………………………………..
…………Wait. I saw…I need to go!”
Ariel and Holly stepped out onto the sidewalk together, arms still linked from the elevator ride down. They lingered there for a moment, the building lit up behind them like an afterimage of celebration, its windows still warm with the last bits of movement and light.
Ariel sighed and leaned into Holly’s side. “My feet are killing me.”
Holly chuckled. “I love you, but you really need better shoes for these things. I told you not to go with the boots.”
“They were cute,” Ariel mumbled, eyes half-lidded.
“And now your feet are blistered.”
“I regret nothing.”
They stood close in the cold, sharing warmth as a yellow cab rounded the far corner, headlights cutting gently through the falling snow. Holly raised her free hand and waved it once, sharp and certain. The cab’s turn signal blinked, and it rolled smoothly to the curb in front of them. Holly opened the door for Ariel, bowing with a small flourish. Ariel gave a half-curtsy and giggled.
Inside the cab, they settled in immediately. The seats were worn and cracked in places, the vinyl squeaking softly beneath them as they sank into it. The dashboard glowed faintly green, casting a pale light over the space between them. A faint pine-scented air freshener dangled from the rearview mirror, swaying gently with the cab's motion. The driver said nothing, eyes forward, hands steady on the wheel, the engine humming low beneath their quiet breathing. It felt cocooned—sealed off from the world. Ariel leaned against Holly’s side, eyes fluttering shut for a moment.
“What do you want to do this weekend?” Ariel asked softly, her words slightly muffled as she buried her face into Holly’s shoulder.
“Mmm. Sleep. Brunch. Watch something dumb. Rub your feet. Probably eat our bodyweight in leftovers.”
Ariel gave a small, tired laugh. “Perfect.”
Holly looked down at her. “You?”
“Same. Plus maybe...” Ariel hesitated, then peeked up at her with a sleepy grin. “We take the ferry and go nowhere. Just ride it. You and me and some tea in thermoses. Cold cheeks. Quiet water.”
Holly tilted her head, smiling in that slow, melting way she did when Ariel said something that made her want to cry. “God, Red. That sounds like heaven.”
Ariel nuzzled against her, yawning.
“Y’know,” Holly said gently, “we really should think about a vacation soon.”
Ariel hummed. “You say that like we haven’t already been planning one in secret folders.”
Holly blinked. “Wait, you made a folder too?”
Ariel looked up with a mischievous grin. “We have matching hidden tabs. I checked.”
Holly laughed, forehead falling against Ariel’s. “God, we’re disgusting.”
Ariel smiled and closed her eyes again, the sound of the cab rolling forward blending with Holly’s quiet breathing. Her hand found Holly’s in the space between them and squeezed, their rings touching, catching the faint glow of the passing streetlights.
The city rolled by.
It had been a night to remember. The second game Ariel had ever launched had been a rousing success within minutes of releasing to the public, and now she was in the backseat of a quiet cab with the love of her life. She took a deep, satisfied breath as she nuzzled further into Holly’s shoulder. The feeling of Holly’s fingers running through her bright red hair had always been enough to put her to sleep, no matter where she was.
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In her near-sleep state, she could hear Holly mumble something soft and quick.
An ear-shattering sound shot her out of her sleep, and suddenly she was in a world of fire.
She tried to look around, but something was wrong. She couldn’t move. Like she was pinned. Panic set in, quick and heavy. She looked around frantically with just her eyes to see what was going on.
I’m trapped in that memory again…? But…it looks different…
Her eyes darted back and forth, flames ripping through the landscape in front of her.
Landscape.
Not the bookstore memory that haunted her years ago. This was a massive landscape that stretched for miles, caught in an incredible torrent of flame. A place that had no place in her memory and yet...
The smoke was choking her. Flooding her lungs. She was gasping for breath trying to find some way to move.
What’s happening to me? Nothing about this is right. What’s holding me down in a memory that isn’t mine?
Her eyes darted up just as a shape began to claw its way out of the smoke. At first it was only a blur, but then it swelled into something far more dreadful—its outline warping from jagged forms to sickening fluidity, never holding to one shape for more than a breath. Black tar streamed from it in slow, viscous trails, eating the ground it touched. It had no face that she could see, yet the weight of its gaze pressed down on her like iron, cold and merciless, as if the void itself had turned to watch her.
I..HAVE..YOU..
The voice welled up inside of Ariel’s mind. She wanted to scream from the pain, but nothing came. Just more gasping.
YOU CAN’T..ESCAPE..ANYMORE..CHILD/SEEKER/KEEPER OF..MEMORY..
Ariel’s mind focused through the blinding pain for just a moment. Just long enough to realize she’d felt this presence before.
You…you’re real…?
Before the entity could speak again, a slight purple light began to shimmer right in front of Ariel. Faint at first.
A voice rose, raw and ragged. “HELP! SOMEONE! HELP! PLEASE! PLEASE, WE NEED HELP!”
H-Holly…?
She looked back at the formless entity, which was moving straight for her. She could do nothing but turn her thoughts to the only voice that mattered.
The purple light grew deeper. Brighter. Richer.
The glow gathered, folding into the outline of a figure. Feminine, indistinct, yet unmistakably human in shape. The purple radiance wrapped her like a cloak, her form shifting gently as though woven of light and smoke. When she spoke, her voice carried a soothing, ethereal warmth, soft as a lullaby, yet resonant as wind through the trees. Her words slipped into Ariel’s mind like a promise: “Everything will be alright. I will protect you from Oblivion. Your tale: it does not end here, Minnidottir”
The glowing figure turned toward the entity, its cloak of violet radiance flaring as the tar-dark mass surged forward. With no words, they collided, light and shadow crashing together in a violent burst. The explosion of force ripped through the burning landscape, and the shockwave hurled Ariel away. The world shattered in brilliance and darkness, and everything flashed before her...
...She was back in the cab. The acrid taste of blood coated her mouth and she quickly realized what was happening. She coughed, clearing blood from her throat, and tried to move.
And failed.
She couldn’t feel her arms or her legs. And she could feel the breath in her lungs getting tighter. She locked eyes on Holly. She could feel the tears escape her eyes as she watched Holly look around, screaming in panic for help.
Soon, though, Holly’s eyes came back to Ariel. Ariel made sure to look straight at her to let her know she was there. She stared, taking in Holly’s soft face, wonderful nose…exotic eyes. That violet eye that had been a lighthouse to Ariel dozens of times. Ariel took it all in as she felt herself slipping.
Ariel moved her lips and mustered to form a few raspy words.
“It...It...will be...okay....” she rasped, voice barely audible over the hiss of something broken in the front of the cab.
“No, Ariel, please! I love you! I love you more than anything, Red! Please don’t let go—please stay! I need you, Ariel! I can’t do this without you!”
A sharp sadness pierced her chest, not for herself, but for Holly, because she couldn’t comfort her more in these last moments. As her vision dimmed, her final thought was only of Holly: her laugh, her warmth, her violet eye shining like a beacon. She let a final breath slip free, surrendering to the dark with Holly’s image filling her soul.
The vision tore apart like paper in a storm, and Ariel’s body jolted as if yanked upward. She gasped, the smell of loam and the pulse of living wood flooding her senses. When her eyes opened again, she was back in the grove, the Eiranth glowing with renewed life, Fornaskr’s worried figure hovering nearby. Tears welled hot in her eyes before she could stop them. Her lips trembled as she whispered a single word, the name escaping like a prayer carried on breaking breath:
“Holly…”
Dark steampunk fantasy webnovel
What to expect:
- Dark steampunk-inspired power fantasy with extensive world-building
- Magic systems where power comes at a psychological cost
- Visceral, well-choreographed combat sequences
- Mysteries that unfold across multiple volumes
- Steampunk aesthetics merged with elemental magic
- Stories where the actors are often found in morally grey areas
This work will appeal to readers who enjoyed: Works of Dan Simmons (Hyperion, Drood, The Terror), The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, A Song of Ice and Fire, Fullmetal Alchemist, HunterxHunter.
More influences and details can be found on the novel's page.
Chapters (1200 - 1500 words) are released daily at 20:00 (8 PM) GMT+1