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War. Was it just her, or was there too much war? Both in her world and here. Not a day passed when Ryoka didn’t hear about the King of Destruction in Chandrar, or about some conflict in Baleros between companies. A spat in Terandria between kingdoms. Battles at sea. Dead gods or living ones, wasn’t […]

I am dreaming. Dreaming of a small child following me with wide eyes. Her fur is forest brown and she sniffs as she pads along behind me. She makes no sounds, but she trusts me. As I descend into the crevasse and reach for her, she trusts me. As the Goblin takes my fingers, she […]

There she was. Like a soiled yellow bell pepper, poking up out of the ground. Or—or a lemon covered in crap. Or maybe a yellow onion that someone had dropped in a latrine, half recovered, and then sprinkled with bits of pink— You know what? There were no proper analogies. None at all. Umina’s yellow […]

“You lost your money pouch.” “No. Maybe. Perhaps. It might be down here.” “Are you really searching—” “Oh gods, Venaz!” “Shut up, Marian. Move those hooves. I have to find my money pouch. I had a lot of gold in there.” “It’s not worth looking through—watch those hands!” “I am going to murder you.” “Venaz, […]

The city of Daquin was one of Baleros’ many port cities. It wasn’t quite a metropolis, but it was large. Its harbor could hold as many as eight warships at the same time without being overcrowded; the buildings were by and large stone, a product of a nearby quarry and the city’s rich history. It […]

“Hey. Did you do your homework today?” “Of course. And it was a pain. What about you?” “As if I’d turn up today without having done it. Look. See here?” It was a curious phenomenon. An odd system. As immortal in its own way as mountains or geography. Somehow, despite magic and monsters and the […]

Talenqual. It wasn’t cool enough for a proper name, like the City of Serpents, the Ironforged Hearth of the North, the Titan’s School, and so on. It was just Talenqual. That was fine. Unless you had an ego issue about something like that. This may have been true for the company which controlled the city […]

People liked to insult the local City Watch, especially in Human cities. Ask any local and you’d get some commentary about how their local law enforcement was about as effective as a hamster with a toothpick, and as corrupt as a bag of [Lords] with their britches stuffed full of gold coins. The comparison was […]

[Martial Artists]. A term for people who use skills and techniques designed for combat, be it self-defense, war, competition, or other activities. They differed from traditional [Warriors] in a simple way. While anyone could learn to use a sword, and there were indeed teachers of swordplay or soldiering, anyone who knew how to fight could […]

“Ashfire Bees, huh?” Selys shook her head as she left the Adventurer’s Guild. She’d put in her time; it was past midday, which meant she’d been working for nine hours. That also meant she’d been at the Adventurer’s Guild since dawn, but that was the life of a [Receptionist]. “Yeah. It was surprising. I didn’t […]

“You know, I could quit. Right now. I could quit my job, walk into grandmother’s office and tell her to go eat her tail and walk out. Just like that. I could quit and do something else for the rest of my life.” Selys Shivertail looked around the Adventurer’s Guild. She glanced sideways at her […]

(The Wandering Inn, Volume 1 is coming out as an audiobook! The narrator is doing live reading on her Discord, invite here! You can listen to her streaming most week days at 2 PM EST if you’d like to hear the audiobook being produced! Please be respectful on her server, and look forwards to the […]

(The Wandering Inn, Volume 1 is coming out as an audiobook! The narrator is doing live reading on her Discord, invite here! You can listen to her streaming most week days at 2 PM EST if you’d like to hear the audiobook being produced! Please be respectful on her server, and look forwards to the […]

You were used to hearing their names. Like distant thunder. Like legends of old, like Dragons and heroes of a bygone era. [Kings] and [Queens], monarchs—famous adventurers, they were all the same. Names you heard, but never expected to meet. Giants you painted in your imagination, half-real figures who shook the world, but you were […]

“The Quarass is dead. May she live again.” That was all they said. In the streets, in their homes, staring at armored [Soldiers] with hatred, or dying with blades in hand. That was what was spoken. The people of Germina whispered the words. Then they shouted them. They gathered in the streets. The Quarass was […]

Sweat rolled down the side of his face. It matted his fur, turned it darker. It dripped onto the stone floor. But of course, she couldn’t smell it. She could hear him, but he made no sound as his face lowered towards the ground. Slowly. His arm compressed and his body—seemingly far too large to […]

There was darkness. There was stone. And there was a pickaxe. Lit by a plum glow, the dusty steel head rose. The pair of hands gripping it lifted it up, and back. For a moment it rested on a shoulder. Then it swung forwards, an arc gathering speed and weight. Momentum. The tip of the […]

“Okay. I’m going to Pallass.” Erin said it for the sixth time that morning. Lyonette looked at her. The young woman was feeding Mrsha eggs as the Gnoll grabbed for the fork, trying to feed herself thank-you-very-much. It was morning in Erin’s inn, and Erin Solstice had decided. She was going to Pallass. Today was […]

Here came a story about a bee. She woke with the dawn. Bees do that. Even Ashfire Bees. Especially in the spring. After all, they lived and died by the changing green, the bounty of nature. In the mornings, bees would be flitting from flower to flower, gathering nectar and pollen, the lifeblood of a […]

Aiko Nonomura sat at a table and felt a bug run up her leg. She brushed it off absentmindedly, not even bothering to check what it was. A few months ago, Aiko would have screamed, cried, and washed her leg—especially since Baleros’ bugs were the kind of things that lodged in the mind. Literally, if […]

They called her the Last Light. The Last Light of Baleros. To most, she was a [Soldier]’s story. And not even a grand one at that. Her legend was small. But somehow, it spread. She was no warrior. She hadn’t built up decades of triumphs like the larger-than-life figures who dominated Baleros. The Titan. The […]

Back home, Daly would have been enjoying his summer break. He’d be flying back, looking forwards to being home. Of course, he’d be looking for a job, but he’d be glad to be home. He’d even like to see his sister. Addy’d been fighting with his parents often, and she was a pain to be […]

Night was falling on Baleros. The jungles, always filled with life and motion, died down somewhat as a calmer, cooler atmosphere swept through the continent. Baleros, the continent of war and riches, grew quieter. But no less alive. And in the break in the jungles, in an open haven of space where the green gave […]

The inn was too small. That was all Erin could think. She felt—tired. Not necessarily calm. Not that much better either, really. She was just out of tears. Too drained to keep crying. But maybe a bit better. Seeing Numbtongue in Liscor had hurt with a sharp pain that had been worse than all the […]

It was a cold evening when Octavia Cotton carefully lit a match. It was spring, but sometimes the cold days still remained. This was one of them. The match sparked and the head flared into life. For most people in Celum, the city that Octavia had made her home for four years, the fire would […]