Read an excerpt from mk_lobb's upcoming dark fantasy SevenFacelessSaints an addictive story of religion, magic, and murder.
There’s always something especially delicious about dark, religious-based fantasies. The complex world-building and magical hierarchies, the sense that this world we’re stepping into has existed long before we found it, and the fact that they’re not afraid to confront difficult issues of belief, faith, and corruption head-on. is the best sort of dark fantasy.
In Roz’s opinion, that was the worst part about being a disciple: the expectation that one spend so much of one’s time creating magical items. She had no interest in using her affinity for metal to support Ombrazia’s already booming economy. In fact, she was hard-pressed to give a shit about the economy at all. Not when it only benefited a portion of the population.
Fire danced in her periphery as she passed a stall manned by a few of her fellow disciples of Patience. Surrounding them was the familiar metallic tang of their magic, and Roz quickened her step, keen not to be spotted. She slowed upon noticing two security officers at the edge of the piazza, and pretended to be interested in a display of silk dressing gowns. As she strained to listen in on their conversation, a third officer joined the duo, dragging a youth along with him.
Now, this was new. Roz went preternaturally still, adrenaline surging in her veins. As far as she was aware, the chief magistrate and the Palazzo weren’t taking the threat of the rebellion seriously.The officer gave him a long once-over, eyes narrowed to slits. “Hmm.” Eventually, he relented.Rather than sag in relief, the boy went even more tense. “I—I don’t have any money.”
It was likely meant to be polite, but it felt placating in a way Roz didn’t appreciate. She tilted her head, eyeing the man with disdain. “He said he doesn’t have the money. Either take me up on my offer, or let him go.” Every disciple was descended from one of the original saints: Strength, Patience, Cunning, Grace, Mercy, Death, and Chaos. But every so often, a disciple was born whose power rivaled that of their respective original saint’s. When that happened, they were considered a reincarnation—all but a deity in their own right.
They obliged, all but sprinting away from her, and she watched until they disappeared around a corner at the end of the street. Her stomach was a hollow pit.. Amelie was freshly buried, and people were already throwing caution to the wind. She wasn’t the only victim, either—the other day a young man had been discovered dead on the riverbank outside Patience’s sector, his identity undetermined.
“Staring is free,” she told him coolly, flicking her knife out in a single, smooth motion. “But touching costs a finger.” Nasim loosed an inaudible sigh, tilting her head toward the back of the room, where a blond boy sat alone. “Can you blame him?” Roz said. She remembered the night she’d met Dev. How he’d come across her throwing knives at the side of the tavern after dark and leaned against the wall with a wicked expression curling his lips. She’d feared he was about to proposition her when he said:. Then he’d tilted his head at a man exiting the building.His words had startled a laugh out of Roz, and they’d been friends ever since. Carefree, impish Dev, who wouldn’t know solemnity if it hit him upside the head.
Lately, though, Dev’s misery seemed to have become a contagious thing. His relationships were fracturing, and Nasim was content to let him pull away.Maneuvering among the tables and patrons took considerable dexterity, and she stepped on more than one foot on her way to the back of the tavern. Despite the raucous noise and ever-present stench, the place was a comfort to her. She’d memorized every stain on the wooden tables and noticed every time Piera replaced the art on the walls.
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