Chrome’s shadowgast fic rec list, vol 1
Well, well, well, if it isn’t the consequences of my own obsession with wizards. I might make another one of these eventually if y’all keep churning out absolute bangers, but in the meantime, here is a list of my top Shadowgast fic recs.
One rule here: I’m limiting this to one fic per author–but many people on this list have a broader oeuvre you should definitely check out.
Your disclaimer: this is not a full literature review, but rather my personal favorites. Caveat lector!
sleeping in the shadow of an other self by nonwal | @nonwal
Essek has a moment to consider that gravity-based trust exercises have never worked for him, and then the spell hits. He leans back into it, falls, falls.
(In which Essek is resurrected by the Mighty Nein and framed for innocence.)
Okay, listen. If you haven’t read it yet, you’re missing out. There’s a reason it’s at the top of the list. 30k of absolutely phenomenal characterization of not only Shadowgast but all the M9 and the coolest plot to ever plot. Not only a fantastic first read, but a phenomenal re-read as well.
multitudinous echoes awoke and died in the distance by mousecookie | @ariadne-mouse
Caleb takes a step forward and stumbles. As he catches himself he realizes something very odd. His hands are shadowy and translucent. His whole body is a shadow, in fact. If he holds his palm up to the sky, he can see the stars twinkling faintly through it.
Sharp talons of panic dig into his chest. He feels solid - if he grabs his own wrist, he has mass, but it is wrong. Everything is wrong. What is happening?
Prepare Fireball, commands a voice in his head.
It takes him a moment to realize it’s familiar because it’s his.
An absolutely fabulous pre-relationship fic, written before the end of the show but you wouldn’t know it from how perfectly it nails the dynamic. Ariadne has written a ton of other fabulous Shadowgast fics and I encourage you to read them all–I’m just limiting this list to one fic per author to try and cover more ground.
Great Minds by bluebirdsongs
Essek uses more high-level dunamancy in battle, and Caleb tries to reverse-engineer it when he can’t sleep.
AKA What if we were both wizards and I cast Tether Essence on us to save your life?
This is a gorgeous fic, both for how it handles Caleb and Essek’s conversation–with profound deftness–and for the treatment of magic-as-math. A beautiful exploration of both dunamancy and Caleb and Essek.
to make a cradle of your palm* by renquise
Essek offers Caleb his spellbook, open to the page of a new spell.
As Caleb suspected, his adaptation of Essek’s gravity spell was different in its conception, for all that the result was the same. The architecture of this similar spell speaks of a different thought process, a different set of basic assumptions. It is beautifully engineered, efficient in its use of components and energy: a simple spell requiring only a length of silk thread and yet capable of reaching over a great distance and causing great damage, if applied with intent to harm.
“If you would like, you can, ah. You may—" Essek gestures at his own throat, a quick, inelegant spread of fingers. “Test the application of pressure that the spell exerts.”
It takes Caleb a moment to register what Essek is proposing. He is a delicate speaker, as always.
Oh man, this one just goes for the jugular (ha) in the most perfect way. The prose here, like everything renquise writes, is absolutely masterful, and the tension between Caleb and Essek is exquisitely rendered.
fist-fighting with fire just to get close to you by kaeda | @the-kaedageist
Caleb caught Essek’s eye across the dome, and Essek returned his small smile. “It would seem that it is trickier than expected to keep things on a…private channel,” Essek thought at him.
“Unfortunately,” Caleb replied.
“Unfortunately for all of us,” Fjord interjected.
(Spoilers for campaign 2, episode 138)
Kate has a fabulous gift for getting the Mighty Nein’s voices exactly right, and this fic is no exception. This takes the hive mind/telepathy of the eyes to its hilarious, heart-warming, logical conclusion and it’s an absolute joy to read.
(perhaps i may) elaborate by demonstration* by marsastronomica | @marsastronomica
After the second fight, they rest again. There’s still time left in the day, and they may as well push as far as they can. Essek and Caleb find time between action to talk. And negotiate.
This one is an absolute banger. The flirting! The tension! The incredible intense game of chicken that Essek and Caleb are playing this whole fic…it’s amazing, you can hear the dialogue in their voices, this is another one that I read and then had to tell everyone about. And now I’m telling you about. Go read it, it kicks ass.
I’ve been lost before (and I’m lost again, I guess)* by toneofjoy
Caleb has plans to take down his old coaches. Essek has secrets. They climb rocks, make new friends, explore professional boundaries, learn about consequences, and maybe even fall in love. It’s the Shadowgast climbing AU.
AUs can be a tough sell for me, but this one’s not. Half the joy in this is the fabulously vivid world that is built by the author who absolutely knows the ins and outs of competitive climbing and expertly shares it with the reader. The other half is the beautiful growing relationship between Caleb and Essek, which is a consistent joy to read. It’s still a WIP, but I promise it’s worth reading along.
the other things that make us* by saturday_sky | @saturdaysky
Essek returns, when he can, to the sanctuary of Caleb’s home. The peace of it is a balm against the tedious peril of the road, which has more misery to share than Essek had ever thought. It’s nice to have a place where he can lose himself: in a book, in arcane study, in the confusing allure of Caleb’s smile.
It’s nice. And the cats miss him, Caleb says.
[First chapter is a complete story. Second chapter will be a follow-up epilogue to it.]
This one hurts in the best possible way. I can’t highlight my favorite bits without giving it away, but the emotional beats of this absolutely beautiful post-canon fic are top-notch and the reveal of information is perfectly executed.
darkness to me is only water to the sea by treeviality
Essek knows how his story ends. There is a place in Rexxentrum where executions are carried out, wooden steps leading up to a wooden platform. There hangs a noose, swaying lightly in northern wind, while polished cobblestones shine bright in golden light.
There will be birds, Essek imagines, and when the lever is pulled and gravity takes hold of him one last time, he hopes they take flight.
This now-AU take on Essek being arrested is lyrical and beautiful and the author has a tremendous grasp of language and also how to rip your heart straight out of your chest and then gently replace it.
And, if you’re still looking for fic, I have a few, but one of my favorites is:
we never do go over (we always gotta go through) by Chrome
In the last fight with the Tombtakers, Essek Thelyss bends reality to keep them all alive and pays the price. As he copes with the aftereffects of his own magic and the party takes the long journey back to the surface, Essek and Caleb finally confront what they are to each other.
Five times Essek woke up with level(s) of exhaustion and one time he didn’t.
