Aromecia

By Igneous Gray

Cole Thortan lived a fucked up life of mediocracy, but at least it was his. A kidnapping and waking up in a government ran prison would have been the worst of his problems. Know how they say, when it rains, it pours? The clouds are heavy with, I'm gonna fuck you over, when he's transported to another world thanks to a strange pedestal.

 

The veil has weakened, and the wheel of fate begins to turn. Two worlds, hidden from each other for centuries, threaten to meet once again, much to the detriment of their people. There is, however, an unlikely savior, Cole; a hero in his mind is finally able to become the kickass warrior of his dreams. Oh, and don't forget love, but not in the way he had expected.

 

Vanesia has her doubts that the weird being is the one that will make things right. A brawler, yes, but far from the savior he's praised to be. Tasked with being his shield, she begins to see something in Cole that not only has her questioning her first thoughts, but wondering why her body is craving what's forbidden.

 

Telling lies, scheming, and betrayal, Cole must find a way back home and to his life. He'll experience pain, suffering, and loss, but in the ashes of disaster, will find experience, kinship with the most unlikely of people, and a fiery romance that might be hard to leave behind.
 

• Language: English
• Publisher: After Hours Publications
• Release date: May 14, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224955466

Book preview

AROMECIA

THE SCALES OF FATE TIP

Table of Contents

Title Page

Aromecia

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

A Novel By,

IGNEOUS GRAY

©2024 Published by After Hours Publications, Inc.

All rights reserved.

Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage without express permission by the publisher.

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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Contains explicit language & adult themes suitable for ages 17+

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www.christinesappgrayauthor.com

Chapter 1

A black and white animal claw Description automatically generated

The clock struck 12:30 PM. The many folks of the small city of Fayetteville, Georgia, all off to do their usual routines. Whether it was work, school, parenting, or many other things, everyone had a purpose. Yes, it was a normal afternoon in Fayetteville; Ordinary, you could say. However, that exactly wasn’t always the greatest, especially for a certain someone.

Damn it! What kind of a trash compactor doesn’t compact anything?! a young male cried in pure annoyance.

As most know, a trash compactor is used to crush and dispose of trash. Unfortunately, it was only really good for boxes and things of that nature, rather than a full-blown couch. Casting his eyes to the time clock, 12:30 P.M. registered which brought a longing to leave this damn place. Mowing the lawn, doing anything else but slaving away for peanuts would have been a better choice. He would gut punch his younger self for praying for the day of getting out of school, becoming an adult, and getting a job. What the hell was he thinking?

I told them this thing wasn’t gonna handle this couch, but nooooo! Why should anyone listen to the stupid newbie?! Maybe because the newbie knows what to actually do?! He internally screamed, as he sighed.

Pausing to listen to the groaning of the overworked machine, Cole leaned his 5’8, 125-pound frame on the wall. He scratched his curly black hair in thought of how to fix someone else’s mess. He tapped his finger on his jean leg. Maneuvering his face, he caught his gray glasses before they slipped further down the bridge of his nose. Working at HomeGoods was becoming of a problem than it was worth, but at 21 years old, his ass had to work.

Ugh, get it together, Cole. You can fix this. Just gotta smack it a few times. he mumbled, as he grabbed a long and thick piece of lumber. He slowly pushed the far end into the compactor entrance and slammed it against the couch, hoping it would push it further in. To his surprise, and slight horror, it didn’t move an inch.

Well shit, nevermind then, he huffed and tossed the lumber to the side, leaning it against the wall, To hell with this, I’m going to lunch.

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And with that, he headed towards the backroom’s exit, en route to the breakroom to retrieve his lunch. Well, in truth, he was mostly dodging and sneaking to the backroom.

One thing about working at HomeGoods is that, no matter what you do, there’s always going to be someone who tries to pull you into work, most of which is one of the managers of the chain. Fortunately for him, getting around folks silently was rather simple. As soon as he stepped into the breakroom, he reached into the fridge and grabbed his admittedly old Japanese-styled Bento Box, along with his bottle of fruit punch.

Finally, some food. I swear, I should get a raise for how long I stay back from lunch. he mumbled, as he headed out to the front of the store. Usually, he’d opt to just eat in the breakroom, but after dealing with slightly annoying co-workers, a trash compact that wouldn’t work, and one customer who was constantly asking for rugs to be taken down just to be put back up again, which on its own was a daunting task, the last thing he wanted was to be anywhere near that store.

With a deep breath of fresh air in his lungs, he sat on one of the chairs on display in front of the store, as he opened up his lunch. The sweet, delicious smell of buttered rice and fried chicken graced his nostrils, his mouth watering with delight.

Hell yeah, finally some lunch. Come to papa! Cole cheered, as he raised his filled fork to his mouth. Yes, nothing could stop him from enjoying his perfect lunch!

Excuse me, sir?

Well, maybe not nothing. His eyes looked up from his plate, as he slipped the fork into his mouth. Just in front of him seemed to be an older man, around his forties. He was a tall one, being around 5’11, with pale skin, rust-colored hair, and a build around the same as Cole’s. His ensemble of a formal grey suit, completed with a dark red tie, and black dress shoes really added to his look of all business. Which, that only begged the question; what the hell was he doing at a HomeGoods furniture store?

The mildly disgruntled employee groaned silently and swallowed his food, before answering, Hi, welcome to HomeGoods. Can I help you, sir?

Actually, you can. I am in need of some assistance with a chair I bought just now. I’d move it into my car, but, as you can see, I’m not as spry as I used to be. he chuckled, his low voice rumbling within his throat.

Not as spry? This dude doesn’t look that old. Either he’s got an injury, or he’s just a lazy one. Cole thought, as he shrugged his shoulders. Now, in this situation, Cole had two options. He could either do what all of his other employees do and tell him to find someone else who can help him, since he was on lunch break, or he can cut his break short, and help him out. The latter is usually what he chose, albeit begrudgingly.

Alright, alright, I’m here to help. Do you have a receipt as confirmation of your purchase? he asked, as he closed his lunch box and placed it on the table. The man nodded in response, his hand pulling out a small receipt from his coat pocket. Not much to Cole’s surprise, it was legit. Same date, a reasonable time, and a chair that they usually had in stock were all present on it.

The chair is just over by my car. Please, follow me, if you will?

The man soon began to step towards his car. Fortunately, it was pulled up just in front of the store’s entrance, where the chair also was found on a bright red flatbed. Cole only stared, not just because of the fact that everything was just left there, but because of how expensive-looking the car was!

Holy shit, that’s a Ferrari 335 S Spider Scaglietti! Those things are one of the most expensive cars to date! Who the hell is this guy, and what is he doing in Fayetteville!?

Within a few moments, Cole had already begun to slide the chair within the back seat. Luckily, it was easy, thanks to the fact that he could hold the chair closed. With a huff, he stretched his limbs in relief, and backed away from the pricey vehicle, closing the door gently.

There you are, sir. Your chair is now packed and ready to be taken, uh, wherever you’re going, he mumbled, his eyes looking the elder man over once again. He smiled, a small chuckle leaving his lips.

Very good. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get anyone to help, his hand slowly raised up and rested on Cole’s head, ruffling his hair, There should be way more hard workers like you, kiddo!

Okay, this guy is touching me. That tears it, he’s a weirdo.

With an awkward smile and a quick step to the side, he pulled himself from the man’s hand. One thing that he hated was being touched by folks he didn't know, especially ones that had that pull-you-into-a-white-van energy.

Um, thanks for the kind words, sir. Anyways, I gotta get going. I still have a job to do. Please, have a good day. he said, as he slowly began to walk back to the front of the store. The elderly man nodded his head, his hand giving him a wave.

Of course! You be safe now, ya hear?

With a nod of his head, he stepped away from the overly chipper man and started back towards the building, his hands hidden within his pockets. He made sure not to look back, in fear that the elder would ask him for anything else.

Dude really needs to know the meaning of ‘don’t touch random strangers’. Well, whatever, I’m sure he’s mostly harmless, he thought, his hand scratching under his chin, Now, to get back to my lunch.

******

Hey dude, you want a cola?

Cole’s eyes looked up from his phone, his eyebrow raised in intrigue. After all the work he had to finish up, a carbonated beverage sounded tempting as hell. With a shrug, he nodded his head in acceptance.

Sure, toss it here.

The male in question did just that, to which he would catch it in his dominate hand with ease. Popping it open, he sighed in absolute bliss. The smell of the beverage, the soft hiss of the bubbling fizz; it made his heart swoon with excitement.

Nice work out there, man. I didn’t think anyone could get that couch down into the compactor. the young man spoke, as he brushed his light brown hair from his eyes. The man in question was named Aaron, who was Cole’s coworker. His skin was a pale cream-color, with brown eyes and a bit of stubble on his chin.

I don’t know whether that’s a good thing or not. To be honest, I’d rather be good at something else, like maybe stock exchanging.

Arron raised an eyebrow, You do know that you have to constantly be watching the stock market for that, right?

Yeah, so?

You’d get bored of it way too easy. Knowing how you get, you’d get up to do whatever for a few hours, then come back and see all your stocks have hit rock bottom.

Cole smiled awkwardly. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t deny that. With how he was, he’d only give it a few days, get bored out of his mind, then move on to something else. That whole money-making skill worked for some people, but knowing his luck, it’d be more of a money-waster than a money-maker.

Okay, that’s fair. Can’t argue with that logic, he mumbled with a silent shrug. He took a nice swig of his drink, a small smile on his face. As usual, the taste of cola instantly brightened his spirits, though it was still unhealthy.

Oh, hey, little tangent from that, but have you heard about that whole kidnapping issue?

Huh? Kidnapping? What, like a Slenderman-type thing? Cole questioned, his finger tapping at his chin.

Aaron scoffed, Pfft, no, not that one. Same vibes, but not exactly. Here, look at this, he swiped at his phone and showed it to the bespectacled male, it just got posted the other day.

His eyes traveled up and down the screen, his lips curled in a quizzical frown. On it was an article, one about what seemed to be about a dark, suspicious van. Silently, Cole read the article to himself.

Another person missing. Authorities have been warned of another kidnapping taking place behind the nearby Walmart in Peachtree City, with no evidence of the assault. Reports show that none of the cameras were operational, and any that were still working had all data scrubbed from their database, he blinked, not exactly knowing what to say, Wait, how is that possible? It’s not like they have access to those things, right?

Aaron shrugged, Not that I know of. Maybe they hacked them or something, I don’t know. Regardless, this is getting serious, man. I mean, I seriously don’t want to go out and get fucking nabbed by someone, he scratched the back of his head, "Who knows what they’d do. Organ selling,