Once upon a time there were three brothers who lived with their parents in the midst of a vast forest. via Pocket

Claudia Campbell shifted in her seat, clutching her oversized pocketbook closer to her chest. She released an audible huff. With all the automation these days, why couldn’t they move things along faster? She dragged a digital magazine off a nearby t…

I set out for Velaya as a young man, having only just pledged to wed. I was to marry Belqis, flower of our village and light of my eyes, in whose father’s orchards I had played since my childhood. Our marriage should have been enough for a lifetime …

Any Old Disease – Dimitra Nikolaidou – Metaphorosis Magazine via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2L0wXry

On her sixteenth birthday, a girl approached her mother, a priestess gifted in prophecy, to learn her name and her fate. The trees of that island country spoke with the people, the priestesses most of all, and taught them things that we, to whom the…

Over the past year, we at MAELSTROM have covered stories which have often bordered on the sensational, such as the famous rivalry between siblings Amaterasu and Susanoo, the Japanese gods of the Sun and the Storms respectively. via Pocket

Thirty breaths, and then my world will be over. I know I will die from the moment I know anything at all, an understanding so innate, so instantaneous and thorough that it seems to precede me, which makes sense, as it was coded into my mind before y…

Sure, he’s not exactly the same. There are small differences. Some easy tidbits that I picked up on. Like, he’s right-handed. Ian was left. And this morning he asked if I wanted to take a week off. Save up for a get-away. via Pocket

Sister Nadine’s first true thought is of beauty. Father Paul is delivering a sermon on sacrifice in his deep voice, pausing for emphasis every so often, when the bird lands on the ledge of her squint with a silent flutter of wings. via Pocket

Here’s what I know: When Mom discovered she was pregnant with me, my parents had been separated for some time. Dad had left her for another woman in another town, and Mom had filed for divorce. I was conceived during a short-lived Christmas reunion.…

PodCastle 535: The Threadbare Magician — Part 1

I see her shoulders tense, then one hand releases as the other arm swings out and round. Ashes form a plume on the wind. “He’s gone, Darion. Free at last.” Essa blinks back tears as she smiles at me. There’s a release in her eyes, a relief and a par…

The chopper could be heard in the distance. Chakk-chakk-chak-chak. It was still out of view behind the sheet of mountains. The sound of the unicorn blade clacking over the sounds of gunfire gave the platoon courage. via Pocket

Barbara pulled the baked turkey from the oven and set it on the counter carefully. It was perfect! She did not want the juices to slosh over the side and burn her like they had the year before. via Pocket

It was once told some time ago that there were four brothers that were the son of a huntsman that had saved a princess from a dragon. The four brothers had each mastered gainful trades with skills beyond any other with their craft. via Pocket

Today was my day to choose a disease. Mama was heavily pregnant again. She was stirring a large pot that bubbled away on the stove, filling the air with the aroma of milk and oats. Sage, Lentil, and Chilli were crawling around Mama’s ankles, squeali…

This Side of the Wall – Michael Gardner – Metaphorosis Magazine via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2nuaFoJ

Wearing the Hat — The Sockdolager via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2w4D9cS

via Pocket

Swallowing bubble gum, she stepped from the doorway of a downtown video arcade - pulling her black halter-top down and her miniskirt up for effect - and walked her practised walk to the kerb. Fog was drifting in from the Bay, giving the lights of th…

Love in Its Heart – David Z. Morris – Metaphorosis Magazine via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2OrHP3U

Jim Selleck Wins Flash Fiction Challenge – Indies Unlimited via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2M2u9yK

Get Your Man | 365tomorrows via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2ALGy5E

The Kiev Metaphor | 365tomorrows via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2vD78rO

Boy Meets Girl Without All the Bullshit – Electric Literature via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2OTR8uz

Aimee Bender Recommends A Short Story by Lisa Locascio via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2vqLQ1x

Flash Fiction Writing Prompt Red Clouds – Indies Unlimited via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2LWCx2T

The creature she’d had them make cost her the last piece of forest outside Siena. The one with the little medieval chapel in it, the tall umbrella pines shading a forest floor no tourist had ever walked upon. It cost her the two rocky islands just south of Elba, and the lead mines at Piombino, which she had never cared about, and the villa on Lake Garda, which she had, because, so small and intimate, it had been one of her father’s favorites.

“Hello,” answered some whiteman. “Good morning! Could I speak with—?” He mispronounced her last name and didn’t abbreviate her first, as nobody who knew her would do. “Young lady,” he said. “Can you please tell me whether Miss Jean-Louis is there or…

Gashapon girls, machine-made, capsule-kept; Sleeping beauties in bright baubles, Pristine toys oblivious to the world Before you. Crack the eggshell, watch me climb out. I was born knowing how to let you take me apart. You wanted something else but …