A fantasy tale of schoolgirls, smugglers, alchemists, pirates, queer attack, bellwitches, ancient necromancy, gender outlaws, fascists, smoldering romance, trans sisterhood, intrigue, smut, spies, knife girls, mysterious resonances, herbalists, spirit magic, loyalties put to the test, and some other stuff...
Eli—or Ellie, as she would like to be called, someday—is a young alchemy student from a bleak border town of a fascist empire. When she realizes that the socially sanitized alchemy being taught to her at University could be jailbroken and made to serve more subversive purposes, she faces a choice between safety and her own embodiment.
Like every child of Opali, Mila chose her gender. City of bells, pirates and rebels, Opali stands beyond the Imperiat’s reach and in defiance of its control. Stigmatized for a violation committed by her father, Mila nurtures a broken dream that will lead her to the very gates of her people's ancient enemy in search of what she needs.
For as long as she can remember, Roxa has been training to be a secret operative and sworn blade of the Duchy of Waterfalls, a mountain fastness to the north of the Imperiat. Her mother, the Countess Monir, renown as a sorcerer and a diplomat without peer, has just accepted a post in the Imperial Capital, and Roxa sees an opportunity to finally escape her mother’s shadow and choose her own path—if war and treachery don't fuck it up for her, first.
By day, Aralia Cordivar is a technocrat, alchemist, and University researcher without peer. By night she plays the game of masks and knives. If she can keep the secrets of her past buried just a little longer, she may be able to finally achieve her agenda.
All their paths and wits and secrets and lies will intertwine at Harmine University, deep within the Imperiat, where the powerful prey on the vulnerable and loyalties are traded like coin.
[This story contains sexual content and is meant only for those who are 18 or older.]
[This story is a trans story. It is also a lesbian romance story with (mostly but not only) lesbian smut and sexual content. The sexual content is absent from most of the first twelve chapters and then picks up very abruptly after that. Themes that run through this story, including some of the sexual content, are: power exchange, sex across a power differential, ambiguous consent or ambiguous ability to consent, and other such ethically dicey situationships. If that isn’t something you are comfortable with, this story may not be for you. I will put content warnings at the beginnings of chapters.]
[Anyway, this story has been so much fun to write and I hope you enjoy reading it. I was heavily influenced and inspired by amazing trans author Casey Plett and the queer fantasy marvel that is The Traitor Baru Cormorant, by Seth Dickinson. I highly recommend both.]
It's only nine chapters in and I'm already completely captivated by the setting and characters. Queer alchemists in university? Trans drama? You love to see it and I can't wait to see where the story goes. The trio of protagonists are all caught in their own tangle of cultural and social obligations while trying to navigate queerness in an environment that is VERY threatening to their existence. How far can you push yourself to fight against a fascist regime? How can you open yourself up to other people when doing so risks your life?It's all fantastic drama fuel and I can't wait to see how these characters interact
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I am hesitant to write a review before I've read more of this story, BUT I'm all caught up on the Scribblehub and can't wait to head over to patreon to read more!! I'm so glad I started reading this - it feels deeply right to read such relatable characters, with their own flaws and dreams and desires caught up in an intricate dance. I'm excited to learn more about the alchemies/magics of this world, and to get propelled along in the unfolding complexities of the political landscape..! And of course it helps that the writing is so good! Such engaging prose, convincing dialogue, three dimensional characters, and honestly beautiful descriptions of settings.
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I'm so in love with this story I never want it to end! The prose is absolutely entrancing and I am madly in love with all three of the main characters already <3 This is truly smut for the soul!
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There's a lot of stories on Scribblehub about an egg receiving a miracle transition, and having to figure themself out from there. They are fun and sweet and fluffy wish fulfillment, and are nice to read.
THIS is a story about trans people fighting and risking it all to pursue transition in secret in the heart of a fascist empire. It is so good and SO well written! The characters and the intrigue and the stress of them doing everything they can to survive as themselves in such a hostile environment is all so engrossing! I love this story, it has absolutely sucked me in!
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i love how she rly seamlessly blends direct smut with trans homily with getting a little silly w it with aesthetically pleasing world-building with imagining new ways to relate or new ways to think about how we already do relating and surrounding that in the comforting strangeness of fantasy. Also the sentences are so pleasing to read!+
also besides just apprciating on a craft level how she does smut, its really hot ;P + I learn new things about whats hot to me + im not even mad when a chapter doesnt get really explicit, unlike a lot of fics where I kind of usually am like this is cute but ultimately I dont like the writing enough to invest if I dont get to get off
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