An enormous shadow crossed the plain, extending its darkness in every direction. Eclipsing the warmth of the sun, the object above blocked the light, painting bushes and wild scrub black. The rear portion of the shadow rolled forward like a curtain, forming a visible line between day and night.
The preschooler blinked at the
The waters of Venezia are colder than most people think.
I stare at the Grand Canal two stories beneath me. Waves lap quietly against the dock to Palazzo Grassi, shimmering in the moonlight. Venezia—Venice—is quiet now. The tourists have retreated. The gondolas are docked. Below, a duck nibbles on a forgotten gelato
There’s no harm in a quick swim before morning chores. No one ever notices. I’m always back by sunrise.
Something tugs my feet. In an instant, the current drags me under and out to sea.
No!
Spinning, I cannot think. My arms flail, fighting hard against the undertow.
Which way is up?
Agabus the gnome rushed into the hallway and leaned against the wall. “That was close,” she panted, glancing over her shoulder. Another one of the queen’s booby traps Agabus just narrowly avoided. I must be getting close to her lair. To Tump.
Her eyes adjusted to the light provided by the torches.
There once stood a tree at the Edge of the Earth where oceans cascaded into the void of the Beyond. The magnificent tree’s cloud-white branches spiraled miles into the sky, glowing with ethereal light.
Though beauty generally fostered happiness, his effervescent limbs swayed with melancholy rather than joy over the Garden at the
“Doctors, we have a murderer among us.” Standing at the lectern boulder at the center of base camp, Dr. Angela Mansfield glared in turn at each of her three surviving colleagues. Each were seated on logs around the council circle, every shocked face bathed in an amber glow from the setting sun behind her.
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While I’ve faced plenty of crises aboard the spaceship Oceania, I’d never been charged by a rhino before.
Seconds from impact, I dodged the furious beast’s horn, lunged, and scooped her into my arms. “Take it easy,” I murmured, scratching behind Rhino One’s ears.
The Oceania was transporting a dozen Sumatran rhinos…
Liam entered the Mountain of Death at dusk.
He adjusted his headphones, checked the volume unit—or VU—dial on the mixer strapped to his belt, and reasserted his grip on a boom pole carrying a shotgun microphone. With his headlamp’s yellow beam piercing the darkness, he pointed the mic’s windscreen into…
Slap. Slap. Slap.
Waves hit against the side of the Friendship. Slap. Slap. Slap. We are an invader in their domain. My stomach roils, and I clamp a sweaty palm over my mouth. I wouldn’t lose much in the way of food if I retched, but it’s the principle of the whole thing.
“Hikari, let’s review your statement.” I flip three pages back in my notebook. There needs to be no discrepancies in the retelling of my defendant’s story. Traveling at 220 mph, I’m aware I have little time to solve this case. The Nozomi Bullet Train takes two hours and fifteen minutes to travel from
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An island filled with caves, carved by fervent monks. This was the refuge to which her brother had fled.
Island of Caves, his message had said. Worshippers pass through the halls and chant. Echoes everywhere. The stonework is hard, but good. It makes my heart feel whole. At night, I crawl into my
Namika’s tenth winter was bitter. January’s harsh winds blew into April, and she had a sickness that made her mother frown and the doctor whisper. When the first sakura buds appeared in her family’s grove, Namkia stared longingly from the window. Usually she would be helping her family prepare for hanami, the flower viewing…
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