Lich’s Guide to Defensive Gardening
The clerics are delighted. The Wavewalker Friar and the Bright Sister send word to their respective churches immediately. Their joy is tempered by the knowledge that they need a lich to reproduce the potion, but then the feeling is mutual. It is not an ideal situation for any o...
2022-03-13 11:16:32 +0000 UTC View PostLiching and Witching
Once the acolytes have gone it is soon settled. Friar Julian will accompany me to Downing, and the Archon will send me my dim-witted sunshine yellow nun friend to make the Bright One’s holy water. How nice. I thought about asking them all to come to Dunbarra Keep but decided against it. The wrait...
2022-03-08 14:20:43 +0000 UTC View PostNun of That
Racing through the cathedral city of Barrowmere with a stolen priestess of the Bright One over my shoulder is not how I pictured spending today. I suppose life, or in my case, death, takes you to unexpected places. My mother was always on at me to get out more. Well, mother dearest, here I am! Gallopi...
2022-03-04 11:34:09 +0000 UTC View PostBottles of Sunshine
I smile my friendliest smile but then remember she can’t see me beneath the veil. Or not much of me anyway. What can I do to entice her off the hallowed ground?
“I’m on a quest,” I say. The Bright One’s worshipers love that sort of thing. And it is actually true, now that ...
2022-02-26 13:57:58 +0000 UTC View Post>Still feeling ill, but can write again! Yay :D
The Cathedral City
Leaving my busybodies to their tasks, I pack a small bag with emergency sewing supplies, and crystals. I make sure to include both fully charged empty gems, and some with souls in case I should have need of sustenance. This las...
2022-02-24 17:16:35 +0000 UTC View PostSorry no chapter today - been feeling ill the last few days. Will try to make it up by the weekend. Cross fingers its not covid.
2022-02-23 14:39:03 +0000 UTC View PostThe Rivers of Life
I retrieve the necromancer-chicken from his cage in the castle kitchen. He squawks all the way up to the study, kicking his scrawny little chicken legs ineffectually. His screams bounce harmlessly off the walls. The peasants and wights scatter before me and I grin as we mount the stairs. 2022-02-18 11:26:04 +0000 UTC View Post
The Grimoire
It takes me all night to make sure the forest is empty of the abominations, and most of the next day as well. I am well aware that if I miss even one then my labours are for naught. As it is, as soon as I think I am done, another howling fiend comes shuffling out of the darkness. The hum...
2022-02-15 11:35:26 +0000 UTC View PostMaud vs Undead Plague
It is a still, clear night. The moon rises high, reflecting off powdery snow as I trudge through the forest. The destroyed settlement is not far. I am hopeful I can be back in my cupboard before the night is old.
I am dressed in full battle regalia with pauldrons, breastplate, hor...
2022-02-10 13:34:09 +0000 UTC View PostThe Lich in the Broom Cupboard
I sit in the darkness of the small broom cupboard, my needle darting in and out of my velvet. Several weeks have gone by since I stole all the souls from Fairhaven city. Several weeks since I successfully tweaked Lord Liches’ shapely, undead nose.
I grin in satisfaction...
2022-02-05 17:58:32 +0000 UTC View PostChapter 65
A Torch In the Darkness
Wind hissed over the soft, powdery snow at the edge of the clearing. Frost fingers pricked up and down Rachel’s spine and she whirled, eyes intent on the space beneath heavily wooded boughs. Her breath came short and sharp. Why? There was nothing. Densely packed trees groaned under the weight of...
2022-02-01 16:20:08 +0000 UTC View Post
I received the cover for book 2 which I'm hoping to get edited and ready to publish sometime in Feb.
2022-01-14 13:49:16 +0000 UTC View PostA Note About Chapter 61
If you joined recently, don’t worry about this announcement (and welcome)
After some feedback and lots and lots of thinking about agency and focus, I have rewritten a couple of the last scenes, starting with chapter 57. They are mostly small changes but have one large difference that effects today’s chapter:
Maud does not l...
2022-01-14 13:43:51 +0000 UTC View PostSo I can finally tell you all what I have been up too. I wrote a book called Liches Get Stitches for the Inkfort Publishing Derby (which had conditions of anonymity) . It ended last night so I can finally share!
This is the first book - about 72k, and here is the whole thing to thank you for supporting me.
I am currently serialising on Royal Roa...
2021-10-30 09:21:11 +0000 UTC View Post26
The Tempest Rose
Ezra left Audric to his experiments and walked through the midnight camp. For once, things were peaceful, which he didn’t trust for one minute. He kept one eye on the sky, on the darkly silhouetted mountain. The night was cold, and a chill wind blew down the slopes as he glared at it, shivering. It was an eyes...
2021-09-26 10:10:19 +0000 UTC View Post25
Ezra
The Sky Lion landed back at the camp with a gentle thump. Ezra slipped and slid down the rope ladder, wrestling to control his emotions. They had searched for hours. There was no sign of Ansel, or his stolen ship, or the rats who had fled with him. Rage and betrayal tied Ezra’s innards into a complicated knot and...
2021-09-19 08:06:07 +0000 UTC View Post24
Ancestors Own
The room was small, sparsely and practically furnished. Two bobbing witch-lights hung suspended in the air behind the pale-faced demon woman, and an old man glared at them from her shoulder. The Mester steepled her fingers as she watched them.
“Well?” she said. “Can you give me a good reason? Why should...
2021-09-12 17:17:18 +0000 UTC View PostHey all. I'm doing really well creatively with something new I'm working on.
Unfortunately I can't share it until October/November, but as you have probably noticed my output on Dawn Watch and RS has slowed. I'm not dropping either project but I do want to focus on the new one for at least the next month.
I'm letting you know so you can cancel your subscriptions before y...
2021-08-24 09:09:10 +0000 UTC View Post23
Broken Jaws
Ansel and Kjell set off in the Sky Cub as the sun crossed its zenith, sailing south-east towards the savage village. Jethro and Kip stayed behind to mind the camp. Kjell refused to let Ansel go alone despite his deep unease with the idea of trying to trade with the natives. The big man sat squeezed in ...
2021-08-24 08:18:44 +0000 UTC View Post22
Valley of Dying Stars
“If I paint the hull blue,” said Ansel, thoughtfully, looking up at the tiny airship bobbing overhead, “the ship would be very hard to spot from the ground.”
“Alright,” said Kjell. The big man set down his hammer. “How do we make blue paint?
“Eggs,” said Ansel. He scratched his...
2021-08-24 08:16:46 +0000 UTC View PostChapter 45
The Chasm
Fred and company sank into the deep darkness, watching the walls of the chasm rise ominously on either side. Soon the sun was just a faint smudge above them, a mere memory of distant light. Then, that too was snuffed out by the gloom. Gradually the water changed colour from indigo to darkest blue, and then to pitch-back.
T...
2021-08-10 11:29:44 +0000 UTC View Post21
Wind in Dry Grass
Ansel squinted into the sun, steering the little airship as close to the wind as he dared. If the ship tipped now it would be a long way down to the rocks. He had only installed one safety harness, and that was just a rope looped around his waist. Scant protection from disaster in the sky and no help at all for...
2021-08-08 19:37:02 +0000 UTC View PostChapter 44
The Beautiful Briny Sea
Fred blinked.
[Ding! Congratulations! You have become one with the ocean!
Isn’t it better now that you’re wetter? Let’s find out. All party members + 100XP]
The water was warm and everything was blue. It was...
2021-08-02 10:56:00 +0000 UTC View Post20
Stillness the Dancing
Ansel swore and ran after her, but it was too late.
Talcott hurtled through the crowd, pushing people out of the way with unnatural strength. Her hands flamed like glowing beacons. Men turned towards her uttering cries and yells of consternation. She was dripping liquid flames down to her w...
2021-07-30 15:32:03 +0000 UTC View PostChapter 43
Ship in a Bottle
They all gathered around the bottle.
It lay on the sand glinting innocently as the sun hit the glass.
“What if it’s just a bottle?” said Prince Erik. “How do you know it’s a quest? It could be just a bottle? A discarded item floating with the jetsam of life. The ocean is a haven for lost things.” 2021-07-24 15:03:16 +0000 UTC View Post
19
Fire with Fire
Ansel dreamed that he woke in the night. There was a shadow sitting at the end of his cot and he could feel the weight on his legs. The smell of old blood hung in the air, mingling with the frost.
“Ezra?” he said, mussily. “Is that you?”
In his dream Ezra spoke to him, low and intense. Ansel li...
2021-07-24 13:37:06 +0000 UTC View Post