Chapter 13: A new geography Present day That evening Master Gabriel and Mariah sat at the table in Master Gabriel's apartment, looking at a book of maps he had brought back from the Library. They had it open to the page that showed the northeastern edge of Riviera, and the area outside it. Careful not to touch the delicate paper, Master Gabriel showed...
Before you read this part I strongly suggest that you read the previous part. It will give you the background that will make this part a lot more enjoyable. Part 02 The next couple of days went very much the same until the Thursday evening. Jack and Oliver did a first, and a last with both of them, by taking me to the pub. They had me wear just an ultra sh...
Cynthia had the house in good order now. The rooms were all cleaned, polished, floors mopped or vacuumed. She was folding the last load of laundry when the phone rang. "Mr. McMahon's residence." "Cynthia?" said the cheery voice. "Good morning, Ms. Cuthbert." "Emily," she reminded. "Please call me Emily." "Of course. Emily it is." "How's he doing?" "He...
Chapter One Hundred Five: Waiting Game After a bit more discussion, Theron put his helmet back on and disappeared back into the Barracks. Nathaniel followed him because, despite his status as an Arl, he wasn't willing to evict any of the current occupants from their rooms, especially the women. I suspected he was trying to avoid Kallian entirely, and while...
Chapter One Hundred Three: Alien Nation "Nice shot, by the way," I praised Kallian. "Not that nice -- I meant to nick his cheek." Zevran chortled, and I howled, bending over and propping my hands on my knees as I laughed. "Well thank you for erring in that direction! A guard with an apple pinned to his nose would not have helped our cause any." Kallian f...
Chapter Eighty-Five: Resolutions As we moved forward, we fought another handful of darkspawn. I am actually getting sick of fighting darkspawn, surprise surprise. With so many of us, basically only the mages and Alistair, Oghren, and Sten got a hit in. Alistair smote -- smited? -- an Emissary, leaving him stunned and with precious little mana for me to gat...
Chapter One Hundred Thirteen: Mourning After a night spent reassuring ourselves with sight, taste, and touch that we were both alive and unharmed, I rose the next morning, tired but feeling better than I'd felt in months. Knowing that battle was hanging over our heads was a heavier weight than I'd thought. Alistair was still asleep, his golden hair slightl...
NOTE: For the month of October my wife and I exchanged our home in New Zealand with a couple living on Long Island, New York. This tale arose from that visit; I scribbled down the opening when sitting in the art gallery herein named. Enjoy. – Author. * An autumn chill in the breeze under overcast skies persuaded Merrick to choose an indoor activity on his...
Tabitha walked into La Bella Noche and hurried up to the hostess stand. She muttered sorries to the patrons waiting to get a table as she made her way between them. The slender dark-haired man quirked an eyebrow at her. He was probably wondering who the hell she was and why she had burst into the eating establishment like a bat out of hell. "Reservation un...
First, I would like to thank the wonderful Bella Mariposa for editing this chapter. Synopsis: To recap the story so far, our protagonist, Will Henry, walks into an unusual curio shop owned by Bartholomew Beetlesmith. After some discussion, Beetlesmith makes him an unusual offer, a test sample of what Beetlesmith claims is the most powerful aphrodisiac ever...