Greetings All!
What a busy week. Trading in my series of 6 10,000-word projects for a massive 56,000-word project. I am now fully booked until the end of May, and I still have clients begging me to squeeze them in. I don't seem to understand that fully booked, means just that. I am fully booked, there is no way to squeeze in a project anywhere!
Anyway, enjoy the next update to Sanguifex, but be sure to read @zakludick's piece before you read mine!
“This still changes nothing. I can’t breathe fire.” Said the Rhys.
“You just need to concentrate on the magic I put inside your throat.” Adiran poked Rhys in the snout.
Rhys snapped at him and said, “You’re acting strange.”
“No stranger than normal.” Said Adiran in a huff.
He then pointed to the twins and had them stand in specific places. He then turned to Mortis and seemed to lose his train of thought. He turned to Lucien and asked, “Why did we need the corpse again?”
While Mortis didn’t take offence to the comment, he had never heard Adiran call him that before. Magna wouldn’t stand for it.
“That wasn’t necessary.” She said.
Adiran seemed to realise he had said something strange and brushed it off. He then indicated with his hands that he still wanted Lucien to answer him.
“The last time the twins took on the gods, he was there to help with the fight. He’s vital to this plan.”
“As is the lizard breathing fire.” Adiran continued to poke Rhys in the snout.
“Stop it.” Warned Rhys.
“No.” growled the mage.
Rhys snapped at him, but Adiran was faster. He was grinning. He was carrying on like a spoiled child and was causing an actual scene. Rhys quickly scurried behind Adrian and looked up at him to ask, “Is your uncle drunk?”
“I have no idea what is going on, but he has been separated from us for a while. He went off to fight a battle and we found him like this in this church when we arrived.”
Rhys flicked his tongue out and in for a few seconds before he left Adrian’s side to side up to Lucien. He looked the Lifedrinker in the eye but said nothing. The Lifedrinker gave a curt nod, but no words were spoken. Adrian was sure they were having a mental conversation because for some reason they didn’t want to include anyone else in their discussion.
By the end of it, Rhys slowly walked toward the circle and stood silently with his eyes on the centre. Every now and again, his eyes would flicker to a dark corner of the room and then back to the centre of the summoning circle. He looked up at Adiran, who was grinning maniacally, and asked, “Are you not concerned over the true size of those you wish to summon.”
“It will be nothing but pieces of them, a way to free the little ones of the shards that are embedded in their souls.”
This time Magna snapped her head to look at her uncle. He had always been eccentric, but this was starting to get ridiculous. She and her brother were old enough to be married off if their mother hadn’t been so against it. They weren’t little ones and she wasn’t going to stand to be treated like a child, not after everything they had gone through. She turned to say something, but Lucien just raised a hand at her. He said nothing, but for some reason, Magna felt that he was in control of the situation and so, she let it go.
“Let’s try this.” Rhys took a few deep breaths and sat up straight.
He closed his eyes and breathed out slowly. There was no fire, no sparks, but the circle started to glow.
“A literal baby dragon, my god!” said Mortis with half a grin. “I never thought I’d see this.”
“You’re a walking, talking, piece of jerky. How are you even surprised?” snapped Adiran.
“Enough!” snapped Rhys. “I must concentrate.”
The room fell silent and Rhys concentrated on the burning sensation on the inside of his throat. He could do this. He knew he was unlike anything else in this plane of existence, but a dragon wasn’t something he had dreamed of. The burning was starting to become unbearable, and he wanted the rune out of his throat. If he couldn’t breathe it out, he was going to vomit it out. That he knew he could do.
He took one more deep breath and forced his body down hard on his belly. Something he had done in the past when meals were too big. It had worked in the past and he was sure it would work again, except this time, the rune burst into life and a small jet of orange fire sprang from his mouth.
“YES!” screamed Adiran.
“Perfect.” Crooned Lucien as he indicated the twins could stand forward.
Magna watched Lucien closely as his eyes darted from the surprised Rhys, the thrilled Adiran, and her. She watched him because he kept doing something with his hands that she couldn’t understand. It took a few more occurrences of the motion for her to realise he was telling her to draw her weapon.
The orange flames caused the circle to ignite in purple flames which quickly simmered down. While the twins were in the flames, they were not burning. Magna slowly pulled her sword from its sheath and kept the blade along her right leg, so her uncle couldn’t see it. Lucien was as concerned as them about how he was acting. However, it was clear that he wanted to use Adiran while he could.
“Adiran, take out the coin and hold it in your right hand. It’s time to start the ceremony.” Said Lucien calmly.
The mage did as he said and the two of them started chanting. The purple flames slowly changed. The half where Adrian stood went a dark blue, almost black, while Magna’s side went red. There was a strange humming in the air once more. Then the centre of the circle bulged inward as if something from below was trying to push its way in.
“Yes, yes!” Adiran was getting more and more excited.
Mortis drew his sword, ready to defend any who would attack his charges. Then there was a resounding ripping sound, and the centre of the circle tore open. The stench that followed almost made Lucien falter, but he shook it off and continued.
Then the arms started emerging from the hole. One set rotting and the other set clad in armour. They were fighting to enter this world. Some screams filled the room, and words that weren’t understood tore through the air as the arms scrambled to pull bodies from the tear in the ground.
Take it away Zak!
Here is an explanation of Chain Stories and here is the current Chainstory Library
Mortis Custos
Sanguifex
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