jack rune / goldpines

through hell to the sea

Gillion Tidestrider is — no, was — a hero, long ago. An infant given as a sacrifice to the Gods of Old, raised by a community known as the Leviath, a cult that houses a great evil in the trenches of the undersea. He’s escaped, making his way to the seaside city of Hemlock in a fit of terror, uncertain of where to hide.

Chip is the spitting image of his father. After cutting all of his hair short and hiding the scars on his chest, he could forget about his old identity, the little girl who grew up raised by a pirate crew. For now, he’s just a bartender in Hemlock, dreaming of a world where he could return to the sea without grief swallowing him whole.

When Chip stumbles across the former Chosen One after closing hours, he hadn’t expected to get tangled in a possible eldrich threat against the oversea. He hadn’t expected possible answers regarding Ava Ferin’s disappearance a decade prior. But the Leviath is stopping at nothing to find their escaped Chosen One, even if it means the release of the evil they carry.

featuring: trans male chip, asexual gillion (as always), eldrich undersea horrors, fantasy-centric, strangers to lovers.

one who seeks absolution

Something horrific lies on the outskirts of Warrington, Alabama. Chip James grew up thinking the town was haunted, that if God was real, he wasn’t ever looking at the little town he was raised in. His father tells him stories about pirates and monster-hunters, and he grew up dreaming of the thrill of the adventure, braving the desolate forest just beyond the railroad track.

Gillion Tidestrider is the youngest son of the only preacher in town. After the death of his older sister, Gillion tried to uphold his faith, out of fear of being excommunicated from the only home he’s ever known. He finds solace in Chip, his closest companion, the boy he grew up alongside for well over a decade.

It’s when they’ve both barely begun to reach their twenties that Chip starts thinking of running away, leaving Warrington behind. As Gillion grapples with his faith, his sexuality, and the idea of the great unknown, the hauntings outside of town begin to worsen, and Arlin James vanishes.