Patricia Moore
Stories
14
Chapters
5,808
Words
3.9 M
Comments
0
Reading
13 d, 9 h
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And so Dominus continued to tease him. He grew ever more casual as he found different ways to call the peasant boy trash. Halfway through, he even began to enjoy it. Beam endured these tests as best he could, but with the sheer amount of them, even he was beginning to grow impatient. Swordplay, strength, endurance, strategy. He'd tested those rather thoroughly, from what Beam understood, and he'd thrown in more tests besides. Tests that he wasn't quite sure what they tested, like this cold water swim…-
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"I present to you a choice now. One, I execute you right here before you become a burden to the world around you. Or two, you yield to me for the next few days, whilst I test your worth and determine how great the risk is in keeping you alive," Dominus said. "Then I will come with you," Beam said immediately. Dominus raised an eyebrow. "Did you not just receive a promotion at your job?" "I did. But it isn't worth very much if I'm dead." Chapter 2 – The Price of Power "This is really…
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The boy stopped at forty-two press-ups. Far from an impressive feat. "Why do you struggle, boy?" Dominus called out, unable to hide his curiosity. "To get better. So my family don't have to worry about me," Beam said back, showing no signs of surprise, as though he'd known Dominus was there all along. "And yet you don't progress. Forty-two pushups was a struggle for you," Dominus said. Beam shrugged. "I had forty yesterday and I got forty-two today. That's the most I've managed to progress in a…
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"Damn it…" he muttered, the energy draining from his limbs. There was no point rushing around now. The dry grass of the roof had been burned hours ago, and the wall had already collapsed inwards, half reduced to ember. In short, there was no saving it now. "Hah…" he sat on the ground, his back against the nearby tree, a palm to his cheek and his eyes drifting from the sky to the fire, and then back to the sky again. Beam was not the only one who watched as the fire's smoke rose up into the sky…
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"It's all strange, isn't it?" The attendant said in alarm. "Normally, to pass through the Second Boundary, one accumulates progress and responsibility. The knights know this, that's why their apprentices pass through faster than everyone else – and they know the best ways to make progress too, because they have the liberty to train rather than struggle merely to survive." "That's quite right," Claudia said, tolerating her attendant's repetition of facts that she already knew, for she was in the same…
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With those last words, she waved goodbye to Beam, as her friend relentlessly called for her. Her friend sighed in exasperation. "Why do you keep bothering with the boy? Can't you tell for the filth on him that he's got no money?" Loriel gave a soft smile in return. "He's special, and no one else can see it. He's my little treasure. Mark my words, that boy will grow into a fine man." "So what? It's an investment? You think he'll get rich and take you away?" But Loriel shook her head. "No… He…
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"THAT'S IT! OUT!" He felt a massive hand reach down and grab his arm, dragging him out of his ever-deepening hole. He didn't really have the strength to resist. The man, Loz, was twenty years his elder. Bald, stocky and mean-looking, with enough weight to give him the strength of two men. And there was anger in his eyes. "What?" Beam asked. Loz sighed. "You're good with a spade boy, but sometimes I question what's going on in that head of yours… The boss sent word earlier. There's enough coin…
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VOLUME ONE - PART ONE: THE SEIZING OF GREAT POWER Dedicated to all the boys and girls struggling out there. Your day will come - stay strong! Chapter 1 – The Cursed Child As with the forging of all swords, it began with flames. In a single night, everything that our young hero owned was taken from him. Under the cover of darkness, eight-year-old Beam, hiding behind the only piece of furniture in their tiny dirt hut – a table – was pierced by a spear. He knew not where the spear came…
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