The New El Dorado I’d never felt such cold in my life. It was like an infection seeping into the thirty dreamers trapped shivering for a week in the back of a truck. We barely talked, each dreaming of the approaching land of gold. The smugglers told us about the insane riches, showed us a…
Category: Drama
The Human Key
The Human Key 1567 calories daily. 2059 steps. Daily measurements. This is the clockwork-like regime of a human key. We of the palace sanctum called The Ring must perpetually be the exact right size to unlock our Door when summoned. * * * A hand over my mouth. Rough hands dragging me from bed. I…
The First Night
This story is a response to the Muse on Monday prompt of March 23, 2026: Write a story about going to sleep. The First Night The lights die with a mechanical clunk and darkness suffocates me like a woolen shroud. I try not to move on my bunk. Every breath seems to make the metal…
Strategic
Strategic Jenny and I stepped out of Giordano’s Pizza near Willis Tower, and the air shook. The top of the tower was a fireball. 9/11 flashbacks flooded me. We ran. “Who would do this?” Jenny had her phone open. “The news says it was Zimbabwe.” “Zimbabwe? Why?” Where even was Zimbabwe? “They hate our government….
Asile
Asile You lie on cold marble staring at the dome above. Blood leaks onto beautiful tiles. “Back!” you hear. “This is a sanctuary. You have no right.” You turn your head and see the priest standing in the doorway, keeping the mob out with his body. You close your eyes. The door slams and the…
It’s Not the End of the World
It’s Not the End of the World The pool water felt cool, the soft lapping probably the last sound I’d ever hear. It was okay. I’d had a good run. We all had. The horizon blossomed as a second sun seemed to descend. If the estimates were right, the shock wave would hit in ten…
Candy From a Baby
This story is written as a response to the Muse on Monday writing prompt for August 4, 2025: Write a story from the antagonist’s point of view. Candy From a Baby “I don’t feel good.” I glanced over at my daughter Amber in the passenger seat. Her eyes were closed, and she was sweating. “Your blood…
Tea Minutes Left
This story is written as a response to the Muse on Monday writing prompt for July 14, 2025: Write a story about coffee or tea or another hot drink. Tea Minutes Left How long did a cup of tea last? Mike had never considered it before. In truth, he almost never remembered the actual drinking of the…
This Familiar, Alien Air
This Familiar, Alien Air The air here smells familiar now, which means I’m forgetting my home planet. It’s been decades since I crash-landed on this world. The inhabitants were initially wary but respectful. Their language is subtle, but I get by. I live in this ruined castle I found, adding bits of technology I salvaged…
DailyArt
DailyArt I don’t remember when I got my DailyArt™. It’s an electronic picture frame with a subscription: every morning when I wake up, a never-before-seen picture greets me. They started out cheerful but soon the colors darkened, and the shapes hinted at tragic things. Then this morning I woke up to a single scrawled word….
The Green-Walled Treehouse 