It’s a cold and rainy night as I turn right onto Rosedale Drive, heading downhill both literally and metaphorically. The rain makes me prematurely tired, just when I need to be at the top of my mental game. Not that there are many other types of night in Ash Falls in September. Blame it on […]
THE RIVER, THE AXE AND THE OPTIONS by Michael M. Rader A river is not its water, but it needs moving water to be a river. With that in mind, Naveed jumped across the flat stones set in the shallow, stagnant waters of what could maybe still be called the Colorado River. His backpack swung […]
LESSONS IN BLADE AND BARRIER by Siobhan Gallagher The blade surged forward, more lightning than steel. The very air went dense with static. Izo tumbled more than dodged, leaped quickly to his feet, but found his balance off. There on the ground was his right forearm, clawed fingers clenching his katana. “No,” he gasped, throat […]
TEENAGE BADASS by Kostas Paradias Finn is a Helfwir, a monster hunter born. At the age of 8, Finn was capable of destroying a vampire with a plastic spoon. By the time she was 10, Finn knew a hundred ways of killing pretty much everything that went bump in the night. Now, on her 14th […]
FLY RED FOX by Desmond Fox Red Fox circled the coyote, tossing cold Mojave sand with her jagged steps. Sweat beaded on her face, painting streaks of dirt and blood down her blunted features with each salty drip crawling down her skin in rivulets. Half of her head was freshly shaved, the other half was […]