Margravine Sophia stepped into a lounge in the Drawnwater estate, leading Vasilisa, Argrave, and his two companions. He’d once again donned the white wig to disguise himself as Silvaden, and thus far things had proceeded without issue.
Margravine Sophia pointed to a pair in the room and said to the Magister, “I believe you may know these two.”
Vera and Hegazar stood there, smi...
2023-02-01 06:57:25 +0000 UTC View PostElenore heard a knock just outside her tent, and her head darted to the side. The knock sounded like something tapping against metal. Only one person knocked like that, and she could perceive him wholly just beyond the tent with her extrasensory jewelry.
“Come in,” Elenore called out.
Durran pushed aside the flap and walked in. He walked in his gray wyvern scale royal-forged arm...
2023-01-31 06:57:13 +0000 UTC View PostArgrave opened the door to the bottom floor of the inn, expecting to find it empty. Instead, Magister Vasilisa sat in an otherwise empty dining area, a great many tankards before her. Argrave was taken aback for a bit, and doubly so when he saw the blonde woman staring at him with clearly focused eyes. She certainly wasn’t drunk.
Anneliese and Galamon entered behind Argrave, the two of ...
2023-01-30 06:56:56 +0000 UTC View PostGanbaatar slid a thin wire into a door’s keyhole, Svetlana kneeling just beside him while watching an adjacent door. Something clicked from within the hole, and then the elven man tried the doorknob. It opened, creaking slightly. Svetlana’s head whipped back around, and then the both of them entered quickly, shutting the door just behind.
Svetlana cast a simple spell, and light illumi...
2023-01-27 06:57:14 +0000 UTC View PostArgrave surveyed Svetlana of Quadreign. She wasn’t exactly a main character, but she was a companion the player could recruit—these reasons alone made her notable. She regarded the three of them with the same curiosity. In particular, she studied Galamon.
“Svetlana—wait for me outside, please,” Vasilisa said. “I have some business to discuss with the Drawnwaters.”
The ...
2023-01-26 06:56:31 +0000 UTC View PostHow does one profit from war? That was a question that Elenore had asked a lot throughout her life. Her father, King Felipe III, warred throughout most of his reign, expanding the already significant holdings of the kingdom of Vasquer to a level beyond what it had ever been before. She had learned how to profit from the large industry in that generous allotment of time.
Those doing the wa...
2023-01-25 06:56:41 +0000 UTC View PostArgrave and Anneliese made their way back to the inn rather satisfied. Argrave felt things with the Magisters had gone quite well, which gave ample comfort for the tasks ahead. To show their commitment to their work together, the Magisters agreed to refrain from visiting Ivan until asked by Argrave. And in turn, Argrave gave them a document signed with his magic signature, detailing his promise...
2023-01-24 06:56:55 +0000 UTC View PostA window jerked open quietly on the second floor of an inn, and then someone slid into the room: a man armored in black. Someone else occupying the room sat up anxiously at the sudden entrance yet let out a sigh of relief when she laid eyes on the person. She threw off her sheets and rose to her feet.
“When will you learn to use the door like a normal person, Ganbaatar?” she said, wre...
2023-01-23 06:58:56 +0000 UTC View PostIn the days to come, Argrave amply demonstrated the fragility of Ivan’s hold over the region to Vasilisa.
From the outside looking in, a fortress might seem unassailable. From the inside, one could see the deficiencies the outside hid. Ivan was lord of all the wealthy lands of the north. And yet… the things that he had done did not pass unnoticed, and his manner of rule paled in compa...
2023-01-22 06:38:07 +0000 UTC View Post
“You’re sure this will work?” asked Vasilisa as she sat on one of the beds in their inn’s room.
Anneliese held the Starsparrow atop her finger. “It is most certainly our best bet of finding the two Magisters ahead of time. What else could we do? Ask questions around the city? They have not yet arrived, so that would be a pointless endeavor. You cannot call upon any friends that ...
2023-01-21 02:53:17 +0000 UTC View PostI'm sick. I don't think it's covid, but then again I haven't been tested. Feels like a flu. I tried to slog through it and write anyway, but I thought the writing was pretty bad. I think it would be best for everyone involved if I took a rest.
I'm going to rest for two days. Chapters will be released/accessible to lower tiers on Saturday and Sunday instead of the usual schedule, and there...
2023-01-19 03:26:55 +0000 UTC View PostMagister Traugott, wearing the gray robes given to him by the Order of the Gray Owl, sat atop a parapet on the walls of Dirracha, legs dangling over the side. He peered down at the first level of the multi-segmented city, eyes wandering its streets. It was dark out and the red moon above was barely visible at this time of month. Unless one shined a light upon him, he was all but invisible to al...
2023-01-18 06:55:12 +0000 UTC View PostA knock came at the door to the guest house, and Galamon stepped away to answer it. Once he did, Vasilisa stood on the other side. She looked about the room and then declared, “I won’t act unless I’m confident in what you plan to do.”
Argrave had been reviewing some of his writing in his notebook about Llewellen’s lecture on the dwarven musical cube. He closed the book and rose ...
2023-01-17 06:58:15 +0000 UTC View PostMagister Vasilisa watched the man beside her pour a drink into her cup. Cups, rather—the bartender filled multiple tankards, each and all just beside Vasilisa’s wrist. Her eyes jumped between the brown alcohol and their party of three, sitting adjacent from her and waiting expectantly.
“You sure you don’t want anything?” Vasilisa questioned.
“Alcohol does nothing for me,...
2023-01-16 06:57:48 +0000 UTC View PostVasilisa grabbed the iron gate that stood out front the palace in Quadreign. She fit in a key and opened it wide. Argrave eyed the gate—it was cheaply made, and the iron had grown rusty and brittle. The Magister had led them through the city with purpose, and they’d diligently followed behind their escort. It wasn’t as though any people blocked their way.
The quest line in Quadreign...
2023-01-13 06:59:22 +0000 UTC View Post“Feels like I can think again,” Argrave said loudly into the wind, one arm wrapped around Anneliese.
He hadn’t realized how much being stagnant in Relize had been weighing at him until he was gone. He hadn’t been doing anything too grandiose. His time had been spent giving his name to things, ordering that things get done in his name… but real, genuine progress? It was hard to c...
2023-01-12 06:53:01 +0000 UTC View Post“Traugott said that?” Argrave demanded, turning to Elenore as they walked through the streets of Relize. They headed for Leopold’s mansion, escorted by his royal guards.
“I’m worried for your safety,” Elenore said. “I think it would be best if we won some valuable spellcasters to our side as soon as possible.”
“Our first priority is to get word to Castro that Traug...
2023-01-11 06:57:49 +0000 UTC View PostDurran opened a door, beholding the man waiting on the other side. His name was Traugott. As Elenore said, his skin was darker than most people in Vasquer. Even still, Durran had seen darker men in the Burnt Desert, and his other unusual features drew attention first. His hair was as black as ink, appearing soft and inhuman. It looked more like grafted strands of black silk than hair. And his s...
2023-01-10 06:57:05 +0000 UTC View PostArgrave pushed aside the tent canopy and entered inside. There, Anneliese sat at a table, a few royal guards standing around her.
“Wait outside, guard there,” Argrave directed them.
They gave affirmation and left, and Anneliese did not even lift her head from the notebook she wrote in. Argrave noticed the black cube, dormant and silent, just in front of her hand. He walked behin...
2023-01-09 06:58:05 +0000 UTC View Post“Knight-commander, sir,” one of the royal guards said in a quiet voice as Argrave spoke to someone about sealing up this tunnel until the time came to deal with it fully.
Galamon turned his head and looked. His white eyes were chilling enough, but his size and proven skill made all of the guards beneath him both fearful and respectful of him—exactly the qualities one might need in a...
2023-01-06 06:58:33 +0000 UTC View PostArgrave pushed into the red crescent moon on the front of the metal door, and it clicked a few times. Once enough of it had been pushed in, it made space enough to get a grip. Argrave fit his fingers into and pulled. He was rather pleased with himself when the door shifted—he’d half-thought that he’d need Galamon’s help to yank this thing open. The door itself was four inches thick, and...
2023-01-05 06:55:45 +0000 UTC View PostArgrave gazed up at the towering black rock dominating all of his vision. Their darkness gave the impression that one might find a gaping hole at the top of these rocks that led down into pits of magma. Despite that appearance, they weren’t volcanic rocks, Argrave knew. And their party, numbering over one thousand, headed for a new addition on the face of these rocks—a fortress.
The t...
2023-01-04 06:57:31 +0000 UTC View Post“Duke Rovostar heads south, Prince Orion, to combat the approaching forces of the south. Though we can still see the dust clouds from their horses, we long ago lost sight of the army itself,” a kneeling royal knight said to Orion. Bandages peeked out from places in his golden armor, marking him as a plagued Waxknight. “We would need to send scouts to confirm where they are precisely.” 2023-01-03 06:56:36 +0000 UTC View Post
Argrave stood just beside Galamon, Anneliese on his other side. He felt a sense of relief no longer being surrounded by twelve additional warm bodies. This was because the twelve warm bodies that generally guarded him were instead training. At present, they trained in archery. Even the morning before they departed, Galamon insisted they receive basic training.
“They’re decently equipp...
2023-01-02 06:56:31 +0000 UTC View PostA couple linked arms as they ascended up the mystic stone elevator in the center of the Tower of the Gray Owl. One was a fairly tall bald man with lean features and a grin that seemed markedly bitter. The one beside him was quite the enchanting woman with gray hair and sharp orange eyes. She wore tall heels—tall enough to be the exact same height as the man beside her. There was a strange air...
2022-12-30 06:57:35 +0000 UTC View PostArgrave picked up a ring and poured the well of magic bursting within him into the confines of the inscription wrought into the metal. Imbuing enchantments felt like he was handling red hot liquid metal, pouring it into a cast with his will alone. He attempted to speed it up… yet as one might expect, the magic danced dangerously, and Argrave quickly directed things so as to seal them off. Jus...
2022-12-29 06:56:45 +0000 UTC View Post“One king is torn down before he can be crowned…” Duke Sumner, the young, brown of hair, and finely groomed mage of the south walked around a table where a map of Vasquer had been arrayed. He planted a crimson pin in the center of northern Vasquer, then lifted his head up.
All of the grand nobility of the south had gathered today. Margrave Reinhardt, leader of the southern rebellion...
2022-12-28 06:57:55 +0000 UTC View Post“You’ve already declared your intent to take the throne, Your Majesty,” Leopold reminded Argrave. “This revelation doesn’t change that, so far as I’m concerned. And need I remind you… of the promises you made?”
The six of them stood around Leopold’s grand council room—Argrave’s companions, Elenore, and Leopold. The room was far too large for them alone, but no one el...
2022-12-27 06:56:48 +0000 UTC View PostArgrave stared at the silver bracer around his forearm. It fit quite snugly, and it was difficult to tell that it was sapping his blood away if not for the slowly-filling glass meter atop it. He sat atop his bed, preparing for his day. Today would be the first day he wore this bracer, and he was curious to see how it affected him.
“…why are you so unsure?” Argrave asked Anneliese. 2022-12-26 06:55:48 +0000 UTC View Post
Orion stepped through a dark dank corridor, alone. Innumerable empty cells persisted along this pathway, blocked by thick iron bars. The stone, some of it stained by blood, told stories of past atrocities. The puddles of oil and water made unpleasant noises beneath his boots, the sound echoing throughout the cold confines. Even still, his approach was disguised by fierce, howling winds batterin...
2022-12-23 06:58:09 +0000 UTC View Post