Two hours later, Terra and I walk toward the cave where the gate of the Rich and Destitute is located. Terra tells me the Helping Hands finished their work there a few days ago, and Gen and the Elderly Rats have been living there since. She also told me that the Wretched Rats corpse has been frozen and is being studied by a group named the “Free People’s Beast Directory Project” or “BDP.”
I do not know what to think about the latter information, but I am looking forward to see...
2021-04-28 10:53:52 +0000 UTC
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Byron of Byron's Big-Bug Emporium is having a debate with Shriek in their tent. The subject of discussion drifts toward the same topic as it always seems to do—The Tower's Mistress.
While Shriek drifts off into his delusions, wandering whether The Tower's Mistress is the trophy Goddess he'll add to his harem, Byron's thoughts drift to something else.
If the Tower's Mistress was a bug... which one would she be?
After staying up all night, racking his brain,...
2021-04-25 13:25:05 +0000 UTC
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Note: Yet another extra-long chapter for you all. Enjoy.
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After Terra told us what the Hex Church announced on the Terrace earlier, Terra, Earl, and I talked for a while longer, discussing both the Hex Church and the one hundred tokens I am meant to be handing out soon. Terra tells me she has already given out four hundred of the lesser tokens and has awakened forty people, two of which went ‘comatose’ from complications.
...
2021-04-24 22:05:11 +0000 UTC
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The following is an excerpt from the journal of one of the quieter Helping Hands:
Today I had the job of touching up a photo that will be used as an advertisement and promotional photo to motivate the Tower Pilgrims. Pretty far below my skill ceiling, but there aren't many tech jobs these days, so I don't mind.
This photo features the famous duo of Miss Fairy or Miss Nightingale and Miss Galtry, and it came out pretty damn well, to be expected of Owl.
...Except, it also feat...
2021-04-23 06:10:46 +0000 UTC
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Note: An extra-long chapter for you all. Enjoy.
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Looking out the window of the Tower, I can see the red brick of the Terrace below. I assume the commotion of the Tower’s first breath must have garnered some attention because masses of people have begun to congregate around a hundred feet from the Tower’s exterior. If I had to guess, they are probably cautious because of warnings issued by Terra and one of the videos about gettin...
2021-04-21 06:13:43 +0000 UTC
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Moving to the edge of the forest of titans that have sprouted in the spirit realm of Tenebrous, I raise myself onto my tiptoes to see over a fern with big fan-like leaves. {Earl? Where art thou? I do not know… I do not know…} I stop and think. {I suppose I do not know what I do not know, and I would at least like to know enough to know what I am ignorant of.}
I reach out and push the big fern leaf down, sending droplets of water onto the hem of my black gown. The w...
2021-04-17 12:16:22 +0000 UTC
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Enjoy the map.
Note from Comment Below: This is a 2048x2048 to scale map, so I definitely recommended that it's opened in its own tab and scrolled through because there are hidden details.
2021-04-14 04:18:14 +0000 UTC
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Constance awakes! I hope everyone is excited.
I have made a small formatting change. "{" and "}" are going to be used to represent telepathic conversation. If you have an opinion on the formatting change or the chapter mention it in the comments.
Oh, and don't forget to check out the map above this post. The map is a 2048x2048 to scale ma...
2021-04-14 04:11:57 +0000 UTC
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Note: This would be an opening for a new book, so there is some recapping at the beginning of the chapter.
I hope you guys enjoy what's to come.
Thanks!
__________________________
In the cold month of December, I sit in the corner of the now quiet boathouse restaurant staring out the window. The view of the wintertime New York Central Park and the frozen Lake is as it has been for three weeks now. Hundreds of people are off in the distance g...
2021-04-11 00:26:40 +0000 UTC
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I wanted to share something special I made for Book 2. I've been working on it for a while now, and it's subject to changes, but I hope you guys like it.
Thanks for your support.
2021-04-09 04:39:30 +0000 UTC
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On a warm summer’s day, in the back allies of London’s Silver Street, I sit beneath a small church window. As I enjoy the coolness of the shade, I fiddle with a heavy mortar and pestle in my lap and then reach into my canvas bag to run my hand across Sir Mouser’s back. [1] Sir Mouser cannot walk long distances as he once did. So for the past several months, I have been carrying him in a canvas bag that loops around my neck.
As for his wife, Lady Mouser, she is not of this world an...
2021-04-08 02:12:48 +0000 UTC
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In a cold room at the top of a 38-story hotel, I gaze into a mirror—one eye of green and another of silver stare back.
It’s been eight days since Constance entered hibernation, so at least seven days remain until she awakens and the Tower appears. Yet the city has already significantly changed. It was five days ago now, that a portion of the city’s sewers changed after dense white steam began flowing through its tunnels. Since then, all kinds of oversized bug creatures have been a...
2021-04-07 02:58:08 +0000 UTC
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Note: I added a short extension to the end of the previous chapter. Thanks, and enjoy!
________________________________
After slaying the Wretched Rat and receiving recognition of the flies’ defeat from the Cosmic System, I have been observing the Elderly Rats while recovering a calm state of mind.
As for Gary, he got bored of talking to himself and stated that he had to depart before sunrise. Apparently, he was about to stealthily transfer the clickers to...
2021-04-04 01:39:53 +0000 UTC
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I stare at the gathering of rats.
It is not difficult for me to know the Elderly Rats would not willingly work beside the Wretched Rat, nor is the Wretched Rat capable of conspiring in this manner. The only inference I may make with the information at hand is that the other Kiln are manipulating them somehow. The somehow is quite clear.
Within the suit, I commence using haze to compose copepods of sable and vermillion. One of my most significant advantages is the lack of phy...
2021-04-01 00:11:17 +0000 UTC
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Staring at the statue of a famous humorist, William Shakespeare, I point and then write, “Why does the comedian, Shakespeare, have a statue here?”
“Comedian?” Noah leans closer to my message, making certain he is reading it correctly. “I never smirked, much less laughed, at anything he’s written in my life.”
“Yeah, he’s a very well-respected writer and playwright,” Summer says, watching Leo.
I eye the statue of Shakespeare standing in a commanding stance....
2021-03-28 13:40:14 +0000 UTC
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Sitting at the marble table, I am about to leave for tonight’s ‘heist,’ but considering I will be entering hibernation later tonight, there is one thing I need to do before then.
Since my contract with Terra, I have been eating sandwiches and turkey, refining Nebula and Vitrum when not using my mana for something else. The turkeys are still not as delicious as the stolen meat from the café.
I find myself staring at the ceiling, reflecting on the taste of that food. ‘W...
2021-03-25 23:08:30 +0000 UTC
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2021-03-22 12:43:16 +0000 UTC
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Extra-long chapter for all of you.
Lots of new exciting stuff happening in and out of the book. Here are some of the things everyone has to look forward to over the next couple of months:
- Book 1 will be completed very soon (as I'm sure you can tell).
- An original semi-realistic illustration starring Constance in her arc suit and two other characters coming next month.
...
2021-03-22 12:38:16 +0000 UTC
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A day has passed since I placed the gate. Things have fallen further into absurdity. At present, I am standing atop a rocky hill near a bronze statue called “The Falconer.” It’s a relatively simple statue of a man in standard theatrical dress reaching out to catch his falcon hunting companion. The hill itself overlooks a field known as “Frisbee Hill” or some other silly name of that sort.
However, what has me shaking my head is the people who have arrived and are setting up en...
2021-03-19 07:23:19 +0000 UTC
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Terra left a few hours ago while Owl and the Helping Hands work on improving the cave. In the meantime, Shriek is showing me one of the chat room things. The chat room’s words are so fast, though. It is difficult for me to keep up. Shriek says that each of them is from a different person and that it’s typically more disorderly, but they removed pictures. I presume the ones that would use pictures must be people that have yet to learn to read or write as I have. It is good that they are us...
2021-03-16 12:41:10 +0000 UTC
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With my hibernation approaching, the hours and days begin to blur together as things become tumultuous.
…
…
…
It is midnight. Doctor Jäger and Mrs. Jäger sit in front of the camera covered in a blanket, napping. Terra and Owl say we cannot move them or people may believe we did something while they were not being watched by the camera’s eye. Not to mention, the risk of them entering the Beta and it not being seen is also there.
Terra is on her lap-top as usua...
2021-03-13 13:25:58 +0000 UTC
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An hour or so later, a group consisting of Terra, Owl, Shriek, and I are approaching my humble hermitage. Owl is carrying an enormous bag on his back that he claims is full of something called “camera gear.”
Meanwhile, Shriek is towing a small wooden wagon full of miscellaneous things. There is a metal table, some chairs, some type of lanterns, among other such things within it, but most of it consists of what Terra referred to as “cleaning supplies.” I do not understand why she...
2021-03-10 07:32:48 +0000 UTC
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While I sit pondering what I just learned from the Cosmic System, I hear shouting coming from behind me. I look back to see a large number of people passing by the end of the alley. The mass of people shout, “See the truth - Hear the truth - Speak the truth” while holding signs that say things like, “Believe your eyes,” “Trust your ears,” and “Ordinary, not extraordinary!”
I flinch when something creaks in front of me. My head swings forward, discovering light leaking fr...
2021-03-07 11:59:58 +0000 UTC
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It’s now dark out and I am still in the RV; fortunately, I left Gen a way out of the cave.
Presently, the only other people that remain are Owl, Emily, Lorcan, and I. Lorcan is operating the RV while Owl is doing things to the arc suit, preparing it to be embellished and “reborn.” Emily, on the other hand, is groveling in front of Terra.
I have spoken to Lorcan about my sign language and other things of interest while Terra talked to the people that attended the meeting one ...
2021-03-04 03:23:04 +0000 UTC
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Discovering more people than I expected, I freeze. The room is crowded now and it is clear that it is not made for this amount of people. Scanning each person’s face, I recognize six of them: Shriek, Leo, Jessica, Lorcan, and two additional people I never anticipated.
Off to the side by herself is a woman with a big white bandage on her face and small scabs around her neck and hands—this person is Emily. She is the Spirit Scribe that attempted to enslave me with the domination contr...
2021-03-01 01:30:04 +0000 UTC
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The ride known as an “RV” is rectangular and looks to be at least ten feet tall and forty feet long. It is totally black with hardly any discernible markings, and most interesting to me is that it seems to have a metal house door on the side.
‘This RV seems as if it barely fits on this street.’
The door on the side of the RV clicks and creaks open. Out steps a familiar man carrying a canvas bag with his long red hair and tattoos on his neck. Though he wears a shir...
2021-02-26 11:00:07 +0000 UTC
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Sitting in the center of the gate room, I spend the next two hours describing and explaining the remaining things I had yet to share with Terra. These include things such as Tenebrous, Earl, Gen, and one or two other things I neglected to mention. The whole time I talk about Tenebrous and Earl specifically, she glances between the gate and me while gawking with a partially opened mouth. It makes me rather uncomfortable, but whenever I stop to ask if something is wrong, she just says, “No! N...
2021-02-24 02:29:32 +0000 UTC
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Placing the messenger orb to the side, I lean against the wall behind me. ‘I managed to get another rank and it was not as draining as it was a couple of days ago.’
Since obtaining the Interim skill, the way to train my Mana compression has been to write in the messenger orb, but I attempted something new this time. I tried to draw; more specifically, I wanted to try and make a map...
2021-02-21 01:27:33 +0000 UTC
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Together Earl and I make the walk back toward the hill where the door that I traveled through once was before rudely disappearing. The only noise is the pat of Earl’s canvas shoes and the squeaking of the lantern she holds out in front of her.
Without looking back, Earl speaks, “Statement: While we walk, this one wishes to finish their statements and notes.”
I nod. ‘If we can move closer to leaving and have the conversation at the same time, all the better.’
...
2021-02-17 11:40:27 +0000 UTC
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I stand motionlessly gazing upon the figures of Roanoke’s people, hanging from the branches of the willow tree.
Noticing my lack of response, Earl raises an eyebrow, taking a few steps closer to me. “Subsequent Query: Is the user pleased? Does the user relish seeing them in a comparable position as the user was once so barbarically forced into?” She releases one of her hands from the lantern, walks a few steps, and leans forward. Inserting her arm into the haze, I wince when she t...
2021-02-15 09:17:12 +0000 UTC
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