Mystery
Ghosts of People
Two men in a dive bar engage in a relatively mundane discussion about contemporary politics. "Among the emerging new Lefts and new Rights, there are competing factions," Nicolae begins. "Some more or less support Ukraine, while others more or less favor Russia. Some are preoccupied with Israel and Palestine. Some focus on racial and cultural issues, while others are more interested in economics and government. They all want greater influence and support. The question is: what methods will they use to achieve their goals? Who will succeed? Will the winners absorb followers from their former opponents--or will they themselves eventually be defeated?"
By ANTICHRIST SUPERSTAR3 months ago in Fiction
BTVU
"BTVU" stands for Before The Vocal Update. This seems like forever ago, but I am now in Vocal poverty, when I used to be awash with coffee money from my Vocal earnings and tips, but thanks to Vocal deliberately locking the door on me and many others my coffee money has to come from other sources.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 4 months ago in Fiction
The Undulating Field. Top Story - September 2023. Content Warning.
This is for Mother Combs "Twisted Endings" Challenge that you can read about here The Undulating Field I had a restless night and kept getting up for some reason, but I don't know why. Eventually, I decided I might as well just get up, so went to the bathroom shaved, cleaned my teeth, took a shower, took drugs and got dressed. It was six in the morning, and I was on holiday, so there was no need for me to be up at this unearthly hour, but I was and went to the kitchen and made coffee, instant, with oat milk in the microwave.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 4 months ago in Fiction
Beneath Hollow Creek
Lena Vail stood at Sergeant Bolan's desk inside the Hollow Creek police department, clutching her sister's photograph in her rain-soaked hand. Her red hair darkened with the rain and clung to her cheeks in uneven strands, while water dripped from her soaked jacket onto the tile floor as she paced back and forth. Mara, her twin sister, had been missing for thirty-one hours, and the sergeant who was taking her report kept telling her that adults were allowed to leave home without telling anyone.
By Beatrice Ellison4 months ago in Fiction
Forty Miles South
The old man had the kind of voice that made bad ideas sound rehearsed. He was sitting across from me at a marina bar where the ceiling fans turned slow and useless above our heads. Outside, the boats knocked gently against the docks, rope creaking, black water breathing between the slips.
By Alejandro Arango4 months ago in Fiction
Oblivion: three
Having rearranged various appointments and assured my features editor I would later file the articles that she was expecting from me, I headed to the bank. Fortunately there was nothing I needed to submit to the news editor. Why I was taking such trouble over all of this? I really did not know. Perhaps it was just the investigative journalist in me.
By Raymond G Taylor4 months ago in Fiction
The House is on Fire
Jim and Alias: Summer, 1990 Lights were flashing above a sign on a window which advertised a two-for-one offer on DVDs, Jim felt like he had no choice. He had nothing to do with his Friday night so why not treat himself to some new movies until he and his pet fell asleep? It was regular that this man, mid-30s with part-time employment, would have nothing to do with his Friday night apart from this. He hadn't acquired enough money to roam the streets and shop, he hadn't the energy to spend time with friends and he hadn't the location to visit his family who lived miles and miles away.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Fiction
Anchored in the Fluorescent Hum . Top Story - July 2026.
They talk amongst themselves, and when a touch of mood crosses their faces, their whole bodies wake up like bumblebees, restless, reactive, always shifting. They were all sipping from clear plastic cups, with bags by their feet. The staff who knew each other discussed the new Starbucks menu. The others said oi, which softened the room. But not her, behind her thin‑rimmed glasses. I knew her, but not really; stillness holds her together. She is the kind of person whose warmth stays exactly where it is, steady and unmoving, as distant as the wall and as near as the humming fluorescent lights. I notice her the way I notice the unchanged grain of the carpet, the quiet things that stay where they are. She is the only one anchored in her black formal wear, tapping her index finger, not her thumb, against the screen of her phone.
By Caitlin Charlton4 months ago in Fiction
Nostradamus Predictions for 2026.
Nostradamus Predictions for 2026 Nostradamus remains one of the most enduring names in prophecy. Born Michel de Nostredame in sixteenth-century France, he worked as a physician, astrologer, and writer, a man who turned observation into prediction. His book Les Prophéties has travelled through centuries, its cryptic verses sparking argument and awe in equal measure. Some see his work as poetic philosophy, others as proof that the future leaves shadows long before it arrives. Whatever the truth, his name still rises whenever the world trembles.
By ♿ V+ Marie381Uk 4 months ago in Fiction
The Dark Car Park
Introduction On our recent trip to Whitby Fiona got lost descending from Whitby Abbey (a former haunt of Dracula), she was perturbed by the steps on the estate block which might have led to a dark car park. Matt and Craig, our hosts told us about wanderings in some Whitby estates where if you are "not one of them" you are subjected to baleful glares from the locals. To these scenarios, I have added some elements of a Cristopher Fowler short story about a driver in an underground car park.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 4 months ago in Fiction
