SENTENCED

By: Mahohokus

It's a chilly autumn evening in Gardiner, Maine. The sky is a deep shade of indigo, scattered with a few fleeting clouds. The air carries a hint of wood smoke and leaves crunching beneath feet. I'm standing on the fifty-yard line of Gardiner High School's football field, my hands thrust deep into the pockets of my worn leather jacket. My breath forms little white puffs in front of me, dissipating slowly into the crisp air. The lights of the stadium bathe me in a warm glow, casting long shadows across the grass.

It’s a simple day for Toni, right? She’s back at work, she’s had her surprise lunch with Mallory, that Greg told her to indulge in. She somehow got to join a private members' club, for people who like food and drink, and simply enjoy the pleasure of it, not the status and money. And now she just has to knuckle down, back at her regular job. That’s all she has to do, right? Life is going to be normal—as normal as it can be for Toni—until Friday when she gets to see her friends, and her boyfriend, again. Right? A normal day back at work for Toni? Right!?!

With the stage set and the trap primed, Lilith and her allies prepared to spring into action. They had given Mu'thar enough power to lead them to his home, trusting in his desperation for freedom to guide their path. The path out had been meticulously cleared, leaving only one final step: shaking the ground and releasing the spell that held Mu'thar captive.

The ongoing trials and tribulations of Ronin Kassius as he assumes the identity of Isabel val Sanreal and returns to Ar Telica City. Having survived the encounter with the Gun Queen of Ar Telica, Ronin returns to Ar Telica and begins his/her new dual life as Isabel val Sanreal, illegitimate daughter of the uber rich Sanreal Family, and as the Gun Princess, Mirai, an artificially created entity with preternatural abilities.

The afternoon sun burned as he stepped into it. He wondered how he'd managed to sleep so long and why Maud hadn't woken him up.

A Change for the Best

By: Mahohokus

A chance meeting while dressed up leads to a new future for Robin.

Salon Supplies
A Vignette
By Maryanne Peters

My business is business. I buy and I invest, and where I need to manage my investments, I do that too. I try not to get too involved in what I buy. You always need to be ready to sell and tell the staff that you are leaving and so are they. There is no room for sentimentally – no room for attachments.

A story from the less glamorous end of the film industry

In Lincolnshire, there's a famously tall mediaeval tower, the Boston Stump, which is visible from miles away and is actually part of the parish church of St. Botolph.

After flubbing a powerful incantation, meant to give newly coronated Demon Queens the wisdom of their ancestors, Devilla Satanne awakens to memories of her past life as Jacob Divington, a human from Earth. Having gained a new perspective on life, she quickly comes to a rather horrifying conclusion: she's been a complete and utter brat! No wonder everyone hates her!

And then there's the fact that she's apparently been reincarnated as the villainess of Tower Conquest, a lesbian porn game with a surprisingly intricate plot. One in which the Heroine conquers Dimona Tower, turning Devilla's people against her in the process. In victory, the Heroine brings about a glorious age of peace between demons and humans for the first time in millennia. ...Which actually sounds pretty good for her people, come to think of it. Devilla knows her terrible behavior is beyond forgiveness, but maybe she can still make up for her past mistakes? She just needs to make sure the events of the game unfold correctly. Though there is one little detail she'd like to change - the part where Devilla herself is killed or enslaved!

The series cover was commissioned from https://twitter.com/HaizeUqei

Satoyama: Japan's Hidden Water Garden 
By
Rebecca Anna Coleman

Chapter One: Satoyama 
-A Rural Japanese Village in the Japanese Alpine Region-

Allison’s first day as Allison involved a discovery about herself—Allison suddenly becoming a former ‘himself’—along with new medication helping Allison in being that new ‘herself.’ And a new job; one she’d never heard of before. It ended with her falling asleep next to her friend Angie. The same Angie who became Allison’s first personal client in her new employment, after Allison found her a tobacco that improves taste; suiting Angie’s desires perfectly. Now Angie fears it’s time for the favours and friendship to trade host again; Angie having spotted Allison is sleeping through a deep pain.

Allison’s pain could be down to the tobacco but Angie fears it’s down to the effect of the feminising medication. Could this change in Allison—through medical science—be something Allison’s body can’t handle? Is it something her body is rejecting? No-one Angie knows has even heard of such changes being possible. Has medicine gone too far?