As someone who comes from a background of writing romance, jumping into a fantasy story with many moving set pieces and characters with different motives has me feeling defeated. There is just a lot more here than I originally anticipated. I had the idea for a trilogy and after the first draft of the first book, I feel like I have bitten off more than I can chew.
The idea of having every character's motivations make sense so it fits in line with the story is extremely daunting to me. All of this makes me wonder how guys like Frank Herbert or Tolkien came up with such rich stories.
We did a fantasy league at work with 9 of us coworkers and 3 guys that the only the commissioner knows (bad idea I guess). The commissioner said that everyone paid and then suddenly once playoff time came around he is trying to say 3 people didn't pay (I think that the commish probably pocketed the 3 guys that he knows money)
Payout was supposed to be 1st place $300, 2nd $200 3rd $100. I got second place. My "buddy" that i work with got 3rd place.
1st place so fair got paid $250. I got paid only $100 so far (waiting on my other 50) and 3rd place got paid $50. I have been waiting on the $50 I am owed for 3 weeks. The top 3 in the league agreed that $250, $150, $50 dollar pay out would be the most fair since we would each be shorted $50.
My "buddy" that got 3rd place, placed a bet with the commish on the 49ers game last week and lost.
He told the commish he won't pay him until he gets the last $50 he is owed. Weeks ago we agreed that I get the $50 . Now today Behind my back he and the commish both agreed on splitting the $50 I am owed so that the commish can get what he is owed from the 49ers game. so now I only get $125 instead of $150 (wtf haha)
Lesson learned.
ALL OPTIONS COME WITH ETERNAL YOUTH WHICH CAPS AT PEAK AGE AND MEMORIES INTACT
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Easy mode: you are reincarnated into a 20 year old body with above average talent in both swords and magic(say, top 1-5% of people depending on yourself irl), and are adopted into a well off family/group *The catch is, the power ceiling in this world is lower. The strongest being can destroy a small house with one attack. **In post apocalyptic, cities have been established with post apocalyptic futuristic technology. I want you to imagine that sort of rusty factory type cities with floating lights and neon LED signs and stuff.
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Hard mode: The world is pre-city civilization. This means that kingdoms and the role of government hasn't been established yet. Most people are either nomadic or living in villages. READ: YOU ARE REINCARNATED WITH ANOTHER PARTICIPANT!!!!
- The benefits of hard mode is that the ceiling is much higher. You still have your typical goblins and wolves and trolls and stuff, but you also have things such as leviathans that can cause tsunamis or giant dragons that can destroy mountains.
Fantasy world context: you are sent to a typical (isekai) fantasy world. Magic is made using circles and can cause great destruction. Similarly, swordplay is still a viable combat option, especially when combined with magic. It is your choice on how you want to get stronger. Fight off monsters for potential new skills, spellbooks, and gear.
In easy mode, you are given great resources for your development and basically freedom to do or go anywhere. If you want to go to the magic academy with the typical bullies, you can too. If you want to go become an adventurer, you can as well. Teleportation spells don't exist.
In hard mode: You have 85th percentile talent in magic and swords. Due to the lack of civilization and the prevalence of monsters, you are never safe. Your village could be invaded at all times. You have minimal resources, but you are equipped already with armor and weapons. You are only given as much freedom as you are allowed by natural conditions. The monsters are Incredibly aggressive in hard mode if they see you, and they think they can kill you, they will attack. Teleportation spells exist if you are able to learn it. The strongest monsters, as mentioned before are monsters such as leviathans, krakens, and massive 40m tall dragons. The demon Lord is much stronger here, too.
Murim world option: imagine you are sent to a typical chinese/Korean
... keep reading on reddit ➡Whenever I read about the consumption of pornographic materials and criticisms of pornography men are always conflating masturbation with porn use. I.e. saying that masturbation is healthy, you shouldn’t suppress your urges. Or even if they’re looking for tips to stop porn they’ll get answers along the lines to exercise when the urge comes up.
I’m always left wondering.. can’t they just release themselves as is? Without any material, just using their mind? It seems to be pretty common for women, how is it apparently impossible for men?
In talking about if Thanos story is a progression fantasy story an interesting point came up and it is something I want some feedback from the community on because it could be a helpful tool in suggesting stories.
So here are the two issues I believe is a problem and something like this would this clears up in the what is progression fantasy topic
Problem One
Here is the scale: awful, bad, average, good, great, amazing
-Person A goes from average to great
-Person B goes from awful to amazing
The story with person A does not feel like as much progression story as the story with Person B. Some people don't know if to call it a story A progression fantasy because all the stories they consider progression have big leveling.
Problem Two
-Person A, begins awful and ends at amazing
-Person B goes from awful to bad to average to good to great to amazing
Person A progresses just as much as Person B but we never clearly see the progression. Harry Potter in his universe could have progressed the equivalent as Lindon in his universe but don't see the clear ranking so we go Harry Potter isn't progression fantasy even though in the end is clear "stronger" than the beginning.
So the opinion that people might not like: It does not matter how big or grand the progression is, It does not matter if it is always clearly the focus of the series. Once a character has progression from the beginning of the story and ends improved in a clear way. It is a form of progression fantasy.
So with that belief in mind, they are at least two levels of progression fantasy stories Soft and Hard.
A Soft progression fantasy story has progression but is not always interested in showing you where a character is in relation to everyone or being exactly detailed about it. The last Airbender or Naruto are Soft progression fantasy because while the character gets clear get stronger and you see their training. The story isn't interested in keeping you aware of how strong a character might be at the time.
A Hard progression fantasy story does just the opposite you almost always know where the character is concerning other characters in the story. If one character is Copper and one character is High Gold. You know what is going to happen.
The issues? Probably something in the middle I guess an example could be Mother of Learning while it is very detailed by this definition and mechanics of the book you can't tell how strong he is in relation to ch
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“Shin, I want to know.” Nineteen’s voice echoed in the impenetrable darkness, light and ephemeral. There was a hint of deep sorrow and desperation in his voice. “Did you create Bael?”
Then, a symbol — radiant white and blazing — appeared in the darkness. It looked like a W, with a flame upon each peak. It was the Hebrew letter shin.
The symbol pulsed once, then, and overwhelmed the darkness with a surging wave of brilliant light.
As the brilliance waned and receded, the blackness it left behind was not completely black, but a few luminous points remained. Four at first, but then another twelve blinked into existence. Then more, until there were twenty-three stars in total, sprawled out across the sky.
Twenty-three stars. Arnel had seen them before. In every vision of Mars, the sky would only have twenty-three stars. Even though there were twenty-four AGMI, one was always missing. And he knew, for whatever reason — call it intuition — that those stars represented the AGMI as guiding lights of civilization.
Then, suddenly, another star appeared in the sky — in the very center — and a flaming halo threw its bounds across the night sky, burning with a dark-orange flame. Then the vacant hollow within the halo became filled with fire and turned into a massive fireball that consumed all.
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The stars smeared out across the blackness, their glaring, distorted hexagonal shapes glimmering with points of light.
A distant explosion rattled the ground, and dust fell off the nearby wall, visible in the shafts of light passing through the bullet-shaped holes in the wall.
“Nineteen…” a weak voice called to Arnel. “Nine…”
As Arnel stared at the yawning abyss overhead, and the colors returned to paint that sky a more malevolent red — rather than a pure black — he slowly became aware of his surroundings. The sky was red because of the flames in the distance. The rattling bass and swell of machine-gun fire intermittently broke the peaceful quiet. Sometimes, it was the electric hum and powerful blast of sound that overwhelmed all the other explosions and gunfire.
But at that moment, all Arnel could hear was that voice calling to him, and — more alarmingly — the distant singing that he heard
... keep reading on reddit ➡Does anyone have any suggestions for SF books?
I am really open to any or all sub genres, but the work must be written less than 10 years ago.
Also if the author had commissioned a soundtrack for the book, Primus or Zappa would be perfect choices.
I grew up on Philip K Dick, Michael Moorcock, and Robert Rankin. So I am no stranger to weird and quirky.
What if there was a program where you input your fantasy team and then everytime one of your players is on the field or everytime they make a big play, they show you the clip? Would that just be impossible to program something like that? I think it would be a cool idea
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Estella was the last to cross the threshold into the ruined church of Aurora, and here, her status as a favored champion of the Goddess was made obvious. A mysterious light source, like an invisible sun, seemed to shine from behind her, shrouding her in a golden halation that was difficult to spot, but undeniably present. The glimmer in Estella’s eyes also took on a shape of a cruciform, partially obscuring her pupils and iris. Although, in detail, this influence was subtle, when they were all put together it was beyond obvious.
Estella was blessed. More than that, she was a saint. She was a warrior chosen by her patron Goddess and given the means and tools to wage Her wars and carry Her crusade.
As the others watched the blessed warrior enter, the clicking of her heels stopped halfway into the main chamber and, without a word, she raised her right hand towards Aren, closed her eyes, and lowered her head.
Aren had seen this before, but he didn’t quite understand it then. He understood Estella’s intentions, however; It was easier to show than to explain.
From somewhere in the distance, despite the hardship that Rakab had to endure recently, faint music reached within the hallowed halls with jubilant, yet lingeringly haunting tunes.
An arcane manifestation appeared in front of Estella’s outstretched hand, similar to Aren’s [Arcane Territory], but it was entirely golden in color and shone with the brilliance of the sun. Within this two-dimensional, disc-shaped construct of esoteric principles were not the arcane symbols of magic most might be familiar with, but the symbolism of the divine themselves.
This was not magic. Although most people called it magic — of the Divine type — it was the act of working miracles. Most priests who relied on divine energies to work spells treated it as arcane magic, and for the most part, this was sufficient and it was an invaluable resource to any group or party that faced dangers every day.
But Estella’s magic was not that. The way that Yan Li blazed the path for full casters to follow in his steps, revealing the true inner workings of the caster type, so too Estella may one day teach al
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As a serious fan of the WoT book series, I personally have mixed feelings about the show so far. There are parts I enjoyed immensely (I had tears in my eyes when Moiraine told the story about Manetheren), and lots I was not a fan of (ep 1 really irked me immensely, and since when is Lan one to show emotion?) But one thing I am seriously concerned about the depiction of channeling in the show.
The book series is very much hard fantasy. What that means is that not only is there a magic system, but extremely rigid rules about it. The ways to make use of the One Power are slowly revealed the further you get into it, with new discoveries by channelers leading to new abilities. And an absolutely critical part of channeling is how you weave together the elements of Saidin or Saidar to create the effect.
For instance: lightning. Lightning is a weave of, as I recall, air, fire and water. Not only is it of those elements, but it's woven in a specific way, with the various threads having to be placed just so. All weavings in the Wheel of Time are like this – they make use of the different elements, woven in a specific way. Whereas a shield to block a channeler from using the One Power is woven purely from spirit, but in a very specific, extremely complex way.
In the show, all we see are nebulous, vaguely shaped threads of white or black, that sort of go towards their target and do something. The closest we've seen to a shaped weave was the shield on Logain, which gave me a shred of hope, but everything since then has completely skipped over one of the most critical, and to me interesting, parts of magic in the Wheel of Time.
If they decide to skip over the magic system in WoT, deciding it's too complex to visualize or too confusing to new viewers, I am going to be immensely disappointed. To hand-wave away one of the most fundamental and interesting elements of the series is a significant blow. Not only that, but there are some big scenes and plot points which would be weakened without this element.
So, thoughts? Are they going to just skip over the five elements of the One Power and weaving in general? And if so, does it matter to the potential success of the show?
Basically my sci-fi is the journey of a few characters through the “discovery” of a human like level 3 society. It’s a lot more complex then this but in general is a hard sci-fi that explores the cladogenesis of the human species after a event in the long past.
Said that, I would like to introduce something that looks like “the force” in Star Wars to my plot, basically the level 3 society found a biological way to process entropy into altering the quantification of the some simple atoms.
I know this sounds crazy and messed up, but I can “ explain” this ability with some technology intervention in the plot. (I use “the force” as an example cause its the only sci-fi I know that uses a fantasy like ability), in my plot they wouldn’t be able to levitate things and astral project, more simply they would be able to force some chemical reaction that wouldnt happen easily (just as “creating” water by forcing the H and O atoms together by altering the bonding energy’s through that entropic ability) but in small quantities in the desert for and example.
With this, my dilemma is: I want to introduce this OP ability that only the most important people in the lvl3 society would have, but I’m afraid it will unbalance the sci-fi you know? Because even though I consider my sci-fi as a very “realistic” one, I’ve already let some things happen (time travel (in the future) faster than light spaceships) but I feel like breaking thermodynamics is more “difficult” then bending mechanics (if you know what I mean)
Thoughts on this please, and if you are a very good soul some ideas on how to improve this crazy idea?
I’m sorry if I wrote something wrong, English isn’t my mother language, but the English groups about sci-fi are more interesting and helpful.
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The Town Hall had been reinforced. The walls were lined with wooden boards of a particular color that was dark gray. Aren had never seen wood of such coloration before and, therefore, assumed that it had to be some special type of material. The windows were mostly boarded up, and some embrasures had been built on top of the large, ruined structure, with gangplanks connecting the various disconnected regions where the roof had fallen through.
Outside, in a large radius around the Town Hall, built dozens of meters down the street, were barricades. Here, the dark wood made a reappearance, but it was reinforced even further with metal bars. Spikes, ramps, and watchtowers were also present, including fortified positions for archers and casters — not that Exalt had many of those.
What was once a ruined street now looked almost like a fortified position. Almost, because it all looked like it was hastily put together, and it had to have been because this was not here some thirty hours ago in Singularity time.
Aren saw many faces on the ramparts and barricades that he did not recognize before. All of them were denizens, and they mostly looked like professional soldiers. They had matching uniforms underneath the armor and every one of them greeted Aren and Fang with a respectful nod and sometimes even with a salute.
“Did we hire them?” Aren asked.
So far, he had been following Fang, mostly in silence. The reason behind the fortifications seemed obvious enough — there were Orkin in the city. It was only a matter of time before other adventurers joined the ranks.
Orkin were, according to history, one of the most dangerous foes that had invaded the mainland. Their individual power aside, they were numerous enough to pose a real threat to the Coalition Military, and had staged several successful campaigns — even now, a large swathe of territory had been lost to these invaders. Worse, even after the Orkin were cleared out, their corruption remained. Now, these regions spawn horrors — demons — and other nasty creatures.
Adventurers loved the Orkin, however. The invasions were the golden age of Alliances who made so many profits *n
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Hi!
First of all, sorry for any writing mistakes, not my native language and i as get involved talking about this project i tend to get a little bit emotional and excited, and thanks for reading.
TL:DR; I made and magic system and cosmogenic beliefs to build an narrative for an romance and further turning into an RPG. The RPG is already going and magic is the centerpoint of it. I'm trying to understand the system better (TITLE).
I'll try to resume as most possible.
The world resemble our world, only human, people are italian, african, christian, muslim, hindi, all our stuff, just with other names and little tweaks that don't come in. But the world has an "creational true religion", that is Iakaré. Caos and energy simply evolved into a form of conscience that is Babsin.
In needing of a existence plane, he build the "anima mundi", where all anima is, sorta of ocean (soul/energy). In needing of a reality plane, he build the paths, the "spiritus mundi", where all the spiriti goes/walks, think in it as a net or funnel or even a neighborhood with tons of door to get in and out with energy (spirit). And in the needing of putting everything alive that he built, he build the "corpus mundi", all the material stuff and the earth itself.
And in each step he stored creatures. In anima mundi are magical beings that PRODUCES energy, in spiritus mundi the beings just CARRY or GUIDE the energy, they know how to use but don't produce, corpus is non-magical or they just don't know how to use the world energy.
So, based on that. EVERYTHING has anima. The magic function as an interaction between your spirit bringing your anima over the planes to the physical world and forcing/throwing them into the other person/thing spiritual plane to control their anima and do magic stuff.
So rocks has energy, trees has energy, people has energy. Everything has energy, energy, anima is the real everything essence. And is not everyone that know how to control their or others spirits to bring anima and do magic stuff.
Here comes mechanical things.
So how people actually DO magic? They ORDER their spirits to actually control, lets imagine, a little army of mini-spiritual beings to do something with the anima-mundi. They do it in steps and can come in TONS of ways, you can do magic in everything and with everything.
As an example, lets say you wanna do a fire ball, how you would comand little spirit beings to do that for you? Control that flame over there, and throw it that way
... keep reading on reddit ➡I've read Sanderson. Hate it. Feels too plastic. I enjoyed Mistborn more than Stormlight.
I've read The Blade Itself and found it a bit too unfocused and, to be honest, a bit boring.
I love Hobb and find the Earthsea books beautiful.
Piranesi is probably one of the best books I've read.
I've come to realize that the prose is more important than I thought and I like a more tight story that doesn't involve too many POVs. I like to learn more about the world as the protagonist does the same.
I however really enjoyed A Song of Ice and Fire, but I think that was because how much it surprised me.
I get bored reading about long battle scenes and I rather have no battles or big army battles than fights describing how someone swings their sword for 5 pages.
Is there a book series out there for me?
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Aren hurried down the streets. With the Orkin wandering around, he tried to remain as careful as possible, while moving as fast as he could. When he logged out, nearly a day ago, he was near the tavern that the Builders put up. Now, the tavern was empty, and rightfully so — it was too disconnected from the heart of Rakab reborn, which was the old Town Hall.
He was moving fast because, in his mind, Aren did not have time for this. Jennifer would likely wake up soon and have questions — questions Aren wasn’t prepared to answer. The thought of this dissipating resource — time — forced him to face an uncomfortable future.
He really should’ve asked Thomas or Isobell about Jennifer and how they got her in the safe house. Did she see the body? Did she know that she was minutes away from being killed? Did she know that someone planned and carried out an assassination on her parents — involving countless people in the process?
A part of Aren hoped that she was not aware of any of these things. But even so, even in the best-case scenario, she would want to know why she was kidnapped from her high-security home, and brought here, by Aren’s “guardians”.
Aren did not have an answer to any of the questions she might ask. This terrified him. Within the answer to that question was also the enlightenment that deduced Aren’s fate in the real world; their normal lives would be obliterated — they could never again be normal people with normal lives. For Aren, this was a double-edged sword for he already knew that his normal life was over, but he never imagined that it would involve the others.
And if — only if — they were after him, then there was no reason to assume that eventually, they would come after the others as well.
Who? Who is responsible? Old-world weapons? Aren believed Thomas’s story. After everything he had learned about the Consolidation War and the Gestalt Mandate, it did not surprise him that there were entities out there that could rival and compete with AGMI. However, he did not believe that such a weapon would engineer his downfall. It was the AGMI that he knew — those of Sectors — that did this. They would be capable of making it
... keep reading on reddit ➡Hi all, I’m in the market for my first hot tub and want to get something on the cheaper side as I’m not sure how much we’ll use it and I’m the only one in my house interested in it. However, I don’t want to get something that’ll have huge electric costs or that will die in a few years. A dealer has suggested I hard wire a plug and play tub from Fantasy Spas (the Entice). Does anyone have an opinion on this tub? I don’t see this brand mentioned much on here. And are there any cons to hard wiring a plug and play? I read somewhere that plug and plays aren’t always insulated as well as regular tubs. I’ve also read the jets aren’t as strong even with the hard-wiring, but I mainly want the hot tub for the hot water soak, so I don’t think I’ll care about that (or will I change my mind once I have the tub???). I really appreciate any advice you all can offer!
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Arnel woke up on the couch, feeling as if he was reborn. Perhaps, the way a man is pardoned at the moment right before the guillotine drops is also a form of rebirth — in this same way, Arnel felt as if he received a second life. His ghost would not be warped and distorted by the burden and sin of carrying hundreds of thousands of deaths on his conscience. He was absolved.
However, he was not entirely sinless.
His clothes still smelled of gunshot residue. Every time he noticed it, he could taste blood in his mouth. It wasn’t him that pulled the trigger, it was Nineteen. Or so he would like to believe. Who was Nineteen? He was not the spirit of a deceased person that possessed Arnel’s body; Nineteen was the memory, knowledge, and battle instinct of a person who fought through the Consolidation War and lost countless comrades.
Arnel, he realized then — although the realization began from the moment he met Nineteen on the imaginary island — had been putting Nineteen’s knowledge to use from the moment he woke up from his coma. His advanced close-quarters combat abilities, possibly even the death line, and his knowledge of tactics and strategy had, in all likelihood, been something he was borrowing from the memory of someone dead for decades.
Remember us, Code, Nineteen told him. That is how they live on.
Leviathan’s warning, then, about the price of freedom sometimes being death, and at other times, the ability to die itself now came as a mind-numbing shock. Is this what it meant to obtain freedom? Nineteen was a Code, Arnel was sure of this now, and the price he paid for this was the ability to truly die. To live forever and to fight on behalf of AGMI and whoever else will come to take the Code’s place once the physical body fails.
In truth, Arnel did not think that was a terrible price to pay.
Arnel left that room behind, which smelled of cleaning chemicals and fresh paint — as if it was prepared just for this occasion. The door leading to the apartment did not have an automated recognition system and, surprisingly, other than the electronic security system, it also had a dead-bolt lock. It required a real key! Arnel
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So, I'm in desperate need of novels that may have the following:
- Male lead brings home a mistress and entering a home where he is still married to his first wife and brought in a mistress for pleasure or just in love with her. Related to this the story can be from the mistress or first wife's prospective.
*To add on to the previous request, maybe if there is a novel where a mistress is a homewrecker and Male lead doesn't value the love of his wife and regrets it at the end.
*Herione is forced to marry an older guy but Falls in love with his stable boy or someone close to the man she married.
*Mystery historical romance with a twist. For example I read this novel where the heroine was separated from her older brother when they were young. She grew up with her aunt and her brother went to live with another family that were close friends of his parents. Her older brother lived with another kid his age, from the family that raised him. They grew up together like brothers. Then she reached 18 and wanted to live with her brother. The heroine arrived at her "brother's" house and the kid that grew up with her brother had introduced himself as her real brother. They end up having feelings for each other but she tried to deny the love between them because she thinks thats her real brother. But her brother is actually dead. She doesn't know that. It's a mystery that she slowly starts to find out throughout her stay with him and mean while she also is dealing with some sort of mental illness because her mother was abusive. FYI: this novel is from overseas, there was no translation for the rest of the novel. I was disappointed but the story was so good I had to get spoilers from someone.
*I'm fine with cheating, taboo, forbidden, age gaps, smutty, and open to anything really. But I like dark romance dramas, and don't mind being angry at characters lol.
I'm sorta new to reading books/novels. I'm transitioning from manhwas to real books. I've gotten tired of them and I enjoy more the process of reading books and using my imagination.
Thank you for reading my post. I would love any recommendations that are close to what I'm looking for. Thanks. 😊
So I've been reading CJ Cherryh's Cyteen (not quite reached the end yet, so no spoilers pls!!!), and I'm absolutely fascinated by the way psychology is treated almost as a form of engineering, with people able to design a mind in the same way they might design a bridge. It's been a long time since I was this engaged by something on a purely conceptual level as opposed to primarily being drawn in by the characters/plot, and I'd really love reccomendations for something that explores a similar concept, preferably incorporating and exploring more up to date concepts within biology/psychology. Thanks!
https://www.twitch.tv/jaggedjason
Hit my 101follows and just trying to get a decent algorithms haha. I also watch streamers who follow4follow while i enjoy my meals to help with the ave view count and pop by with my !lurk. hoping to grow more and especially learn more on how to operate commands and learn better layouts with Streamlabs
I'm also doing some 3d art on the side to cure some boredom. Have done a few projects for fellow streamers and even see some still using the icons or "away" animations i made them. Hit me up if you want to see some things
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The sound of waves crashing against the shore mixed with the cries of the seagulls. Both were sounds that Arnel had never heard in real life, and now they were as omnipresent as the air he was breathing and as real as the taste of salt on the sea breeze.
He was leaning against a pillar, and staring far off into the yonder. The setting sun behind him plastered his shadow next to him, visible in his peripheral vision. In the shadow, he could see himself leaning against the pillar, but there was also another person — in the same pose as him — leaning against the same pillar on the other side, like a mirrored version of himself.
“What do you think of this place, Code?” the other person asked. His voice was familiar, but Arnel was sure he had never heard it before.
Arnel thought about the question. The distant sound of waves — the encroaching darkness of night coming to meet the terminus of twilight — it was all too familiar. It reminded him of Priscilla, and their final day together. All his locked away regrets and fears came to the surface at that moment, and he couldn’t help but try to choke back the rushing tears.
Since that day, everything had gone wrong. The AGMI, Leviathan, Icarus-4, all these things happened and derailed his life. He witnessed — and caused — impossible things. APVs malfunctioning, drones malfunctioning, he learned of the Gestalt Mandate, and AGMI trapped in Singularity. It all seemed like a terrible nightmare now.
Worst of all was the premonition in which he saw Jennifer’s lifeless body. The overwhelming guilt he felt then was real and it remained with him even past the premonition.
“I like it here,” Arnel said, his voice somewhere between a howl and a moan. There was no holding back the tears anymore. They poured freely and relentlessly. With each tear, a part of his heart shattered. “I… I did something… terrible…”
His companion nodded — Arnel saw the shadow’s head move. His companion did not rush him. When his companion spoke again, his tone was soft. “You know, this is the home that we protected with everything that we had,” his companion said. “Here, we forgot the value of life, and learned the valu
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Welcome to Singularity Online. Your access is unrestricted.
Have a good time.
The familiar log-in message greeted him, and, ironically, he never thought that one day he would look forward to it or be glad that he did not have time restrictions on his access. He never thought that he would like Singularity. He wasn’t entirely sure if he even liked it for what it was, or if he liked it simply because what he felt were the most important things to him could only be found here. Escapism aside, for a long time now, Aren felt that his road, however long or short it may be, begins and ends in this virtual world. Yet, as much as he could, he tried not to think about the beginning nor the end; only the now.
The now, this time, was very confusing and very unexpected.
Firstly, the sunset sky was further tinged with the color of flames in the distance — Rakab was burning. Not all of it, of course; ruined stone doesn’t burn well either. Only his immediate surroundings, which were unfamiliar at first, were being consumed by flames. They were wood and mortar structures from the old housing district. Aren remembered that this is where he logged out.
Secondly, he was surrounded, but not by comrades. These creatures — four in total — had red skin and tusks protruding between their lips. Their battle-scarred forms were similar in appearance to those of the orcs, but there were considerable, yet minute differences. Black, charcoal cracks in the skin surged with purple, arcane energies, like tiny fault lines that revealed a glimpse of their origin.
These were Orkin, the arcanely engineered race of warriors that invaded the main continent of Singularity. They were relentless, difficult to kill, exceptionally strong, and hard to forget. However, Aren forgot that in his premonition, he went with Exalt to the Catacombs to attempt to eradicate these creatures and seal the breach — if there was one.
The ground shook, and shimmering red mist appeared around Aren. He saw the shockwave ripple through the red mist, and the sparks of purple energy shorting, like electricity, across the red barrier.
“Now’s not the time,” Camille’s voice came fr
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The light of dawn streamed through the windows. At least, the simulated version did. The light of the sun could not reach within the Arcology, but the internal light fixtures could simulate triggers for the circadian rhythm.
They had not slept a beat. All night, Jennifer would cry, then calm down, then begin crying again. They did not speak a word. She just hugged him tighter and tighter, eventually climbing on top of him. All he could do was embrace her like a lover might, which was not how he had intended it — he just wanted to comfort his friend. Even though he had no right to comfort her. After all, he was probably responsible for what she was going through.
He thought about that fact the entire night. His hands felt like they were doused in oil and set on fire — a guilty man’s hands. He hated himself for thinking that her hair smelled nice and that her body was so soft and warm. He hated himself for many things. Most of all, he hated himself for feeling an ember of excitement, because movies and media had conditioned him that in these types of situations things tend to happen — which was entirely unrealistic. It didn’t help that her knee was in a really inconvenient place.
He was disgusted with himself.
Before he might have thought that Ermin Saltzer was scum for experimenting on Arnel, but now, he thought that compared to him Ermin Saltzer was a saint.
No, there was one other thing that he hated himself for even more than for the wayward impulses of his body; it was the fact that it was his shoulder that Jennifer cried on, or rather, his chest and neck. His guilt and shame were overwhelming, to the point that he considered telling her that it was his fault, and hoping that she would just kill him.
He could not repair this anymore. This was not a premonition — he couldn’t go back to that day and not give orders to that drone. He couldn’t see the future like AGMI. He was just human.
But no matter how guilty he might feel, no matter how difficult this was, he would not let Jennifer die. No matter what, he would not let anyone die. If this is what he had to do, then so be it. He would hold her. He would comfort her. Even if he h
... keep reading on reddit ➡$68 for $1200 worth of PF1 core books, bestiary, campaigns, maps etc. The second bundle is all digital books for PF2 plus the physical starter kit. I think there is a pdf converter for PF2 but I only have experience with dnd5e stuff. Could I convert the fantasy grounds stuff to Foundry compatible files?
It's such a good deal it would be great to utilize it for Foundry.
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< A/N: Content warning. >
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I am sorry, Arnel wrote on the piece of paper. It is all my fault.
His hands trembled as he put down the old-fashioned pen and then picked up the gun. Strangely enough, his hands stopped trembling when he handled the weapon and chambered the bullet.
He pressed the barrel against his temple.
Slowly, he squeezed the trigger.
___
The ringing echoed in his mind seemingly forever. It blew out all his senses — the light, the sound, the smell, the sensation of warmth against his skin. There was nothing save for that ringing in his mind — the echo of life and death.
Then he heard waves as the ringing receded in volume. He heard the static washing over his hearing, and, as if submerged, he heard muffled voices. Conversational volume. Amiable cadence.
Slowly, the room came into focus. The walls were lined with torches — the wooden walls — and at their table was food and alcohol. It was a feast. No, it was a celebration.
What they were celebrating? Aren’s return to fighting condition. His arm was restored and the hole in his back was also erased — thanks to Estella.
This was a new construction; the builders put up a tavern in virtually no time. With the power of magic, hammering nails and carrying heavy resources was trivial. Also, when pressed for the need for socializing and drinking, one should not underestimate what people are capable of.
Aren looked at his hands, which once again trembled. He could still hear the faint echo of the gunshot. He could still smell the fire and brimstone. He could still hear the pulsing waves of fear and determination in his heart, and endless desperation.
Why?
The question churned in his mind like a riptide hiding beneath the surface of his conscious thoughts.
It was a premonition. Without a shred of doubt, Aren knew that this was true. But it was different. He could not remember anything other than that moment, from just before he squeezed the trigger. His mind forgot something important, but his heart did not.
His heart screamed at him to run.
Run from who?
He closed his eyes, trying to remember. He heard Nissa laughing at Fang’s joke. Aren couldn’t rem
... keep reading on reddit ➡Hey bros… I’m asking because I think that knowing oneself helps you to make the most of your sexuality and connect more with your partner. I think some of the topics that arouse me have to do with taking care of the other (i.e massaging or making him cum) but it’s like I have a blockage that prevents me from talking about my fantasies… like I’m afraid of liking sex too much. How did you get comfortable exploring the psychology behind what turns you on?
I've been working on it for almost an year, but the currents have been bugging me. Are they good? And the continents, are they shaped realistically? I really feel it lacks something... More archipelagos, maybe?
https://preview.redd.it/y6gbfdnxo0681.png?width=7000&format=png&auto=webp&s=95513a39ba1a0bc073898b99d12a792c5b97d5e2
I have a lot of surreal books, but they are very depressing. Dont need that right now.
what is a dark fantasy, sci fi book, with surreal imagery, action and adventure? Metallic armor fighting on grounds made of crystal. Blood swords fighting. Biomechanical future people having epic battles.
Visually stunning, in book form
any suggestions>
