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Click here"Of course something is wrong," Ingrid began, but Mike opened his eyes and shook his head.
"It's not marchers. There's something else out here," he said, gesturing ahead. "Not a spirit, something physical, like a person. People, actually."
"But who?" Ingrid asked.
He shook his head. "No idea. But we've got a problem." Looking down the hill, he could sense the spirits closing in. "We're stuck between a rock and a hard place. Ideas?"
"Retrieve Leilani and run like hell. Is there any other option?" Ingrid fired her wand at a trio of warriors who had scrambled over some nearby rocks toward their position. One fell, vanishing into the darkness and filling the air with whispers. Brief flashes of light in the jungle revealed that some of the Order were still alive.
Mike grimaced. There were probably a dozen better options available, but he only had seconds to contemplate them. With adrenaline and magic surging through his body, he couldn't come up with anything better. The longer he waited, the more likely it was that Leilani would fall to her pursuers. "Once more, unto the breach, I guess."
The forest ahead bent away, expediting their passage. Ratu stayed at the rear of the procession, her flames now a pair of serpents that circled her body and breathed fire at spirits who came close. Quetzalli was panting with exertion behind Mike, and he could feel the humidity thicken as clouds formed overhead, blotting out the night sky. Ingrid's wands glowed with sinister energy, occasionally blasting a shadow that leapt out in front of them.
Foliage gave way to thick, jagged rocks. Up near the top, Leilani was frantically stabbing her trident down at her assailants. Mike sent lightning spiders ahead to help illuminate the area, and was stunned when the attackers spun around to reveal skeletons in ragged clothes. Several were armed with scimitars while the rest carried daggers, oars, and even a broken surfboard.
"What the actual hell?" muttered Ingrid. "Are those...zombies? Skeletons? Undead pirates?"
Mike didn't know the answer, but it didn't matter. The undead turned their attention away from Leilani, who now gazed down at Mike in relief. Dark blue blood flowed down her arms and torso, and she looked to be on the verge of collapse.
Ingrid's wands lit up and she started blasting. Arcane energy tore into the skeletal figures like shotgun rounds, blowing off limbs as Mike advanced. Serpents of fire ripped the skeletons away from the rocky crag, tossing them over the side of the mountain. Quetzalli held out a single hand and called forth a small bolt of lightning that blew up a pair of skeletons near the edge.
With the tide turning, the skeletons closest to Leilani spun around and tried to take her out. She stabbed down at them, then dropped her trident when her arm was slashed open.
"Damn!" Mike crouched down and Ingrid hopped off, her magic shattering a nearby foe. Dodging rusted blades, he climbed up the rocks and grabbed the skeletons from behind, yanking them off balance so they tumbled away. Leilani scrambled to her feet when he reached her side, her eyes filled with tears. Below, the forest erupted as night marchers appeared from the woods and engaged both the living and the dead in combat.
"Caretaker," Leilani whimpered, clutching his arm for support. He looked down at the spectral melee below and felt his magic climb its way through his stomach and into his throat.
"Plug your ears," he yelled, then took a deep breath and released the banshee's scream once more. The air rippled away from him with magical fury, causing the skeletal warriors to clutch their skulls and sprint away, several of them falling off the mountain. The night marchers melted away into the darkness, their chants of war going with them. The women below all clutched at their ears, staggering around as his magic overwhelmed them. There were earplugs back in the tent, but the attack had been so sudden that nobody had grabbed them.
The magic cascaded down the mountain like thunder. In the distance, he could hear his scream echo back to him. If nothing else, he had bought them a reprieve, but his throat was now raw from the effort. Rubbing at his neck, he moved to help Leilani down the rocks when he felt her freeze in place. Looking up, he saw Francois stumble through the trees, his face and arms bloodied. He was clutching his sword in one hand and a flintlock pistol in the other.
"It's about fucking time," Mike declared, then realized his mistake when he felt Leilani slide behind him in an effort to hide. "Aw, fuck nuts."
"Two for one," declared Captain Francois as he leveled the flintlock pistol at Mike. "Some luck at last."
Magic flooded Mike's body as he twisted to one side, guided by precognition as Francois fired his gun. Mike's magic ripped free of his body, forming into a sphere of electrical energy that attempted to push the bullet to one side. Neither his precognition nor his magic was enough, and the impact of the musket ball to his shoulder twisted him sideways and caused him to trip over the mermaid trying desperately to hide in his shadow. The air erupted with fire and lightning, but Mike saw neither as he lost his balance and plummeted over the edge of the cliff, tangled up with Leilani.
Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal, he thought to himself as pain flooded his body. His consciousness flickered as he used his good arm to unstopper Opal's bottle, and then the whole world went dark.
I read that some of you were getting tired of cliffhangers, so I made sure nobody was hanging on one for the end of this chapter! (I also may have misunderstood the assignment)
Much love to all my readers! Give yourself a nice, big hug, because you've earned it!
~Annabelle Hawthorne
- COMMENTS
Aw Fuck Nuts is right. That damn chapter couldn't have been more than five minutes long! I just started it. Arrgghhh, don't leave me here!!!
Just breath. It's okay, just keep saying that. It's okay!
I can already tell that the next six chapters, all there are for now, wil go by in mere minutes. Damn!
No cliffhanger here! Thank you Annabelle! 😘😘😘
I have been catching many movie references. Which means I've missed most of them, and I don't I want a thing of that.
Wow! That was one of the best chapters ever. It had everything I came to love from this series, a hot sex scene, Lily's snide remarks, action, a fantastic cliffhanger (or -faller) and a nice twist.
I can't say much more than it is fantastic and I really have not a single bad thing to say, it was simply perfect.
Thank you for sharing this masterpiece! Five stars as always.
Oh my god... (sorry Lily), I fucking love Jenny when she's in 'stop the bad guys' mode. I was genuinely bouncing in my seat when I got to that part!! So good. Amazing work!
I am fucking loving your stories. I started at chapter 1 have read your 2.5 spinoffs and constantly looking forward to next next chapter, but dreading catching up with you and I have to await the next release. Love how SoS got a doll up his ass.
I love you, Annabelle. Your stories continue to delight me. They are, by turns, fun, thrilling, hot, hilarious, and moving.
I think your dictionary is broken if that was your definition of a cliffhanger.... LOL
That director character is a dirty as a swamp. Things are not as they seem but Mike and his family have more tricks up their collective sleeves...
Yeah Firefly reference for the win. Does anyone else think that the Director could be another title of a player in the great game
Hmmmm a cliff hanger you say. Been awhile. Look forward to catching up.
Best wishes
I love the cliffhangers
They make you eager for the next chapter.
Thumbs up for Jenny
This, you snarky woman! Is why I wait till there are 10 or 12 chapters available to read! Keep em coming!
OMG, you've done it again.
It's been a big of a roller-coaster. One minute I'm laughing at the antics of Jenny, then I'm getting all maudlin about Mike's tyrade about family.
More belly laughing Jenny please, please, please!!! IBOL
I wouldn't be surprised if Francois had anything to do with the midnight disaster....
He has at least a double agenda...🤔
to Anonymous with the predictions, Darius is Sarah (daughter of Elizabeth both working with/for Amir) after we saw the blue stone necklace a chapter or so back. That's how he knows about the House, door to the Laby, etc.
next chapter should drop tomorrow! /happydance
If Mike son Carlos can find a way to turn his horse legs to human leg, I think the daughter should be able to do the same and she is suppose to also have the nymph power also
Got too admit was not a fan of this chapter the scene between beth and lily just seemed really unnatural and forced these characters have never shown this kind of interaction before so it seems really gross and messed up can't understand why the author thought something like this was a good idea honestly this scene just really ruins lily as a character and completely destroyed any liking i had for her as a character and don't even get me started on beth honestly worst character ever created in this story she seems to just do what ever she wants and gets away with it including cuckolding mike and people seem to cheer for her while she does it absolutely abhorrent character she truly is.
Loved this chapter! I wish you luck with going full-time. I bought the e-books from your website earlier this year and I can’t wait for more to come out in e-book form. I’m pretty hyped for Mike getting together with Leilani and I thought it was so fun seeing Beth and Lily have some time together. Perfect for our beloved size-queen.
Yay Cecilia's traits coming back into play even if we haven't seen her in quite awhile. Should have known dear Jenny would have everything under control at home hehehe! Another amazing addition Annabelle!
Only most of the way through page one but sexy shenanigans and mixing and matching with house mates has definitely been on my mind such as Lily and Beth!!
I can tolerate misspellings and grammatic missteps, but I really appreciate the effort it takes to keep them out of text. Fiction is so much harder than fact-based stories, because fiction needs to be consistent. I have yet to see any inconsistencies. I know they have to exist, this is a human endeavor, but they are not obvious.
Simply awesome writing. A fine product.
<3 Jenny shenanigans!
Awesome writing as always! Looking forward to see what's over the cliff.
Thanks for you forewords, congrats on taking the dive into full time writing, take care of yourself :)
Will your writing ever cease to amaze, is agony to wait for the next chapter but it is so worth the wait.
Holy smoley Writerannabelle, 103 chapters of awesome!
Enjoyed every single moment of it!
ive totally enjoyed this story please please send the next chapter. mike is a hero and i want to read to the end
Can’t wait to see what Opel can do.
I wonder when she’ll get a go with Mike?
Also wondering what Francois’s plan is? I get wanting Mike’s properties, but why kill Leilani?
curse you and your cliff hangers (I actually love them :-) your ability to build tension is just getting better and better,
definitely worth the 5 stars
Yet another amazing chapter!
I am always wonder how you get all this imagination to keep us on our tiptoe
I infert is also come to long lasting and demanding effort from a disciplined and engaged person
Marvelous erotico-fantastic stories
Wonder how many more times the author is going to cuck mike by my count She's already done it twice and people wonder why beth is despised so much.
Just finished a re-read of the entire series. Thanks
Wondering when Mike will finally meet the Hawaiian goddess Kummonawannalaya?
Predictions:
Director is Ratu's ex and in Naga form attacked the Merfolk. Control of / or revenge against Order for Ratu's escape. (Director now has leverage over Mike: Beth )
Amir: Running SoS either as Darian or other boss. (no women)
Francios: The skeletons that attacked group are crew from ship. Player originally wanting to destabilize Merfolk enough to have them attack Order or Caretaker and then seize kingdom, but now has chance to take over Monarchy and Caretaker.
Where's Wallace: Fighting / injured He is an ass, yes. I don't think he's the betrayal type though.
Ingrid: On her way to be an ally 100%
Cyrus: Retired / Ally / New Director? Will end up rescued by Eulalie and or Grace. Lily fixes his arachnophobia like she did for Darren's nightmares.
SoS: Mike will have rats steal gold in Order vaults to pay off / Jenny forces them to cut their losses and leave. Eulalie and Lily track each one down and Lily give them the soul suck.
Does anyone else hear Death speaking in the voice of Grim from "The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy?
Not a cliff hanger? REALLY!
I love your humor in and out of the story..More than once I have been left to explain to my wife, what is so funny.
Thank you for entertaining my all this time..
A wonderful page turner, I have been reading this story for weeks, it has cost me so much grief when I don't get on with the things I'm supposed to be doing.
Aaaand my moment of …..wait, Whut?…noooo!! has finally come as I have binged/devoured this story until suddenly I am up to date. Can’t wait to see where the story goes.
Thanks for the tip about flaring the base! I had to do each book individually, so if I hadn’t been able to take out book 1 I’d never have gotten this far
Okay so let's get this straight beth has a harem of monster guys ok that's fair but now she is not only on this grand bang as many monster guys as possible binge but NOW She's literally trying to cuck mike SERIOUSLY by by encroaching on mikes personal relationships wow the the misandry is strong in this chapter.
Well...that was a great chapter, huh?
Where to start?
Tink is the best comedy relief in the chapter. Lily and Death are the next two funniest, and probably why those three are my favorite characters overall. If it was just those three and Mike in a road movie, I'd probably be really happy.
Both a Firefly reference AND Terminator discussion? Nicely done.
Is it really a 'cliffhanger' if they are already falling? I think not. Also, everybody loves a good one. One day, when these stories are all anthologized into one published tome each book, nobody will mind at all, it will just be called a 'page-turner' at that point. Heck, people just finding this story a year from now won't mind either.
It's always interesting that people bash 'anonymous' commenters on this site...a gigantic percentage of people on 'regular' social media are using fake/altered/hidden names, and that is just because they are conservatives with poorly formed opinions that will get them fired for racism/sexism/etc...but people get ruffled when a SEX SITE has people that don't want to be found out?? You'd lose 85% of your traffic in a heartbeat...yes, it does seem like sometimes it might be more than one post from the same person, but also, it might just be people have the same thoughts. Unless you can pick up a writing pattern (or those people are really thoughtful about disguising it), it seems unlikely, if still frustrating. Nobody complains when most of the anonymous comments are positive, do they? Why aren't they 'spam' replicas? At least be consistent in your criticism.
Beth...what do say about Beth? Seems increasingly divisive. Our dear writer seems dedicated to her, so she obviously isn't going anywhere, regardless the complaints (and it is HER story).
She does seem to have missed her arc though. If there is any misstep in the series, Beth feels like it. Should have hooked up with Mike earlier, it feels like. (The emotional pay off was delayed so much it became passe` by the time it happened.) Shouldn't have gone all 'size queen'. (It's a series about a guy's harem...and she is the 'living' embodiment of emasculation of normal-dicked dudes everywhere. Interesting faux pas...) She should just stay at the cabin in the woods with her boy-harem at this point. (Totally spin her off and give her a series of adventures on her own, like Dana, the other, even more 'failed' character.)
For me...the actual issue I have with her is...magic. The thing that made Beth special for a lot of us out here is she was the one 'normal' person in Mike's life. The one touchstone back to humanity for a guy surrounded by the unbelievable. Much like a Doctor Who Companion is often seen/used as the surrogate for the audience's view into that world, Beth served much the same purpose, I believed. Whether she ended up with Mike exclusively isn't the point (not in a harem story), but that she would be a bit more special, at least in one way. Now, she is essentially a 'monster' too, and while that means she fits in with the crowd, I suppose, it means she is also just one more IN the crowd now. Because she was in so early, she had that feel of the 'two main leads' in a long Tv show arc, bound to get together, but when will they? Part of that still happened (obviously), but it was too little, too late, and after Beth was decidedly NOT very special anymore.
I also think, this chapter, in particular, that people who are now rooting for Lily (which I think includes...me?) feel like, Lily is cheating on Mike with his best friend, maybe? Like, Beth was really almost friend-zoned, it took so long, and Lily was ALSO a very early character, so maybe SHE gets 'saved/fixed/redeemed' at the end of this all, and SHE is Mike's number one (yeah, sorry Tink, love ya, but it ain't you). Like...Mike got cuckolded (and I HATE that term) BY Beth with Lily. (Which is NOT something I think anybody would have considered 80 something chapters ago.)
Just some guessing there, obviously, but reading these comments and previous chapters' as well, that might be some explanation for the 'Beth hate'. (For the record, I don't hate Beth, I just no longer care much for her story line. If the Lumineers have taught us nothing else, it's that the opposite of Love is indifference. She isn't special [anymore], and seems almost like some sort of planned 'evening out' of the harem trope, like a feminist rebellion took place and somebody forced the shift in her characterization. Which...as a feminist myself, normally doesn't bother me. In this case, it just didn't fit who Beth was originally, and doesn't seem organic now. As somebody else wrote, I now almost skim her parts. I'm only reading for plot implications, not because I care about her at all, really.)
Ingrid is TOTALLY going to be on Team Mike at some point, probably a solid hook up, maybe (probably) this book, maybe the next. Somebody always gets redeemed each book...this time, Ingrid. Not 'harem' material, exactly, she has her oaf and is too business-minded, but a future ally-in-the-making for certain.
Leilani is an interesting idea. She is a bit tied to the ocean, at least in the longer view (obviously she can spend time out of the water, but it would feel 'wrong' if she moved into Mike's main house). I'm guessing some sort of arrangement for her people and Mike's property is in the offing, and if he comes back, she will always be waiting for him. Obviously they hook up in this book.
Jenny...a crowd favorite of late (at the least), seems best serving as the 'bogeyman', a sort of Captain Marvel-esque secret weapon that can't be used every time because nobody else is needed then, are they? Too much spoils the story, so far, used appropriately.
Eulalie...like many, I have no great fondness for spiders, in any form, but she has been well-executed in this book. No personal need for her (dead) sister or niece, but to each their own. (I was about to say 'weird own', but it's a series dedicated to every weird-ass creature known to the imagination, so who am I to judge others? I'm still reading, five books in, aren't it?)
The snake and the dragon make such a good team, it was about time they got to flex their talents. Much like Jenny, though, I feel Ratu (in particular) is almost overpowered for this world and needs to be used delicately. So far, all aces on that front.
It's been said before, but bears repeating...the world-building aspect of this series is epic, and I hope people realize the absolutely insane amount of work that part of the stories alone is. Writing the rest, the plot, the dialogue, character depth/personalities, all are challenging in their own right, but to create such a VAST universe? Yes, most-to-all of these creatures are not unique or new creations as such, but the House, the Game, the connections to each creatures lore and having them sensibly intertwine? EPIC. It literally cannot be understated how amazing that is, nearly on parallel with the greats such as Tolkien, Douglas Adams, King, Lewis...yes, seriously. Go write a book with even three characters and have it take place in your basement, it might be good, but the creation of details to your 'world' would be hard enough at that paltry scale, believe me.
Traveling about to vastly different geographical locations, to various realms beyond our own reality? That's astounding beyond measure.
Lastly, quick shout out to whoever is doing the editing. As somebody whose task it is both for editing and continuity, it is another (typically) underappreciated part of storytelling that on this site is especially hard to come by. Making a story cohesive and immersive is hard enough, but when it is broken by poor grammar, misused syntax or the like, it makes the difference betwixt good writing and an awesome story.
Lastly-last (sorry), best of luck going full-time. Based on these stories, the writer, Annabelle, can do it and be better than most published authors. It will be interesting to see if she publishes THESE stories at some point, and if so, are they with the full porn angle, muted, or removed? I honestly think any can work, but it is about reaching the desired audience best. Purely to reach the MOST, leave in only the allusions of what happened. The rest of the stories are all strong enough to survive on the plots alone. Some might feel that is a betrayal, but these are already here, so why deny the writer a bigger paycheck by going mainstream a bit more?
No matter what, even us anonymous readers will be buying, when the time comes.
"Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal" ... Yes, I pictured the dinosaurs lol
I clap Carcharias, comment about other. anonymous commenter.
Ah! Ano's poor sexual performance as a trick to justify Beth and Lily hot scene. with hilarious Tinks breaks in is a nice one.
I didn't understand why the house don't sent SoS to the underworld with the empty house but of course it was clear with Jenny stellar performance and now I have a hunch with the comment bout Grace and Callisto.
Francois, the Captain, is a pirate captain so it was pretty clear that the betrayal would come from him.
I readed this chapter after D&H ch 20. both of them outstanring works. I can not say wich one is my favourite.
And now I join the awaiting readers list. Thank you so much,plase don't stop writing.
Joined this family of readers at ch. 24 so happy 80th chapter for me hope this will go on for ever much love and as always 5 stars
F****ing amazing!! One of your best chapters. Mike in control, finaly with a plan, and has usually it lasted until the enemy show's up. 😁 about the cliff hanger, mission failed successfully!!
A big hug for you for deliberately misunderstanding the assignment and so providing another very entertaining chapter.
Okay, okay you win!
Definitely not a cliff "hanger".
But DAMN, everytime I start a new release I promise myself to read it slowly, but then I get sucked into the story and BAM read it quick!
Keep up the great work Ma'am
Sincerely Lost D
Very considerate giving the mercenaries an empty shell of a house to practice maneuvers in. Jenny even shared by letting one pick out a dolly!
Cyrus. Ingrid. Imagine there are others who could be rehabilitated. They just would be difficult to find, even more so to exfiltrate ;{
Stupid Francois just could not wait for the existing problem at the top of the hill to be resolved. Instead of a faction against the Princess, he wants whatever it is to continue destroying -all- the mermaids?
While not a literal "someone hanging to a rock or branch on a cliff", still need to find the squirt bottle. And an extra 10 demerits for trying to talk your way out with misleading semantics ;}
Okay I'm confused here i thought lily was in love with mike so why is she sleeping with beth and also i thought beth had her own harem so why is she sleeping with lily when she already knows lily loves mike wtf is going on?
It’s interesting how all the vitriolic hate for Beth is coming from anonymous posters. Makes me wonder if it’s all from the same anonymous poster. She’s been here since chapter 1, man. It’s chapter 103 and you’re still spouting mindless hate. If you really hate her that much, stop reading.
This was an amazing chapter. Jenny is slowly becoming my favorite psychopath ghost.
You and your cliff hangers. You need to take Mike's place for that one.
:P
Tannim