Shortstories Community

126 days on Earth - a breakthrough.

Days flow at the slow pace of the stars. Along with them, the Human Song fades away. I lift a stick. I dig it into the melting ice. Mom - I wanted to be for you. I wanted to be human. - I draw a stick-like figure. Next to its leg, I sketch a small trap. The snares are too loose. The prey… read more

126 days on Earth - a continuation of fragments

I carry all the remaining wood. I stack it on the still burning fire. For the last time, I squeeze the tiny fingers. I lean down to them and kiss. I cover the last tufts of hair with logs - I will never comb them again. I throw all our things on top of the pile. Skins. Clothes. What is all this… read more

Last night's creation..

Late Son Part 9

The Boat at Night The river was dark enough that night felt earned. When the boat came, it did not announce itself. No lights. No greeting. It moved against the current, slowly and badly, as though whoever was guiding it had chosen direction over sense. Steven heard it before he saw it—the wrong… read more

Late Son Part 10

Summer → The Narrow Road Summer arrived and stayed. Not with events. Not with demands. Just with days that asked to be lived inside rather than managed around. The riverside settlement held without effort. Nets were mended. Walkways repaired where they wore thin. Nothing needed escalation. Nothing… read more

Pixel: A Short Horror

Steven found the lamp on a day the sky felt wrong. The clouds hung low and still, like they were listening. Even Lexi was uneasy as they walked through the nature reserve — her usual zig-zagging replaced by wary, stiff movements. When she suddenly stopped and growled, Steven followed her… (edited) read more

Pixel in the Lamp — A Retelling

Steven found the lamp on a Tuesday, which already felt suspicious. Nothing good ever happens on a Tuesday. He’d been walking Lexi through the nature reserve, half-listening to her snuffling at every blade of grass, when he noticed it: a gold lamp sitting proudly in the melted, wheel-less corpse of… read more

Coffee & Conditions

Steven sat in Alex’s office. He had found it more relaxing now — fewer questions, more finishing coffees than finishing cases. “Still nothing for me today?” Steven asked. “No, not today,” Alex said. “But I do appreciate the coffee. It’s Italian, isn’t it?” “It’s good, right?” Alex paused, looking… read more

Late Son Part 4

What Elias Brings With Him Elias asked to speak privately once routine had settled enough that asking wouldn’t draw attention. They stood behind the cooper’s workshop, where the smell of wood and pitch drowned out conversation. Elias spoke carefully, as if he’d rehearsed the order of the facts even… read more

Pixel In A Lamp

Steven was out walking the dog in the nearby nature reserve when he spotted it. A lamp straight out of a typical genie fable, sitting in the seat of a pink children's battery-powered truck that wouldn’t look out of place in Pennywell, mainly because it was burnt out and missing its wheels. He… (edited) read more

Newest tale of intrege...

Promise Me You’ll Come Home

Two months had passed since Steven received the keys to the flat he shared with Pixel, and in that time he had watched her transform the house into a home where both of them were represented. Steven took care of the bills, and Pixel took charge of the shopping and furnishing. Pixel was clear that… (edited) read more

Late Son Part 15

Years Later — What Endures When Nothing Is Rushed Years pass, not as a leap, but as accumulation. The place Steven and Iria chose never grows into anything important. The old stone foundations are kept sound but never expanded. The roof is repaired when it fails, never replaced. Paths appear with… read more

Late Son Part 7

Where Leverage Is the Currency They felt it before anyone spoke to them. The town sat at the convergence of routes—river, mountain pass, lowland road—and it ran smoothly. Not warmly. Smoothly. People moved with purpose. Disputes ended quickly. Nothing lingered long enough to become visible. There… read more

Late Son Part 12

The Fork — Trust, Not Strategy The fork was unmarked. One road followed the river—visible, social, full of information moving faster than people admitted. The other climbed inland, harder underfoot, quieter, worn smooth by use rather than traffic. Steven didn’t decide immediately. He looked at… read more

Late Son Part 3

Field Work — Seeing the System The river settlements didn’t look broken. That was the problem. Steven walked the riverbank while Iria and Maelin climbed toward the mill. Boats still moved. Water still flowed. People still worked. Small compensations had been layered over small failures until the… read more

Boundaries

It had been a month since Steven had last stood in DI Rosewood’s office. Pixel had insisted he stay home until his injuries healed, and Steven had agreed. He closed the door and noticed the poster. It was the same as the one that hung on the bathroom door at home. Rosewood noticed his… (edited) read more

"126 Days on Earth" - fragment

The day is drawn with a starless sky full of clouds. Fast. Restless. Why do I see them? I wasn't supposed to be here. Further on the ice, someone is sitting. Hair. It tangles with the wind. Vesper? No - too long. More curly. Who is it? The wind blows harder as she turns her head. A female… read more

Pixel Latesun

Steven hadn’t seen Pixel in two years, but there she was, sitting in the corner of the Cooper Rose. She looked happy as she talked with the others at the table. She hadn’t noticed Steven watching from across the bar, hidden in the crowd. Steven knew exactly how he felt — and stayed where he was.… (edited) read more

Breathing Room

Steven woke up in a room that wasn’t his own, in a bed less comfortable than his own. Pixel was to the right of him, still sleeping soundly. She needs this, Steven thought to himself. Sleeping doesn’t fix things — it just gives you the energy to deal with them the next day. Steven took in the… (edited) read more

There's Always A Price...

Steven woke up to find himself covered in a blanket. He must have fallen asleep sitting at some point, he thought. That wasn’t unusual for him — not recently, anyway — but this time was different. Pixel’s head was resting on his lap, and she was fast asleep, tucked under the duvet. As someone who… (edited) read more

Yesterday's creation.

Late Son Part 13

When Force Tests Restraint → The Cost of Clarity → Leaving Without Being Absorbed The road narrowed where the trees leaned in. Eight figures stepped out of cover—not cleanly, not together. Mixed weapons. Uneven spacing. The kind of ambush that relied more on desperation than planning. Steven saw it… read more

Speed Queen 👑

Nobody expected Pixel to become a street racer. Learning to drive was supposed to be another normal human thing to add to the list. Instead, she discovered she was annoyingly good at it. Steven never really cared about real cars. Between Shadow Walking and magic, distance had never been much of a… read more

Pixel's Return

It had been months since Steven had last seen Pixel, but there she was, sitting on the Dragon Ball Z–blanket-draped leather chair with either Frodo or Loki on her lap. I really should make an effort to remember which cat is which, he thought as he closed the bedroom door and hung his coat… (edited) read more

Foundations

Steven sat in his chair and looked around his room, everything he wanted to take with him boxed or bagged, ready for transport. The bed had been dismantled, and he’d been sleeping on the mattress on the floor; it wasn’t a new experience. He hadn’t started looking for new accommodation yet. He was… read more

Late Son Part 5

The Place That Hasn’t Learned Its Name The lesser-mapped road thinned until it was no longer a road at all—just a habit worn into the land. It avoided trade, avoided explanation, avoided anyone who might later ask why three people had passed through. The valley opened without announcement. It… read more

The Traveler and Solace

The man opened his eyes and took in what lay before him. He stood on a circular stone platform designed to look like a compass. In each corner of the garden, something different waited: an oak tree, a pond shaped like an infinity symbol, a hammock, and a flower garden. A four-foot painted wall ran… (edited) read more

Putting Things In Place

“I don’t have anything to ask you today,” said Alex. Steven knew this day was coming. There had been fewer questions he needed to answer since he started using the 15/15 rule three years ago. There was only one uncomfortable question left: what do I do now? Alex noticed Steven hadn’t spoken… (edited) read more

Notice Given

Steven sat down in the chair in front of Alex’s desk and placed a coffee in front of her. “You have something to tell me, don’t you?” Alex asked. Steven sighed. “How could you tell?” “You brought good coffee,” she said, “and I can see it on your face. It’s a cop thing.” Steven reached into his… read more

Rules To Live By

Steven found himself in a black void and immediately decided this definitely wasn’t the afterlife. No flaming pits, no tortured screams, no dramatic smoke effects. “Oh no,” he muttered, “I’m about to be Isekai’d. I can see it now: From Human to Hero’s Rear Accessory: Adventures in a Land Full of… (edited) read more

Those Who Keep The Shore

Steven lay on the beach, enjoying the sun and the silence. Pixel was off somewhere painting; Steven had already shadow-walked home to pick up supplies for her, something he couldn’t refuse. This place was beautiful. A camera was never going to capture it the way Pixel and a canvas could. He’d never… read more

Late Son Part 1

The Forgotten Door Steven woke to stone. Cold beneath his back, close on either side, the kind of corridor built for maintenance rather than people. No chains. No pain. His magic was there—present, patient—but it lay coiled instead of reaching. That alone told him this wasn’t a trap meant to hold… read more

Not in Time

It was Bank Holiday Monday morning. Steven had made plans for the day with Pixel; there was a new exhibit at the art gallery that she wanted to see. Steven didn’t mind going — Pixel’s enthusiasm always made things better than they were. After the gallery, they could go for something to eat and… (edited) read more

Late Son Part 6

The Place That Doesn’t Let You Ease In The town announced itself before it welcomed anyone. Notice boards stood at every entry point, freshly maintained. Procedures were posted in plain language. Armed presence existed, not heavy, but unmistakably intentional. This was not a place that panicked—but… read more

The Omega Garden (as told by Solace)

The man opened his eyes and found himself lying on a circular stone carved to resemble a compass. Warm light bathed the garden around him, though no sun shone in the sky above—only a soft, directionless glow diffused through air thick enough to swallow sound. In each corner of the garden,… read more

Islands In The Stream

It was the night before Christmas, and all through the town, the people were drinking, Newcastle’s ale brown. Steven didn’t know how he ended up here, nursing an Old J Spiced Rum and Coke in a karaoke bar. He was sitting at a table with Pixel, some of her friends from work, and the flat share she… read more