Tale - Trapped in Bed
“You awake?”
Ksiel grunted. He had a tube in his mouth, going down his throat, sucking out the contents of his stomach. Maybe it was a bad idea to try and kill himself with a bottle of pain killers. Not only had he thrown up, but the dose he’d taken wasn’t...Read More »
Tale - Bedside Chat
“Sorry I’m so late!” Kayel gasped as he overshot the door and skidded past the entrance to Ksiel’s room. “Traffic was terrible!”
Ksiel tutted, not bothering to look up from his newspaper. “Always some sort of excuse with you.”
“It was though!” Kayel protested. He pulled up a chair and sat down...Read More »
Tale - Veeyel's Ramble
Veeyel was beaming as his best friend entered the room. He seemed way too proud of himself, considering how he’d managed to escape his room and see his brother half-way across the hospital. Normally that wouldn’t have been too much of a problem if Veeyel had taken his medication.
“You look...Read More »
Tale - Avoiding Bad Thoughts
“Hi Ksiel!” Veeyel waved as he sat up straight, struggling to get a sheet off his legs.
Ksiel entered cautiously, leaving his bag by the door. The last time he was here, there wasn’t nearly as much medical equipment. A heart monitor and two saline drips stood next to Veeyel’s bed,...Read More »
Tale - Thrakian Denial
“No.”
“No?”
“No.”
It took far too long for that simple answer to sink in.
“No?”
“We said no.”
He couldn’t help but repeat his confusion, like a broken disc skipping over a track.
“Unlahney, why are you doing this?”
Kayel snapped out of his startled look, shaking his head. “I… I was really hoping you would say...Read More »
Tale - Some Sort of Confirmation
Kayel sat by the river’s edge, minding his own business. Behind him was a small camp site, a temporary place of rest. There was no point trekking back to civilization if he was due to meet up with more Thraki any time soon. All they’d done recently was mess Kayel...Read More »
Tale - Packing Away
“Whoever’s idea it was to have a group video/voice chat, you’re a genius!” Veeyel grinned as his eyes switched between his movie on the television screen and the feed on his electronic tablet. On the tablet was a bunch of smaller videos, of his friends packing things up and moving...Read More »
Tale - One Last Examination
“Long time no see,” Elean, the head nurse, smiled as she quietly entered the room, carrying a pile of paperwork and a single pen. “I’m sorry we haven’t been able to do our little meetings.”
Veeyel didn’t say anything. He couldn’t. There was a huge lump of fear and nervousness in...Read More »
Tale - Picking up Veeyel
“… A month’s worth of refills, emergency anti-dehydration shots and three extra insu-bands in case the one I’m wearing breaks… I think that’s everything!”
The young Cassid nurse nodded her head as Veeyel counted everything up for a third time.
“Am I good to go?”
Again, the Cassid nodded. She never actually said...Read More »
Tale - Upon the Thrakian Mountain
It had been a long, grueling journey up the mountain. Even though the eleven Rethans were all capable of flight, they’d had to lay low, avoiding swarms of sharp-beaked predatory birds and hungry, feral Thanatians who might have considered them all snacks. Kayel had led the way as they followed...Read More »
Tale - Not Allowed To Sleep
“What is it with damned trials and proving yourself and all this shit?” Thiel yawned as watched his brothers pacing up and down. They were all trying desperately not to fall asleep. They weren’t allowed to for some reason, and no one was quite sure why. The room itself was...Read More »
Tale - Bad Dreams Standing
Something horrible woke Kayel up from his sleep. He hadn’t even been aware that he’d fallen asleep in the first place, so this was doubly shocking to him. One of the Thraki by his side hadn’t even noticed that he’d fallen asleep either.
“Are you well, Unlahney?” one Thraki asked
“Why do...Read More »
Tale - Secret Study
Veeyel hauled himself over to the desk where Kayel was working. The rest of the class were on break, having been taking lessons from one of the more powerful Thraki, and were now lounging around in the sunshine above them. Veeyel had left his mechanical leg braces with them, connected...Read More »
Tale - An L-Class Split
The L-Class sat in silence around the dining table, picking at a reheated, overly processed meal that none of them really wanted. Occasionally one of them would get up to pour themselves a drink, a meagre plastic cup of water. Every so often, one of the Ksa would look up...Read More »
Tale - Argument Above The Tree Tops
“I told you, Unlahney. I told you this would happen. They were not strong enough. They were weak. Inferior. Of course they were going to give up.”
Kayel ignored the Thraki flying around him. He remained where he was, hovering above the tree tops, floating on a pair of black, psionic...Read More »
Tale - Antics in the Thrakian Library
The library inside the Thrakian temple was large, awkward and incredibly cold. No windows meant that no sunlight was ever capable of warming the smooth, stone floors. Any heat that did manage to make its way in would be quickly swept out by the wings of Thraki flying through, only...Read More »
Tale - More Bad Dreams
Kayel woke up with a shock, then begrudgingly laid back down. Another nightmare. He’d had too many of them lately. All terrifyingly similar, all featuring the same horrific, antlered monster. All these dreams hurting and tormenting him. Really, he just wanted one night of uninterrupted sleep.
“You alright?”
“Kayel?
Both Ksiel and Thitel...Read More »
Tale - Meeting in the Aisle
The shelves were filled with all sorts of weird treats. Everything from pickled cactus fruit to poultry sausages preserved in honey and mustard, from canned, boiled aggelad calf heads to meter long sticks of toffee. Kayel and Ksiel had been enjoying going up and down every aisle, pointing at all...Read More »
Tale - Staring At Stars
“Glitter, glitter, burning shimmer…”
Veeyel had been staring at the sky for hours. He had watched the sun set and now he was watching the faint arms of the local galaxy drift into view. They were always there, but only here, in the middle of nowhere, would he be able to...Read More »
Tale - Making A Sudden Discovery
“What is he doing?” Ksiel asked as the four of them peered around the corner.
“I don’t know, you go ask him!” Thitel grunted as he glanced back at everyone. “Not like any of us know. Right?”
Zitel nodded in agreement, but Veeyel hesitated.
“Wait, you do know?” Thitel blinked. “You have an...Read More »
Tale - Kayel's Big Explanation
The four Ksa sat quietly around the table, switching between staring at the plates in front of them and glancing at the kitchen where Kayel was cooking.
“S-something must be wrong…” Thitel whispered.
“What makes you think that?” Ksiel asked as he took a swig from his drink. “The fact that nothing...Read More »
Tale - An Awkward Purchase
Zitel and Veeyel both hated shopping. Yet for some reason, there they were, going to a shop, picking up a few bits and pieces. Most of it was just snacks and energy drinks, but there were also a few more… unusual items on the list. The shop was a Thanatian...Read More »
Tale - Problems with Ingredients
The five Ksa gathered around the tiny table. Everything was covered in scrolls and scribbled notes. There was barely anywhere for Ksiel to put his glass of water that he’d been holding on to for the last twenty minutes.
“That’s a long list…” Thitel sighed. “Like, how do we...Read More »
Tale - Meeting A Bad Dream
The heavy door creaked open, revealing the home’s owner. Kayel gulped nervously as Retvik stood in the doorway, looking pretty scary. He wasn’t sure whether Retvik had ever looked not menacing.
“Good afternoon, General Retvik!” Ksiel chimed as he lifted up a bag. “We brought sausages and mead! May we come...Read More »
Tale - More Preparations Needed
“Did you get the stuff?” Zitel bounced up and down as Ksiel and Kayel climbed into the tree house. “Did you find what you were looking for?”
“I don’t know yet!” Ksiel snapped. “We need to take this to the local Thanatian hospital, get it all checked out and properly identified....Read More »
Tale - Getting Permission from Kinigi
Everything had been laid out perfectly. Across the ground, a star shape had been made across the ground, using a mixture of sand and crushed crystals. In the middle was a small bowl, containing various hard-to-get ingredients, and five vials of blood.
The Rethans stood silently around the edge of the...Read More »
The Last Ingredients
“I think we’ve got it.”
“We’ve got what?”
Veeyel hadn’t been paying attention. He was busy reading a book about low energy, low level healing spells, trying to find information on repairing mobility problems in limbs. So far, he’d found nothing, but he was determined to find at least a spell to...Read More »
A Conversation about Him
“Kayel, can I have a moment?”
Veeyel hesitated by the entrance to Kayel’s little alcove.
“Sure,” Kayel whispered. “Come in.” His voice still wasn’t great, but at least Kayel was audible now. He was particularly glad, otherwise he’d have to push back the date of their… special ritual. “What do you want...Read More »
Psivee-En's Explanation
Psivee-En stood in the centre of the room. Around him were half the L-Class Ksa, all staring at him, all judging him. Apart from Kayel, they all saw him as a monster.
“You want me to spill my guts, yes? To tell you everything?”
“Not everything,” Veeyel growled. Out of all of...Read More »
Burying Personalities
Their request had been odd, but considering how the remaining members of the L-Class Ksa had treated him lately, Psivee-En had no choice but to do as they asked. Behind him was a heavy, stone door, held shut with a pile of equally heavy rocks. Behind that door were the...Read More »
Between the Thraki and the Rethan
Kayel patiently waited behind the pile of rubble for the angry Thraki to take a breath. He wasn’t really sure what he had done to anger Vokulunax like this, but clearly the golden wyvern was not willing to sit down and talk things out.
Finally, Vokulunax paused for breath and Kayel...Read More »
The Teletourgic
“Are we ready?”
Kayel stood in the centre of the large, stone chamber. In front of him was a cast iron cauldron, slowly being heated by a small fire. Around him, his friends stood patiently, from youngest to oldest. Zitel first, followed by Thitel, Veeyel and Ksiel, with Psivee-En at the...Read More »
Stuck in a Dark Place
“Nothing mentioned teleportation. NOTHING! Why is this HAPPENING?”
All around was empty space, peppered with debris. Eternal darkness. If it wasn’t for the handful of small, floating platforms, Kayel probably would have died by now. He was thankful that he and Psivee-En had landed on a particularly large platform.
Everything else in...Read More »
Stuck in a Tree
Ksiel was stuck.
It had all started off rather simple. He’d tried to fly, using his new wings. In the past, he’d used telekinetically powered ‘energy wings’ that weren’t wings at all – he’d simply fly around using telekinesis. But now he had a massive pair of dark, powerful wings, he...Read More »
All Back At Home
It had been an interesting few days, but Veeyel was glad to be home. Everyone else had managed to make it back in time, they were just waiting for him. There was confetti and everything. Someone had even baked a cake.
“Did you all really miss me that much?” Veeyel asked...Read More »
A New Name
“You awake?”
“Well, I was…”
Kayel rolled over, sighing. He was tired. So much worrying had made him exhausted, and now he was trying to get some sleep before their flying lessons tomorrow. This though was the second time Veeyel had woken him up.
“Sorry…”
“No, it’s fine. What do you want?”
“I’m just… I’ve...Read More »
An Unhappy Conversation
“Hello, Kayel… I, er… see why you wished to have a video conversation…”
Kayel shifted awkwardly in his seat, unsure what to say. In the other room, Psiksi and Kass waiting around. He’d had to borrow Psiksi’s communicator, he wanted a secure line with which to speak to the High General.
“Hello,...Read More »
Ksiel's Little Secret Ideas
Kayel’s communicator buzzed away to itself. He had declined to answer the first three times someone had tried to call him, but this time he decided to let it ring.
“Was it really that bad?” Veeyel asked.
“Yes. I never thought my own kid would be so… ignorant of us…”
Veeyel wasn’t sure...Read More »
A Lack of Trust
“Out of all the Thraki on Portalia, they had to send me to speak to the lunatic…”
Lokmah was not happy. He had a long list of chores and duties he needed to fulfil by the end of the week and he had hardly done any of them. The sudden interruption...Read More »
A New and Improved Future
“Kayel…”
“Welcome back, Emel…”
The collection of Ksa had traipsed through kilometers of forest, looking for a single tree house. They had expected to see a very basic home run by six Rethans. What they instead found was a small mansion of a tree house, which mainly acted as...Read More »