The town was as dead and quiet as I remembered it from my previous visit. Or so I thought at first glance from my vantage point on the distant ridge. I had decided not to blunder into the town this...
2022-04-14 12:01:02 +0000 UTC
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When I woke up, I felt extremely lethargic. I tryed to turn my head but the effort is too much. I’m in a room and can feel a rough straw mattress under me but that’s really all I can see as I t...
2022-04-13 12:01:01 +0000 UTC
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The farther I got from the valley and the closer I got to home the less my mind conjured images of my imminent demise. Sure I was still afraid that my former mentor would catch up to me but keeping...
2022-04-12 12:00:07 +0000 UTC
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“Well, well, well… what do we have here?”
Startled by the sound of Teacher’s voice, I scramble to my feet. Weeks of practice honing the instinct into me, only to relax a moment later....
2022-04-11 11:30:23 +0000 UTC
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It was easy enough to return to the secluded valley of the elves. It felt weird thinking of them as elves instead of strange humans but I didn’t want to belittle their customs.
As with the ...
2022-04-08 11:49:40 +0000 UTC
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The needle slid through my cheek making me wince, which made the stitches pull, which caused me more pain. Sewing my cheek closed was far harder than when I did my leg, it also hurt more. Without a...
2022-04-07 12:01:02 +0000 UTC
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Our assignment took us east for a full week by horse. It was the first time I had seen the eastern mountain range. My father had told me about it from his travels but it was one thing to hear about...
2022-04-06 12:00:07 +0000 UTC
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After three dusty days on the road, where Teacher did his best to break my spirit, we arrived at Roddan.
The town itself wasn’t much to look at. It was smaller than the town with the Magist...
2022-04-05 12:01:02 +0000 UTC
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A ray of sun hitting me directly in the eyes jerked me from my restless slumber. Groaning from lack of sleep, I slid my half-exposed blade back into its sheath after I realized I wasn’t in danger...
2022-04-04 11:36:19 +0000 UTC
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Teacher tied up his horse in a stable near the city outskirts and I silently trailed behind him. My passing left a wet trail along the ground and a chorus of snickers from people we passed. I swear...
2022-04-04 11:22:22 +0000 UTC
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The next few days were a nightmare for me. “Teacher” as he kept telling me to call him, he refused to tell me his real name. I assumed he wanted to be called that so I couldn’t find him later...
2022-04-02 12:11:00 +0000 UTC
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After escaping the underground I had been pursued by a few more monsters. Each time I successfully evaded them but I could tell something was wrong with me.
First was the non-stop sweating. I...
2022-04-02 12:08:00 +0000 UTC
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The blue glow seemed to be coming from a doorway on the far side of this cavernous room. I carefully made my way over, trying not to splash or make any more ripples than I had to. I was also carefu...
2022-04-02 12:05:59 +0000 UTC
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The noise was loud and I only made it a dozen steps down the street before a lumbering behemoth of a monster stepped from around the far corner at the next crossroads.
I froze in panic, looki...
2022-04-02 12:02:59 +0000 UTC
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After I recovered from my moment of existential panic, I calmed down a bit. I was still well and truly afraid of the monsters roaming the city but I now had time to think of a way to survive.
2022-04-02 12:01:02 +0000 UTC
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As I raced to catch up to the scavengers, I realized, I left a fortune of items behind. I doubted anyone would be kind enough to take care of them for me until I returned.
I huffed and puffed...
2022-03-29 23:10:45 +0000 UTC
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Cresting a small rise, I spotted the telltale signs of smoke from chimneys in the distance. I estimated a few more hours of walking and I would arrive at Shad.
From what I could learn through...
2022-03-29 23:09:30 +0000 UTC
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“You know Gan… you didn’t have to walk all the way here with me.”
“Bah… what sort of friend would I be if I let you walk to the outskirts by yourself? God forbid an animal or band...
2022-03-29 23:08:53 +0000 UTC
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After dinner and the lesson on how to care for the dagger, I went to my room. It was a luxury that most families in the area didn’t have. It wasn’t that my father was wealthy. I had seen the ho...
2022-03-29 23:07:43 +0000 UTC
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Clack! Clack! Clack!
A rapid staccato of impacts reverberates around the courtyard as my friend Gan intercepts the strikes of my wooden training sword against his wooden shield. But my mind i...
2022-03-29 23:06:58 +0000 UTC
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Most of you have seen this already, but this amazing art is by artsantis over on Fiverr
2022-03-29 23:05:18 +0000 UTC
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Little change of plans for April. I was going to wait another week to release but I realized that the Writathon starts on the 1st. So to help take advantage of that fact and try and get a larger au...
2022-03-29 23:02:51 +0000 UTC
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With Mana System coming to an end and my new story, Kingdom of Rust kicking off in a few weeks, this is the perfect time to change things up. Do you prefer I keep the Saturday release, or would you...
2022-03-19 12:25:59 +0000 UTC
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Hello everyone, and thanks for taking the time to read Mana System. When I first started this story, it was on a whim. I never really expected to be writing this for two years or for it ...
2022-03-19 12:13:00 +0000 UTC
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Martin strode down the hall of the capitol building with a worried smile on his face. He was a bit greyer now but he still oozed charm and confidence. Time had been kind to him.
The city had ...
2022-03-19 12:10:59 +0000 UTC
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As soon as the pirates realized the Guild ships were approaching the island, they broke off the fighting and retreated toward the edge of town to dig in. They weren’t stupid enough to attack the ...
2022-03-19 12:05:01 +0000 UTC
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Groaning, I opened my eyes. All I saw was darkness. I tried turning my head or moving but it seemed like I was pinned in place.
I fought down the urge to panic as I evaluated my condition. My...
2022-03-19 12:00:06 +0000 UTC
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Those two words seemed to freeze everyone in place, but it wasn’t magic that caused it, it was fear. My body was frozen along with everyone else but my eyes rose into the air, tracking two creatu...
2022-03-12 20:22:25 +0000 UTC
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The meager fleet of ships I was now in charge of, rose from the dock and slowly spiraled into the air to get above the mist. The chaotic coloration of the mana storm was visible in the distance eve...
2022-03-12 20:21:54 +0000 UTC
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A bitter-sweet announcement for Mana System. After 2 years of writing it will be coming to a close at the end of this month. This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision as I had been thinking about i...
2022-03-09 21:45:12 +0000 UTC
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