Category: original fiction

"Ghost Magnet" "Ridiculous," I slam the book shut and toss it on the floor beside the couch.  Why do I insist on reading these ghost romances, I know better. Spirits never, in my experience, hang around because of love or devotion, to protect and comfort, like the handsome, kind young man in the story. He had loved his beautiful Iris too deeply to leave her. Now, obsession I would have bought, but not unselfish caring. Ghosts are nasty, at least the ones I've dealt with, needing revenge or "justice" or hopelessly reenacting a part they had played during their lives. I knew a man who stalked his wife for years after his funeral, not out of love but jealous of any rivals he saw moving into her life. One boyfriend he scared away by throwing things at him, including kitchen knives. Getting rid of them isn't as tough as you might think, though. It's keeping their attention and holding it that's usually...

"Home Is Rarely Safe" Leah leaned against the cool wall and closed her eyes, letting the tension melt from her shoulders. The parade was over. The annual pageant was a tradition, a display of the Emperor's power and wealth, his army marched down the main boulevard from the city gate to the palace, followed by the huge, self-propelled chariots, the gears clanking in rhythm, small cannons glinting from their sides. The citizens lining the route cheered, but she had seen fear mixed with the pride in their eyes. The soldiers alone were an impressive group, young men, each carrying his weapon of choice but moving as one, well-trained, eyes straight ahead but missing nothing. Her own group, the elite guard, had worn their traditional armor, striking but essentially useless in battle. As the wives' guards, though, her women were rarely called to war; their battle was closer to home, guarding against assassins, against enemies both foreign and those inside the walls....

Watching A Dream Warren watched from his perch on the tree limb. He had followed his King and Queen to this woods tonight, curious, but of course Oberon and Titania were making fools of themselves again, not attending a meeting with the gnomes as he had hoped. They needed to form a treaty soon, before the restlessness developed into war. He was tired of the monarchs' petty squabbling, their indifference to the daily lives of the fairies. Titania was so wrapped up with her worshippers, those silly women who dedicated their lives to her. Oberon was little better, attempting to maintain control over minute details, while not seeing the big picture, fooling around in mortals' lives for amusement, barely noting that the lesser fairies were growing anxious. Warren saw that fool, the one who had come to the woods with a band of friends and had to smile. Leave it to Puck to give the man the head of a donkey and...

"The Panther Growled" The panther growled, its golden eyes shining in the darkness. I turn back and raise a hand, reminding the beautiful creature to remain calm. We don't need to advertise our presence, at least not yet. Coming around the corner hugging the shadows, I see Awayne, as unpredictable and dangerous as the cat that always accompanied him. I motion that we need to catch up to the others and he nods, not speaking. We hurry through the old, unused tunnels and see the rest of our small party ahead, the lantern glowing dimly as they rest and wait. The plan is clear. The Queen is at her summer palace, just on the other side of this mountain, with only a small guard and a few maidservants. Our archer's arrows will surprise the watchers. They will not have seen us approach and by the time they are aware of us it will be too late. Each of the six of us...

"Hope Was Exhausted" Hope was exhausted. A month ago, she had left her home, part of the cortege accompanying the Duke's body to the capital. A week's trip she had been assured. Then the bridge had been out. The small party had been ambushed, rebels, hiding in the hills, showering them with arrows than rushing, swords drawn. The fight had been so quick, her people outnumbered. Hope had killed three of the enemy herself, but most of the entourage were not warriors, had no skill with a sword or dagger. Then she saw the Duke's son, his heir, fall. As she rushed to his side, the rebels had retreated, taking all the weapons and valuables they could grab with them. Apparently they had accomplished their mission. Looking around her, Hope saw the overturned carriage, the dead and dying littering the ground. She was the only one left. Bending over the handsome man, she heard him whisper hoarsely, "Take this to the...

I actually wasn't going to do a story today, but I know David at least looks forward to them. So I wrote a quick one kind of up his alley. Searching for Treasure We rowed deeper into the swamp, the water green and murky. Logs floated by us, or perhaps alligators. We chose to ignore the rumors of other, more dangerous creatures living here. Snakes thirty-feet long, reptiles whose teeth could rip through our heavy wooden boat like it was paper, birds capable of swooping down and picking  a man up in their talons, flying off with him. Folktales, we had assured ourselves before beginning the trip upriver, designed to keep out visitors. But here in this oppressive sticky air, out of sight of the last village, anything felt possible. We didn't speak and tried not to listen to the rustlings along the banks. The locals had thought we were crazy and maybe we are, but we know it's here. The treasure, buried...