His voice is the sweetest dream. Reminding me of Beltane celebrations. Luke O'Brien's joyful musings were warm. Like bonfires signifying summer's approach. They conjure up visions of wild forests and flourishing fields. Of the sun dancing against one's skin. I'd never had the privilege of gazing upon Luke's undoubtedly impressive visage. It was a miracle unto itself that I could hear the kindergarten teacher during my slumber. The duration of my enchanted sleep eluded me. It felt like mere moments had passed and yet, I knew centuries had likely elapsed. Long enough for Samhain to transform from a sacred occasion heralding the beginning of winter and weakening of the veil separating the realm of mortals and the Otherworld to Halloween. A time for children to run amok. Disguised as anything but themselves as adults indulged them with an endless array of sweets.

| 𝟳𝘅 𝗙𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘𝗗 ·|| HUNGER GAMES x CINDER || ONC 2023 Honorable Mention Amidst the escalating unrest between the windborne utopian city of Lighthaven and its seedy, oppressed underbelly Fumedge, the Grand Duke of Lighthaven, Lucius Sextus, comes up with an ingenious solution. To provide much-wanted respite from the brewing conflict, and achieve the apparent-if-temporary unity, he organizes Gaslight Trials - a highly entertaining panem-et-circenses combat event in the Pits. The combatants may use all steam and thaumaturgy powered augmentations at their disposal, and there is only one rule: defeat, or be defeated. The reward for the last one standing? A chance to start their life anew. A brass key to the city of Lighthaven with a luxurious mansion to call their own within, as well as an aeroship to command. When eighteen-year-old Veda Igglesden steps forward to take her timeworn adoptive father's place in the fight, she might as well be signing her death-sentence. With her eyes fully set on the prize, act-first-think-later Veda must harness the power of technology to try and win for her Papa Otto. Decades of breathing in the toxic air of Fumedge did a number on the old inventor's lungs, and being able to live in the air-filtered Lighthaven would sure come in handy right about now. A high-flying adventure full of gadgetry and intrigue; a pleasing blend of steampunk and postapocalyptic. See Veda unravel the mysterious ploy behind the game's organization, and uncover the truth about her secret origins. Can she cope both with the trials of physical and intellectual prowess, as well as with the trials of life itself: those of love, loss and regret? © 2023 EvelynHail Exclusively on Wattpad Based on prompt 49! Which is (I shan't leave ye hanging :P): "Master the rules of the game until you can play it better than they can." Michael Scott, "The Sorceress" Get ready for steampunkish tinkering,

[A HEART-RACING LGBTQ+ ROMANCE MYSTERY OF A CYBERPUNK CITY MAFIA LEADER AND A TIMID SCIENTIST WHO NEEDS HIS HELP TO FIND HIS MISSING SISTER.] Callisto's life has always been monotonous even if he's working as a researcher in a city full of neon lights and eccentric lifestyles, and he prefers it that way. That all changes however when he visits his sister in her apartment only to find her missing and all traces of her erased. When he finds a picture of a symbol on his sister's living room that he recognises, he has no choice but to go against his comfortable routine to seek Draven - the underground leader of Alatus City and someone he has vowed to leave behind in his past forever five years ago. [Image for cover is generated through Midjourney (and given permission) by @Azanthiel Thank you!]

🏆ONC 2023 || Ambassador's Pick 🏆ONC 2023 || Round Two Qualifier One night is all it takes to change a life. There's something wrong with Felicity Farr. It's how she can't seem to do her job right no matter how hard she tries, and how she's still under her parents' thumb years after moving out, and how she looks at girls the way she should look at boys. So even though she can't fix anything, she tries to fix herself all the same. But when a blind date ends with her in an attractive stranger's bed, Felicity is forced to question everything in her life. Especially when said attractive stranger asks her to run away with her for a week. Clover Chai is beautiful, confident, and everything Felicity should avoid. But she captures Felicity like the drag of the tide, and as the week drags on, Felicity finds herself having to choose between her head and her heart---especially since she can't imagine her summer fling remaining a fling anymore.

Legend speaks of a man with crows in his hair and stitches in his lips who will teach you his greatest trades. Some call him a monster. Most call him the Needle-Mouthed Man. But only the shadows know his true name, and they call him Master. As one of the dead, Minseo Park is a creature of the night, doomed to eternal darkness. However, refusing to accept his fate, Minseo turns to the shadows to give himself a second chance at life---all to get his sister out of the whorehouse where he himself died. Desperate, Minseo seeks out the Needle-Mouthed Man for guidance. But the Needle-Mouthed Man brings company: his protégé Nikolas, who both makes Minseo's blood boil and sets his heart aflame. In order to find his murderer and save his sister, Minseo must walk the balance between life and death and decide whether to embrace his inner darkness---or to let it consume him. Because the shadows are hungry, and the only food they want is revenge. [ cover and banners by inmyxikey ]

|𝟏𝐱 𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐃/𝐎𝐍𝐂 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑 𝐀𝐌𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐑 𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐒| When the apocalypse arrives 𝐊𝐀𝐍𝐄 is ready to accept death after living a cursed life. But fate has other plans for him. Whisked away by a mysterious taxi driver with a silver tongue, Kane finds himself caught up in the world of faes, vampires, werewolves and even dragons! What was supposed to be a quest to get answers regarding his family's elusive past transforms into a journey to make him into a warrior capable of saving his dying world. Enter 𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐏𝐄𝐒𝐓. Blessed by the gods and a Lady of the Lake, her tongue is as sharp as the blade she wields. She has no love for Earth and could care less about its demise. But she too has a troubled past that she wants to rectify. If there's any hope at getting what she wants, she needs to whip Kane into shape as efficiently as possible. Kane is cursed. Tempest is blessed. Together they have the power to silence the banshee's world ending scream before it causes Earth's annihilation. 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐬: 𝐎𝐧𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: 𝐅𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐲 & 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝: 𝟎𝟐/𝟎𝟑/𝟐𝟑 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝: 𝐍/𝐀 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝟏𝟔+ 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐦𝐮𝐭 & 𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫: @𝐗𝐚𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐡

Yasil, a fairy and guardian of Earth, wakes up after a long slumber that isn't long at all. Not even a century has passed, yet the world is already in a precarious state. The elves are dying, the dragons are on the verge of going berserk, and the humans... are becoming tyrants. Why is this happening? Who started this? As Yasil gets closer to the truth, he realizes that his current mission is much more complex than he thought. Something sinister is hiding behind all conflicts, an existence he can't eliminate without a hero. But who is the hero? How can he find them? 🏆ONC 2023 Longlister Copyright ©️ 2023 by ALeks All rights reserved

ONC 2023 Shortlist Astrid, the Princess of Eurovea, a country existing several centuries in the future, had led a happy and sheltered life in the castle ruled by Regent Arcturus, her uncle. Only on reaching the age of ascension when, according to an ancient tradition, all future queens must face a trial, she realised that there were great gaps in her knowledge of the world around her, her uncle, and even the people she thought she knew well. In a world where love doesn't exist, a young girl who understands old novels better than her reality is sent on a dangerous quest to save her country from creatures who, just like love, were not supposed to be true... Mystery, romance, adventure, and magic combine in this tale, in which a young princess who had grown up surrounded by an impenetrable web of lies, has to find her true identity, and free her kingdom from suffering. A young-adult, dystopian, paranormal fantasy-romance. The wonderful cover created by @WakeWriteWrath

Born the son of a lowly hunter and abandoned as a child, Zhenxing never expected to be brought to Heaven and become the most treasured attendant of the mighty Tiger Immortal, one of the twelve Zodiac Guardians appointed by the Jade Emperor. But the world is tumultuous and not even the Heavenly Realm resides in peace for long. On the eve of the Lunar New Year, a dreadful discovery is made. The Tiger Immortal is found dead and a grieving Zhenxing flees Heaven, blamed and pursued by the remaining eleven Zodiacs. Abandoned and bewildered, Zhenxing seeks refuge in the one place those of the Heavenly Realm are loathe to tread: the Demon Realm. While in hiding, he discovers shocking evidence that the one who killed the Tiger Immortal was not his most beloved servant, but one of his fellow Guardians! With the help of a sinister and charming demon prince named Lixin, Zhenxing digs further into the mystery hoping to clear his name and avenge his beloved Tiger Immortal. Beautiful cover made by my lovely friend @AriaofStorms

As a spare heir and hero of the last war, Wystan would like nothing more than to enjoy retirement while teaching recruits and drinking up his inheritance. After stepping on the wrong toes, he is reinstated early and finds himself on a quest to slay a dragon in the Southern Lands of the Empire. Unwanted and feared, the merry band of the Empire's mercenaries joins him on the journey, for they have been ordered to die with him in not so many words. While the rumors consist of a tale of a feral, man-eating dragon, a captured princess, and a dreary, impenetrable fortress of a tower where both dwell, Wystan learns that stories are just that: stories. The tower is not impenetrable nor dreary. On the contrary, it's quite homey with warm rugs, shiny chandeliers, and the fire roaring in every heart. The dragon ignores humans like a person would an ant. And the princess... Is in fact a prince. The runaway prince of the Zmaya Kingdom enjoys making Wystan's days harder. Smooth-tongued and shrewd, Alexei offers their party a place to stay after hearing about their grim fate. Uncovered coincidences and secrets imply a connection between him and the dragon. If Wystan returns home empty-handed, the Emperor would hang him. But it's not just his life at stake, the mercenaries become comrades in arms. Wystan is forced to entertain Alexei's whims while unraveling the truth behind the man's meddling, the dragon's presence, and the Empire's betrayal.