Seersucker

Penitent Book 2 Ch 8: Biting and Clawing Snow

They camped under a small stony outcropping that shielded from the worst of the snow and wind. Ollie managed to pile and freeze snow on one side of it using his magic which blocked the icy wind that seemed to be whipping out toward them constantly. It was all coming from the same direction, and seemed relentless.

“It’s definitely not natural,” said Lance stoking the fire a bit and tossing a few more magically dried twigs onto the pile. “I’ve seen some strange weather, but this...

Scam

Hey guys, there's someone going into the comments of my posts with the same username as me and saying that you won something and to call a number. This is not me. I tried to delete all of them, and blocked the individual, but I wanted to give everyone a heads up to ignore them. I will under no circumstances ask anyone to call a phone number.

Be safe out there

• Seer

Penitent Book 2 Ch 7: Cold Bounty

The bounty hunter pushed the rim of his hat up with his rifle, revealing more of his face. His eyes were light gray so soft that they seemed to blend in to the white around them.

“Now, I know I jumped the gun a bit by taking that shot, but I do want to give y’all a chance to give up the woman, and the little noble.”

Michael’s eyes widened as he looked at the others who were wearing the same surprised expressions. The man was speaking english.

The man held up...

Penitent Book 2 Ch 6: Unseasonable Cold

They took a brief break a few miles up from the dead troll, and Michael found himself surprised to be shivering a bit as a cold wind blew in their direction from the East. He looked up and saw a number of dark clouds heavy with moisture. He looked at Lance.

“Is it normal to get this kind of weather?” he asked.

Lance shook his head. “We sometimes get cold winds like this from the middle-sea at the capital, but this far inland? No, this is very strange.”

He looked at F...

Penitent Book 2 Ch 5: Trolling

Michael was awoken by a light shake of his shoulder. He looked up to see Marcus holding a finger to his lip before he went to wake Davi. They were in an empty longhouse that seemed to exist to store the sheep during the coldest parts of winter. He cast muffle on himself and gathered his things as he watched Marcus awaken the others and tell them to do the same. He was surprised when he saw that Francesca had a muffle spell of her own, and once they were all together, Ollie added in a spell of...

Penitent Book 2 Ch 4: Shepherd

They traveled along a main road with most of their armor in their bags, but their swords and weapons displayed clearly at their waists. There was a small village a few miles ahead that Marcus had spotted when they’d crested a particularly high hill. It was a warm day, and there was a pleasant breeze that would occasionally push Michael’s long hair out of his face. He was well due for a trim, but at this point it didn’t seem like he’d have the time for one any time soon.

The buil...

Penitent Book 2 Ch 3: Shots

The dogs caught up with them around fifteen minutes after they abandoned their camp. These weren’t like any dog breeds on earth that Michael had ever seen. They had loose flaps of skin, thick fur, and heads that seemed too large for their bodies and came with a massive set of teeth. The last time there had been about twenty of them, and this time there were closer to fifteen.

As they started to catch up, Michael saw Francesca falling behind, and Lance barely paying attention to where ...

Penitent Book 2 Ch 2: Growing Boys

Michael was crouched low as he looked at the small wooden building a few feet ahead of them. He’d already cast muffle on himself, but was still finding his footfalls to be louder and heavier than those of Marcus who was crouched down just a little further ahead.

“We get in and get out. I don’t want to hurt anyone, and we don’t take any more than we need,” whispered Michael. He wasn’t happy that it had come to this, but they needed the protein, they couldn’t survive on root...

Penitent Book 2 Ch 1: Heir

A man walks down a long stone corridor. Every ten feet there is a torch lit on either side of it, and when he reaches the end of the hall, the man turns around and walks back in the other direction. At first he’d tried counting the number of times he’d paced from one side of the hall to the other, but every time he heard a cry or a groan from the room, he lost count. Instead he focused on just putting one foot in front of the other.

There was another cry from the room, and he stoppe...

Penitent Book 1 is Complete!

Ch 94 was the end of book 1!

I hope you're all happy with it, I think it's a really good start to things. The four subsequent books will probably be a little shorter, I really didn't realize how much more exposition writing and Isekai makes you have to do.

If you're worried about the loss of the military angle, I can promise it will be reoccurring part of the story, there'll just be breaks for adventure and other things.

No breaks before the start of book 2: Pilgrim. In fac...

Penitent Ch 94: Pilgrim

“What’s going on, Lance?” asked Michael.

“Nothing’s going on. As far as it should matter to you, the mission is exactly as it has been. We just need to get this woman to the right place.”

Crick stepped forward, his usual dour expression changing into something neutral and his body language completely changing in just a moment. His back straightened, his shoulders went back and his slight limp corrected itself. His face that had always been a bit scrunched up, seemed to...

Penitent Ch 93: Sound and Fury

Michael was running toward the group, his eyes fixed on Jakub’s severed head that was locked in an expression of fear.

Lance roared and launched himself at the monster, but his attack was slow, far slower than any attack Michael had ever seen him make, and the creature caught his blade with its hand and slammed a fist into his helmet sending him skidding across the ground.

The others started to attack it too, with Davi throwing the geologist toward the statue before turning to f...

Penitent Ch 92: The Wrong Martyr

They all looked at one another and at her, unsure of whether or not they should go for their blades.

She laughed, a bold, loud, laugh that echoed across the cavern they were in. The laughter turned to coughing after a few moments and Jakub handed her his flask again so that she could clear her throat. She handed it back after she’d settled, wiping her mouth with the back of her sleeve.

“Well, your timing is absolutely impeccable I have to say. Truly couldn’t be more ideal.�...

Penitent Ch 91: The Monster and The Goddess

Marcus was the first to react, he raised his rifle and fired at the creature. The bullet hit one of its arms, breaking off a piece of glassy chitin, and it shrieked like a roach expelling all of the air from its body.

Ollie followed up Marcus’s shot with a blast of lightning from each of his hands. One went wide, but the other struck the creature in its center causing it to shriek again as it surged toward them, its bladed arms unfolding as it closed the distance, the viscera of its l...

Penitent Ch 90: Into the Mountain

They moved carefully down the hill as they approached the small camp. There were no horses but there was a donkey and a few sturdy ponies under a tarp that had been used to create a makeshift stable. They seemed to have not been fed or watered in several days, and Crick took a few moments to take care of them as they searched the rest of the camp. Michael checked the firepit in the center of it, noting that the fire there hadn’t burnt out, but had been intentionally put out with a shovel fu...

Penitent Ch 89: Context

Michael thought about what Lance had said as they started to make their way out of the camp. He’d always thought of his value as part of the whole. He was a healer, Davi and Pyotr were incredible fighters, Ollie was an extraordinary mage, and Marcus was one of a very limited number of dragoons. They were, as a whole, a very valuable group. The idea that under-general Hans was interested in him specifically took him by surprise though. Thinking about it though, it shouldn’t have. So far he...

Penitent Ch 88: Last Rites

Michael awoke to the feel of cold metal pressed against his lips. He opened his eyes to see Davi holding a canteen for him. He drank greedily, coughing a bit as it went down the wrong pipe. He shook his head and cleared his throat.

“Is everyone okay?”

Davi re-sealed the cap on his canteen. “Mostly. We lost a few. Would’ve been a lot worse without you. Ollie, Crick, Marcus, and Pyotr are fine.”

Michael began to push himself up, pulling a long thin arrow from his leg...

Penitent Ch 87: Standing and Falling

The Penitents who were conscripted criminals of Stent had been trained to hold a line, to move in formation, but the taker penitents had not. Michael looked at how Lee, and Ogun were positioning themselves since they'd been in this kind of battle before. They had both gotten shields and spears with swords at their waists. They held the shields high in front of themselves and took a medium stance with their spears pointed forward. Michael mimicked their stance, as did Davi and Pyotr. Ollie and...

Penitent Ch 86: Reunions

There wasn’t any sleep to be had after the ambush. Instead they packed up their tents, repaired any torn gear with the needle and thread they’d all been given, and had a long breakfast as they waited for the sun to come up. They could’ve travelled in the dark with relative ease thanks to their nighteye spells, but their horses couldn’t and it made more sense to wait for the speed they granted them.

When it was first light again they all got onto their horses and started again to...

Penitent Ch 85: Auspicious Beginnings

The next morning after breakfast they all gathered at the front gate of the fort. They were dressed in their full gear for their initial march to the southeastern part of the front. Once they reached that point, Bayle had provided them with common Tusinian clothing that they could wear to stay incognito, including thin colorful cloaks that were in fashion and would help them to conceal their weapons.

Jakub was there with them, and his armor seemed to have been patched and buffed in a fe...

Penitent Ch 84: Plans and Plans

“I didn’t mean any insult Bayle, but this is what I’ve been ordered to do,” said Lance his spine straight and his eyes forward.

Bayle shook his head in response as he read the letter, and took a long breath as it ended. “I’ve been keeping track of you Lance,” he said as he folded the letter neatly and placed it to the side of his desk. His sneering expression was gone. “You haven’t been one who overly relied on his status in the past. This mission could turn the tide f...

Penitent Ch 83: Lance's Lot

Michael narrowly dodged a spear thrust from Crick and attempted to slam his shield down on top of it, but Crick swiftly pulled his spear back and attempted a followup stab. This time, Michael parried it with his sword before attempting to hit his face with its hilt. Crick pulled back his head sharply and brought up the butt of his spear toward Michael’s groin, but he quickly summoned a small shield that caught the blow and slowed it long enough for him to close his legs and twist his hips. ...