John Williams
Stories
9
Chapters
3,072
Words
1.2 M
Comments
0
Reading
4 d, 2 h
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When the Skies Weep (I) Over the course of half an hour, and the immense projection of bragging, Cain had come to realize that most of the people in the party were highly-educated, remarkably smart, and all-around a ragtag bunch that Cain had never viewed them as such. For instance, even the old man Rick, Cain learned, has Masters in business and computer engineering. Furthermore, Diya has just gotten her Masters in applied physics ahead of the 'normal' schedule. Jamal, too, has Masters in…-
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Troves of Fire (III) "... what is your choice?" the old man asked after a brief silence, causing everyone to spring into a discussion. "I vote we just move on!" Cain said quickly. "... no," Emma shook her head. "This is the best chance for the rest of us to get stronger without endangering our lives. Perhaps the only one we'll get in this place. I say we take a shot." "I agree," Rick nodded. "We can always bail out early if we see the difficulty spiking up too much." "... I'm fine either way,"…
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Troves of Fire (II) The massive, iron gates were flung open as soon as the given hour of rest ticked by. Their creaking and loud weeping jolted the small party to their feet as they spun on their heels and faced the gap. To their surprise, however, they did not discover a set of stairs leading up, but rather a seemingly infinite sea of darkness. Cain approached cautiously, followed behind by everyone else, and peered in and about, noting that there were no enemies and, instead, there only appeared…
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Troves of Fire (I) //Congratulations on clearing Soulless Prison! Due to the extraordinary set of circumstances, your and your party's rewards have been appropriately changed! Congratulations on reaching Level 28! You have unlocked a Title: The One Who Survived Death (Survive in a Duel against someone who Outranks you -- +10 Stamina, +25 Vitality) You have unlocked an Achievement: Attunement Lord (successful charge a hexa-attunement combination; -30% to Mana Consumption) Congratulations on…
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Singular Breath (II) It began to rain fire. The whizzing sounds formed a world-wide symphony, the light itself cascading as though building a stairwell to the sky. Two figures coated in thick tendrils of smoke blew across each other, rippling in a wide arc across the air and landing onto the ground with a tumble, rolling back and kicking up dust in their wake. Yet, not even the bleeding crevices were enough to stop them as they both heaved onto their feet, slapping their hands together and ringing…
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Singular Breath (I) The four remaining shadows standing on top of a tall cliff loomed over in silence for a moment before one of them stepped out and leisurely dropped down, landing silently. Cain frowned, noting a familiar sensation that swelled out of the newcomer, almost like a bottled tsunami of Mana waiting to erupt into abrupt chaos. She was a woman, he quickly realized -- or, at the very least, had feminine features. No taller than six feet, faintly muscular, draped in skin-tight robes of…
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Molten Cave (VI) Tense atmosphere reigned over the small party as they walked up to the black-dyed stairs leading up to a tall wall blocking the next 'stage'. There was a sort of eerie air almost reeking off the stairs, tendrils of black smoke visible to the naked eyes. It reminded Cain somewhat of the Devil's Path, an 11th-floor dungeon of sorts, but most people when first visiting it could barely breathe, while here it was only a faint suffocating sensation. They slowly began to climb, frowns…
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Molten Cave (V) Everyone rapidly moved to the front, Emma and Rick leading the charge with raised shields, screen-like projections ripping out of them. Jamal and Justin turned to the sides and began running at the monster's flanks, while Jim ran in front of Cain to act as a temporary relief for Emma or Rick. The remaining five were behind Cain, Decker, Gerald, and Sam forming a triangle around Diya and Lamia, the former already showering every member of the party in a golden light while the latter…
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Molten Cave (IV) Jamal dipped abruptly, bending his body to the side as an ax-shaped, edged blade whizzed past his chin, causing beads of sweat to drip along his forehead like rain. He thudded against the floor and rolled to the side, focusing Mana into his joints and springing out nimbly, lunging the sword in his hand in a backhand motion as he spun to the front, blocking a flaming sword that was aiming at him. Urging Mana almost as though he was tapping the gas pedal, fumes of starlight dripped…
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Molten Cave (III) As the gates slowly continued to open, the heat swelled in proportion -- so much so that Cain was forced to charge Frost into his fists and sprinkle it around him into a makeshift shield. Even though it wasn't exactly a foolproof idea, it still managed to cool the group somewhat. The first thing that came into their view was a set of grayed, banged up stairs, sloped in a sharp angle, surrounded by jagged and sharp-looking rocks with strange patterns of erosion. The rocks…
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