Warped
Warped
A free short story by Erin Zarro
The office was huge. Open space, desks crammed together, no cubicles, or privacy, for that matter. The sounds of computer keyboards being typed on, phones ringing, and people talking made me want to go somewhere and hide.
This was my new job. It wasn't the perfect job, but I needed one and an opportunity had presented itself. Although, when I thought too hard about it, the details were fuzzy.
"Andi, so glad to see that you're here. Let me give you the tour." A woman with her hair in an elegant updo smiled and gestured for me to follow her. She wore a navy pantsuit. Her makeup -- blue eyeshadow and hot-pink lips -- clashed horribly with her choice of clothes. I tried not to stare. "My name is Leslie. I will be your supervisor."
I tried to smile, but that lipstick gave me a nervous twitch. "Nice to meet you."
Still Waters Run Deep: Part 5
A free serial story
by Siri Paulson
This is Part 5 (the conclusion) of a serial fantasy story. Previous installments are available here: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
Payut fell to his hands and knees on the flagstones of the temple courtyard. The clang of the gate closing still echoed in his ears. He cried out as memories overtook him, rushing over him like a river in a monsoon, sweeping him along...
He is curled on his mat, listening to the slow breathing of the younger boys around him. Something has woken him early; even the most devout of the monks must still be asleep. He tries to ignore it, to close his eyes and return to his dreams. But it comes again – an insistent pull inside his mind, gentle, yet with a hint of immense power behind it. A power that keeps pulling until he follows.
He stands, all gangly limbs, and pads out of the bare room into the central courtyard of the Grand Temple. The tropical night is warm and damp. It is strange being alone, without the chanting of monks and the murmur of boys studying and the occasional slow boom of the gongs that visitors hit for luck. He feels naked.
The tug on his mind draws him across the courtyard, cool stone under his bare feet. He does not understand until he sees before him the great walls of the inner temple, intricate repeating designs painted over every surface. Even the doors bear artwork traced into the metal. They are closed for the night. Behind them, unseen, sits the Golden Statue.
Then he understands. The Statue is calling.
The Contract
The Contract
a free horror short story by Erin Zarro
“Do you agree to the terms?” the doctor asked with an accent I couldn't place.
The question startled me. I'd been thinking about all the things I could do if I wasn't dying – I could live in Europe like I've always wanted, I could go sky-diving, I could learn how to pole dance, I could have a love affair. And other things like take the Russian class I've always wanted to. And crocheting....fly fishing...there were so many things I wanted to do. And I needed to be alive to do them.
“Let me make sure we understand each other,” I said. “You said you could give me new life.”
“Yes.”
“Will it hurt?” I asked as a flash of fear went through me.
“Not any worse than dying,” he replied.
Still Waters Run Deep: Part 4
A free serial story
by Siri Paulson
This is Part 4 of a serial. Previous installments are available here: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
The city that Payut walked through was empty and not-empty at the same time. Its wide canals and narrow streets lay vacant, free of the chaotic bustle that flickered at the edges of his memory. The people had fled, driven away by the imbalance in the five elements that sickened the land. But he was not alone.
He would turn down a street where nothing moved, but the echo of large wings faded away ahead of him. Or he would catch motion out of the corner of his eye, but when he turned, only blank windows and closed doors met his gaze. Crossing a bridge over a canal, he saw something moving under the water, long and dark, bigger than the boat he had left at the city gate while getting past the guards. It paced him until he reached the far end of the bridge, then disappeared.