Fantasy
Contemporaneous Cognates. Top Story - October 2025.
In the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, the United States………in the first dimension Sarah looked in the mirror, leaned closer and with a smooth, clean handkerchief carefully smudged the immaculately applied red lipstick staining her lips. She took a moment to appreciate their glorious perfection, all too recently plumped by the top local plastic surgeon. This, along with all the other means the surgeon had employed to guarantee facial perfection, had cost a handsome penny, but it had been well worth the expense. What was this life worth if you couldn’t attain perfection and enjoy such things at thirty-two? After all, it wouldn’t be long before she had to face the dreaded middle age years, so she needed to be sure she approached them in excellent condition.
By Cindy Calder3 months ago in Fiction
Twin Paths. Winner in Parallel Lives Challenge.
In the high country where the mountains hold their breath, there is a village you could pass through in a day and still carry for the rest of your life. Wind moves through it, a careful hand whispering through your hair. The river braids itself into three silver strands before it slips away into the lowlands. And in the loft above the temple, where cedar rafters smell of rain and beeswax, there stands a loom older than anyone dares to remember.
By Aspen Noble3 months ago in Fiction
“The Empty Vessel and the Unyielding Flame”
“The Empty Vessel and the Unyielding Flame” At Waking Summit Monastery, where clouds bowed low to the mountain and monks bowed lower still to the First Ones, the Doyho was more than a sparring circle, it was a crucible of spirit. And within it, two names echoed like drumbeats: the eldest Disciples. Komuso, the Empty Vessel, and Jiro, the Unyielding Flame.
By Canyon Cappola (TheNomad)3 months ago in Fiction
The Girl Who Woke the Stars:
There are nights when the sky feels alive when the stars flicker as if remembering something lost. Long before maps and machines, people believed the stars were the souls of dreamers watching over the world. But in one forgotten age, even the stars went dark. The heavens turned silent, and the world sank into endless night.
By Zeenat Chauhan3 months ago in Fiction
The Last Light of Elaris: A Fantasy Tale of Hope, Magic, and Destiny
There are worlds hidden in the folds of time realms that shimmer between light and shadow. Elaris was one of those worlds, a land once alive with magic, laughter, and golden skies. But as darkness crept in, the people forgot the warmth of the sun and the sound of joy. Legends whispered about a prophecy one that spoke of The Last Light of Elaris, a single spark of hope that could save them all.
By Zeenat Chauhan3 months ago in Fiction
Werewolves Can't be Soldiers. Top Story - October 2025.
Few on Fractallus kept a calendar of the black moon, Lefeya’s, movements—few beyond the sailors and fishermen who relied on knowledge of its tidal effects. Sailors kept a calendar of Khito —the green moon — as well. Kalbass only kept a Lafayan calendar, and he lived in the middle of the Tranquil Forest. It hung on the wall in the small but cozy cabin he had inhabited since that fateful day he and his family were mauled on the road from Paviel to Tranquilis. If he were to really think about it, which he never did, he might have come upon the cabin a few days in.
By K.B. Silver 3 months ago in Fiction
The Clock Beyond Time
The night was quiet when Ethan Cole stood before the old grandfather clock. Its brass pendulum swung with a rhythm too perfect, too alive. He had inherited it from his great-grandfather, a man who had vanished mysteriously in 1893. For years, Ethan thought it was just a family legend. But tonight, something in the air felt different. The clock’s hands spun backward faster and faster until they stopped exactly at twelve midnight. A faint hum filled the room, the floor trembled, and without warning, the world folded like paper.
By Emma Fischer3 months ago in Fiction
