“We strike from here, here, and here,” Riyan said, pointing to the enormous map of the Saian capital city that had been draped over an ornate oak wood table the eccentric man had somehow brought in.
Quite the feat, Maiya felt, considering they were deep underground in a sewer network. She wondered how they ev...
2024-10-31 17:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostBeing in the good graces of the city’s ruler had helped more than we thought. Being celebrities didn’t hurt either. The clerk flipped out when she learned we were the ones behind the collapse of the dungeon.
She’d run out of the store and fetched the store owner, whom we ended up chatting for a soli...
2024-10-30 18:00:09 +0000 UTC View PostI rushed to Dominion’s temple with Aerion on my back. I barely noticed the hot, muggy air making my sweat cling to my skin.
It was just dirt. Dirt! And in just one attack, they took out an opponent with 40 points of Vigor? If [Launch] was this devastating with dirt, why the h...
2024-10-30 18:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostIt was with heavy steps that Vir stepped through the Ash Gate back to the Bairan camp, and from there, to his garrison in the outskirts of the Ash, where he’d left Ekat’Ma in the capable hands of Tara and Balagra to acclimatize.
“Vir, never once in my life have I heard of anyone with the ability to read t...
2024-10-29 17:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostSinclair blinked. “You wish to defer selecting your treasure…”
“Not quite,” I said, tapping my finger against his Mahogany desk. While Sinclair didn’t ordinarily meet people on such short notice, Aerion and I were exceptions. We’d met him in his personal study, and were currently seated a...
2024-10-28 18:00:10 +0000 UTC View PostVir and Ashani made short work of the other Gate, built in a similarly sized chamber as the other, though this one sat on the border of the Chitran neighborhood, making it strategically more important. As usual, Ekat’Ma followed from the shadows, unseen by all. All except Vir, that was.
“Will you build tunn...
2024-10-26 17:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostAerion walked around me as I got in and out of my suit, refusing to believe her own eyes.
“How?” she asked. “What even is your Blessing, to allow such a bizarre power?”
I shrugged. “You’ve got access to all of my stats. I don’t know any more than you.”
Sure, I’d picke...
2024-10-25 18:17:07 +0000 UTC View PostThere was no silencing this madness, no quieting this crowd, and so Vir didn’t deign to try. He stood, unmoving, watching over those who chanted for Ashani. For their goddess… And for him.
For the Automaton from the Age of Gods was not the only one these people deified.
No, Vir was as much...
2024-10-24 17:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post[Elf Cannon]… Betrayed expectations.
I thought Aerion would shoot out of my inventory, ready to rain death upon whichever unsuspecting foe happened to be in her path.
I failed to account for two factors, however. One was the sheer force of Aerion’s momentum. Even as light as she was, ...
2024-10-23 18:00:11 +0000 UTC View Post“We were not expecting you,” Greesha said as she led Vir through Samar Patag’s city streets. She kept throwing glances at Ashani, who tagged behind Vir in her demoness form, though she kept her questions to herself for now.
Which was good, because Vir did not want to lie to Greesha. Nor did he have any re...
2024-10-22 17:00:12 +0000 UTC View Post“Quite a character, that one,” Richard said, munching on some potato crisps we’d had delivered to our door. One of the perks of renting the penthouse suite—24/7 concierge. Didn’t even have to pay for room service.
“Certainly is,” I said, kicking my legs up on an empty chair and clasping my hands b...
2024-10-21 18:07:04 +0000 UTC View Post“No!” Annas roared, punching a wall, before slamming his back against it and slumping down. “No…”
“It is true,” Raja Matiman said. “Our spies confirm the Akh Nara was sighted entering and leaving Jalak Kallol. Welcomed by Ra himself. What’s more, he arrived on a most unusual contraption. A ship ...
2024-10-19 17:00:05 +0000 UTC View PostDespite wanting nothing more than to explore the hidden city of the Iksana, Vir knew he would not be welcomed there. As Sagun’Ra said, he had yet to win the clan’s seal of approval. His curiosity would have to wait for another day.
Upon reaching the surface, Vir was surprised to fin...
2024-10-17 17:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostWe returned to our inn in the early hours of morning, dead drunk, and barely able to walk at all.
Which really said something, because as I discovered, one of the stats—likely Vigor—not only improved your constitution, it also increased your alcohol tolerance.
Which meant Aerion and I ended up consumi...
2024-10-16 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostMaiya practically pranced her way back to her orb room. Yes, Maiya had an orb room, whose sole purpose was to hold Vir’s communication orb. Not only was it guarded at all hours of the day, she’s even assigned a squad of trusted handmaidens—the regular kind, not the elite warrior kind—to keep it charged and let her kno...
2024-10-15 17:11:59 +0000 UTC View PostAs I looked into Richard’s confused eyes, I finally understood what my angst had been all about. It wasn’t keeping my origins a secret that had bothered me. Not when it had been necessary.
The difference was that it no longer was. I’d seen it with my own eyes, hadn’t I? How Passion hadn’t even been ab...
2024-10-14 18:01:38 +0000 UTC View Post“I believe you owe me an explanation,” Vir said, his voice cold and low, barely above a whisper. And yet, it contained such authority that even Ra froze, regarding him as he would an Ash Beast.
The black flames burning off Vir’s body tended to have that effect.
Sagun’Ra tossed his dagger to the floor...
2024-10-12 17:00:04 +0000 UTC View PostIt was incredible what a long, hot bath did for the soul after weeks out in the wild. Well, that and waiting two long hours for Aerion and Richard—let’s be honest, mostly Aerion—to finish. Not only did she go first, she happily took a whole hour and a half to herself, though I had to admit, she positively glowed when sh...
2024-10-11 18:00:09 +0000 UTC View PostMaiya the bloodstained woman glared at Vir. In each hand, she held a head. The severed heads of her parents.
Apramor, grimacing, as if blaming Vir in his final moments. Aliscia’s beautiful face, her expression frozen in one of shock.
“You did this, Vir,” Maiya said darkly. “You killed my pa...
2024-10-10 17:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostI gulped, not quite ready to have this conversation. Not now, and not here, of all places.
“Greg, Aerion…This may sound off to you, but…”
Here it comes…
“Would you two mind if I hid who I am when we enter Basecrest?” Richard asked, looking embarrassed.
I blinked.
“It’s ...
2024-10-09 18:00:10 +0000 UTC View PostHello everyone!
The third book of Ashborn is now on Kindle! Audio, narrated by Heath Miller, will follow later this fall.
I'm loathe to ask anything more of all of you, who've supported me immensely, but if you enjoy the series, consider dropping a rating or a review! And if you have Kindle Unlimited, downloading ...
2024-10-09 17:30:37 +0000 UTC View PostVir left the suspended city with a heavy heart and even heavier legs. He’d scarcely soaked in the spectacle when the Raja beckoned him down a dark corridor.
One that led deeper underground, to the very bottom of the subterranean city.
“This Trial of Bram… What does it involve?” Vir asked, his voic...
2024-10-08 17:00:06 +0000 UTC View Post“Oh, gods!” Passion half-panted half-squeaked in a voice several octaves too high. She was currently squatting, hands covering her face. As if standing was too much for her swooning self to bear. “Have you ever seen such a heartfelt confession?”
The high rankers stood a respectable distance away during ...
2024-10-07 18:00:13 +0000 UTC View PostAnd that's it for the year! I'll see everyone back here on Tuesday, January 7th. Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Stay safe and have a great time, everyone!
The entrance to the secret Iksana stronghold boasted no gate, nor any gilded archway.
No, it was nothi...
2024-10-05 17:00:04 +0000 UTC View PostNOTE: Welcome to Arc 5! Disclaimer for this chapter. There's a bit of sexual assault in this chapter. The sexual aspect is minor, but the related traumatic content is more significant. If that's an issue for you, you may wish to skip the paras starting with 'Sensing an impending calamity' and ending with 'Wha...
2024-10-04 18:00:13 +0000 UTC View Post“I do believe we’re lost,” Ashani said.
Vir didn’t need to turn around to know she had a smirk on her face.
“We’re not lost,” he grumbled, peering down around the airship. One would think that the visibility would be unparalleled in an open-air vehicle that flew high in the sky, but on...
2024-10-03 17:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostA snap of Cosmo’s fingers had us leaning against the polished steel railing of the superyacht as the small waves broke lazily against its pristine white hull. The coastline of Maui where we’d just been stretched off into the horizon, disappearing into the beautiful reds and yellows of sunset.
Its enormous s...
2024-10-02 18:00:10 +0000 UTC View PostVir walked away from the kothi’s corpse, already eyeing his next target. There were few guards to begin with, and after the wolves’ attack, even fewer remained.
In the past, he might even have given the guard he’d killed a chance to redeem themselves. Back when it was only his safety on the line. But not ...
2024-10-01 17:00:11 +0000 UTC View PostI stared at the option for a good, long moment. “Interesting…”
“What’s the matter?” Aerion asked. “Do you not have an option for soul evolution?”
“No, that’s the thing,” I said. “I do. Was not expecting that. Though, I suppose it makes some kind of sense. Gods want their Champions ...
2024-09-30 19:22:43 +0000 UTC View Post
