Whispers of a Dead Empire

ANNOUNCMENT SCROLL DOWN TO THE LINE IF YOU DON'T WANT TO READ

Hello all. Long time no talk ;,). Sorry for being away for so long. I had a bit of a cancer scare and it destroyed my mental. Writing was no longer fun, and I had lost interest in a lot of things. Am sorry :(. I had a whole funny thing written out but, it just felt lacking, so I skipped it.) Am I back fully? Maybe, I've been feeling like my self a lot more lately, so yes. Is my writing burn out gone? Its close to bieng gone yes. But that is beside the point. I come with news. 

 Whispers is getting a rewrite...... Yes, you read that right. This is getting the touch up it deserves. I've read every single comment (Well over 3k on all platforms combined.) I've read every review (I lost count. Not that I was counting in the first place. :^) ) With that being said, I figured out where this story falls short, and where it excels. I decided to take the premise of this , and start it from scratch. FEAR NOT I WILL NOT TOUCH ANY SINGLE CHARACTER THAT EXISTS THAT IS RELEVANT. What does this mean? No character will face the chopping block that you all enjoy. Now, I did prepare a FAQ for this rewrite since I know this is a long winded , and many of you love it. 

(Authors note: Some of you know me as Raizia, others as Adrestrea. In this FAQ I am Raizia, or Raiz for short.)

Question: Raizia, What sparked this desire to rewrite this ? 

Answer: Well, this was my second ever . My writing style changed half way through. There were alot of typos, potholes, inconsistencies, and lost opportunities. What started as a dungeon corelike, became something more than I imagined, Not that it was a bad thing of course, but it was too many ideas crammed into one. So I decided to take what I had, and trim away what was no longer relevant, and build on what existed. The ideas that I had for whispers at the end of the backlong has blossomed into something that this story just wouldn't be able to contain. 

Question: Raizia, what about OG whispers ?

Answer: Og whispers will continue along with the length of the backlog. I may continue to update it, I may not. We shall see.

Question: Raizia, will the setting change? What about our favorite characters?

Answer: I will not be removing any existing Main or important character. Some may get a pass to have more depth and what not. But they will remain. There will even be a new cast. As for the setting, it will be dramatically changed. The dungeon core elements will be mostly removed as they were dropped half way through, The shift will have a heavy focus on kingdom building. Essentially what whispers is right now. It will still be a slice of life with no true end goal. There is no fighting the demon king to save the realm. But an empress helping her empire rise from the ashes, fighting threats along the way.

Question: What about the undead?

Answer: The undead will remain. They will be the bulk of her empire. However I will be adding in some humans and other beings that will exist as vessels or true citizens.

Question: what about cultivation? Will it turn into a Wuxai or Xixanaia?

Answer; No. Don't worry that. There will be no young impudent young master. Or harem. Or a jade beauty. Or a heavenly dao emperor of the 7th degree or infinite power scaling. There won't be just cultivation, but Mages, monks, and everything in between. I just really want to explore the cruxes of her powers and I was really inspired by some s I read recently. But I will not stray down the forbidden path..

Question: Raiz is this a yuri still.

Answer: Yes. Alessia and Cali are meant to be. But the romance will be cleaned up and taken care of properly this time, and wholesome :).

Question: What about the current setting is changing?

Answer: The current setting will be a large world. With Asteria as a fallen empire. It will be roughly the same as you know it. BUT there will be some technical innovations on Asteria's end. Such as : Steam trains. Steam Engines. Air ships. It will be a heavy blend of steam punk, magic tech, (Nothing too advanced don't worry.) and early gunpowder age. There will be early muskets, Swords, spears, bows, magic and cultivation. Not just for Asteria, but even her foes too ;). There will even be delvers into the old capital, much like a dungeon core. Who knows what they may find. 

Question: How prevalent will magic tech be in this ? What about fire arms?

 Answer: The direction that this was taking was that of a rapidly advancing empire. With the advent of the steam engine in this , it was a downward path. I know that many were fearful of magic tech taking over and guns that could nuke cities bieng a thing. But have no fear! I like to think of it as an early gunpowder age. There will be cannons. There will be cannons fueled by magic. There will be muskets that use magic cores. Better yet, there will be undead using guns. But I also know how to limit the excessive nature of it all. There will still be all the fantasy elements at play, mixed with everything else. It will stay contained and relevant to the story. 

Question: Calixa's backstory is it changing?

Answer: Her back story is shifting a bit. But I think you will like the twist. What was once fake is now real if you catch the drift.

Question; what about Nyx?

Answer: Yes.The answer is yes. She is my daughter. 

Question: Can you give us the gist of the new ? How will it play out?

Answer: An Empire once lost will rise once more. An Empress long since dead has returned to her people. Her memories, taken, and her empire in ruin. With but a few people at her command, she must take back her capital city from with in, dealing with the denizens that had decided this would be their new home;. It will be a grueling tale of rising from the ashes. 

Also: its going to be published as a full book. It will also be uploaded as soon as the first arc is done, and all of that will be on patreon. My goal is 5 chapters a week, with the first round published by the start of next month.

Now, if you read this far, consider joining my discord to talk to me :).

https://discord.gg/Fmdk5w9PSk

Also, I stream on twitch, and I do writing streams! Consider stopping by and relaxing with me. You may even get to see new content as it's written :))).

https://www.twitch.tv/adrestrea

“Come on, Mother!” Nyx laughed happily as she grabbed my hand and pulled me down the street. Dozens of adventurers were milling about in the morning sun, and some spared us quick glances. Others stared at us from the shadows like hunters waiting for their chance to strike. As if I would ever allow something like that to happen. If any of them touch her, I’d kill them.

I passively activated a few of my aura abilities to scare some of the worst ones off, and thankfully, they backed down. Nyx seemed oblivious to it all, which was good. For all her bravado, I knew it would get to her. But I was here to protect her. Mostly since she begged me to take her out. Sadly, she just wanted it to be me and her, so Alessia has to cling to the shadows. Though I would have loved for it to be the three of us.

Nyx was in a mad dash for the magical shop that we passed by earlier. The child was dead set on whatever goals she had in mind, and I was helpless to deter her. I held her back slightly as she rushed forward, and I kept my eyes on everyone around us. I couldn’t let her get too far ahead of herself now.

In what felt like mere seconds, we reached the front door of the magical store. Without hesitation, Nyx pushed the door inwards, revealing a large room filled to the brim with various objects. In a way, it was like I was staring at a recreation of Hogwarts.

Azure flames sat above scones that were attached to pillars, casting a baleful blue light into the air. The faint hum of magical energy touched my ears and brought with it a faint headache. My body hated magic, and I didn’t know why. I did nothing for magic to hate me, yet it still does.

Nyx, on the other hand, was staring at everything in wonder. Her eyes were as wide as plates, and the largest grin I’ve ever seen split her face from ear to ear. “Mother, it’s perfect here! Can we have a place like this back at home?”

I thought it over for a moment before I nodded my head in response. After all, there was no real reason that we couldn’t have a place like this. Maybe one day, once I have the resources, I would construct a magical academy. Not just for my daughter, but for the undead that live in my domain. It would be a large building that would put even the largest castle to shame. Yes, that would be lovely indeed.

Nyx giggled in response and rushed ahead. Her first stop was towards a bunch of strange goblets that were centered on the table. The first one was gold, and it was studded with brilliant rubies that twinkled like young stars. The second was a silver goblet that was as scratched to hell, and could barely reflect any light that graced its surface. Then the third was the color of polished bronze, and a faint golden fire radiated from its depths and licked the air.

“Mother, what are these?” Nyx peaked over at the table, but I held her hands away from the cups. I didn’t want her to just up and grab magical items out of the blue, as that is a recipe for disaster.

“Cups, but don’t touch them. Let’s see if we can find a shopkeeper to help us out, okay?” I asked as I steered her away from the table filled with magical goblets.

“Okay, mother!” She allowed me to guide her down the aisle, and past all the many objects.

We turned the corner and saw a small countertop, with a bell sitting on the ledge, and a few quills lying across its surface. I reached out and pressed the bell. It rang gently in the air, and a few seconds later, a gruff voice broke through the still air. “Aye, one moment, ladies.” A gruff voice came from the back, and the accent seemed familiar. I could detect a faint touch of Irish, but there was something else there. It sounded close to Irish, but I couldn’t place it off the top of my head.

A few heartbeats later, a head covered in scraggly brown hair popped up from behind the desk. “Ello and welcome ta Nesdrel’s Arcane Emporium.”

As my eyes focused on him, I picked out more and more details. His eyes were like small grey storms that flickered in the arcane light. A large beard braided with silver ribbons broke into three separate pieces rested on top of a large bush of facial hair. In a moment, I instantly knew what I was looking at. This was a dwarf! “Hello, my name is Calixa, and this is my daughter Nyx. We stopped in to look at your wares.”

“Hello!” Nyx spoke up and waved at the man, who glanced between us. A few indistinguishable emotions danced across his face as he did so, before it faded, and a more professional demeanor took over.

“Aye. Welcome. I see ya daughter is a budding young mage. Tell me, young miss, what are ya lookin fo?” The dwarf pushed himself away from the desk and ambled around it.

A thoughtful hum left her lips, yet her eyes flared like a predator who was close to jumping its prey. “What books do you have?”

“Are ya lookin for grimoires? Spell Books? What are your affinities?” Nesdrel asked as he ruffled his azure mage’s cloak for a second and motioned for us to follow him.

“I’ll take whatever you have. Oh! Also, do you have alchemy supplies?” She bounded slightly ahead and grilled the dwarf with various questions involving magic.

I hung slightly back and watched the two talk amongst each other. It’s good that she has a passion to keep her focused. The best I could do now was just keep pushing her forward.

The two wandered over to a large bookshelf filled to the brim with hundreds of books. Some looked like they were plain, while others seemed to radiate sickening auras of color.This really was a beautiful place, but esoterically. It made me wonder how much different Earth would have been if magic existed there, instead of just in movies or books. I crossed my arms, and sauntered down the aisle we were in and looked at some books out of curiosity.

There was a book for everything, really. Magical theory, magical history, rituals, affinities, and much, much more. Perhaps I should buy everything that I can and move it to the domain and give it to Kharon. He was the minister of magic, so I’m sure he would enjoy having it all.

“Mother, look!” My daughter’s voice tore me from my thoughts and I glanced down at her.

She was proudly holding up a large brown covered book that had a single teal colored rune in the middle. “It’s an arcane grimoire! Can I get it?” Her eyes glimmered hopefully at me as she clenched the book.

“Of course, get whatever you want, love.” I smiled back at her, and she damn near keeled over in sheer happiness.

“Thanks mother! You’re the best!” Once again, she vanished to pester the dwarf shop keep.

I turned my attention back to the shelves and kept walking down them. Let’s see what I could get for Kharon and the domain while I’m here.

Well, for starters, the question would be, what magic is my domain lacking? Out of habit, I tried to access my menu, but nothing was responsive. Ah, shit, that’s right. I guess I have to operate off of memory then. I knew for sure that we have dark, lunar, fire, water, earth, and air. But my overall knowledge of magic was rather lacking.

“Excuse me. I have a question.” I walked over to the dwarf, who was busy opening up a spell book, and was explaining to my daughter the use of runes in a spell.

“Yes, lassie?” The dwarf glanced up at me and ruffled his beard slightly.

“Do you have anything on affinity cultivation, or anything of the sort?”

“Aye, we have a collection of grimoires for most basic affinities, as well as complex ones. What would ya like?” He handed the book over to Nyx, who happily added it to the pile of books in her hands.

“Honestly, I’ll take whatever you have.” I wasn’t sure what a complex affinity was, and it sort of piqued my interest. I just didn’t want to ask questions that would make me look stupid.

“Nyx, if ya like, ya are more than welcome to place those books down on the countertop over yonder.” He told her as he motioned for me to follow him.

“I’ll be okay.” She replied with a curt nod as she clenched her stack of books like a dragon hoarding its treasure.

I followed him through the store to another set of bookshelves. This time, it was a quarter the size of the others, and only a large handful of books existed here. “Here ya go. I try to keep a copy of grimoires for every affinity that I can get my hands on. I have most of the basics, as well as a few complex ones. Sadly, I can’t get my hands on any of that higher tiered stuff. If ya have any more questions, let me know.”

“Thank you.” I replied as I looked through the books. Naturally, I crossed off the affinities that I knew we already had, and looked for others, and thankfully the book shelf was broken into magical sections. The first one that I was looking at was elemental. I reached out and ran my fingers across the cover of the books, reading over each of the names. The selection was small. It was near abysmal once I crossed off the affinities that I already had.

Let’s see here, I would happily take the light magic off of the dwarf’s hand as a basic affinity and lightning. Then I’ll match it with storm magic, and ash magic. Sadly, however, that was all that was offered, but that was alright. Anything is better than nothing, and I will put all of this to excellent use in the domain. Now let’s see what magical artifacts I could get my hands on for everyone else.