The saying goes that when a man is born the Fates weave his destiny and swaddle him in it. Then one day the man dies, and the swaddle becomes a shroud. Heaven moves on.

It is audacity to question the Fates. Olympus is Olympus. The land of men is the land of men. To transgress that, to cross the line of divinity and scale Olympus Mons? To defy the Fates and cast off their threads?

That is hubris. It’s a mark that every philosopher bears plainly on their soul.

[Virtuous Sons updates every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday at 8pm EST.]

The royal bastard of House Vasquer, Argrave, changed after his stay studying magic at the Tower of the Gray Owl. The sickly man's awkward posture and cruel behavior have been replaced with a neat dignity and acerbic wit. Though once listless, he now strives towards his goals with a life-or-death tenacity. Most come away thinking he seems to know too many details about too much. Few can claim to know his motives or his goals. 

Yet behind that confident appearance, the primary contributor for an open-world RPG's wiki battles existential dread and things far beyond his ken as he struggles to adapt to a grim, gothic fantasy world mirroring his favorite game. The prospect of fighting against a world-ending calamity loses all of its appeal when it transitions from entertainment to reality. Argrave is spurred towards unwanted heroism to preserve his life as he struggles desperately to keep this sinking ship afloat.

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Releases 4x a week: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday!

Cover by Mitchell Kirby: mdkultra.com

The king is dead; his heir is too young to assume the throne. Jarl Vale wants to become Lord Protector, spurred by his ambitious brother Konstans. Jarl Isarn likewise seeks this power; he is aided – or thwarted – by the return of his brother, the knight and war hero Athelstan, whose squire, Brand, hopes to restore his family’s fortunes, cost what it may. Through all of this, an enigmatic traveller makes plans with jarls, scribes, and priests for his own purpose. Abroad, powerful forces sense division in the realms of Adalmearc and make their own plans. It is only a matter of time before schemes clash, plots collide, and conflict erupts. War is on the horizon.

Story updates every Wednesday. The first, second and third book can be downloaded as ebooks from my site, where a map of the world or of Middanhal can be viewed. The site also contains other background information such as history of the realms, pantheon and religion, calendar etc.

WELCOME TO THE RETROFUTURE!

The Future That Never Was is an extended universe where Mars was terraformed before the Beatles sang Penny Lane, the Soviets colonized the asteroid belt and pirates plundered the rings of Saturn. In this alternate space age, humankind couldn't dream of a brighter future. Alas, the minute Earth turned into a nuclear wasteland, shadows already conspired from the heart of the Moon to the mysterious Planet Nine—and maybe beyond...

The book series includes numerous R-rated titles. All of them will be uploaded on Royal Road. Check the Index or the list below for the main stories.

🐈  KITTY KITTY - START READING

Join sassy space cat Lee and his Desert Eagle-toting, soda-swigging human partner, Ali, in a future stuck in the late 80s/early 90s. Board the dynamic duo’s ship, the mythical Kitty, as they bounty-hunt their way through a dystopian solar system—so lock and load, and shout Cowabunga! because it’s crime-fightin’ time! 

🪐  PACHINKO BLUES - Fall 2022 - LEARN MORE

Amid the chaos of the Rings Civil War, a disgraced pilot called Miles finds itself tangled in a vast vendetta involving a Lunar corporation, android mercenaries and data-cartels. From Saturn’s Plastic Fields to the fringes of Kuiper, Miles’s violent redemption is an 80s-esthetic space western filled with tears, blood and... ducks?

Other stories related to the first arc of The Future That Never Was:

• RADIO FREAK - Standalone biopunk short story featuring Ali Koviràn, the Data Maiden and Bill Murray

• STELLAR PATRIOTS - Special episodes with Braun Kamirov, linking KITTY KITTY to the upcoming DATA dilogy and CYBER MACHO

• DATA ONE & DATA ZERO - 2023

• CYBER MACHO - TBA

Do you want to support our work or simply read in better condition? Visit our amazon shop and Patreon!

>Read the updated version HERE!<

Eight Thousand Years after the Glassing of Earth, Terran Descent Humanity has largely become a post-scarcity society based on consent and enjoying life. With the discovery of another ancient race beyond the "Great Gulf", events and history collide to draw the Terran Confederacy into war against a hundred million year old empire that has always won and believes it always will. With allies and enemies of multiple species, the Orion Galactic Arm Spur will be wracked by warfare the likes of which have not been seen. Cracked, harried, wounded, and damaged, Terran Descent Humanity willfully throws itself against the universe itself.

"The universe hates you and will take away everything you love, laughing while it does so." - Terran belief.

A wiki is available (although under construction) at: https://fcgestalt.fandom.com/wiki/First_Contact_Gestalt_Archive_Wiki

Told largely from the viewpoint of other species, the story is currently ongoing. It involves graphic depictions of violence, war, adult language and situations, drug use, and other mature topics.

The story will be updated on weekdays, so keep an eye on this page for more chapters.

The story is 700+ chapters, and repeating characters do not start appearing until the Vuxten chapters. If you're in a hurry for repeating characters then this story will not be enjoyable to you. The interwoven plot is not based on a single person but the entire war, with its effects upon multiple people.

[participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge for April 2022]

The series, Stories of the Apex, is a collection of self-contained science fiction short stories with different (but sometimes reoccurring) lead characters all following a central plot.

The story begins shortly after first contact with the peaceful Broda, a non-predator alien species that discovers Earth seeking new worlds for trade. Being a violent predator species among a galaxy of prey, humans soon decide to take up the cause of their new friends by opposing the plague species known as the Krador.

Threedak is a simple Dhajtel. Every night she scavenges and hunts for her tribe in the great desert, relying upon her skill and ancestral memories to avoid the night's many dangers. Her life remains largely the same until one night, one of the gleaming angels that hangs in the night sky falls into her desert. Deciding to investigate, she happens upon a scene far beyond her limited understanding.

The Dhajtel aren't alone. The galaxy is far vaster and more hostile than Threedak's people can even begin to comprehend.

Entrusted with the knowledge and memories of a dead race, it will be up to her to forge Dhajtel society into something that can survive the storm that is to come.

- - -
(This novel is heavy on Kingdom/Empire Building and is an attempt at fairly hard (grounded in real science) Science Fiction)

Cover credit to DrakonStorm

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A couple authors with reptile MC's have started a discord, feel free to hang out with us.

In a world where Classes, Stats, and Levels are the everyday norm, Reivyn has a secret.

He was unusually aware of his surroundings from an incredibly early age, and Skills and Stats were acquired easily. He was just the son of an ordinary village family, and nothing appeared out of the ordinary on the surface. But below the surface, dreams of another life help shape his mentality and growth. Why does he have some remembrance of a past life, and what is his purpose in this new one?

"Soul of the Warrior" is what I call a Semi-Isekai LitRPG. I say "semi," because Reivyn's past life is remembered like a dream, and very incomplete. It is still Isekai, though, as he remembers enough that it directly shapes his personality and his sense of self.

The System that governs the world of "Soul of the Warrior" is a combination of modified versions from Selkie's "Beneath the Dragoneye Moons" and Kosnik4's "Magic Smithing." I have changed enough of these Systems and combined them in a way that is unique that I'm mostly sure it's fine, but I still have requested permission to use these ideas. They have both graciously granted me permission.

Winner of the April Writathon Challenge.

Release Schedule is Mon, Wed, Fri on Royal Road.

Cover Art by: Jay Graphixx ([email protected]). His work can be found on deviantart.com under JayGraphixx.

Elevator pitch: '300' meets 'Lone Wolf and Cub'. A retired veteran has to keep some orphans from being eaten by horrible monsters.

This fiction contains the professionally-published novel Obstacles as well as the ongoing sequels. 

Back Cover Copy:
Androkles, son of Paramonos, spent twenty-five years in the world’s greatest army trying to earn enough money to buy back his good name. He’s battle-scarred, weary, and heartbroken after decades of watching dear friends die, but he survived. He’s ready to retire and be welcomed as a hero, finally able to see the reward he sacrificed so much to achieve. 

There’s only one problem: his wife just fled civilization with all his hard-won savings. Now he must pursue her north, through desperate bandits, ravening beasts, and worse. But after he rescues a pair of orphans from starvation, he is faced with his most difficult challenge yet: a question that goes to the very heart of honor. The consequences might be deeper than he realizes, and it’s not just his life on the line…

Updates: Irregular but Ongoing

Book title in the chapter heading.

If you like what you're reading, please consider
purchasing a copy of the published novel Obstacles:
books2read.com/u/mleazq

The class divide still exists in the future, and it has gotten much worse. There are many different types of worlds, from the paradise worlds where everyone is immortal, to the resource depleted, war-torn planets where every day is a struggle just to live.

Freya O'Malley grew up on Earth, the worst of the war-torn planets, and wants nothing more than to leave. With few options, Freya joins the Federation Marines. But, unlike the past, it's a struggle to earn enough enlistment points to stay in. With the prize of a citizenship on a paradise world at stake, competition is fierce. Every week is a new war. Can Freya earn enough points in the constant warring of the Marines to modify her body and mind to stay competitive? Can a girl from the wrong planet make it against those who have all the advantages?

Posting every Monday. Chapters will be roughly 4k or more words. 

Edited by Aldous starting at chapter 19.

If you like this story think about checking out my other web novel Super Soldier not Super Hero.

Please come and enjoy the discussion at Discord

 If you have any extra cash laying around and you feel like supporting the story you can donate here at Pateron or PayPal.  Patreon donators have options to read unedited chapters before anyone else can read them if you can't wait for the next chapter.

What you can expect:

 The year is 1329, and the Horns of the Apocalypse are about to sound.

In a small Scottish town, a young boy begins a journey from a carpenter's apprentice to one of the most powerful forces in the Host of the Heavens.

His Journey: A path of adversity lies before him, spanning from the Scottish Borders to the Spanish Reconquista, the Holy Land, and Realms beyond. 

His Ascension: An unceasing trial, where one misstep may condemn his soul. Our hero must discover a path of progress and conquest over mythical beasts, hordes of demons, and the other fell beings created by the System for the Tribulation of Mankind. 

His Tribulation: Will he live by the Words of God, be guided by his own intent, or will other forces claim him for their own ends?

His Fate: ...

Is yet to be determined.

Discover the wonder of the Tribulation Apocalypse in Chapter one of the Echoes of the Tribulation: an Historical Apocalypse LitRPG Series.

Current Schedule : On Hiatus.

Updates expected to begin again around October.

Thanks for reading!

Summary:

The daughter of a dying house is summoned to the Imperial City to meet and perhaps marry a handsome prince. It sounds like a fairy tale.

Except Mydea doesn’t have the advantage of a half-forgotten childhood encounter, supreme magic to match the highest echelons of society, or even the privilege of an ally. In order to survive and make a name for herself, she must beat the Imperial Court at its own game.

At least no one's tried to kill her—yet.

Notes: Basically, if you liked the magic of Harry Potter and the politics of Game of Thrones, you'll probably like this. While the first book focuses on the female lead, and the interplay of competing regional and imperial interests, subsequent books will also cover warfare and how I imagine that differs wildly from historical norms with the introductions of a magical aristocracy. 

Updates every Mon / Thurs / Sat
Advance Chapters available on my Patreon 

[participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge]

This is a fantasy/post-apocalyptic portal litrpg, and I hope you enjoy. Will try to update whenever possible!

There were 2 options:

Fight the same war for countless more aeons. Shatter the Betrayer's undead legions time and time again until all was ground to dust. Because the endless legions truly never end. A hair's breath of ground in a century is enough if the war takes all of eternity.

Or to choose Hope. To cast away his memories, his power, his very life. To wager everything on a chance to prevent their eventual end or to perish trying. Because if he were to return it would be with the power necessary to finally slay what remains of the Betrayer. Of the last Aspect. Only then would all things be right.

And so, he chose the latter.

Expect:
Weak to strong quick-ish.
Powerful MC reincarnates, gradually starts regaining memories.
MC that is an actual character not a plot device.
My original unique magic system discovered along with the MC.
My original setting with mythos that have both been living rent free in my head for actual years.
Opening arc will be less fast than the following story.

Good writing (I think) and grammar.

Upload schedulle: 2 chapters a week of 3-4k words each. I want to upscale to 3 in the future.

Meant to be read in RR dark mode.

For those coming here from my other stories, this is indeed a reimagining of my older story, CotM. I say reimagining because I have changed so much it cannot be called just a rewrite. Among the major changes, MC is fundamentally different in personality and background, I have actually planned the story out and changed it almost completely and I have adjusted my mythos so it no longer has as many holes as swiss cheese.

Earths Engineers are a double-edged sword. They can fix or improve anything, but no sane Xeno Engineer will touch it if it carries the Human Altered warning..

A series of interconnected tales from our distant future. It's not a novel, most of the chapters are stand-alone.

Also thanks for the awards.

https://discord.gg/eU4SgFr

They asked Amber to become a magical girl three times.

She refused.

That only made her more interesting.

The fourth time, she asked them.

An obscure jarl’s daughter will rise to wield the power of the gods. 

The old order is collapsing. The Archean Empire devours all in its path, toppling kings, razing cities, and massacring any that oppose it. Sweeping into the north, a land of brutal cold, ragged mountains, and dark myths, they believe their infamous discipline will crush the white-hot rage of its sea reavers and dreaded berserkers.

And at first they are right. 

But their invasion dislodges a pebble that is destined to become an avalanche. When Skadi Styrbjörnsdóttir is forced into exile to escape the Archeans, she begins a journey that will bring her to the attention of the gods, arm her with legendary weapons, and set her against immortal foes. 

Wielding the power of her ever-growing wyrd, Skadi seeks to avenge her people, and in doing so defy the world-devouring Archean Empire—and one day destroy it.

Content Warnings are selected to give me artistic freedom down the road.
Release Schedule: 5 chapters per week, Mon-Fri.
This web novel is only posted on Royal Road.
See my Amazon author page for other works of epic and progression fantasy.

World Map

An ancient conqueror awakens to find his galactic empire in ashes. A street rat discovers a core that changes everything.  A noble woman must fight for her place in her family and for her very survival.  

Vengeance. Artifex spent hundreds of years, forging an empire that could protect humanity from the endless hunger of the Unity.  Now he finds himself in the ruins of all he built, and the people who betrayed him have made a deal with the Unity…

Power. The brutal sands and endless struggle for survival is all Safira has ever known.  But a lucky find gives her the chance to be so much more than a scavenger. But opportunity and danger go hand in hand, and escaping with her life just got that much harder.

Ruthlessness. Elinor North has spent her entire life struggling to prove herself.  As the head of a cadet branch of the powerful Montclair family, she must fight against enemies from both within and without, for her rivals are not just outsiders - they are her own kin. 

All of them are light years apart, but inexorably tied to the ulterior motives of those around them and a shared destiny that will shake civilization to its foundations.

[participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge]

In the ancient, brutal days, the Eifni Organization reached heaven through violence and tore the gods from their thrones.

Now their methods are more precise.  Etheric technology allows them to measure love, create beauty, and reincarnate the souls of the dead into new bodies.  By embedding specially-trained operatives—godslayers—into a culture, they can create the exact conditions to kill a god and save the souls it would otherwise devour.

Lilith was a run-of-the-mill college atheist until a divine being took a bite out of her soul. Rescued by the Eifni Organization, she signed on as a godslayer. Now, after years of training, she's deploying on her first real mission to a planet called Theria. Objective: perform reconnaissance on the local pantheon and clear out as many of the gods as they can before the strike team arrives.

There's just one problem: the Therians seem to know they're coming.

Godslayers is a story about intrigue, meaning, and militarized sociology.  Updates Tuesdays and Fridays.