2023-08-17 04:50:58
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An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 40 - Heartbeat
“This is impossible!” Murphy denied vehemently.“I had no game to speak of before this, and you expect me to charm THAT while being frankenstein incarnate?”« I didn’t know you had this little confidence. »“Blinkie, this is worse than beauty and the beast. I absolutely cannot do this…”“Uhm, mister?” Eleanor’s voice sounded through the door, “Are you alright?”Squinting his eyes in the mirror, Murphy could only end the argument prematurely. He dismissed the cyan egging him on and wrapped a towel around his waist.Opening the door, he met face to face with her, and both recoiled at least a full meter away. He stared into her eyes, waiting to see the shock and horror befit his appearance, but her startled expression faded immediately. She looked away, then drew her gaze back to his body, studying it closely as if each scar had a story to tell her.There was only pity in her eyes. It didn’t make it any better, but at least she wasn’t outright repulsed.“Who were you talking to?” she st
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 41 - The Kiss
Murphy asked without mincing his words, perhaps in the most direct and brash way possible. Devoid of any romantic passion, he simply stressed the sincerity of his plea and waited with bated breath. She stared blankly in response, unsure if she’d heard him well. When they both sunk into awkward silence for a good dozen seconds, she acknowledged he didn’t misspeak, and turned her head away. Murphy sighed again, the breath he held pushed out in resignation. Then, he also stood up. How could he know Eleanor didn’t turn out of repulsion, but to hide the traces of a creeping blush. ‘This insolent, thieving fool’, she thought, ‘How can shamelessly ask that?’ “It’s best I get going,” he muttered softly and ambled away. Yet, just as he made it past her, Eleanor caught his hand and lured him to look her way. A pair of brown eyes greeted him, closer than he would have ever expected. And closer still… Their lips met, tentatively at first, as if establishing a pact of their own. Then, they w
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 42 - The Past
Murphy had a restless night. He rolled back and forth on the couch, the same thoughts eating away at his mind on a loop. He felt Ellie’s absence, but the solitude wasn’t welcome anymore. It left him uncertain and unsure of himself like never before, and it was only now he realized just how dependent he was on the system’s aid. It was just around dawn that his eyes lost their somber glow, and he fell asleep for a while. In truth, it felt like a blink, and he woke shortly after, his nose catching a tantalizing smell close by.“You’re awake already?” he heard her call from the kitchen.“Yeah…” he muffled a yawn and stretched. Rising from the sheets, he had to pause when reminded he still had no clothes. In a panic, he looked left and right and noticed Eleanor was looking away. With a sigh of relief, he wound the sheets around his shoulders, just barely covering himself in time.“Cosplaying a greek philosopher?” she smirked.Though embarrassed, he recovered with a joke of his own, “I w
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 43 - The Future
Dracula was no vampire, of course. His power was not at all nefarious. It was his callous heart that made him so, perverting the Numen Code into something wicked and scorned. Like many kings before him, he could have lead his domain mercifully. Had his people loved him, they would act as psychic emitters whenever they remembered their lord’s grace. Alas, for Vlad it was not enough. With a taste for power, he chose the opposite way to garner it. Whereas Murphy gained his energy through awe and inspiration, the king chose terror. Hence, the impaling began. With each spear he drove into an enemy, their corpse put on display, thousands would cower at his name.The effect was much more immediate, and his gates were unchained one after the other. When his domain did not have enough fear to feed on, he slew the Ottoman envoys and brought war to his lands. The sixth gate was on the verge of opening, and he was nigh invincible among common men. After all, his was the power to mold flesh. H
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 44 - Chainbreakers
Even after Ellie reined her emotions under control, they sat close together, sharing each other’s embrace. Despite having just met days prior, to Murphy it felt like the most natural thing.It was comforting, and somewhat reminiscent of their previous dynamic. He shared whatever he thought, and she in turn shut it down with ill-timed sass.“Just stay dead for now,” she shrugged, disagreeing with his notions of a comeback, “They won’t know where to look for now, and this place is largely off the grid.”“I can’t just sit idle,” Murphy retorted, “These people tried to kill me. The least I can do is expose it…”“A mere marketing ploy, and a good case for a slander lawsuit.”Ellie denied him again, but he still felt restless. He wasn’t sure if those people were still out looking for him, or presumed him dead, but at some point he would have to go back online. “I can’t connect from your place, Ellie. They might track it back to you. It’s best I stay on the move, and—““Your concern is note
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 45 - Dream Walker
A hazy world surrounded Murphy in his sleep. He was in a limbo between reality and dreams, neither awake nor fully asleep. He had had lucid dreams before, but this wasn’t it. If in those he felt like he had control of himself, then now he was in control of his dream itself. Habitually, he thought of the world he created for his novel. That ancient island secluded from time he often wrote about. Then, as if woven from a spell, it manifested around him. A full world, all to himself. After exploring for a few minutes, he felt bored on his lonesome, so he thought back to his characters. They too appeared a second later, along with peddlers, sailors and other faceless cast he never explored.“Incredible,” he mused gleefully, before adding details to each one and clapping his hands, giving the world motion.Like a self-produced movie, the characters moved, setting a scene around him. The details were as vivid as he could imagine them to be, and he never lacked imagination. Alas, with ea
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 46 - An Awkward Meal
When he woke up in the following morning, his head still ached, devoid of energy. Stretching languidly against the sun, his thoughts were restored and he eventually remembered last night’s dream.Rather unfortunately, however, he couldn’t recall the details of her body. Try as he might, with all of the imagination vested in him by the Creator, his gift proved useless in reimagining those curves.‘Shame,’ he grunted, then restored last night’s grin, “Still, this just makes me anticipate it even more.”The cabin was empty, and he only found a note from Ellie saying she’d return around noon. The dog was still there, skulking about the orchard. “Oi, mutt!’ he addressed it, beckoning it over with a slice of bread. In response, Lucky stared for a bit then bolted it deeper into the woods, scrambling as far away from him as possible.“I didn’t mean to burn you… you know!?” Murphy shouted after it, but ultimately failed to summon it back. In the end, he just left the food on the porch, a pe
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 47 - Too Good to be True
It’s unknown if Murphy ever scored his bribe or not, but he surely never spoke of intruding in her dreams again. After being forced to try out a few suits for her viewing pleasure, they finally returned to the matter at hand.QiE-Novel — and more specifically the corpo giant behind it — was still an insurmountable obstacle. While it seemed irrelevant now, soon enough they would become his primary competitor for the reader market.If LACIE was allowed to resurface in this reality as well, she would inevitably drown the market and make his fandom growth impossible.Murphy didn’t require a monopoly, but it was paramount to have a free market. So far, writing became the most efficient tool he had to reaching others. Books were a stable means of digging up a person’s emotions, and through that he could siphon the power he needed to save Eleanor.He couldn’t force his novels to grow an audience overnight, even if he spent what remained of his fortune on ads to promote them. Therefore, he ch
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Final Words
Thank you to whoever made it this far :) I'll revise this at a later date, after I proof read and edit the book once or twice.At that point, it will be marked as complete and I will bid farewell to the site. Though I am glad to have accrued some readers, and met many peers among authors, it has been a tad underwhelming. Unable and unwilling to say anything more, I'll simply address some gratitude to Helen Bold.She's an excellent editor and author on the site, and has been the reason I delivered this book to you.Consider checking out her books. As for myself, I do have other book(s) published.I can't share links, but you can search for my name and they should appear. Alternatively, just add me on Discord, and I'll help you find your way. Thank you again to everyone who's given this a chance,As always, your attention has been a blessing.~Raven
Ch 73 - Epilogue
- — ✎ — - The five year anniversary of Murphy’s vow was finally upon him, but he had long since completed his promise. No later than a year after the final battle, he successfully unsealed his seventh gate. That came largely as a result of his success in that battle, and the fruits he claimed in its aftermath. Specifically, he salvaged Erebus’ consciousness. Once it was in his dream realm, he had all the time he needed to crack it. Other than being the de facto leader of Physis Nomos, the old man had dipped his toes in all kinds of criminal enterprises over the years. His psychic powers made him the perfect assassin. Lethal, traceless, silent. By reliving through his memories, Murphy salvaged hundreds of interesting connections, and tasked the Chainbreakers to follow up and unearth those leads. The cases they unveiled had all but quaked the world. From businessmen in Asia, to politicians in the deep state of the US, people from all over the world were incriminated. Proof w
Ch 72 - Final Battle
Murphy had no time to curse as the earth dragged him back to its hard embrace. He was strangely familiar with this sensation, and knew exactly what the outcome of such a fall was. Alas, now was not the time to reminisce about his jump from the bridge…Erebus and his goons expected him to splatter across the ground, and even took steps to avoid the impact area. Yet, they were in for a surprise of their own, because despite appearing panicked and flailing his arms like a desperate duck, Murphy was anything but.When he was merely a second from impact, Murphy suddenly spread his psyche and willed himself to slow down.A sudden force shrouded the area, allowing Murphy to veer directly towards the bodyguards accompanying Erebus. Before those two could react, and too busy managing the hostages, Murphy made landfall next to them.His fists coated in fire struck the first one in the chest, eviscerating organs and bone alike. The other panicked, hand reaching for his gun, yet a mere glance ha
Ch 71 - Erebus
Murphy paid no heed to the retinal text, and was far more preoccupied with Eleanor falling. His stretched out hand clasped, guiding his intent and will from afar.His psyche took form, his psychokinesis pushed to its next step, and she was suspended mid-air! He had achieved similar things with immaterial objects like a pen, but never a human.Luckily, her psyche was sapped by the curse and couldn’t resist. This allowed him to control her easily, or he would have been doomed to fail.She flew in the air, eyes squinted in horror once she realized what might befall her. The sensation of flying around eventually stopped, and she tentatively opened her eyes once she felt Murphy’s arms wind tightly around her.Murphy hugged her, bottling up a dozen curses and reproaches that could only wait for later. He was angry, but he was terrified even more.“Y-you’re crazy—” he bit his lips, leaving the rest of the accusation unsaid. “I’m sorry,” she offered plainly, before bursting into tears of her
Ch 70 - Sixth Gate
When Murphy snuck back on the ship, he was surprised to see Eleanor awake. Hands on her waist, she waited by the docking area and made sure he saw her pout.“Not even halfway through our honeymoon, and you’re already tired of me?” she joked and huffed, “I didn’t expect you to find someone else so quickly…”“Guilty as charged,” he grinned in response, “I figured since I scored the most beautiful woman on the planet, I might be lucky enough with the second…”“Compliments won’t get you out of this one, darling.” Ellie turned serious, “What were you up to?”“Kind of a long story… I didn’t want to sour our happiness, but it seems there’s no rest for the wicked.”“Sure, I’ll make some coffee. Tell me all about it.”“Tea for me,” he interjected as he reattached the boat to the yacht and trailed along to the lounge.A few minutes later, Eleanor sat in her rightful place, serving him tea while she drank coffee on his lap. They indulged the warm drinks in silence, but eventually Murphy gathere
Ch 69 - System Embryo
Murphy tried to focus on Erebus, but his visions didn’t become any clearer. He could not see past the darkness, try as he might to muster his power.Eventually, the revelations shattered as a whole, his psychic reserves almost exhausted. He could only cut his losses and sigh in regret.‘I was this close!’ Murphy struck the edge of his marble throne, shattering the armrest to pieces. It was only then that he was reminded it was a mere dream, and a terrified child was staring at him in fear.“Fear not, Asen,” he tried to comfort, but the fire in his eyes didn’t make him sound very convincing.It was only when the boy outright started crying that Murphy realized his folly and doused the inner flame, regaining a more calm demeanor. “I’m sorry,” he lifted the boy off the ground, and brought him someplace nicer in that same instant, “Don’t cry any longer… I won’t hurt you. I promise.”“I know,” the sniveling boy replied amidst tears, “That’s… not… why I’m crying…”“Then?”“I just… don’t wa
Ch 68 - Horrid Revelations
“What is this? Why can’t I see their faces?” the boy asked, clutching at the hem of Morpheus’ robe. “You don’t seem them because they don’t exist, not in this reality. Now watch, young Asen.”A scene played out before them like a three dimensional movie, and the two of them relived the hospital encounter. A teenager walked in, his face redacted and replaced by a simplified smug emoji. Their words were clear, however, as was the part where he mind controlled Eleanor to explode in a crowd. He shuffled backwards afterwards, depicting the woman strapped to a chair while a family of three watched.“Why are you showing me these evil people?” Asen questioned, his adorable young mind clearly perceiving things in black and white.“So you don’t become like them.”“I would never!” the boy denied vehemently, “My mother says bad people can’t go to heaven.”“What if there was no hell, young Asen?” Murphy questioned rhetorically, “If there was no heaven to yearn for, and no judgement in an afterli
Ch 67 - Asen
Murphy grabbed the phone and looked closely at the picture, his frown deepening. That boy was the same psychic who mind controlled Eleanor in the future, but right now he was merely a prepubescent pup. “How old is he now?” Murphy asked, his voice showing some conflict as he indicated the photo. “He’s only 13!” the nurse replied and fell to the ground as well, clinging to life with her whole being, “Please, our son is still young… We’ll stop doing this… Just—““Silence!” Murphy boomed, sending a telekinetic blast that flipped the woman over and sent her careening against the wall.The doctor winced, but didn’t dare move to help his wife. They just stared at the ground and hoped someone would come save them. As for the monster, he continued to stare at the picture, flames dancing in his eyes.‘Should I kill him now?’ he asked himself repeatedly, unsure how to proceed. On one hand, he burned with righteous indignation, having been blinded and robbed of his life. Ellie had it even wors
Ch 66 - Dilemma
A black SUV stopped at the side of a small family clinic in Burgas. The city CCTVs monitoring the streets tracked the vehicle all the way from the suburbs. A single driver got out, opened the trunk and retrieved a duffel bag, then walked to the rear doors of the clinic. The surveillance cut off at that point, a sudden glitch in the system causing the camera to malfunction and stop recording. By the time it was turned back on, the vehicle was long gone. Coincidentally, it had been reported as stolen that same night.Murphy blinked, dismissing the latest retinal message from the system, then waltzed in towards the emergency doors. His hand pushed against the lock, searing the metal and turning it into a worthless puddle that gave in to his push.The building plans appeared in his right eye like a 3D map, and he conveniently followed them down the stairs. The clinic was small, and only saw high-end clients, so its security was top of the art. Cameras lingered at just about every othe
