esme-elora

[esme-elora]

Aurora: Chapter Two: The Concealed Cordyceps

I understood—deeply, even—how sacred libraries were, but I couldn’t help but feel this was the worst idea I had ever heard. Are you certain these are related? I scribbled. In situations like this, I’d hate for us to waste time on mere coincidences. There are no such things as coincidences, Pietro replied, his pen pressing a little too hard into the silk, making ink bloom in its wake. I was going to refer to you by name and realized I never got your name. I laughed mirthlessly, realizing that he was right. I was so focused on Seer Marcella that I hadn’t introduced myself. Esme. There are no such things as coincidences, Esme, Pietro repeated, especially with the machinations of Queen Phaedra.

Chapter Two of Aurora is now public, so go check it out! If you like horror fantasy about mind-controlling hivemind fungi, bugs, and spicy lesbian romance on the side, this is the novel for you.

Like this story? Support me on Patreon! I post WIPs, worldbuilding, and more there. Paid patrons get access to my Discord as well, where I update people on my writing even faster.

[esme-elora]

Aurora: Chapter Two: The Concealed Cordyceps

I understood—deeply, even—how sacred libraries were, but I couldn’t help but feel this was the worst idea I had ever heard. Are you certain these are related? I scribbled. In situations like this, I’d hate for us to waste time on mere coincidences. There are no such things as coincidences, Pietro replied, his pen pressing a little too hard into the silk, making ink bloom in its wake. I was going to refer to you by name and realized I never got your name. I laughed mirthlessly, realizing that he was right. I was so focused on Seer Marcella that I hadn’t introduced myself. Esme. There are no such things as coincidences, Esme, Pietro repeated, especially with the machinations of Queen Phaedra.

Chapter Two of Aurora is now public, so go check it out! If you like horror fantasy about mind-controlling hivemind fungi, bugs, and spicy lesbian romance on the side, this is the novel for you.

Like this story? Support me on Patreon! I post WIPs, worldbuilding, and more there. Paid patrons get access to my Discord as well, where I update people on my writing even faster.

[esme-elora]

I feel bad that some of yall assume Reddit is just for republican neckbeards. it is currently fucking plastered in leftist posts, making fun of trump and musk, calling out trump for basically admitting to election fraud and musk for the fucking salute, people literally openly saying they wish these assholes would die. Some subreddits with broad other purposes have been largely converted into leftist communities. Believing tumblr is the only existing bastion of leftists or whatever WILL make you bitter and miserable lol

[esme-elora]

I'm dead serious some of y'all need to stop commenting shit like "Kill it with fire!!1!" on every post of a bug or any "scary" creature you see. Idgaf if you have a phobia or how many legs it has, having such a violent hateful reaction to any animal is just not normal behavior. And that goes double for posts by someone who's happy about the creature, I'm not asking you to go cuddle bugs just to mind your own business, people don't want to hear how much you hate something they like.

[esme-elora]

Daughter of Hallownest

[esme-elora]

Yes, there will be politics on my social media, and no, I don't care. There is no way to be a speculative fiction author and also be apolitical.

Aurora dances the line between being a horror novel about losing oneself to a hivemind--the ultimate nonexistence--and a lesbian romance between a formerly sex trafficked librarian and an unhoused seafarer. It is not a soft book with no politics.

And if that is hard to stomach, Son of the Scarab King will be even worse as it delves into the horrors of what people (bugs, in this case) will do for and with power. Very topical for the moment!

Yes, I write lesbian romance as a major sideplot in my stories, and yes, they explicitly fuck, but I cannot call myself just a romance writer and keep an appearance of neutrality. Neutrality in these times is victory to the oppressors. I will always be primarily a pro-education speculative writer sneaking my "agenda" into fantasy horror and paralleling the gruesome reality of our world in that of bugs.

I don't care about appealing to right-wing extremists ever, but especially not in times where people in power are doing full Nazi salutes on national television with no public backlash.

[esme-elora]

As we see a barrage of evil executive orders come in, they are not immediately enforceable and will takes months or years to implement.

That’s still not great, but don’t let these pile up to the point of hopelessness. Take a breath, and look community leaders who will fight it every step of the way.

[esme-elora]

Omg is that circle motion the sign for skyhook??? I love it 🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩 it's just like them

EVERYONE THINKS THIS BUT It MEANS YEAR

I've made up very very few signs for RttS, and the in-universe ASL for sky hook is probably just a compound word of SKY and HOOK like the English term

[esme-elora]

im so tired so here's a recap of what trump did today summarized and probably incomplete because we are in super hell:

End birthright citizenship (a.k.a the 14th amendment)

Remove the legal existence of non-binary people

Withdraw from the world health organization

pardon jan 6 people

[esme-elora]

the trolley problem vs. systemic oppression: a comic.

[esme-elora]

This contains some hollow knight spoilers!!!!

I really wanted to draw the dreamers, so here they are!! I got lazy at colouring them tho,,

They’re watching the knight progress in real time through a makeshift tablet!! Sometimes also comment about its actions,,

I got a little idea from it and decided to draw it too,,,

[esme-elora]

[esme-elora]

Blood of the Beast: Chapter Two: Dirtmouth [Hollow Knight/Silksong Lacenet Fanfic]

Summary:

Lace and Hornet journey to Dirtmouth, only to find that the town is not what Hornet expected.

Notes:

A bit of a shorter installment than the last chapter, but I wanted to end this chapter on a cliffhanger. I think it hits a little better this way.

Lace continued to get under Hornet’s shell for the next several days.

Hornet didn’t want to travel with her in the first place; even after the events in the cave, Hornet longed for the comfort of isolation. Perhaps it was simply how she grew up, mostly alone without the constant chatter of a companion to exhaust her, that made her long for alone time.

But at the same time, it wasn’t all bad.

Lace was many things—mischievous, sarcastic, and dangerously flirtatious to the point it made Hornet feel weak and confused—but she was no slouch when it came to combat. With the feral beasts that lurked the Wastelands, a sharp blade and an even sharper mind was necessary for survival.

Lace was blessed with both. Continue Reading

Like this story? Consider supporting me on Patreon for my original bug-centric fantasy horror works, WIPs, first drafts, early releases, access to my Discord server, and more!

[esme-elora]

WIP: Aurora: Chapter Three

Previous

As we dug through information regarding the Cordyceps, the cold unease in my chitin turned into a shivering anxiety.

This seemed like a purposeless mission. Everything in the Athenaeum was destroyed. Nothing here indicated any way to fight the Cordyceps. Pietro’s mother was doomed, and potentially, so were we. My dream, though it perfectly matched images of the Athenaeum in the art we saw within the tomes, was clearly meaningless.

I guess we should leave, I wrote. Even if we find the remains of the structure, there will be nothing within it to read.

Pietro held a hand up at me. He was flipping through the journal, a spare hand resting thoughtfully below his articulated fangs. With the glow of his eyes, it seemed he found something that sparked his interest.

I looked over his shoulder to see what it was.

Continue Reading

[esme-elora]

the cake is a lie

[esme-elora]

WIP: Aurora: Chapter Three

Previous

As we dug through information regarding the Cordyceps, the cold unease in my chitin turned into a shivering anxiety.

This seemed like a purposeless mission. Everything in the Athenaeum was destroyed. Nothing here indicated any way to fight the Cordyceps. Pietro’s mother was doomed, and potentially, so were we. My dream, though it perfectly matched images of the Athenaeum in the art we saw within the tomes, was clearly meaningless.

I guess we should leave, I wrote. Even if we find the remains of the structure, there will be nothing within it to read.

Pietro held a hand up at me. He was flipping through the journal, a spare hand resting thoughtfully below his articulated fangs. With the glow of his eyes, it seemed he found something that sparked his interest.

I looked over his shoulder to see what it was.

Continue Reading

[esme-elora]

Blood of the Beast: Chapter Two: Dirtmouth [Hollow Knight/Silksong Lacenet Fanfic]

Summary:

Lace and Hornet journey to Dirtmouth, only to find that the town is not what Hornet expected.

Notes:

A bit of a shorter installment than the last chapter, but I wanted to end this chapter on a cliffhanger. I think it hits a little better this way.

Lace continued to get under Hornet’s shell for the next several days.

Hornet didn’t want to travel with her in the first place; even after the events in the cave, Hornet longed for the comfort of isolation. Perhaps it was simply how she grew up, mostly alone without the constant chatter of a companion to exhaust her, that made her long for alone time.

But at the same time, it wasn’t all bad.

Lace was many things—mischievous, sarcastic, and dangerously flirtatious to the point it made Hornet feel weak and confused—but she was no slouch when it came to combat. With the feral beasts that lurked the Wastelands, a sharp blade and an even sharper mind was necessary for survival.

Lace was blessed with both. Continue Reading

Like this story? Consider supporting me on Patreon for my original bug-centric fantasy horror works, WIPs, first drafts, early releases, access to my Discord server, and more!