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wandering_cirrus t1_j6hiod2 wrote

Reply to comment by wandering_cirrus in [WP] You formed a contract with an adventurer that allows them to summon you in their time of need. You haven’t been summoned for years, almost forgetting about the contract until suddenly you’re summoned into the palace where your beloved adventurer is on his knees with a sword to his neck. by Blackrose_920

(Part 3)

Gelna brought us to myself, keeping the chunks of castle rock and destruction away from our fragile bodies, and I soon found an abandoned mill on my shore. I pulled us out, amazed at the way my hair clung to my neck, the way cold coated my body.

But Katiya stared into nothing, shaking. I put my arms around her, a hug like the one she gave me so recently and so long ago. The sobs came. Wordless, from deep pain, so I held her as we crouched in the corner of an old, wooden house. From the remnant drops of water on her body, I could feel injuries. Some deep, some light. Old injuries she’d had the last time I saw her. New injuries that only just had scabs. I said nothing, only dried the remnants of the river from our clothes and waited for her to still.

After a long time, Katiya sniffed. “I want to go home.”

“Okay,” I agreed.

“I want to go home and see Da. I want to go home and never leave.”

Sadness lurked in her eyes. But also something else I knew from watching her. I hummed. “You’re nowhere near as old as Old Man Barnes was when he retired. You haven’t gone all the places you want to go yet.”

Katiya turned her head away. “If they’re going to hurt Da, it’s not worth it.”

I snorted. “Who says I’d allow your father to get hurt?”

She froze.

“He lives on my banks. Nothing along my shore happens without my knowledge.”

“But—”

I sighed. “You saved my life, Katiya. The path you chose has brought far more things than evil to those you care for.”

Her shoulders tightened, a sign that the tears might come back. I patted her back. “I will bring you back home. Your father has been worried about you. And then when you’re good and ready, you can step out again on your own two feet and show me the world beyond the banks of the Andolin.”

Katiya’s brow furrowed. “Beyond the Andolin…?”

“It seems that a summoning gives me the added benefit of a solid form that I don’t have to hold together through pure strength of will. I don’t know how long it will last, but I mean to enjoy it to the limit. So…”

I rose to my feet, stretched, and offered Katiya a hand.

I smiled. “I’m counting on you, Katiya.”

r/chanceofwords

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Expert-Pomegranate-8 t1_j6hl4xi wrote

I read it all.I am undecided on how this makes me feel.

F**k, I'm gonna cry.

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KJting98 t1_j6l15wr wrote

Hey stop, you're getting the river salty

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Tehnomaag t1_j6iru95 wrote

That was amazingly good. And I don't say it lightly. Been reading fantasy and scify for over three decades and it was something that was fresh and damn well written.

For some reason it reminds me a bit of Willam Kings book Death's Angels with a bit of Joe Abercombie's Blade Itself mixed in although admittedly neither of these books was about river spirits. I suppose it's the emotion of reading this that reminds me of these books.

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6ld1si wrote

Thank you!

And I don't think I've read those books. I'll have to add it to the list!

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Kerinh t1_j6ie6uo wrote

:D thanks for the fun read! Sounds like their journey would be a fun adventure

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6ldawy wrote

I'm glad you enjoyed! I imagine they both would have a lot of fun indeed! For all the fact that Annie/Andolin has been around for many human lifespans, she hasn't gotten much chance to explore, and is very excited to run around in a human body.

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Kam_Solastor t1_j6iwkti wrote

It would definitely be an interesting tale of two adventurers, one a regular human, one the personification of a wide, raging river.

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InfiniteZu t1_j6j35px wrote

This is why I love to lose myself in the printed word. You woke something in me just now. A kind of breathless joy and excitement and anticipation. Thank you

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Cyneganders t1_j6j9ymg wrote

You just made me retire from the internet for the day, as everything else is misery and this was pure joy.

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6lf7ag wrote

Awww, I'm so glad you enjoyed my story!

(I hope it isn't a permanent retirement, there are so many good writers and lovely stories here on WritingPrompts! XD)

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Cyneganders t1_j6nil5b wrote

Wasn't permanent, was just sick and tired of all the negativity online, and after you put a smile on my face I figured it was best to evacuate the negativity for a good night's sleep!

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RyzenR10 t1_j6km001 wrote

Bro. Write a book, a series, just write and send it to me!

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6lfj4d wrote

XD Well, I don't know if I have enough in me to write more about Andolin and Katiya, but if you want more of my words, you might like some of the things on my subreddit!

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Aphor1st t1_j6klg1j wrote

I rarely ever save a story to read again later. This one I think I’ll treasure for a long time.

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6le8ms wrote

I'm so glad you enjoyed! It makes me really happy to know that someone liked my stuff enough to read it again <3

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jeffh4 t1_j6l0hp1 wrote

Excellent.

Any time an author can portray the thinking of a non-human in a fascinating way, I'm on board.

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6lfpyt wrote

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed!

I will admit, portraying non-human characters in a way that shows how Other they are while still making them relatable is one of the things I like to play with in my writing. It's awesome that you think I hit that this time!

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SwanQueen420 t1_j6l0maj wrote

I just read this whole thing and can I just say this would be an amazing book!

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6leog3 wrote

I don't know if there's enough in me to write a whole book about Andolin and Katiya, but I'm glad you liked enough that you'd read more. Thanks for reading!

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queensara33 t1_j6l9de8 wrote

@wandering_cirrus do you mind if I borrow your river spirit idea? Not copy but the same concept? Something popped into my head I thought it could be interesting to explore with it having a lover.

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6ldfja wrote

Go for it! Inspiration is very much free, and I can't wait to see what you do with it!

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queensara33 t1_j6lhvl0 wrote

Haha, I'll have to dm you at some point then as I'll probably handwrite it first:)

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FalconHalo t1_j6lpkey wrote

Hell of a read. I like how you write spirits.

Also: I ship them.

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wandering_cirrus t1_j6lvjq7 wrote

I'm glad you enjoyed it! It was definitely fun trying to figure out what would make Andolin's voice different from a normal human.

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Spare_Personality591 t1_j6lxg0k wrote

It's been such a long time since I last disappeared so deeply into a story. So lovely, thank you for sharing.

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e-mf-t t1_j6ogpjh wrote

This story made me cry. Thank you for the amazing tale.

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