Talsis dismounted along a moist, dirt path. The deer-trodden trail passed through an evergreen forest, down the jagged rockface of a ten-foot cliff, and into the soft, white sand of a small, hidden beach. The forest’s last line of defense against the encroaching sea was a row of crooked cedar trees. Their roots fought to sap nutrients from the thin soil that topped the cliff; they competed for space and sustenance. The trees appeared as a row of poorly trained archers, cowering between the parapets of a sylvan fortress. Beneath the forested cliff, loud, violent waves splashed onto the shore, inching closer to the rockface with each pulse…
Tag Archives: Fantasy
Sons of a Soul Split: Chapter Ten
Early in the Even’morn, Noveirn knocked on Fruyr’s door. He took a moment to rouse himself from his dreams, and in that moment, the cleaned and altered outfit that the vampires expected him to wear was shoved through a mail slot in the door, which priorly, he had not known was there…
Sons of a Soul Split: Chapter Nine
Theirs was a forbidden love; the melding of magic not meant to mix. Theirs was a farmhouse in a forgotten forest; the canopy that covered their scars. Theirs were the elf-twins, Fruyr and Kimio, who tore their sheltering shade asunder…
Sons of a Soul Split: Chapter Eight
Tick-tock, tick-tock! The brass pendulum of an ancient grandfather clock swayed to the rhythm of the star that governed the passage of time in another realm. It was one of many relics Ihrassius Dafyunesh plundered before Lord Draiden cursed the vampire clan to forever dwell in darkness, far beneath the bright, warm touch of any sun. The clock’s simple, consistent tune brought the taste of Ihrassius’s favorite meal back to his tongue whenever he heard it. Once, he played a long, sadistic chess game against a lonely country mouse. Her patient sorrow so enriched the flavor of her blood that Ihrassius longed for more, even centuries after he drained her heart of both her lifeblood and her unrequited love. The stoic grandfather clock was the only witness of Ihrassius’s merciless checkmate…
Sons of a Soul Split: Chapter Seven
As the infernal core of a world pulses against the bedrock and warms the sea above it, Kimio felt heated from his heels to his scalp. His empty stomach churned from hunger and wrath, like ocean waves that beat against the hulls of sailing ships. Kimio was angry to be alive and yet deprived. Some time ago, Glaiven revived Kimio with a serum containing powdered unicorn horn, and then left him to rot under the tyranny of his cellmate. Each time the prisoners were fed, the siren snatched Kimio’s portion. Her fattening fishtail had started to look as delectable as it was shiny…
Sons of a Soul Split: Chapter Six
The air thickened with a pleasing aroma, a scent stronger than wildflowers and sweeter than perfume. Fruyr stopped, raised his chin, and sniffed. His eyes watered, and his pulse quickened, but his tongue and throat dried…
Sons of a Soul Split: Chapter Five
Glaiven knew the medics would soon patch Uuinora up and discharge her for combat; war waited for no one, neither would Uuinora. Even if Uuinora’s injury was severe enough to plaster her to a hospital bed for a few days or longer, her impatience and impulsiveness would prevail over her stunted prudence. The minute she was certain she could trust her organs to remain tucked behind her stitches, she would suit up and head out. The primal instinct to move once able was embedded in Uuinora’s core, birthed long ago from a deep hatred of being left behind…
Sons of a Soul Split: Chapter Four
Beneath an unfamiliar, unfinished, velvet tunic, Fruyr sucked in his stomach and jerked away from the sharp tip of a sewing pin. If a pinprick drew a droplet of blood from his veins, the scent of fresh, warm, Elvish blood would surely arouse bloodthirst in the smooth-skinned, silver-haired maidservant, who steadily bedecked Fruyr in luxurious, hand-sewn attire, as befit a houseguest of Clan Dafyunesh. Fruyr marveled at how his vampire seamstress unnerved him. He had never been so skittish as to duck away from a needle before…
Night of the Dark Moon Watching
It was October, the month of the Dark Moon Watching. As usual, Kiben Tel’rim brimmed with excitement. Evil’s favored month fascinated him. It was a chance for something to happen…
Sons of a Soul Split: Chapter Three
Though a gargantuan, silvery moon raised over the blackest, bleakest landscape known to elfkind, its moonbeams scarcely outlined the peaks of mountains and the topmost branches of trees, and they lit nothing beneath the sky. The sunless realm never warmed. Its damp atmosphere smelled stagnant and stale, much like the upper interior of an icy cave, where everything drips, and nothing dries. The moist air encouraged steady growth of mildew and fungi. The debilitating darkness of Zaliradai blinded Kimio, but the senses provided by his pointed ears, delicate nose, and sensitive skin instantly sharpened…
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