Sophia Martin
Stories
11
Chapters
7,174
Words
1.1 M
Comments
0
Reading
3 d, 21 h
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I had thought I’d be fine with a hermit’s life. A cabin on a mountainside, a freshwater spring nearby, maybe grow my own pond weed. Sounds pretty bliss. Don’t misunderstand me, I realise there’s nothing idyllic about life, especially not mine. The wilderness isn’t any safer than civilisation — both require immense survival skills. Sure nature seems very pleasant, with its flowers and faint scent of manure, but in this world, go down the wrong forest path, and you could end up being brutally…-
76 •
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I let myself be lifted to get a better look. The world was a disgusting mass of writhing tentacles, but it was all mine. There were no time constraints here, no idiots complaining about things of no importance, no sense that I was being judged and found lacking. I could do what I wanted. The question was, what did I want? For once, I had an answer. I looked down at Malmur and Damicar. They were overgrown with vines, just like everyone else. Everyone but me, of course. My body stood apart,…
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76 •
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Sometimes you have to take control of a situation. You may not want to, you may be happy in the background, letting others steer the boat, but circumstances won’t let you. Life is a big ocean and the chances of hitting a random iceberg are quite small, you would think. At some point you realise that someone on this boat is a fucking iceberg-magnet. It just isn’t possible for RNG to be this bad. That was the third iceberg today, and we’re sailing around the Caribbean. And when you throw everyone…
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76 •
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Grayson looked impressive in front of his squad. They had matching armour, which always adds a little class to any group of men who are about to beat the shit out of you. “Who is responsible for this?” he demanded. I could feel the eyes of everyone slide in my direction. This was the sort of situation I had prepared myself for. The whole point of building my strategy from the ground up, instead of just barging in and taking what I wanted, was to ensure a clear and simple exit strategy. I didn’t…
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76 •
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Wesley’s help made all the difference, I’m not going to pretend it didn’t. Maybe I should have asked for her help earlier. Maybe I should have taken a backseat and let her take total control. The thing about asking for help is that it’s never a good thing, for you or for the person you’re burdening. You’re trying to make your life a bit easier by making theirs a bit harder. Or a lot more. Some people don’t mind, even feel validated by it. But there’s always some blowback. Some feeling of…
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76 •
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While things weren’t going exactly to plan, it was still within expected parameters. I expected things to go badly, and I was spot on. I actually expected them to get worse, so this was nothing to freak out about. You might think being surrounded by dozens of people being sick might not seem like an advantageous position to be in, but when was the last time you were attacked by someone who was puking their guts up? Doesn’t happen, right? See? Next level strat. “Please, friends, you have nothing…
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76 •
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Of course, I knew they were coming. I’m not stupid. The moment someone mentioned there was a bunch of guys who didn’t like people selling unauthorised fish, it was only a matter of time before our paths crossed. And when Damicar indicated that he was under a cooking embargo, opening up for business meant I was on a collision course with his persecutors, too. If you can’t avoid trouble, you should at least arrange for it to come to you when you’re good and ready for it. And I was. The only…
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76 •
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You make an effort to give life a shot, and you get taken down by a fish assassin. It isn’t very encouraging. Fish poison wasn’t the only toxin I’d been poisoned by. I had also been infected by a virulent strain of camaraderie that had left me weak and pathetic. It’s all very well trying to make these things work to everyone’s benefit, but it just isn’t possible. You might be a sincere believer in the ideals of Karl Marx, but one day you will learn that your leaders are just petty fascists…
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76 •
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I was shaking hard. If I’d been able to reach my penis with my hand, I could have died as I’d lived, a useless wanker. It would be no great loss. I’d never been that enamoured with the whole clinging to life thing, but I was a bit put out that after finally gaining my independence from the ingrates holding me back all this time, finally giving me the chance to try this whole life in a fantasy setting my way, now would be the time I inadvertently fall foul of the local fauna. Fishing was nothing new…
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76 •
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It was like I had an ice pick lodged in my brain. The pain contrasted nicely with the dull but persistent aching pulse radiating through my head, making it hard to think clearly. Every time I managed to suppress the throbbing, a sharp stab drove through my eye sockets, overloading my pain receptors. The problem was caused by poison. I guess it was a kind of nerve agent. I’m not an expert in these things, but I would say death was imminent. Considering how much pain I was in, I certainly hoped it…
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