A shared sword & sorcery setting: City of Scum

[StillStunned]

Actually, I'm wondering whether to stick a sex scene in the story. There was a point where it felt natural, but I was a bit too excited to get on with the rest of the tale.

Yes, now that I think about it, it makes sense.

And on further reflection, no. Not next to a dead body, which would be too nasty even for one of my stories, and getting rid of the body and then having sex feels contrived.

 

[DraegonDaddy]

And on further reflection, no. Not next to a dead body, which would be too nasty even for one of my stories, and getting rid of the body and then having sex feels contrived.

Have the tension build as they move further on before doing the deed?

 

[StillStunned]

Have the tension build as they move further on before doing the deed?

Unfortunately it's very location-specific. Oh well, I might have a workaround.

 

[StillStunned]

Earlier this evening I submitted "What Scaggy Saw In The Bathhouse". A fraction short of 6k words. Not as dark as "Flower", I hope, but still grimdark.

I wrote the opening lines two months ago or more. But the ending tied in perfectly with them. Don't you love it when that happens? You can almost pretend that you had a plan all along.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Earlier this evening I submitted "What Scaggy Saw In The Bathhouse". A fraction short of 6k words. Not as dark as "Flower", I hope, but still grimdark.

I wrote the opening lines two months ago or more. But the ending tied in perfectly with them. Don't you love it when that happens? You can almost pretend that you had a plan all along.

Plan? What is this dark magic of which you speak?

 

[DraegonDaddy]

Editor finished Chapter 1 of "The Blade, The Spear, & The Demon Crown." Now it's off to the Beta reader. So with luck it goes up on my Patreon next week and Lit the week after.

 

[Areala-chan]

Story's basically done. 4,300 words, so nothing excessive. Gotta do an editing pass to make sure everything sounds right, but I'm pretty satisfied with what I've got. Once editing is through, I'll submit and see what happens.

Edit: it's submitted. Look for "The Angel of the Alleys", coming to an Areala-chan profile near you soon!

 

[StillStunned]

Plan? What is this dark magic of which you speak?

It's something I claim I had after the fact.

 

[StillStunned]

Edit: it's submitted. Look for "The Angel of the Alleys", coming to an Areala-chan profile near you soon!

Cool! Did you include the "city of scum" tag?

 

[Areala-chan]

Cool! Did you include the "city of scum" tag?

I sure did. First tag in the list, in fact. Also included a note suggesting that readers who enjoy the story should check out the tag for other fun content!

Edit: it's scheduled to post tomorrow! Wheeee!

 

[Areala-chan]

She just went live a few minutes ago. @StillStunned, I give you The Angel of the Alleys. Hope it's the kind of thing you were wanting to see.

 

[StillStunned]

She just went live a few minutes ago. @StillStunned, I give you The Angel of the Alleys. Hope it's the kind of thing you were wanting to see.

Great! It's listed just above mine in the New SF&F Stories list, too. What Scabby Saw In The Bathhouse

 

[StillStunned]

She just went live a few minutes ago. @StillStunned, I give you The Angel of the Alleys. Hope it's the kind of thing you were wanting to see.

I really enjoyed this one! Nice twist that I didn't see coming, and scum everywhere!

 

[DraegonDaddy]

We'll have to put these all in a compilation at some point.

 

[DraegonDaddy]

She just went live a few minutes ago. @StillStunned, I give you The Angel of the Alleys. Hope it's the kind of thing you were wanting to see.

I absolutely loved this.

 

[StillStunned]

We'll have to put these all in a compilation at some point.

I'll edit the first post one of these days to include all the stories, and a link to the tag page.

 

[Two21B]

I absolutely loved this.

I did too. What a wicked little twist. It definitely put a smile on my face.

 

[DraegonDaddy]

Ok, the plan is for Chapter 1 of "The Blade, The Spear, & The Demon Crown" to release on 4/21 with chapter releases on an every two week schedule.

Proposed "canon" updates:

Gangs:
The Waterfront Widows
The Archers
The Gutter Gate Society
The City Watch (Not a gang but corrupt AF)

Coinage:
Copper Commons
Silver Nobles
Gold Royals
Platinum Imperials

Notable Characters:
The Widow Queen (I suggest the name, Gremory after a demon from the Ars Goetia who appears as a beautiful woman.)
Gienna: The Widow Queen's daughter.
Captain Stebbins: A corrupt watch captain.
The Alley Angel: a vigilante
Under Captain Sleen: watch under captain supposedly working for the archers actually works for the Widows.
Theophania/Tiffany*: petite black woman the Widow Queen's personal assassin, former acrobat.
Eiristos* the Trapmaker: former thief now works creating security systems for the rich.
Nicos*: Eiristos' younger brother. A soldier/guard of some renowned.

Locations:
The Neckless Nag: a low class bar
The Beekeeper Inn*: A surprisingly upscale Inn on low street.

* these are characters or places in "The Blade, The Spear, & The Demon Crown."

 

[DraegonDaddy]

For reference "The Blade, The Spear, & The Demon Crown" takes place an undetermined amount of time after the events of "Rulk The Rat."

In TTRPG terms both Theo and Eiristos would be about 5th level characters, at the start of my story. So if anybody else wants to write earlier adventures with these characters, feel free. (Backstories are given in chaps 3&4.) And spoilers for the novella, I'm killing off all my characters.

I'm doing a duty vs love thing, so everyone dies

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Ok, the plan is for Chapter 1 of "The Blade, The Spear, & The Demon Crown" to release on 4/21 with chapter releases on an every two week schedule.

Proposed "canon" updates:

Gangs:
The Waterfront Widows
The Archers
The Gutter Gate Society
The City Watch (Not a gang but corrupt AF)

Coinage:
Copper Commons
Silver Nobles
Gold Royals
Platinum Imperials

Notable Characters:
The Widow Queen (I suggest the name, Gremory after a demon from the Ars Goetia who appears as a beautiful woman.)
Gienna: The Widow Queen's daughter.
Captain Stebbins: A corrupt watch captain.
The Alley Angel: a vigilante
Under Captain Sleen: watch under captain supposedly working for the archers actually works for the Widows.
Theophania/Tiffany*: petite black woman the Widow Queen's personal assassin, former acrobat.
Eiristos* the Trapmaker: former thief now works creating security systems for the rich.
Nicos*: Eiristos' younger brother. A soldier/guard of some renowned.

Locations:
The Neckless Nag: a low class bar
The Beekeeper Inn*: A surprisingly upscale Inn on low street.

* these are characters or places in "The Blade, The Spear, & The Demon Crown."

All good stuff, but I wonder how 'cannon' we want to be with this?

I've got some general references to the waterfront and the bottoms. Also a whorehouse called the Crimson Veil, and old witches called crones that sell spells and potions of probably questionable value to whoever wants them and that seem to not care too much about the ghouls.
There's also this ritual called the quickening that happens on the summer solstice where young women come of age; a full score years, (have to keep Laurel happy) and may or may not manifest magical powers.

@StillStunned You started this. I'd offer you the task of making the executive decision on cannon...

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

About halfway...

---

The depth of Drevin’s mood was too obvious. I found my mother, beaten and badly abused, soaking in her bath and added another pouch of medicinal herbs. She always skimped, saving her coin for other things and letting her magic do what it did. I knew it worked better with a little help and from her condition; she needed that extra help. Taking her soaps, I started washing the blood from her hair and gently washed her bruised body. With each touch of my hands, my loathing for Lord Drevin grew.

“Why does he do this to you, and why just you?” I whispered softly as I helped her from the tub and wrapped her in her robe, picking up her silver brush and running it through her hair. The brush was from a time before I was born, a gift from an old suitor and was her one luxury. “I’ve asked. He doesn’t frequent other houses. Just the Veil, and only you.”

“It’s a story for another time, Kit. I’ll tell you one day, I promise.” She gave me a faint smile and took the brush from my hand. “Now go. Let me rest. I’m sure Cassandra has things she needs you to do.” The ever-present sadness in her eyes seemed darker than before, but I knew not to ask. My mother had always been a woman of secrets, of stories untold. It was nights like tonight that made me wonder if 'another time' would ever come.

I left her there and went to tend to my chores, her gentle sobbing following me from the room. Something told me she knew what Drevin and Cassandra were discussing, what fate lie ahead for the red-haired girl they had talked about. But I had floors to scrub and sheets to boil. I let the mundanity of my life numb me to whatever fate the gods had set for me.

It was always like this. It would always be like this for the next few weeks, anyway – until the quickening. My mother believed I was special. Maybe she was right, and I would manifest a powerful magic like the witches that sold spells and potions to the rich families up on the hill. Maybe I’d be powerful enough the king would summon me to court to scry for his council. Or maybe I’d be like my mom and just be powerful enough to heal myself from the perpetual abuse of living in The City.

 

[DraegonDaddy]

All good stuff, but I wonder how 'cannon' we want to be with this?

I've got some general references to the waterfront and the bottoms. Also a whorehouse called the Crimson Veil, and old witches called crones that sell spells and potions of probably questionable value to whoever wants them and that seem to not care too much about the ghouls.
There's also this ritual called the quickening that happens on the summer solstice where young women come of age; a full score years, (have to keep Laurel happy) and may or may not manifest magical powers.

@StillStunned You started this. I'd offer you the task of making the executive decision on cannon...

@StillStunned absolutely has the final word on "canon."

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Kind of on a roll. I really like this passage, the quickening ritual: Comments appreciated...

---

I had seen it once; the temple to Hecate, high on the hill among the estates of the rich and powerful. Cassandra had sent me to the high priestess for an errand long forgotten. The temple was where the young women coming of age went on the summer solstice. It was where those with either money or enough pedigree that they might manifest magic worthy of notice went for the quickening.

I’d imagined being there among them; within the marble walls, wearing the white robes, anointed by the fine oils, acquiescing to the mysterious rituals. It had all been so clear in my dreams, yet here I was, naked in the back room of the hovel where the same old crone that sold Cassandra her teas lived.

“Take your place.” She pointed to a circle; a circle of ash and crushed vervain, traced with spiraling runes of awakening, shimmering, faintly scrawled into the dirty stone floor.

I cast a glance at my mother. She nodded. I knelt.

Guttural: the words the old crone muttered came from a time when the world was young, fresh, new. Their cadence pulled at my soul, my bones, my very essence. The crone crumbled dried moonwort and elderflower into a shallow clay bowl, setting it alight. Gray smoke swirled upward, wrapping me like a shroud. With a twig of hazel, the crone pricked my finger, letting a single drop of blood fall onto a scrap of linen. She tied it with a thread of nettle fiber and buried it in the circle’s edge, whispering, “What sleeps, wakes. What hides, seeks.”

My skin tingled, a strange energy coursing over my body, “What sleeps, wakes. What hides, seeks.” I repeated the words without being prompted.

“Good.” The crone smiled. “Open your heart to the goddess, your soul to the gods themselves. It will find you when you’re ready-or when you’ve got no choice but to accept it.”

Scented oils joined the ash in the bowl. The crone approached me, dipping her hands into the mixture. With two fingers, she closed my eyes, drawing lines down my cheeks and then a circle and a cross on my forehead.

My eyes closed, I searched for something, anything. Darkness filled my sight, vast, empty nothing, pregnant with a feeling of anticipation, or is it dread? There was no rush of power, no vision, no clarity, yet the air in the small room hung heavy with strange energy.

I shuddered, lurching forward as if something or someone shoved me between my shoulder blades. Catching myself with my hands, I open my eyes. I knew I had changed.

“It is done.” The crone’s eyes sparkled. Her lip curled into an eager grin. “The seed is planted girl. It will bloom when it needs you - or when you need it. Mind it doesn’t break you when the time comes. It will if you fight it.”

“How will I know?” I got unsteadily to my feet. My mother rushed over to steady me, handing me my clothes. The crone just laughed and, picking up the blood-stained linen, swept away the circle. As I got dressed, she dabbed the oil on my forehead with the bloody linen swath, muttering a final ward, binding the ritual’s intent, marking my soul forever.

 

[StillStunned]

The City of Scum is starting to grow!

 

[StillStunned]

All good stuff, but I wonder how 'cannon' we want to be with this?

I've got some general references to the waterfront and the bottoms. Also a whorehouse called the Crimson Veil, and old witches called crones that sell spells and potions of probably questionable value to whoever wants them and that seem to not care too much about the ghouls.
There's also this ritual called the quickening that happens on the summer solstice where young women come of age; a full score years, (have to keep Laurel happy) and may or may not manifest magical powers.

@StillStunned You started this. I'd offer you the task of making the executive decision on cannon...

I'm very much of the opinion that the approach should be "Yes, and..." What's canon for one writer doesn't have to appear in other writers' stories. A bit of consistency is great, but I think overall it's the mood and tone that determines the City. It's an anthology, not a serial.

That said:

Coinage:
Copper Commons
Silver Nobles
Gold Royals
Platinum Imperials

Platinum would be very rare, considering that most people will never even see a single gold coin in their entire lives. Coppers and silvers are what the vast majority of people know. If they're faced with a platinum coin, they'd probably dismiss it as "fake silver" or else foreign and not to be trusted.

And then likely stab whoever had it, because even if it's foreign or fake, well, it's still money.

Notable Characters:
The Widow Queen (I suggest the name, Gremory after a demon from the Ars Goetia who appears as a beautiful woman.)

Fine, but it's probably not the only name she goes by. Maybe not even her real name. She's basically just a gang leader in a dead-end city, so as a demon she's probably not very lofty or ambitious. Some mystery should surround her, mostly maintained by herself.

Locations:
The Neckless Nag: a low class bar
The Beekeeper Inn*: A surprisingly upscale Inn on low street.

Also the Philandering Flumph, a surprisingly high-end flophouse with secrets of its own.
And the Upper Bridge, one of the two wooden bridges crossing the river either side of Stone Bridge where the Archers have their lair. By implication the other one would be the Lower Bridge, but it could just as well be the Old Bridge or Low Street Bridge or the Swamp Bridge or Tunto's Bridge or something.