Vines and creepers covered every part of the bulkhead's interior. Sickly brown leaves, branches whose mottled bark looked like scales, as well as wicked looking thorns choked the mouth of the doorway. The metal surround it had warped, in some places buckl…

The doctor stood at the center of the Operating Theatre, examining his surgical instruments. Beside him, the body of a young man with fair hair and milky skin lay draped in a white sheet. The doctor looked briefly at the body before looking up at the in…

It closed its eyes and roared.

"Sacrilege! Blasphemy! Desecration! The Aldergods will destroy you utterly for this. You will be fodder for their entertainment. Perhaps even the Gilder- and Bolgurgods will--"

"Enough," I replied mildly. Its mouth clamped…

"What's your sign?!"

"Piss off, Elise."

As I returned home, I was stunned to see that my house was full of lights and sound of merriment. The wedding that had called me away scarce had as much excited activity. It had only been eight days or so but even from the road, I could see the house was …

I walk in its shade, its shadow. The sun cowers meekly behind the imposing monolith, a testament to society and order. My footprints lie vaguely in my wake, brushed by the desert winds. My parched throat longs for relief; my legs wail and gnash in pain. W…

There was a silent explosion of glittering light that swept through the forest in a radiant blast.

Orthael was thrown aside, tumbling away in a dreadful kinematic arc. Orthael swayed but held on, enfolding the girl under ghostly wings of supernatural glo…

For weeks, the nightmare has been the same. The way the child's head snapped back, the scream of the mother as she cradled the lifeless form. For days I didn't even know if it was a boy or girl.

The officer's gun. It was an impulse move. I saw my torment…

It's dark and the rats are eating my sleep. They feast on my lack growing fat and fearless. I've been in bed for three hours, tossing and turning, and each time I slide from consciousness into that darkened stage of the first dream, the crinkle of paper o…

It wasn't funny anymore. The first few times, maybe, but it had been several hours now and there was nothing remotely humorous about it. He wasn't yet ready to give up, though.

He reread the note, searching for some tiny scrap of useful information. He h…

"Wait, so, she ran away from her husband into the arms of another man. That's adultery," concluded Sonia.

"But, her husband was raping her. He only sees her as a possession he's entitled to by law," argued Monica.

"Ew. I'd run away, too. Can't she get a s…

No invitations went out, none that I sent or saw anyway, but as the summer waned, travelers began trickling in. They stopped by with reasons to suit the individual: curiosity, rest, even for a cup of tea. They stopped and then they were gone. Each time my…

Thermu burst into the parlor without knocking, her voice raised in excitement.

"Esma! I found it! I finally found-"

Esma turned with a panicked smile and owl-wide eyes from her seat in the wingback chair. Across from her sat a sharply dressed man with lon…

On clear nights you could see the distant glimmering pinpricks of light denoting the city's presence. It was tucked away amongst deep mountain ridges and thickly forested land, with hints of water hidden in the surroundings.

The view was beautiful this ti…

"I did warn you."

"You've seen my underwear before."

"Yes, but not in the open air. On the highest hill in the county."

"It's windy. I'm a web designer: my wardrobe is a bit thin in the hiking skirts department."

"A lack we are clearly going to have to ad…

The Watchers tell me you departed some time ago, that you walked into the tunnel by yourself armed with nothing but your pack, walking stick, and a lantern. An incredible risk, if you ask me, given what we both know lurks there in the dark. But I know you…

To dream such dreams,

to banish despair with the conjured light of face and form,

drawn perfectly from decades ago--

such is the magic of faerie wings and moon beams.

In that twisting and infinite moment,

perhaps a reflection of what was in another time …

"Humanity should be still and calm." The tall, faintly luminous figure placed a six fingered hand up to a the transparent field of shimmering green energy that showed a hazy image of a spinning planet dominated by blues and whites and greens. "We've giv…

Open the bag, use your best scoop.

Prepare your keyboard and your mill. Each bean is a notion, an image, a memory. An inspiration.

Grind the words in bursts, then pour the fragmented syllables, letters, and phonemes into the basket.

In goes the hot water…

Around her, the air glowed with imaginary light.

A scintillating galaxy of text, artwork, and signage drifted just above every surface, ethereal and invisible without compatible hardware.

It ran up walls and windows, across sidewalks and streets. The gr…

The wastes are not empty. They are bleak, harsh, even dangerous, but people make a living out here. Some say an inferior race lives like animals. This proved untrue, becoming my saving grace.

I encountered a band of hunters. They were wary, but led me ba…

You've called. Sent me letters. Begged me back. Explained how stars have decided our lives are meant to be intertwined.

But I don't want to be your girl no more.

Go home, sweetheart. Take a deep breath and take care of yourself and move on. You can't ta…

Sophie Claire was far from a damsel in distress, so she didn't cry out when the rust and gunmetal colored 357 Smith and Wesson blew a gaping chasm in Earnie's torso. She had driven a stake through his chest with a hand maul while he slept, to no avail, …

Story is marked as mature

You've heard the expression, "Everywhere you go, there you are." Well, I've got a variation for you.

"Everywhere I go, there you are."

Frankly, I'm getting tired of it. At first I thought it was just me. You know, how you see a familiar face in a cr…