WanderingLeaf

Team Player B2Ch21: Beating the Odds

Sleep hadn’t come easily to her, despite her fatigue. All the same, Alex rose the next day and went up to the wall. She’d half expected Sam to meet her there, but the only person waiting this time was Ed. He waved to her as she came up the steps, a grin on his face.

“Hey. We missed yo...

Common Clay B3Ch3: Sarlsboro

The next day dawned bright and early. Too bright and too early, if anyone had asked Clay, but no one really had.

He’d been up early, feeling a bit worn from his lack of a restful sleep. His fatigue had made it a bit difficult for him to get ready and head south towards the baron’s manor...

Iron Kingdom B3Ch2: On the Road Again

It took a full two days for the banners he’d chosen for his journey to prepare themselves for the march to the Sortenmoors.

Compared to the army he’d left with to defeat Teblas, his forces this time weren’t nearly as large or varied. Most of the banners he’d taken south into the Hol...

Team Player B2Ch20: Saving the Washouts

[D Rank Surveyor Alex, Gatekeeper]

[Ascension Level: 6]

[Role: Porter (Role Skills: None]

[Role Level: 1]

[Experience: 700/2800]

[Attributes: Strength -> 6, Speed -> 10, Life -> 2, Devotion -> 0, Control -> 0]

[Current Skills: Combat Balance(21),...

Common Clay B3Ch2: A Busy Night

The festival continued fairly late into the evening. By the time the villagers began to break up and head back to their homes, the sun was already beginning to lower towards the horizon. His family had said their farewells, each of them giving him a hug before heading back home on the cart. Dashe...

Iron Kingdom B2Ch1: A Cold Start

Matt watched as the wall came down.

It had belonged to a building that had stood near the palace in Redspire for decades as part of a nobleman’s mansion. Other, less prestigious buildings had already been torn down to clear the space nearest the palace, with their residents either going t...

Team Player B2Ch19: Raising the Stakes

Alex had just gotten back from the portal room—where Wells had seemed particularly dissatisfied with her, as usual—and had finished her phone call with her parents, when her phone chirped again. It was another text from Zach. He was requesting another immediate meeting.

She frowned at i...

Common Clay B3Ch1: A Hero's Welcome

Clay watched his opponent shift her feet in front of him. His spear was heavy in his hands, and he adjusted his grip on the shaft. They’d already been fighting for nearly half an hour now, and neither of them showed any sign of slowing down. He grimaced slightly; his opponent was supposed to ha...

Iron Angels B3Ch17: Shelter

Gabe swam in an ocean of knowledge.

Coordinating the push to save the Concord had need OMNI’s help, and that meant he had needed to focus as the entire calculation had sped through his mind. It had worked, but he was still lost in the network that had been formed. He almost ...

Team Player B2Ch18: Sticking to the Climb

The portal room was a vision of chaos. It was packed with Surveyors, many of whom looked vaguely disoriented in the mass of people entering and leaving the vortex. Alex stepped around a group of new E ranks who were looking for their Vanguard, and made her way over to where Joanna and Audrey were...

Iron Kingdom B2Ch20: The Fruits of Victory

The aftermath of the battle seemed like it was nearly as much work as the battle itself.

His soldiers had searched among the fallen for the wounded, both from his forces and those of the enemy. There had been many, almost too many for the army to carry with them when they left. Those who ha...

Common Clay B2Ch26: The Return

It was a beautiful morning, on the very edge of spring.

Even in a city as big as Crownsguard, the air seemed to be full of life and warmth. While he wouldn’t have described the air as completely comfortable, it was already sunny enough to start melting the snow from the roofs of the build...

Iron Angels B3Ch16: Fatal Destiny

Susan blinked as data flooded in from OMNI. The flicker of red light abruptly resolved into something far more detailed, revealing a cluster of ships as accurately as if she had sent an RSR patrol to scan them.

Her opposition wasn’t as overwhelming as she had been expecting. There was a s...

Progress Report

So! I managed to get Summer Revolution, the fourth Iron Kingdom book, done and ready for beta readers this week. I think it turned out pretty good! Next up on the schedule is Common Labor, the fourth Common Clay book, followed by Independently Motivated, the fourth Surveyor book.

It's been ...

Team Player B2Ch17: Taking Up the Challenge

[Marathoning advances to 4!]

Alex slowed to a stop along the perimeter wall, breathing evenly. She’d just finished her second lap around the entire complex, and she was already doing better than she had before. It was a relief to have her old Skill back with her, even if it was going to t...

Iron Kingdom B2Ch19: Fallen Royalty

The lines were silent as Matt rode back to his side of the field. His soldiers had obviously seen the new enemies revealed. They could count just as well as he could, and they knew they were suddenly the ones who were facing long odds. He’d have to put heart back into them, but first he had to ...

Iron Angels B3Ch15: Final Understanding

Mr. Grey stepped out into the shuttle bay of the Archive and drew in a single, shuddering breath.

The air was still, almost solemn. It was an appropriate atmosphere for the day, which was one that the Cause would celebrate in generations to come. He knew it was the day centuries of injustic...

Common Clay B2Ch25: Final Slime

Rest was easy to come by after they returned.

Even the anxiety over the assault the next day couldn’t keep Clay awake once the others took the watch. He fell into a deep and dreamless sleep for nearly the entire night; when Lawrence woke him to take his watch, he felt incredibly refreshed...

Hector Kingsley B3Ch17: In Pursuit of Glory

The next few minutes were a blur of motion that scarcely caught my attention. I stood in the ruins of the ballroom and watched as the thugs were cleared away and the French garrison arrived. Some of the embassy staff had shadowed the hostage takers until they reached one of the viewing platforms,...

Team Player B2Ch16: Remedial Duty

The day before the next Survey, Alex slumped onto her bed in the barracks, and sighed.

It had been a good couple of days of training. She’d managed to bring her Skills up quickly; even Battle Maneuvers had gained a level. Now all she had to do was make it through another Survey the next d...

Iron Kingdom B2Ch18: Diplomacy

He woke on the day after they arrived at the Forks and walked out of his tent to find a fairly decent battlefield waiting for him.

Between his magic and the industry of his men, there was a broad section of earthworks that stretched across most of the Forks. Trees had been felled on the opp...

Hector Kingsley B3Ch16: A Dance of Death

We reached the place where we planned to wait for the enemy well before the appointed time. The corridor was near the kitchens, connecting them with the ballroom. It was actually quite a large distance, something that the servants and waiters would probably complain about when out of earshot of t...

Common Clay B2Ch24: Slime Purge, Part Three

By the time he’d killed his seventh giant ironslime, Clay was beginning to feel an almost continuous ache throughout most of his body. He’d gone back to the camp and changed Xavien out for Natalie, who had been eager to begin her run. At the very least, he’d been able to persuade her to hol...

Iron Angels B3Ch14: Leviathans Rising

Gabe watched as the technicians made the final connections to Eagro’s rig. They had been fastidious about checking and double checking each step, but now, finally, they were ready.

At least, he hoped they were. He looked at the nearest technician. “Are we going to start the powerup sequ...

Iron Kingdom B2Ch17: March to the Forks

Matt looked around the crowded room. The Matriarchs had been kind enough to point out to him that their strategy room in the Citadel could be used for his work. It was not a small place; a table the size of his whole apartment back on Earth filled one part of the space, while the rest was dominat...

Team Player B2Ch15: Carried Away

“Okay, a couple of you are new to this, so here’s the deal.” Tom grinned confidently. “We’re not going to select Patrol this time, since the goal is to get the portal’s energy levels under control. This time, we’re choosing War, and we’ll be hitting some of the Camps around the ci...

Iron Angels B3Ch13: Seeds of Destruction

Mr. Grey walked through the corridor, attempting to contain the steadily building fury inside him.

The Contact had not communicated with him since the disastrous ambush of their assets, but he was sure that this time they would not be quite so forgiving. He had hoped to finally purge the he...

Hector Kingsley B3Ch15: Preparing For Battle

A thousand different things might have happened as we returned through the corridors of the airship to our newly assigned quarters, but I would never remember any of them. My mind was far too fixated on the way Patricia moved, on the way her hair fell, on the way she breathed. It was incredibly d...

Common Clay B2Ch23: Slime Purge, Part Two

“So wait, you and Jack already killed three of those things?”

Clay nodded, wishing that Anne would keep her voice down. She’d been extremely excited to join him, but she didn’t seem to have listened very much to what Jack had told the others about the experience. “Yeah. I got two,...

Team Player B2Ch14: Sneaking Around

“You were wise to bring this to me.” Sam sat back in his chair, giving off an over-exaggerated mob boss impression that wasn’t exactly helped by his cheesy faux-Italian accent. “Of course, it may not be free, but I’m sure someone of your means can find an acceptable price…”

Al...