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Avaescent ran through the dark and the rain. Lightning curled into the clouds above him, sparking white through the twisting canopy and allowing droplets carried by howling winds to paint his flesh. The flashing light did not harry him, the dark hiding nothing from his …
The firelight flickers, a solitary figure huddled near it on the mountainside. The storm shatters the mountaintop, unknown powers unleashed above, but the figure does not look towards the breaking stone; instead, he cares for the shelter he has cobbled together and the fire it …
“I’m looking for Ja Dathi,” the newcomer said. She was trying to keep her voice steady, but the one so named heard that little quiver of fear. It was a sensible thing for her to feel. She had come to one of the cities of …
The Traditionalist had stopped in the middle of the road, mumbling to herself. Her sister looked at her and sighed; she had not been born able to speak with spirits, but was long used to the signs of spirit-speaking. Taking her sister by the hand, …
The Traditionalist faltered and fell to her knees. The young Shield stood over her, feeling the grin that split his features as she fell, the sweat that worked its way over his musculature. He towered over her as she crawled in the dust at his …
“Interesting.” The doctor walked away from her patient, sitting down at her desk, turning to her notes while tapping her temple with one finger. She stared at the long thread of information, adding another line, weaving it around the nails in her wall, taking care …
She made certain to appear unimpressed as she entered the temple. Twelve Emperors ruled the Empire of Sand and Stars and all sought hints of weakness from those they dealt with. They made slaves of those they thought weak, and she knew they thought they …
“Do you wanna be infected?” the man asked, pressed against the wall, his skin slick with sweat and eyes glossy. Even paces away, the boy could feel the heat radiating off the man. “Come on. You know you want to. Be another vector. Just a …
How long had it been since she’d slept? She could no longer remember. Stacks of books towered over her, distant arched ceilings, covering the sky and making any measurement of time impossible. There was merely one scroll followed by the next, lore traced from ages …
The Emperor sat in shadows, watching the play of starlight on the floor before him. His throne was at the top of a grand temple, his throne in the black of an overhang. He glanced up at the stars, careful to avoid their light, speaking …
He awoke when the spider’s legs scittered across his side. He opened his eyes a slit, staring at the large arachnid as it opened the webbing that held him, pushed itself inside and moved closer to his face. He groaned and rolled over, batting at …