Showing results by author "Daniel Schinhofen" in All Categories

Gregory’s life changed when his aether sparked to life during the Age Day ritual. He left his old friends and his old life behind, and was taken to the Magi Academy to start training to serve the Vela Empire. Suddenly alone and out of place, he prepared for the worst. When the beautiful novice, Yukiko Warlin, asked if they could be friends, his life changed again. After six months of duplicity from the people who they had thought of as friends, Gregory and Yukiko isolated themselves from all the other novices.

Gregory, Yukiko, and Jenn were thrilled—not only had they won their first apprentice tournament, their friends finally joined them in Aether’s Guard. Daciana, Nessa, and Victoria were only halfway through their novice year, but had made an impact during their novice tournament.

Alvin was happy to finally give Gothy one of the things she’d been begging for all along - a plane. So, he was understandably upset when it died in its first, short-lived flight as they helped the Red River Army Depot fend off a horde of zombies from Dallas. Gothy was happy to get a replacement for the plane, however, and the armored vehicle sporting a BIG gun pleased Alvin as well. With the Bradley Fighting Vehicle in their possession, he couldn’t help but wonder what could possibly be a real challenge in the future.

After making several profitable deals, it was time to go back through the Twurgh Gate and return to Earth. Alvin and Gothy had been surprised to learn that the newest member of their harem was a princess, but neither was willing to leave Desiree behind. Once they were back on Earth, Alvin proposed a new destination, much to the amusement of his companions. They all agreed and went south out of Colorado, into New Mexico. The road south led them back to old friends in new places; Johnny, the native shaman from Bridgeport, was in Ignacio and in desperate need of help.

The Path to Peace brought them to the gates of the old city. Now Alburet and his friends will need to find their way into the vaults under the city. They will need to bypass the undead and the cultists that roam the city to even find those tunnels, and that’s only the start of the troubles they will face. Traitors to Stormguard are uncovered, and the King will have to be told. That can only happen after they deal with the two quests that have brought them this far.

Nearly everything in Gregory’s life had changed by the end of his first year at the academy. Alone at the start of his novice year, he’d gotten engaged to Yukiko Warlin and found a friend in Jenn Bean by the time the annual tournament was over. The three of them went on to join Aether’s Guard, bringing the name of the nearly dead clan back to life. Elder Lightshield, the leader of Aether’s Guard, gave them his support and backing and Magus Dia guided them.

Sean was just waiting for his best friend to show up at the bar so they could play some pool. It came as a shock when the tall blonde man accosted Sean and demanded that he change seats. His refusal would change his life. When the fight ended, Sean found himself in the strangest meeting of his life. Odin, Archangel Michael, Lucifer, and Morrigan all vied for his soul, each offering different deals. Sean had to choose, so he chose to go with the goddess of Fate, Death, and Battle.

Alvin woke in a room that was not his, to discover that he had died and his brain had been bargained off cheaply to pay off someone else’s debt. It did not sit well with him. It didn’t surprise him that even in death, people were still using him for their own purposes. He had never exactly been a good guy, but everyone had their breaking point, and he had found his. The bastards in charge had uploaded his mind into a virtual death game. The whole world could now pay to see him play it and probably die. Regardless, he was not about to wait for death to come for him.

With their initiate year over, the Pettit family dispersed to their separate adept postings: Jenn would be on the border with Krogga, defending against incursions. Yukiko was to patrol near Alturis, giving her the chance to see Gregory’s home and childhood friends. Mindy was going back to Grackle to help their younger friends with their troop training. Gregory was headed off to the far northern end of the empire, going to what was known as the most dangerous patrol for an adept magi.

Sean had long waited for his chance to avenge his friends from Oakwood— when the time finally came, it was with several unlikely allies: High Lady Minerva Queensblood, who felt her family owed Sean for helping her son, Commander Queensblood. Advisor Mackenzie Earthfoot, who had to walk a thin line to not favor Sean too much, lest she earn the Queens’ ire. With his friends and allies, Sean time and again thwarted Lord Truestrike and his minions. He even befriended his daughter, Dame Trisha Truestrike, giving her hope that she might one day see Darragh again.

At the end of their apprentice year, Aether’s Guard headed off to Buldoun for an international tournament. They had allies there in the Swift Wind and Iron Hand clans, but they also had to deal with the Eternal Flame; Nick Shun had no interest in letting go of his perceived grudge against Aether’s Guard. However, with the academy overseer on the trip, Nick had no chance to act out against them.

Gregory and his wives fought honorably and hard to advance to the finals, where their last fight was against the Eternal Flame. With their rigorous training and communication, they managed to defeat the arrogant clan, letting them stand alongside their novice friends as champions. The excitement of being the champions wasn’t the happiest part of their year, though. That came after the tournament, when all five of their friends—Nessa, Daciana, Victoria, Clover, and Ling—joined Aether’s Guard.

Alistern “Stern” Masterson never expected to have the sort of life he found himself living. He was an irregular - a person who looked like the undead and had unusual perks - and his life hadn’t been very pleasant, so he’d written off the idea of ever finding anyone who understood him. Then, an old lady had asked for help, and he’d given it....

After tightening the Bonds with his friends, Sean worked toward new things and trying to fix past mistakes. He and his growing family had just moved into a new home and hired on new staff for day-to-day matters. All he wanted to do was craft and love his wives, and it seemed like the peaceful life he hoped for might be within his reach. 

John Doc Henry had been on the shortest, crappiest end of the stick since the first day of his life; no parents, bad foster parents, and abysmal luck at every turn. The day his life changed started out exactly like he had come to expect. His car died on a rarely traveled road, and he broke his toe shortly after dodging the one other car on the road. When it stopped and backed up to him, the license plate read “LADYLUK”, adding insult to injury.

Dungeon Walkers brave the depths of the dungeons for personal gain - clearing a dungeon means dungeon points to purchase gear with, but more importantly, perks. Perks are the main reason Walkers put their lives on the line. Every time a dungeon is cleared the first time, a Walker gets a choice of three perks that could change their lives. Not every Walker makes it out alive. When someone dies in the dungeon, their soul is fragmented into four shards, which can be purchased for dungeon points. 

After crushing the first obstacle, he was now set to fight a duel as Fredrick’s champion. Sean won the duel handily, once he got past the surprise of facing both Aria and Cuander, Lord Sharpeyes’ prized cuon, and went on to save Aria from death at the hands of Lord Sharpeyes’ son, Knight Evan Sharpeyes. But Sean’s troubles are just beginning. The plans Lord Sharpeyes have set into motion began to unfold, setting the stage for events that will push Sean to his limits.

Sean and his Bonded settled in Hearthglen to learn, train, and grow. Taking on an apprentice, setting up his shop, and Bonding both Chastity and Andrea to him, Sean felt like he would finally be able to learn about this world and try his hand at new things. Sean stepped on some toes as he tried to find his place in the city, but by ignoring conventions, he friended smith and Shaper alike, forging friendships across the divide. The newly formed alliance discovered common ground when opposition rose up to hinder them.

After visiting Nevada, California, and two apocalypse gates, Alvin was tired. With Gothy, and now Kuro, beside him, they faced necromancers, an undead army, and saved a queen from assassination. Alvin could only wonder what was going to be thrown at them next! First, however, a vacation was in order. Returning to Green River, seeing the first settlement he had helped build, and revisiting old friends was cathartic. Alvin knew that he would not be able to stay long, as something was bound to happen to push them back on the road again.

Tales from the Dead Man Inn is an anthology set in Alpha World. These collected stories cover well known and loved characters, as well as some lesser seen NPCs.