The Story Aerie

Author: Jess Mahler

  • Image of Mattin Brenson from The Bargain. White skinned human with short blond hair and blue eyes. He's wearing a leather collar and a light blue shirt with yellow accents. He stares off to the left with wide, hooded eyes, one arm held across his chest, the other hand held out as if rejecting or pushing away something. Text: “It's alright. You're safe now. It's... everything will be fine.”

    The Bargain (S4, E4)

    Season notes: traumatized people triggering each other, abuse, torture, fictional slavery, con noncon*, (attempted) blackmail Mattin jumped as Jahlene entered. He hurried to assist her out of the complicated veil-and-hairpin arrangement she wore every time she left the suite. His throat was tight, and he couldn’t force himself to speak. She didn’t keep him waiting.…

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  • First Came Trust audio version (Part 1)

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  • Planting Life in a Dying City: Kyawtchais (S4, E8)

    Season content notes: (internalized) ableism Kyatchais waited nervously outside the compound. Beside em was eir wise-parent, the leader of eir parents’ generation of the SilentSpinners. They had arrived early — rudely early, to much of the city. But they weren’t waiting for city-folk. They were waiting for farwalker Lefeng, who would be on eir morning…

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  • Cover image for webserial "A Smear of Blood." The Great Goddess in cat-form, a fantasy version of a sabertoothed cat, dark grey with black markings, tufted ears and tail. Standing in front of off yellow background.

    A Smear of Blood Season 1 Cover

    In any other story, Iberto would be the villain who unleashed darkness on the world. In A Smear of Blood, he’s going to save the goddes.

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  • The Bargain (S4, E3)

    Season notes: traumatized people people triggering each other, abuse, torture, fictional slavery, con noncon*, (attempted) blackmail Jahlene arrived early. The small room held three chairs, and Jahlene immediately claimed the largest. Let Oeloff come before her like a petitioner. Falthro arrived shortly after and, rather than taking a chair for himself, moved to stand at…

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  • Planting Life in a Dying City (S4; Kyawtchais, E7)

    Content notes: internalized ableism Kyawtchais woke the next morning leaning against the compound wall with a blanket wrapped around em. Ey sat up cautiously and stretched. Eir mind had the dense settled feeling that told em it wasn’t worth trying to use voice-speech. Worse, some of the grey fog lingered, making eir thoughts slow and…

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  • The Bargain (S4, E2)

    Season notes: traumatized people people triggering each other, abuse, torture, fictional slavery, con noncon*, (attempted) blackmail Jahlene examined the room from behind her mask. Mattin waited a pace behind her. He had done a remarkable job since arriving at court, better than she had ever dared hope. In hindsight, even his inability to stay calm…

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  • Planting Life in a Dying City (S4: Kyawtchais, E6)

    Season content notes: internalized ableism Kyawtchais struggled to keep eir head up, eir feet moving. The street was quiet, not like the market areas and docks where the family-less lived. But from inside the compounds came the noises of forest birds, children playing, grandparents yelling… and over (Or under) it all the scrape-scrape-scrape of Kyawtchais’…

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  • The Bargain (S4, E1)

    Season notes: traumatized people people triggering each other, abuse, torture, fictional slavery, con noncon*, (attempted) blackmail, Mattin was tired of failing. Brit would tell him he was wallowing, and he knew it. But every time he seemed to be making progress, doing better, he’d lose control and screw up again. And he couldn’t help but…

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  • Planting Life in a Dying City (S4: Kyawtchais, E5)

    The family had two projects that occupied their time: trying to find a trade and rebuilding the compound. Lefeng and Tsouchm continued with day work, alternating it with time spent helping build. Some of Kyawtchais’ family also came to offer help once in a while and even a few representatives from other families. All the…

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