Fantasy
Tales of Lezara
There was terror in the beginning. Chaos and lawlessness were just as much a part of mankind's existence as eating and sleeping. The nations of man had nothing except what they took from their neighbors and as such war plagued mankind with death’s stench being a pervasive, enshrouding aura. One could not afford to be kind to strangers for that stranger might return said kindness with a knife to the back so that they could take everything one possessed, even the shirt from one’s back. And so life was in the beginning: killing to rob to eat only to be killed themselves in a cycle that reduced existing to a gray tinged monotony of hunger, pain and death. At least, that’s how it was until the Sun King Rotael Exce Ixander del Sol came to power. Winning battle after battle he conquered first the Easternmost regions of the man’s territories then continued ever westward, uniting all under the banner of Solaria and bringing law and order to places where it had been absent from for many generations. The people readily welcomed his reign, for with it he gave them education, jobs, food, and security. “Join Sol’s temple,” they regularly touted to nonbelievers, “and all your prayers will be answered tenfold!” And soon the Sun King stood at the pinnacle of all mankind, bridging them to the heavens so that Sol might hear their prayers and answer them in kind. He ended the seemingly endless wars and brought law through the gift of Sol’s glorious word. No more would mankind be plagued by death’s constant shadow for the Sun King’s light had banished all shadows and allowed mankind to foster in his warmth and love…
By Marcus Helaire5 years ago in Fiction
ALONE
The last time I thought about the date, it was May 8 or 10, 2023. Close enough, I guess. I’m finally getting used to the situation. It still seems like a bad dream: sitting here on this concrete slab surrounded by endless piles of rubble for as far as I can see. Maybe I should record all that’s happened. I have to believe that someone, somewhere on this planet, is still alive and will find me… hopefully, before I die!
By Aliya Saige5 years ago in Fiction
Always in My Heart
Pale morning light filtered through the boarded windows, as the young girl watched her father slip through the door out of their small apartment. Her mother quickly pushed the dresser before the door again. Keeping out anything that would harm them.
By Ashley Whitehead5 years ago in Fiction
Bound
This land has always been Mariqua. None of the history, that has survived, reveals anything that may have come before. All that is known from before is that Witches and humans were here before vampires. Vampires came to be because of a mistake. Whose mistake depends on who you are asking. The Witches, male and female, had always gone unchallenged. Anyone from any family can be a Witch. The very first sign that someone was (or is) a Witch is the zircon eye color that is there from birth. The first Witches' names that anyone and everyone can remember are Silas and Belladora.
By Cody Kennedy5 years ago in Fiction
Abatement of Kings
For a lifetime I’ve been waiting: being an environmentalist takes time and patience. Research after research, I’ve become one with the sea. After graduating from Duke, I found myself traveling everywhere except land itself. From the Caledonian Barrier Reef all the way to the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef.
By Audrey Hancock5 years ago in Fiction
Thoughts of the Mist
The Village of Toth burned. The community, twenty hollowed-out trees a hundred feet tall, contained in a single stone wall fifteen feet high that stretched around the entire circumference of the settlement. Two thick wooden gates, one on each side of the village guarding its vulnerable interior, stood wide open. Fire engulfed the leafy canopy above, burning down the dark gray trunks toward the people cowering beneath. Flaming branches and leaves fell, covering the victims in black ash. Each tree was a dwelling, and the people saw their homes burn in panic and disbelief. The smell of smoke permeated everything.
By Mark Jefferson5 years ago in Fiction





