Showing results by author "William D. Arand" in All Categories

Ash's life is anything but normal these days. Having discovered his Dao, he's grown in power. Grown to the point that others are now aware of him and that he could be a danger. In this world of martial arts, only the strong and the ruthless survive. Everyone else is merely a stepping stone on their path of Cultivation or an obstacle to be overcome. Or knocked down. It's a world where the strong rule, and the weak die.

Wayne dreamed of piloting a thirty-foot-tall walking robot that was closer to a battle-tank than anything else. They were called Walkers. They were armed with laser cannons, rockets, missiles, and heavy kinetic weapons more similar to artillery pieces than guns, and everything that went with that. Unfortunately, he had been declined military service. His only avenue left to become a Walker Pilot was to make it happen all on his own. Under his own power. With his own hands. Literally. Working his fingers to the bone, saving all he could, and digging through junkyards and salvage pits,

Felix would like nothing more than to take a vacation. A long one. One where he didn’t have to wake up every morning and worry over casualty lists for the day. Ever since he and the Legion had been forced to flee their headquarters four years previous, nothing had gone quite right. In fact, Felix and the Legion have been locked in a shadow war with enemies unknown. Ones with magic that could carve through their technology easily.

Utilizing the Hall, the voice in his head that calls itself Locke, those who have aligned with his faction, and all the powers available to him, Ash has begun his own journey of Cultivation. Except that as a Fated One, his journey is a narrow and winding path between two cosmic forces. Each one vying for dominance. That doesn’t even take into account the royal family or the Realm Lord. This is his third step in his life as a Cultivator.

Dominic's world had been a fairly simple life. To live his life to the best of his abilities, gain experience, level up, and strive to enjoy himself as best he could in a backwater. Which, while tough on its own, was made infinitely harder by his father being the local executioner. All of that becomes infinitely worse when his entire family is murdered. Dominic is then thrust into a war between noble houses that had been put on hold for generations. A war that the royal family lost, and now only had one true heir and claimant: Dominic Randolph.

Dominic's world had been a fairly simple life. To live his life to the best of his abilities, gain experience, level up, and strive to enjoy himself as best as he could in a backwater. Which, while tough on its own, was made infinitely harder by his father being the local executioner. All of that becomes infinitely worse when his entire family is murdered. Now, he's the Prince-in-Hiding for a nearly non-existent royal family.

He has the ability to modify any item he owns; to upgrade anything. Sounds great on paper. Almost like a video game. Except that the amount of power it takes to actually change, modify, or upgrade anything worthwhile is beyond his abilities. At least, that was until Felix leveraged a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to give himself a great deal of points. Investing in Super Heroes and Super Villains and owning them. Using them, Felix built up an empire: an organization by the name of Legion.

Alex has taken firm control over his county as the count of Brit. By and large, everything has settled into a fairly normal pattern for him, his Numbered, and his wife. The problem of course is there's still an ongoing war between two duchies, and Regina Tanulf, Alex's liege and lord, has plans for him. Plans that he wants no part of. Except that he doesn't really have a choice in the matter. Everything begins to spin back out of control as a messenger from the Wild Lands arrives with a plea for help.

Ash led a very normal life by his own standards. Right up until he was literally pulled into a portal that spat him out into another world. One that was full of martial arts. And martial artists who could use magic. Three years of living his life as one of the citizens, those without power, and Ash has figured out how to survive with his adoptive family and a lot of persistence. His goals in life have become to give back to those who gave to him. And he’d do whatever he had to to do that. Except Ash is about to get his life turned around again.

In a world full of super powers, Felix has a pretty crappy one. He has the ability to modify any item he owns. To upgrade anything. Sounds great on paper. Almost like a video game. Except that the amount of power it takes to actually change, modify, or upgrade anything worthwhile is beyond his abilities. With that in mind, Felix settled into a normal life. A normal job. His entire world changes when the city he lives in is taken over by a super villain. Becoming a country of one city. A city state.

In a world full of superpowers, Felix had a pretty crappy one. He has the ability to modify any item he owns. To upgrade anything. Sounds great on paper. Almost like a video game. Except that the amount of power it takes to actually change, modify, or upgrade anything worthwhile is beyond his abilities. At least, that was until Felix leveraged a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to give himself a great deal of points.

In a world full of super powers, Felix had a pretty crappy one. After learning to harness his ability to modify any item he owns, he now runs a corporation that is rapidly expanding - Legion. After tangling with the local Heroes guild they’ve finally settled into a semblance of stability. Sounds great on paper. Run your company, make money, be your own boss, settle down. Except that with running a business, comes an inordinate amount of responsibilities. Like making sure everything keeps running and your people are paid.

Reports to write, forms to fill, coffee to drink, leads to run down. Gus’s life was a tedium and boredom he’d grown comfortable with. One that he sought out after he’d come back from his tour of duty. A detective in the paranormal investigations department. A job he could work day in and day out in relative peace. One cold and forgotten cup of coffee at a time. It was an environment that made some sense to him. At least in comparison to civilian life where almost nothing did. On top of that, it gave him a chance to hide what he was from the rest of the world.

Alex is dead. Dead, and apparently with a one-way ticket to a place that only the worst of the worst go. All for a simple choice he made about a product his company owned. Damned for all time. Luckily for him, he's about to be given a chance. Another choice to make. He can return to the land of the living, though his soul would belong to another. Except the world he's being sent to isn't the same one he came from. It's not even a similar period in time, but from something long past in history. The dark ages.

At the best of times, Jeremiah could be described as a vengeful man. In the worst of times, one could call him a monster. The reality, though, was that he was a monster hunter. Or that's how he liked to style himself. In a world of creatures that went bump in the night, few fought for humanity. Fewer still put humanity first. Fighting with sword, blade, or word, their numbers were insufficient. Those who did did so from places and situations that the world didn't appreciate or condone. That they'd actively disavow and ignore.

Having unlocked his Dantian, Ash has grown in power, grown to the point where he has others who depend on him for that power. In this world of martial arts, only the strong and the ruthless survive. Everyone else is merely a stepping stone on their path of Cultivation, or an obstacle to be overcome, or knock down. Utilizing the Hall, the voice in his head that calls itself Locke, and all the powers available to him, Ash has begun his own journey of Cultivation.

Ash’s life is anything but normal these days. Having discovered his Dao, he’s grown in power. Grown to the point that others are now aware of him and that he could be a danger. In this world of martial arts, only the strong and the ruthless survive. Everyone else is merely a stepping stone on their path of Cultivation or an obstacle to be overcome—or knocked down. It’s a world where the strong rule and the weak die.

Have you ever woken up, rolled over, and thought to yourself, "I'm pretty sure I'm working for a Super Villain?" If you haven't, then maybe you're not the type of person to work for a global corporation. Edmund, however, is just such an individual. He had worked for Legion and his mentor and savior, Felix Campbell. Now, though, Edmund is swapping employers.

Ryker only had one goal in his life right now: Turn a certain adventuring guild into a flaming wreck while dancing merrily through the smoldering ruins. All for the chance to get back at a handful of people. It didn’t work out that way though. At all. He’d become the Count of Dungeon, made a hostage, married off to the false queen’s daughter against his will, and had his county made ground zero for a religious war. To top all that off, the Dark Lord of the North wants to see Ryker personally.

Ryker only has one goal in his life right now: Turn a certain adventuring guild into a flaming wreck while dancing merrily through the smoldering ruins. All for the chance to get back at a handful of people. It isn’t as if they didn’t deserve it either. They had driven him from his home. Chased him physically from the very guild house itself. Simply because he wasn’t as strong as they expected him to be. As strong as he’d expected himself to be. He’d returned the next day and left with something he’d hidden away and told no one about when he found it in one of his few Dungeon Dives.