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"The Brazen Skull'
"The Brazen Skull"
10/2024
I.
"Now is when I'm going to turn all my diplomas to the wall and go total crackpot," announced Professor Emeritus Alan T. Sherrinford.
Seated at that openwork wrought iron table outside the bistro, his two colleagues did not visibly react. Sherrinford had always been given to flamboyant figures of speech. The oldest ( Read more... ) -
"Saturnio's Daughter"
"Saturnio's Daughter"
10/1218 DR
I.
Naked sword in hand, Romal the Mongrel crouched behind the tavern and listened to the shouts of the mob that pursued him. The Signarm accent had never seemed harsher to him than now, with thirty men yelling for his death. Seemingly a tall, sturdy young man not yet thirty years of age, Romal had draped his ( Read more... ) -
"The Sad Fate of Yokel Ono"
"The Sad Fate of Yokel Ono"
6/28-6/30/2001
I.
From the outside, nothing indicated the weathered old cinder block building was a bar. There were no signs at all, and the windows had been painted black. You had to know about this place beforehand. It was by no means the only such underground establishment in this part of downtown Manila.
Late ( Read more... ) -
"Eager For Oblivion"
"Eager For Oblivion"
4/22-4/24/2024
I.
In the doorway to the rec room, Jocelyn Garimara paused. "Is that Oblivion again? I hate that bloody band."
Timothy looked up from the couch but made no move to change the station. The KDF rec room had a satellite hookup with hundreds of international channels feeding to the huge super-definition screen. ( Read more... ) -
"Racing To the Gallows"
"Racing To the Gallows"
8/11-8/12/2024
I.
"I'm not making much money doing this," the Uber driver admitted. "After expenses and wear and tear on the car, you know? But hell, I get to drive around all night and stream music in between customers, so at least I'm having some fun."
They were out on Route 232 at the far western edge of lower New ( Read more... ) -
"My Reflection Is Laughing At Me"
"My Reflection Is Laughing At Me"
3/22-3/25/2003
I.
It wasn't just that Megan and Ashley were two attractive young women walking briskly through the mountain town of Newkirk, Vermont that drew interested looks. Their contrasting color schemes were also striking. At five feet one, slim and waifish, Ashley Whitaker had shining silver-blonde hair, ( Read more... ) -
"Squidlings Rule, Okay?"
"Squidlings Rule, Okay?"
6/2024
I.
At three in the morning, the CORBY dropped silently out of an overcast sky. With no visible lights and making no more sound than a breeze, the black stealthcopter might not have even been noticed by anyone driving on this stretch of Northern California highway. The rotors slowed as the craft settled to the ( Read more... ) -
"Damned If You Do..."
"Damned If You Do..."
11/3-11/5/1977
In the New York City area, Harak had been robbing occultists of various Midnight War talismans and rare grimoires. In doing so, he had unnecessarily decapitated two of them. This had attracted the attention of Kenneth Dred, who in turn informed his new protege Jeremy Bane all about Harak the Damned.
In an ( Read more... ) -
"I'm Afraid the Bridge Is Out"
"I'm Afraid the Bridge Is Out"
12/6/1942
I.
Escorted backstage by the script girl, Kelly O'Connor had seldom felt more confident. Admiring eyes followed her long trim legs beneath the pale green dress which also went so well with the wavy red hair. Keeping to her diet no matter what and walking everywhere had given her a stomach flat as a board ( Read more... ) -
"When the Trumpets Fall Silent" II
V.
At seven the next morning, Clench hurried down the stairs head-first. Using his arms to basically go on all fours seemed completely natural considering his build. He had showered and shaved in the guest room but was still wearing the only clothes he had brought with him. Reaching the ground floor and jumping upright, the apelike man paused to ( Read more... )