A deep and gentle groan that could easily be mistaken for a deep sea horror to the unfamiliar ear pushed its way through the dense silence. A haunting behemoth of shredded metal and mindless gray sea fauna began to emerge from the shroud of blue ahead of me. A hefty steel ship and her inhabitants…
Category: Fiction
The West Grove by Kiley Rochat
I drove down over the bridge and brook that leads between the groves. That bridge has been there since my father ran the business and hasn’t required repair once. I’ve gone down this road enough times since who knows when I can no longer tell if all the bumps along the road have been evened…
Sharing Candy by Matthew J Frink
It has been years since I’ve seen a Snickers bar. But, there it is. A delight that I only imagined in dreams. The dream chocolate was perfect though. Not like this crumpled mess. It had been stepped on, likely years ago when 7-11s like this were worth looting. Now a husk of convenience. The only…
Victim by Josephine Yockim
You arrived at the apartment early and knocked on the door. The people who called you ‘friend’ welcomed you in. You sat at the counter and immediately asked to be given a hit. She complied and although suspicion flooded your system, you remained calm, smiling, talking. You keep the Pen in your hand. Another comes…
I Won’t Smile Back If You Smile At Me For No Reason Whatsoever by Jonathan Gonzalez Trejo
Seriously, no can do. And you can say “OHH, it’s just a friendly gesture”. Bullshit. Since when have humans been inherently friendly towards one another? Tuck your smiles in the laughter you cause and only that, because it’s not gonna work with me. So, if you see me walking or posted up in my zone,…
Cloud Fishing by Jocelyn Sailas
Ever since he was a little boy, Jinhai Huang knew that his Uncle Bai was unusual, to say the least. As a kid, Jinhai would watch as his uncle left the house, fishing gear in hand, and then return home soaking wet with a large sum of money and no fishing rods in sight. This…
Beyond the Rainwall by Sundance Hollingsworth
The evening clouds swam through the sky, whale-grace guiding them to some unknown destination. Kiva adjusted her glasses against the spray. After a point in Greene, she stopped hearing the rain. The wall that encircled Greene was distant enough from the town that it quickly faded into the ambient hum of the day. This close,…
Coloratus Malum by Eli Lundgreen
A dragon came down from the sky. It was a large dragon, much larger than the average five foot man of the town. The dragon was cruel, the dragon was cunning, and the dragon was crimson-red colored. The dragon was the daughter of one that lived in the town, and the people had incapacitated its…
Monkey Don’t Climb by Jonathan Gonzalez Trejo
There came to be a protective tree, planted in the middle of the gutters, It’d burst when it’s moisture dried and didn’t want to be hugged with its protruding thorny utters! It craves attention and warmth with no particular gap, But oh, Jabillo! How silly you thirst with your venomous sap! When your branches move,…
The Book of All Things Treasured by Jonah Paklik
It was a rainy night in Northern Griffdonia, and many people were already sleeping the night away. At the Fish-n’-Bread Inn in Necropolis, however, not a single guest or worker had a sleepy eye. The Fish-n’-Bread Inn was not famous for its food, although the food was delicious; it was not famous for comfy or…
An Old Power Awakens by Jonah Pavlik
Admiral Kongjian of the Novus Earth Navy and his escort of ten strode up the mountain as quickly and efficiently as they could. His military escort formed a circle around him, both to provide living shields for if they were attacked and to protect Kongjian from falling should the mountain become too steep. The mountains…
Tiddleywinks! by Mathew J Frink
CHARACTERS TIDDLYWINKS: is a gnome bard who is very naive and youthful. Big eyes and dimples, she epitomizes adorableness. She excitedly talks A LOT in a sing-song voice and can ask questions for hours. Her name is absurdly long and no one has the patience to listen to her entire introduction, though she really tries…
With a Side of Syrup by Taylor Rehurek
It was 6 AM when Chloe Heard stepped into the Village Inn, her breath visible in the chilly morning air as she unlocked the door. The street outside was still wrapped in a blanket of quiet, with only the distant hum of early risers stirring. The Village Inn was a cozy little spot with checkered…
What Fresh Hell Is This? by Jonathan Gonzalez Trejo
A Person has died. Their death, unforeseen. No, it was not because their rifle self-sabotaged itself while in conflict or because they sacrificed themselves for someone in a bank heist. They simply choked on a mozzarella stick. Of all chokable things you can insert in your mouth, a mozzarella stick is quite chokable if you…
BLOODY BUSINESS [A NOIR OF HUNGER & HORROR & BAD DEALS IN SPADES] by A.T. Banks
Nikolai’s at the worst bar in the Apollyon system when he gets the call. He’s holding a glass of something dark, staring at the neon sign hung over the busted-up jukebox – don’t leave thirsty! in blood-red letters. It’s dead quiet and nearly empty. A few long-haul freighters up at the bar, heads bowed low…
Only the Moon Remained by Zachary Powell
On a dark, starry night, in a vast, grassy plain tucked away inside an old observatory, The Astronomer was all alone. He was an old Astronomer. Grey of hair, with thin, wrinkled skin. The entropy of time bit at his hands, causing a tremor through his digits. However, that did not stop him in his…
Smoke, Wind, and The Prairie by Tait Simpson
For 6 years the town of New Bellrive had been subject to Mayor Johnson’s looting and tyranny. A power-hungry alchemist from back east, he wasn’t satisfied with the fortune he made turnin’ coal to gold. Too cold and unlikeable to get elected, he decided his best bet was to round up a posse of fire…
Gilgamesh in Slavery by Malek Chevalier
This story is a revisioning of The Epic of Gilgamesh, an ancient Mesopotamian myth, set in the South during slavery. The myth and this story include themes of oppression, rape and other sexual violence, as well as other forms of abuse and violence. In the city of Montgomery, Alabama, there once stood a splendid…