Jun 5, 2026
In the alley behind the factory
where they toil, two friends discover something that may lead to
their salvation...or to their doom.
Genre: Fantasy,
Mythology
Excerpt:
The statue was a depiction
of a “vas vespertilio,” an idol carved specifically to be the
vessel for containing fundamental powers, specifically the powers
of the four elements. Each element was contained in the gemstone
that represented it. The ruby contained the power of fire. The
sapphire contained the power of water. The emerald contained the
power of earth. And the missing diamond had contained the power of
air.
The Wheel of Fiction
Turns. What did it land on this
time?
Each Season 9 story
follows a theme chosen by the Wheel of Fiction. Thirteen spokes.
Eight are the themes from previous seasons. One is “Turn Again.”
One is a wild card. And three are covered in question marks and
will be revealed when the wheel lands on them.
See a story trailer and a
(satisfying) video of the wheel turning here: The Vessel Vespertilian
This episode landed on PROMPTS. The story was
inspired by a prompt about bringing home a bag you find in the
street whose contents are life-changing...
Find more stories and episodes
inspired by creative prompts here: Year of
Prompts.
MERCH!
Interested in
merch, like mugs and notebooks, featuring my
artwork?
Please visit my Store page for
info on where you can buy: STORYFEATHER
STORE
NEWSLETTERS
The
Store page also has sign-up forms for my two email
newsletters:
Storyfeather Gazette (if you’d like to keep up with the fiction I create)
Fictioneer’s Field Guide (if you’d like writing tips and guidance from me)
Choose what you want. (Either way, you're choosing high
jinks.)
MY FIRST BOOK
(yay)
Ever wonder how I’ve
gotten all these hundreds of stories written? I have a method. You
can learn it in my book called Fictioneer’s Field Guide: A Game Plan for Writing Short
Stories.
It’s now available from Amazon as an
eBook, paperback, and hardcover.
You can also get there from my Store
page: STORYFEATHER
STORE
CREDITS
Story: “The
Vessel Vespertililan” Copyright © 2022
by Nila L. Patel
Narration,
Episode Art, Editing, and Production: Nila L. Patel
Music:
“Dark lord” by
NICHOLAS JEUDY (Intro)
“Inspector” by
NICHOLAS JEUDY (Outro)
“Abstract Vision
#5” by ANDREW SITKOV (Outro)
Music by NICHOLAS JEUDY (Dark
Fantasy Studio)
“Whispers”
“Evidence”
“Don’t
move”
“A story of
gold”
“Inspector”
“To
Falgalown”
“Scroll of the wind
walker”
“Dark
lord”
“The plan”
“They follow”
All tracks are part of a music and sound effects bundles I purchased from Humble Bundle and sourced from GameDev Market.
Music by Nicholas Jeudy and
Andrew Sitkov is licensed from GameDev
Market
Sound effects from
AudioJungle, GameDevMarket, and
Soundly (through Hindenburg)
Vocal effects created
with Audacity
Changes made to the musical tracks? Just
cropping of some to align with my narration.
Find more music by Nicholas
Jeudy and Andrew Sitkov at gamedevmarket.net
Find more stories by Nila at storyfeather.com
Episode Art
Description:
Digital drawing.
A bat mostly resembling the pygmy round-eared bat, three-quarters
view of head with mouth slightly open, seen from bent legs up. The
bat has two arms bent over his legs with a smooth membrane
connecting the arms to his side. Behind these arms rise four pairs
of membranous wings. They extend off frame. The bottom pair is
watery and translucent. Next up is a pair with rough earthen
texture. Next is a flaming pair. And the topmost pair is luminous
and wispy. Watermark of “Storyfeather” along membranous part inside
of right arm.