Patricia Smith
Stories
8
Chapters
5,309
Words
3.0 M
Comments
0
Reading
10 d, 6 h
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"Mhm," I said. The pixie leapt and bounced through the air, his voice a high-pitched, high-speed series of squeaks and chirps. The other pixies were alternating between watching their boss and nibbling on the snacks I'd laid out for for them. Sometimes they'd look past me, towards my friends who were gathered a few steps behind me, far enough away that they wouldn't spook the pixies. "And where was that, exactly?" I asked the pixie boss-man. He scrunched his little face up, then rubbed at his chin for…-
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"I need to justify changing my name? Your honour, my name is Al. A and L. Do you have any idea how often people call me AI? It's insulting!" --Al Bert, courtroom hearing, 2026 *** "So, what do you need from me?" I asked. Grasshopper had led us down and into a parking garage that I wasn't aware of, but wasn't surprised to discover in the lower floors of the building the Family was located in. The employees had to park Mostly because her car... I eyed it for a moment, not sure what to say, really. It…
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"Marco!" I shouted. "Polo!" Came the reply from my left, and then a moment later, another "Polo!" from my right. It was a system I'd come up with to make sure we weren't lost. When I heard a distant 'Polo' I added my own shout of 'Marco' to the call. It would have been a lot more fun to stay together in a tighter group where we could chat and laugh, but the cave we were looking for was in an area that - although it looked like a blip on Amaryllis' map - covered over fifty acres, according to Calamity.…
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The air was crisp below the mountain that Port Royal was perched on (whose name I still didn't know, actually) and the road was actually pretty nice. It wasn't cobbled or anything, but hard-packed gravel with wagon wheel tracks pressed into the sides to create a bit of a hump in the middle. The sides were pooled with puddles, which was perfect! "No no, see, there's a trick to it," I explained. "Oh? Please, do instruct me further," Desiree replied. She eyed me very carefully as I took a slight running…
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"I think I'd rather stay, actually," Caprica said. She was in her room on the I tilted my head way off to the side to be able to read the title. Maybe it was marketed towards girls who wanted to become princesses? I decided not to question it too much. Caprica could read whatever she wanted to. "You want to stay here?" I asked. "Want is a strong word," Caprica said. "It's more that I have a few things to look into at the embassy, and I think that Booksie will need more help than she thinks, when it…
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"I think I'd rather stay, actually," Caprica said. She was in her room on the I tilted my head way off to the side to be able to read the title. Maybe it was marketed towards girls who wanted to become princesses? I decided not to question it too much. Caprica could read whatever she wanted to. "You want to stay here?" I asked. "Want is a strong word," Caprica said. "It's more that I have a few things to look into at the embassy, and I think that Booksie will need more help than she thinks, when it…
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The mission's brief didn't have a due date on it, exactly, but as I read over the details it was pretty clear that the Exploration Guild kind of expected us to get to this sooner rather than later. "It's..." I looked up to the sky as we walked out. "Still before evening. Do you think we should leave for this mission today?" Amaryllis hummed. "I would think so, yes. It'll require seeing who's interested in coming, of course, then preparing rations, tents, and supplies in general for the mission. We'll want…
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We arrived at the Exploration Guild to find it way less busy than it had been the last time we poked our noses in. The guild's front doors were propped open by a small wooden doorstopper, letting some fresh mid-day air in and letting Explorers and curious busy-bodies slip in and out with ease. We ambled in as a group, but soon split into two smaller groups. Awen, Calamity and Desiree stuck by the front where there was a small historical display. Desiree pointed to various maps and old artefacts and asked…
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Since we had to go to the Guild anyway, it only made sense that the official members would form one of the shore parties and be the same ones to escort Booksie home. The exception was Desiree, she insisted on coming with us, and I didn't have it in me to say no. Of course, Booksie could have returned with Rhawrexdee, but she admitted that the last time they'd had a date in the city, the city council had been somewhat annoyed at all of the destruction of public property. The roads of Port Royal were nice…
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I was laid out flat on the ground, taking in breaths as deep gulps while I allowed sweat to pool on my forehead and slowly soak into the back of my shirt. I was probably a little stinky, actually, but I'd clean myself off later, once the sweat had done its job of cooling me off. A familiar vulpine face appeared above me. "Are you well?" Desiree asked. A birdy face appeared next to her, blocking out the rest of the sunlight pouring down onto me. Amaryllis frowned a little. "It's mana exhaustion. Combined…
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