The ocean felt endless from the little dinghy. The press of Kila against my shoulder was overwhelming and sweaty. Three days since the The Pearl sank, Lanta sat in the rower’s seat. Despite my aching arms, I counted the seconds until my turn. The sun started to set over the horizon. “Should I scrounge dinner together?” ...

The house sat tucked away in the depths of the woods. Its once white, pristine boards had turned a nasty shade of brown from years of wear. The windows were covered in dirt. The roof sagged, holding its breath so it wouldn’t cave in. These were the thoughts that crossed Maggie Harrington’s mind when she ...

          Cricket’s chirping filled the desert’s rolling hills; the silence of the night echoed. A horse in a stable snorted as a woman with raven-black hair fed him hay. A sad smile came across her features while she stroked the soft, brown fur of her beautiful steed. Her blue eyes swam ...

Nobody questions how the Sorcerer Kaelthar grows the most potent herbs in Anacaris, but an hour into tilling his garden, I discover the bones. I loft a glittering femur, too long for a dog, too short for a stag, and present it to Ember’s kneeling form. “What is this?”   Ember snaps to attention, sandy hair ...

The field erupted into a spray of dirt, wood, and golden blood when Zeus’ chariot was knocked out of the sky. The Lord of Thunder was ejected from the wreckage, rolling a good ten feet away. He shook the daze from himself and stood, preparing for his father to be upon him. This future king ...

It’s written in paint across the west-facing wall of a dilapidated church; the message is cold in the summer heat. I’m anxious as I pace the perimeter. My partner, the former sheriff of El Triunfo, Nico Ros, lies on a chipped pew. His hat sits on his face, but his beard peaks out from the ...

Content Warning: Adult themes and violence.   Siro stumbled through the door, head swimming, eyes blurred. Blood oozed through his fingers as he held his side and took a seat at the bar. He pulled the coat he’d stolen closer to his body to hide the wound from view. It was bad. It was a ...

Music played through the wide-open doors of the cafeteria and bright-colored lights flickered on the walls. The announcement echoed as “Low” by Flo Rida played. Balloons and silver paper stars decorate the entryway. They didn’t shine bright as the stars above, highlighted by a full moon, along a desert landscape. Tonight was prom; the night ...

“We both know you didn’t kill him.” The soothsayer smiles at the knight across from her, tracing her finger along a gold chain that wraps her face, piercing her nose and running to her ears. The metal catches the curling light of an oil lamp, reflecting droplets of wealth over the carpet and walls of ...

Content warning: This story contains mentions of suicide, self-harm, and trauma. This story is written for an adult audience. Midnight-black shadows cascaded over the bright blue-painted walls of a studio-apartment-sized home. Crickets chirped outside a barely cracked open window that displayed an open, blanketed heavenly sky. The stars themselves twinkled like gems across a desert ...