Surfacing Ch. 34

AWWWW YISSS.

For reference of me right now, see the last panel on this page:
http://grrlpowercomic.com/archives/672

(Gra nted, I'm male, not female, and I'm drooling over some high-quality writing, BUT STILL.)

Damn

This is quiet a long one
Will take a little time to read

How are they alive?!?

Fantastic read as always Etaski!

What a power vaccum you have left! Not to mention the groundwork for the societal restructuring. Absolutely fascinating, I can't wait to see where you will take us next. Although to be honest, I struggle to understand how some of these players are still alive, you explained it, but still it's the only thing that tore me out a bit from enjoying your saga. At least incapacitate or maim a few! Although, epic battles with minimal to no casualties IS a general gripe I have with fantasy *LoTR cough*, so I guess I shouldn't be too disappointed/ suprised. I mean I mourn character deaths and never really like them, but it lends a bit of credibility/ reality to fantasy. Loved the Phaleous plot for this reason. Keep up the fantastic work!

Dear TravelingSoul

Gald you enjoyed overall. I hear and have thought on this discussion a lot. Which is "better"? 100% realism in fantasy (i.e. like GoT, random and "nonsensical" deaths leaving plot lines and character potential unfulfilled (a lot real life)), classic storytelling/fantasy (most stories) where deaths only serve the greater purpose and the listeners have closer closure and see potential achieved (unlike real life, that's fantasy and man's search for meaning in the universe), or "body count" deaths where you just look at the most expendable characters and pick which will die just because somebody has to, but it won't be the main characters?

I've thought on this, and I made my decision. :) I've also failed to please everybody with it. Oh well.

Most of this was an emotional and metaphysical battle in this chapter anyway, comparatively speaking. You haven't seen part 3 yet. ;) That's the physical battle with an army and everything. I also disagree that more major characters aren't maimed, it just might take a while to show how and why. Even the most powerful healer they have had to pick himself up out of the pool and set aside the damage he'd sustained to feel it later, because the one he wanted to save most was still in danger.

Will start on that Part 3 now. ^_^ Thanks for reading!

Magnificent as always

I love stories that shows the bare essence of the character or in this case, characters. This story has it in spades and more than 50 shades.

Almost

So close, so incredibly close to hitting a home run... So it weren't the spiders but the pneuma flint that sent Lolth to the Greylands. Except that it wasn't really Lolth, it weren't really the Greylands and it wasn't the pneuma flint but Sirana... can I at least chalk up a hit for being in the right neighborhood?
Great twist nonetheless.

Some questions:
a) was Innathi part of the old quest as well or did Ishuna just mean nobody from that time can survive?
b) could Sirana somehow be the messenger for the Broken One or was she just improvising - maybe with an intuition - to get rid of the demon? Could be challenging to reinstate the god that almost destroyed the world.
c) Finally I sort of understand what the Noldor are doing and I guess them storing souls is what depletes the pool from their end, but it feels like it should already be dry if they don't feed it and Lolth happily steals whatever she can get. I mean how big can a reservoir be that wasn't supposed to run out of supply?

Greetings, G

I've been checking Literotica over and over again just waiting for an update to your story and now I've basically devoted the entire day to reading it when I should be attending to other things like the fact that I've had damp hair for hours now and am probably going to get pneumonia or something because it's entering winter here in the southern hemisphere.

I have theories and questions as usual but I can't even remember them yet because I'm overwhelmed. Once again, I love how you create characters that you can hate and love at the same time. I love that you create characters that you can completely love no matter what they do. I'm actually so thankful to you for writing your story and voicing characters, especially female characters, who are so full and are not some shallow rendering of a binary on what a person is supposed to be according to their gender that we continue to see so often in various entertainment media. And you do it in such a natural way that it doesn't feel like a forced crafted icon that doesn't ring true.

Thanks, for the awesome chapter. I was shouting my huzzahs all the way through, and snorting with mirth at the always perfectly placed humour. I am so looking forward to the next chapter.

sooo,,,,

effin good - this is the best of the genre that i have read in the last 50+ years - thanks for your time and talent!

RE Alive?

Argh the computer mystics are my reply!
Short version for now:

I can see where you're comming from. Thank you for taking the time to explain your perspective! I do admit you've tackled discussions and plots surrounding a lot of emotional scars that have been nuanced and riveting, so perhaps this is more beneficial to the plot than unnecessary deaths. However, I suppose I'm still just a bit confused by how spirit/ soul/ aura injuries impact physical bodies and how significantly events that occur on the spirit plane effect physical bodies.

Going to try to keep up... ;)

@ lanncer: Thank you! ^_^ Haaaah, cute play on words. ;)

@Greetings, G/flying_sheep: *laughing* You can definitely consider it a hit as you've been in the neighborhood for a while. ;)
your questions:
a) Innathi had the same kind of connection and potential (at the time) that Sirana/D'Shea/Phaelous/Gaelan/Mourn/Jael do now. In the time being part of Soul Drinker, her role changed to an outright adversary to the quest, same as Cris-ri-phon.
b) Sirana was jumping on intuition to support Ta'suil. The rest of your thought will be addressed in this story. :)
c) Well, the Noldor Priests are as choosey as they are hoarders. ;) Neither deity is draining every drop, just using different methods. (Although the two well-aged, cultivated ones Lolth wanted whole.) You'll get a bit more on this topic in this story as well.

@Anonymous 1 and 2: I am humbled by the praise. Thank you. The characters are the most important thing to me; their wholeness makes the story all it can be.

@TravelingSoul: Thank you for considering the benefits the story has had for you. It's actually been a deeply-contemplative and fascinating subject for me, so please take this response as my accepting a philosophy debate for the sheer mental stimulation. :) I grew up with my favorite stories showcasing characters that served a purpose within the story and through their actions helped explore the human experience in its own way. The Story is All, and above all, the story is flexible, not a biography of real events. The story could explore death if it needed to but it could explore so much else, too, as long as the writing and characters were convincing. It can be overdone and lose its sense of urgency or danger if done poorly, but it can also be satisfying on its own when earned with dedication to those characters. I personally have noticed how rarely I care about a named-character death in many movies nowadays; like never killing anyone, killing too many can also be overdone and lose its sense of power.

I've only noticed recently the "demand" for a certain quota of named-character bodies in a dramatic/epic story, and I felt resistant when some readers pushed me toward it, even making suggestions or bets who will die. I had to seriously consider why, and also why some readers felt unsatisfied without them. Was I doing a disservice to the story being "too soft"? Was I afraid to kill a character? The answer to both is "no." My first thought whenever I rebelled was: "They haven't fulfilled their purpose." I am telling a story and I don't need to meet a quota to make it a good one. I had to decide the direction for my story, and I did.

That being said, I maintain: we still have a Part 3. :)

As for the "how" confusion (no, I didn't forget), well....metaphysical is abstract. In this story, injuries sustained to one's "body" during a trance are more often spiritual and/or mental ones. It is very, very rare that it manifests as a physical injury on the "prime material plane" (we only saw it happen once in this current chapter and it is significant). Combine the spirit with the unique magic of that individual, and you have their aura. Like a physical body, mind and aura can heal and heal faster with aid. Like a medic responding to a broken bone or a stab wound, magical creatures like the Elves of this world can respond to the metaphysical injuries if they know how and are willing to connect with the one injured. (Mourn is an expert at this, by the way; his healing spells are paltry but his ability to lend magical strength is massive.) And most Elves have an instinctive desire to help mend auras for those they care about. The Drow have just had some lengthy social issues with accepting the desire/ability on behalf of others.

Oh. My. Goodness!

Loved this chapter the whole way through! Time to re-read and let it sink in.
I had to laugh at Ishuna dying of a dagger in a mage battle :) Also glad that she was successful in freeing herself from Loth. Looking forward to seeing how the driders are done in the next chapter and if Sirana can control them! I'm guessing it will take awhile for her to completely recover after first the one visit to the dreamscape drained her and then needing to take more control in directing the second.
Pier

Enjoing it still very much ... but little bit torn inside

The very much awaited action is here .. yet the outcome leaves me uncertain. The ploot is too deep i feel confused and uncertain what exacly happened. Does it mean they all are now champions? Why is Sirana talking in name of that broken god? Its ... so confusing..It was so fun to read about it but yet when i think about it i realized i still dont rly know what exacly happened. I mean they won ... but who here was doubting that outcome anyway? Since we all know nobody of the main hero line can die? Anwser to "how" question is not exacly available to me from this chapter, and i hoped it will provide some. Also the Synthre case... Hes change makes me think that all the problem was the Demon influence.. and the moment Sirana cut that he was straight on her side again. While before this chapter i was pretty sure that was NOT the case. So which one is it? Does it mean that the Tasuil could finally heal true queen soul and that would make her available to Sirana convincing her and turning her from the bad way? Similar to Synthre? What is the case with the half babies having the price from the queen's sister? Why did the dagger queen so blindly run towards the death? Dint she truly have any other choices? What abouth Indrath?

Soo many questions i think the riddles are starting to be too much for me.

etaski!!

The painful part is waiting for the next part....in a month? I keep picturing this story as a movie. Wow! It'll be awesome!

Wow, it lives up to it's promise....

Magnificent, astounding, really really good read, you both describe this other world and you let us live it with you!

Wow

I mean totaly blown away. A good story teller can paint a picture in the mind a great one can make you feel what the character is feeling, but only the trule rarest of rare, superb can transport there readers into the story like you do.
Now as someone else said the hard part waiting on the next chapter.

Amazing

Wow, it's been a while since I started reading about Sirana's world and it keeps on getting better and better... no matter how amazing it was from the beginning. Congrats, really... telling such a complex story with such fluidity and efficiency, while producing such an addicting effect on the reader... that's far far from amateur

Breath taking

It difficult to comprehend how the complexity of your story can be brought out in only a month or so per chapter.

Your talent is greatly appreciated.
Thank you

I know this story is for Literotica only, but.....

I really, really, really want this tale in a finely printed and bound hardback on my bookshelf. I'm thinking something in a nice rich leather.

Etaksi, you have crafted the most intricate, nuanced and involving series on the site, bar none. I'm pretty certain that my male brain with its limited emotional intelligence is missing many of the subtleties and implications of it all, but by golly I'm still reading and thoroughly enjoying it.

I've been with you since partway through Sufferance (over three years now that I check the dates!) and fully intend to be with you as long as you keep writing.

wow

Can't tell you how much I look forward to each chapter.. I'm desperate to read what happens next.
A truly great story well written and I would love to buy the hard copy to be able to reread over and over.
Thank you

I am flabbergasted.

My gast has been totally flabbered.

Well worth the wait. Thank you so much Etaski!
I look forward to the next one!

Thank you

You have a mind so lovely etaski. I going to miss this story when it gets over.

Jus amazing

You have a knack... u can churn out stories so well laid out. Kudos. U gotta publish it.

Fu$%&$g Amazing

Once again you out do yourself. I bow low in your presence, as this has to be one of the best stories I have ever read. Better than the best published book I have ever read, regardless of author.

Mal

Just.. Amazing..

Loved it.

Years of love

This story has year of love poured in it. I have been reading every month for the past few years and this chapter made me want to cry and dance.
Your art is undeniable. Thank u for taking me on a journey. Love, chelseaforever@outlook.com

10 Stars!!

I would give this 10 stars if I could. I wait every month with bated breath. It is fine storytelling.

it's great

indeed a lot happens! the plot lines all converge here and explode. i thought there would be more of ishuna and innathi, in terms of chat or past knowledge or fight vs others. i must admit, the last couple of chapters, i developed some sympathy for ishuna. the sister to have fallen first may have been innathi?

lloth/ aurenka expelled. the drow will have to learn new swear words! lol. if no living drow has memory of surface/vgedra, why would they want to go?

and where is qivni? i would like to know :)

Truly satisfying

Yeah, there are the squidheads waiting, but I feel like the story arc has come full circle and found a very satisfying conclusion. Of course, you can't stop now, because you have to explain some of what we just read, but for once I won't be champing at the bit impatiently waiting for the next chapter. Thank you for seeing this through month after month.

Overwhelming comments

Truly, thank you all for the astounding response. Being at a loss for words might sound cliche but is truly how I've felt to hear that I've by-and-large done you right by this part of the story arc. :) The release from knowing "I did it!" both for myself and for you is as wonderful a feeling as I can imagine working on any project.

The good news is that I have utter confidence in the follow-up to this and am still very much looking forward to showing you all of that, not just the very next chapter (also a biggie for entirely different reasons!) but the 5 or so following. The feedback here (and elsewhere) just reinforces the drive to keep heading toward the finish line. :)

And I believe it's Reg-Anon, I like your turn of phrase, that perhaps Innathi was actually the first sister to fall (although it would have been pretty close in timing, as Elves live). Rather insightful, given that I haven't shown much about her actual reign as queen. We just know where she began and where she ended, but more on the struggle of her little sister.

Heh,and where is Qivni? She's doing the real hard work: helping Rausery to hold the City and the army together while the others get their family drama sorted out. ^_^

A true master storyteller

Your talent is unbelievable, I salute you.

dear matron , more please!!!!

I've followed every story , every twist and turn and I hope you never stop writing cause I won't stop reading

Finally had a chance to actually read this last night

*happy squee*

They're all still alive (at least for now), and it totally didn't seem forced that way.

Now there's still a shot at a 'mostly happy' ending. :)

(Shit this deep ain't gonna heal overnight, but at least now the necrotic flesh has been removed from the wound.)

In gratitude...

You've envisioned a fantastic story and artfully rendered it for us. I am both envious of your talent and grateful for your willingness to share it. Truly. I know I cannot be alone on this point. I look forward to your continued telling of what has become a favorite tale.

In a moment of serendipity

I was playing a game from my Steam library and came across a quote on a loading screen that I realized was a near-perfect representation of this entire portion of the Sirana Saga. (Which I'm now going to call this entire series, for lack of an official term. ;) )

"In the end, man is not entirely guilty - he did not start history. Nor is he wholly innocent - he continues it."
--Albert Camus

(The 'near'-perfect is because Sirana has managed to become the catalyst to break the cycle.)

I can't be the only one…

… wondering if queeniepoo is actually dead. Nobody saw it. Ishuna was supposed to be so ridiculously powerful but she goes down due to some taunting from her sister?

If she really is dead, then I have to say that part felt a bit anti-climactic.

Other than that I love where this went and stayed up all night reading it. :p

;)

@cittran: I'm happy for the squee, and the Camus quote. ^_^ Necrotic flesh removal is a good metaphor for this chapter. I suppose there isn't an official series title yet; I'll have to decide that at some point. Most have been calling it the Red Sister series (after the fact, I didn't have quite that much forethought...), but Sirana Saga is pretty good, too (the first I've heard it).

@WhisperedVerse: Thank you, and I remain in great appreciation for the opportunity to share. Finding "like minds" to read my stuff was a lot harder before the internet...

@hakdrakken: Glad you enjoyed! You probably *aren't* the only one, but you are the first to voice disbelief she could be dead because the fight wasn't big enough. Heh. We might be defining power differently. ;) Ishuna is extremely powerful, but maybe not in the way you were looking for. You wanted her to pull out all the stops and prove her power. She did--but it wasn't in a fight against Innathi. She's been proving her actual power ever since Shyntre was born.

Then we can talk pole service...

I literally cannot wait to the next update. Your writing is inspiring. The direction of this story is phenomenal.

One of the best stories of all time

I can not stop reading this story it is like the title of my comment says one of the best of all time I look forward to what is built up to be a very big ending.

Awesome

I've been reading this series from the very beginning and I've been addicted to it from the first page I read. This, and I've been calling it the Sirana Saga too in my head, is the main reason I finally decided to join this site. Please, never stop writing.

Absolutely stunning chapter that kept me hook from beginning to end... or rather to beginning of the next chapter. Yet as much as I am awed by your writing, which is outstanding on so many levels, I do feel a little ambivalent on two counts.

First someone said "keep writing because I will keep reading". Yes, please. But no! Stop writing because otherwise I will read it all instead of doing what I am supposed to do.

Second, I feel stupid. After all this chapters where I marvel at your imagination and ability to create a complex mythology spanning thousands of years, I still have not grasped the relationships between the thrones, the gods, the missing sisters, the quest or quests, the Drow and Noldor and Ice Lord. It's all a bit too much for my neurons. Yet I cannot stop reading. Please, put a stop to my misery. ;)

Just awesome!

What an amazing chapter. I should be so satisfied after reading this, but instead I'm just greedy for more. Loving every word you write.

Oh my goddess

I love and hate you, I swear! You're such a great writer that reading your stories is like an addiction. If you published a book, I'm pretty sure that I'd finish reading it within hours of buying the book. Which is saying something 'cause it normally takes me a little while to complete books. Alrighty, creepy fan rant over =).

That was an awesome chapter, thanks for making it longer than the last dozen or so, by the way. The wait between each chapter is totally worth it. I'm excited to see how they deal with the mindflayers. Their plans so far haven't worked out quite so well, although they're great at "rolling with the punches." Plus, it'll be interesting to see how D'Shea acts now that she's technically D'Shea/Phaelous in the coming chapters.

Congratulations

Just saw you won the Sci-fi/fantasy story of 2015! Its a well deserved honor. I can't tell you how much I look forward to this story every month. Keep up the great work!

Love the story! A few question though

First of all!!!! Brilliant story!! Love it! But i have got a few question... I have the same thoughts as Hakdrakken! Ishuna died so easily!! I realise that it might be because Loth had left here so there wasnt that much of a fight needed, please do let me know if my take on it is correct. Also can you please clarify what you mean from the reply to Hakdrakken " She's been proving her actual power ever since Shyntre was born." Second question, Innathi! I feel that she died very easily too at the hands of Mourn and Jael. Makes me wonder if Mourn (being a half dragon is much more powerful than a very old elf ( who in my mind should be the equal of Noldor Queen King and maybe Ice Lord), and hence does that mean Ice lord might not be as powerful as Lex ( i know he is supposed to be netual) who is Mourn sire and hence much more powerful than Mourn is?? Or is there other reason for Innathi dead? Say complacency/ unexpected attack etc.

Thank you.

It's tough these days to find something that actually catches my attention and then maintains it long term. This story has truly enraptured me. What I'm appreciative of is your willingness to dig into the nitty gritty of each character, and then write about until it's used up! Finally!!

All these books lately are so "this happened" then "this happened" then "oh crap" or "so sad" then a little of "wtf was that about" oh then "someone dies" followed by... "The end." It's so boring! I'm not invested. Idc!!! But your story digs in and explores. Ppl die b/c it's time - and I'm not sure how main characters are not dieing when the sisters are dead. They were pretty main characters to the story, and I thought they deserved anti-climatic deaths. They were both so full of themselves and righteous; they deserved to die quickly and quietly. There's a balance to it, and whether or not they earned the peace they received in the end is another story. Truthfully, I'll be more sad when the spiders die. They're sweet lil things.

But ultimately, I love the message of this story - classic love conquers all. I think we could learn something about having faith in and investing our love and trust into our partners. They bring us out of the blackest places when we let them!

Thnx in advance for writing a fulfilling ending to this story and not just leaving us hanging. I can only hope that it never ends. :)

wow!!!

I follow your work and you never disappoint. You have taken us into this world and I am still in awe!! Thank you for writing! We really enjoy reading it.

Hello, again!

To kind Anons, Jadephire, patokl, cantfightfate, DorKnight, missindependence all, thank you for posting. :) It's wonderful to see names both old and new respond to this chapter (which has been a long time coming, hasn't it? ;) ). I appreciate it.

@Anon-ambivalent: Hey, it's okay, no worries. Even the characters don't have the whole picture worked out, and no single character likely ever well. I enjoy this part as in real life: tons of theories and viewpoints, but even the experts don't have all the answers. Still, you'll get a little more stitching together of some of these ideas before the story's over. Right now we've got some larger-than-average puzzle pieces still looking for their match but waiting for dust to settle.

@missindependence: Welcome! ^_^ Enthusiasm is rarely creepy; it's usually with added possessiveness or presumption that freaks me out. ;) You presume nothing, and it's like my own response to new Neil Gaiman or Wendy Pini stories coming out after a long time: Gimme gimme! Then I gorge with enthusiasm. I look forward to posting Ch 35 as much as I did Ch 34, but for different reasons. :)

@Anon "What Hakdrakkan said": Gotcha. I already showed it over 250K words in the Underdark chapters, but maybe they'd be worth a re-read someday. In a gross simplification, Ishuna sees visions of the future, and she can change them. She spent 2K+ years using her visions on behalf of Lolth. In the end, she played a very chaotic game (starting with Shyntre's birth) trying to "restart" a quest that Lolth forced her to squelch using her visions, over and over again. She not only succeeded but managed to fool a Goddess of Chaos. She won against Lolth and died free, even going completely insane to do it. In the vast effect she has had in her reign, and will continue to have past her death, she's one of the most powerful Drow to have lived on this world. She's done great evil yet has been a force for good. Having a fight with Innathi was an afterthought; where her sister was concerned, she only didn't want to die by Soul Drinker.

On Innathi: She's not an ancient Elf; she's a shade of Soul Drinker, which breaks and consumes other souls to maintain her personality and partial memories, driven by vengeance. She is very convincing that she's what she says because she also believes it. She was genuinely the most powerful soul inside Soul Drinker (almost another side of it), and in that domain she was terrifying. Once she came out and possessed a body, she was a decently powerful mage with delusions of grandeur. Mourn is an assassin. Killing quickly and quietly is what he does.

Power levels already established in the story: Dragons were the Guardians called en mass to fight against the Broken One (a God). There don't seem to be that many left, but they occasionally make half-breeds to shake things up. The Dragons taught the first Elves their magic; the four Tilabil are all that remain of those worthy students. The Ice Lord has been hinted to be of similar level to one Tilabil. Mourn is deeply respectful of the Tilabil and extremely wary of the Ice Lord; he can be affected by both through his Elf blood, same as a full-blood Baenar or Noldor. Mourn has a different set of instincts/abilities through his Dragon blood, and that side only grows more powerful as he ages.

@Eaxia: A lovely username. :) And what can I say, I enjoyed your entertaining post, thanks for adding it! ^_^ You certainly touched on a desire of my own and why the story is coming out the way it is. I'm still looking forward to showing the rest (about another 6-7 chapters).

Cheers!

Anon "What Hakdrakkan said

That's very helpful! Thank you for clearing it up! I was under the impression the 2 Vedra sister along with Nodlor, Ice lord and the Tilabal are of similar status, since each have their own kingdom, so it's good to know they are not in the same league! Can't wait for the next chapter!

Binge Reading

I started the entire saga about a week and a half ago, now I am at the current end and I am in a STORY HOLE! This feels exactly like when you start watching a TV series on Netflix. You missed the first 4 seasons when it was shown on TV, but caught up by watching it on Netflix. Now, I am current and have to go back to waiting to watch an episode week by week. It is utter agony! All this just to say, great work and please hurry. -AD

Oh the horror

I've caught up to the current writing and must wait. I don't know if I can! And, to increase the absolute pain, it looks like the story is finished. I can only hope the writer IS NOT as this story is the absolute best and the writing rivals most published works I have read. Well done. (Sob).