End of the Reign

End of the Reign

by Carol11 Comments
My husband has missed my flash fiction posts and so have I honestly, so I'm going to try to start writing them again. The image below is from Full HD Wallpapers Blog. The young woman stared out the window, her grey eyes reflecting the storm clouds just beginning to part. She watched the ships glide gracefully across the chasm, the faithful arriving. The snakes, too, she thought, well aware that the death of the Empress would attract the devoted, the hopeful, the angry, the lunatics, and the powerful in equal and often interchangeable numbers. Roxane's rule had been long and, at times, bloody. Few loved her, but all had respected her. Tomorrow's funeral would be a pompous affair with the Bishop would intoning the traditional service in front of the elect, the royal families, the upper echelon of the governement. Hours of sitting on the hard pew, standing, kneeling on the marble floor. Somber. And each of the attendees, with eyes focussed on the satin...
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and the Crows Followed

by Carol6 Comments
Image: Luis Royo and the Crows Followed 354 words Lucie stopped, vibrating slightly until her breath slowed. She heard the moans, fewer now. She saw the crows descending, anxious for the feast. She knelt on the ground facing the west where the sun was setting in a blaze of reds and oranges. She laid her sword down and slowly removed her helmet. There was no danger now. The few who had escaped the village were mere children. If they managed to find the next town, it would be hours before anyone would come view this carnage. She would be long gone by then; she always was. She licked the blood from her fingers and leaned forward, her forehead touching the cool grass. I had no choice. It had become her mantra, her reason for living. Lucie remembered the day clearly. She recalled the rough texture of the noose as it tightened around Ruan's neck,the glaze that came over his eyes when his spirit had passed...
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Her Storm (flash fiction)

by Carol8 Comments
Image: Luis Royo Her Storm 353 words Frederick could feel his father's glare on his back, his mother's worry. Neither would approve of the woman he was marrying today. Alas, they were dead. He was king now, and he knew that the woman standing beside him would be useful. It was not a beneficial union, according to his advisors. Elane was not a noble, she was not a political asset. Few would even consider her beautiful, her long chestnut hair untamed, her features angular, her body too thin to be considered lovely, but those icy eyes were piercing and her lilting accent mesmerizing. Frederick was not a fool. He knew Elane did not love him, probably resented him, but after what he had witnessed last week, he had no choice. He had been at the summer manor, walking through the parched fields, when he had seen her on the ridge. She raised her hands to the sky, and clouds began to form, dark grey...
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Back Home (Flash Fiction)

by Carol6 Comments
Image credit: unknown Back Home by Carol 382 words So, it’s true, Casey thought as she drove past the old Cagney place, seeing the light in the window. Jake is back. Inside the house, Jake surveyed the progress he had made. It wasn’t much. He’d have to stay at a hotel tonight, probably the next week, maybe more, until he could get at least one room livable. The house would require so much time, work and love, but he was committed. He remembered being a child, walking down the street, fascinated and frightened by the haunted house. Even then, the house seemed to be waiting for him. As a kid, he had never dared break-in, and although plenty of his friends had boasted about being inside, he never believed them. He left Miller’s Creek immediately after he graduated high school, knowing that there were few opportunities in the small town. He and a friend had started a security agency that became very successful. They provided all...
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At Willowside (Flash Fiction)

by Carol8 Comments
At Willowside by Carol 350 words Oran kept walking, didn’t look back at the village. Claire was dead, buried yesterday, an accident. How could it have been an accident? The best archer in the village missing his target by yards? Even in the slight wind, Oran found it doubtful, but with no proof he couldn’t accuse the man, and even the elders had been afraid of Claire, of her visions, especially her last one. Claire had told the council about invaders from the north. She saw them, swords at their sides, riding into the village on horses as dark as coal. She had naively told them, too, that in her vision the intruders had met with the council, which was, Oran believed, why she had been killed. He had no evidence nor did he  have Claire’s gift, but he had a foreboding feeling the elders knew the invasion was coming, were anticipating it. Oran knew them to be crafty men, eager for power, not...
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Just a Dream (Flash Fiction)

by Carol4 Comments
Dottie at Tink's Place has a Monday Morning Flash Fiction challenge that I'm enjoying. Each Monday a new picture prompt will be posted and if you choose to participate you post your story on Friday - 350 words, give or take. I don't like this one as well as my last couple, but here you go.   Just a Dream by Carol 414 words Fiona woke with a gasp, sitting straight up in bed. “What’s wrong?” Jackson asked groggily. “Just a dream. Go back to sleep.” She kissed his forehead. After he began gently snoring again, Fiona stood up, slid her feet into slippers, and wrapped her warm, deep green robe around her. She padded down the stairs into the kitchen, where the nightlight provided a dim glow. She methodically heated a mug of milk and added several scoops of cocoa mix. Only then did she allow herself to sit at the small table and think, as tears ran down her cheeks. Andi was dead, that much...
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