The Fourth Hurdle

Recycled tired under toes, knees, hands. Metal blocks looking down a highway of obstacles. Eyes forward, straining for the end of the road.
A voice causes slight movement. Runners poised to start. Muscles tensed, ready. Over the first hurdle before the loud pop echoes away.
There are no flashes, cheers, or shouts. It is only rubber, metal, [...]

Hero’s Heart, Part 3

Kevin caught up to Mindy at home. For all his super speed, her magic was faster. He found her in her basement retreat. She worked over a table of esoteric items, gathering this and that to mix with the other.
“Sorry I couldn’t wait,” she said when he arrived. “I don’t have much time before this [...]

Hero’s Heart, Part 2

All the known Artifacts were held in a series of warded catacombs. Among their other duties, the Lords and Ladies of magical society were charged with guarding Artifacts from unscrupulous magicians.
Captain Awe and Sorceress Min arrived in the Scottish Highlands to request access to the Globe, an Artifact passed down through several hundred generations of [...]

Hero’s Heart, Part 1

“You can come after me, or you can save a few citizens of your beloved Metro City,” The Mage crowed. “What’s your pleasure, hero?”
The Mage had stranded more than twenty people upside down on a roller coaster, where he’d set a magical acid drip to corrode the steel track. Captain Awe flew to [...]

Crash, Part 5: The Conclusion

He opened his eyes to a bright, foggy space. A silhouette came toward him. It was a child of about eleven years. He had red shaggy hair, green eyes, and a ready smile. Freckles were splashed across his nose and cheeks.
“Andy?”
It had been over thirty years since he saw his brother.
“Hey Bro. Missed ya.”
Small arms [...]

Crash, Part 4

Emily had wanted a storybook day. She would have had the event at Disney World if it weren’t so expensive. Still, she and her mother were a dream team of planning. Although she didn’t wear a tiara, Emily was a princess, and Sherman her prince. They rode away in a white carriage pulled by a [...]

Crash, Part 3

“Help’s on the way,” the man said. He spoke in a gentle voice. “They’ll be here any minute.
Sherman tried to nod, but his neck was too sore. Whiplash. He’d heard of it but never experienced it. At least the pain was fading in his chest and belly. It must have been like the hits he [...]

Crash, Part 2

The world shrank into that moment. Time stretched as the car was pushed in a direction Sherman had never experienced. He was vaguely aware of bending to his right and hitting his head on something. Still, the car moved sideways. It was eternal and quick, over before his soul caught up.
Movement ceased. Sherman couldn’t breath. [...]

Crash, Part 1

Sherman was on the way home from a guilty pleasure. His wife only consented because she knew how much it meant for him to do it. A middle-aged man had no business going to ice-skating lessons, as Emily saw it. It wasn’t like he planned to learn jumps or even spins. No, he wanted to [...]

Allow Me My Mortality

Lightning arcs across the sky. I expect the monstrous clap, but I jump anyway.
There’s a wall of rain on the other side of the parking lot. I swallow against the fear. The storm will not wash me away. Not this time.
People run from their cars to the supermarket’s waiting embrace even as oversized rain pellets [...]