Short Stories
Bite-sized bits to enhance the overall flavor profile
Note: This page is heavily under construction! I’m reworking all my short stories, and re-posting them here when they’re finished.
You can support me by buying a coffee (caffeine always helps).
P:S. They’re all downloadable for free in epub format, which can be read on any platform (yes, even Kindle).
Contents By Topic
- Dr. Ranier Blood’s Arc
- Stories of the Night Children
- Stories of the Fey
- Stories of Psychopomps
- Stories of The Sundered
- Others Among the Mythos
Dr. Ranier Blood’s Arc
Court-appointed therapy doesn’t go quite the way Rapunzel thought it would.
Re: Dr. Ranier Blood; The Kin
Rumors of her appear in the news, but who can credit tales of a pale little girl freezing things with a single, bloodied touch?
Re: Dr. Ranier Blood; The Kin
“This is your test,” she says, and to my dismay, her voice carries the tinny echo of magic, a compelling power.
Not the usual conversation one has upon entering a magical psychologist’s office.
Re: Dr. Ranier Blood; The Kin
Stories of the Night Children
Notte thought to hide from the world, to punish himself by being alone.
The world – including a power-hungry emperor – has other ideas.
Re: Notte; Ahmose; The Ever-Dying; The Night-Children
He’d always painted what he saw; these visions pushed him, bled out his eyes, and the only cure for augural blindness was to splatter it out in colors, shapes, forms.
Re: Jonathan; Seishirou; Ravena; Notte; The Night-Children
Years ago, Seishirou chose to disobey his maker for the sake of love. Years ago, Seishirou’s love knew exactly how it would play out. Today, the bill comes due – but that isn’t the end of his story.
Re: Seishirou; Ravena; Jonathan; Notte
He got away with it all. In the end, it was the damned cows that caught him.
Re: Terrance; Notte; The Night-Children
He was the assassin, the executioner, the bringer of death for the Blood King. After all, Terrance understood death better than most.
Re: Terrance; Notte; The Night-Children
I can see the life leave you.w
You died for nothing.
Re: Terrance; Notte; The Night-Children
“It is always time for extinction,” he says, but drops his gaze. And I know that for a time, a short time, a too-brief pause, I’ve won.
Re: The Guardians; The Night-Children; Notte; Adam
Flappers. Vampires. A thug who stole a necklace and a speak-easy with Jazz to die for.
Re: Salome; Notte; the Night-Children
He can’t stop killing. He can’t be killed. After the events of Half-Shell Prophecies, Joshua finds himself adrift – and in the grip of the Beast.
Re: Joshua Run; Notte; the Night-Children
Strange children. Strange costumes. A strange night, all around, with an unexpected party.
Re: Joshua Run; Notte; Terrance; Alex; Grey; Jonathan Sumeragi; the Night-Children; the Fey; the Kin; the Guardians; the Ever-Dying
I do not wish to be be the Blood King, Nox Aeterna, Lord of the Night Whispers. I wish to simply be Night, bearing the burden for nobody – alone, communing with the wind and underestimating the freedom that comes from loneliness. But these are selfish thoughts, and that is not my role.
Re: The Night-Children; Notte; Terrance; The Ever-Dying
He was the most amazing man she’d ever seen—the only man, too, who showed no fear in the face of all that was here.
Re: The Night-Children; Notte; Ravenna; The Ever-Dying; Az’kabek
Just the aftermath of a strange day, a strange letter, and some under-the-table un-wisdom.
Re: The Night-Children; Notte; The Hush; Ramses Al-Benumm tá Oman,
Ancient vampire Notte has tea with a friend right in the middle of some… family business. Awkward!
Re: The Night-Children; Notte; Robin Goodfellow
Joshua Run is safe now, thanks to Notte – but saying goodbye to his former life is harder than saying goodbye to his humanity.
Re: The Night-Children; Notte; Joshua Run
Stories About the Fey
The damned Throne takes my magic, stealing every last drop from birth to death. Rebellion is not rewarded, not even when you’re the heir.
Re: Grey; Mab; The Fey; The Throne
Before me stands the bedraggled crown prince of the Unseelie Fey. I pretend I do not see how desperately he hoped I’d invite him, and he pretends that he does not have bits of twig sticking out of his hair.
Re: Grey; Notte; The Fey; Terrance; The Night-Children
Aiden smiled. “What can I do for you, my friend?” he said, and waggled a finger. “Be sure, it will cost you.”
No, It wouldn’t.
Re: The Fey; Aiden
A fascination with human Halloween. A terrible destiny. A strange night of monsters, magic, and too much candy.
Re: The Fey; Grey; Terrance; Marshall; The Night-Children; Matt; the Darkness
Someday, he’d just leave. Nobody would call him prince, or Highness, or expect him to do anything miraculous. Someday could not come soon enough.
Re: The Fey; Grey;
It is as if each generation bled, leaked ink or paint or power. Or perhaps it is something else that has left them.
Re: The Fey; Grey; Owen; the Throne; Man
A sleep-deprived elf prince. A doctor who’s trying. Weird physical therapy. Not everyone is as good at helping the Mythos as Ranier Blood…
Re: The Fey; Grey; Robert Moore;
A Fey thief, down on his luck and with a heavy debt to pay. A sentient throne guarding the Unseelie treasure. What could go wrong?
Re: The Fey; Grey; The Throne; Theron
Stories of Psychopomps
The soul had been flayed, shredded into suffering ribbons, and Death had to think carefully about how to handle it right.
Re: Hades; Dis
Now, he knew what this place held. Monsters, magic leaves, things all meant to stop him and eat him and stop him and hurt him, and he wouldn’t be fooled again.
Re: Red; The Ever-Dying
“You eat it,” said the Observer in that tone that could either be encouraging or mocking.
“Why?” said Death, and picked up a sausage. Grease oozed between his fingers and ran down his thumb.
Re: Hades; the Observer; Dis
She’d won. She’d won! He had got it wrong, but she’d won. No way was she going to pass up collecting. Dis was nothing if not thorough.
Re: Dis; Cronos
Stories of The Sundered
We were tasked with stopping the end of the world, but it’s too late for that. So, failing that, we are tasked with preserving what remains.
Easier said than done.
Re: The Sundered; Jason Iskinder; Sundered Ones;
“Take care of your brother.”
He tried.
Re: The Sundered; Demos; Tomas
She understood why she’d been chosen. That didn’t make it easy.
Re: The Sundered;
Soon, I’ll have enough, and I can step out of this idiot game and I swear, I swear, no one is ever going to touch me again.
Re: The Sundered; Kaia
Harry has some important childhood memories. He does not know some of them were altered.
Re: The Sundered; Harry Iskinder; Aakesh
Just a bit of flash fiction for a delightful artist, Sixelona, who drew Gorish first.
Re: The Sundered; Harry Iskinder; Aakesh
Flash fiction: Aakesh’s POV.
Re: The Sundered; Harry Iskinder; Aakesh
A slightly longer version of Aakesh’s POV.
Re: The Sundered; Harry Iskinder; Aakesh
Jason Iskinder’s Hope of Humanity was never the only ship, even if his arrogance made it sound that way. Iskinder’s people met the Sundered Ones.
Re: The Ever-Dying; Aadhvitha Jahns
It is as if each generation bled, leaked ink or paint or power. Or perhaps it is something else that has left them.
Re: The Sundered; the Ever-Dying; Jason Iskinder; Aakesh; Harry Iskinder
Others Among the Mythos
A pretty lady always knows how to smile. (Flash fiction: 240 words)
Re: Flash Fiction; The Ever-Dying; Kalarastri
Punish me, will you? Two can play this game. (Flash Fiction)
Re: Random
Just a story about magic, cereal boxes, and long-lost Mesoamerica gods. No, who am I kidding? It’s about a badass convenience store manager with a taser.
Re: The Ever-Dying; Random
The moths came when you left. (Flash Fiction)
Re: Random
Ghosts don’t mean to scare you. They just want you to know: it’s not over when the fat lady sings. (Free-form poem.)
Re: Random
Once upon a time, there was a hedgehog who thought he was a fairy.
Re: Random
One thing for sure: this had absolutely nothing to do with Alighieri.
Re: Random
Sometimes, ordinary folk don’t get happy endings when the world goes wrong. But that doesn’t mean they have no choice.
Re: The Ever-Dying
This is about as close to loving a human as a little Dream can ever come.
Re: The Dream
The dreams are the same. Merged, always, with memories congealing and woven thick, tightening into the weft and warp of me.
Re: The Ever-Dying; Solomon Iskinder
Bran the Crow King, a dark and powerful being of Darkness, ruminates to his newest lover about strange and intimate things.
Re: The Darkness; Bran
One: give it back to its clan. Can’t do that? On to rule two. Written by Katie (and Suvi).
Re: The Darkness; Bran; the Ever-Dying; Katie Lin; Suvi
Sometimes a single afternoon is enough to make up for a lifetime of bad decisions; at least, it comes close. This spoiler-free short story follows the last day of Tsehay, one of the People of the Sun.
Re: The Sun; Tsehay
In The Most Important Word, we learn of portals offered by the Mythos to save human lives. Not all those portals led to good places.
Re: The Hush; the Ever-Dying
If you see him, don’t run. If you see him, look at his hands.
Re: Random
More to come soon! I’m editing as quickly as I can. 🙂