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47. Basil - Elven Dirge
Chapter 47Elven DirgeWe heard them before we saw them, a sharp, trilling bird call, which perked the pointed ears of both E’lal and A’cia. Many of us had been sitting in a circle, sharing stories about our journey thus far, trying to stave off worry about how our companions might be faring on such a dangerous mission.When E’lal and A’cia quickly stood, heading to the platform edge, the res...
46. Hull - Night Work
Chapter 46NIght WorkThe Orc’s head came right off under the force of my Vampiric Blade, making only the faintest whicker of sound as blood gouted from the severed neck stump. I shuffled back almost to the tent wall to keep clear of the flow, letting the poor sot’s sleeping blankets soak up the gore. My muscles were taut and my ears on point as I listened for any outcry or disturbance outside, ...
45. Basil - Engagement
Chapter 45EngagementThe late afternoon was cool with a bone-seeping dampness that made me shiver. I knew the reaction had just as much to do with the regrettable predicament I found myself in as it did the weather, but after a string of embarrassments, this one I could at least pretend to not be at fault for.I was with Esmi, thank the Twins for that, the two of us tucked into a den her kobolds had...
44. Hull - This Is War
Chapter 44This Is WarWe crept through the woods in a spread-out wedge, the elf advisor Qi’shen taking point, Gale and Gerad a few yards back on either flank. Everyone had all their source circling their heads and a hand full of cards, but we’d been told not to summon anything – more bodies meant more noise and more risk of discovery. We didn’t thinkwe’d run into any Orcs this deep into t...
43. Basil - Parting Deals
Chapter 43Parting DealsMy head was pounding as the group of us left the meeting room, General Edaine staying behind to speak with Gale. I hadn’t expected my brother to arrive so early after his ordeal but was certainly glad he had – without him, I wasn’t sure if Hull would still be walking free. Things had been a whirl ever since last night, from Griff vanishing to learning that Hull’s mot...
42. Hull - Consequences
Chapter 42Consequences“The force is three times as large as any the Orcs have ever brought against us, and it appears they are allied with the Undead and demonkind.” Edaine looked as haggard as we all felt as she debriefed us all in the fortification’s main instruction room. No one had slept, and she’d called us all in before first light. I sat next to Basil and Esmi with Paytr on my other...
41. Hull - Mother Dearest
Chapter 41Mother DearestMother hadn’t looked up at me yet; she was caught in the rapture of her card theft. There she stood over her victim, so close to naked it made no difference, and it was like I was really seeing her for the first time. My mind snapped into focus the way only immediate danger could provoke. I turned and saw Afi, who was just now peeking over my shoulder, her eyes widening a...
40. Basil - Escape
Chapter 40EscapeThe stairwell down was a long one, and well before I reached the bottom, the sounds I had heard earlier – the distant ting of metal striking metal – ceased to be. Far from calming me, the sudden lack only made me more concerned. There were some storerooms in the basement of our keep, mainly for meats and other perishables whose cooling Relics benefited from the lower temperatur...
39. Hull - Taking Advantage
Chapter 39Taking AdvantageAfi had said she wanted some air. I’d been around Basil and Esmi long enough to know that this was fancy-folk code for you people make me sick and I’m going to lose my shit if I have to look at you for one more second, but there werea bunch of open doors leading out onto balconies all over the place, so maybe she’d meant it literally. The night air was cool and fres...
38. Basil - Wagging Tongues
Chapter 38Wagging TonguesEsmi managed Duke Norcobus beautifully. After we joined the pair of older nobility and greetings were exchanged, Norcubus made to resume his diatribe on the virtues of coal, but before he could gather steam, Esmi was complimenting his tie, which was woven around a card – perhaps one of the first the Duke had earned, for it was only of Common rarity, or perhaps it was mea...
37. Hull - Among Friends
Chapter 37Among Friends“...I honestly don’t know what came over me,” Esmi was confessing. “I try very hard to see the best in others in all circumstances, but Glydnuk just looked so smugstanding there, and Badgou was being entirely intractable. Once I’d finally won the match it all just came boiling up, and I just… spoke my mind. I’m afraid I was somewhat less than demure.”“I tho...
36. Basil - A Family Affair
Chapter 36A Family Affair“I do believe that went as badly as it possibly could have.”Ossun had only just closed the door to the private meeting suite behind me when those words passed my mother’s lips. The cozy retreat was furnished with an intricately carved, round wooden table and substantially built chairs to match, each with thick legs that ended in clawed feet – smaller versions of th...
35. Hull - Down to the Nub
Chapter 35Down to the NubAfi and I stared at the dwarf, our mouths hanging open. “What the hell?” I laughed. Everyone else was whispering and tittering behind their hands too.Basil looked like he’d just taken a ten-card hit from a Mythic Soul. Confusion chased panic around his face, leaving him pale and gaping. “My good dwarf, you cannot possibly mean that. Why, we’ve never spoken more t...
34. Basil - Challenges
Chapter 34ChallengesThe blade slid across my cheek, but like before, all I felt was the barest of pressure. At the edge of my vision, I saw more card fragments shed from my skin, shimmering motes in lieu of blood. Besides Atrea, the staccato strikes at 2 damage each stripped me of a large chunk of my Air Souls: my other two Zephyrs and one of the Raven Nightguard that I had just been gifted.Gale w...
33. Basil - Proper Planning
Chapter 33Proper Planning“You never asked to use Esmet.”Esmi and I were walking arm-in-arm though the halls of my family home, and at this remark, I turned to face her. She was wearing a fashionable, deep red gown that set off her curled hair marvelously. The makeup around her eyes and lips made her beauty more distinct – not greater, just different than when we had been picnicking, and she...
32. Hull - An Embarrassment of Riches
Chapter 32An Embarrassment of RichesI tugged at the stiff black brocade vest that was doing its best to smother me and wished the billowing whiteness of my sleeves were a little less… billowy. I felt a proper fool in this getup, no matter that Roshum had assured me that Hasim’s shop at the top of Hillside was as good as any in the merchant district, and no matter that the new outfit had cost m...
31. Basil - What is Within
Chapter 31What is WithinA knock sounded on my door.I was sitting cross-legged, looking up at the small tree that lived in the middle of my War Camp room. This was how I spent near every morning, noting the subtle changes the plant was undergoing: its branches gradually lengthening, leaves expanding in size, and over the last week, the budding of beautiful white flowers. They had started out as lit...
30. Hull - Skills and Souls
Chapter 30Skills and SoulsI gathered up my cards and slid them back into my Mind Home as everyone swarmed the new Air cards like flies to dung. I took my time; while it’d be nice to see what cards were there just so I’d know what new nonsense others might be wielding in our fights, Air cards were of no use to me personally. The entire morning had been of very little use, in fact, since Badgou ...
29. Basil - Favors
Updated Ability List:https://imgur.com/7R1m0KChttps://imgur.com/qjQuJDQChapter 29The Way the Wind Blows“You’ve got a spring in your step today,” Griff commented as I neared him in the Advisor’s Hall. “Finally relented and let that elf girl have her way with you?”I paused in the act of pulling out my usual seat. “That comment was unbecoming, even for someone as vulgar as you.”Griff ...
28. Hull - Juggling Shards
Chapter 28Juggling Shards“...but Merunda said she’d wait for me next time, and she was the last holdout on Crowsfoot Alley, so that’s a whole square block sorted.” Bryll gave me a self-satisfied smirk, holding her hands out wide as if waiting for applause.I didn’t clap for the proud little magpie; my hands were busy unlocking the door to Ticosi’s rooms and my thoughts were in a tangle ...
27. Basil - An Audience
Chapter 27An Audience“The king will see you now.”I stood up from the plush armchair I had been waiting in, quickly tucking the cards I had been distracting myself with back behind my ear. The only other occupant in the circular area was the one who had spoken: an aged woman in yellow and cream robes with half moon spectacles perched across her nose. She sat, bent backed, behind a large desk ma...
26. Hull - The Gods' Game
Chapter 26The Gods’ GameI had my Hammer hefted and ready to bash the stupid right off Gerad’s face when suddenly it vanished out of my hand, my summons disappeared, and the full weight of my deck slammed itself back into my Mind Home. I grunted and staggered, my vision going white. It felt like I’d just had a building dropped on me, and I couldn’t figure out what had just happened. Had the...
25. Basil - We Take Those
Chapter 25We Take Those“You remember the plan?”Hull looked at me like I was asking after pointless reassurance instead of critical confirmation that would affect our survival over the next few minutes. “I helped make it, didn’t I? Relax, Hintal.”I jerked a nod. If he had repeated our stratagem back to me there would have been a much higher chance of that, but he dropped the faceplate on ...
24. Hull - The Full 20
Chapter 24The Full 20We all filed into the Advisor’s Hall, the paladins chattering together, the elves following just behind with a more muted, regal air, and the dwarves keeping to themselves as usual. Basil was flitting amongst the various groups, Esmi at his side, a sheaf of folded and wax-sealed papers in hand. He’d handed mine to me during the pairs duel we’d just watched, telling me th...
23. Basil - Old Promises
Chapter 23Old PromisesThe metal street that the smiths were on was a wide one, which I was grateful for, as it gave me ample room to pace up and down the reflective length. I was here to use the free upgrade that General Edaine had given me – an opportunity I had spent many an hour pondering, both alone and with Esmi, to determine the very best use of. Yet, now that I had arrived, I found myself...
22. Hull - Breakdowns
Chapter 22BreakdownsI was halfway through the forest on my way to the Lows, picking my path carefully on a moonless night, when suddenly my mother appeared at my side. “No torch? You didn’t end up with our kind’s darksight, did you?”I had two source overhead, cards in hand, and was already scrambling for cover before my mind caught up with who I was seeing and what she was saying. Clawing ...
21. Basil - The Grind
Chapter 21The GrindThe next few weeks of War Camp went by faster than should have been possible, the training with cards, source, and matters of tactics and history all rolled into a blur of long days, short nights, and grueling work. However, the time spent was also not without its successes.After how dangerous the trip to the Lows with Hull turned out to be, I redoubled my efforts in Life Source...
20. Juriss - Interlude
Chapter 20InterludeJuriss bowled backward through a fern so large that one of those frail stone-dwellers could have used it for a house. The fronds were soft, but the stems were as big around as her leg and nearly as hard as wood, and the fifteen-foot-tall horned gorilla who had thrown her hadn’t been playing around. She grunted as stem after stem pounded against her ribs, her spine, her head, a...
19. Hull - The Cost of a Card
Chapter 19The Cost of a CardBasil gripped me hard by the elbow as the attackers pelted toward us. “Strike first,” he said.My heart raced. “We’re not set up!”He summoned another Soul, checked his cards in hand, and cursed softly. “We push with what we have and figure it out as we go.” His Shieldbearer stepped in front of him, and his new summons, a Metal Golem, rushed out to meet the ...
18. Hull - Welcome to the Lows
Chapter 18Welcome to the LowsI dithered and skulked around the fortification’s drainage grate for a good ten minutes before I realized what I was doing, and once I caught myself I was disgusted. She shows up onceand you’re ready to slink around on your belly after her like a kicked dog. She gave you a Twins-damned rock from the Demon Realm and that’s supposed to make up for stealing your sou...
