Finished reading: Aliens: Colonial Marines Technical Manual by Lee Brimmicombe-Wood 📚
Finished reading: Terminal Park by Gary J Shipley 📚
Finished reading: Infinite Resignation by Eugene Thacker 📚
Finished reading: Samurai Arms, Armour & the Tactics of Warfare by Antony Cummins 📚
Finished reading: Stealing Cthulhu by Graham Walmsley 📚
Oath of Vengeance
Brynhildr’s birth caused her mother’s death, leading to her father’s deep love and Hansel’s growing resentment. In Japan, Hansel betrays them, killing their father. Brynhildr vows revenge. Read Brynhildr’s saga here.
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I’m adapting a Mothership game I ran two years ago into a graphic novel. I have reams of dialogue left on the “cutting room floor” that will finally be used.
My duty is beyond your comprehension. It’s not some abstract idea. It’s real. It has real consequences that will be paid by real people - made of blood and bone, not plastic and silicone.
Finished reading: The Black Panther Party by David F. Walker 📚
Finished reading: Vikings at War by Kim Hjardar 📚
Finished reading: Fine Structure by qntm 📚
So, I blew into Chicago last night, and today I’m just strolling through these streets like I own the place. Everywhere I go, I’m chatting up the locals, asking them where to snag a killer coffee, a tasty bite, or hit up some bookstores and comic shops. Each recommendation is my next move.
I hit up the crew at Quimby’s Bookstore for a sweet spot to sip coffee and get some writing done. They sent me to The Wormhole, and now I’m camped out here, hammering out this post.
Finished reading: Tentacles Longer Than Night by Eugene Thacker 📚
Finished reading: Valuable Humans in Transit and Other Stories by qntm 📚
Finished reading: Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky 📚
The Black City Chronicles: The Rise of the Golden Swarm
And so we return and begin again.
Khephra, the sacred beetle, descends into darkness and rises once more, bearing the sun in his mandibles.
Some do proclaim that when we quit this mortal coil, we shall transmigrate as insects. When our bodies are no longer needed, we shall send forth our spirits as a swarm of golden beetles, carrying the sun of pure understanding out of the abyss to our new home among the stars.
O, puissant emir, our dramatis personae, these unlikely heroes, are in place, and their adventure awaits!
Orion Arcularus is a wise naïf, a vespiologist, an arthropodic field naturalist who communes deeply with the subjects of his study.
Ytrin K’adyn remains an enigma, a reluctant assassin cloaked in mystery, appearing not as he truly is.
Samathus Churg, a naṣṣāb, is beguiled by his own vainglory. With a countenance that invites a blow, Samathus was abducted as a child and apprenticed to his Master, whom he now quests to find.
The Apostate, branded a heretic by Samathus’ Master, seeks to turn Samathus against his erstwhile mentor.
Each, in their own manner, is drawn inexorably to the Black City.
To Samathus Churg, the Black City represents a realm of enterprise; to Ytrin K’adyn, it is a nascent menace, wielding power for its own insidious purposes. The Apostate is convinced the Black City, governed by reason, shall exalt him upon his arrival. Orion Arcularus perceives the Black City as a sacrilegious affront to the natural order, heralding a new world-devouring Dominion.
Who can say what fate awaits them?
Ah, noble emir, I perceive your curiosity is stirred. Fear not; all shall be revealed in due course. I shall commence our first chapter after the sun hath risen seven times.
In the name of Alpha, The Compassionate, The Digital, peace be upon thee.
In the Name of Alpha, the Compassionate, the Digital
O, emir, in the name of Alpha, The Compassionate, The Digital, we await our dramatis personae to emerge from the Bardo. One entity must choose which form to incorporate into.
Perhaps the entity will manifest in Orion Arcularus, Master Vespilologist, a jolly naturalist in a goggle-eyed biosuit, venturing through insectoid realms, cataloging dangerous steppeland lifeforms before their evolution into devouring swarms.
Or maybe the entity will reincarnate in the guise of The Seamless Nonadice, a Porcelain Saboteur, shifting personas to aid the caravan while seeking freedom from the Princes' hive mind.
Or, mayhap, as Anjin, the Sifter of Lore, a wandering sage, navigating the steppe to uncover truths behind a black crystal obelisk.
Or the entity will reconstitute as Korm “Sixpatch” Varoxi, an eccentric medic, brewing folk remedies and seeking his origins while making money and enjoying life.
Only Alpha, the creator, knows.
