THE THING WITHOUT COLOR, By Aidan Doyle   The vast whiteness of the mountains marked the empire’s northern edge. If it wasn’t for the sword farm, no one would choose to live in such an isolated location. Akamiko trudged along the path towards the wooden building that served as the outpost’s barracks. It was more […]

HEART OF TASHYAS,  by Raphael Ordonez       Light-headed from hunger and sun-smitten, the vagabond conquistador Francisco Carvajal y Lopez eyed the rattlesnake with something more than indifference. The insistent buzz of its tail filled the still, sultry air. A few bits of armor and three blades  —  a poniard, a rapier, and a […]

THE PRICE OF MOKERY IN DALLIUM, by James Rowe For a thousand years it has been a crime in Dallium to insult a philosopher in public without proof of the veracity of the insult. The law stemmed from shortly after the time of the philosopher Placles and was occasioned by the explosion in discourse this […]

UNDERCURRETNS, by Jennifer Crow   My siren song answers the beautiful longing in you, the ache, the unspoken grief you hide like treasure or secret shame. The same sorrow beats in me, a pulse as steady as any heart. I learned this song for you, a lifetime ago and longer. I knew one day you’d […]

SEVENTEENTH LESSON, by Mary Soon Lee   Sunlight scattered like fire from the dragon’s wings as she landed beside Prince Keng in a rush of air and smoke, snow melting beneath her belly, beneath her clawed feet.   Keng bowed to her, willed his face calm. Two and a half weeks of lessons– he should be […]