RELABELING
Relabeling of Ruinous Return to match the future Mango Media release has been completed!
I also fixed a few broken 'next chapter' links in there.
I would ask that if you do notice a screwed-up link to the next chapter (because Patreon likes breaking randomly or reverting changes) - let m...
2024-10-15 02:29:40 +0000 UTC View PostJace had his sword out and ready, coated with the Dark Matter Blade (Rank 5) [Rending], along with his Dark Matter Shield (Rank 2), as he entered the area of another Complex. It was a few hours until sunset, and he wanted to try to just use his sword and shield to save on energy. The faster I clear complexes up here, the faster I can move on...
2024-10-14 13:45:01 +0000 UTC View PostJace crunched his way across the ice and snow. Ollie stayed curled up around his neck. The sound of Jace’s foot-claws was the only noise other than the whistling, whipping wind.
“How are Wayfinders made?” Jace asked to pass the time.
“We are programmed! An Artificial Intelligence program. We then get put into a variety of sim...
2024-10-13 14:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostThere was a riotous sound of thunder and an explosive crackle noise that spread across the glacier. Jace was airborne – he wasn’t sure how he got so high up, a few hundred feet, easily. And his body was sore. Not only that, but his limbs were twitching slightly.
And not reacting to his commands.
“Ollie!” he ...
2024-10-12 14:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostJace kept trekking across the tundra. He was making great time – Day 3 wasn’t even close to being over. At this rate, I’ll get to the Glacier and maybe crack out another Complex or two before calling it a night. He smirked. And even then, I just need the hour of rest.
A screen appeared in his vision.
<...
2024-10-11 14:00:10 +0000 UTC View PostJace woke up and Ollie popped into existence. He felt quite refreshed, if hungry. Snacking down on a survival meal and taking a sip from his canteen, he sat silently contemplating his situation. I’m up on the tundra, and there’s 9 other Complexes up here. I can stay here, or I can go to the glacier tile. The tundra was...
2024-10-10 15:28:49 +0000 UTC View PostThank you for reading Ruinous Return!
THE DETAILS
This story has been an absolute blast to write and has consumed my free time from May of 2024 through August 2024. Basically, nonstop, four months of writing for (just a little under) 400k words.
I wrote more, bu...
2024-10-10 14:46:26 +0000 UTC View Post1
[Year 21 of The Eternal Age]
Gil took in a deep breath as he walked through the thick jungle. He struck out with his great sword over and over, carving a path for the rest of his siblings behind him. He slapped the insects that buzzed around, and growled. “Fucking insects. Why didn’t we acquire something to kee...
2024-10-10 14:00:04 +0000 UTC View PostJace barely saw an arcing stream of blue electricity streaking toward him. It slammed into his torso…and hit the Dark Matter Shield (Rank 3).
Surprisingly, Jace did not feel any energy drain. “What was that?” He asked as he turned to look at where the bolt came from. A small drift of snow off in the distance.
“It was a Skill,...
2024-10-09 16:50:29 +0000 UTC View Post1
[Year 1 of The Eternal Age]
Lyn landed atop the fortress at the heart of Lynhold and made a beeline for Kory’s cell. She pushed open the door and walked over to the still-sleeping man. This is for you, Gina. She held her clawed appendage over him.
“Gwin tho tauns / hen i lúg Gina Pet...
2024-10-09 14:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post[Day 3 of The Dungeon Run.]
<<<<<>>>>>
Jace woke up in the pleasant darkness with not a single sound around him. It was calming. Welcoming. A soothing darkness. The bedroll was extremely comfortable, and he had to force himself to leave it. Stretching with a yawn, there was the usual pop&n...
2024-10-08 17:41:20 +0000 UTC View PostJace did so, and his heart sank. The way he entered was sealed up by the explosion. Damnit. Stupid, Jace. Stupid! He chided himself and kicked at the ground before letting out a huff. “Where’s that damned dungeon core?” he muttered.
Ollie flew ahead of him, “Oh! Back here! Behind this pillar.”
“You mean rock...
2024-10-07 18:04:36 +0000 UTC View Post[Day 2 of The Dungeon Run.]
<<<<<>>>>>
Jace was greeted by a message as he woke from his slumber. Letting out a yawn, he sat up and heard Ollie’s pop as he manifested. “Eight days left,” Jace muttered as he got into his pack, took a sip of water, and cracked open another meal. 2024-10-06 16:13:54 +0000 UTC View Post
The combat at the stables began to escalate, and Jace went to the wall opposite the fray.
“Hey! I said no fighting!” The whole group at the stables vanished in a shimmering, golden glow that formed a line of sand which shot to the blue portal in the center of the town. “Not until you leave the city! Disqualified!”
Ollie clear...
2024-10-05 19:23:38 +0000 UTC View PostJace woke up to the gentle, Starlit Sea once more. As soon as he opened his eyes, the gorgeous shark-woman next to him sat up. “Morning sleepy.” She leaned down and gave him her approximation of a kiss.
“Morning,” Jace replied as he sat up. “Last night was-”
“Amazing!” she said with a giggle. “That was fantastic...
2024-10-05 02:59:35 +0000 UTC View PostLast ‘downtime’ chapter of Slice of Life before we get to Jace’s next world [Tier 2]. Thanks for hanging in there for these sections to help build up the characterization, interpersonal connections, and giving Jace a bit of breathing room. Back to the action soon!
There is also implied sexual activity towards the end of ...
2024-10-05 02:58:49 +0000 UTC View PostJace got to his new home and found to his immense satisfaction and joy that the three rooms were decorated and furnished. The main room was dominated by a large, circular table with plenty of cushioned chairs – perfect for hosting guests. There were numerous shelves with all manner of board games lining one wall, and the whole room was decorat...
2024-10-05 02:57:15 +0000 UTC View PostJace leaned against the nondescript apartment building. It was just like the one he was living in, except it was a different color. Instead of a dull grey, it was a deep blue.
Ollie explained while he waited that many Civilians who were jobless when Cosmogenic Merging occurred – or who were looking to get away from their home world – w...
2024-10-04 14:06:04 +0000 UTC View PostJace lay there for a good fifteen minutes before Jonsar finished removing his arm and began attaching the new one. “The prosthetic’s proper name is Anathema Arm. It has a Skill included, called The Arbiter’s Anathema – which lets you deactivate any Skill you can see, once per day, and locks the person who used the Skill from re-using it ...
2024-10-03 14:30:02 +0000 UTC View PostJace is going to get a bit of downtime in the next few chapters. I think he deserves it, given the hardship he’s gone through on Velenar Prime. So, prepare for some Slice of Life styled scenes. And a bit of laying the groundwork for a romance.
There is still character development, and plot development that will happen. But d...
2024-10-02 14:30:03 +0000 UTC View Post1
Finala, Keeper of Ravens ran to the ground floor of the Raven Tower to meet with Antiquarian Menora. “You wanted me?” she asked the other Duskari woman as she took short recovery breaths at the bottom of the spiral.
Menora nodded and pulled out a small, stone box. “I found this and knew it would be use...
2024-10-02 14:00:02 +0000 UTC View PostXera was at her wits end. She was scrolling through the logs and reports as fast as she could. Josie was behind her, doing the same. He dealt with the drill, but what happened after? The Cosmic System blacked out all Jace’s activities while he was under the effects of Dark Matter Cloak (Rank 3). Not even she could track him while...
2024-10-01 14:30:04 +0000 UTC View Post1
The ocean breeze was refreshing and instantly made Admiral Naila feel like she was back in her element. This is where she belonged, on the seas, aboard a vessel. Every time the ship gently rocked in the waves she would expertly shift her weight to remain balanced. To every Ari from the Conclave of the Isle, the se...
2024-10-01 14:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post“No shit,” Jace replied as he saw the singularity vanish above him. A single, compressed sphere of matter – maybe the size of a soccer ball – fell into the now-sixty-foot-deep pit. “But…if all of those bodies were compressed into that, there’s a ton of Stardust.” Jace pushed himself off the spit of land and hit the bottom of the ...
2024-09-30 13:58:28 +0000 UTC View PostHi folks!
You will be getting Ruinous Return on Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday as usual, until the story ends on October 10th.
That day will have a 'send-off' and a poll for any continuing storyline emerging from that story (I have several options to vote on).
But, as you can tell from the new s...
2024-09-30 03:52:42 +0000 UTC View PostJace’s leg-claws kept him rooted in place, and the Dark Matter Shield kept his body safe as the concussive shockwave was stopped entirely by the barricade. A roiling ball of flame ascended into the sky as the drill’s remains smoked on the bottom of the mining area.
“That was close,” Ollie whispered.
Jace had to deactivate the...
2024-09-29 16:09:26 +0000 UTC View PostJace trudged onward towards the plume of dust that became visible just on the horizon. The location where the Black Hole Conclave was boring a hole towards the center of the world, to install some type of weird, magic engine that could propel the planet to the center of the universe.
“What’s our best approach?” Jace asked.
Olli...
2024-09-28 21:43:23 +0000 UTC View PostThe next day passed without incident, and Jace took cover in an abandoned building that evening. “We are almost there,” Ollie said as he floated up and swam in the air above Jace.
“Map please?” Jace asked as he set to fortify the entrances and windows with whatever furniture was lying about.
Ollie nodded and waved his paws. T...
2024-09-27 14:05:19 +0000 UTC View Post