JohnnyZ

Daily Updates (14/12/24)

Stories:

Demons of NC:

• TIer 1: Chapter 48

• Tier 2: Chapter 53

Life is Good:

• Tier 1: Chapter 15

• Tier 2: 2024-12-14 23:45:28 +0000 UTC View Post

[Demons of NC] Chapter 53

“A solo, huh?” Becca teased as we watched the live feed from surveillance cams.

“Well, he works solo,” I replied. “But it looks like his last gigs were rough, and he decided to hire some muscle.”

Jack Mauser had rented an apartment on the third floor of a building in a not-so-great part of a pretty decent Charter Hill neighborhood. The place was near an abandoned ElectricCorp power station—you know, the kind Scavs use to film their black braindances.

The buildi...

[Life is Good] Chapter 20

I pick up the pistol lying by the door. The metal ball? It’s rolled somewhere under the cabinets. Screw it—any metal surface can serve as ammunition. Ignoring the twitching, convulsing body of the chatty lab coat lady, I open the door. From Deadpool’s direction, the gunfire and screams have almost died down. Either the soldiers are running out, or Wanda’s taking a smoke break.

The door obscured the hallway in the direction I was heading, so the group of four soldiers emerging fr...

[Elden Ring: My Ending] Chapter 20

Lately, the new bearer of the Great Rune had been visiting the Roundtable Hold more and more often. It hadn’t gone unnoticed by its usual inhabitants—be it the cheerful warrior-mage Rogier, Roderika trying her hand at all sorts of crafts, Nepheli darting from one task to the next, or the ever-present Gideon, leader of the hold.

What they didn’t know, busy with their own affairs, was where the Tarnished headed first whenever he arrived.

Melina, her expression unreadable, stoo...

Daily Updates (13/12/24)

Stories:

Castling the Long Way

• Tier 1: Chapter 25

• Tier 2: Chapter 30

Mad Tiger

• Tier 1: Chapter 21

• Tier 2: 2024-12-13 22:29:00 +0000 UTC View Post

[Prof. Umbridge] Chapter 50

"Are they planning to clear out the entire forest?" Snape inquired, gazing into the distance.

"They promised to only burn the spider's lair," Marina Nikolaevna replied. "Though judging by their enthusiasm, they'll likely catch some live specimens too."

"Yes, but those trees are falling. Acromantulas couldn't possibly manage that..."

"Indeed..." She squinted. "And spiders don’t scream like that."

"They don’t scream at all; they have no means to," Snape enlightened h...

[Mad Tiger] Chapter 26

I woke up to total chaos in the palace. People were running around like caffeinated squirrels. Even Sano got roped in and had been helping his mom since early morning. For once, no one had to wake him up. He spotted me and quickly filled my food bowls like clockwork.

What’s with all the hustle?

"Hey, Sano, what's going on?" I finally caved under the weight of my curiosity.

He stayed silent but, once we were alone in the kitchen for a moment, he leaned over and said, "We're...

[Castling the Long Way] Chapter 30

I didn’t manage to visit the Lovegoods until three days later. Luna sent me a little black owl with a hawk-like head—Carla, she called her. Needless to say, I headed straight to her house as soon as I finished work.

Luna was tanned and had grown a bit taller, but her dreamy, faraway look hadn’t changed. It gave her a childlike charm that made her impossibly endearing. She was thrilled to see me and didn’t bother hiding it.

“Luna, where are the photos?” I asked when she...

Daily Updates (12/12/24)

Stories:

Demons of NC:

• Tier 1: Chapter 47

• Tier 2: Chapter 52

Life is Good

• Tier 1: Chapter 14

• Tier 2: 2024-12-12 18:00:09 +0000 UTC View Post

[Life is Good] Chapter 14 (Tier 1)

Bursting out of my room, I dashed to the one next door. I yanked the door open—it wasn’t locked. Peeking inside, I caught sight of a woman in a yellow sweater diving through the wall opposite my room’s. I slammed the door shut and sprinted down the corridor at full throttle. I doubted the wall diver would catch her breath in the next few rooms, so I bypassed five doors and flung open the sixth. Same scene—a woman slipping through the wall again, this time clutching a pair of men’s u...

[Demons of NC] Chapter 52

Three days into my little espionage venture, I’d already recruited four Arasaka employees: three from counterintel (Frank included) and one finance guy. My targets were all people Abernathy had kept the most dangerous dirt on—violations so bad they’d get fired on the spot, maybe even get a prison sentence… or worse.

Thanks, Susan, for being such a paranoid control freak. All I had to do was flash what I knew and work the usual playbook. Once someone agrees and delivers even the ...

[Elden Ring: My Ending] Chapter 19

Melina and Ranni stood across from the unflinching Konstantin, who sat calmly by the night’s fire. Their gazes bore into him—frustrated, disappointed, and thoroughly unimpressed. Though they weren’t his waifus, they were still women. And their stares were so piercing, so heavy, that Konstantin could almost feel his HP bar steadily draining.

Dodging wouldn’t save him. Parrying wouldn’t help. Shields were useless. Jumping away was pointless. There was no escape—only a slow and...

[Life is Good] Chapter 19

The first thing I did after the initial shock wore off was yank my foot out of the melted patch of the floor and dart over to the unconscious woman. Too late, though. She wasn’t breathing anymore. Shock? Blood loss? Exploding joints and torn muscles don’t really help with keeping the vessels intact. Honestly? I don’t know, and it doesn’t matter anymore. Somewhere, I’d heard or read that killing someone for the first time is like losing your virginity. Pretty sure that’s the kind o...

Daily Updates (11/12/24)

Stories

Castling the Long Way

• Tier 1: Chapter 24

• Tier 2: Chapter 29

Mad Tiger

• Tier 1: Chapter 20

• Tier 2: 2024-12-11 18:49:57 +0000 UTC View Post

[Mad Tiger] Chapter 25

Dis is definitely suspicious!

Seriously, what are the odds that the clean-shaven Asuma, son of the former Hokage, just happens to show up here on his own? Yeah, no way I’m buying that he just strolled by and thought, “Hey, why not become a Guardian Ninja for the Daimyo?” Especially since Minoruhi mentioned that this “monkey in a sack” was “recommended” to him.

Great. The enemies of the state never sleep, and now I can’t either. Time to i...

[Prof Umbridge] Chapter 49

The day was a whirlwind of activity, leaving barely enough time to carve out a quarter of an hour to visit the infirmary and check on Dumbledore’s condition.

Madam Pomfrey, who was just changing the bandages on Colhoun (the cheerful, freckled young man who had suffered an attack by Inferi), nodded towards the screen partitioning off a distant corner and said:
“He’s fine, Dolores, but he refuses to talk. He’s not entirely here, you might say. Stares right through you,...

[Castling the Long Way] Chapter 29

Shopping took far longer than I’d expected. Potter had only ever worn his cousin’s cast-offs and hadn’t a clue about clothes. He didn’t even know what he wanted. Fortunately, Madam Malkin knew her stuff. After asking a few questions, she quickly pulled together everything he needed and even gave him a catalogue so he could order more later if needed.

Next stop was The Dancing Heel for shoes. That took some time too, though at least you didn’t have to try on every pair—wizard...

Daily Updates (10/12/24)

Stories:

Demons of NC

• Tier 1: Chapter 46

• Tier 2: Chapter 51

Life is Good

• Tier 1: Chapter 13

• Tier 2: 2024-12-10 19:42:39 +0000 UTC View Post

[My Ending] Chapter 18

The sorcerer’s robes fit Konstantin perfectly, though he wasn’t particularly thrilled about it. Surprisingly, the head-shaped crown didn’t obstruct his vision, and it did an excellent job of concealing his face from prying eyes.

Not that Konstantin relied much on normal sight anyway. A true Soulslike player treats a broken camera as just another boss to conquer(1). Still, it was a small, unexpected comfort.

Unfortunately, the rest of the situation wasn’t nearly as pleasant...

[Life is Good] Chapter 18

Wow… I’ve officially unlocked new levels of the word “disgusting.” My vision is swimming and doubling, my ears are ringing and pounding, and my head feels like someone used it to brew one of Longbottom’s infamous potions. Let’s not even talk about my sense of smell—it’s in full retreat. I’m so thirsty it hurts, but getting water means I have to stand up. Which leads to the question: do I really want water badly enough to get up?

The research...

[Demons of NC] Chapter 51

Return to Dogtown was smooth. No chases, no gunfights. At the gates, Panam and I were met by a Barghest escort—three SUVs in their signature colors. They drove us straight to the Black Sapphire hotel.

The skyscraper really did look like a gem—albeit a stolen one.

Inside, the corporate luxury vibe was still intact. One of the few spots in Dogtown untouched by scavengers or the apocalypse. Everything sparkled.

“We’ll wait for the colonel, then get started,” Jago said...

Daily Updates (09/12/24)

Mad Tiger

• Tier 1: Chapter 19

• Tier 2: Chapter 24

Castling the Long Way

(Note: I messed up and skipped chapter 26 the last time I posted for Tier 2. The chapter I posted on Friday was 27 (not 26) so to make up for my mis...