Orthael was pleased by the turnout. A few parishioners had come to introduce themselves and give their requests before the start, which he had made careful note of. Herrin had done well with the reading, and then he asked the collected faithful to bow the…

Merall smiled briefly, letting Deravell's stories of bloodlust and corruption of the spirit slip back into the lower reaches of his memory. She need not know, and at any rate they were only stories. Only the librarians in the Lower Archives and the other …

Before she could challenge him, he spoke. Quietly, but firmly.

"Take care with your weapon, swordmaiden. It is more than you know, and less. Much has been forgotten about those that drew it and its kin from the forges, but what survives is enough to trou…

The satellites.

They should have known when they launched them, battalions at a time. Everything was mathematically planned. No collisions, no crossing paths or degrading orbits. Full coverage. But the little mirrors grew so numerous as to first double t…

I start thinking. Video game names are cliche, for the most part, appropriate though it may be. And, as much as it may fit the situation, sci-fi and fantasy names are also out. It just bugs me when people name their kids after movie characters.

We sit in…

I'm on the outside looking in. I see you inside, laughing, joy written on your face. The door is locked, but sometimes I can hear what you say inside.

This time, I'm not distraught. I'm not frantically beating on the walls to be let in. I'm not crying oc…

You know what? Don't speak to me. I'll only manipulate you and poison you with my words. My hurts fester and are infectious. They spew from me in fits of rage.

I can't let you in. What's lurking inside of me is the ugliest monster you've ever seen. It's …

I watched as you moved into a shotgun house with one bedroom and a yard only big enough for a shed. You were too busy to find a place on your own, anyway.

But I saw the truth.

In a tiny house, no one can stay the night. No one can stay unannounced. N…

"Yes, sir," he said, and closed the door with a slight bang. Odd, thought Howard as he lit a new and slightly bedraggled cigarette: Temple's out of sorts. What's got up his jumper today? Arnold raced for the door and--

.

The Turlock continued to stalk u…

Story is marked as mature

Judgement was still and silent. The weapon was possessed of a long and storied history; as with any that know of the past, it knew to listen as well as speak. It did so now, with a patient devotion to detail - in Orthael's despondence Judgement absorbed t…

The chanting turned to screams without warning. The small party exchanged panicked glances, unknowing and uncertain. The man himself shrugged in a quietly resigned manner.

"I know nothing, gentlemen, but you should not be surprised that your regime chang…

It had been fourteen days. The painting was gone and with it my heart. Authored by an amateur it had meant more to me than any museum in the world. Each day that passed felt like a relentless excavation into my chest, letting in the outside ice and snow t…

It's the question I didn't want to ask, and she didn't want to hear. "I'm... I mean, I know what I was, and I think I know what I will be. Right now, I don't..." I see tears welling up in those brilliant blue eyes.

I put my hand on top of hers. "Let's st…

Not daring to head down any of the halls, you feel safer in the dead center of the square. There's no ceiling here, so there's nothing that is likely to fall down upon you, and the water might provide some protection, as well. You take a seat on one of th…

They found the Governor waiting patiently in his office. He was staring out at the gathered crowds, but turned to face them when they came through the doors. Gareth, who had been the Foundry 2 foreman, swore up and down that he had seen a sneer of contemp…

She walks through a crowded plaza, a beacon of sultry beauty. She is temptation incarnate, a temptress with but one goal. She moves slowly, exulting in the wandering eyes of the men and not a few of the women. Many crave her. Others hate her. Still more c…

It's been raining for two days straight. No matter what I do I can't see how to stop what I started. Honestly, it's hard to see anything through the wall of water beyond my window. The house across the street was little more than a looming blur and the st…

BEGIN MESSAGE STOP

"DRAGON'S TEETH" PIRATE CUTTER ENCOUNTERED 3103 4103 STOP

SHIP SUSTAINED HEAVY CASUALTIES FROM MARKSMAN ON BOARD UNNAMED CLIPPER AT RANGE STOP

DESCRIPTION MATCHES PACKAGE STOP

"FORGOTTEN SHORES" MARTIS LIGHT CRUISER IN PURSUIT 2810 5101…

As the music changed to The Bobs' "Zombie Jamboree," so too did the mood of the two ex-lovers change from one of tentative friendliness to one of more serious feeling. It was time for the vocalizations of turkeys; the time of refreshment was over.

"One mo…

Keshintai's correspondence trailed off over the last couple of months of the year, until eventually, all of Taka's letters went without reply. Concern filled Taka's mind, and she began to worry that something might have happened to her friend. The only co…

Apart from Ryle, the other thing that the captain (and, of course, he would not be the first to do so) would ask about was the shooting. And, since there was nothing but my own supposition, I was more than happy to tell him about marksmanship.

There are …

You settle your stance once again, balancing the heavy extinguisher on your shoulder, which is getting sore. You wham it into the weaker part of the window even harder than before.

The good news is that the window pane drops out of the frame. It's all ove…

Harold skidded to a stop next to the girl, his mass and motion nearly carrying him over her. He stopped just in time, the tips of his front paws just touching the flesh of the girl's arm. She didn't react, didn't even flinch. Her eyes flickered to the mas…

"Coming up on the anomaly now," I whispered. "All seems normal."

"Copy that. Telemetry looks good from here."

The steady hiss of oxygen coming from the compressed tank on my back punctuated each step as I made my way over the uneven ground. As I did, th…