#steampunk — Public Fediverse posts

Vor mehr als einem halben Jahr habe ich das Buch Von Jade und Drachen von Amber Chen gelesen. Nun habe ich den zweiten Teil der Geschichte Der Blutrote Phönix gelesen, und es hat wieder richtig Spaß gemacht.
Zwei Jahre nachdem Ying die Ingenieursgilde hinter sich gelassen hat, kehrt sie in die Hauptstadt zurück, um das Land gegen Piraten zu verteidigen. Politische Ränkespiele, Gefühlschaos und Heldentaten in einer asiatisch anmutenden Welt sind in diesem Buch an der Tagesordnung, und auch, wenn die Geschichte in einer Steampunk-Welt spielt, tritt die Technik wie schon im ersten Band nicht in den Vordergrund, ist aber wichtig genug, um doch irgendwie die Hauptrolle in dem Buch zu spielen.
Wieder ist der Roman locker und leicht zu lesen. Man fiebert mit den Figuren mit, hofft und bangt mit jedem. Eigentlich schade, dass der zweite Band der Geschichte auch der letzte ist…
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Zum Anlocken ein Satz von #Seite100:

Warme Ingwersuppe und Tangyuans wurden in kleinen Tonschüsseln ausgegeben, und Ying entdeckte den Dieb, der ihr begegnet war, als er sich gerade mit einem glücklichen Grinsen im Gesicht in die Schlange einreihte.

Just a few pieces left. The showdown rages. I loved writing these scenes. It took years to get it right. Thank you for reading my work, and for sticking with this story.

#writing #reading #fiction #books #novels #horror #fantasy #darkfantasy #steampunk

https://patrickwmarshauthor.wordpress.com/2026/08/21/beware-the-ills-part-57/

Beware the Ills: Part 57

I haven’t fought like this for a while, where not a hint of error is allowed. Haukter reaches behind his left shoulder into his back. I take a stance pointing my blade diagonally at his hulking form. I see his hand for the first time as he reaches. It’s white and callused. It glows against his dark brown hides.

Haukter reaches into an opening in one of his hides and pulls something out. He’s watching me methodically. It’s a spear, a huge spear, nearly twice as long as me. It has a metal point on the end of it, but it’s rounded and sharp where the metal connects to the staff. A jagged rocky shape shields the base of the point. Almost like mud had been wrapped around a clumsy blade. The staff looks fire-hardened black. He probably burned it for days in a controlled forge. It’s quite a weapon, and he kept it completely concealed.

I’m not even sure how that’s possible.

He grips the spear in both hands and sprints at me. The point comes at me. I knock it away, and slash at him in fast rising swings. The point of the spear doesn’t counter my slashes though. Instead, his left hand breaks from the handle, and that mangled claw dangles out. He’s fighting me with two weapons.

What an enemy.

We split from our quick melee and charge sideways back into the trees. He’s stabbing at me quickly, and I deflect each stab with my sword. He slashes at me with his claw, but I duck and twist my body, keeping my sword free for the spear. I leap at him, slashing down and taking away the short advantage of the claw. The claw flies up at me on a hidden chain. I knock it away with my sword, but not before the handle of his lance slams into my stomach. I grab it as I spit blood and wrench the spear away from him in an armored twist. He swings the claw around at me and throws some darts with his free sleeve. I throw the spear into him. It lands, and he sheds another one of his hides. I leap away, keeping my face to him. He can’t have many hides left, it’s not physically possible.

He grabs his spear and chases me.

I’m coughing and spitting blood as I run. Something was broken when the lance smashed into me. He leaps at me and ends the distance between us. He throws both his spear and claw at me in a whirling, stabbing maelstrom. Darts follow like little children. I’m swarmed with them. I spin around a tree and the spear and claw miss. The darts I knock away with my sword panting.

More? Are there more?

Haukter stops and pulls a weapon out of his right shoulder. It’s a huge, curled blade, like the one he had chained for throwing. It can only be described as a butcher’s cleaver. It’s smaller than the chained one, and it has a small black handle at its curved base. Two more rods drop out of the sleeves, the long wooden ones with hundreds of holes for the darts to fly though. They’re empty and obsolete.

Is he telling me that’s it, no more hidden weapons? How irritating, I won’t believe him, how many combinations does he possibly have? How many tricks does he possibly have?

This is the little boy I spared so long ago. This monster who devours men. I didn’t know he’d alter and corrupt. I only knew somewhere inside of me it was wrong to kill a child, even if it meant my own death. Blue, why did you have to die? Blue would’ve lived longer than me. Untaro’s lifespan is twice as long as any man. He would’ve been able to help me with Haukter. Now, I’m alone with this monster.

I run.

He matches my speed easily, and swings at me. He’s fast with the cleaver. My blade, thin and needle-like, jabs and swings at him in our sprint. Each time Haukter’s blade easily matches my attack. If he swings too wide, I can sneak a few slashes at his hides, but his sleeve whirls around to knock my blade away. His attacks are violent and powerful, he knows he has the upper hand in this brutish battle. I need both hands to repel his slashes. Both hands to stop the oblong and curved point from ripping me open.

We dash to a group of old man-like machines sitting idle in a large frost covered circle. I weave into the structures of old machines and bodies. He follows. I jump backwards watching his swings and parrying the ones getting too close.

My arms are slowly tearing and breaking, they feel like limp fire.

I’ll be releasing my novel Beware the Ills in segments every Friday. You can find out more about the book right here, or check out Amazon’s info. I love this book. Happy to simply share it. 

Moin! #Heute möchten wir alle @histodons @historikerinnen auf das Lehrangebot der #PublicHistory an der @unibremen im Wintersemester 2026/27 aufmerksam machen. Es geht bei uns um #DoingPublicHistory #Stadtgeschichte #Steampunk Besonders gespannt sind wir auf die #Geschichtsbegehungen im #Master mit den Kolleg*innen aus #Bremen und #Bremerhaven und auf unser erstes Forschungskolloquium #PublicHistory

Mehr Infos gibt’s auf unserer Website: https://www.uni-bremen.de/institut-fuer-geschichtswissenschaft/epochen-und-bereiche/public-history/lehre

One week until the next novella in the Desolation series is available on #Kickstarter. A new review if you want to know how good it is:

"The Hollow Drum is a fun, action-packed addition to the Desolation series." https://www.draliceviolett.com/desolation-the-hollow-drum-by-d-harrigon/

Or just head on over and check it out:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dharrigon/desolation-the-hollow-drum

#books #reading #SciFi #steampunk #SFF #Writing

Silent Thunder
A FREE short story from the Rifters Universe
https://www.mpaxauthor.com/silent-thunder/
#WritingCommunity #Writing #fantasy #portalfantasy #steampunk #free #freebie #shortfiction

Le #Train des Viaducs en mode #Steampunk

Samedi 22 août 2026, l'association Train à #Vapeur d'Auvergne, va faire circuler son "Train des Viaducs" sur une ligne historique de l' #Allier comptant 5 ouvrages d'art exceptionnels qui enjambent les gorges de la #Sioule et de la Bouble.

Certains passagers monteront à bord dans des tenues de circonstance.
https://www.7joursaclermont.fr/le-train-des-viaducs-en-mode-steampunk/

#Auvergne #TrainAVapeur

Bin jetzt mit ein paar Freunden auf dem Weg zur #MakerFaireHannover.

Dieses Jahr nicht als Teil von #6Zeitreisende, da gab es mit dem Veranstalter ein paar Unstimmigkeiten. Dementsprechend bin ich diesmal nicht als Aussteller dort (:

Aber, heute ab Mittag bin ich mit meinem mobilen Amt eher versteckt unterwegs. Temporalmarken für die Zeitreisepässe habe ich aber mit!
*morgen bin ich leider nicht auf der Messe

#steampunk #Zeitreisepass #makerfaire

#BoasNoites

Cosas #SteamPunk en #Nantes (les Machines de L’Île)

Getting closer and closer to the end. Just a few segments left. Thank you all who have read this book split up into blog posts every Friday. It has been amazing sharing it with you all.

#writing #reading #fiction #books #novels #horror #fantasy #darkfantasy #steampunk

https://patrickwmarshauthor.wordpress.com/2026/08/14/beware-the-ills-part-56/

Beware the Ills: Part 56

He throws the brambly chain at me. I leap away to my left, keeping my eyes on the hidden weapon. I have little or no idea what to expect.

Something in my gut told me not to duck.

How fortunate I didn’t, since the bundle isn’t just some muddled mass, but a narrow sheet of thorny branches bound together. No doubt it’s covered in poison. If I had doubted my instinct, I would have been crushed by the strip of pointed wood. Haukter swings the sheet at me with both his sleeves. It can be easily manipulated like a flowing piece of cloth. I leap into the air spinning away from its increased range. It follows me like a spiked tongue into the air. The sheet doesn’t have the best range, but the sea of evaporated poison on it makes up for its limitations.

I’m impressed with all Haukter’s hidden weapons so far.

I dash away from him to plan a strategy. He follows by contorting the poison-thorn ribbon. I need to make a safe spot on the weapon, so I can leap off it, and slash it in two. I slow down my run, and let the strand catch up to me. He swings it sideways at me trying to hit me between the narrow trees. I slash backwards at the strip taking a few points off.

Not enough yet. Not nearly enough.

I swing again, but he twists the ribbon, so my sword gets caught in the hundreds of branches. I lose my leverage, my sword, and I’m knocked to the ground. He pulls the weapon up and slams the sheet down toward me. I roll away backwards before it hits me, with the points just missing my back and face. I’m faster than he can manipulate it. I’m on my feet and running away from him weaponless. He contorts the ribbon, so it clamps and hugs the trees behind me. I double back and wrench my sword free of the poisoned mass.

He screams in frustration. It is more of an animal howl than anything else.

I slash again at the beginning of it. More thorns severed. He swings the band at me again. I jump off the tree with my left foot and over the spiked horror. He’s got to be frustrated by my speed.

Didn’t he expect me to fight?

I fall to the uneven ground from my flip and break away running. He follows, swinging and contorting the ribbon, and each time I slash its stretched front end.

If I could’ve given him advice, I would have told him not to use such a bulky weapon. I continue to slash at the ribbons head until it’s completely clear of the thrashing points. I’m faster than him, and break towards the graveyard. I’ll need to pick my moment just right, the exact perfect moment.

He’s more inexperienced than I thought he’d be. I’m disappointed.  

I give myself some space as he chases after me with the whipping bundle of poison. I stop abruptly, and leap back at him. He brings the ribbon up towards me. He waves the band upwards, but the poison and wooden wave misses. I’m too close to him. I slash down hard into the beginning of his poisonous sheet. The ribbon falls to the ground unraveled in a disheveled wooden string. He swings the remnants up at me. I twist my body and knock them away with my sword.

Very close, that was very close.

I’m on the ground. I must defend myself immediately. The tube with the darts, from the river where he killed all those men, has appeared in his left sleeve. I knock it away from me as swing around to use it. He smashes into my chest with his other sleeve, and I fly backwards. He swings the pole at me, throwing the red tipped darts everywhere. I’m above them in a forward jump. He swipes the rod at me releasing more darts. I slash them away and knock a few back at him. His sleeves twirl around loosely bashing them aside. It was a good trick for Haukter, but not good enough.

I run.

I’m in the graveyard now, on the very outskirts of it. I’m confident I have eliminated most of his weapons to use against me.

Brute strength will be next, I know it.

I know how this works, he doesn’t. He’s following me into the graveyard. He fires more darts at me with the rod. I knock them away casually, barely looking back. Another rod emerges from his right sleeve, and an even larger cloud follows me. I sprint faster and topple a few small trees down to knock the cloud away. They oblige with aching falls and tumbles. The destruction of the forest in this combat can only be described as monumental. I pick up speed and break away from him.

He follows.

I’m waiting for him at a small clearing, marked by a pile of frosted corpses. Behind me sits a toppled walking machine, which was shredded and dismantled long ago. I’m standing perfectly still. My sword’s dangling in front of my feet. He emerges from the trees like a faceless beast, walking quietly. He’s acting more confidently and standing straighter. He knows he has the advantage because of his youth and size. He walks over to me slowly. He’s panting in long streams.

So am I.

I’ll be releasing my novel Beware the Ills in segments every Friday. You can find out more about the book right here, or check out Amazon’s info. I love this book. Happy to simply share it. 

Aktuelle #Urlaubslektüre #3 📖

Ich habe das damals bei Erscheinen - ich war natürlich #Cyberpunk Fan - nicht zu Ende gelesen, sondern enttäuscht abgebrochen und ausgesondert. Wie irreführend kann eine Aufmachung sein?

Heute der zweite Versuch. Ich muss sagen, es liest sich gut, wird für mich aber erst nach 240 Seiten leidlich spannend. Hoffentlich steigert sich das noch.

Grüße an @bruces und @GreatDismal 🙂

#scifi #antiquariat #steampunk #williamgibson #brucesterling #roman #lesen #buch #90s

Tried if #LLM could help me simulate a far future Earth (to 10 000 CE) for #worldbuilding purposes.

I'd say the answer is "yes." The next step: add human society simulator on top.

(These are for my "realistic #steampunk" project I've been developing on and off for over 20 years now.)