The Beckford Bottom Beast
Page 5
Free Stories
So That a Marigold Might Live Free
The orange blight threatens to consume the planet of Geralt. Dr. Rhodes races through the planet's golden grassland on a mission to vaccinate the children against the deadly blight, but his mission is nearly impossible. For the patriots of Zeb Griffin, bound to accept the law of no man but their own, resist Dr. Rhodes' efforts at the peril of their families and their planet.
Waters and Mirrors
Larry McPeak has come to the seer's crimson table in hopes of reaching beyond the veil separating the living from the dead. Among those gathered at the table, only Larry doesn't hide his face behind a mask, and he fears the oversight will prevent him from peering into the table's waters. But the seer promises him his turn, and so Larry stares in the rippling cloth hoping to touch the other side.
Legacy of the Chain
John Johnson tires of his family and name, and so his dreams weave elaborate stories to replace the mediocrity of his days. And then one summer night, a tattooed wizard arrives at the community park to unfold magic of the most incredible kind. With a final unraveling of chain, that stranger transforms John Johnson into a new man by replacing the bonds John knows with much more sinister knots.
Marblefish
Three bullies steal the wonderful, swirling marbles offered that year during the summer, county fair from brothers Brad and Brett. Brad fears that such cruelty might crush his younger brother Brett's heart. Brett has not yet learned the injustices crowding the county fair. Yet a game comprised of tossed marbles reminds Brad that fairness, and miracles, have not yet faded from the world.
Given to Glass
Goodman Asher has marred his face to show humility. He has sewn shut his mouth. He has broken his nose and cut notches into his ears. Such hurts reward him by summoning a Fay Regent to his mirror. Goodman Asher smiles, for it is rumored that treasure follows the Regent. Only, Goodman Asher misreads the Regent's intention, and Asher's sewn mouth cannot correct the terrible misunderstanding.
The Beckford Bottom Beast
Ralph sticks his tongue between the terminals of a nine-volt battery, and so becomes initiated into the pack of children who assemble to fight the beast lurking in the river, draining their town of life. The monster has stolen precious treasure from each child who pedals his and her bicycle towards the dark to confront the monster, and those young warriors speed out of town to earn their revenge.
The Warden’s Mark
Wilson waits for his freedom while monsters growl within the prison’s walls. Unnatural darkness shrouds the prison since the murder of his prophet Luke Turner. He smiles though his cellmates plan his murder. For his prophet's tattoos snake upon his skin, promising that death will be but a short sleep before he awakes a free man. Wilson's faith cannot suspect that prophets keep unspoken motives.
The Dusty Dead in the Valley of the Blossoms
Grandfather Henry clutches his granddaughter, his Sunflower, close as armies prepare to turn his his village nestled in the valley into a battlefield. The roses still bloom no matter that the surrounding hills are so dry, and Henry knows the village defenders will once more rise to protect them. Only, Sunflower must know the dark, and bitter, tale of their defenders’ origins.
Science Fiction
Firedrop Garnish
The crimson blossoms of the alien firedrop flower pull mankind into the stars. Though the firedrop offers no taste nor nutritional value, there is little humanity would not sacrifice to serve the firedrop upon a household's finest china. Space knows a thousand ways to kill those who dare float amid the stars, and yet the simple pulse and glow of an alien weed make all the dangers worthwhile.
Harpies of Planet Sutherland
Mankind can only guess how long the alien water baskets have stood upon the planet of Sutherland. No clues have been found of the alien race who constructed such delicate mechanisms so long ago to harvest water from the arid planet's atmosphere. Those of the United Systems simply recognize the water's value, and so they refuse to allow the settlers of Zeb to jeopardize such ancient artifacts
Jimmy Jack and the Smartman
Each week, Jimmy Jack visits the bubble that protects Yogi. Yogi is the community smartman, and he is obliged to honestly answer Jimmy Jack's questions. Yet when Yogi discovers an intelligence amid the stars, the natural order between a community and its smartman becomes jeopardized, and Jimmy Jack and Yogi must reevaluate their friendship before the first saucer lands.
Starlight, Starbright
The archivist Un'Yhe has honored the strangers throughout his long lifetime. The strangers have smiled at every relic of the broods' homeworld Un'Yhe has brought before them. Un'Yhe's care continues to expand the museum built upon the strangers' crashed ark, until one day the strangers unfold the homeworld's bright sky to reveal a sparkling treasure more glorious than even Un'Yhe's museum houses.
Patriots of Griffin XIII
The followers of Griffin have built their thirteenth colony in record time. The United Systems rewards the effort by placing the governance of Griffin XIII into the hands of the colonists. For the thirteenth time, the followers of Zeb may live in true freedom. Only none of the twelve previous colonies named Griffin remain, and the ultimate danger resides in the colonists themselves.
Empty Urns Launched Into Stars
Paul Seton and Marshall Lincoln are unique dealers in the Singularity. With a little wealth and a lot of faith, clients in Paul and Marshall's office may circumvent death by painlessly uploading their souls into the machine. Paul and Marshall's freedom and sanity are thrown into jeopardy when a tycoon's ambition to ride the Singularity to the stars threatens to expose the Singularity's secrets.
Butcher, Baker and Replicant Maker
Nigel Hightower cannot sleep in a world built upon dreams. The machine has shunned Mr. Hightower, refusing to give him digital manifestations of his dreams. So Mr. Hightower finds solace in crafting replicas of the lost world's wildlife for children too young for the computer, until a series of updates threatens Mr. Hightower's audience so that none remain to call him “replicant maker.”
Mr. Moon’s Daredevil Messiahs
Famous memory-maker and artist Mr. Moon shatters the natural hierarchy separating human and synthetic when a clone of the Company’s Gus line explodes into flame in an attempt to jump a motorcycle across a wide divide. A new church rises, one that views clones of that Gus line as divine. The world holds its breath as a new order forms after tasting a divine memory harvested by a simple clone.
Meek in the Fields
Patch devotes his life working the countryside's fields. As a clone farmer, his life is an isolated one. Yet Patch never felt lonely until a three-legged dog arrived upon his country lane. Patch and the animal form a bond that the clone must one day defend. Thus, the natural order of creation is jeopardized, and the growing of the crop hinges upon a clone's affection for a simple, shaggy friend.
Mudder Stew
The world has evolved into a thing Hank Goode hardly recognizes. Witnessing the mudders march in the streets, banging their drums and singing their songs, only increases his sense of alienation. Hank sees that his beloved city is about to leave him behind, but he fails to suspect how ill fortune will force Hank to call the mudders his brothers so that he can accept a bowl of warm, mudder stew.
Plastic Tulips
The town of Portis doesn't fault Sophie Carter for gunning down Samantha Tosh in the local grocery store. Knowing that a copy of a younger, more beautiful you walked the streets around your home would drive anyone to murder. Nor was Samantha a person. She was only a synthetic, and Franklin Tosh should've known better than to think a clone could substitute for a human wife.
Fantasy
Kennel, Kingdom and Crown
Gareth harbors no desire to wear the heavy Stonebrook crown. But a brother's murder wrenches Gareth from his cherished dog field and sets him upon the keep's throne. Gareth has spent his years in the training of war dogs, and he knows l
ittle about ruling a kingdom. Somehow, Gareth's loyal dogs will have to be enough as he faces the monsters a necromancer cloaks in the fog.
Shadow Weapons of Doom
The Khy'Meir tribes posses few weapons with which to combat the Alhambran Empire. The tribes cannot match the empire's swords, nor do they have the stones with which to build walls. The tribes' only weapon is fear, wielded by their shadows infiltrating the enemy's homeland. But the tribes underestimate how deeply their fear cuts and realize too late the doom their shadows help summon.
A Cruel and Burning Ice
Markus Kohl's aching body struggles to attend to his duties as the kingdom's lowly tinker. Though his neighbors rely upon the tinker to keep the mechanisms of their livelihoods in working order, few in the kingdom appreciate Markus's effort. Regardless, Markus satisfies his king's newest request with a creation that will remind everyone of the debts owed to the humble tinker.
Glass Desires
Fay appears at the corner of Fifth and Water whenever Adam suffers a recurrence of cancer. Her silver hair and spinning halos comfort Adam during his deepest suffering. Together, Adam and Fay visit fantastic worlds twirling in the snows of magical, glass globes. Adam knows he and Fay would be happy, if only Fay could see how her beloved Regent so cruelly toys with