THE ENEMY’S TRUE NAME, by Mark Silcox   I caught sight of the three Blue Mages ascending the slope while they were still more than an hour away. The mist of their breath drifted upward as their ragged robes dragged behind them over the sharp stones. To the people of the plains, the richly dyed […]

HARD CROSSING AT LUHINMOV FORD, by Adrian Simmons   1.   Cawella Five-Tongues inspected her two spotted horses while the armies waited for the decision of the kings. The horses remained calm, untroubled by the delays of protocol. It would not be a chariot duel, so they had little to worry over. Across the field, […]

THOKMAY, by Dennis Mombauer Up ahead, the monastery rose into the snow-veiled sky, a solid shape amidst the whirling whiteness. Thokmay, Ngari und Dorje had wrapped themselves in layers of fur-lined cowls, but the cold still crept in, rasped over their skin and made their bones feel brittle. “Thokmay, our most promising pupil.” The high […]

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 […]