Announcing “Encore: Vice & Virtue” Flash Fiction Contest Winners!
Announcing the winners of the “Encore: Vice & Virtue” August 2026 flash fiction contest!
Read it nowVice and Virtue
What Friends Are For
Mateo glanced at his lock screen and huffed. They should have left for the concert fifteen minutes ago. Where was Dylan?
He dialed his friend’s number yet again, but it went to voicemail for the fourth time.
Beep!
“Dylan, come on, man!
The Monster Within
Aggravain brushed her fingers over the large mirror’s ornate silver frame. If the rumors were true, it would reveal her enemies. With it under her control, she’d be unstoppable, and it’d be worth every drop of blood spilled to obtain it.
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Wrath and Ruin
Cristilian drew a third deep breath, willing calmness into the deepest part of his being where perpetual anger burned.
Beyond the ornately carved doors, a cacophony of conversation and music marked a feast celebrating not only harvest completion but also victory
Even the Wisest Man on Earth
Lenny couldn’t help being the wisest man on Earth. Just as the rest of humanity couldn’t help being deeply and tragically ignorant.
He tapped his fingers against his carefully constructed booth as he sat by the vacant road outside his house.
You’d think the walking public
Bang for the Buck
“We want to purchase explosives for our children.”
Most people, including most fireworks dealers, would wince at that phrasing. Not Louie Blanchard. For one thing, he knew the Pairish extraterrestrials’ translator devices sometimes missed certain subtleties in the English language. For another,
Party Fervor
“Ah, I did say I would match you drink for drink, didn’t I?” Nathaniel Markson sways as he pulls another whiskey off a passing server’s tray. His flushed cheeks are evidence that he’s had far more drinks beyond the three with you.
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Becoming Bard
When Bard’s parents named him, they bestowed on him one of the greatest gifts in Valoria. Storytelling. Except that required him to speak in front of a crowd. And for Bard, that was a task as insurmountable as facing a dragon.
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The Dream Assassin
Everyone dreams of finding their one true love at a grand ball. I happen to be at a grand ball at the moment, but there’s no time for Handsome Prince Sightseeing.
Only murder.
Don’t fret—I’m not here to take a life.
I’m here to kill dreams. It’s my duty.
El Tirano del Mar
I clung to the yardarm as wind whipped across the deck of Brume de Mer, spraying ocean mist into the captain’s face.
“With a stiff wind and a swift current, we’ll be in the West Indies in no time, lads. Where rum and our profits await!”
Reset
“Death’s Door to your right, Z.”
“Do you have to call it that?” I say into the comm of my stolen suit. Sweat dampens my forehead as I turn the corner on Dad’s spaceship. The giant metallic door I meet certainly seems like it would hide world-eating tech.
Speak Up
“How are you solving these cold cases, Officer?” Chief Stanford lowered the report to his desk, shaking his head in disbelief.
Officer Alvin Waters scratched the back of his neck and shrugged. His observational skills had led to his interest in law enforcement, but he never imagined
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