R.R. Stephenson
Bio
Creative writer, storyteller, and worldbuilder. I craft immersive lore, rich characters, and compelling narratives across fantasy, sci-fi, and tabletop settings. I post mostly flash fiction!
Stories (33)
Filter by community
Selections from the Grand Bazaar
“Do you remember the first time we came up here?” Chaani asked, tying her hair into a ponytail as the train pulled to a stop at the pristine Chimera Heights station. Unlike Vargos’ other train stations, Chimera Heights was equipped with top-notch security measures, a heavy corporate police presence, and immaculate sanitation and architecture–a delight to visitors and a comforting relief for those returning home from the city’s seedier districts.
By R.R. Stephenson11 months ago in Fiction
Selections from the Grand Bazaar
Lincoln Bayer was down on his luck. Scratch that. Lincoln Bayer had been down on his luck for the twenty-seventh year in a row as he hit his twenty-seventh birthday. He’d been born a child of a now-defunct factory in the Iron Reach and orphaned by the time he was two. Since then, he’d come of age under the harsh lights and hard hands of the pauper houses that littered the Sprawl, taking in its endless wave of abandoned children. He’d learned early how to scrape by–selling scrap, picking pockets, and dodging corpos in the deadly streets of Vargos, yet no amount of windfall ever seemed to be enough.
By R.R. Stephenson11 months ago in Fiction
Selections from the Grand Bazaar
It was odd how cold the room was where Lisa Moreaux was set to conduct her final interview with Vargos serial killer Carter Erikson on the night of his scheduled execution. She had done many of these interviews at Vargos’ various penitentiaries, including one built smack dab in the middle of Smog City’s coolant manufacturing campus, where the surrounding atmosphere maintained a steady ten degrees below average temperature. Even there, the interview room hadn’t been this cold.
By R.R. Stephenson11 months ago in Fiction
Selections from the Grand Bazaar
Five miles from the last line of shacks marking the beginning of Vargos’ city limits marked the beginning of Mama Tex’s world. She’d lived in the city for almost three decades before she learned the hard way how hard it truly was to thrive in a city built to actively exploit those that called it home.
By R.R. Stephenson11 months ago in Fiction
Selections from the Grand Bazaar
Lucky and Nickel walked down the enormous steel hallway leading to the floor boss’ office, a journey they’d never taken before their entire time living in their factory campus. They were ammunition manufacturers in Fountainhead Armory Aerie-9, the place responsible for making most of the drones and weaponized vehicles that blighted Vargos’ skyline at all hours.
By R.R. Stephenson11 months ago in Fiction
Selections from the Grand Bazaar
“Alright, how do they feel?” Mackey asked as Kendo wandered out of the salon towards the car. He’d gotten a lot of augmentations since pledging with the Gilded Teeth over ten years ago, but the golden dentures were the symbol he’d made it. He was finally a soldier with the group and everyone would know who he ran with the second he opened his mouth from that day forward.
By R.R. Stephenson11 months ago in Fiction
Selections from the Grand Bazaar
"Don’t squirm too much, this anesthetic isn’t foolproof," the surgeon muttered. This was Alexios’ fifteenth cybernetic transfer to an unlicensed surgeon, he knew exactly how much squirming he could get away with before he felt a pinch.
By R.R. Stephenson11 months ago in Fiction
Selections from the Grand Bazaar
The Fountainhead office building near the intersection of 55th and Grande in downtown Vargos was unremarkable in almost every way. It looked identical to the other smaller skyscrapers owned by the corporation. It handled the day-to-day business for the world’s largest security firm and firearms manufacturer, and its employees clocked in and clocked out without error each day.
By R.R. Stephenson11 months ago in Fiction
