“I’m going to tell you a story about the time when the orange sky gleamed,” said the old man. The children gathered around the fire moved closer. Some of them leaned forward so that they could hear the story. One of the older children wasn’t quite as interested. This is a work of fiction. Any…
Karl’s Story Karl was pleased that his daughter Ellen spent so much time out in the woods. That way he wouldn’t have to be embarrassed by the silly things she did. He knew he should watch her more carefully, but he had never been able to bring himself to actually do it. If he tried…
“Old Jack has quite an arsenal,” said one villager knowingly to another. The stranger sitting in front of the village pub perked up. This was the sort of thing he wanted to know. “Who,” he asked, “is Jack?” “Farmer Jack,” said one of the villagers. This is a work of fiction. All persons, places, and…
It was a long way to the capital where the king lived, so Baron Jubal was pretty much the law in all his lands. Recent decades had not been nice to his neighbors, so he was, for practical purposes, lord of all he surveyed. He was feared. He was obeyed. But he was not loved….
“But I am Justice!” “I think you misunderstood. I came to this town looking for justice. A rich man in my village robbed me, and I came here for justice.” The woman looked bewildered. Justice—for that was indeed his name—just looked stubborn. “I’m Justice. People hear you wantin’ Justice, they call me. I’m Justice. What…
Ferod stood in shock in front of the shrine. He’d distinctly heard the words. “Are you sure you don’t want more?” He didn’t really believe in the old gods. Nobody even seemed to remember the names of whatever god or gods this shrine might be dedicated to. But he had run out of money to…
He couldn’t be more than four or five years old, thought the headman. He really should know, as this was the son of the resident priest at the little shrine on the north edge of town. But he really couldn’t remember. This is a work of fiction. All person’s, places, and events are products of…
(See also A Fresh Perspective – II.) For years merchant trains had passed through the town by the falls on their way to the great north-south trade route to the west. The terrain was terrible, but alternate routes were even worse. One could go two or three days journey southward, past the end of the…
“We want you to recover the staff,” said the mayor. “Why? Why not just make another one?” asked Jed. He was young and liked to do important things. Recovering a stick didn’t sound important. “Make another staff?” asked the mayor incredulously. This is a work of fiction. All persons places and events are products of…
Iluan-ga had not felt such excitement for a very long time. She was 81 years old, and a member of a well-disciplined order whose members maintained physical and mental health, and reasonable emotional control. She paused in her study of the ancient manuscript. PÂ-EKLI-TÎ-ÂN she read. “The saying of the master.” Not PÂ-EKLI-ÂN “a saying…
