Hold dreams in your heart as if time is boundless, for the future is shaped by those who dare to imagine. Yet, live each day with the urgency of finality, as if tomorrow is uncertain, for only in the present can true action and meaning be found. Balance hope with the wisdom of impermanence, for a life fully lived is one that honors both dreams and the fleeting nature of time.
- The Book of Wise Tellings from the Land of Streams.
Aelayah had gone...
2024-10-11 06:08:46 +0000 UTC
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Put this up on RR for the kicks and giggles. Hope you like it
2024-10-11 03:29:26 +0000 UTC
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Inserting this chapter between 39 & 40 to flesh out the fighter in chapter 40. Thought it would make things darker.
Chapter 39b - Memories of the Valley
As more of my intellect and wisdom are taken against my will to ponder the mysteries of Mana, I find myself with less capacity to process other physical and mundane problems, no matter how much I sharpen my mind.
- Notes found in the quarters of Master Bertrand of the University of Q...
2024-10-10 02:09:57 +0000 UTC
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The advice of the ancestor spirits is like the wind. Abstract, yet they shape the mountains. Their wisdom may seem to be clouded, but their purpose is always clear.
- The Book of Wise Tellings from the Land of Streams.
The air hung heavy with the weight of Yousef’s brazen treachery. The room reeled from the seneschal’s open confession, and sown with it was the potential seed of division. I could see the glances from those I summarily judged ...
2024-10-07 16:01:18 +0000 UTC
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Adaptation is important, whether an idea or a course of action.
- The Canticles of War 5th Edition revised by Gennaro
The problem with my more visceral approach to fighting was, well, it was visceral. Blood clung to my clothes, and bits of various innards, possibly even brain matter, were scattered through my hair. Elwin, blessed by whatever gods he worshipped, seemed almost untouched. Only his blades were stained from the violence. In...
2024-10-05 11:59:12 +0000 UTC
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Full equipment Silver-Ranked Larynda.
2024-10-03 19:52:00 +0000 UTC
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Under the stone that is of old of the Hal-Hassaria, before the years were counted, there is secret. Yes, it is hidden. The ancient ones of it this: "In the deep black, where no light goes, there is a gate. It is a path to a place darker than all." What is there before this gate? It is thing, yes. Wrought from metal, bones, and unhealing wounds. It has not seen the sun for many thousands of years. Its breath is death. It is rot. Its voice is like the ground breaking and the sky cryi...
2024-10-03 19:46:25 +0000 UTC
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Chapter 44 - Reunion
Even when the path ahead appears clear, seek guidance twice to ensure certainty. For even the most familiar road can hide unseen obstacles, and a second voice may reveal what the first did not.
- The Book of Wise Tellings from the Land of Streams.
I was in the land of quandary, that place cursed where the will goes to die. To do no nothing, I would lose the competition and face the judgment of the crowd, but ...
2024-10-01 07:38:00 +0000 UTC
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Under the shadowed canopy of the jungles to the north of Al-Lazar, the Thornfruit dangles like a jewel amid the twisted and thick vegetation. Its spiny red skin bristles with hair-like barbs, guarding the tender, translucent flesh within. Mature, when cracked open, the fruit reveals a pearl-like orb, sweet as honey with a whisper of citrus. Legends say that those who eat the Thornfruit are blessed with renewed vitality and dreams of forgotten lands. However, its appearance alone is...
2024-09-28 13:26:28 +0000 UTC
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The blind man who falls into the river blames the river for being there, yet forgets it was his own steps that brought him there.
- The Book of Wise Tellings from the Land of Streams.
The path to glory was almost clear, with only one opponent standing between me and ultimate victory. Just one more challenge remained before I could bask in the full patronage of Holder House. This quest chain had been long and convoluted, and I was eager to see it...
2024-09-27 03:17:49 +0000 UTC
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In the southern reaches of the Selais Duchy, within the kingdom of Aranthia, there lies a hidden treasure not of gold or jewels, but of bone-white clay. This rare, delicate clay, harvested along the banks of the River Selay, is the lifeblood of the region’s most ancient and cherished craft—the making of Selaisian porcelain. For centuries, the potters of these quiet villages have honed their skills, passing down their art from father to son, generation after generation. Each pot...
2024-09-24 13:27:37 +0000 UTC
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Should be back on regular schedule!
Better to seek wisdom at the feet of elders than to learn obedience under the rod. For the gentle guidance of the wise is like a nourishing rain that helps the sapling grow strong and straight, while the forceful blow of the stick may straighten the tree but leaves it scarred and brittle. Wisdom gained through respect endures, but lessons learned through fear are soon forgotten. Thus, honor your elders and embrace their teachings, fo...
2024-09-22 03:50:43 +0000 UTC
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Finally, all 3 books on RR have been edited to incorporate the latest changes! Going back to writing fresh chapters and working [slowly] through the knock-on effects in the plot in Book 4!
2024-09-20 17:21:14 +0000 UTC
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Taking onboard some, but not all, of the editor's suggestions. Structurally, she has a point so I am inserting some much-needed goals. As to the overall character of MC, I feel there will be little to no changes made as it is the central part of the story.
That being said, all of this is taking time so there may be a few delays with the upcoming chapter and continuation of the tournament arc. This is because I am going through all of the books at the moment and adding bits in. Then, I n...
2024-09-20 00:53:35 +0000 UTC
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Starting with this one, because this is a big one. There is a problem: an absence of a clear, overarching, tangible goal the protagonist is working towards, and one he genuinely wants and has a strong motivation for (so, conveying the girl across to the Free City wouldn’t work, since it’s an unwanted quest that he is not emotionally connected to in any way). I know it’s a new world and he is finding his bearings, but this is book 3 - I am not ...
2024-09-17 07:44:48 +0000 UTC
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A good trader deals not in product and services alone, but in sincerity.
- The Path of the Merchant by Gelgor Badawi.
The ground rumbled as the very stone tiles at our feet answered the dark man’s call. Stone became viscous liquid, pooling around his feet before pouring over his chiseled frame. This was certainly not what I had been expecting.
Gritting my teeth, knowing that to interrupt would damn my word, I could but wait until the Geo...
2024-09-17 07:43:15 +0000 UTC
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True knowledge is like an ever-growing tree; no single pair of hands can encircle its vastness.
- A Quassian Aphorism.
Frustration, that unwanted friend had once again made its presence known. My hands gripped the collar of the messenger who dared to inform me of the news…
“Please, samasa, unhand me. I was only delivering the message. A thousand apologies if this has offended…”
“Why has this Sevas forfeited our mat...
2024-09-15 10:39:39 +0000 UTC
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In the heart of a noble man, even the purest intentions may be led astray, for he may be deceived to commit wrongs, believing them righteous in the service of a higher cause.
Likewise, the selfish heart of a wicked man may unknowingly tread the path of virtue, thinking it serves only his own gain.
Thus, the flow of the world bends even the intentions of men, like a stream altering course by the rocks and stones in its path.
- Aphorism fr...
2024-09-13 13:22:07 +0000 UTC
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One should be careful with one’s words for the birds hear those words spoken in the day, and Wise Ones hear the words spoken at night.
- A proverb of Al-Lazar.
“Should they pit you against me, you know what to do,” I said, washing my face with clean water from a copper bowl. It felt good to be in a clean change of clothes and not having to wear the damned face covering.
“Give up and yield,” came Larynda’s sullen response. ...
2024-09-11 14:30:06 +0000 UTC
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Longing is a beautiful flower that can bloom in the madness of resentment.
- Unknown.
Always have I found that hope, could bloom wildly in the most unlikely of soil. For without it, I’m certain mankind would have never ventured out of the caves. That bad thing will never happen to me; there’s always a chance, was the common thought echoing through our collective minds across the ages. It defied logic and reason. But, for every tale of...
2024-09-09 16:46:48 +0000 UTC
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Finally had this one done. Now, for the rest of the gang!
2024-09-07 15:24:04 +0000 UTC
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The Lumashitu is a large, six-limbed creature that roams the jungles to the northeast of the Whispering Wastes. To this day, the feral goblin tribes still revere the creature as a sacred beast.
This formidable lizard beast has six sturdy legs, powerful enough to carry its heavily armored body across even the most rugged terrain. Its back and flanks are protected by a thick layer of bony knobs and plates that form an almost impenetrable carapace. This natural armor is...
2024-09-06 14:42:05 +0000 UTC
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Making progress, now need to get the eyes fixed and sort out the robes!
2024-09-04 12:46:52 +0000 UTC
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By sun, by moon, by stars above, the Great River’s flow whispers to us, the silent passage of time.
- Unknown.
I saw a man bedecked in the finery that only true wealth could buy, perched atop a raised box near the arena and looking out as the competition unfolded. His skin was pale, too pale by far to be local born, and he had that foppish air about him, the kind that brought to mind those pampered little lapdogs the monied people in my old wo...
2024-09-04 12:45:08 +0000 UTC
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Making progress!
2024-09-02 13:47:28 +0000 UTC
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Footwork is the root from which all movement grows, the foundation upon which victory is built. A blade may strike swift as lightning, but without the balance of earth beneath, it becomes like a leaf in the wind-unbalanced and without true powr.
To step poorly is to invite disaster. Each movement must be precise, every shift of weight deliberate. Like the flowing river, the feet must be fluid yet grounded, able to yield and strike as one. In battle, it is not enough to stri...
2024-09-02 09:55:41 +0000 UTC
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Initial sketch for adult version of Larynda. Going to make her slimmer and more girlish.
2024-08-31 12:13:55 +0000 UTC
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Less cartoony version of Elwin. What do you think?
2024-08-31 12:10:09 +0000 UTC
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Every meeting of import in this life comes with it the shadow of a bitter farewell.
- Attributed to the playwright Vlan di Panoli.
Vasileios Bakirtzis had married into wealth. Serious wealth. The man enjoyed a lifestyle that would many emperors and princes cry in abject envy.
As the eldest son of a Quassian factor and University trained, he had always enjoyed a privileged position. Though he couldn't hear the Song of Mana like some of his ...
2024-08-31 12:08:32 +0000 UTC
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In the dense and shadowy forests of the Grieving Lands, particularly abundant in the Sainba Forests and the King’s Forest of Aranthia, the insectoid Happy Feet can be found.
The Happy Feet is a colossal millipede-like creature, stretching up to twelve feet in length with a segmented body covered in a glossy, chitinous shell that ranges in color from dark green to a muted brown. Each segment is lined with hundreds of tiny, rapidly moving legs, giving the creature it...
2024-08-29 09:06:22 +0000 UTC
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