I came face to face with my hard limitations those first few days of our training. I was not Aeneus Raptis, and neither did I have rank D psionics. In free fall, there was a speed I could pull out of. Anything more than that was impossible. Once I learned to make myself as aerodynamic as possible, I could reach terminal velocity, or 120 miles per hour, in less than a quarter mile. Going beyond ...
2025-07-01 15:49:05 +0000 UTC View PostThe very next day, the news was released. Several more people including the Real Major Jeff Wright had unlocked rank D psionics. And by several, I mean dozens. The Forefathers, Brendon Black’s battalion, could now put together a full squad of rank D users. Lethal Accord was behind in numbers by just a few as were The Burden Bearers.
It was just like our time back in Freedom. Once people...
2025-06-30 15:25:34 +0000 UTC View PostThe screen went dark momentarily. We all thought it was over.
Mr. Rachet muttered, “Are they going to let battalions use artillery or something? The Manticores aren’t far from the bases… How many of the battalions won’t pass the first stage?”
It was Kline that said it. “The vast majority.”
When Mia was about to say something, the black screen was suddenly covered...
2025-06-30 11:13:41 +0000 UTC View PostWhat does a man do when he sees no way forward against impossible odds. He takes ice cream to a Krato to tick him off. It had worked before. Why wouldn’t it work again? Except, instead of the fury I was expecting, Aeneus Raptis sighed.
“Just say it,” the Ekseliksi said. “What is it you want from me?”
I began to explain the impossible odds Prodos was facing when he interrup...
2025-06-28 14:19:14 +0000 UTC View PostThe next day with the Combat Development Team gathered around, I asked, “Besides coming up with unique ways to defeat a squad with rank D psionic users, what would it look like if Prodos put together its own squad? Who would you include, and would it be able to make a difference?”
From Cornelius and Harrison to Vector and Drool to everyone from Prodos’s original core group minus an ...
2025-06-27 16:48:48 +0000 UTC View PostAuthor's note:
What I was planning for this next section I ended up scrapping. To be honest, it just didn't add anything to the story. It's not something I usually like to do, but even the conclusion was blah, so here we are. Back to it.
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Mel and I spent about an hour with Timur, making it an early dinner. Destiny broke down his current placement and ability as we left the d...
I was having breakfast on the last day of the convention with Kline, Mel, Barrell, and Hwan when it was announced. We were inhaling large amounts of eggs and bacon in the Deltas Room. Everyone’s military issued headset went off at the same time.
Before I could even read the message, Destiny purple orb appeared in the middle of the table with a miniature version of the blond AI in milita...
2025-05-30 19:42:29 +0000 UTC View PostThat first night was interesting. There were several people in the Champions Room that stayed up late chatting. Brendon Black wasn’t the only person that thought I didn’t deserve a top 100 spot. However, I was viewed more like a professional athlete, but I’d also just rescued my mother from a group of terrorists in a very public manner. So I didn’t exactly belong, but no one minded my p...
2025-05-29 16:08:08 +0000 UTC View PostIt didn’t surprise me when Barrell had us return to the guy that added extra thick padding to ballistic armor. He’d never even been a football player, but he liked to hit things with his shoulder.
As for the rest of us, we all spent a little on stuff we didn’t need. Some of us more than others.
One thing that I didn’t know about Kline was that he was into collecting war memo...
2025-05-28 15:08:32 +0000 UTC View PostOne thought above all flooded my mind. Were these people insane? Did they not know we were dangerous? Hadn’t they seen the clips of what I’d done? Of course, they had.
The only thing I could do was hold myself back. It wouldn’t even take a psionic bolt. An Othisi push with a little too much energy from too close could seriously injure a person. To give my psionics something to do, I...
2025-05-26 14:09:02 +0000 UTC View PostAuthor Note: To answer those that have asked, I've had some delays because of issues with the cover art. Without a cover, I can't publish, so I've been focused on trying to get it remedies in a timely manner. The Gathering of Guilds mini-arc should be released this coming week.
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Having a million psionic users off-base at one of the largest convention centers in the world was an...
Graham Halstead is back with Underworld - The Succubi.
Synopsis:
Elorion's eyes are opened as he visits the succubi capital.
Are they monsters? Victims of an ancient magic? Or are they just misunderstood?
War is coming. Lilith's human experiment is finally revealed. What will El and Aeris do when face to face with the real players of the Underworld?
Cheers!
It was announced the morning before the Gathering of the Guilds that no charges would be pressed against me. Certain videos were leaked on the meta like my reaction the moment I found out, my trip through the city to reach my mom, then me leaping from one building to another before crashing through to the room my mom was being held in. At least the carnage that followed was mostly kept under wr...
2025-04-18 16:33:36 +0000 UTC View PostLex stormed across the room and jabbed his finger in Peter’s face. “You did this. She’s pregnant.”
Peter fell back into his seat and sighed. “Remove the fertilized egg without her knowledge and have it put in stasis.”
“Are you insane? This has gone far enough. The only reasonable action is to destroy the embryo. We’re already guilty of treason just allowing this to c...
2025-04-14 21:36:15 +0000 UTC View PostAuthor note: Sorry for the chapter delay. I've gone back and forth many times as to whether this is the direction I want to take Lucius's character development and finally decided to go with it.
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Weeks passed, training continued. Aeneus continued to kill me daily, but he added instruction here and there. Looking past the bubbles, Destiny’s training sim allowed for me to face...
When Victoria and I came together that night, I only briefly mentioned Mel’s desire to hook me up with a blind date.
“You should go,” she insisted.
I objected.
“How exactly are people to believe we aren’t together when they see you live like your married?”
I mockingly replied, “How exactly are people to believe we aren’t together when they see you live li...
2025-03-27 13:56:47 +0000 UTC View PostAs I waited for everyone to show up for our Combat Development Team meeting, I went over in my head the many times Krato had swooped in from above. His speed, mastery of angles, and the almost unlimited number of possibilities the Ekseliksi’s movement ability allowed for in the right environment left me dazzled. I would’ve likely cheered him on if each of his approaches hadn’t left me lim...
2025-03-26 16:54:24 +0000 UTC View Post“Was that really necessary?” Peter asked.
Aeneus Raptis had descended after severing the boy’s head from his body and returned to hovering a few inches off the ground. The unopened tub of ice cream appeared in his hand. He began to undo the seal as he answered, “What could be more necessary? Are you afraid it might discourage him?”
“No.”
Flicking through a few sc...
2025-03-25 19:16:35 +0000 UTC View PostWhen I ported into Fort Prodos, I recalled the virtual blueprints Victoria and Peter had overlayed on the environment here through the Meta. So much had changed. Most of all, our win in the quarterly event brought with it simulation points, or SP. Enough for them to finally finish Fort Prodos’s foundation.
Unlike the first week of Vanguard when the system installed anything they purchas...
2025-03-25 17:23:43 +0000 UTC View Post
Audiobook Preorder!
The Succubi
Underworld, Book 8
Narrated by Graham Halstead
Coming Apr 22!
Get it!
https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Succubi-Audiobook/B0F1ZGJ516
Synopsis:
Elori...
2025-03-20 18:51:43 +0000 UTC View PostUnderworld - The Succubi audio book will be released approximately April 22nd. The preorder should be out soon. I'll do a big update when its ready.
Cheers!
I stood in a giant cube. The whole simulated cube within a cube thing at first had me thinking it was a joke, but Destiny floated before me like some life-sized fairy without wings and glared down at me. This wasn’t her dressed in her military ballistic suit, but neither was it the young playful version that had raised me. This was the adult version. Her blond hair was back in a ponytail and ...
2025-03-10 17:07:45 +0000 UTC View PostWhat Path was best for the Tower’s first and foremost News organization? The argument continued between Jared and his peers, but he thought for sure his invisibility path was among the best if not outright the superior to all the rest. It was true that teleporters and flyers had an advantage at running away, but he didn’t need to run.
The most incredible thing about tower journalism w...
2025-02-28 17:54:59 +0000 UTC View PostMitch Travis waited for the last day to make his move. He’d remained on the outskirts of the command group throughout the training camp, but I’d been sure to introduce him to everyone even though he did what he always did and remained in the background. He wasn’t like Silvester Hitchens who led with the weight of his personality and zeal. For the last month, he’d chosen when to approach...
2025-02-28 17:54:16 +0000 UTC View PostJust as on the first day of training camp, everyone had gathered around the boxing ring where Nathan was standing. He took one final look at his new status.
Status
Name: Nathaniel Kane
Age: 19
Cultivation: First Stage of the Blood Realm (Consolidating)
Focus: Body (Toughness)
Talent: S
Physique: C
Strength: C
Agility: C
Stamina: C+
... 2025-02-28 17:53:17 +0000 UTC View PostNathan swelled with tension as Jun’s bokken slammed into the muscles on the side of his neck. It wasn’t as bad as taking a knock to the head and seeing stars, but the pain was sharp and made his muscles knot. The kendo master’s movements were flawless. A slash with almost identical force bit into the other side of his neck.
It wasn’t over. The blows remained even. One after anothe...
2025-02-28 17:52:49 +0000 UTC View PostI'm not big into giving big life updates since that's not why you're here, but my dad's in the hospital due to a fall. I've been out of town, and we're not sure when he's going to be discharged. I'll be uploading some chapters today I had intended on releasing from Body Cultivating Hurts while I was working on Codename just to give you guys some content.
Cheers!
Author Note: I plan on releasing this book later this year. For those of you who read the chapters over a year ago now, the long term plan is to have several characters in the Heaven's Laws universe that eventually meet up in a Avengers style mash up.
I've been sitting on a few chapters in this series, writing it off and on. It's not the main book I'm writing now, but I feel its a good t...
Porting into our sim withing a sim, Victoria was waiting. She wrapped her arms around me the moment she saw me. She had a new favorite place to pinch me under my shirt on the side of the ribs.
The moment I felt her hand, I let it happen, but not without running my fingers over her hair down her back.
She melted, purring like a kitten.
“How was work today?” I asked.
S...
2025-02-13 16:56:47 +0000 UTC View PostNote: This one could've been a few chapters, but I tied it into one to save you from anymore cliffhangers.
Cheers!
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“Prodos is already making a move,” Bolt said with too much volume due to his excitement.
Drumming his fingers against the table, Rachet straightened himself and informed, “Major Lucius Edwards is right. They can’t lose this event or Vanguard ...
2025-02-03 20:18:47 +0000 UTC View Post