Her tea shook, and she wondered if at the other end, looking down into his own teacup or water glass or wine goblet, he would see his image of her rippling. “I am a mage.” So was this man, of course, this so-called Magister Lie. The first thoughtsen…

Perrin took a bride in the dark midwinter. With any other sculptor of his talent, the wedding would have rivaled that of the Count de Roche-Sur-Terre, held the week before. But Perrin chose his wife at dusk, swept her off to a priest by moonlight, a…

Riley signed for the package and came back inside the house. ‘What was the delivery?’ asked his wife Barbara looking up from her tablet? He looked at the label. ‘Actually, it’s from Estella. via Pocket

Hello, there! If you have received this telepathic mailing, you are a member of the species currently self-designated Homo sapiens, as evolved on the planet locally known as Earth, orbiting the sun locally known, for some reason that escapes us, as …

Isabeau came to Castle Coeurlieu as a girl of twelve, and its lady: She had been married two weeks before to the Comte de Coeurlieu, who was thirty-two and very large, with an always-angry hatchet face slashed and pierced through the left cheek wher…

“But the work is complete! Your living room, your entire downstairs, your upstairs, your backyard, even — all are redressed in sync with 1976 and ready for transport. With just the push of a button, you will be reliving your childhood memories once …

A three-year-old boy stumbles along the streets, long after bedtime, holding his mother’s hand. They are skirting barricades, guns, uniforms. via Pocket

You get coffee. You glance around. A dozen people sip beverages or talk or stare into their computers. You sit. Then you spot him. He’s at the counter. He looks at the menu board. You watch him order, watch him pay. “Thank you,” he says with a smile…

No one saw the meteor coming. It was faster than any meteor yet recorded. It didn’t so much as break the speed of light as it did beat its face in, set it on fire and sleep with its girlfriend. via Pocket

We captured her javelin just short of a light year out from Earth. Javelins are small ships, roughly 30 meters long and about 10 cm in diameter at the widest point. Eighteen javelins were launched from a rail gun on the moon six years ago. via Pocket

Author : Roi R. Czechvala, Staff Writer They watched him through a one way mirror. He sat in a corner of the room in a pool of his own excrement, legs pulled up to his chest, arms tightly wrapped around his knees. via Pocket

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“I rise today on this September 11th, the one-year anniversary of the greatest tragedy on American soil in our history, with a heavy heart . . . ” —Hon. Jim Turner September 9, 2001 Jessica slumped against the inside of the truck door. via Pocket

Welcome to Tremontaine, where social advantage is best achieved through duels of wit and steel. via Pocket

Getting the baby through security was easy. Mikkel had been smuggling food out of the lab for years. He’d long since learned how to trick the guards. Mikkel had never been smart, but the guards were four-year men and that meant they were lazy. via P…

The mountain dreams pain. Cold iron vibrates purple-blue deep in the stone while tongues made from rot and rust bite and gnaw and hunger ever deeper. The dam, buried like a tooth in the mountain’s narrow gums, holds back the great burgundy ocean. vi…

Originally published in Volume XIX of the Writers of the Future Anthology (2003). Laura thought he said it just to hurt me, which probably was true. Peter was like that. He never backed down in a fight and he gave no quarter. It was why I loved him.…

He’d never seen a burgundy before. Kim held it in her lap, tapped it with her finger. She was probably tapping it to bring attention to it, and Jeff didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of asking to see it, but he really wanted to see it. via …

One is the Lady of the Waking Waters, an immortal mermaid. The other is a thief, who steals lives until a wish can be fulfilled, and a life-changing choice must be made. All so that the Lady of the Waters might love me. via Pocket

Winslow Remington Houndstooth, notorious outlaw, handsomest heartbreaker in the American South, has just finished a lucrative job, but he’s faced with a hippo-sized problem that would test even the most seasoned of hoppers. via Pocket

It’s not every day a highly specialized composting toilet is purchased as a wedding gift. I mean, nothing says “this marriage is forever!” quite like a composting toilet. via Pocket

‘Ndrea pressed herself into the blood-soaked ground and swore under her breath. She had never had a peace-brokering mission go this badly wrong before. via Pocket

Author: Rick Tobin “May I speak frankly?” Preston Daniels stood before Secretariat Chrisom, ruler straight, staring at the Marscape beyond his superior’s office windows. “With care, Preston. via Pocket

Allen Etter was stranded in deep space. The propulsors of his small hypercraft had exploded, and he was thrown off course. via Pocket

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