Finished reading: Terminal Park by Gary J Shipley 📚


Best cybertruck yet.


Finished reading: Infinite Resignation by Eugene Thacker 📚



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.

⚔️ Subscribe to the VIKINGS vs SAMURAI monthly newsletter and never miss a blood-soaked issue!



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 📚


The bean.


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 naĂŻf, 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 naᚣᚣāb, 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.

Orinthia, the Radiant Hakawati and the emir.

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.


UVG Soundtrack

Oh, mighty emir, master of the universe and the ultimate realities, I entreat you to listen to these songs, this enchanting soundtrack to Ultraviolet Grasslands, while I weave the strands of the epic tale I am about to share with you. These songs will be both familiar and utterly alien, for they echo from another dimension. “The Western Lands,” for example, speaks of transcendence and the journey through life and death, matters you are intimately acquainted with, O exalted one. “Ollin Arageed,” performed on an instrument called an oud, features intricate and mesmerizing rhythms that captivate the soul. Meanwhile, “Zaar” invokes a ritual of exorcism, driving out evil spirits through the power of music and raqs. Relax, my liege, breathe in the fragrances of the evening, and let the vibrations of the music wash over you. Our story will begin anon.

  1. Michael Sterns “Monk with Bell”
  2. Peter Gabriel “Zaar”
  3. Hans Zimmer “Gom Jabbar”
  4. Moving Ninja “Kemancheh”
  5. Anne Dudley & Jaz Coleman “The Awakening”
  6. Bill Laswell “Kala”
  7. Kudsi Ergüner & Süleyman Ergüner “Aksak Semai”
  8. Jean Jenkins “Abu Zulu”
  9. Thousand Yard Prayer “Outremer”
  10. Hamza El Din “Ollin Arageed”
  11. Anouar Brahme “Conte De L’Incroyable Amour”
  12. Bill Laswell “The Western Lands”
  13. Saddam Bazaar “Arc of Ascent (Part One)”
  14. Hariprasad Chaurasia & Zakir Hussain “Rag Ahir Bhairav (Slow Gat In Pupak Tal Fast Gat In Teental)”
  15. Ira Cohen “Tangier Telegram from the Majoon Traveler/From the Moroccan Journal 1987”
  16. Cheb I Sabbah “Ganga Dev”
  17. London Philharmonic Orchestra, Peter Scholes” “Kashmir”
  18. Yo-Yo Ma & The Silk Road Ensemble “Battle Remembered”
  19. Guan Pinghu “Flowing Streams (Liu Shui)”
Orinthia, the Radiant Deejay

The Hadj to the Black City: Glorious Beginnings and Inexorable Endings

Know, oh emir, that all roads, whether paved with fortune or fraught with peril, lead inexorably to the fabled Black City. Should you commence your odyssey in the Emerald City, where a wondrous mélange of cultures, fantastical creatures, and advanced technologies intertwine, you shall find yourself drawn toward the same inevitable destination. Perhaps your initial footsteps will echo across the Steppe of the Lime Nomads, a realm celebrated for its people’s distinctive culture, unrivaled survival skills, and unparalleled prowess in trade and combat. Or maybe your hadj will wind through the perilous Death-Facing Passage, a route known for its treachery and ominous shadows. It matters not the path you tread, for all are destined to converge upon the Black City, that legendary terminus of all journeys.

—Orinthia, the Radiant Hakawati

Orinthia, the Radiant Hakawati