A no-name, aspiring author who can’t stop writing. Looking ahead, he strives for perfection. Shackled by various forms of entertainment, he dreams of success. Most stories here are an invitation to YOU, to join me in creating new stories, new worlds, and a different tomorrow.
Stories
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Receptions (Day 95)
An incoherent expression was all the warning I had before a rickety wagon wheel threw mud at me. I leaped back to avoid having a foot crushed. Wiping the cold clinging stuff from my chest, I shook my fist at the retreating wagon. The old man hadn’...
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Violent Disconnection (Day 94)
A bee buzzed against the window. It wasn’t an angry noise but rather it sounded like nature herself was humming. It reminded me of a cat’s contented purr. I tapped the window. “Hey there, Mr. Bee. You seem pretty happy out there.̶...
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A Dangerous Feeling (Day 93)
The feeling of disappointment comes like a sharp blow, not so much as a stinging slap, but rather like a swift kick to the nuts. It spreads outward and upward, an echo of pain in the lower stomach covered by an a thick blanket of deadness, as if the ne...
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Hollow (Day 92)
The house was cold and dark as it always was when I came home. Turning the lights on didn’t seem to help. It just changed the museum from day to night. Even though I lived there, it felt empty. After the door shut behind me there was only a heavy...
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Disparate Aptitudes
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(A) Refusal to be Boring
Seek. Strive. Perservere. While you carry your own light The stars surround you
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Despair Bear (Day 91)
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Learning is Painful
Reaching up, the man grabbed Nina’s wrist and twisted. Her hand went numb and despite her best efforts, the knife clattered to the ground. Hissing, Nina drew another knife with her other hand and cut diagonally. Surprise splayed across his face. ...
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Last Words (Day 90)
Lautemy mounted the wooden steps, his head held high. Two guards, one on either side of him, kept firm grips on his upper arms but he moved without their urging. The gibbet creaked as an unseen wind played in its frame. Below him the two dozen people w...
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L is for Love Without Judgment
Perry sucked on the straw, her cheeks bowing inward, until she was rewarded with a mouthful of creamy peanut butter. Satisfied, she settled back against the tree, her eyes bright. Gem frowned around a mouthful of fries. “I don’t know how yo...
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Remake With Madness, Save With Sanity (Day 89)
The lines of separation that made up the world flexed, bulging outward, straining, until they broke under the intense pressures being brought to bear. As reality itself shattered, thought, material and energy became one and madness descended upon the w...
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Bucking Tradition (Day 88)
“It needs more pink.” “It’s not girly enough.” “Why is the one with rainbow colored hair so athletic? Is she a lesbian?” “There’s too much focus on self-exploration and comedy. Girls aren’t in...
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Like Creeping Sores (Day 87)
Nine sheet covered bodies lay in the street, cordoned off from the rest of the city by angry looking biohazard tape. Meerchum eyed the other medical personnel that buzzed around in their half-panicked, half-excited states with open disapproval. People ...
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Like Creeping Sores (Day 87)
Nine sheet covered bodies lay in the street, cordoned off from the rest of the city by angry looking biohazard tape. Meerchum eyed the other medical personnel that buzzed around in their half-panicked, half-excited states with open disapproval. People ...
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Dangerous Words
In front of me the scene continued to play out and I tried to remain invisible; less than a background piece and certainly not a witness. The three thin members of the Two Bones stared at the hulking form of the Bloody Thumbs and he returned it impassi...
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Grief isn't Cheap
I kept my hands firmly folded against the desk. “So what I’m hearing, and please tell me if I got any part of this wrong, comes down to two facts. First, your boss stole your girlfriend. Second, you are now accusing him of being some kind o...
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Blue Tuesday (Day 86)
Bartleby slowly pushed the contorted faces of his Screa-YUMS! around in the bowl. It was a gesture that had been repeated often as he sat there staring blankly, waiting for a nebulous something that never came. Eddies and currents created by the motion...
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Intruder (Day 85)
The door opened and three men stepped inside. All three were skinny and moved with a swagger that implied ownership. The leader’s face was a grim mask held in place by a clenched jaw. To my dismay, the last two fingers of his left hand were paint...
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Under Pressure (Day 84)
Gerald winced at the indistinct shouting coming from next door. He closed his eyes, hands balling into fists until he was ready to march over there and give them tit for tat. He had begun to stand when the shouting had cut off, and he sank back into hi...
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As We Agreed (Day 83)
Thick dreadlocks were pulled back off her forehead by a red bandanna. Tiny white diamonds danced across the fabric. Dust splashed up the sweat pants and the bottom half of the jean jacket, embedded by time and wear. A strap hung off her shoulder and di...
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On Patrol: Welcoming the Dawn
Stifling a yawn with the back of my hand, I placed my palm against the glass as if to welcome the sun and almost recoiled at the frigid surface. Instead, I closed my eyes, forcing myself to really feel it and accept it as it was. No matter how many tim...
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On the Rocks to Straight Up (Day 82)
Leaning against the railing with arms crossed, Bert surveyed his cargo and allowed himself a small smile. For the first time in months, his hold was full again. Thin metal crates, each stamped with a wide iridescent bar code, were piled in blocky pyram...
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If You're Living, You're Winning
Gambrol burst through the pine needle arch. From one step to the next, he was in full flight, running hard, and then it was like wading through chest high invisible mud. Something held him back, resisting his forward motion. Frantic to escape the night...
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They're Inside (Day 80)
Buzzing flies coated the green and brown sludge causing the whole mass to roil and writhe as if it were a single massive entity. There must have been thousands of them living, breeding and dying out there. Watching them made my skin crawl. I could imag...
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The Iron Anchor of Insecurities (Day 79)
Dr. Chavez sauntered over to the cliff’s edge. It was the last place anyone had seen Greenwood. Mario said that he must be dead, but Dr. Chavez wanted to be thorough. Squatting down, he peered over the edge. Ten feet below, Greenwood dangled in m...
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Catch and Release (Day 78)
Mattheson rubbed the lump of scar tissue where his left nipple used to be. It was hard not to whimper. The pain was old but the memory was fresh- a trio of professionals standing over him with their saws and their clamps, each taking a turn at maiming ...
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Unpleasant Surprises (Day 77)
Gingerly touching the side of my head with my fingers, I scraped away gravel that stuck to my skin and hair. There was a little blood but nothing seemed to be currently bleeding. I righted my bicycle where it had tossed me off like a prize winning bron...
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The Mystic (Day 76)
The mystic was wrapped deep inside layers of cloaks, scarves and hoods. He regarded me with silent question and I avoided the faceless darkness by examining his clothes. Some were patterned in winding wires or curling vines dotted with flowers. Some we...
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Discoveries (Day 75)
Bran ran his fingers along the exposed pipes of the sewer. They came away with grime that was slimy and gritty. Bran grimaced and wiped them on the edge of his coat. The orange-ish streaks seemed to glow in the dimness. That was odd. He didn’t re...
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Necessary Assertions (Day 74)
Orchestral music began to play, heralding the arrival of greatness—a new world’s dawn. While others had created some kinds of artificial intelligence, they had created one that could access the accumulated digital knowledge of the human rac...
