Talaverse: Introducing Sadira, Part 1
I sighed, staring at all the books around me. I hadn't expected to end up employed so easily, or to find a home with the person who saw me walking along the side of the interstate one night. To be fair, they had been welcoming; their car had been warm,...
Come With Me - Modern Mythics P1
— Janek — Early morning sun glinted through the glass walls of my top-floor corner office. The entire fifty-first floor held nothing but the upper management suites, divided into four even sections. The three suites my division heads used had...
Deer x Wolf
I couldn’t shake the feeling that I appeared absurd. I’d pulled on the smallest shirt I owned, not quite a crop top, but small enough that anyone looking my way could tell it didn’t fit. The only pants I had were my usual jeans, worn soft and a little...
Vast, Our World and Our Resolve - Prologue
The vice admiral stared at her screen, the twenty-six standard hours of sleeplessness beginning to weigh on her despite the five cups of black coffee she had consumed and the adrenaline coursing through her. The live readout of the ever-changing status...
Lusty Roommates on a Friday Night
-- Friday night. Weekends were to be had. 7:30 was a busy time in the household as more than half of its roomies were getting ready to leave for the weekend. Jagannath was not one of them. The golden retriever boy stood by the kitchen counter...
Shared Heat
Daisy's round ears drooped as she stared down at her half-eaten plate of lasagna, the silence around the dinner table as thick as the layer of cheese congealing on her fork. Her father, a large black mouse in his early 50s, cleared his throat and took...
Vast, Our World and Our Resolve - Chapter One
**Part One: Sinoe** * * * Martin tossed the last folded shirt to the side as he emptied the backpack onto the leaf-strewn floor of the woodland. Four full changes of clothing, a can of mystery meat, some dried fruit, and a mostly dull pocketknife:...
Vast, Our World and Our Resolve - Chapter Five
Martin finished his drink while listening to Namo's performance. He had to admit, he enjoyed the sound of her voice. Without being an expert in terminology, he nevertheless could appreciate her considerable vocal range and dynamic style that breathed...
Vast, Our World and Our Resolve - Chapter Three
The leaf from the plant that Martin only knew as nataan'snanbo landed on the surface of the otherwise still water with a serene ripple. “Uhh, Martin? Why are you just staring off into space?" Namo peered over to try and meet his gaze, then tried...
Vast, Our World and Our Resolve - Chapter Two
Martin's thoughts raced as he wiped his mouth on his sleeve. Images of a narrowly-avoided future of being jailed, or worse, hanged for the armed robberies he had committed across northern and central Sinoe flashed through his mind. Caught in this...
Vast, Our World and Our Resolve - Chapter Six
“You don’t strike me as a coffee person.” Martin sipped his coffee hot, Namo took hers at room temperature. Whereas yesterday her hair had been done up in a bun to keep it out of her face while traveling, today it was let down. Her straight locks...
Vast, Our World and Our Resolve - Chapter Four
As Martin had expected, the Central District of Fordham was night-and-day different from the Northern District. By moonlight, firelight, and lamplight, the pair navigated the dirt sidewalks that flanked the corduroy skid road. Even after dark, a few...