Shocker's Stories

Chapter 72 - The Final Message

Coin took a seat on one of the couches as he unfolded the letter. His eyes briefly examined the rows of neat, tightly packed letters that lined the page from top to bottom.

His literacy had grown much better since he first started travelling with Elijah, though it was going to take him some time to pick through the whole letter....

Chapter 71 - A Crushing Ache

Silence filled the solar of Elijah's home, fire crackling in the hearth while a dull fog drifted past the windows. Sentinel was facing another day of grim weather, it seemed.

Coin sat hunched by the fireplace, staring into the blaze. Essine was sobbing in her chair across from him, while Pearl paced uncomfortably from point to p...

Chapter 70 - To Know Despair

Elijah reached up with a shaky hand, pressing his blood-smeared palm to Coin's cheek. The mimic grimaced. A wound that deep, and this much blood lost... it did not take a genius to understand that a human could not survive such an injury for too long.

"Damnit," Coin hissed, hoisting his arms under Elijah's knees and shoulders. A...

Chapter 69 - A Sudden Stab

Leona moved with a quickness that put most men to shame, her blade whistling through the air in a beeline toward Coin's neck. The mimic shoved Elijah in one direction and jumped in the opposite way, only barely avoiding the tip grazing his throat.

Yet the assassin pressed the assault, one movement flowing into the other again an...

Chapter 68 - A Cornered Rat

Coin stared at the two doors, shut tightly before them. "Are you sure it's going to be open? I would have thought most people would lock up at night." He paused, thinking on this. "Oh, do you want me to just pull them off the hinges?"

Elijah laughed nervously. "Let's... save that as a last resort, lad." He approached ...

Chapter 67 - Hunting Down Valle

Elijah was indeed home in time for dinner, and looked rather haggard in the aftermath of meeting with Lady Greatglow. She was glad the paintings had been delivered safe and sound to Gilly Froth, but she was still a woman who did not appreciate being kept in suspense. The long wait for their return had irritated her significantly.

But, ...

Chapter 66 - Serving Penal Labour

It was late in the afternoon when Illyana was brought to meet with Archchancellor Velasco in the upper reaches of the Obelisk. She was flanked by a pair of pikemen, adorned in finely tailored black surcoats. They had made no move to bind her wrists, or arrest her in any formal capacity.

But their stern, steely eyes left her under no il...

Chapter 65 - It Was Delicious

"It has been some time since Ser graced us with a visit. It was quite a shock when his missive arrived via courier bird," Domajor said, leading them along the main hallway. The plush red rug muffled their footsteps. The paintings on the wall watched them in silence, as if judging them.

Pearl gawked open-mouthed at their lush surroundin...

Chapter 64 - Elijah's Stately Manor

The rest of the ride back toward Sentinel over the next few days was shockingly peaceful. They encountered no criminals, highwaymen, killers, robbers, deranged maniacs, or assorted ne'er-do-wells on the roads. And once they were close enough that the outline of the city became visible on the horizon, they seemed to believe they were fully safe. ...

Chapter 63 - To Touch Sheol

"The cosmos is vast and unknowable in its immensity. Countless, innumerable planes stretching off unto infinity. Even the most seasoned witches and wizards would not risk venturing too deep into foreign planes," Scylla explained, watching the group with her strange and inscrutable gaze.

"Our plane, Adja, sits bordered by two planes....

Chapter 62 - Scylla's Dark Wisdom

Scylla seemed to almost glide across the floor in silent, measured steps that ruffled her dark skirts. A few eyes were on her in passing, only to quickly glance away from the witch. As attractive as she was, the strange power radiating from her body would make anyone think twice about getting too close to her.

And she, in turn, paid th...

Chapter 61 - Hunting and Surveying

When it came to animals, the Arcadian pronghorn was an odd sort of beast. A pure herbivore but built with the speed and aggression of a hellcat. Fiercely territorial, and always keen to gore perceived interlopers with their twisting ivory horns.

And many, as Leona had learned in her childhood, the majority would fight to the death inst...

Chapter 60 - Scylla the Witch

Despite everything that had transpired, the group still decided to leave Charnyll behind when the next morning came. Talk of the battle with the phantasm, if anything, had motivated them to be even quicker in their retreat. They had lingered in the town long enough, with no trace of anyone else on their trail to give them pause.

Plu...

Chapter 59 - Tiny Black Wren

The group stood in place, unblinking and fearful eyes locked to the cackling visage of the phantasm. He barely seemed to even notice the great blade stuck in his neck, even as his foul blood seeped from the wound. Essine was frozen, trembling, and Coin only barely noticed that she was trying and failing to take her hand off the leather handle. 2024-10-01 09:09:55 +0000 UTC View Post

Chapter 58 - Fear the Phantasm

The interior to the barracks was no more pleasant than the exterior, the walls and floor sporting thick coating of ash. Coin quickly spied a few human silhouettes scorched into the brickwork, and discarded bones littered among the bricks.

A thick stench hung in the air as they passed through the foyer, passing the broken weapon racks a...

Chapter 57 - Hunt Down Evil

Come the next morning, Coin had the strength to make his way downstairs. He still ached in places, but he was doing far better than any human would if they'd had that much emerald venom pumping through their systems. He was greeted by the sound of Pearl strumming her lute, and the scent of Essine's fried food.

"Ah, Coin!" the kobold sa...

Chapter 56 - Speak The Truth

Coin awoke feeling as if he had been crushed into a fine pulp by a boulder, after which said pulp was set ablaze and left to sizzle. A pained wheeze of breath escaped him as he slowly tried to force himself upright. Darkness lurked around the corners of his eyes, his mouth bone dry. His dream, or nightmare, or premonition... whatever it was, it ...

Chapter 55 - Call me Colony

Cold icy water surrounded Coin from all sides, rife with a blackness that his eyes couldn’t pierce through. His body was moving purely on reflex, kicking at the wetness that surrounded him. While he felt his limbs dragging through the water, he felt no need to breathe.

Is this… a dream? He asked himself.

Yo...

Chapter 54 - Wanderer in Charnyll

It was suicidal madness, Essine knew, to go creeping about in the dark in this Bleak-forsaken town. But she couldn't simply ignore what her keen senses were telling her. Someone, or something, was skulking about here. Wild animals avoided Charnyll like the plague, so it had to be something humanoid.

Maybe it was that woman, Leona? She ...

Chapter 53 - Shadow of Yesterday

"I was born into the merchant life, you see. Followed in the path of my father, and his old man before him. But when I was younger, I was filled with ambition. I wanted more. Wasn't enough for me to have a big fancy wagon, or a healthy bank account." Elijah chuckled and shook his head. "Guess I wanted to be the biggest, richest merchant in all t...

Chapter 52 - A Forsaken Ruin

The group ran until the break of dawn, but a blanket of dull greyness had settled across the horizon. Coin, fortunately, had killed the last of his pursuers before the poison in his system took him down.

They had bundled him in the rear of the wagon, the mimic's face flushed red and slick with sweat. His breathing was shallow and la...

Chapter 51 - Flooded with Poison

Coin stood in place, dumbstruck, as Leona darted from point to point in a series of silver flashes. Her magic was something she had a clear mastery over, her reflexes and speed making Broadfellow's thugs seem slow and sluggish in comparison. Crossbow bolts whistled and snapped through the air, yet never got even remotely close to hitting her. 2024-09-02 19:29:29 +0000 UTC View Post

Chapter 50 - Hunted Like Dogs

Well we have a paying member now! So, here you go, the next chapter a few days early:

The fog had started to lift by the time the group left Grafia behind, the distant horizon dull and grey. After what had just happened, they were naturally slow and cautious in how they went. Coin grew tense whenever another traveller past them, his...

Getting back on track

Had a bit of a fracas IRL involving my WiFi connection, and I've finally managed to get something of a workaround for my connection. So, for the time being, I can post chapters again.

Released a chapter on Friday, a chapter on Saturday, and will do another today. And, from there, we can get back on track!

Chapter 29 out now!

Chapter 28, out now!

Welcome Everyone

This is the first public post on this patreon. As the page description suggests, this is a Patreon to help support my webnovel writing.

For anyone not familiar with my work, you can read The Mimic Becomes a Merchant King here: http...