In a world of sky islands orbiting around a core of mist, humanity is besieged with countless threats. When a young girl from the slums unwittingly becomes one of those threats, she finds herself capable of horrific things that she can't help but learn to love... Vigor Mortis is a lighthearted story about existential terror. Come for the horror, stay for the hope. Updates Fridays. Enjoy the read!
456.61 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-27 16:39
The Sidonian Empire stands with pride to spite and take vengeance, in the name of its leader, the Lady Sidonia. Alisson Vi Nuam and Celistine Regadonia; the master and the apprentice, although meek, must push outside their boundaries if they wish to survive, and aid their fellow comrades in victory. Victory however, means victory against the entire world. Sidonian forces are of course higher quality than the rest of the human scum on the continent, but quality over quantity can only get you so far when you're outnumbered by such a large factor. Decrepit beasts roam the tunnels under the ground, and humans are all too happy to squash another subhuman nation such as Sidonia. With a sudden surprise attack launched on Sidonia, and war being declared, it's only a matter of time until the vastly larger human armies march down the continent and overwhelm the speck at the bottom of the map that is Sidonia. However, the orders Alisson receives one fateful day may be the key to his species survival, or an elaborate way of saying die'. Either way, orders are orders, and even if the Lady Sidonia did tell him to take his own life, he would do so in a heartbeat, as would any Sidonian as Alisson could imagine. This sentiment however, unbeknownst to Alisson, is subject to change, especially when he receives a brand-new apprentice to follow him everywhere. She may prove yet to be Alisson's first real friend. Because what's a better method of bonding than being hunted by both human and monster alike? Updates sparsely every couple weeks; this is a hobby, not my jobby :) Takes inspiration from everything from Metro 2033 by Dmitry Glukovsky to the Spice and Wolf series by Isuna Hasekura. The main characters are not overly powerful, there is no cultivation, and there are no levels. The world isn't defined or spoonfed to the reader, and care has been taken to make sure every character seems human, no matter their importance to the plot. Please feel free to reach out to me about any grammar issues, questions, or critique, leave comments, or leave reviews, anything helps
373.24 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-29 18:00
WinnieSallow | horror | Complete
On the alien planet of Scaldigir, where the people are grey, there are average individuals, and then, there are arcanes. Every arcane gets one power, except for the reapers. They can take as many powers as they want, so long as they lift them from the bodies of the dead and the dying. It's a useful power that could preserve the best abilities among the arcanes in theory. Thus far, every reaper has been too impatient to wait for the deaths of their comrades. Murder and neglect; the words are synonymous with reaper. That's how everyone else sees it. Pan, the last of the reapers, doesn't think she's that bad. She hides among the arcanes as a ghost seer. She's content, with being the one and only reaper, not to mention a secret, until she meets a special ghost. Updates Monday, Wednesday, Friday Revisions completed in April 2021
283.82 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-29 12:13
CloverCloverClover | horror | Complete
BOOK 1 COMPLETED A young wizard journeys west, through dark forests and dangerous lands, searching for something. Accompanied by a wild witch who has secrets of her own, they come across terrible creatures, hauntings, cursed villages, and memories from their past. Who else will they meet along their journey, and to find what he is looking for, how far will the wizard have to wander west? NOTE: The above synopsis is intentionally written to be as spoiler-free as possible. If you would like a more in-detail synopsis, one that contains minor spoilers, please check out the "Synopsis" chapter at the beginning of this fiction. If you read and enjoy, please leave a rating or review! FORMERLY TITLED: THE GLIMMERLING This story was formerly titled "The Glimmerling", because the first part was a short story of that title; it has since been expanded upon, thus the title change. Chapters 1-8 (30k words) are the first 'arc', if you want to get a feel for the story. To give some context on the setting: Magic is a bit weaker in this story than you might be used to, and we start off following some relatively new magic users. For some perspective, being able to light a campfire with magic is considered relatively advanced for someone who is the age of the main character. Magic can become very powerful - and there are some examples of powerful wizards within this story - but it's not where the main characters are yet. Part of the story is about following them as they learn more about magic. Enemies are also very dangerous, and running, hiding, or trying to talk their way out of a dangerous situation is often a better choice than fighting for the characters. While I have added tags for traumatizing content, sexuality, violence, swearing, etc. I try to avoid super-explicit descriptions of these things. But they are part of the story.
228.03 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-27 16:26
bamber_344 | horror | Complete
Roxanne Kindley is just a regular high-school girl. She has a few friends, a few people she'd rather avoid, and an infatuation with a girl she's never spoken to. Pretty typical. Things take a strange turn however, when Roxy helps a bizarrely intelligent wolf while on a walk through the woods behind her house. Not long after, a certain girl takes a sudden interest in her, and Roxy can only begin to wonder where this will lead as it seems her new friend holds a terrifying secret. If you enjoyed Direwolf, follow me on tumblr (www.tumblr.com/bamber344) for news about future projects! (cover art by the incredibly talented @themissakat, check them out!) (crossposted on Scribblehub)
211.93 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-29 17:49
Dreiki has a promise.His lowborn mother walks the path towards nobility as a Venator Knight. The day he turned ten, his mother was called upon to rejoin the battlefield. Before leaving, she warned Dreiki never to show anyone the brand on his shoulder especiallya noble.He promised he'd survive until she got back, but a shadowy pursuer has other plans.Kaara has a curse. Everyone sees Kaara as an energetic and helpful child. No one, not even Kaara, would've suspected she'd been cursed from birth. But one night, Kaara overheard the truth. Horrid monsters are drawn to her, bringing chaos and death with them.If she told anyone about her curse, would they see her differently?Amaro has a burden.The scar across his nose is lauded among other xiozians as a badge of honor. But to him, it's a reminder of the day his father stopped being his father to become 'Duke Xirxus'. As the eldest child, any sign of weakness means war for his family. Amaro's future is a path bathed in bloody conflict and sacrifice.And Amaro doesn't wish to walk it any farther.-----------------------------------------------------------New Chapters posted daily at 6:07PM CST!I also want to thank everyone for the support and kind words. Even if this book is incomplete in a lot of ways, I'm happy the story is resonating with everyone. If you guys wanna go above and beyond to help me out and support me, all I ask is that you share this book with other people and give it the rating you feel it deserves.Feedback is always welcome too. I plan on using the feedback to create a more finalized draft for a potential audiobook or EBook. I don't think anything so unfinished as this web novel should be paid for, but it would be a dream come true if I could eventually make a living off of my writing and share my story with the world. So in the end, your feedback and sharing this story with people helps me get closer to that goal.Thanks again for the support!
180.46 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-29 12:11
The dead have never been so alive. After a deadly contagion reduced the world's population into mindless, undead cannibals, the ruins of America still teem with activity, as some of the dead have regained their intelligence and created their own society; one free from the living's touch. Now, more than a decade later, survivalist extraordinaire Liam Fenix seeks to reunite with his family after undertaking a harrowing escape from the uninhabited island that has been his prison, only to discover that he is the sole survivor of the civilization he left behind. He is not alone, however, as undead bounty hunter Leah believes that Liam holds the key to reversing the pandemic that created her race. Armed with their survivalist expertise and following traces of the past, the two must traverse the wastelands together and bring back life to an otherwise dead world, even as they are pursued by a tyrant who does not want this plague to end. **This series is tagged as Multiple Leads because it contains multiple POVs throughout. **These stories are styled as if they were a set of paperback novels being released concurrently as opposed to a weekly web serial. Some sections may have wonky pacing as a result.
150.17 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-13 16:35
[This is a reimagining of the story The Tutorial is Too Hard by Gandara.] On New Year's Eve, Lee Ho-Jae decides that he wants to die. The universe seems to hear him for the first time in his entire life, and just as the clock hits 00:00, a message pops up inviting him to the Tutorial. Lee Ho-Jae accepts. But at the prompt to choose the difficulty level, is there anything the former pro gamer can do but pick the very hardest--appropriately titled Hell? And so begins Ho-Jae's true descent into Hell in every conceivable form, thrusting him into a world where pain is the currency needed to gain power, and the only ally he has is his own flesh and blood. It doesn't take much for the human mind to crack and crumble, but to build it up again is even harder. In the spiral of white madness that Ho-Jae finds himself tumbling into, will a hand reach towards him and pull him out, or will he just drag them down with them? [This version of the story has now been concluded; the story continues in "A Gamer's Guide to Beating the Tutorial" from the same chapter as it ended from] This story is loosely based on the concept and story by Gandara, but is apart from the setting and name of the main character different on almost every conceivable level. You do not need to read the original story to read this, and doing so will change very little of your experience with the story. It is almost recommended not to read the original if you enjoyed this one since the original has a vastly more lighthearted tone in comparison. Thank you, and I hope you'll enjoy the story!
138.19 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-27 16:40
Starsail Nightmare | horror | Complete
Alexandra Bedford is a weapon, a young woman with telekinetic powers capable of leveling entire cities, born to fight in the desolate remains of post-apocalyptic North America. There is only one problem: she may be losing control of her abilities. Sixteen years after a global pandemic devastated the earth's population, the lines in the old United States have been drawn between the Cheyenne Directorate in Colorado and the New England Alliance on the East Coast. The Directorate, of which Alexandra is a part, is a small but powerful organization dedicated to returning the country to its former glory. However, when a diplomatic mission to the New England Alliance goes wrong, Alexandra finds herself at the center of a bloody civil war. Battles are fought on the old highways and in dilapidated towns and once-great cities. And as the conflict escalates, all of North America faces the threat of being burnt away by nuclear fire. Against this backdrop of war, Alexandra tries to uncover the long-hidden secrets behind the plague, her abilities, and the two men fighting to decide the fate of the United States - Henry Bedford, Alexandra's father and leader of the Directorate, and John Martin, the mysterious figure at the heart of the New England Alliance who may hold the key to everything she seeks. None of this will matter, however, unless Alexandra can prevent the power growing inside her from taking over and consuming the very world she is fighting to save. Author's Notes: I appreciate you taking a look at my novel, The Girl from the Mountain. If you're a fan of post-apocalyptic fiction, military thrillers, and/or cosmic horror, I think you'll enjoy this story. I completed the novel's first draft back in 2011 and made significant changes in 2016. Since then, I've more-or-less sat on the manuscript while working on other projects. Thanks to a bit of prodding, I've decided to send this story out into the wild with some touch-ups and additional revisions. I welcome any comments or criticisms, and I hope you enjoy The Girl from the Mountain!
137.87 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-04-19 15:30
Monsoon117 | horror | Complete
There once was a world formed by a god known as Gaia. She filled the seas and crafted the skies. She dominated her world with a fist of iron and ice. That is, until the Darkened One came. Born a mere man, The Darkened One traveled across the land like a plague, tearing Gaia's control away. In his legends, he stood tall and towering with skin gray as ash. If you defied him, he would eat your flesh from your bones, savoring your screams. He killed kings, brought nightmares to life, and devoured the remnants of Gaia. His legend will be told throughout time. Care to hear of it? Here is the sequel: Jehovah's Harmony Here is my other fiction: Biomancer: Songs of Sirens Proud initiate of The Order of Phantasmal Architects. A group of authors of quality original fiction. See link for other great works though not as good as mine...jk
115.78 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-27 16:33
From a sundered Universe, a Sorceress is made to reborn. But a human, the Sorceress is no more. Born an insect, a vermin with a mere 90 days of life, the Sorceress seeks reasons to live. Suffering the curse of unending starvation, the Sorceress must ceaselessly eat or die.Meanwhile, Kiran leaves his home to defy mediocrity.Named after the hope he represents, he seeks a [Class] so austere that hundreds fail in their search.Yet, before this [Class] even the Gods bow their heads in respect. P.S. This is NOT a number-crunching LitRPG. The System is an add-on, not the story itself. Also known as I Reincarnated as an Immortal Caterpillar, the story follows a monster and humans in a system word with a Buddhist/Hindu philosophy. The System is especially influenced by this philosophy. Cover by the ever so awesome Jefferymoonworm Warning! Not for trauma survivors.
114.71 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-29 11:56
"Bring your brother back alive." With these words, her family had sentenced their unwanted daughter to death. Frail and broken in more ways than one, she was ill-prepared to face the post-apocalyptic nightmares of the fallen capital. Yet legends are forged on the anvil of adversity. When the last heroes are dead and the powerful dance in madness, a chance encounter with an old friend set this tormented girl on a path to change destiny. Now the weak must become the strong as wit prevails. But sanity is a scarce commodity when the skies are ruled by a false star and primal entities awaken from slumber. [This is an action-horror story set in a gothic scenario. It includes some Yuri-Romance elements in a grimdark setting.] Please note: The first chapter includes a short tag overview at the end. If you like your author chatty, I'm always happy to reply. Each chapter also has a bit about my writing process. Check in, see what's there and if you like it, cool. If not, tell me how I can improve. This story is a proud participant in The Pledge. This means it won't be dropped and is guaranteed to get the intended ending. You can find more about my update schedule at the end of the first chapter and more info about The Pledge by clicking the banner.
113.74 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-29 17:47
Black Iron & Cinder is complete and will no longer be updated except for important announcements. If you're interested, consider purchasing the published version on Amazon, which is a brand new revision with error fixes and approximately 2000 more words in length. Also, please check out my newest fiction, The Wolf of Asano. Six months ago, a colorlessmiasma swept across the entire northern section of the continent of Yhordran, creating a vast army of undead that lurks within its boundaries. In an attempt to encourage citizens to help restore order, the crown creates a public organization called the "Mistwalkers", made of individuals who register to venture into the mysterious fog to discover and stop its source. A foreign knight in self-exile from his home is one of those Mistwalkers, and on a desperate journey for meaning, he steps into the grey abyss with the company of Yhordran natives to make his way 400 miles north to reach the plague's epicenter.
92.72 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-29 11:53
It is the final days after the end of the world and you only have one month left before the last sanctuary erupts into chaos. There's a dead body hanging from a tree and cadaverous giants watch you sleep at night. The end is already here, you just don't know it yet. Now rated in the top 3% of all novels on Royal Road! Palus Somni (Marsh of Sleep') is a worldbuilding webnovel about what happens when your God forsakes you. Inspired by gothic horror and mingled with British myth and folklore, join the Alucinari nuns as they struggle with day-to-day life after the world has ended. Every night when the sun sets the monstrous Gol, colossal beings with too many teeth, awaken and roam the marshlands. Only those with a faithful heart will be spared. Young acolyte Wille has never seen the walls fail, but when a fellow nun is murdered within their sanctum the very safety of the monastery is thrown into question. Did the Gol find a way to breach their defences, or is there a human traitor amongst them? The answer lies both far in the past and deep beneath the earth, through the maze of ancient catacombs. With a cast of over thirty different characters, watch as your friends and enemies spiral into inevitable madness at the hands of a callous and unforgiving world. Discover the secrets of Palus Somni through letters, diary entries and notes found scattered across the monastery. Uncover the mystery of the grotesque giants that stalk the night and bring your challenge to the Gods themselves. Each character has their own handmade pixel art, and every update includes a music recommendation for a dark atmospheric dungeon synth album that you can listen to while you read. Slice of life meets cosmic abomination: Palus Somni is a collection of intertwining stories, some chapters are stand-alone tales while others feed into the overarching narrative. It is an exploration into a community, and rather than focusing on any one character the story meanders through the convent, exposing the hopes and fears of its inhabitants. Story updates every full moon.
83.11 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-13 10:57
Mike Spivak | horror | Complete
Fate conspires to unite Cody, a grieving man who lost all he held dear, and Suzy, an eldritch abomination from beyond the stars. Together they attempt to save humanity from yet another end of the world. They will travel beyond time and space! They will face madness, violence and greasy food! They will laugh, cry and fight for the sake of all mankind. Spoiler: Spoiler They will also fail. This story will update infrequently for the last of its run. WARNING: This story contains violence, swearing, sex, many depictions of suicide and dark subject matter. Reader discretion is advised. This story is considered NSFW.
78.71 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-27 18:11
The Year is 2183, four years after the tragedy at Hadley's Hope on LV-426. On the edge of theOuter Rim Territories, residents of an aging and outmoded sister-station to Sevastopol are embroiled in crisis. Socioeconomic, corporate and political considerations aside, the true threat to Ashkelon Station are dark secrets taking shape as Xenomorphs. Reese Castle and Wade Barrett are partners in crime, smugglers posing as spacecraft repair technicians until they can manage to steal their ship back. Weyland Yutani terminated their lease for the USCSS Casimir, an old M-Class Bison starfreighter, but they'll be damned if they let it get away so easily. A space truckers ship is their home and they're keen to leave the station while they still can. As a series of unfortunate events create a perfect maelstrom of chaos, death and upheaval, Agent Shella Roodt of the Interstellar Commerce Commission (by extension an entity of Weyland Yutani) and Chief Colonial Marshal John Coffee have a mandate to investigate wrongdoing and save lives. When they come face-to-face with the monsters however, there will be only one outcome. A final tribulation of survival of the fittest.
77.15 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-25 14:40
Balance is everything. Where the village ends, the rainforest begins, and while children whisper legends of impossible places and heroes, the villagers know there is nothing outside except the trees and what creeps between them. The dark and the creatures it hides have never entered the village, not while sacred spirits, the anki, protect it. With his father's body wrapped and laid in the funeral clearing, Talon wants only to get back to his crops, his wife and two children, Sosa and Halo but the bronze spear hidden in his father's hut is a complication he could do without. Metal is rare, and hoarding it forbidden, but that's the least of Talon's worries. The appearance of a young boy, stained with red dye, who crashes from the trees and collapses at Sosa's feet, could threaten the delicate balance, and Talon's decision to protect him will have consequences for his family; perhaps the whole village. Talon and Sosa are about to be drawn into an adventure which, like many others, is full of heroes and claws and teeth. What those legends rarely say is how much those claws can hurt. Talon and Sosa's legend does. Warning: There is some gore and violence in this book but not an excessive amount. It's carefully placed, but it is there, just so you know!
74.39 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-21 18:42
The Devourer | horror | Complete
I awaken to a startling realizationI've transformed into a dragon! My wife and children still slumber, oblivious to my newfound form. Panic courses through me as I grapple with this surreal existence. No longer human, I must make a hasty escape to prevent my growing size from bringing our house down. But the world beyond is unkind. I'm hunted, captured, and subjected to torment, cast as the feared Leviathan, a creature of religious dread. Will my spirit shatter under the weight of these trials, or will I find the strength to resist? In my fight for freedom, I seek refuge and form unlikely alliances, constructing a new family amidst this bewildering transformation. How will my human family react to these newfound companions? Forced into a different gender by the imperative of rebuilding my species, I find myself adrift in a world devoid of Pok閙on. Monstrotanks? Brotherhood? It's all unfamiliar territory, and I long for peace, disavowing any connection to the charred town that has left a stain on my identity. I am Daathrr, not Sister Noah of the Ark, nor Mr. Freeman's cousin, and Black Mesa is not my workplace. I yearn for solitude in my hangar, far removed from these tumultuous events. My narrative takes an unyielding stance from the perspective of a dragon thrust into the complexities of modern technology, grappling to find a place in our contemporary world. It serves as a mirror to our society, revealing that, despite our technological advances, our mindset often mirrors that of the Middle Ages. Racism persists, but interspecies prejudice is an even darker shadow, stripping beings of their basic rights. How does one retain their humanity when it seems irretrievably lost? As the dragon's persona consumes my human side, it delves into the intricate realm of Dragon Psychology. The language I employ is straightforward, repetitive, and somewhat mechanical. I ask for your patience, as I am not an author, and my native language is French. If clarification is needed, please feel free to comment or request explanations, or simply refer to Google for further understanding. I strive to be as comprehensible as possible for those unacquainted with this world. Lastly, a word of caution: Do not attempt the incantations found within this story. I disavow any responsibility should scales suddenly begin to sprout upon you! Additionally, I do not own all the images used, and if any issues arise, I will promptly replace them. ATTENTION THE 70 first Chapters can induce depressions for some readers. There are unbearable sc鑞es of suffering when the MC is in an experiment lab with mad scientists. The story can be disturbing and hard to follow. There are like the TV serie LOST with mysteries, answers not explained, flashbacks and flashforward chapters. Also timeline can be broken. This is due to paradoxes. A paradoxes is when reality meet an other dimension, other time and it crashes when the MC goes back to another time with him in the same dimension. They cannot meet and they cannot be 2 Yvan at the same place at the same time or meeting. Then time froze and an sinister agent in dark blue suit appear : The G-Man! If you are totally lost there is a SPOILER in the tome2 and the explanation of this twisted story in the chapter 3 (Explanations of the tome 1)
69.59 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-22 16:36
XKARNATION | horror | Complete
Book one of this novel is being reuploaded after a round of professional editing: Here Victor awakens in a new world with a body taller than the trees, composed of pure darkness and far too many eyes. He had become a Netherborne, a legendary creature from the void that does not tire nor die. Instead, they consume all that lives until there is no more. Legends say when a Netherborne is summoned to the mortal plane, civilizations that stood for centuries are toppled overnight while their nobles evacuate to the seas. As a being from the void, the world fights his existence. However, resistance is futilethe prey can only run. But what happens when a human mind inhabits such a creature? Does only destruction await, or will there be a new age of civilization? Victor is about to find out. [Kingdom Building] [OP Undead MC] [Isekai] [Strong to Stronger]
69.53 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-27 16:39
What if the Wild West reached Mars? Long after Nikola Tesla's geothermal pyramids dry up, the Red Star remains a lawless Edwardian frontier. Corruption plagues Martian lawmen. Ravenous tycoons rule upon hoards of knowledge. Outlaws swarm in droves. Commoners abandon hope. But when the lawless flee Earth, justice hunts the wicked. The Red Star herself rears, bucking unwanted passengers off her back. And deep within her canyons, dormant secrets wake. Prime your gauss revolvers, check your cyborg arm for the latest update, and get ready to gallop across the Red Star's frigid, semi-terraformed deserts on your robot stallion's back in search of a murderin' fugitive. Mighty nice for fans of The Mandalorian, Dead Acre, Make Me No Grave, The Coilhunter Chronicles, and the Sheriff Duke series. Fiction Categories -Sci-fi Western / Cattlepunk -Weird Western -Western Horror
63.20 Ten thousand words | Updated at 2024-03-29 17:58
