Chapter Six, Recalcitrance
Even half drunk, his feet remembered that rhythm. Clean. Clear. Methodical. His shoes hit the pavement in perfectly precise time as he tried to clear his head. If he closed his eyes for just a moment, he could almost be back in Ocala. The crisp autumn...
Chapter 1
Prelude So you found me... congratulations. I suppose that means you want to hear my story? The legend of how it all went wrong... of how good intentions led us straight to hell. Of how it's all my fault, because who else will stand in to take the...
(Gambler's Dream. Redacted)
“All I'm offering you is a chance, Shouyousei." She stood before a man who defied description. It seemed like any time she tried to focus on one part of his face, the others sneakily shifted, and since his face was naught but falling sand to begin...
Chapter 7 Three questions
Shou awoke in a rush, mind abuzz with the frantic energy of a fast-fading dream. She had been amidst something quite important, hadn't she? She shook herself awake, freeing herself from the last vestiges of sleep. No, she hadn't, she'd been enjoying a...
Story time with Kalokin
Kalokin slithered over to just in front of the Illusion wall and coiled himself comfortably. His eyes lost focus as he started swaying to an unheard rhythm. All light in Magma darkened before spilling through the air to paint a vast vista behind him....
Chapter 8 Life and The universe
“Are you happy with where you are? Are you satisfied with what you have made of your life?” Kalokin’s mask held a casual, relaxed look currently, but Shou sensed a deeper edge to this question. It struck her then that Kalokin seemed like the type who...
Chapter 9 Your Future
Shouyousei nodded slowly. She regretted asking now, but she couldn’t quite reconcile the idea with the being before her. Him? Artificial? Was it even possible to create a soul like that, much less encode it with intelligence and personality? And...
Chapter 10 Syncopation
“Wait, you can’t leave!” She sprinted to the door, making it there in time to stop him from storming out of her apartment, just barely. “I, um” she wasn’t quite able to think of something fast enough to prevent his response. “You what? Talked...
Chapter 15 Defiance
Shou was starting to lose count of the number of times she’d woken up bound and gagged this week, although the circumstances for this morning seemed far more pleasant than most of her previous encounters. She was on her bed, without any clothes, and...
Chapter 14 Aftermath
Dominic stared at the still-smoking ruins of the warehouse his goons had taken Shou. It was a total loss, but he had insurance, and could invest the net worth elsewhere. He didn’t mind the building. No, what he minded was that out of the dozen armed...
Chapter 13 Sparks into Kindling
Nikolak found Shou tied up in a basement, surrounded by men unfamiliar to her who reeked of violence and greed. It didn't take cognition to realize that this was bad; even the mindless had nightmares. Vaguely, she recognized that Khaesho and Kalokin...
Old friends (Ch. 12)
As expected, lunch with Dominic was pleasant. He had a seemingly inexhaustible font of anecdotes and crazy stories, to the point that Shou would have accused him of making some up if she hadn't grown up with him. After Khaesho's stiff, anxious...