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An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 63 - Mule
After an amazing first wedding night, Murphy and Eleanor cruised around the Black Sea by their lonesome on the Elend yacht. From dusk to dawn, they were inseparable and seldom left each other’s embrace. Be it in flesh or spirit, they were one.What should have been the debut of their long honeymoon however, was cut short when Murphy once more caught the irregularity in her dreams.“There’s something really peculiar in your memories,” Murphy brought up the topic unsurely, not certain if he should pry to begin with.“Peculiar? In what way?”Taking control of the dream, he brought her just before the anomaly, a place deep within her consciousness. In his eyes, psychic energy sealed the area off like a mirror, and even he couldn’t see through it.“This! I reckon it’s a sealed portion of your memories. Perhaps a traumatic experience or something.”“I don’t see anything,” she mused, waving her arm towards the anomaly without detecting anything. “I think I can undo the seal without damaging
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 64 - Fourth Code (NSFW)
When the last fragment of the memories elapsed, things became pretty clear and the puzzle was finally complete. By the time she was done recovering from surgery, Eleanor had turned into a docile puppet.The teenager seemed to have awakened some sort of hypnosis or mind control power. There was nothing else Murphy could think of that was as powerful. Eleanor’s memories were simply surreal. By the second visit, her straps were removed, yet she still made no attempt to escape or seek help. She heeded his every word, and each time the commands became more irresistible. On the third visit, she was allowed to leave and return home to Romania, where she would blow herself up for their cause. She was aware, and she was happy to do it. Nothing, be it her senses or rationality, neither tingled nor raised a red flag. Her memories were clear, and she did complete her mission. On the day of the beta launch, she made it past security and into the surgery machine. She then uttered the trigger tha
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead Ch 65 - Burgas
The honeymoon was rather uneventful, with Murphy and Eleanor holed up on the yacht for the most part, desperately trying to outpace rabbits. Still, while their love was unending, their stamina was not.Pen Liberty launched in the background as scheduled, and though Murphy could have hired someone to manage everything for him, some personal involvement was unavoidable. They were the face of the company, and the true underdog who inspired others to join them. As such, they kept up to date on most stats and keenly awaited the platform’s growth. It was a resounding success, much more than he would have expected. If it weren’t for the scandals, no amount of advertising would have reeled in as many enthusiastic authors. Even as the numbers themselves no longer meant anything, he still felt great pride in knowing he would have helped others like him. If even one author was uplifted and didn’t end up on a bridge because of him, then it would all be worth it.Between their platform work and
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead 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
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead 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
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead 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
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead 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
An Author's Struggle - What Lies Ahead 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
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