Sworded Tales

Ripped from a dream where you were soaring high above the clouds on powerful wings, the frigid air caressing the ancient scales which for eons have protected you and your family, your eyes scrape painfully open.  The wailing of harpies assaults you as you fight to see through the blood red haze that engulfs you.

Where are you?  What has happened?

Your newborn son, strong and healthy, being tossed up into the air, laughing and giggling, returning to your strong, sure hands.  Those same hands, now claws, held out in front of you, gently clasping the claws of your mate during your Eternal Blood Rite.

Staggering forward, your mind and your vision begin to clear and sharpen.  Flashing red lights cast a fiery glow over the figure standing beside you and across another laying at your feet. Continue reading

The command was a simple one, and perhaps the most convincing he had ever heard.  Run.  But from what?  Was there a point in running from such a creature, that could rip and rend through the very foundations of the earth?  Gerard continued to search the ruins below as the thoughts raced across his mind.  Silence smothered the scene, and the survivor inside knew that his rationalizations were little more than dangerous delay.  His heart wanted to climb down and search.  His head knew better, and his feet, had they been more independent, would have been half a wheel away by now. Continue reading

If this was his first meeting with the woman he knew as Erellia, Kurn  may have been taken aback that she readily knew the name of the handler he had brought along to assist with the horses.  In the way of things, he accepted that she knew the name in stride and did as she bid, first accepting Erellia’s mount, then making the offer to the dwarf, Katarina and Borlak.  “I will lead them, or you may ride them to Haron if you prefer.”  Continue reading

Helix, Inc. is one of the big players in the area, but they have been under siege of late.  The scattered news feeds have been filled with the aftermath of the corporate warfare, and in a bid to regroup, Helix has recruited a number of renegade Chromes from the district.  A handful of these special individuals has been assigned to the Urban Response department.

New members of the primary Response Team are assigned to investigate and suppress an unknown element that has been setting fire to various Helix assets.  Team members are informed by the department’s handler, Mr. Avix, that this mission is as much a tryout as it is an objective.  Performances will be evaluated and one of the new recruits will not continue to serve as a Helix operative.

Times are tough and Helix could be a solid meal ticket for some time to come.  Only one unlucky bastard wasn’t going to make the cut. Who is it going to be? Continue reading

Helix case file excerpt – Baron Krühl – Code Name: Blunt Force —

Former leader of the Gutter Gods Gang (3G), the subject was recognized as the only individual who emerged from the subterranean wreckage of a gang war which decimated the Oleander Business District.  Numerous subway explosions destabilized the infrastructure of the area and buried the combatants beneath an untold amount of cement and steel tonnage.  Estimated death toll was 7,700. Continue reading